• Nichols A. “Nick” Johnson, 33, of San Francisco. Died May 20 as a result of a motorcycle accident on the Bay Bridge. He was born on May 21, 1982 in Northampton, Mass., the son of Steve and Elsie Johnson of Manhattan, Mont., formerly of Brattleboro, He attended elementary school at Academy School in West Brattleboro, and graduated from high school in Kalispell, Mont., and later graduated from Montana State University. He worked at Project WET, and at MSU, Sony in Australia, and Triage Consulting in San Francisco at the time of his death. He loved driving his BMW in Sports Club Cars of America events, dirt biking, surfing, bicycling, and riding his motorcycle. He is survived by his parents, and his brother Tyler Johnson of Portland, Oregon, and many aunts, uncles, and cousins. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Memorial services will be held throughout the summer at various locations. Donations can be made to the charity of one's choice.
• Brian E. Palmiter, 77, of Wilmington. Died July 12 after a long, courageous battle with Alzheimer's disease. Born on March 1, 1939 in Bouckville, N.Y., he was the son of the late Robert Harley Palmiter and Valerae King Palmiter, brother to surviving Ruth Palmiter Neidhardt of Meredith, N.H. Growing up in what is now known as the historic Landmark Tavern in Bouckville, he followed in his father's footsteps to become a distinguished antique and fine arts dealer. He was proprietor of a thriving auction business, Palmiter Auction Gallery, of Waterville, N.Y. During this era, Brian co-founded the Madison-Bouckville Antique Show, which has become the largest outdoor antique show in New York. He was also the manager of W.T. Grant in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., in the early 1960s. After a few years in Anchorage, Alaska, working as a real estate...
Mid to late summer is a perfect time to visit area farmers' markets for some fresh, seasonal vegetables, and “Farm to Family” Coupons are a great resource to help qualified households access this nutritious produce for free. In a news release, Southeast Vermont Community Action said it has 164...
Good day, everybody! The summer of 2016 rolls on, and it has certainly been warmer than the previous two. While we remain in drought, we have a couple of chances for more substantial rains on Friday and Sunday, so here's hoping they actually materialize. For Wednesday, we'll enjoy pleasant,
Grant is denied DUMMERSTON - The town was recently denied a grant from the Agency of Transportation's Better Roads program. During Highway Foreman Lee Chamberlin's Roads Report at the July 6 Selectboard meeting, he informed the Board he didn't know the reason for the denial, but planned to follow up with the Agency to find out. The grant was supposed to fund culvert and ditch-line work along Upper Dummerston Road.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently raised the income limits for households seeking financial assistance for needed home repairs, according to a news release. USDA Rural Development offers affordable financing to very-low-income homeowners who hope to improve the health, safety, or efficiency of their homes through repairs or renovations through its Single Family Home Repair program. They also provide loans to very-low-income homeowners to repair, improve or modernize their homes, or grants to elderly very-low income homeowners to remove health...
Not everyone who buys a home gets a press conference upon moving in. But, not every homeowner is the first in the state to purchase an energy-efficient modular home through a new USDA program. Dennis Miller is that homeowner. On June 21, the Putney resident was joined by government officials and representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Windham & Windsor Housing Trust at the Locust Hill Mobile Home Park to celebrate his new home, purchased through the...
Wendy Redlinger's Jazz Soiree will present the Bob Stabach 4tet with special guest pianist Miro Sprague on Thursday, Aug. 4, at 7 p.m., at 2596 Tater Lane. Sprague is a jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader known for his dynamic performance and inspiring creativity. According to a news release, he is a graduate of the Manhattan School of Music and the Theolonius Monk Institute of Jazz Performance at UCLA, he has toured the United States, Europe, and Japan, and performed with...
When Michael Courtemanche appeared before the Selectboard at their July 5 regular meeting, he stood on the opposite side of the table from where he had sat barely a year earlier when he was a member of the Board. Soon, Courtemanche may find himself sitting on the opposite side of a courtroom from his former colleagues. According to his statements at the July 5 meeting, after resigning from the Selectboard last November, Courtemanche was approached by Board Chair Christiane Howe,
The final Family Night of Meeting Waters YMCA's 2016 Y Day Camp season will double as an Alumni Reunion for its more than 12,500 former campers and hundreds of former staff, according to a news release. The event will take place on Thursday, Aug. 11, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Y's Lewis Day Camp facility on Route 5/Missing Link Road. This is the 52nd consecutive summer of the regional Y's day camp. In the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s,
For babies, access to fresh diapers is a basic need. Keeping babies dry and clean is critical to their health and well-being, as well as to the happiness of those around them. Yet, according to a Parks Place and Youth Services news release, one in three American families report experiencing diaper need, and the poorest families can spend as much as 14 percent of their income on diapers and wipes. In a recent Feeding America study, “In Short Supply,” 32...
The Arts Council of Windham County kicked off summer with its first ARTstravaganza in May. With more events on the horizon, including a Masquerade Ball on Oct. 28, and planning their 2017 ARTstravaganza, they are looking for help. They offer some specific ways to get involved: • Become a board member: Do you have passion or expertise in an area that you are willing to share with the Arts Council and other artists in Windham County? The Council is looking...
Deadlines loom for early voting, registration for primaries MONTPELIER - The Vermont Secretary of State's office reminds new voters that the deadline to register to vote in the Aug. 9 Statewide Primary is Wednesday, Aug. 3, at 5 p.m. Vermont has one of the most generous early voting periods in the nation, allowing people to vote in person at your town clerk's office or by mail 45 days before an election. If you aren't registered, the Secretary of State's new...
Reappraisal update GUILFORD - Lister Jeremiah Sund appeared before the Selectboard at their July 11 regular meeting to keep them updated on the townwide property reappraisal process. The Listers hired ARGI, a state-approved appraisal firm, to conduct the inspections. Because the appraiser, Daniel Beaudoin, will seek entry into people's homes, the town posted a picture of Beaudoin and his vehicle on their website, guilfordvt.net. Beaudoin drives a white Pontiac Vibe with Massachusetts plates, number 3GR570. Beaudoin has examined the interiors...
Selectboard meets new state police commander NEWFANE - The new commanding officer of the new Vermont State Police Troop D barracks in Westminster, Lt. Timothy Oliver, stopped by to introduce himself to the Selectboard at their July 18 regular Board meeting. Oliver replaces Lt. Paul Favreau, whom Oliver described as moving “on to greener pastures - he's running the [drug] task force now.” At the Board meeting, Oliver filled townspeople in on the changes at the VSP. The Brattleboro and...
I have been told that if I don't vote for Hillary Clinton, a person whose policies, character, and likely governing style I detest, then I am: 1. Enabling fascism, 2. Indifferent to the needs of vulnerable groups like minorities, women, LGBTQ, et al., 3. Selfish, irresponsible, and having a tantrum, 4. Showing my white privilege, 5. An assh-, 6. Insults, guilt trips, and other verbal slams. I'm told that voting for a third party is a “luxury” when we're faced...
Conversations with retired New York City police officer Jose Maldonado Jr. were one of the many things that inspired Patrina Lingard to organize a discussion on policing set for July 27 in Brattleboro. The discussion starts at 5 p.m., at the River Garden. The discussion will last two hours, followed by 30 minutes for mingling. Panel members include Maldonado, Ken Williams, Ed.D., the interim dean at the School for International Training, Police Chief Michael Fitzgerald, Dan Davis, Esq., Orlando Alvarez,
The ongoing drought in southern Vermont has done at least one positive thing: It has kept water quality high at local swimming holes. The Southeastern Vermont Watershed Alliance's summer water-quality monitoring program held its third round of testing July 21, according to a news release, and found only one site in the West River and Whetstone watershed failed the “suitability for swimming” standard set by the state of Vermont and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of a maximum of 235...
Latchis Arts presents an informative and entertaining weekend of film and discussion highlighting the films of Alfred Hitchcock on Saturday and Sunday, July 30 and 31. The Alfred Hitchcock Weekend features screenings at the Latchis Theatre of “North By Northwest” on Saturday, July 30, and “Vertigo” on Sunday, July 31. Both screenings will be held at 4 p.m., and admission is by donation. Following the screenings, audiences will have a chance to meet and hear from Hitchcock scholars Dr. Walter...
