118 Elliot, Everyone's Books, and other local groups are collaborating on a new Climate Book Series, in which authors discuss three brand new and very different books using humor, economics, and literature to grapple with the reality of climate emergency.
The March to May series will be held Thursday evenings at 118 Elliot, at 118 Elliot Street. Doors open at 6 p.m. and authors will begin at 6:30 p.m. Books will be available for purchase/signing. Events are free but donations are appreciated and pre-registration at Eventbrite is advised.
Thursday, March 9, I Want a Better Catastrophe: Navigating the Climate Crisis with Grief, Hope, and Gallows Humor (New Society Publishers, 2023) will be featured with climate activist and prankster Andrew Boyd.
The founder of creative protest measures including the Climate Clock and Climate Ribbon, Boyd says humanity is on a “path of profound grief” and to cope with this “impossible new reality” people will need the wisdom, rituals, and stories that literature and spiritual teachers offer.
The Vermont Center for Photography (VCP), 10 Green Street, presents a solo exhibition, “Frame of Reference,” by photographer April M. Frazier, which will be on display in VCP's Main Gallery through March and April. An opening reception will be held Friday, March 3, from 5 to 8 p.m., with...
In the spirit of Women's History Month, Stone Church organizers say they are turning their spotlight on women (their definition of women is inclusive of cisgender and trans women, as well as nonbinary people affected by gender oppression), and they have booked almost entirely women-fronted bands for the month...
Obituaries • Helen S. Anderson, 97, of North Walpole, New Hampshire. Died Feb. 18, 2023 at Cheshire Medical Center in Keene, New Hampshire. Helen was born on January 26, 1926 in Bellows Falls to the late Rafal and Blanche (Paliga) Jurkoic. Helen would later get her GED and was a hairdresser for many years. Helen was a parishioner of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Bellows Falls until it closed and then became a member of St. Peter's Church in North...
First Wednesday lecture explores biodiversity BRATTLEBORO - Vermont Humanities 2022–23 season of First Wednesdays lectures at Brooks Memorial Library continues with a virtual event on March 1 at 7 p.m. Cristian Fretes Ojeda, technical trainer for Peace Corps Paraguay, will present “Biodiversity, Conservation, and Civic Participation in Paraguay.” South America's Atlantic Forest is one of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet. Ojeda will discuss how civic participation is leading the effort to conserve crucial natural areas like the Atlantic...
U.S. Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., is in a difficult position. On the one hand, she wants to work hard for her constituents, who have serious and pressing needs. On the other hand, she serves in one of the most divisive Houses in history - and she is in the minority party. “It does get demoralizing when I sit in a committee and what is happening on the other side of the aisle is a lot of misinformation and disinformation,” she...
The Arts Council of Windham County (ACWC) has opened the application period for the 2023 Brattleboro Town Arts Fund (TAF) program. Now in its fourth year, the TAF program will offer grants between $1,000 and $3,000 dollars for creative, community-focused projects. Projects must take place between May 2023 and April 2024. Applications are due by March 31. The program overview and application guidelines can be found at artswindhamcounty.org/taf. TAF's mission is to promote the development and presentation of creative projects...
The Leland & Gray Rebels girls' basketball team is going to Barre. After dominant wins in the first two rounds of the Division IV playoffs, the Rebels will face No. 2 Blue Mountain in a semifinal game at the Barre Auditorium on March 1. Leland & Gray's success this season has been built on good defense and rebounding, the ability to control the tempo of the game, and lots of points from junior forward Maggie Parker. • In the first-round...
The Brattleboro Music Center (BMC) welcomes the return of In Stile Moderno Friday, March 3, as part of its Season Guest Concert Series. The 7:30 p.m. performance at the BMC, titled “The English Orpheus,” derives its name from the moniker for Henry Purcell, a Baroque composer of the late 1600s. “If Orpheus charmed humans, animals, and even the gods of the Underworld with his lyre, then Purcell,” writes the BMC in a news release, “did the same for kings, queens,
Jesse Peters will play a full set following micro-performances by local and regional performers Brian Dade, Carl Beverly, Charlie & Emma, Gillis Mills, Ian Galipeau, Josh Cummings, and Will Stahl (performance order to be determined) in a 3 p.m. matinee on Sunday, March 5, at Stage 33 Live, 33 Bridge Street. Peters returned to the Southern Vermont music scene in 2001, after graduating with a bachelor's in jazz guitar and a master's in music teaching from The University of The...
