Vermont HCR 303: House concurrent resolution extending best wishes for a speedy and complete recovery to the indomitable Representative Anne de la Blanchetai Donahue of Northfield

Bill Text

R-361 Page 1 of 2
2026

VT LEG #389923 v.1
No. R-361. House concurrent resolution extending best wishes for a speedy and
complete recovery to the indomitable Representative Anne de la Blanchetai Donahue
of Northfield.
(H.C.R.303)
Offered by All Members of the House (for Representative Donahue of Northfield)
Whereas, Vermont native Anne Donahue is a graduate of Boston College and
Georgetown University Law Center, and, since 2003, has served as the extraordinarily
conscientious and detail-focused member from Northfield, whose special passion for
improving mental health care in Vermont is rooted in her own life experiences, and
Whereas, she has worked proactively for many years to develop a more effective and
humane mental health care system from both the institutional and community-based
delivery perspectives, including serving for many years as editor of Counterpoint, the
official publication of the Vermont Psychiatric Survivors organization, and
Whereas, after Tropical Storm Irene’s 2011 destruction of the former Vermont State
Hospital (VSH) in Waterbury, Representative Anne Donahue was instrumental in the
creation of its institutional successor, the Vermont Psychiatric Care Hospital in Berlin,
participating in the formation of a more modern and responsive organization, and
Whereas, the dilemma of former VSH undocumented burial sites struck
Representative Anne Donahue as an injustice requiring correction, and she has devoted
considerable effort to locating these sites, finally restoring dignity to the individuals
concerned, even if posthumously, and
Whereas, similarly, she also worked to identify individuals with mental health
challenges whose bodies were donated, without prior consent, to the University of
Vermont Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine for research, and the school honored
her for this work at its April 2026 convocation, and
Whereas, for over a decade, Representative Anne Donahue methodically worked on
crafting an official apology for the discriminatory treatment of many Vermonters under
the highly contentious rubric of the eugenics movement, and since the adoption of 2021
Acts and Resolves No. R-114, “Joint resolution sincerely apologizing and expressing
sorrow and regret to all individual Vermonters and their families and descendants who
were harmed as a result of State-sanctioned eugenics policies and practices,” she has been
intensively involved in next-step legislative initiatives, and
Whereas, on the floor and during her service on the House Rules Committee,
Representative Anne Donahue has focused on the minutiae of legislation and the
legislative process to promote clarity and transparency, and
Whereas, on March 30, 2026, her legislative colleagues were greatly concerned to
learn that Representative Anne Donahue had experienced a brain aneurysm, but they are
relieved that her recovery is progressing well, now therefore be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives:

R-361 Page 2 of 2
2026

VT LEG #389923 v.1
That the General Assembly extends best wishes for a speedy and complete recovery to
the indomitable Representative Anne de la Blanchetai Donahue of Northfield, and be it
further
Resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send a copy of this resolution to
Representative Anne Donahue.