Meril Labounty, 67 (pronounced 'Merl') of St. Johnsbury passed away Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2013 at Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital surrounded by his loving family. Meril was born in Burlington, Vt., on June 14, 1945, the son of Elphage and Shirley (Badger) Labounty. On May 26, 1971 Meril married Margaret Desilets. As Meril said, "where one was, the other wasn't far behind." Meril and Margaret had recently worked as drivers for RCT, bowled in the leagues at Gold Crown Lanes, and loved anything to do with the Boston Red Sox. Margaret died last Jan. 23, 2012. The simple statement "Meril was a good guy" kinda sums up what a likeable guy 'Merl' was. He will be missed, especially his self-effacing humor when he referred to himself as "short, fat, and ugly." Meril served in the Navy during the Vietnam era and spent 23 years serving in the Army National Guard in Lyndonville. He worked at Fairbanks for 36 years and loved playing baseball and softball. Meril also umpired in a lot of local leagues including recreational softball, high school girl's softball, Little League and Babe Ruth baseball. He and Margaret loved going to Saratoga where he was usually lucky at slots; they would drive hours to get to a good meal, especially at the Golden Corral. They also loved going for rides together scouting for deer. He is survived by his mother-in-law Mrs. Pauline Desilets of St. Johnsbury; four children: Chuck Labounty and wife Kyrie of Virginia, Edmond Labounty and Anna Ely of East St. Johnsbury, Meril Jr. known as 'Butch' and Theresa Stone of Lyndonville, Amy Labounty and Seth Drown of St. Johnsbury; 16 grandchildren: Michael, CJ, Joey, Chad, and Isaiah;Laken, Devin, Brodie, and Kayla; Nathan, Derek, Valerie, Brandon, Kiersten, and Jace; three brothers: Aimee Labounty, Dwayne Labounty, and Elphage 'Bud' Labounty all of St. Johnsbury; brother-in-law Tommy Desilets and his wife Diane of St. Johnsbury; three sisters-in-law: Mary Labounty of Whitehall NY, Ruthy Priest of Littleton, N.H., Pauline Desilets and Dean Allen of St. Johnsbury; nieces and nephews. His sister Cynthia Clough passed away this past Christmas eve. Meril and Margaret never forgot their six-week old baby girl Bobbi Jo who passed away in 1980. Visiting hours will be held at the Sayles Funeral Home Friday evening, Feb. 15 from 6-8 p.m. and will conclude with a brief prayer service. Memorial contributions, payable to "Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital," could be directed to Norris Cotton Cancer Center North, att: Jim Flynn, PO Box 905, St. Johnsbury VT 05819.