Juan Mier, Jr.

Juan Mier Jr., 90 of Hardwick and Burlington, Vermont passed away peacefully on October 27, 2024 at his home.  He was born in Hardwick, the son of Juan Sr. and Justa (Canales) who immigrated from Spain as part of the skilled immigrant labor force from Europe for the granite industry and started their own dairy farm in Hardwick where he grew up.  He was a longtime member of the Caspian Lake Masonic Lodge. 

He was preceded in death by his parents.  He is survived by his loving wife, Angela (Zorilla) of 90 years, married for 66 years, children Juan III and wife Holly (LaFrance), Angelo and wife Barbara (Warrender) and grandchildren Victoria Mier and Rebecca Mier, sister Pilar Canales and her son Dionisio Canales.

He met and married his wife Angela in Spain and brought her back to the US where they eventually settled down in Burlington Vermont. 

After high school he attended Norwich University for a semester where he studied agriculture but later developed a passion for large scale construction equipment and pursued a career in the maintenance of such equipment.  This career took him to large scale construction projects both in the US and overseas in countries including The Bahamas, Libya, Algeria, UAE, and Saudi Arabia, and projects that included the construction of a portion of Interstate 89 in Vermont from Richmond to Jonesville and the Alaskan pipeline.  His final job before retirement was as a truck mechanic with Fitzpatrick’s GMC on Pine St. in Burlington where he worked for 13 years.

He loved to tinker and could fix or build just about anything in his workshop in their basement where over the course of 50+ years had turned into its own machine shop and hardware store as he salvaged, sorted, and saved every nut, bolt, and brass fitting he could find.  He was an avid gun enthusiast and collector and loved hunting, target shooting, and re-loading his own bullets, and also loved sharing these hobbies with friends.  

In lieu of flowers, his family asks that donations be made to Bayada Hospice for making his last weeks at home humane and comfortable and for all the support provided to the family.  The family would also like to thank the support provided by the Mansfield Place staff during that time as well.

Funeral services will be held on Thursday, October 31, at 11:00AM at des Groseilliers Funeral Home, 97 Church St., Hardwick, followed by a burial at the Hardwick Main Street Cemetery.

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