The Brattleboro Area Prevention Coalition (BAPC) announces the launch of the “Parents Who Host, Lose The Most: Don't Be a Party to Teenage Drinking” public awareness campaign to provide parents with information about the health and legal consequences of underage drinking this prom and graduation season.
According to the Youth Risk Behavior Survey from 2011, 69 percent of teens surveyed reported that it was easy to get alcohol.
Among students who reported drinking in the last 30 days, 85 percent got their alcohol from home, by giving someone money to buy it for them, or from someone who just gave it to them.
Most underage youth who drink are getting their alcohol from adults who buy it legally - parents, siblings, friends, relatives, and home liquor cabinets.
For all the recent talk about excessive partisanship and a breakdown in decorum in the Vermont Legislature, this session was arguably one of the most productive in years. Lawmakers approved a $5 billion state budget, an honest spending plan that is balanced without huge cutbacks in social services, despite...
The paths of trumpeter Howard Brofsky and saxophonist Jimmy Heath have crossed frequently over the past 30 years. Both jazzmen share an appreciation of jazz and bebop, held faculty posts at Queens College, and occupied the same stage on numerous occasions. Now, at age 85, Brofsky and Heath will...
I never met “Chaos John,” but I feel like I knew him well. I knew him through the stories of my friend Maria Catell, who had lived next door to him throughout her childhood. He was a considerate neighbor, always greeting Maria and her siblings with a cheery hello and offering help to her family when needed. John also had a streak of gloom and doom that surfaced every time anything went awry, which, according to him, was most of...
“He is an American hero, having given the ultimate sacrifice for his county,” said my son, Robert Bonello. “I want to ensure that Mark Forester is never forgotten.” This is why he is going to Haleyville, Ala., to participate in the Mark Forester Foundation Fundraising Walk on May 19. The walk is a continuous 31-mile trek in honor of Mark's 31st birthday, which is May 19. Each year, one mile is added to coincide with his birthday. The foundation has...
Obituaries • Jesse Maxwell Corum III, 88, of Vero Beach, Fla. Died April 17 at Indian River Medical Center. Husband of Carol (Joy) MacKubbin Corum for 68 years. Father of Laurie Hawley and her husband, Bruce, of Vero Beach; Jesse Maxwell Corum IV and his wife, Lynn, of Brattleboro; and Vance Corum and his wife, Kristin, of Vancouver, Wash. The second son of Jesse and Laura Corum, he grew up in Norristown, Pa., and spent summers in Chestertown, N.Y., with...
For people involved with the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont for the past 25 years, grief is a familiar emotion. This year, the sense of loss is more acute as the AIDS Project is mourning the deaths of two longtime volunteers. The AIDS Project had already dedicated this year's annual Walk for Life on May 19 to the memory of Robert Torrey, who died in December. But, as the final preparations for the 25th annual event were nearly complete, news...
Free rides on the BeeLine this Friday BRATTLEBORO - The town bus service, the BeeLine, will be running fare-free on Friday, May 18, in support of the “Way To Go” commuter challenge. For more information, contact The Current (formerly Connecticut River Transit) at 802-460-7433. Saturday is Kids' Day at Farmers' Market BRATTLEBORO - Saturday, May 19 is Kids' Day at the Brattleboro Farmers' Market. Kids can come sell things they make themselves from scratch. The market is open from 9...
The Windham County Heat Fund thanks every individual, family, organization, business, and grant-funding organization that made the 2011-12 heating season a little more bearable for our friends and neighbors struggling to make ends meet. • 150 individuals or families donated $25,114. • 12 local organizations donated $5,188.50. • The Thomas Thompson Trust made an $8,000 matching grant. • Entergy Corporation's employee-run grant fund donated $5,000. • Public events brought in $3,843.50. The Heat Fund's total income was $47,146. We did...
Runs have been hard to come by for Brattleboro in many of this season's games, but against Mount Anthony last Monday, the Colonels rallied late for a 9-5 win over the Patriots at Tenney Field. With the Colonels trailing 5-4 in the fifth, the game turned when Soren Pelz-Walsh took over for starter Sawyer Olson. Pelz-Walsh threw three innings of scoreless, hitless relief to shut down the Patriots' bats. Evan Parro then helped win the game with his glove and...
