For the businesses who submitted the anonymous column on the impact of panhandling, I suggest that they begin speaking more openly.
As a regular downtown business customer, I stand ready with my wallet to support any business willing to engage in an honest dialogue.
Speaking out on a controversial topic is hard. All the more reason I will support any downtown business that puts skin in the game and signs their name to any opinion expressed respectfully.
I don't know the best course of action on the topic of panhandlers, but we need to talk about it and learn from each other.
I have been homeless. I have been a panhandler. I am in recovery. I absolutely agree with everything that was said in the open letter from business owners. I agree that being compassionate does not need to include giving money directly to panhandlers. I agree that the aggressive nature...
The decision to have a safe and legal abortion is under threat. Recently, the state of Alabama ruled to outlaw almost all abortions - including in case of rape or incest. It is one of the chilling indicators of Roe v. Wade's fragility. The intent of the new law...
Yellow Barn Music and Next Stage Arts Project will co-present Beowulf with Benjamin Bagby, on Sunday, June 16, at 7:30 p.m. Following the performance, there will be a discussion with Benjamin Bagby moderated by Yellow Barn Artistic Director Seth Knopp. In his hour-long performance of the first part of the epic poem known as Beowulf, Bagby assumes the role of an 11th-century “scop,” transporting both himself and the audience to the very roots of storytelling, when aural tradition was paramount...
Let me get this straight. Your policy is that you do not publish anonymous letters to the editor. The letter included some statements that were described in the letter as unsubstantiated rumor and gossip. It was written and signed, according to you, by more than 20 local business people who did not wish to be identified. In view of the importance of the topic you published the letter anyway but not the identity of the authors. We are in a...
Stage 33 Live, 33 Bridge St., presents Florida's unfiltered leftneck singer-songwriter Grant Peeples and innovative violinist Mark Russell with local hero Ezra Veitch opening on Sunday, June 16. Before Peeples makes his way to Woody Guthrie's hometown of Okemah in Oklahoma's interior to play the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival, he's going to play an intimate listening event at Stage 33 Live. “Calling himself 'a tree-hugger that watches NASCAR, and a Buddhist with a gun below the seat,' Peeples isn't afraid...
Brattleboro Senior Meals hosts birthday luncheon BRATTLEBORO - Seniors with June birthdays are invited to celebrate the occasion with a special luncheon on Thursday, June 13, at 11:30 a.m., at the Senior Center in the basement of the Gibson-Aiken Center on Main Street. The menu will include an appetizer table, punch, pulled pork, oven roasted potato, roasted Italian vegetables, and cake and ice cream. Speak with Senior Meals staff to reserve a seat at the Birthday Table. The suggested donation...
The Rockingham Meeting House will host a series of concerts this summer featuring area artists performing traditional American music. Concerts will be held on the third Sunday of each month, beginning at 3 p.m. First on tap June 16 are Erik Johannson and Kathi Byam offering traditional tunes on harp and flute. The next concert in the series, on July 21, will feature Andy and Lois Buchan with music for fife and drum. On Aug. 18, the Comtu Trio will...
A Vermont Superior Court found Steven Bourgoin guilty of second-degree murder for killing five teenagers in an accident he caused by driving the wrong way on Interstate 89. Why has President Trump not been charged with second-degree murder in the matter of five immigrant children whose deaths were caused or exacerbated by his policies on immigration? Apparently, six immigrant children have now died in detention. Perhaps Trump also would use a defense of insanity.
Vernon's annual Town Picnic will take place on Saturday, June 29, with a day filled with fun and fellowship. The Kids Carnival will run from 4 to 6 p.m. (a change from past years, when it was from 2 to 4 p.m.) Organizers say they have 12 booths confirmed, with a wide variety of activities and games. The pool will be free for everyone all day, and the Vernon Fire Department will host its annual Fire Muster. New this year...
On May 31, more than 500 union members and allies picketed the GOP fundraiser in Burlington which featured extremist union-buster Scott Walker and Vermont Republican Governor Phil Scott. The picket was organized by AFSCME-VT, IBEW Local 300, the Vermont Building and Construction Trade Council, and dozens of other unions and pro-labor community/political organizations. Labor appreciates the support received from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who reached out to supporters the previous day to express his backing of the picket and to...
These are your standards for online comments. I wish that the open letter published today was held to the same standard: “Editor's note: Our terms of service require you to use your real names. We will remove anonymous or pseudonymous comments that come to our attention. We rely on our readers' personal integrity to stand behind what they say; please do not write anything to someone that you wouldn't say to his or her face without your needing to wear...