Next Stage Arts, 15 Kimball Hill, presents Walter Parks and Rob Curto's “Swampalachian Trail” on Friday, March 10 at 7:30 p.m. Parks, longtime guitarist sideman to Woodstock legend Richie Havens, joins accordionist extraordinaire Rob Curto in presenting their self-described “Swampalachian” acoustic and roots style - a blend of reels, hollers, spirituals, and blues. A news release describes their project as reimagining the historic soundtrack to the building of America, “reminding us all, regardless of political and cultural diversity, that whereas...
Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with Cherish the Ladies on Friday, March 10, at 7:30 p.m. at the Latchis Theatre, 50 Main Street. For more than 35 years, Cherish the Ladies, an American Irish music ensemble, has toured worldwide with their blend of traditional music, vocals, and step dancing. To quote The Boston Globe: “It is simply impossible to imagine an audience that wouldn't enjoy what they do.” This Grammy-nominated Irish-American super group formed in New York City in 1985 to...
Athens • Annual Town Meeting on Monday, voting Tuesday: In-person Town Meeting will be held Monday, March 6 at the Athens Community Center (former elementary school) at 6 p.m. All voting for town officers will occur on Tuesday, March 7 by Australian ballot. Polls will be open between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the Athens Town Office. • Budget: Voters will be asked to vote on a budget of $632,621.95 general budget. • Financial contributions: Voters will be asked...
Focusing on citizens' democracy, the business of town meeting is vital to civic engagement. Since 2021, more than 95 towns in Vermont, plus Gov. Phil Scott, have adopted Declarations of Inclusion to remind the citizenry that equity and inclusion are essential to the civic, social, and economic well-being of our state. Dummerston Cares is a volunteer organization that serves the health and safety of the people of Dummerston. We sponsor the Declaration of Inclusion that appears on the ballot to...
I support Eva Nolan, from Dummerston, for the three-year position on the WSESD School Board. Eva has the education and qualifications to be of great assistance with the ongoing issues the board has been facing. She would bring a calm and collaborative approach, which I believe would be a great addition. Eva would like students to feel empowered to speak and be heard and would like them to have a safe and welcoming environment in which to learn. Eva graduated...
Hello, neighbors. I am excited to be on this year's Town Meeting ballot as a library trustee. I believe my leadership skills, my love for libraries, and my knowledge of how crucial they are to a community make me an excellent addition to the Rockingham Free Public Library's Board of Trustees. I moved to Bellows Falls from Brattleboro in April, 2022, and I am so glad I did. One of my favorite things about living here is the Rockingham Free...
We support Liz McLoughlin, who is seeking a second three-year term on the Selectboard. Those of us who know Liz as a friend, neighbor, or Selectboard member appreciate her intelligence, dedication, and hard work. Her agenda is simply to do the best for Brattleboro. Her experience and her record of straightforward thinking and action demonstrate that she has been a successful steward of our resources and values. Given the issues that we are facing and attending to what remains from...
Brattleboro voters are in the enviable position of having a slate of excellent candidates from which to choose for Selectboard. All of the candidates are fine people, eager to serve the town, and brimming with ideas. It is comforting to know that all who are elected on March 7 will be good choices. I have personal experience with one of the candidates, incumbent Elizabeth (Liz) McLoughlin. She was my main contact on the board late last summer when I was...
I support Elizabeth McLoughlin's candidacy for a three-year seat on the Selectboard, and I urge readers to do the same. Liz has been engaged deeply in a wide range of roles supporting our community since she first moved here. With her degrees and experience in the areas of town planning, environmental planning, and housing, she has brought a wealth of relevant knowledge to her work on the board over the past four years, and she is clearly well-versed regarding the...
The village of Lower Bartonsville has been the driving force in getting an article on the upcoming Annual Town Meeting agenda to try to get some nominal funding for a police presence in rural parts of the town. This year, voters in Rockingham will consider spending $6,000 in taxpayer money to fund a contract with the Windham County Sheriff's Office. But opposition to the contract is emerging from the village of Bellows Falls, which funds its own police department, and...
