Scott MacGregor Skinner ’64

Scott MacGregor Skinner ’64 died peacefully on December 15, 2018, from lung disease. He was born in Pennsylvania on May 31, 1942, and was an active Boy Scout, attaining the rank of Eagle at age 13. Scott attended boarding school in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where he played football and basketball and was captain of the chess team and editor-in-chief of the school’s literary magazine. In 1960 he attended Clifton College in Bristol, England, where he studied English history, learned to play rugby, and set a discus record that still stands. He received an A.B. from Dartmouth in three years, majoring in history and graduating with high honors. After two years in Nepal with the Peace Corps, Scott graduated from Columbia Law School in 1969. He married Mary Just in 1970 and they moved to Montpelier, Vermont, where he became the first executive director of Vermont Public Interest Research Group. He was later executive director of the Vermont affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union before practicing law privately until retirement. Scott was the guiding force behind the Hunger Mountain Climb each February for 42 consecutive years. He and Mary were also known for their herd of cattle, exotic chickens, and exceptional garlic from their venerable farm in Middlesex, Vermont. Together they climbed 68 New England peaks of more than 4,000 feet and hiked and traveled extensively with their sons, Justin and Wilson. Scott is survived by Mary, their two sons, a daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren.