Carroll Thomas Collins of Lyndon died Friday, Nov. 18, 2016, at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. Carroll was born March 11, 1947, in Bridgeport, Conn. His parents, Chauncey and Pauline (Duguay) Collins moved back to their hometown of St. Johnsbury while Carroll was small, and purchased the Spring Street home where Carroll and his five siblings grew up. Carroll graduated from St. Johnsbury Academy in 1965 and enlisted as a conscientious objector in the U.S. Army in 1966. He served as a medic at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., receiving an honorable discharge in January 1969. After the army, Carroll moved to Burlington, Vt., to take a job at the Baird School. It was there that he met the love of his life, Joan Clara Capelle. They were married in Richmond, Vt., on March 1, 1970. Later that year, they partnered with two other educators to found the Border School in Canaan, Vt. The school created a supportive educational environment for five foster children at a homestead that was just a stone's throw from the Canadian border. In May 1978, Carroll graduated from Lyndon State College with a Bachelor of Science Degree. Shortly after graduation, he took a job as a home tutor for Adult Basic Education, which later became Northeast Kingdom Learning Services. He spent a 30-year career helping adult learners achieve their educational goals, until he was disabled by a spinal cord injury in the spring of 2008. With fierce determination and countless hours of physical therapy, Carroll regained his ability to walk, drive, and live independently. He returned to the workforce with the support of Vermont Associates for Employment and Training, where he served as a Mature Worker Specialist until shortly before his death. Carroll was predeceased by his wife, Joan, and his father, Chauncey. His is survived by his mother, Pauline; brothers Phillip, Peter and Patrick Collins; sisters Pauline Collins-Morgan and Bernadette Besette; daughters Kristin and Carol Collins, son-in-law Patrick McCombe, and grandson Liam McCombe. A joyful celebration of Carroll's life will be held Saturday, Dec. 17, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the ballroom at Burke Mountain Hotel and Conference Center. All who knew him are welcome. Please RSVP 203-304-1170. To honor Carroll's lifelong love of learning, donations in lieu of flowers may be made to the St. Johnsbury Athenaeum or to the Cobleigh Public Library in Lyndonville.