Spring has barely sprung, but registration is open for Brattleboro Music Center summer programs.
BMC Managing Director Mary Greene notes that many of the summer programs will be held at the BMC's new location, the former Winston Prouty property on Guilford Street. Renovation and expansion work is underway to better accommodate BMC staff, faculty, and students, and the center's performance and education programs.
The existing building on the site is being repurposed to create a 10,510-square-foot music school with a 70-seat recital hall, a percussion studio, a music library, a mixed-use classroom, and 12 soundproofed teaching studios. Connected will be a new 4,400-square-foot, 224-seat performance auditorium.
...A family-friendly celebration to benefit the Haiti Orphanage Sponsorship Trust will take place on Saturday, May 6, at 118 Elliot in Brattleboro. The evening begins with a circus performance for children and families at 5 p.m., followed by dinner and live Senegalese Rock and Afro-Pop music by M'Bolo. Kevin...
In collaboration with The Windham Foundation, which owns and operates The Grafton Village Cheese Company, the Strolling of the Heifers is adding a new Cheesemonger training initiative to their established Farm-to-Table Culinary Apprenticeship program. Grafton Village Cheese produces award-winning Vermont cheddar and specialty cheeses and operates a full-service cheese...
The Leland & Gray Above the Influence (ATI) students recently spent time with the Community Hope & Action group of Townshend to discuss community assets as well as concerns. Students spent almost all of March preparing to facilitate this dialogue and were able to gather lots of input from Hope & Action members, according to a news release. Over coffee and doughnuts, the group brainstormed and created a comprehensive list of all the great things the community has to offer.
Putney Family Healthcare, an affiliate of Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Medical Group, recently announced staff transitions. Richard Fletcher, APRN, retired from Putney Family Healthcare on March 31, after 25 years as a nurse practitioner. “We are incredibly grateful for Richard's dedication and service over the past two decades,” said Bonnie McKellar, Vice President of Professional Services for the hospital, in a news release. “He provided high-quality family healthcare to our community and we wish him the best in his well-deserved retirement.”
During the month of May, 15 Windham County elementary schools will open their doors to children 5 and under, parents, caregivers, early educators - and teddy bears. Children are invited to bring their favorite teddy bears (other favorite stuffed animals are also welcome) for a short party called a “Teddy Bear Tea.” According to a news release, adults, children, and bears will meet staff, listen to a story or two, visit with other families and do a craft. Special teddy...
The Brattleboro Rotary Club will again offer scholarships to graduating students of Brattleboro, Leland & Gray, and Hinsdale, N.H., high schools. The amount of assistance will be $2,000 to $3,000 per student. A combination of financial need, academic achievement, and community service will be used as criteria for selecting the applicants. Applications and financial assistance forms are available at each school's guidance department, as well as at www.brattlebororotaryclub.org, and must be submitted by Friday, May 19, to John C. Mabie,
Town appoints board members DUMMERSTON - At the March 29 Selectboard meeting, the Board appointed members to municipal boards, committees, and commissions, and representatives to regional entities. Sarah Bergh and Sam Farwell were appointed to the Planning Commission. Charlotte Neer Annis, who formerly served as the town's zoning administrator, is now the assistant zoning administrator. The town's representative to the Windham Regional Commission is Lew Sorenson. The fire warden and assistant fire warden are Martin Forrett and Charles Richardson. Lester...
Drugged driving is topic for GFC meeting BELLOWS FALLS - Greater Falls Connections will host its monthly coalition meeting on Friday, April 28, from noon to 1:30 p.m., at Parks Place Community Center, 44 School St. This month's discussion will focus on the latest state and national trends around “high” driving, which is a particular area of concern with changing social norms around cannabis use. While the number of fatally injured drivers due to drinking alcohol has been on the...
