Dr. Burnett Rawson at the Brownell Library in Essex Junction.

Sometimes life events alter our hopes and dreams — such is the story of 96-year-old Dr. Burnett Rawson, a native of Underhill, Vermont. He and his wife lost their daughter in 1992, and to honor her love of learning they made a generous donation that became the lead gift for the Deborah Rawson Memorial Library in Jericho. After his wife died in 2004, Dr. Rawson worked with a Vermont Community Foundation philanthropic advisor to establish the Jessie S. Rawson Charitable Remainder Trust, which will help ensure the library’s financial future.

His generosity did not stop with one library. He also set up two VCF Charitable Gift Annuities (CGA) that support the Vermont State Library Foundation’s Winnie Belle Learned Fund, and a third CGA that supports the Vermont Symphony Orchestra.

Young at heart, Dr. Rawson remains actively involved in his philanthropy, and he considers libraries to be the lifeblood of a community. He recently observed, “Twenty years ago people predicted that technology would make libraries obsolete, but it has actually benefited them. They now provide access to even more resources.” Dr. Rawson, a big fan of audio books on CD, is pictured (above) at the Brownell Library in Essex Junction.

In 2009 the University of Vermont’s College of Medicine awarded him its prestigious Service to Medicine and Community Award. The award is presented to alumni who have maintained a high standard of medical service and who have achieved an outstanding record of community service not directly related to medical practice.