College news • The following local students were awarded degrees during commencement ceremonies on May 19 at the University of Vermont: Antonio Acevedo of Brattleboro, B.A., Spanish; Liv Berelson of Brattleboro, B.A., Latin American and Caribbean Studies; Taylor Bird of Vernon, B.S., Nutrition and Food Sciences; Ryan Borgesen of Newfane, B.S., Business Administration; McKenzie Brandon of Saxtons River, B.A., Music; Alyssa Cote of Saxtons River, B.S. (cum laude), Animal Sciences; Olivia Diorio of Putney, B.S., Environmental Studies; Corso Donati of...
The Wardsboro Energy Committee will host its first “Dessert and Learn” workshop, “Do it Yourself Home Efficiency Improvements” on Tuesday, June 25, at 7:15 p.m., at the Wardsboro Town Hall. Dessert donations to share are welcome but not necessary. The event is free and open to all, a gathering of friends and neighbors to discuss no-cost and low-cost measures to lower the cost of operating homes and businesses. Jeff Manney from Efficiency Vermont will lead the discussion and has promised...
Latchis Arts and Vermont filmmaker Mike Leonard present a screening of One Town at a Time at the Latchis Theatre on Saturday, June 15, at 4 p.m. One Town at a Time is a coming-of-age story, a road trip chronicle, and a glimpse into the spirit and soul of Vermont, told through the lens of Woodstock native Mike Leonard. In the summer of 2006, between semesters at college, Leonard took on the challenge of visiting every town in Vermont by...
Featured on The Boston Globe's 2019 Must-see List, Antenna Cloud Farm says it is “pleased to welcome back audiences and artists alike for another season full of astounding, world-class, and genre-defying musical performances.” Located on a 100-acre hilltop former dairy farm, Antenna Cloud will present six different artists over the course of eight concerts, including two special outdoor events - timed to the setting sun over the hills of Franklin County - that are free to kids 18 and under.
New England Youth Theatre, 100 Flat St., celebrates 20 years of theater “By Kids, For Kids” with an alumni revival of their 2007 production of Scapin, written by Bill Irwin and Mark O'Donnell, adapted from Molière, and directed by NEYT founder Stephen Stearns, with NEYT alum Taylor Patno. The show will be performed on Friday, June 14, at 7 p.m., Saturday, June 15, at 1 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, June 16, at 2 p.m. There will be a gala...
Cynthia Pearson settles onto a blue settee in one of the reception rooms of the Bradley House, one of the two facilities operated by Garden Path Elder Living, the nonprofit residential care organization whose leadership she assumed a few short weeks ago. Why take the job? She enjoys working with elders. “They are amazing, they have so much to offer, and you actually learn a lot from them,” she said. In addition to the Bradley House, at 65 Harris Ave.,
A lot of grumbling and criticism has greeted the end of this session of the state Legislature, both about how it ended and what it accomplished. Lost in all the noise is the fact that the Legislature is elected in a two-year cycle. Two sessions. Just ended was the first session. Bills that were not disposed of in this session can and will be picked up in the next, in January 2020, just as they were left at the end...
Jana Zeller will present her raucous adult hand puppet show, Puppet Crimes, on Thursday, June 20, at 7:30 p.m. With the allure of a cabaret-style performance, rude language, puppet roughhousing, and delicious food and drink in the sultry atmosphere of The Stone Church in Brattleboro, this dark comedy highlights the glory of traditional, anti-authoritarian, counter-cultural puppet theater. As Zeller describes her show in a news release, Puppet Crimes is “hilarious satire about what it takes for a common puppet to...
Stone Church Arts presents “Cellos in Bellows,” three public concerts celebrating the cello in pop, jazz, rock, and folk settings. The concerts take place in Immanuel Episcopal Church, 20 Church St., with its historic architecture and warm, vibrant acoustics. All concerts begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 15, features Stone Church Arts Musical Director Eugene Friesen teaming up with jazz vocalist and pianist Peter Eldridge. Eldridge is a longtime member of New York Voices, a globe-trotting jazz vocal quartet. Cellist...
When a representative of a local downtown business came to The Commons' newsroom with a letter commenting on issues and concerns affecting downtown Brattleboro - but with the stipulation that it be published without its signatories' names - I did not expect that piece would ever see print. But it obviously did two weeks ago, to the chagrin of many in the community. This decision also flies in the face of everything I usually believe is normal and healthy about...
Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and the Brattleboro Fire Department are partnering to offer a public forum on opiates on Thursday, June 20. “I hope people will come, ask their questions, and hear from the experts,” said Fire Chief Michael Bucossi, who said he understands that people feel overwhelmed by the opioid epidemic and that it can feel like it is worsening. But there are “a whole lot of people doing a whole lot of things” in the community to ease the...
I admit, the presence of the many street people in Brattleboro can be very disturbing to some. I understand that extreme poverty, severe mental illness, and opioid-use disease are not pretty, not easy to witness. However, there are different ways of dealing with this problem, and printing an anonymous letter from business owners who are afraid to use their own names is not a helpful or productive way to approach a national crisis. Brattleboro is a tiny part of the...
Hello and good day to you, southern Green Mountain State dwellers! We had a super sweet four-day string of mostly sunny days with a few high clouds here and there, which was much needed in typically poor-drainage-prone areas of the region, given the very wet spring (and winter, and autumn, and summer) that preceded it. For the week ahead we have more showery shots to be sure, but I believe we'll see some sunshine as well. For Wednesday, high pressure...
My name is Liz. I stand on the bridge on Main Street by the Brattleboro Food Co-op. I take offense to the article. Many people know me from there; they come out to go to the Co-op or their homes and talk with me. At times, they buy me food or give money. We are not addicted and never have been - and no drinking. I make on average of $150 a week and I am there six or more...
If people are ever going to get off the street, their drug use has to be addressed. Not giving panhandlers money will not help. These people are desperate and will do whatever they have to do for their drugs. I understand that people do not want to enable drug use in the community. I agree. The problem is that there is no alternative. If the Brattleboro Retreat worked, these people would not be addicts. Many of them are in and...
This past Saturday, I participated in a demonstration that blocked the Strolling of the Heifers parade for about 20 minutes [story, A1]. Two of my friends involved stayed on the street until they were escorted out by police. The Heifers parade is cherished by communities within and beyond Vermont's borders, for good reason. We deserve to celebrate what is accomplished every day through sustainable agriculture, green-energy incentives, and social inclusion in the quest of fighting climate change. Human beings require...
Before getting into the behavior of some Brattleboro adults, the students who protested at Saturday's Strolling of the Heifers parade [story, A1] deserve our attention and our accolades. They join the ranks of those before them who used civil disobedience as a tactic to fight injustice. Acts of civil disobedience helped African Americans gain basic human rights, it helped people with disabilities gain access to resources and services that had been denied them, it made a significant impact on the...
Mitchell-Giddings Fine Arts hosts an artist opening and reception for Lyell Castonguay: Tributes, an exhibition of woodblock prints, on Saturday, June 15, from 5 to 7 p.m. The show continues through July 28, and an artist talk is scheduled for July 14 at 5 p.m. Castonguay is co-founder, along with Carand Burnet, of Big Ink, a unique, travelling, nationally recognized woodblock printmaking partnership providing audiences an opportunity to create large - up to 8 feet - hand pulled woodcuts. Castonguay's...
Girls on the Run Vermont (GOTRVT) founder Nancy Heydinger of Vernon recently announced that she is stepping down from her post as executive director. Girls on the Run is an international non-profit program that educates girls ages 8 to 13 in the importance of physical and emotional health. Through running and games, it helps girls learn greater self-confidence, a stronger sense of identity, a healthier body image, and a better sense of community. In the two decades that Heydinger has...
This month, Yellow Barn's Young Artists Program brings together 32 outstanding young instrumentalists and composers from across the U.S. and abroad for a rigorous and exciting chamber music program that includes four public performances at the Big Barn June 17, 19, 27, and 28. On June 9, students and faculty arrived at the Greenwood School campus, their home-away-from-home for the next three weeks. The program provides students age 15 to 20 with a challenging and supportive learning environment. Coaching sessions,
Kali Quinn is a goldmine of creativity. Whether performing, teaching, mentoring, or facilitating, she brings her artistry and skills as a creative doula to so many different venues, including Sandglass Theater, New England Center for the Circus Arts, Brown University medical school, and Full Circle Festival, to name just a few. With an entrepreneurial spirit, Kali continually develops and expands her repertoire. As one review said, “There's no telling where this effervescent artist will alight next.” I really encourage everybody...
Last week's commemorations of D-Day, that day 75 years ago when Allied forces landed on the beaches of northern France to begin the liberation of western Europe from Nazi Germany, were a reminder that the brave souls that were there that morning are passing from living memory and into the history books. On June 6, 1944, the biggest day of World War II, all Richard Hamilton could do was watch and wait. As the first waves of bombers swept over...
Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman was co-hosting live Vermont PBS coverage of the annual Strolling of the Heifers parade on June 8 when, 20 minutes in, things veered severely off script. “We have something unplanned-looking here,” Zuckerman told the statewide television audience. That's when nearly a dozen screaming “die-in” demonstrators blocked the march for 15 minutes as they unfurled a nearly 25-foot-long “Declare Climate Emergency” banner across Main Street. “Activism is a good thing,” Zuckerman ad-libbed. But after five minutes of...
On a section of riverbank on the edge of West River Park, the Conservation Commission is doing its best to try to control the spread of Japanese knotweed. The swimming hole and paddle-powered boat launch on the West River, a popular spot for visitors in the summer, is completely surrounded by knotweed. Town Planning Director Sue Fillion said that, left to its own devices, the patch of Japanese knotweed would grow to be very dense and impede public access to...