
Aeryn Reynolds can’t believe 29-year-old Fern Feather is now gone. “I heard the news and I didn’t even go back to sleep,” Reynolds said.Reynolds and Fern were roommates in Vermont before Reynolds moved to Oregon.”I couldn’t sleep (the news of Fern’s passing) was that heart-wrenching,” Reynolds said.Police found Fern’s body on the side of the road in Morrisville, Vermont, on Tuesday morning.Friends of Fern said she recently came out as a transgender woman and had been hanging out with 43-year-old Seth Brunell.Brunell told Vermont State Police that the two had been in a car together Tuesday morning and that he was defending himself when Fern allegedly made a sexual advance. “Investigators observed no injuries or evidence of a struggle or an assault on Brunell,” state police said. Autopsy results show that Fern died of a stab wound to the chest, the death now being ruled a homicide. Brunell is in police custody. “This is a murder that impacted Fern and this has ripple effects throughout our communities,” said Kim Jordan, with the Pride Center of Vermont.The Pride Center of Vermont said members of the LGBTQ+ community are at an increased risk of violence.That’s why the nonprofit started the Safe Space Anti-Violence Program to provide services for members of the community who may be in unsafe relationships or living environments.”We are available to support people who experience harm in resource navigation and in emotional support,” Jordan said.The Pride Center of Vermont wants people who are upset by this incident to know that the support network is here to support them. “Your fear is valid. You deserve to feel whatever you feel and there is support available for you,” Jordan said.The LGBTQ+ Survivor Support Line can be reached by calling 802-863-0003. Advocates are available Monday-Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.Fern’s friends, who said the 29-year-old used she/her and sometimes they/them pronouns, want her to be remembered as someone who was kind, a free spirit who’d help anyone out and a lover of animals, especially birds.”Every time I saw Fern, they had a wildflower in their hair. But they didn’t need the accessory, they were a wildflower themself. Always in full bloom. Bringing joy and happiness to everybody around them,” said Brittany Tetlow, Fern’s friend.”I can’t think of a single bad thing to say about Fern. When we’d go out to anywhere if anyone was silently suffering, Fern would go over to them and make them feel important and make them feel valued,” Reynolds said.They want justice for their friend, who they said is gone too soon.Brunell is scheduled to face a judge Thursday afternoon to answer to charges in connection to this homicide.
Aeryn Reynolds can’t believe 29-year-old Fern Feather is now gone.
“I heard the news and I didn’t even go back to sleep,” Reynolds said.
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Reynolds and Fern were roommates in Vermont before Reynolds moved to Oregon.
“I couldn’t sleep (the news of Fern’s passing) was that heart-wrenching,” Reynolds said.
Police found Fern’s body on the side of the road in Morrisville, Vermont, on Tuesday morning.
Friends of Fern said she recently came out as a transgender woman and had been hanging out with 43-year-old Seth Brunell.
Brunell told Vermont State Police that the two had been in a car together Tuesday morning and that he was defending himself when Fern allegedly made a sexual advance.
“Investigators observed no injuries or evidence of a struggle or an assault on Brunell,” state police said.
Autopsy results show that Fern died of a stab wound to the chest, the death now being ruled a homicide. Brunell is in police custody.
“This is a murder that impacted Fern and this has ripple effects throughout our communities,” said Kim Jordan, with the Pride Center of Vermont.
The Pride Center of Vermont said members of the LGBTQ+ community are at an increased risk of violence.
That’s why the nonprofit started the Safe Space Anti-Violence Program to provide services for members of the community who may be in unsafe relationships or living environments.
“We are available to support people who experience harm in resource navigation and in emotional support,” Jordan said.
The Pride Center of Vermont wants people who are upset by this incident to know that the support network is here to support them.
“Your fear is valid. You deserve to feel whatever you feel and there is support available for you,” Jordan said.
The LGBTQ+ Survivor Support Line can be reached by calling 802-863-0003. Advocates are available Monday-Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Fern’s friends, who said the 29-year-old used she/her and sometimes they/them pronouns, want her to be remembered as someone who was kind, a free spirit who’d help anyone out and a lover of animals, especially birds.
“Every time I saw Fern, they had a wildflower in their hair. But they didn’t need the accessory, they were a wildflower themself. Always in full bloom. Bringing joy and happiness to everybody around them,” said Brittany Tetlow, Fern’s friend.
“I can’t think of a single bad thing to say about Fern. When we’d go out to anywhere if anyone was silently suffering, Fern would go over to them and make them feel important and make them feel valued,” Reynolds said.
They want justice for their friend, who they said is gone too soon.
Brunell is scheduled to face a judge Thursday afternoon to answer to charges in connection to this homicide.