By Nick Patch, Director of Maritime Programs
The team at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum lost a dear friend on August 17, 2026 and we’d like to take a moment to remember and honor Peter Beckett.
Peter Beckett has been a volunteer at the Museum’s boat shop for the past 10 years. His passion for inspiring kids to be their best and his love for wooden boats came together perfectly at the Museum’s boat shop. He would show up regularly with tools, pictures, and props to give presentations to our high school boat builders and work on the boat under construction. He regaled us with stories of his past experiences both in the military and with Eastman Kodak where he worked for a long time, and the occasional drive by in a fun car! Peter generously shared his reflections on a life well lived.
In addition, Peter sponsored four of our youth boat building projects. His generosity provided the foundation to ensure students could build four boats over a four-year span. Those boats are now part of our Champlain Longboats rowing fleet rowed by thousands every season. Peter was passionate about the need to contribute financially to the community, and was never afraid to ask his peers to “pony-up” and support their community as well.
When his health became a problem recently Peter still made the trip to the Museum, his sense of humor always intact. We will sorely miss his storytelling, enthusiasm for boats and kids, and all-around positivity. His legacy lives on in all the students and staff he worked with over the years and in the four amazing boats he sponsored: Frank Beckett, Gail Parsell, Ruth M. Kennedy, and General McCausland.