The School for International Training has named SIT Study Abroad alumnus Eli LaBan as the next Alice Rowan Swanson fellow. LaBan will return to Nicaragua to digitize a disappearing language, develop teaching tools, and draw more attention to indigenous culture. LaBan, of Wyncote, Pa., is a fall 2016 alumnus of SIT Study Abroad's Nicaragua: Youth Culture, Literacy, and Media program. He will graduate from Temple University this spring with a degree in media studies and production. The Alice Rowan Swanson...
On behalf of all mothers everywhere, I wish to take issue with the use of the phrase “the mother of all bombs” when referring to the recent large hole blown into Afghanistan. A mother is a creator of life. A mother's role is to protect and nurture life, not to kill and destroy it, as bombs do. We aging protestors can recall the Another Mother for Peace movement of the 1960s. “War is not healthy for children and other living...
Gildas Chatal grew up in Southern Brittany in France with a passion for drawing. He followed that passion to an art school in Paris and developed his skills to enter the world of graphic design. In the graphic tradition, ink line art was his focus, until he discovered acrylic paint. “The colors were so vivid, I couldn't be shy with them,” he said in a news release. The resulting illustrations have been published in a comic book magazine in Europe...
Having faced a long list of questions at a recent public meeting, a key player in the proposed Vermont Yankee decommissioning project is responding in writing. Areva Nuclear Materials - a partner of NorthStar Group Services, the nuclear plant's proposed buyer - has issued online responses to questions about the schedule, cost, and radiological safety of the cleanup job. Areva's answers aren't likely to squelch a debate about NorthStar's ability to carry out its accelerated decommissioning plans. But spokesman Curtis...
The Windmill Hill Pinnacle Association is offering some exciting and very different events on the afternoon of Sunday, April 30, as part of its annual meeting schedule. All are free and open to the public and will be timed to follow one after the other, though attendance at all isn't required. The first event, and the outdoor part of the Pinnacle Annual Meeting, is an interpretive walk at the Dunn Nature Trail from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Field biologist Paul...
Event and meeting planners seeking wheelchair-accessible venues in Brattleboro now have an online resource. The Brattleboro Americans with Disabilities Act Committee recently created a document, available to public and private groups, that lists places with wheelchair-accessible bathrooms and parking spots. It is listed on the town's official website, www.brattleboro.org, under the “Living and Learning” tab. ADA Committee member Julie Tamler, director of The Inclusion Center, said committee members created a survey in February and sent it to schools, hospitals, churches,
Obituaries • Gloria Theresa Fernandes, 87, of Hinsdale, N.H. Died April 15. She was born on July 21, 1929 in Hartford, Conn., daughter of the late Ethel L. Ashley and William A. St. Cyr. While living in Hartford as a young woman, she worked for Royal Typewriter. From there, she moved to Brattleboro, where she worked at First National Stores as a meat wrapper for many years, followed by a position at Bridgeport Metals in Hinsdale as a quality control...
A trio of experts will lead a guided walk to visit one or more of the Black Gum Swamps in Vernon's J. Maynard Miller Town Forest on Friday, April 28, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. This is an opportunity for people who may never have visited the Black Gum Swamps to see them, and for anyone interested to gain a better understanding of the swamps' ecological uniqueness and their value to the town and the region. Leading this excursion will...
The Windham County Sheriff's Department, working with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and in coordination with local law enforcement agencies and prevention coalitions throughout Windham County, will offer a Drug Take-Back Day on Saturday, April 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. During Drug Take-Back Day, area residents can properly dispose of unneeded, expired, or unwanted prescription pills, tablets, and capsules in a confidential, safe, and secure way. No liquid medications, needles, or sharps will be accepted. No questions are...
New England Youth Theater presents Disney's Alice in Wonderland Jr., directed by Shoshana Bass, May 5 through 7 and 12 through 14 at NEYT, 100 Flat St. Based on the classic tale by Lewis Carroll, this adaptation of the musical sets the story in a hospital, where a child's boredom gives way to imagination as the doctors, other patients, and hospital staff all transform into the strange characters of Wonderland. Featuring updated songs from Disney's thrilling animated motion picture, the...