This is in reference to commentary from Susie Crowther in a recent edition of The Commons [“Plan A,” Viewpoint, April 25]. Readers who live in Vermont can form their own opinions about her views on our state, but since not everyone is familiar with Landmark College, I feel compelled to speak up in regards to her remarks. Susie indicates that those who work at Landmark are never to ask if a student is happy. As a member of the faculty...
It must be so hard, Barack. I know you probably crawl into bed next to Michelle, after brushing your lips across your daughters' foreheads and pulling the covers closer to their sweet chins, and that you know how lucky you are that your marriage is respected in this country. You wrap your arms around her waist, remembering your wedding day, how lovely she looked, and how gloriously her bursting heart shone through her eyes. How your ancestors and community lifted...
Do Americans love choruses? Check out the statistics: according to research done by Chorus America, 42.6 million people in the U.S. sing in more than 270,000 choruses today. More Americans sing in choruses, chorales, choirs, glee clubs, and other vocal groups than engage in football, baseball, or tennis, making choral singing the ultimate participatory event in America. The Brattleboro Concert Choir's American Idols concert brings together three of America's great choral composers - Eric Whitacre, Moses Hogan, and Alice Parker...
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff will conduct a public meeting and open house on Wednesday, May 23, regarding the agency's annual assessment of safety performance for the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon. The public meeting and open house will take place from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room at Brattleboro Union High School, 131 Fairground Road. During the open house, members of the public will have an opportunity to talk on a one-on-one basis with...
You are having a conversation with a friend, and there is this obvious thing you both are aware of, yet, for whatever reason, refuse to acknowledge. Maybe it's that you cheated on a test, or it could be something more serious - that someone close to you died, or that you like your friend but he or she doesn't feel the same way. The awkwardness and discomfort gnaws at your self-esteem. The elephant in the room grows so huge and...
RE: “Grateful for book's shout-out to Shadis,” [Letters, May 9]. Wow, Peter Alexander, you and Ray Shadis have discovered the dastardly secret that Entergy is a for-profit corporation, out to use the free-market system to earn the best return it can for its shareholders. Gasp. Wonder where all you anti-nukers will be when the lights go out in Brattleboro and your energy bills skyrocket.
RE: “Other salvos in war on women,” Letters, May 9: Very well said. The hypocrisy here is that if Rush Limbaugh calls Sandra Fluke a name, the media is absolutely beside itself with anger, but when Bill Maher continues to insult women daily, no one says a word about it. Bill Maher is a repulsive, hateful man, and so are the others who are attacking conservative or liberal women. It needs to stop!
Where do you go for the hottest bluegrass music in the most picturesque setting? On May 18 and 19, Barnaby's Presents is sponsoring Bluegrass Blowout 3 at Rockingham Hill Farm. The music festival will showcase 11 bands, along with fire dancers, numerous food vendors, and a variety of camping options. The gates open on Friday at 2 p.m. The music begins at 6:30 p.m. and runs until early Sunday morning. Tickets can be bought for a single day or the...
These days, when a business wants to let people know that it's “women friendly,” it often starts with the use of pink: pink products, pink themes, pink everything. Long associated with ribbons, yogurt containers, M&M's, or clothing lines that support “cures” for cancer, the pinking of consumer products has become an everyday event. Now it's happening with an event in Brattleboro in May, except this time the product being “pinked” is alcohol. The event is called Pink Pint Night, and...
Chances are your friend, your sister, your cousin, your co-worker, your neighbor, is a victim of domestic violence. Chances are you've witnessed a conversation, a flinch, demanding phone calls, or missed days off work that made you uncomfortable. Chances are you've wondered what to do, say, ask - or wondered if you should do, say, or ask anything. Chances are that you expect the police or domestic abuse shelters will deal with the problem. But, chances are, when a woman...
Kathleen Bell has been hired as the new Health Care & Rehabilitation Services (HCRS) Community Support Specialist for the Police Social Work (PSW) program, in collaboration with the Brattleboro Police Department. The PSW program coordinates services to people referred by the police department or community providers. Often people come into contact with police as the result of an unmet social need, according to HCRS. PSW staff, who spend part of their work week in police departments, make connections with community...
The Leland & Gray Players offer a Summer Performing Arts Exploration (SPAE) for young people entering grades 5 to 8. The program opens with a family potluck gathering Sunday, July 22, and runs Monday through Friday, July 23 to Aug. 3, with culminating performances at 7 p.m. on Aug. 3 and at 3 p.m. on Aug. 4. Typical days will include theater games, production work and workshops in acting, music, scene design, movement and dance, lighting, costumes, and prop-making. These...
