It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Ralph DesLauriers, founder of Bolton Valley Ski Area. He passed away peacefully at the age of 90, surrounded by his family, on Saturday, October 4, 2025.
Those who knew Ralph will remember him as deeply grounded and value driven, with a frequent smile that always reached his eyes. He lived a full, adventurous life and loved telling stories — from celebrity encounters at his kitchen counter to the shock of moving to a Vermont farm in high school to fond recollections of his parents from childhood.
Ralph was one of seven children and a father to nine, with 12 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, all of whom he adored. He had a knack for connecting with people and appreciated the simple things in life — a sweet treat at the end of the day, a beautiful sunset over the mountains — and lived proudly in service to Vermont and its community.
Ralph was born in Brockton, Mass., and soon moved with his family to Braintree, where he attended local schools and spent his formative summers learning to sail on Buzzards Bay on Cape Cod. It was said that he inherited an exceptionally positive disposition from his mother that he shared generously throughout his life.
In the fall of 1952, at the beginning of his senior year of high school, his parents bought the 280-acre Fiske dairy farm on Williston Road in South Burlington and moved their large family to Vermont, much to Ralph’s initial dismay. That move marked the beginning of his lifelong education in running a family business. After graduating from Burlington High School, he attended the University of Vermont’s College of Agriculture, earning a BS in agricultural economics while working full time on the farm.
Around this time, the growing DesLauriers family began transitioning from dairy farming to the emerging hospitality business by converting historic barns into motel units. Their early efforts grew into what became known as the Cupola Motel and Resort, located adjacent to UVM on Williston Road in South Burlington.
Working alongside his father, Roland, and siblings Paul and Nancy, Ralph played a key role in managing and expanding the family enterprise. Over time, it grew to include 130 rooms, a restaurant, tavern, conference facilities and single-family subdivisions along East Terrace and Dorset Street. In 1959, the State of Vermont purchased 40 acres of their farmland through eminent domain for construction of Interstate 89 and its cloverleaf intersection. What initially seemed like a setback ultimately boosted demand and helped the family’s business flourish. Ralph went on to spearhead the development of the Quarry Hill Club and Par 3 Golf Course after the City of Burlington sold the quarry to the DesLauriers family.
During this period, Ralph also served eight years in the Vermont Army National Guard, sharpening his leadership skills and rising to the rank of Captain before his discharge in 1965.
Ralph’s most ambitious venture began a year earlier, when his father purchased 8,250 acres of timberland from the Plant and Griffith Lumber Company for $13 per acre. Seeing potential where others saw only logged-over land, Ralph conceived a plan to develop the property into a ski area. All he needed was to persuade the State of Vermont to build an access road into the heart of what would become Bolton Valley Ski Area. By then, Ralph had cultivated a trait that would define his career — an unwavering optimism, essential for anyone bold enough to build a ski resort in Vermont.
The State approved the proposal in the fall of 1965, and construction of the access road began on May 1, 1966. In a feat that would be nearly impossible today, a 4.5-mile mountain road, skier parking lot, 24-room hotel, base lodge, ski trails, lift system and supporting utilities were all completed in just eight months. Bolton Valley Ski Area opened the day before Christmas that December.
Over the years, Bolton Valley expanded to include the country’s first condominium hotel, single-family homes, tennis courts, swimming pools, cross-country skiing and other resort amenities. Bolton Valley is documented to have taught more than 30,000 schoolchildren how to ski, earning a reputation as Vermont’s affordable, family-friendly mountain — something Ralph was especially proud of.
Ralph served on the boards of the Vermont Ski Areas Association, the National Ski Areas Association and the New England Council for Economic Development. He was honored to receive Small Business Person of the Year in 1978 from the Small Business Administration for his many contributions to the industry. In 1980 he attended the White House Conference on Small Business and completed the Smaller Company Management Program at Harvard’s School of Business Administration.
In 1997, after years of poor snowfall and mounting debt, Bolton Valley was sold. Though it was difficult to step away, true to his nature, Ralph began looking for new opportunities. In 1999, he moved to Jackson Hole, Wyo., and joined his son Rob and brother Chuck in developing the Teton Mountain Lodge at the base of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in Teton Village, Wyo. Following its opening in 2002 and expansion in 2006, Ralph led the development of the Teton Springs Lodge in Victor, Idaho.
Upon returning to Vermont in 2008, he assisted his sons Ralph and Ed, along with his daughters Christina and Ruth, in developing the Quarry Hill Apartments in South Burlington.
In 2017, at age 82, Ralph came full circle when he repurchased Bolton Valley Ski Area with his sons Evan, Adam, Rob and Eric; his daughter Lindsay; and a small group of local investors. The project gave him the rare opportunity to continue what he had started more than 50 years earlier. His lifelong contributions to Vermont’s ski industry were recognized with his induction into the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum Hall of Fame in 2022.
Although Ralph’s accomplishments were many, he would have been the first to say that what truly mattered were the people — the guests, employees and friends whose lives he touched. He provided mentorship and opportunities to so many, helping employees buy homes, friends start businesses and new parents navigate life’s challenges.
Ralph could often be found holding court at his beloved James Moore Tavern at Bolton Valley, swing dancing at the Stagecoach in Wilson, Wyo., or spending his summers sailing his 1962 32-foot sloop, the Enterprise, on Lake Champlain.
In his final days, when asked what he would like to be remembered for, Ralph simply replied, “That I was kind.”
He will be remembered for that kindness, for the thousands of smiling children who learned to ski at Bolton Valley, for the loyalty of his employees, for his enduring friendships, and for the joy he spread through his sunny disposition and infectious optimism.
He is survived by his large and loving family, including his brothers and their spouses: Paul and Linda DesLauriers of Glens Falls, N.Y.; Roland and Patricia DesLauriers of Raleigh, N.C.; Chuck and Liz DesLauriers of Charlotte; and John and Alison DesLauriers of Chester. He is also survived by his sisters, Nancy and Bob Stone of Tega Cay, S.C., and Susan Eaton of Essex; and his eight remaining children: Ralph Jr. of Richmond, Ed DesLauriers of Shelburne and Ruth DeCesare of Ridgewood, N.J., and their mother, Ruth B. DesLauriers of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico; Eric DesLauriers of Tahoe City, Calif.; Rob DesLauriers of Teton Village, Wyo.; and Adam, Lindsay and Evan DesLauriers of Bolton Valley and their mother, Lynda DesLauriers. He will also be dearly missed by his 12 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
He was predeceased by his eldest child, Christina Smullen, and her husband, James Smullen, of South Burlington; and by his parents, Roland and Evangeline DesLauriers of Bolton Valley and Hulls Cove, Maine.
A Memorial Mass will be held on November 8 at 1 p.m. at Christ the King Parish in Burlington, followed by a celebration of life at the Ponds at Bolton Valley.