For more than a century, our town has been a cutting-edge electricity producer for New England. This proud history has been dominated by two reliable, low-emission, affordable energy generators. In a plan that we call Re-Energizing Vernon, the Planning and Economic Development Commission is now drafting the third chapter: exploring the possibility of a multi-fuel, clean-energy, affordable micro-grid on the site of Vermont Yankee. Vernon has produced electricity since the late 1800s. The existing 32-megawatt Vernon dam began operating in...
Along the Oceti Sakawin encampment, the signs read, “No guns, no drugs, no alcohol,” and all who entered were encouraged to spend as much time as possible by the sacred fire, a big bonfire constantly tended and scented with sacred cedar. Then we were given work to do. And there was much to do. At dawn each day, Lakota leaders held a water ceremony, in gratitude for the water that is essential to all life, and in dedication to the...
Health Care and Rehabilitation Services, Vermont's second-largest community mental-health agency, will host a community appreciation event on Saturday, April 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at The Robert H. Gibson River Garden, 157 Main St. This event is being held to celebrate the agency's 50th anniversary of serving the residents of Windsor and Windham counties with mental health, addiction, and developmental disability services. The support of community members is critical to the success of both HCRS and the individuals...
Strolling of the Heifers presents the third Annual “Walk for Amber StorySlam” hosted by Tracy Dolan, a Vermont Comedy Club finalist, on Saturday, April 29, at 7 p.m., at the River Garden in Brattleboro. A StorySlam is an “open mic” style event popularized by the Moth Radio Hour and other storytelling venues. Contestants who put their names in a hat are selected at random to tell a 5-minute true story related to the theme for the evening. This year the...
In this lengthy piece, Bill McKibben made mention of Al Gore, who is a giant hypocrite. It makes me wonder why the climate movement hasn't taken Gore, Leonardo DiCaprio, the Rockefellers, Tom Steyer, and other celebrities to task for preaching about climate while they live lives of excessive consumerism and have giant carbon footprints. If they believe climate change is caused by humans (and the only solution is to downsize, conserve, etc.), why are they riding on yachts, in limos,
At the April 18 regular Selectboard meeting, the Board approved approximately $156,000 in new expenses for the police and fire station projects, including $69,000 for an unanticipated roof replacement at the future police headquarters. But, the project still has more than $2 million in unencumbered and uncommitted funds, and Town Manager Peter Elwell told Board members the project is “in solid financial shape.” Elwell provided an update on the police and fire facilities' construction projects at the Selectboard meeting. Most...
Town finances in good shape BRATTLEBORO - John O'Connor, the town's finance director, gave the ninth monthly report for Fiscal Year 2017 at the April 18 regular Selectboard meeting. As of the end of March, 2017, 75 percent of the fiscal year is complete. According to O'Connor's report, the General Fund expenditures are 73.1 percent of the annual budget, the Utilities Fund expenditures are 70.8 percent, the Parking Fund is at 78.1 percent, and the Solid Waste Disposal Fund revenues...
Green Mountain RSVP celebrates National Volunteer Week during the last week of April each year, although they appreciate the time and efforts of their volunteers every day. The organization partners with local nonprofits, matching people age 55 and older with meaningful volunteer opportunities. In Bennington, Windham, and Windsor counties, it currently has 356 active volunteers assisting 100 nonprofits. “Some of our amazing volunteers have been volunteering for well over 25 years,” Steve Ovenden, Windham County volunteer coordinator, said in a...
I applaud the voters of Marlboro for adopting language that expresses the town's “support [for] the civil rights of all people, without regard to their race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, age, and education level.” A nice practical step might be to welcome folks to swim responsibly at South Pond. Beautiful and tranquil, South Pond - by law, a public body of water - is surrounded by land owned by the Ames Hill-Marlboro Community Center (and its...
