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IAN

BURGIN

ASHFIELD - Friends are recalling 24-year-old Ian Burgin of Ashfield as a bright and talented man who could have succeeded in anything he set out to do.

But Burgin died last Friday in a car crash while visiting family with his mother, Jacquelyn Burgin, his sister Ericka and his girlfriend, Audrey Nelson.

Burgin grew up in Ashfield, graduating from Mohawk Trail Regional School in 2004, and Middlebury College in Vermont in 2008.

He and Nelson were planning to move to Connecticut this fall.

Stuart Duncan Smith of Ashfield, a lifelong friend of Burgin's, had dinner with him and Nelson just two days before the accident.

He said the two had known each other since preschool and had played a lot of soccer together, on soccer teams at Mohawk and this summer, during the community soccer nights in Ashfield.

"I would describe him as my best friend for as long as I can remember," said Smith, his voice welling with emotion. "He was just a great guy to be around. He got everyone around him excited about doing things. He had this remarkable ability to focus on whatever he was doing at the time and give it all his attention."

Burgin is remembered at Mohawk by his former history teacher, Nancy Dole, as both mischievous and charming.

"It's certainly saddened many of us as the news has spread," said Dole, who lives in Ashfield and is now Mohawk's principal. "I have such fond memories of Ian."

One of Burgin's classmates called Dole after hearing about his death, and the two remembered a time when Burgin persuaded the other student to switch term papers with him. They each signed their name to each other's paper and handed them in, to see if Dole would notice the difference. She did, although they were both "A" students, she said. "Ian made sure you didn't take him for granted," Dole said with a smile. "His dear friends will miss him."

Ashfield resident Larry Parnass, whose eldest son is Burgin's age, had known Burgin for most of his life. "He was really remarkable," said Parnass. "He was pondering a career, possibly as an architect. Everybody was in awe of his ability to do things with his hands."

"I have a cane he carved, with a beautiful owl grip on it. He was also a very skilled short-story writer. That was another side of him. He was truly a Renaissance man."

After college graduation, Burgin lived in Seattle for a year, crafting his woodworking skills, according to Parnass. Burgin came back to Ashfield in February, and has been doing carpentry work in the region.

The two-vehicle accident occurred last Friday afternoon in St. Albans, Vt. According to Capt. Jay Sweeney of the Franklin County, Vt., Sheriff's Office, the Volkswagen Passat Burgin was driving and a Chevy truck collided at an intersection. Burgin's mother, Nelson and all five occupants of the pickup were transported to hospitals. Sweeney said the accident remains under investigation. A hospital spokesman said Jacquelin Burgin, who works for the Hilltown Community Development Corp. in Chesterfield, and Nelson have since been discharged from the hospital.

Woodworker Jim Picardi of Buckland and Bill Deters of Shelburne Falls had been working with Burgin recently on a building project. They say they were stunned by his death.

"He knew so much about so many things," said Picardi. "He took an interest in so many things. He had a very engaging intellect."

Picardi said Burgin had done some cabinet-making in Seattle. "His work was meticulous, methodical. He would have succeeded at whatever he wanted to do."

Deters said Burgin was a young person "who had a lot of gifts. I was terribly shocked (about the accident), as everybody was, who knew him."

In Vermont, Burgin's uncle, Jeff O'Connell, recalled Burgin "one of the most intelligent kids I've ever met. He was a very intuitive, curious little fellow - even as a little kid. He was very fun-loving."

"But when his dad died, he was 10 years old," said O'Connell. "He instantly became the man of the house. He took care of his mother until the day he died."

"He was very bright," said O'Connell. "The thing I'm trying to remember about Ian was his smile. He was always smiling."

At Ashfield Hardware Store, where Burgin bought his woodworking supplies, co-owner Laura Bessette remembers that "he always believed we had what he needed - even when he was a young boy, he was like that."

Sinead Keogh, who works in the store, remembered how Burgin loved to do back-flips on the dock at Ashfield Lake. "He was strong, but gentle and intelligent," she said.

Bessette said people have come into the store just to "share their tears and their huge loss."

"The family needs to know just how much he is missed and how much the family is loved."

"We're all really hurting from this," she said. "Ian was one of the most beautiful young men in our lives. We're just so broken."