The Pikes Falls Chamber Music Festival returns to the Latchis Theatre this summer for two twilight-hour free concerts on Friday afternoons, according to a news release. Grammy-nominated musicians from the chamber music festival - celebrating its fifth season in Jamaica - will perform music by Bach, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, and world premieres by Joseph Hallman and Nathan Lincoln-Decusatis on consecutive Fridays - July 29 and August 5 - at 4 p.m. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. Complete concert repertoire...
Nearly four months ago, a hydropower working group began investigating what interest - if any - Vermont should take in TransCanada's sale of 13 generating stations on the Connecticut and Deerfield rivers. With a report due to four legislative committees by Aug. 1, the group's efforts haven't resulted in any plan of action. In fact, the state has not signed a confidentiality agreement that would give it access to all information about TransCanada's proposed sale, which is expected to happen...
Bartleby's Books will host a release party for the new Harry Potter story. The party will start at 10 p.m. on Saturday, July 30, and books can be sold starting at 12:01 a.m. on July 31. The release party will feature Harry Potter trivia, viewing of the first Harry Potter movie, a Horcrux scavenger hunt, house sorting, and Harry Potter refreshments, according to a news release. Costumes are encouraged, but optional. “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is the eighth...
Biologic Integrative Healthcare, LLC 205 Main St., Suite 4, Brattleboro 802-275-4732 • Website: biologichealthcare.com • Facebook: facebook.com/BiologicHealthcare/ • LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/biologic-integrative-healthcare-llc • Founded: 2006 • Corporate structure: Vermont Domestic Limited Liability Company (Manager-Managed) • Registered trade names: Biologic Healthcare, BIH • Employees: 8 • Products/services: From practice's website: “We function as your primary-care doctors, or in conjunction with your current health-care team to create an individualized plan that will get you where you want to be” for conditions that include allergies/sensitivities,
Alex Melamid, the New York City–based conceptual and performance artist, will visit the Kopkind Colony's Organ Barn on July 31 for a free talk, “Against Fear!” Melamid's presentation kicks off the colony's 18th annual session for journalists and activists. The Kopkind Colony is an educational summer residency program for independent journalists and community organizers. The organization describes itself as representing a “living memorial” to nationally renowned journalist Andrew Kopkind, who died in 1994. According to a news release, “The theme...
Choreographer Cynthia Oliver is winding up her two-week July residency at Vermont Performance Lab (VPL) in Guilford, where she has been developing a new dance/theater work, “Virago-Man Dem.” With her collaborators - composer Jason Finkelman, musician Geoff Gersh, and dancers Duan Cyrus, Jonathan Gonzales, and Niall Noel Jones - Oliver is exploring the complexities of the representation of black masculinities through movement, spoken language, and visual design. An audience will get a chance to sample what she has been up...
A good estate-planning attorney can prepare us for the inevitable. Our demise, whether slow or sudden, is not a subject we tend to dwell on in our busy lives. Setting aside the time to address our death can be low on our list of priorities. But when pushed, most of us have given some thought to questions of how we want to be treated as we decline and after we pass on, and to how we want our property to...
A multinational security company has been hired to protect two Windham County courthouses and another in Chittenden County. State officials announced Tuesday that Securitas USA - a subsidiary of Sweden-based security giant Securitas AB - will replace Windham County sheriff's deputies at courthouses in Brattleboro and Newfane on Sept. 1. On the same date, Securitas also will take over for a private contractor that had been providing security at the civil/probate division courthouse in Burlington. The state's total contract with...
There are two kinds of people in the world: those who dream big and go for it, and those who don't. And when the big dream is so full of love and compassion and a desire to give, we - all of us - are all the better for that dreamer's just going for it. I approached my chat with Dr. Samantha Eagle having done enough research to build a bit of foundation on what she and Biologic Healthcare are...