Selectboard chooses state police for law-enforcement GUILFORD - After reviewing the proposed contracts from the Vermont State Police and the Windham County Sheriff's Department to provide law-enforcement services for Fiscal Year 2018, the Selectboard unanimously voted to choose the state police at their April 10 regular meeting. State police will provide Guilford with 8 hours per month of service at a rate of $68.35 per hour, with a maximum annual charge of $6,561.60. The town budgeted $7,000 for law-enforcement for...
Town Hall closed for repairs PUTNEY- Due to carpet replacement and other repairs, the Town Hall will be closed Thursday, May 4, through Monday, May 8. The town manager's office will reopen on Tuesday, May 9. The town clerk's office will reopen on Wednesday, May 10. Town officials advise the building may have limited access on Wednesday, May 3, so call first to make sure the service you need is available. The telephone number for Town Hall is 802-387-5862.
Peter Adair reminds us that the thickness of our atmosphere is equivalent to that of an apple skin around a large apple - which, in turn, reminds me of a point I like to make. If our atmosphere were compressed until it became a liquid, it would be a mere 32 feet thick. It then becomes quite easy to imagine mankind's ability to irreparably destroy the atmosphere, if we picture it as being made up of the same amount of...
Good day, I'm wishing good moments for you on the day that you read this. All we've ever got is the moment we find ourselves in, so hopefully you find yourself in at least one good moment today. Sometimes that can make all the difference. As for the weather of southern Vermont, we are going to be warming this weekend, and will likely have unsettled conditions from Sunday into early next week. The forecast is highly uncertain at the moment,
Adam O'Farrill and his quartet, Stranger Days, will perform at the Vermont Jazz Center on Saturday, April 29, at 8 p.m. O'Farrill is an award-winning, first-call trumpeter from Brooklyn. A regular member of the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra (led by his Grammy-award winning father, Arturo O'Farrill) and the ensembles of Rudresh Mahanthappa, he performs and records with top artists such as Christian McBride, Vijay Ayer, Jason Lindner and others. He created his quartet, Stranger Days, to hone his compositions and develop...
Brattleboro softball coach Kelly Markol is someone who will never be satisfied. And she wants her players to feel the same way. “Our goal is to get better with every game, to play with intensity, and to never settle for less than our best effort every day,” Markol said. Her team finished last week with a 3-1 record, but it is the one loss that sticks in the craw of Markol, her coaching staff, and her players. The Colonels started...
The Selectboard unanimously voted to approve a resolution proclaiming the second Monday in October of each year be named “Indigenous Peoples' Day." During Representative Town Meeting in March, the body unanimously voted to recommend the Selectboard approve the proclamation. At the April 18 regular Selectboard meeting, Board Chair Kate O'Connor read the document - written by Town Attorney Bob Fisher with edits by Rich Holschuh - into the record. In addition to setting the date of the day, the proclamation...
When Kris and Stewart McDermet bought their home years ago on Butterfield Road in Dummerston, they discovered a surprise on the upper floor - a 12-foot-by-7 1/2-foot American flag from the late 1890s. “Pretty serious patriots lived here back then,” said Stewart McDermet, who gave a talk about the flag at the quarterly meeting of the Dummerston Historical Society on April 20. McDermet said the oversized flag had 45 stars, a design that was adopted after Utah was admitted to...
Two beloved Guilford artists, jazz and rock musician Patty Carpenter and poet Verandah Porche, have been close friends for more than four decades. Even though they had toyed with the idea for a long time, it was only after the devastation in Southern Vermont caused by Tropical Storm Irene that the two decided to combine forces to create music. The result was a song about the impact of the flooding, “Waves in the Wind,” which became not only a meditation...
John Ragonese uses three words - lengthy, complicated and expensive - to describe the federal government's licensing process for hydroelectric dams. But he is promising that Great River Hydro, the new owner of the Vernon, Bellows Falls and Wilder stations, won't miss a beat in seeking Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license renewals for those Connecticut River facilities. In fact, Great River Hydro will be filing a license application with FERC on May 1 - less than two weeks after taking...