It was brought to my attention recently that the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) is hosting an event on May 22 called “Pink Pint Night.” I love BMAC and am an ardent supporter of independent artists and the excellent events that are held at our local museum. The framing of this event, however, is a major misstep. The BMAC website says the event is “designed to expose women to the world of beer. It's perfect for the new beer...
Sheriff Keith Clark sits at a table in his office at the Windham County Sheriff's Department in Newfane. With nearly 30 years in law enforcement and the military, Clark has witnessed his share of domestic violence calls. “I've met women who don't know which way to turn, other than 'Can I survive today?'” Clark said. Like learning to hide bruises, women wear a mask to hide mental abuse. They protect themselves until eventually they've shut down, Clark said. He equated...
While I was out walking one recent morning, an elderly woman struck up a conversation with me. She began by telling me a bit about herself, that she resides at a nearby nursing home. She said she is the youngest and most physically fit resident there, so they “spring” her daily for a walk alone. Last year, she said, she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. I couldn't even finish my sentence of “I am so sorry to hear that” before...
A photo on the Sports & Recreation page of the May 2 issue misidentified the shuttle hurdle relay runner. The photo was of Truuske Bailey-de Bruijn. Chiara Leven, the student athlete mistakenly named in the caption, is an exchange student living with the Bailey-de Brujin family.
Three investors have thrown their hats into the ring to help keep the Brooks House reconstruction project to its autumn 2013 reopening. Pete Richards, Drew Richards, and Ben Taggard have become partners in Mesabi, L.L.C., a new company formed to restore the Brooks House, the 1871 downtown landmark that caught fire in April 2011. The trio's undisclosed financial investment will help support pre-construction activities like concept, design, permitting, and marketing. Owner Jonathan Chase said he did not want to abandon...
Latchis Arts recently received two grant awards to support the organization's Campaign for the Heavens and the Earth, a $550,000 effort to restore the zodiac ceiling (the Heavens) and replace the auditorium seating (the Earth) in the Latchis Theatre in downtown Brattleboro. The Windham Foundation, famous for Grafton cheddar and dedicated to promoting Vermont's rural communities, awarded $10,000 to the campaign. The Thomas Thompson Trust presented a challenge grant in the amount of $50,000, as long as the campaign meets...
Vermonters are still rebuilding from the flooding brought on by the 8-11 inches of rain dumped by Tropical Storm Irene last August. River Management Engineer Todd Menees of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation said he hopes people will learn from the recent past and change their relationship with Vermont's rivers for a less flood-damaged future. Last week, Menees walked along the Whetstone Brook with nine residents, most of whom live along the West Brattleboro portion of the brook, and...
Girls on the Run will host its 10th annual 5K Run/Walk on Saturday, May, 19, at Brattleboro Union High School. The event, and the 10-week program that led up to it, are designed to encourage girls in grades 3 to 8 to develop self-respect and healthy lifestyles through running. Nancy Heydinger, the executive director of Girls on the Run in Southern Vermont, said she sees the program as a way to help girls at a pivotal age stay out of...
Elisabeth V. “Betsy” Swift of Brattleboro was honored recently by the Brattleboro Branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) for her professional and volunteer accomplishments. Swift received the branch's Woman of the Year designation for her early advocacy of education for women, her efforts during World War II, and her volunteer service in her adopted hometown. A native of New York, Swift resisted her family's efforts to send her to a private girls' high school, electing to come...
It can be hard to know how to help a friend, family member, or colleague in an abusive relationship. “Domestic violence is a very complex issue,” wrote Women's Freedom Center advocates in an email. “Although it is hard for friends, colleagues, and family members that don't want to see their loved one in a situation like this, it is essential to try and understand that it is not an easy fix and that often times there is much more to...
The long list of restaurants in town which have gone defunct in recent years just got a bit longer. The Steak Out, which has operated on Putney Road since 1972, closed abruptly on Sunday. The restaurant was well-known in the area for its soup and salad bar, as well as an all-you-can-eat dessert bar. The French onion soup, prime rib, and the big bowls of all-you-can-eat shrimp were among its signature dishes. Owner Sean Henry, who bought the steakhouse from...