BELLOWS FALLS - John H. Cushman Jr., former New York Times reporter and editor, will speak about climate change at the Rockingham Free Public Library on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 10:30 a.m.
Cushman is the author of the book, Keystone and Beyond: Tar Sands and the National Interest in the Era of Climate Change, which traces the history of the pipeline saga and its relation to global warming.
He played a large part in the journal InsideClimate News 2015 investigative series on Exxon's knowledge and coverup of climate change and the risks posed by fossil fuel emissions. This series was a finalist in the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.
His InsideClimate News articles explore every angle of the climate controversy including an ongoing review of the prospective presidential candidates' stands on global warming.
Marlboro College has cancelled its proposed merger with the University of Bridgeport to preserve its unique “self-directed learning” and “town-meeting/selectboard governance,” and “sizable endowment,” according to the public e-mail message from the Office of the President sent Sept. 14. Longtime, growing collaboration with internationally renowned Marlboro Music likely is...
Vermont Student Assistance Corp. will offer free workshops at local high schools in October to help families learn how to manage college costs and to fill out financial aid forms. Each year, Vermont families leave millions of dollars of financial aid on the table by failing to file either...
College news • Kaie Quigley of West Wardsboro and Sophia Mark of Brattleboro were among the nearly 600 new students that Lasell University welcomed to its Newton, Mass., campus for the 2019-20 school year. Quigley is studying communication, while Mark is studying fashion design and production. • St. Lawrence University recently welcomed Hanako Kusumi of South Londonderry as a member of the Class of 2023. Kusumi attended Stratton Mountain School. • William Baker of Londonderry, a member of the Colgate...
Compass School was once again awarded the maximum five-year re-approval by the Vermont Board of Education during its Sept. 19 meeting. The vote was unanimous in favor of re-approval. It allows the private school, which serves students in grades 7-12, to remain eligible to receive state education funding, including publicly-funded tuition dollars. Compass underwent a review by the Education Board after it was discovered earlier this year that the school had failed to file its Form 990, a key document...
In August, 18 local early-childhood teachers joined environmental educator Joan Carey of Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center and Guilford Central School teachers Emma Hallowell and Karen Duggan to learn about ways to expand the nature-based learning in their preschool and kindergarten classrooms. The popularity of nature-based education, outdoor learning, and forest classrooms is on the rise, as educators push back on the “academicification” of early childhood, according to a news release. A movement that developed in Europe decades ago, nature-based preschools...
We thank everyone who helped make Vermont Theatre Company's recent amazing production of Macbeth a wonderful success. It was the perfect way to mark VTC's 30th Shakespeare in the Park and to celebrate the end of its 35th season. We know that community theater is at its best when driven by community members with a strong desire to do the hard work it takes to create a show, bring it to life, and delight audiences. We were fortunate to have...
On Saturday, Oct. 5, Brattleboro will host its 11th annual Buddy Walk. The Buddy Walk was developed by the National Down Syndrome Society in 1995 to celebrate Down Syndrome Awareness Month in October and to promote acceptance and inclusion of people with Down syndrome. The Buddy Walk has grown from 17 walks in 1995 to nearly 300 walks planned for 2019 worldwide. In 2018, more than $14 million was raised nationwide to benefit local programs and services, as well as...
The Regional Development Corporations of Vermont, in partnership with the Department of Labor and the Vermont State Workforce Development Board, has announced the dates for 12 regional workforce development summits, which they will host this fall to support state efforts to increase the size and skill of Vermont's workforce. The first one will take place in Brattleboro, at World Learning/SIT Graduate Institute, on Oct. 3, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Ongoing demographic changes have produced a consistent decline in...
At In-Sight Photography Project's 21st annual auction, a broad community of artists and In-Sight supporters comes together for an exhibition showcasing the breadth of creativity and vision in the photo world. The community will get a preview of this year's works to be auctioned during an opening reception at Brattleboro Gallery Walk on Oct. 4, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the Vermont Center for Photography, 49 Flat St. All are invited for light refreshments while celebrating these great artists...
At a recent Selectboard meeting, I tried to be very clear about why I chose not to vote in favor of the Declaration of Climate Emergency. Most likely some of you who voted for me in March as “the climate guy” might have found my vote surprising. Let me reiterate and expand on my thought process, as I know that not everyone has the opportunity to watch our meetings (although I encourage you to try to catch them either live...
AARP Foundation Tax-Aide has kicked off volunteer recruitment for its Tax-Aide program, the nation's largest volunteer-run tax-preparation service. The Foundation is looking to expand its team of volunteers for the upcoming tax season and is accepting new volunteers in the Brattleboro area. Tax-Aide offers free in-person tax preparation and assistance to low- and moderate-income individuals nationwide. Volunteers make a difference in their communities by helping taxpayers, and their families, who might otherwise miss out on the tax credits and deductions...
Anna Patton and Valerie Thompson invite the community to create music through group improvisations, game-pieces, free play, and more at 118 Elliot on Thursday, Oct. 3, at 7:30 p.m. This is a recurring monthly series. Dates include Nov. 14 and Dec. 12, with more dates to be announced. Sound Play is for all instrumentalists and vocalists willing to experiment with improvisational playing and interactive sound making. No experience is needed - “just a curious ear and a willingness to make...
Hopefully more and more people will join the growing movement to have Brattleboro either step up or tear down the parking garage. A huge number of people no longer park there because the town has abdicated its basic duty to taxpayers and citizens to maintain the garage. Let's go through some basic undisputed facts about its current state: • Trash and stains punctuate the parking garage. Parking enforcement told me there used to be a full-time caretaker of the garage...
Greta Thunberg was magnificent at the United Nations. Hers was the heartfelt cry of a new generation, one betrayed by the industrial growth society. And we in Brattleboro were inspired by brave young voices at our recent Climate Strike. And then, after Greta's cry, it was, shockingly, business as usual at the UN. Too little, too late: no, capitalist economics would not yield an inch, preferring to continue on a march over the cliff. The contrast was breathtaking. I then...
In April of 1970, when I was a senior in high school in Pennsylvania, my girlfriend (and now wife of 38 years) and I skipped school and took the local train into Philadelphia to attend the first Earth Day Rally. It was exhilarating to see thousands of young people like us demanding change in how we treated our planet. Back then, littering was commonplace, dumping raw sewage into rivers and streams was the norm, and emissions on factories and cars...
At a meeting of the Brattleboro Democratic Committee on Tuesday, Sept. 24, a motion was made and passed to send a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer in support of the impeachment of President Donald Trump. The letter reads as follows: “The Brattleboro Democratic Committee of Brattleboro, Vermont, gathered tonight for our biennial reorganizational caucus, hereby informs you of our support for efforts to impeach and remove from office President Donald J.
It's an old but valid observation that one is more effective leading by example than by admonishment. While admittedly an observer and not a participant, it seems to me the great majority of young climate activists are more wagging fingers than setting examples. Had I seen placards proclaiming “I never use a clothes dryer,” “Told my parents: will walk to school, thanks,” Or, “One shower per week for me,” I'd have been a lot more impressed.
The combination of mass shootings and the continual assaults on women's access to reproductive health care hit home a few weeks ago, when I attended the grand opening of the new Planned Parenthood office in downtown Brattleboro. I was frightened that the celebration would be marred by some horrendous act of violence. And still, I went. I arrived late, and the hallway was packed. I couldn't hear the first person to speak and thought, briefly, about using that as an...
Hello and good day to you, residents of lovely Windham County, Vermont! I hope things are well with you. As the world continues to spin, I am grateful for the opportunity each week to keep you updated on our incoming weather. This week, in particular, is notable in that our large-scale pattern is changing and autumn is arriving and settling in deeper to southern Vermont. The southeastern U.S. ridge is being pressed further south by incoming Canadian air, and as...
The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) has received a grant of $5,000 from The Thomas Thompson Trust in support of two art exhibits and a series of related events intended to heighten awareness and foster constructive dialogue about homelessness in the Brattleboro area. In planning the exhibits and events, BMAC is collaborating with Groundworks Collaborative, Youth Services, Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA), Windham & Windsor Housing Trust, and the town of Brattleboro. The two exhibits will be on view...
For the month of October, Crowell Gallery presents “Between Earth and Sky,” paintings and monotypes by Claire Rosenfeld. An artist reception will be held Saturday, Oct. 5, from 1 to 4 p.m., at Moore Free Library, 23 West St. Rosenfeld's figurative expressionist paintings and prints explore landscape in expansive and dramatic settings. Influenced by strong light on land forms, they reveal specific moments in time and place, according to a news release. “Inspired by observation of mountains, waterfalls and other...
Retreat Farm is celebrating fall with a jam-packed Harvest Festival on Saturday, Oct. 5, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Featuring local food trucks, craft beer, antique tractors, pumpkin bowling, cider pressing, farm demonstrations, Abenaki storytelling, and live music all day - Harvest Festival is a celebration of everything that makes Vermont and Retreat Farm so special. The day will feature musical performances by Tom Carroll, Logan Boyd, Strangled Darlings, Wyld Nightz, and Low Lilly, a fresh shipment of beer...
Marlboro College is pleased to present an exhibit by Fay Ku, the Taiwan-born, New York City-based artist whose work connects with past and present cultural histories. The exhibit, titled “Ordinary Mouths Made to Sing,” will take place in Drury Gallery from Oct. 12 to Nov. 15, with an opening reception on Oct. 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. It is free and open to the public. “Ordinary Mouths Made to Sing” will feature recent mixed-media drawings on mylar informed by...
On Sept. 21, the Winston Prouty Center changed the name of Vermont Hall to Thomas Hall in honor of Lawrence “Stub” Thomas. Thomas was a well-known area businessman and Brattleboro native who became a loyal supporter of Winston Prouty and left a legacy gift upon his death in 2018. His family and friends gathered for the renaming. “The experience of having someone believe so deeply in you and your work that they would leave a legacy this lasting is remarkable.
Main Street Arts' annual auction, dinner, and live music fundraiser is set for Saturday, Oct. 5. The action begins at 5 p.m. with a silent auction, followed by a dinner catered by MKT:Grafton. The evening ends with a live auction, all to benefit the community art center's fund to reconstruct its education space and commercial kitchen. The latter suffered major damage in February 2018 during a cold snap when a frozen sprinkler sent more than 600 gallons of water underneath...
October is American Archives Month, a time to remember that records of historical significance should be preserved, cataloged, cared for, and made accessible to the public. The Estey Organ Museum is celebrating the occasion with a small, two-week exhibit of some of the Estey Company's pipe organ records. What are archives? The Society of American Archivists says the term refers to “the permanently valuable records-such as letters, reports, accounts, minute books, draft and final manuscripts, and photographs - of people,
Kurt White of the Brattleboro Retreat described 2009 as a “watershed year” for the treatment field. That was the year the total number of drug-overdose deaths exceeded fatalities from automobile accidents. Little did treatment providers such as White know that the crisis would get worse and more people would die. “I think the opioid crisis has forced me to use every ounce of empathy,” White, the hospital's director of ambulatory services, told the audience attending the Windham County Consortium on...
During a Sept. 24 community meeting at the Municipal Center, Lisa Ryan of the Preservation Trust of Vermont outlined alternative business models other communities have used to save their general stores. “We're here to help you figure out what's going to work in your community and how to connect you with those resources,” said Ryan, a field service representative with the nonprofit. As an organization devoted to protecting and preserving historic properties and revitalizing community centers around the state, Ryan...
The year was 1918. A virus that some experts think was an avian flu spread so rapidly that in a short time it became the most severe pandemic in recent history. Worldwide, during 1918 and 1919 it infected an estimated 500 million people. That was a third of the world's population. At least 50 million died from the devastating flu globally. Close to 700,000 of those deaths occurred in the United States. Many of them were under the age of...
It was homecoming weekend at Brattleboro Union High School, and the undefeated Colonels varsity football team got it started with a 56-0 drubbing of the Mt. Abraham Eagles on Friday night at Natowich Field. This was the most one-sided of the Colonels' Division II games so far, as the Eagles were totally outmatched. The Eagles' defense could not stop a team that has averaged 50 points a game this season, and the offense further hurt their cause by committing six...
Next Stage Arts Project presents The Akwaaba Ensemble, featuring traditional African drumming and dance, at Next Stage on Friday, Oct. 4, at 7:30 p.m. Opening will be award-winning performance artist, singer, musician, and author U-Meleni Mhlaba-Adebo. The Akwaaba Ensemble's energetic and interactive performances are a reflection of their name, which means “welcome” in the Twi language of the Ashanti tribe of Ghana, according to a news release. The Ensemble “brings Highlife music, West African drumming and dance to vivid life.”
Stage 33 Live, located at 33 Bridge St., will host a special evening of music with Tracy Grammer and Jim Henry on Friday, Oct. 4. Tracy Grammer has recorded and performed with Joan Baez, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Eliza Gilkyson, and many more; headlined top festivals including Philadelphia Folk and Falcon Ridge, where she holds the record for the most consecutive appearances; and has been one of folk radio's top-played artists for years, both solo and with the late Dave Carter.
James Gelter didn't know just how good an idea he had. Last year, he devised the project to form the Baker Street Readers, which would give monthly public readings of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories at the Hooker-Dunham Theater & Gallery. That venture proved so successful that the series is returning again for a second season. “When we gave our first reading last January, even though I knew there were a lot of Sherlock Holmes fans, I found...
The Jacksonville General Store will have new owners later this autumn - news that sparked a round of applause from the more than 50 people gathered in the Municipal Center last week for an ice-cream social and to discuss the store's future. Heather Hebert and Jason Klump await the final paperwork to transfer the general store to their ownership as they plan to take control of the 165-year-old community institution at the end of October. Their intent to purchase the...