Robert F. Smith
Westminster names new town manager
After the position has been vacant for 18 months, the town has hired Louis Bordeaux as its new town manager, effective last week.
A resident of Bernardston, Massachusetts, Bordeaux has worked in local government for just over a decade. Prior to that, he had a long career in mid- and upper-level retail management.
Village mural gets some repairs
Mural on Flatiron Building gets some attention after nearly 25 years of exposure to Vermont’s fickle weather
As it approaches a quarter century since it was originally painted, the large mural on the Flatiron Building greeting northbound travelers as they enter the Bellows Falls Square is undergoing repairs and stabilization efforts. Based on original design sketches and paintings by local artist Ezra Veitch, the 32-foot-by-40-foot mural,
The toughest job
A Hinsdale author chronicles the ups and downs of how he and his wife cared for three aging parents and offers advice for how to cope
The number of people in the United States age 65 and older reached 55.8 million in 2020, or nearly 17% of the population. That is estimated to grow to 73 million by 2030, and by 2050, it is estimated that 27 million people will need long-term care. That figure...
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SEVCA bids goodbye to Good Buy stores
After more than a half-century of operation, Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA) has announced that it is closing its Good Buy thrift stores in Bellows Falls and Springfield. The recent decision by the anti-poverty nonprofit's board of directors takes effect Dec. 16. The stores will remain open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., until then but will no longer accept any donations for the stores as they sell the remaining inventory at a 20% discount. SEVCA says...
Remembering a Rosie
The only registered Rosie the Riveter Memorial Garden in the state now has a more prominent location at Hetty Green Park, where it honors the memory of Margaret Clapper Tidd, a Rosie who lived in Bellows Falls from the time she graduated from high school until her death in 2019. A brief history and dedication of the Rosie the Riveter Memorial, in its new location at the park on School Street, was given by historian David Deacon on Oct. 14.
Farming, family, and food for their neighbors
Pete's Stand, a third-generation vegetable farm and farmstand owned and operated by Teresa and John Janiszyn, has been awarded the 2023 Cooperator of the Year by the Cheshire County Conservation District (CCCD) and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NCRS). The award is intended to honor the efforts of the farmer "to steward the natural resources on their land in cooperation with the Conservation District and the NCRS," according to the Conservation District. The CCCD says it "promotes the conservation...
Marking history
On Oct. 11, National Coming Out Day, the LGBTQ community celebrated the relocation of the Andrews Inn historic marker on The Square. The event also celebrated the naming of what now is the Andrews Inn Lounge, part of the Ciao Popolo Restaurant, and the installation of a plaque and photos there commemorating the building's history. Andrews Inn was a historic gay bar, nightclub, and inn that operated from 1973 to 1984, one of the few safe places for LGBTQ people...
Fall concerts, fun, and flannel
The Southern Vermont Flannel Festival - held in Rockingham on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 14 and 15 - not only promises to be just about the perfect foliage experience (if the weather holds). It also has the added bonus of drawing visitors to one of the best preserved, historic spots in New England. A fundraiser for the civic and commercial projects of the Great Falls Regional Chamber of Commerce, the festival was started in 2019, just before the Covid pandemic.