I only worked alongside him for a few months, but Alan Panebaker was a hell of a good guy to have known.
He died yesterday in a kayaking accident in New Hampshire, and Anne Galloway, his former boss over at VTDigger.com, has an obituary and details of the incident here: http://vtdigger.org/2012/09/20/former-vtdigger-staffer-alan-panebaker-dies-in-kayak-accident/
Alan had a brightness to him. He was fun to be around. He had a huge, contagious smile. And he was whip smart – the kind of smart you don’t necessarily expect from someone with the laidback, surfer-bro vibe that Alan couldn’t stop emanating if he tried.
He was a good reporter, too. He got the facts, reported them straight, and told people important things they didn’t already know.
Heartfelt condolences to Alan’s family, to his partner, Magdalena, and to the crew over at VTDigger. You can leave your own in the comments section of the VTDigger obit.