WKVT to host public forum on mental health issues
BRATTLEBORO - From 10 a.m. to noon on Thursday, March 31, WKVT Radio will present a live broadcast of a public forum about mental health needs and services in the community.
WKVT hosts Peter “Fish” Case and Chris Lenois will moderate the panel in the style of the 2014 “Call to Action” program that addressed opiate abuse. The forum will include personal accounts by affected individuals and families as well as insights and information from a guest panel consisting of state and local officials involved in policy-making, treatment, and emergency response.
“There is a similar level of urgency around mental health issues as there is around addiction in Windham County and the surrounding area,” Case said in a news release. “We hope to connect those people who are facing the same challenges with those who are working on solutions, so the community has a better understanding of the available resources.”
Panelists will include Mourning Fox, Vermont Department of Mental Health Clinical Services and Operations Director; Kurt White, LADC, LICSW, Brattleboro Retreat Director of Ambulatory Services; George Karabakakis, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Healthcare and Rehabilitative Services (HCRS); and Brattleboro Police Chief Michael Fitzgerald.
Members of the public who attend will be given an opportunity to comment. Light refreshments will be available. Participants and audience members will have a chance to continue discussion on the topic following the broadcast.
The presentation will be held in the Brooks Memorial Library Meeting Room at 241 Main Street in Brattleboro. Brattleboro Community Television will tape the forum to air at a later date on their cable channels. They will also archive the program online at brattleborotv.org. For more information, contact 802-254-2343 or visit www.wkvtradio.com.
Brattleboro dog licenses due
BRATTLEBORO - Vermont dogs and wolf-hybrids six months of age and older must be licensed on or before April 1.
License fees for dogs are $19 for neutered animals and $23 for un-neutered animals. Specially trained assistance dogs may be eligible for a reduced licensing fee.
In Brattleboro, for dogs not previously licensed a first-time license must be obtained in person from the Town Clerk's office. License renewals may be processed in the Town Clerk's office, through the mail, or online at www.brattleboro.org.
If an animal has been spayed or neutered, the certificate issued by the veterinarian must be presented when licensing the animal for the first time.
Vaccination against rabies is required by Vermont Statutes for all dogs and wolf-hybrids over three months of age. Before licensing, a current rabies certificate issued and signed by a veterinarian must be filed with the Town Clerk. The initial vaccination must be valid for 12 months. Within 9 to 12 months of the initial vaccination, the animal must receive a booster vaccination.
Owners of dogs and wolf-hybrids licensed after April 1 will be charged a penalty. In addition, any person failing to license a dog or wolf-hybrid may be fined up to $100, and the dog or wolf-hybrid may be impounded. If an animal licensed last year has died or been given away, contact the Town Clerk's office at 802-251-8157.
Art, conversation to benefit Syrian relief effort
BRATTLEBORO - “A Night in Solidarity: Art and Conversations,” a fundraiser to benefit the Jafra Foundation for Relief and Development, will be held Friday, April 1, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m in the lobby of the Hooker-Dunham Theater and Gallery at 139 Main St. Stop in at anytime during Gallery Walk for food, art, and conversations.
Jafra Foundation works in Syria to ease human suffering in cases of emergency, crisis, and disaster, The foundation strives to improve living conditions by involving young people in the relief and development process.
Jafra's ongoing projects include: Distribution of food and non-food items to displaced families and to families living in besieged or hard-t0-reach areas; psycho-social support and provision of alternative education programs to children affected by the conflict; waste management campaigns and water trucking; and small scale agriculture.
Natural History Museum begins info meeting series
WILMINGTON - The Southern Vermont Natural History Museum will hold the first of a series of informational meetings at 6:30 p.m. on April 1 at the Twin Valley Elementary School on Route 100. Childcare (edutainment) will be provided at the school and light refreshments will be available.
The museum plans to expand well beyond what its current Hogback Overlook site can accommodate. Plans include development of a larger wildlife center and many new outdoor resources. Museum directors expect that, once the expansion project is complete, the museum will attract 150,000 people per year to the area.
At the informational meeting, museum director Ed Metcalfe and assistant director Michael Clough will share project details and talk about the various ways in which the project may benefit Southern Vermont. After their presentation they will field questions from the audience.
In addition to informing the public, this meeting will help Metcalfe and Clough assess support in the Deerfield Valley for the museum's expansion plans. For more information, attend the meeting or contact Metcafe and Clough at the museum during regular business hours at 802-464-0048 or any time through www.vermontmuseum.org.
Tai Chi for Balance series begins at Putney Cares
PUTNEY - It's not too late to join the new Tai Chi for Balance class at Putney Cares, 54 Kimball Hill Rd.
Kate Roome, certified instructor in the Vermont Falls Prevention Tai Chi program, began a new 10-week series of Tai Chi classes at the Putney Cares Activities Barn on March 18, but spaces are still available. The classes will run on Fridays through June 3, 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., with no class on April 1 or May 20.
