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Around the Towns

Business license renewals due by Jan. 31

BRATTLEBORO - All businesses conducting business within the town, including nonprofit and home businesses, are required to obtain or renew their 2012 Business License by Jan. 31. The cost is $50 for the calendar year.

In addition to the capturing business and emergency contact information, the business license serves as the mechanism by which businesses receive an exemption on the first $5,000 of business personal property.

The licensing process is now totally online to reduce paper and mailing expenses. Business license applications and payments must be submitted electronically by going to the town website, clicking on the “Business License” link, and following the instructions.

Payment must be made online by credit card or e-check. Computers are available for use, and assistance is available, at the Brooks Memorial Library or the kiosk outside of the Listers' office in the Municipal Center.

Applications and payments are due to the town by Jan. 31. Any business filing after that date will be subject to a fine of up to $25.

Businesses will receive the Business License and Business Personal Property form (if required) by email. The license “shall be conspicuously placed in the licensed premises.”

For additional information, check the Brattleboro website (click on Frequently Asked Questions) or contact the Lister's Office at 802-251-8156.

West Brattleboro Association to hold monthly meeting on Jan. 12

WEST BRATTLEBORO - The West Brattleboro Association will hold its monthly meeting on Thursday, Jan. 12, from 6 to 8 p.m., at the New England House.

You do not have to reside in West Brattleboro to attend; everyone is welcome.

For further information, call Michael Bosworth at 802-258-6475.

'Stuff-the-Bus' food drive scheduled for MLK weekend

BRATTLEBORO - This coming Martin Luther King weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 14 and 15, Green Mountain RSVP volunteers will hold a “Stuff-the-Bus” food drive at Hannaford supermarket on Putney Road.

The goal is to collect two tons or more of food for Project Feed the Thousands and Brattleboro-area food shelves.

RSVP volunteers will invite shoppers to add a few extra items of nonperishable food to their baskets. A suggestion list of food items will be handed out by volunteers, and a shopping bag will be given to the first 250 shoppers each day who donate.

Area shelters and food shelves benefitting from the drive include Morningside Shelter, Loaves and Fishes, the Brattleboro Area Drop-in Center, Brigid's Kitchen, Agape Church, the Guilford food shelf, and the overnight shelter at the First Baptist Church.

More volunteers are welcome for a few hours on Saturday and Sunday to help distribute flyers to shoppers and collect their donations.

If you would like to volunteer or have a question, contact Peter Seares or Mary Lamoureux at Green Mountain RSVP at 802-254-7515.

Putney Family Healthcare relocates

BRATTLEBORO - Putney Family Healthcare opened in its new location on 79 Main St. this week.

Relocation to the new office will provide more space to accommodate new patients of Dr. Kari Dickey to the practice, says Vice President of Physician and Business Development Prudence MacKinney.

BMH has renovated the Victorian building, which used to house the River Valley Credit Union, to offer more exam rooms and to enhance patient privacy. More off-street parking is available at the new site.

Putney Family Healthcare is comprised of Richard Fletcher, FNP, Maggie Lake, FNP, and Kari Dickey, D.O. It is a member of the BMH Physician Group, a multispecialty group practice providing integrated care to Southeastern Vermont and Southwestern New Hampshire.

The practice serves Putney, Dummerston, Westminster, and other surrounding towns. The phone number for scheduling appointments will remain 802-387-5581.

Community Supported Enterprises is topic at Putney Jobs Breakfast

PUTNEY - Paul Bruhn, executive director of the Preservation Trust of Vermont, will be the speaker at the Putney Jobs Breakfast on Thursday, Jan. 12, from 7:15 a.m. to 8:45 a.m.

Bruhn will be talking about the Preservation Trust's involvement in Community Supported Enterprises in a number of towns around Vermont, including Claire's Restaurant in Hardwick, the Latchis Theatre and Hotel in Brattleboro, the Putney General Store, Pierce's Store in North Shrewsbury, and the effort to reopen the Guilford Country Store.

The Putney Jobs Breakfast Series, on the second Thursday of each month at the Putney Inn, explores the many sides of Putney's economy, including the jobs people hold and the places they work. All are welcome to attend and the cost of breakfast is by donation. The series is supported by Transition Putney and the Putney Inn.

For more information, contact Kirsten Jeppesen at [email protected].

BEEC offers child care on Jan. 16, 17

BRATTLEBORO - Alternative child care at Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center for children in grades 1-5 will be available for the upcoming Windham Southeast Teacher In-Service Days, Jan. 16-17.

From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., children will play outdoors, exploring the natural world and learning from BEEC's environmental educators.

The cost is $35 per day for BEEC members, $40 per day for non-members. Contact Louisa Pugh for more information.

Building Green database now available at Brooks library

BRATTLEBORO - In December, Building Green's outreach director Jerelyn Wilson donated a complimentary library subscription of BuildingGreen.com (valued at $995 per year) to the Brooks Memorial Library.

The subscription allows full access to from all 20 public access computers at the Brooks Memorial Library.

Building Green is an online resource of the Brattleboro-based company BuildingGreen, Inc., independent providers of some of the most highly regarded resources in the field of sustainable design and green building. The subscription-based website accepts no advertising, assuring that the content is unbiased by commercial interests and well-researched and -documented.

The BuildingGreen Suite provides in-depth analysis of sustainable design strategies, green product listings, project case studies, hundreds of practice-oriented articles from the pages of more than 20 years of Building Green's flagship publication, Environmental Building News, and free AIA and LEED continuing education units with more added monthly.

To access the database, sign into one of the computers with your library card and click on the Building Green logos. Printing is available at 15 cents per page.

For more information, contact the reference librarian or call 802-254-5290, ext. 109.

Girl Scout Cookie season begins

BRATTLEBORO - Girl Scouts are now taking orders for Girl Scout Cookies, to be delivered in mid-February. All of the proceeds support local Girl Scouts and programs.

Along with seven returning favorites, a special new cookie will celebrate the birthplace of Girl Scouting, the lemony Savannah Smiles. Girl Scout Cookies ($3.50 per box) are kosher foods and there are 0 grams of trans fat per serving.

This annual cookie sale is the leading financial literacy program for girls in the United States, teaching scouts five essential skills they'll use for the rest of their lives: goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics.

Girls can earn money to pay their way to Girl Scout camp and other opportunities.

Don't know a Girl Scout but want cookies? Call the Cookie Hotline at 888-474-9686, ext. 201, and leave a message including the name of your town, and someone will get back to you.

Cookie booth sales will begin and run through early March.

For more information, call the Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains at 888-474-9686, or visit www.girlscoutsgwm.org. To track down cookies, visit bit.ly/cookielocator.

BAPC announces class for parents of young children

BRATTLEBORO - The Brattleboro Area Prevention Coalition (BAPC) will offer a free course for parents/guardians of young children, on Saturday, Jan. 28, from 9 a.m. to noon.

“Parenting Young Children Wisely” teaches parents skills and techniques to help them better understand and deal with children ages 3-9. Two trained facilitators will guide participants to improve and help build understanding and communication among all members of the family.

All participants will receive a workbook, a parent resource packet, a certificate of completion, and a $25 gift card upon completion. Child care and snacks will also be provided during the course.

Space is limited. For more information, contact Cate Runge, BAPC program and policy coordinator, at 802-257-2175 or [email protected].

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