Andrew Gordon Pepin

At age 102, Andy Pepin's great and generous heart has beat its last.   He died on May 19, 2026, and we thank the staff at Bel-Aire nursing home for all their kindness and care.   Andy was a jolly soul for his entire life and even when he couldn't communicate with us, he would find something that made him and others laugh.

He was born on August 3, 1923 in Newport Vermont to Joseph Isidore Pepin and Roseanna Boulett Pepin.  Andy was the youngest of eight children. His siblings were Ted, Grace, Eva, Leona, Lewis, Alfred, and Arthur.  He was close to all of them, but Arthur and Andy were best pals and saw each other regularly throughout their adult lives.

Andy attended local schools and graduated with honors from Newport High School in 1941. I am sure that there is evidence somewhere that he was "class clown," but it hasn't yet surfaced. Following high school was year or so at Becker College in Worcester, Massachusetts.  Then the U.S. entered World War 2.  Andy enlisted in the Army.  In 1943 he was shipped off to England to await what would be a major assault against the Nazis on the beaches of Normandy, France in June of 1944.  It was with luck that Andy's division was not chosen for the D-Day assault.  His company arrived in Normandy two weeks later, but some of the carnage of the D-Day assault was still visible.  He never wanted to talk about what he had seen in northern France.  However, he did say that while crossing France, he met many wonderful people whom he entertained with his (poor?) French and that while there he "perfected his broken English."  That broken English would turn up years later in many of his jokes.

Andy returned home from Europe in fall of 1945 and worked for a while with local attorney, John Redmond.  At that point he considered studying law.  And so he became a student again at Middlebury College and followed that with three years at the law school of Boston University.  He graduated from law school in 1951.  It was during those Boston years that he had the very good fortune to meet Ernestine (Steeny) Rolls.

They married in August, 1952 in Washington D.C. and he whisked her off to Newport, Vermont where he had just opened a practice.  He practiced law in Newport for 59 years. He also served as Municipal Judge from 1953 to 1965.

As a lawyer and citizen, Andy was deeply involved in local affairs.  He played an important role in establishing the Jay Peak Ski Resort, in forming North Country Union High School, and in making Newport Country Club into an 18-hole course.  Waterfront Plaza, where the Newport Village Market and Hoagies now stand, used to be the north railroad yard.  Andy and three others had the vision to bring more business to downtown and find a better purpose for that land. They made it happen.  They purchased the property from the railroad and consequently sold it to Tony Pomerleau who developed it – providing a grocery store and other shops.

Andy was always an avid golfer and served as president of the Newport Country Club for many years. He won a few championships and lost many.  Andy was there to remind everyone, "even if you are not having a good day on the course, remember, you could always play worse."  He played golf well into his 90's with another couple of old duffers, Bob Bigelow and Lindy Palin.  They joked that one couldn't see, one couldn't hear, and one couldn't remember where he hit the ball.  They had a lot of fun making up their own rules for play.

In addition, Andy was an active Rotarian and a member of the Knights of Columbus. He spent many hours at the K of C hall on Pleasant St. because they had set up a place where Andy could practice his golf swing during the long winter months.

Andy also worked hard at petitioning the government to allow a Newport exit off the new interstate highway. The original plans only included exits for Orleans and Derby.  In short, Newport would be looking quite different today without Andy's efforts over the course of his long life.   There also would have been less laughter in the Kingdom.

Andy had a gift for storytelling and jokes, and he always wanted to leave his clients with a smile on their faces. From all accounts he did a pretty good job of it. Do you remember the one about the Bishop's visit to St. Mary's?   Besides being good at telling jokes, his positive personality was always fun to be around.  He had an ability to find fun and humor in almost every occasion.

He was a wonderful Dad, always genuinely concerned and kind. By example, he encouraged us to find humor wherever we could.

Andy was pre-deceased by his beloved wife of 73 years, Ernestine Rolls Pepin, by his parents, and by all his Pepin brothers and sisters-in-law.  He is also predeceased by James Rolls and John Colston, brothers-in-law on the Rolls side.  He is survived by two sisters-in-law, Rosemary Colston and Gloria Rolls, by his children, Laura Dolson, Nancy Pepin-Vogt, and James E. Pepin, by their spouses, Mark Dolson, Markus Vogt, Angela Gowan Pepin and her two sons, Alex and Aidan Cooke. He is also survived by three grandchildren:  Rebekah Pepin, Sarah Pohl, and Emily Dolson as well as their spouses, Peter Pohl and Josh Nahum and five great-grandchildren: Braden, Carter, Lucas, Noelle, and Theo.   Andy is also survived many nieces and nephews who loved him dearly.

A celebration of life will be held at a later date.

Online condolences are welcomed at curtis-britch.com.  If you can remember any of Andy's jokes from start to finish, consider adding them. You will earn extra points from everyone.