JOHN HARTWELL AMES - SHELBURNE - John Hartwell Ames passed away on Aug. 29, 2011, in Wake Robin at the age of 89. He was born on Aug. 24, 1922, in Montclair, N.J., the son of Alfredrick S. Ames and Edna Hartwell Ames. He attended Montclair Academy and Princeton University where he was on the varsity crew team and a member of the Cannon Club. He graduated in 1944 and has been an enthusiastic alumni ever since. He also served in the army as a member of the field artillery during W.W.II. He joined Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company in 1946 and stayed associated with them for 43 years. In 1954 he qualified to become a member of the Million Dollar Round Table, a prestigious, international organization of insurance salesman. He was elected President of the organization in 1970 and achieved a number of other honorary distinctions in his field including, Chartered Life Underwriter, National Quality Award, National Service Award. He specialized in Employee Benefit Planning and was committed to getting the insurance industry involved in community action programs. He was also President of the Morristown chapter of the United Way for a number of years. In 1951 he married Patricia Youngman and for many years they lived in a unique home they renovated from a carriage barn in Convent Station, N.J. However his favorite place was always the Malletts Bay Club in Colchester which was established as a summer community by his family in the 1890s when his uncle, Horace MacVicar who was Principal of Montclair Academy started a summer camp for his students at the site of what is now Brown Ledge Camp. John purchased his own home there in 1964 and moved there full-time in 1990, where he lived until moving to Wake Robin in 2005. He was one of the founding members of the Colchester Land Trust and instrumental in arranging the purchase of the Rossetti Natural Area by the town for public use. John enjoyed a number of outdoor activities including golf, tennis, skiing and boating. He also loved dogs. An adventurer at heart he traveled extensively for both business and pleasure. He is survived by his sister, Elizabeth Hamilton of Florida; his son, John H. Ames, Jr. of Winooski and granddaughters, Jacqueline and Bethany Ames; daughter, Dr. Cynthia A. Haselton of Colchester and grandchildren, Hillary Hunter, Dustin, Britton and Hannah Haselton; as well as two great-grandchildren, Lucas Hunter and Wynn Haselton. He was predeceased by his wife, Patricia in 2002; and his sister, Mary Kellar Poore in 2008. There will be a gathering of friends and family to celebrate his life at the Haselton home in Malletts Bay Club on Sept. 17, 2011, at 4 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Humane Society of Chittenden County.