The Green River meanders southward through three towns before crossing Vermont's border with Massachusetts. Now, there's an effort under way to unite those towns - Marlboro, Halifax, and Guilford - with other regional partners to take a fresh look at issues like flood resiliency, conservation, and restoration. The campaign might even involve public art and school programs. What's been dubbed the Green River Watershed Alliance is still in its infancy. But Windham Regional Commission is getting the ball rolling, with...
For more than 35 years, Windham Child Care Association has worked to support a variety of early-childhood services and the families who depend on them. But a change last year at the state level abruptly eliminated a funding stream that accounted for about 25 percent of the organization's budget. Fearing for the financial viability of the association, administrators have come up with a solution: Windham Child Care will cease to exist at the end of June, and its services and...
Despite the chilly, drizzly weather on Saturday morning, April 22, about 100 guests turned out for the ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the Brattleboro Fire Department's Station 2. Town officials gave their opening remarks and the entire department - looking fine in their dark blue dress uniforms - assembled for a group photograph. Attendees snacked on bagels, donuts, and coffee donated by area businesses. Unlike the previous Station 2 building, the new firehouse fits in well with the village's architectural...
After withstanding its turbulent recent history - two devastating fires, the death of its most recent proprietor, financial stressors, and subsequent closings - the doors to the Putney General Store are opening once again, with the help of the Putney Historical Society. Lyssa Papazian, current co-manager of the Putney General Store, explained some of the history behind the society's involvement. “Having that store close was such a blow to the town,” she said. “Right from the beginning, for over 200...
I can't get the pictures out of my mind. The barracks. The women with babies and bundles disembarking from buses. The guards. The packed dining halls and inadequate living quarters. The sons in U.S. military uniform. They are, of course, the images of Japanese-American people interned at the Manzanar War Relocation Center and other internment camps during World War II, many of them now on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. Seventy-five years ago,
I was lucky enough to grow up with the kind of coach who could change your life. For the really talented swimmers, he did so literally: He got them college scholarships, Olympic trials, coaching jobs. He put them onto that sort of career trajectory. But for the “normies” like me? Well, Leo Cancellare did nothing short of everyday miracles that also changed the trajectory of my life, starting when I was 13. I'm 38 now, and in my head, I...
On Friday and Saturday, April 28 and 29, Sandglass Theater will present the first full work-in-progress showing of Babylon at Next Stage Arts Project at 7:30 p.m., with an additional fundraising package for the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program on Friday after the show. Babylon is a piece about refugees - their journeys, traumas, and challenges to resettlement. The show is performed by puppets and actors, with moving panoramas known as crankies, and with choral singing. Sandglass has been developing this...
The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center will unveil a new outdoor sculpture on Friday, May 5, during Brattleboro's monthly Gallery Walk celebration, 5:30-8:30 p.m. Created specifically for the Center by Vermont artist Mary Admasian, who will be on hand for the unveiling, “Weighted Tears” consists of five teardrop-shaped objects suspended from the eaves of the museum. Each object is made of aluminum rods, wire, and barbed wire, and is stabilized by a spherical weight. The smallest object has a light...
School lunch is not what you remember. Sure, there are chicken nuggets and pizza on some school menus. But there's just as likely to be a beef meatloaf with flax seeds served with mashed local red potatoes, gravy, and baby carrots glazed with local maple syrup - a meal recently served by Donovan Hunt of Café Services, food service director for the Brattleboro elementary schools. School food has definitely changed in the last few years, with more fruits and vegetables,
Four veteran area singers will celebrate their common passion for a cappella harmony when Big Woods Voices performs at Main Street Arts on Friday, April 28, at 7:30 p.m. The singers are soprano Amanda Witman, co-leader of the Brattleboro Pub Sing with Tony Barrand; alto Becky Graber, leader of the Brattleboro Women's Chorus and Animaterra Women's Chorus in Keene; tenor Will Danforth, singer-songwriter and traditional acoustic artist; and bass Alan Blood, long-time member of countless area groups, including the Blanche...