Stuart Alan Hurd

1948 - 2025

Stuart Alan Hurd, of Bennington, Vermont passed away in the presence of family on August 30, 2025 at the Dartmouth Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire following a courageous four-year battle with cancer.

Stuart was born in Hartford, Connecticut on May 20, 1948, the second of three sons born to the late Joseph Harvey Hurd and the late Mary Jane Reid Hurd. He attended local schools in Hartford and later in South Windsor, Connecticut and graduated from South Windsor High School (Class of 1966), where he played on the varsity basketball team. He graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 1970, earning a B. S. degree in Civil Engineering with a major in Urban Planning.

In 1973, while visiting a friend in the Rutland area, Stuart saw the Town of Bennington's advertisement for a Zoning Administrator, applied, was hired, and stayed with the Town until his death 52 years later. In his long tenure, Stuart served as the Town's first Zoning Administrator, Assistant Town Manager, and Town Manager, holding the latter position three days shy of 33 years.

In 1974, Stuart met his future wife, D. Justine Scanlon, who worked at the courthouse next door to the Town Offices. They established a long, loving relationship and were married on June 25, 1988.

Stuart was a dedicated civil servant, and an active member of his community, serving on numerous boards and committees in leadership positions, including the former Bennington School District, the Bennington Chamber of Commerce (now Southwestern Vermont Chamber of Commerce), the former Green Mountain Chapter of the American Red Cross and its successor, Green Mountain Express, as well as the Vermont League of Cities and Towns (VLCT). In 2008, he was voted Vermont Municipal Employee of the Year by the VLTC, having been nominated unanimously for the honor by the then-members of the Bennington Select Board.

A man of peace and harmony, Stuart loved art, music, poetry, and traveling in the United States, Europe and the Caribbean. He was a talented amateur watercolorist and painted Christmas cards for family and friends for many years. He enjoyed baseball, basketball, and football, rooting for the New York Yankees, the New York Giants, and the University of Connecticut Huskies (men's and women's teams). In earlier years, he especially enjoyed playing in the Town of Bennington's Men's League softball and basketball teams and the Sunday morning pick-up basketball games at MAUHS. Stuart loved his family, friends, co-workers, his job and his community. Most of all, he enjoyed quiet, private times at home. He was comfortable with himself and others; a man at peace with the world.

Stuart is survived by his spouse, D. Justine Scanlon; his brothers, Robert Hurd (Lorraine) and John Hurd (Patti); his niece, Grace E. Hurd; his brother-in-law, Joseph Scanlon (Jennifer Burr); his sister-in-law, Jane Scanlon (Tommy Lopez), and nieces and nephews, Justine Desmarais, Patrick Desmarais, James Desmarais, and Ema Rees-Scanlon.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the Devlin Family Funeral Home in Bennington. Calling hours will be on Friday, September 12, 2025 from 3:00 to 6:00 PM. A graveside service will be held on Saturday, September 13, 2025 at 11 :30 AM at Park Lawn Cemetery in Bennington. If friends desire, donations in Stuart's memory may be made to the Hoyt-Hunter Center for Oncology Care at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in Bennington through the funeral home at 332 North Street, Bennington, Vermont, 05201.