In Memoriam: Wayne Darling
Wayne Steele Darling, who worked in a variety of security positions at Middlebury College for 25 years, died at his home in Vermont on January 23, 2026. He was 79 years old.
Darling was born October 2, 1946, in Nampa, Idaho, where he grew up and graduated in 1965 from Borah High School in Boise. From an early age, he developed a strong connection to the natural world, working summers as a woodsman and logger in the Rocky Mountains, experiences that shaped his lifelong reverence for the outdoors. He shared this love with his family through cross-country camping trips to national and state parks and through years of bicycling, downhill skiing, and cross-country skiing. He found everyday delight in observing wildlife—birds, deer, bears, bobcats, and more—around his home on a dirt road at the edge of Monkton Town Forest, where he lived for the past 54 years.
Darling attended Columbia University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science in 1969, was captain of the wrestling team, and completed Naval ROTC with an honorable discharge. Before moving to Vermont in 1972, he taught history and politics and coached wrestling and football at St. Paul’s School in Garden City, New York.
In 1992, Darling started working at Middlebury as museum and communications center manager and art gallery security monitor. In 2014, he became the manager for patrol supervision with the Department of Public Safety. He was actively involved with the Staff Council, including two terms as president from 2010 to 2012, and was inducted into the 25-Year Club in 2017. Earlier in his career, he managed service teams at Toyota and Volkswagen dealerships in Burlington.
In his various roles at Middlebury, Darling earned the admiration of coworkers for his unruffled demeanor. “Whether troubleshooting a security camera or addressing a personal issue, Wayne approached the moment with his usual calm and disarming manner,” noted retired museum colleague Ken Pohlman, who worked with Darling for many years.
Darling is survived by two children, Heather Darling-Cortes and her husband, Israel Corte, of New York City, and Benjamin Darling and his wife, Melanie Ivanoff, of Nashville, Tennessee; grandchildren Milo Corte, Lucia Corte, and Eleanor Darling; and sisters and their families Christine (Joel) Cook of Vermont, Diane (Scott) Atkinson of Idaho, and Debra Gibbs of Texas. He is also survived by the children of his late brother Richard and their families—Kim (Rick) Johnson and Blake (Amanda) Darling, both of Utah—as well as extended family, nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
Memorial donations may be made in Wayne’s honor to Sandy Hook Promise (SHP), Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), and the Monkton Town Forest Committee.
Friends, neighbors, colleagues, and former students are invited to join his family in celebrating his life on Sunday, August 2, 2026, from 1–5 p.m. at Button Bay State Park, Ferrisburgh.