I have been a Bernie Sanders supporter from day one. The first time I was able to vote, I had the great privilege of voting via absentee ballot for him as a U.S. senator from Vermont in 2006. My family has been voting for him in Vermont since the 1990s. I consider myself a part of Bernie Sanders' political revolution. I was more than thrilled to work hard as a volunteer for his campaign at the Democratic National Committee Summer...
Over the first several years of his tenure, Gov. Peter Shumlin made no secret of his desire to shut down the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. And since the Vernon facility stopped producing power at the end of 2014, Shumlin's administration has repeatedly challenged plant owner Entergy's decommissioning plans - often without much success, given that the process is mostly federally regulated. It will be up to Shumlin's successor to set the tone for the state's interactions with Entergy starting in...
Main Street Arts will host an exhibit of the work of artist Robert McBride from July 28 to Aug. 26, with an opening reception Thursday, Aug. 4, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. McBride's show, titled “Colorfully Informed,” features his trademark vibrant colors informed by the world he experiences, according to a news release. In the release, he says the focus of his work is color - as painting and as sculpture. “Creating the work allows me to translate much of...
July means lots of miles logged on the interstate following Brattleboro youth baseball teams in their respective tournaments. This won't be the case for the Brattleboro 11-12 Little League All-Stars. Brattleboro's South Main Street Field is the site for the state tournament, so the District 2 champions got to enjoy the comforts of home while their rivals had to hit the highway. The winner of this double-elimination tournament moves on to Bristol, Conn., to represent Vermont in the New England...
By scanning the local arts and entertainment calendar on any given week, one will see listings for musical performances in well-known genres by seasoned artists playing traditional instruments at venues such as the Latchis Theatre or the Vermont Jazz Center. But what about performers who aren't classically trained, who use their instruments in unusual ways, or who play music using objects not usually considered instruments? Is there an avenue of expression and a community for them, too? Yes. For a...
On July 18, Ron Pilette quietly accepted the chairmanship of Grafton Selectboard “with trepidation.” That's because Pilette and his fellow board members are presiding over a town that's been sharply divided by the proposed Stiles Brook Wind Project. Policy and personal disputes provide a messy background to nearly every debate, from critical issues such as voting and legal representation to minutiae such as meeting-agenda language. Pilette himself can't lay claim to neutrality, as he is an avowed opponent of large...
Samirah Evans and the George Kaye Quintet will make summertime living easy with a jazz concert featuring the music of George Gershwin at Historic Memorial Hall in Wilmington. Show time is 8 p.m. on Saturday, July 30. Vocalist Evans and bassist Kaye will be joined by Miro Sprague (piano), Michael Zsoldos (reeds), Eric Miller (trombone) and Claire Arenius (drums), according to a news release. The first set will consist of Gershwin's popular jazz standards, while the second set will feature...
For the past five years, I have worked abroad. All of my worldly possessions fit into two suitcases. I rent a furnished apartment and turn it into my home by placing my few personal items around the small space. There are the Buddhist-style flags that feature painted flowers on cardboard, threaded together on a piece of twine, given me by my daughter Kate when she was 13. She is now 28, and these flags have followed me to every home...
In October 2014, voters in Newfane and Brookline approved a major energy transformation at the joint NewBrook Elementary School. One part of that project - installation of a sophisticated new heat-pump system - is finished. But an accompanying 500-kilowatt solar facility is in limbo due to its California-based developer, SunEdison, seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. While school officials say they're still hopeful the photovoltaic array will be built on school property, they're concerned about SunEdison's ability to meet an end-of-year...
The names, scratched on the sidewalk in chalk, stretched in both directions along the west side of Main Street. And in front of Brooks Memorial Library. And on Flat Street. And along the Whetstone Pathway in front of the Brattleboro Food Co-op. One hundred and forty four names. In less than a week, six more names of black people killed by police were added to the list of those killed since January. Brattleboro's silent evening protest was one of many...
On a recent hot evening, just as the sun went down and the mosquitoes came out, a group of grown-ups found themselves next to the community garden, shoeless, waiting to win or lose. Over the next couple of hours, Putney Free Library Director Emily Zervas assembled a rotating group of about 10 people and one dog - some of whom got pulled in from their gardening or evening walk - for an impromptu game of life-size Chutes and Ladders, the...