To my fellow members of the Marlboro community: I write this to accept responsibility and to make a correction. I was a co-signer of a letter that was mailed to the residents of Marlboro which contained an incorrect statement, and I alone am responsible for this. The letter mentioned Principal Wayne Kermenski as agreeing that the costs of keeping grades 7 and 8 at Marlboro compared to paying tuition for them to attend other schools would essentially be a wash.
I see on the Wilmington Annual Town Meeting warning two articles related to going to Australian ballot and doing away with Town Meetings. It is important that Wilmington voters know that this means that Annual Town Meetings would cease to exist. Our form of town government would change, drastically. Voters would go in on a given day, with no discussion, and just vote the articles. No questions, no debate, no direct involvement. I know that some voters are unable to...
I support Elizabeth McLoughlin's election to the Brattleboro Selectboard. Liz came to Brattleboro more than 15 years ago as a professional environmental town planner. She quickly immersed herself in town issues, joining the Planning Commission and working with the Drop-In Center (now Groundworks). She has also been an active member of multiple town committees and commissions. Three years ago, the Brattleboro Outing Club was required to apply for an Act 250 permit to establish its current cross-country ski hut. Liz...
I love Brattleboro and have always thought of it as a big-hearted community. I'm sure many of you have as well. We've thought it, we've said it, but we have more work to do on it. When I first joined the Selectboard, a previous member told me, “it takes too long to get anything done. I didn't have the patience.” But I'm patient. Before my time on the Selectboard, I served on the Brattleboro Planning Commission, where we worked on...
Tip O'Neil said that “all politics is local.” Brattleboro has a very important local election coming up on Tuesday, March 7 regarding the Selectboard. I am writing to show my support for Dick DeGray, Peter “Fish” Case, and Franz Reichsman. All three are longtime residents who will demonstrate allegiance to Brattleboro practices and traditions. They are thorough and not afraid to ask the tough financial questions to insure fiscal responsibility. Finally, they are involved in the community in many ways...
The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets has announced grant awards from a new competitive round of Local Food Purchase Assistance funding, and two Windham County organizations are among the recipients of the total $200,000 awarded. SUSU commUNITY Farm in Newfane will receive $50,000 to launch an expanded, free CSA (community supported agriculture) program to provide “locally grown, culturally-relevant” vegetables for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) families and new refugees. Retreat Farm's Community Food Project in Brattleboro...
“Emerging from the pandemic hiatus, contemporary relevance questioned, in-person Vermont Town Meeting is at risk, as some people advocate abolishing it,” says Howard Fairman, who has written and created a concise and comprehensive downloadable guide to the venerable Vermont institution. Fairman, who has served as parliamentarian at Putney's Town Meeting, says he is making the four-page “Grassroots Vermonter's Guide to Vermont Town Meeting” available “in the spirit of 'knowing what we've got before it's gone.” Despite Town Meeting's long tradition...
In this Women's History Month - especially on March 8, International Women's Day - my mind and heart fill with thoughts of women and girls around the world. Having worked globally, I have witnessed women's lives, heard their stories, seen their grief, abuse, and abject poverty. I have been at the side of women when they gave birth or lost a baby, strong and stoic, and watched more fortunate women advocate for, educate, and comfort their poorer village friends. Whether...
The Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) Board of Directors has upheld its decision to fire former Brattleboro Union High School (BUHS) Principal Steven Perrin following a two-week hearing that ended Jan. 30. The hearing took place in executive session, with the results announced publicly at the board meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 28. “Pursuant to a hearing, the board has affirmed the decision to dismiss Mr. Perrin as BUHS principal,” WSESD board Chair Kelly Young said. She took no questions, and...
I urge voters to re-elect Jessica Gelter to the Brattleboro Selectboard. Jess has been a compassionate, curious, and thoughtful presence on the board since she was elected two years ago. She doesn't come to the board with any ego or agenda, but simply a commitment to listen deeply to the needs of the community and work to address them. I know very well the challenge of serving on a municipal board while also parenting school-aged children, so I really appreciate...
You don't have to leave home to join the circus because it's right here. The New England Center for Circus Arts 13th annual Circus Spectacular returns to the Latchis Theatre on Saturday, March 4 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, March 5 at 1 p.m. This annual flagship event offers world-class entertainment for the entire family, with high-flying aerialists, acrobats, and jugglers - all to raise money to make the nonprofit circus school's offerings available to those who otherwise could not...