State workers remember former colleague, Lara Sobel
August 10, 2025 | By Lisa Scagliotti 
State workers gather at noon on Thursday, Aug. 7, to honor the legacy of their former colleague, social worker Lara Sobel, who was fatally shot leaving her office in Barre 10 years ago on that date. On either side of the remembrance bench are AHS Deputy Secretary Kristin McClure (left) and Deputy Family Services Division Commissioner Aryka Radke (right). Photo by Lisa Scagliotti
Last Thursday, more than two dozen state workers gathered at noon by a single wooden bench and a lilac bush situated beside the sidewalk at the State Office Complex in Waterbury.
The employees from the Agency of Human Services went outside to the usually peaceful spot that bears witness to the legacy of a former colleague who was killed in the line of duty in 2015. Taking place on Aug. 7, the gathering marked 10 years to the day that Lara Sobel, a caseworker with the Department for Children and Families, was fatally shot as she left her office in Barre.
Sobel was the fourth and final victim of Jody Herring, who also murdered three of her relatives – an aunt and two cousins – at their home in Berlin. Herring is now imprisoned for life without the possibility of parole, a sentence upheld by the Vermont Supreme Court in 2019. Herring, who was 40 at the time of the killings, admitted to the crimes, saying she acted to lash out at her family members and Sobel for losing custody of her then-9-year-old daughter.
Detail of the dedication to Lara Sobel on the bench nameplate. Photo by Lisa Scagliotti
On Thursday, the state workers who continue to work at the Department for Children and Families and in the Human Services agency observed a moment of silence in Sobel’s memory. Many were wearing purple clothing items in a nod to Sobel’s favorite color. Two agency administrators shared remarks, highlighting the legacy of a colleague, who some today knew directly and others have all learned of in the decade since her death as she continues to have a profound impact on her former workplace.
Agency of Human Services Deputy Secretary Kristin McClure shared an excerpt from a Walt Whitman poem, “There Was a Child Went Forth Every Day,” with the group.
“It’s about how a child becomes who they are through their experiences and how they interact with the world,” McClure said. “And why I think about it is because it has this great line about lilac trees.”
The poem begins with these lines:
There was a child went forth every day,
And the first object he looked upon and received with wonder or pity or love or dread, that object he became,
And that object became part of him for the day or a certain part of the day . . . . or for many years or stretching cycles of years.The early lilacs became part of this child,
And grass, and white and red morning glories, and white and red clover, and the song of the phoebe-bird…
The classic work describes how impressionable children are, how they are shaped by every encounter they have, from interactions with nature, with people including their parents, and with their surroundings in their community. The message is a powerful one for those who work with children, McClure said.
She said the lilac reference reminds her of Sobel, given the lilac planted beside the remembrance bench at the state offices. McClure described Sobel as devoted and compassionate, someone who led by example as “a bright light for the children and families” she served. “Her impact lives on in all the lives she touched,” McClure said.
State Family Services Division Deputy Commissioner Aryka Radke also reflected on Sobel’s contributions and dedication. “Lara made an impact on our whole division. She was an extraordinary family services worker,” Radke said, noting that she did not know Sobel personally having just joined the division four years ago. “I didn’t have the honor of working with her, but so many people I talked to – that was one of the first stories that I heard about when I started in the position.”
Sobel’s colleagues shared how her compassion and commitment to her work were and continue to be an inspiration, Radke said, adding that in addition to the remembrance bench in Sobel’s honor at the Waterbury state offices, other DCF offices around the state have simple memorials to her, such as picnic benches and flower gardens. “The impact was deeply felt,” she said of the loss. “Lara was the best of us. We often aspire to do that work in her honor because she’s left such a strong legacy.”
Agency officials also noted that in the decade since Sobel’s tragic death, the division has made strides in the area of staff safety with new approaches in policies and staffing.
“It did make us pivot in terms of staff safety,” Radke said. “We now have a staff safety manager, a specialist focusing on making sure workers are safe, consulting [with staff] on difficult cases. It’s not that it wasn’t important before, but this really brought it home to make a deep investment in not only child safety but staff safety as well. If staff feel safe, they’re able to do their work far more effectively.”
The awareness around safety is critical as social workers today continue to navigate sometimes extremely challenging situations involving families and children, they said.
One attendee at the Thursday memorial was Gary Marvel, who works in the Department of Corrections and was a probation officer at the same Barre office as Sobel 10 years ago. He agreed with Radke’s assessment of how the tragedy has had ripple effects, making safety a prominent factor. “It’s across all departments, not just DCF,” Marvel said. “It really highlighted the need to pay attention to risks. But, honestly, the most impressive thing is, it never stopped the work. I never saw a hardening of attitudes toward the people we serve.”
Marvel called the caseworkers whose jobs put them on the front lines of helping families in crisis, the “special forces of social work.”
Two annual memorials
At the time of her death, Sobel was 48, married with two daughters, and the family lived in East Montpelier. According to published reports at the time, she had been a caseworker with the Department for Children and Families for more than 14 years.
A bench and a lilac bush are dedicated to Lara Sobel at the State Office Complex in Waterbury. Photo by Lisa Scagliotti
In addition to remembering Sobel on the anniversary of her death, the state of Vermont continues to keep Sobel’s memory and impact alive by presenting an annual award in her name. The Department for Children and Families presents the Lara Sobel Social Justice Award to an employee each spring. The award recognizes staff committed to empowering families and ensuring equitable access to resources, according to a department statement. “The award celebrates those who approach each interaction with individuals and families as an opportunity for growth, prioritized collaboration, and continued support for the causes important to the Vermonters they serve,” officials said.
In addition, a scholarship at the University of Vermont ensures that Sobel’s legacy extends into the future through the next generation of social workers. The Lara Sobel Memorial Scholarship at the UVM Department of Social Work was originally started as a one-time award by Sobel’s parents, Alex and Bobbi, and has since become an annual award funded through UVM’s endowment. Information on the scholarship is online here.