James Morse, a former Vermont trial court judge and Supreme Court justice who left retirement to serve as commissioner of what is now the Department for Children and Families, died at his home in Charlotte on Friday.
Vermont Superior Court Judge Helen Toor described Morse, who was her neighbor, longtime friend and mentor, as “an empathetic and compassionate soul.” Morse served as a trial court judge from 1981 to 1988 and an associate justice for the Vermont Supreme Court from 1988 to 2003.
Montpelier attorney Bernie Lambek’s first job out of law school in 1988 was as Morse’s law clerk in the Vermont Supreme Court.
“He trusted me and we worked very well together and I learned a great deal from him. Very thoughtful. Not particularly ideological. Just a lot of common sense,” Lambek said. “He helped me learn how to understand the law and how to approach the law and how to be a good lawyer.”
The two later served together on the board of the Vermont chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Despite the high-ranking positions Morse held, Toor said he was “an incredibly gentle and humble person,” who could go from sitting on the bench to taking his granddaughter to ballet class within a few hours.
Morse and his wife of 52 years, Gretchen, “loved having people around,” according to Toor. Their Charlotte home, a little red house by the covered bridge on Lewis Creek, was a gathering place for neighborhood children, who splashed in their pool while the adults sat discussing politics, the state of the world and law, Toor recalled. Almost every day that it was hot outside, there’d be a message on her phone with an invitation to come by the pool.
Toor said she remembers Morse as a “real renaissance man,” writing poetry, taking “absolutely gorgeous photographs” of nature that he would compile and send to friends and family in a calendar, and creating what he called his “Doodles & Jots” — drawings accompanied by often humorous captions. In 2013, Red Barn Books published his “Doodles & Jots.”
Jerry Swope, Morse’s son-in-law, said he has fond memories of Morse reading ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas to his grandchildren in front of the fire on Christmas Eve, and teaching his grandson how to play chess.
“I loved and admired his thoughtfulness. He was a real strong intellect but also kind of connected and engaged on a personal level,” Swope said. “I think he really kind of lived that notion of trying to create a more just world.”
After retiring from the Vermont Supreme Court in 2003, Morse was appointed by then-Gov. Jim Douglas to serve as commissioner of what is now known as the Department for Children and Families.
“That’s a very unusual career move for anybody, and it just taught me about the way he cared for Vermonters,” Lambek said.
Douglas — who at one point used to carpool with Morse to Montpelier — said he shared a similar vision with Morse of getting kids “off to a good start.” The two worked together to create Building Bright Futures for early childhood education, among other initiatives.
Bill Schubart, a neighbor and longtime friend, said Morse decided to make the switch from the state Supreme Court to DCF to make a difference at the beginning of Vermonters’ lives.
“What he wanted to do was to move upstream and see what kind of a commitment he could make to helping people — families, parents, children — stay out of the criminal justice system,” Schubart said.
“What a wonderful, full life, how could anybody pack so much hard work and goodness into a life?” Schubart said.