Born July 30, 1946
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Died Dec. 7, 2023
Bristol, Vermont
Details of services
A celebration of Wayne’s life will be held at Holley Hall in Bristol VT on Saturday, January 6 at 1:30. Refreshments will follow, and musicians are invited to bring an instrument for a concurrent Wayne Fest jam session.
Donations in Wayne’s honor may be made to Project Independence at www.elderlyservices.org, NDAA Adaptive Kayaking, or to further the causes that Wayne so deeply believed in.
Wayne Lauden, musician, kayaker, paramedic and perpetual tinkerer, died on December 7 surrounded by his family following a rapid advancement of Alzheimer’s disease. The son of Elizabeth (Hoffacker) and Ernest Lauser, Wayne was born July 7, 1946 and was raised in Media PA.
A talented musician and inherently creative, Wayne was classically trained in trumpet at Temple University and devoted to the arts in all forms. He wrote countless tunes and songs (including a full-length opera), played 8 instruments, and explored sound design, stagecraft, puppetry, and storytelling.
Holding true to his beliefs as a Quaker pacifist, Wayne became an anti-war campaigner, protester and organizer, blockading ports in canoes to disrupt arms shipments to conflict zones and trained civil-rights protesters in non-violent resistance. During the Vietnam War Wayne walked 500 miles to personally return his draft card to the desk of the Secretary of Defense. He was imprisoned as a conscientious objector, and later was given presidential pardon by Jimmy Carter.
Wayne settled to Windham County VT in 1980, where he was a performer, a first responder and paramedic, in addition to building 2 houses in Putney where he raised his family. His love for the outdoors inspired him to hand-build a cedar double kayak in which he navigated Vermont’s waterways by paddle and homemade sail.
Wayne retired to Bristol and quickly found his community of friends by hosting a weekly music jam. Despite the increasing difficulties of Alzheimer’s disease, his unique combination of curiosity, musicality, warmth, and grace remained firmly intact. Many blessings unfolded: Wayne became an enthusiastic member of the Project Independence community in Middlebury, where his spirit and interests were nurtured, and his love of kayaking continued through the support of the NDAA Adaptive Kayaking program. Wayne received TLC in his final weeks at Addison Respite Care Home at Helen Porter. The family will be ever grateful for fine care provided by these organizations.
Wayne left the world a better (and more interesting) place than he found it, and he lived his final days as he had all others – with a song in his heart. Wayne is survived by the love of his life, Sue Hawkins, his sons Jon and Jesse (Suzie Wyman), granddaughter Anna, daughter-in-law Stephanie, and many well-loved friends.