The series will focus on learning a safe style of Tai Chi that is proven to be effective at improving balance for elders. For more information or to register, contact Pamela Cubbage in the Putney Cares office at 802-387-5593 or at [email protected].
Thrift shop bag sale in West Townshend
WEST TOWNSHEND - On Saturday, April 2, and Sunday, April 3, the Thrift Shop at the West Townshend Country Store will hold a special end-of-winter sale.
Customers can fill bags with items of their choice for $5 per bag. Items will include clothing and shoes for men, women, and children, as well as household items.
Hours will be from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Thrift Shop is on the second floor of the West Townshend Country Store at the intersection of Route 30 and Windham Hill Road. All proceeds from Thrift Shop sales benefit the nonprofit West River Community Project.
Spring Osher Lectures: Addiction, Civil War Vermont
DUMMERSTON - The Brattleboro Chapter of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) announces its new series of morning and afternoon lectures, to begin on April 4. Morning lectures will examine the nature of addiction and social responses to it. Afternoon lectures will address various aspects of Vermont's Civil War history.
Morning lectures will be given by Meg Mott, a frequent Osher lecturer and teacher of politics at Marlboro College. Her first program will consider Vermont's approach to combating addiction.
In the afternoon series, four presenters will separately discuss various aspects of Civil War Vermont. The first presentation, by Jeanne L. Austin and Peter Nadolny, will be a dramatized interview with Mary Ann Bickerdike, whose nursing and organizing of military hospitals made her a hero of the Union side.
Lectures will be held on six successive Mondays. Morning lectures will run from 10 a.m. to noon; afternoon lectures, from 1 to 3 p.m.
All lectures will be held at the Vermont Learning Collaborative, 471 US Route 5, Dummerston. Parking and handicapped access will be available, and light refreshments will be served.
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute is a nationwide membership organization sponsoring programs for people aged fifty and over who wish to continue their education without tests, papers, or grades.
Payment of full membership dues ($50) will entitle members to attend all twelve lectures in the present series. Partial membership ($30) will entitle subscribers to attend six sessions in either morning or afternoon, but not both. Couples are welcome to join OLLI as full members at a discounted rate of $80 ($50 for partial membership). All of the series' lectures will be open to nonmembers for a fee of $6 per lecture.
For further information, contact Julie Lavorgna at 802-365-7278, or at [email protected].
Learn about the fish of Dummerston
DUMMERSTON - Vermont Department of Fish & Wildlife Fisheries Biologist Kenneth Cox will present “Fish of Dummerston and Surrounding Regions” on Tuesday, April 5, at 7 p.m. at the Learning Collaborative, 471 Rte. 5, Dummerston.
Cox will talk about the non-game and sport species found in local rivers and streams, the fish's habitat requirements, how people's activities affect them, and measures that town and private landowners can undertake to conserve fish populations. A question-and-answer will follow.
This program will be of interest to anglers as well as to those interested in protecting aquatic resources. The presentation will be sponsored by the Dummerston Conservation Commission. For information visit www.dummerstonconservation.com.
BF bike project hosts fundraiser
BELLOWS FALLS - The BF Community Bike Project will host a silent auction fundraiser on Saturday, April 9, from 6 to 10 p.m., at 33 Bridge St. in Bellows Falls.
The Project says it plans to have “something for everyone,” including beautifully restored bicycles ranging from vintage to nearly new, gift certificates for local businesses, local artisan wares, gift baskets, and other auction items.
There will be live music by local musicians Don Dawson, Jesse Peters, and the Milkhouse Heaters, with light food, a cash bar and a 50/50 raffle.
The BF Community Bike Project is a volunteer-run nonprofit bicycle shop. Its mission is to provide community access to bicycles and bike repair skills, as well as to encourage safe bicycling as a means of affordable transportation, self-sufficiency, and overall wellness. For more information, visit www.bfbike.org or call 802-460-0662.
Affordable prom wear sale
CHESTER - The Chester-Andover Family Center will host a community service event for area teens to find their perfect prom outfit.
On Thursday, April 7, from 3-7 p.m., the center will open its doors for prom “shopping.” They will have a large selection of prom wear for girls and guys, including new and “like new” dresses and suits. Accessories such as shoes, shirts, ties, handbags, and jewelry that can complete a “look” will also be available.
The suggested donation is $20. The event will include a free raffle for prom flowers to all teen shoppers. Chester-Andover Family Center is located at 908 VT 103 in Chester. Follow them on Facebook or call 802-875-3236.
Donations sought for book sale
WEST DUMMERSTON - Dummerston's Lydia Taft Pratt Library is accepting donations of hardcover and paperback books, CDs, and DVDs for the annual Geranium Festival/Book Sale on May 21.
Bring all books, CDs, and DVDs (no textbooks, please) to the library, which is located in the Dummerston Community Center, 150 West St. (off Route 30), during library hours: Tuesdays, 2:30 to 7 p.m., Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays, 9:30 a.m. to noon. For more information, call the library at 802-258-9878.