Rodolphe James "Rod" Vallee

Rodolphe (Rod) James Vallee passed away peacefully following a long illness at his home in Georgia, Vermont on March 12, 2026. Born on May 27, 1937, in St. Albans, Vermont, he was the son of Rodolphe L. and Shirley Vallee and the third of five Rodolphes in a family descended from French Canadian immigrants whose roots trace back to Beauport, Quebec in the early 17th century.

Rod spent his early years on High Street in St. Albans before his family moved to a dairy farm in Sheldon, where his lifelong love of the outdoors took root. He and his beagle Penny explored the woods and swamps of Sheldon and Fairfield with his closest friend Terry O’Brien, later building a log cabin in Lewis for deer hunting. As his own family grew, he purchased a logging camp in northern Maine that remains a cherished gathering place for family hunts to this day.

A standout center for the BFA football team, Rod was selected for the 1955 Shrine game. That same year he met Betty White, the coach’s daughter, and they married on July 11, 1959, beginning a devoted 66-year partnership. Together they raised five children while Rod built R. L. Vallee, Inc. from a home heating and propane business into a successful gasoline and convenience store enterprise that became the Maplefields chain. Deeply committed to his community, he served as president of the Junior Chamber of Commerce and the St. Albans Rotary Club, a director of the Franklin-Lamoille Bank, a member of the Georgia School Board, and an early supporter of the St. Albans Skating Association.

Rod’s passion for wildlife and conservation defined much of his life. A graduate in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Vermont, he served as chairman of the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Board and was instrumental in preserving Rock Island in St. Albans Bay through the Lake Champlain Land Trust. After retiring in 1992, he and Betty traveled extensively, capturing remarkable photographs from expeditions to the Russian Arctic, Antarctica, the Serengeti, and the Brazilian Pantanal. Many of those images appeared in books they co-authored, and their renovated schoolhouse in Georgia became a home for their treasured collection.

Rod is survived by his loving wife Betty, their children Rodolphe M. (Skip) (Denise), Amy Norris (Kevin), Lisa Driver (Jim), Tim (Lynn), and Andrea Dukas (Tom), fifteen grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his sisters Paula Fahl (Dave) and Jan Tessier (John) and was predeceased by his sister Renee Bachand (Ron). His family remembers him best for the quiet joy he found sharing the outdoors with them at the family camp on Hathaway Point and on the land he preserved in Georgia.