Now in its 35th year, Christmas in Weston will celebrate traditional holiday nostalgia taking place on Saturday, Dec. 7, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Free, fun events and activities for all ages at galleries, shops, museums, and inns throughout the scenic village and delicious food can be enjoyed all day long.
Funds raised through donations, raffle, and food sales at designated vendors from this event will benefit the Little School in Weston, a preschool for children ages 2 to 5, which serves Weston and surrounding towns, including Chester, Andover, Ludlow, Cavendish, Peru, Landgrove and Londonderry.
Visitors can start the morning off with a breakfast at the Colonial House Inn and tour the village on foot or by two horse-drawn wagons (weather permitting). Children will enjoy visiting with Santa and the petting farm zoo at the Vermont Country Store.
Congratulations to NorthStar for aiming to take apart Vermont Yankee in record time, hopefully by 2026, and hopefully within budget. The article by Olga Peters [“Unbuilding a Nuclear Power Plant,” Oct. 23], which included an interview with NorthStar's CEO, Scott State, was encouraging, but omitted some of the major...
Next Stage Arts Project is delighted to welcome back to Putney international a cappella sensation The GrooveBarbers for their annual holiday extravaganza, on Friday, Dec. 6, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults, $7.50 for children under 12 years old, and free for kids under 6 (limit of...
The holiday season can be a fantastic, festive time. It can be a time for us to slow down, reconnect with the people we care about, and reflect on the year gone by. The holidays can also be overwhelming. Stress caused by work, school, strained relationships, or finances can certainly take a toll. Some might turn toward drugs or alcohol to cope, or some might already be quietly struggling with a substance addiction. More than 22 million Americans over the...
Strolling of the Heifers presents Pop-Up Holiday Gift Shop BRATTLEBORO - Strolling of the Heifers will offer holiday shopping opportunities with its Pop-Up Holiday Gift Shop at the River Garden, 157 Main St. The shop will be open for three weekends - Nov. 29 and 30, Dec. 13 and 14, and Dec. 20 and 21. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays. Gift items such as specialty foods, pottery, woven...
During the month of December, the sixth annual Brattleboro-West Arts Fine Art and Craft Sale will bring works by 10 of the group’s members to a new downtown venue for them: the River Gallery School. All month, BWA artists will showcase their pottery, jewelry, woodenware, and home accessories, paintings, encaustics, and photographs in the school’s Gallery 34, located at 34 Main St. There will be an opening reception for the gallery show on Friday, Dec. 6, from 5:30 to 8:30...
Cellist Eugene Friesen and singer-songwriter Elizabeth Rogers will ring in the holiday season at Main Street Arts with a CD-release concert Saturday, Nov. 30, at 7:30 p.m. The duo will bring a soulful collaboration to a repertoire of Celtic-infused holiday songs and instrumentals from their new recording, Down in Yon Forest, featuring such classics as The Holly and the Ivy, I Wonder as I Wander, and less-familiar songs of the season. Rogers' crystal-clear soprano and Friesen's cello, with Irish whistle,
Obituaries • William Joseph Bushey III, 36, of Brattleboro. Died unexpectedly on Nov. 13, 2019. He was a lifetime resident of the Brattleboro area. Memorial information: A memorial service was held Nov. 23 at Centre Congregational Church in Brattleboro. His full obituary will be published in a future edition of The Commons. Arrangements were handled by Atamaniuk Funeral Home of Brattleboro. • Robert E. “Bob” Colburn Sr., 83, of Brattleboro. Died on Nov. 14, 2019 at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, following...
The Main Street Flea Holiday Pop-Up, which recurs every year during the first weekend in December, will take place from Dec. 5 to Dec. 8 at 61 Main St., next to Shin La restaurant. More than 20 local, rural artists have come together to create the store this year. Using an unoccupied storefront, they will be offering works in a wide variety of media at a range of prices. Come see Rob Cartelli's wheel-thrown porcelain pottery, Julia Tadlock's handmade gemstone...
U.S. Forest Service officials in Vermont are encouraging the public to purchase Christmas tree removal permits should they be interested in a $5 tree for the holidays. This is a one-time opportunity to cut down a Christmas tree on National Forest land during the 2019 holiday season. In addition, this year all fourth-graders can again take advantage of the Every Kid Outdoors initiative and get a free Christmas tree voucher at everykidoutdoors.gov. Fourth-graders who present a printed copy of the...
For one night only, on Friday, Dec. 6, the Four Columns Artisan Restaurant and the Friends of the Wardsboro Library invite everyone to celebrate the season of the Gilfeather turnip, Vermont's state vegetable, with three special dishes added to the restaurant's regular dinner menu. The dinner is, in part, a benefit for the Friends of the Wardsboro Library, which recently hosted the Gilfeather Turnip Festival. The funds support the upkeep of the 1840s farmhouse and attached barn that house the...
The Brattleboro Music Center's Chamber Series presents the Polonsky-Shifrin-Wiley Trio on Friday, Dec. 6. The 7:30 p.m. concert features pianist Anna Polonsky, clarinetist David Shifrin, and cellist Peter Wiley. The three have performed individually in the past for local audiences, at the Marlboro Music Festival and as part of the BMC Chamber Music Series, but their new collaboration as a trio “offers the promise of a very special concert,” according to a news release. To open and close the program,
Organizers of the annual Cotton Mill Open Studio and Holiday Sale - a perennial favorite - assure that the longtime holiday event is just in a regrouping mode this year. But in the meantime, several artists and enterprises headquartered in the repurposed historic factory can't resist the holiday spirit. And so...voilà! Cotton Mill Open Doors '19. On Saturday, Dec. 7 and Sunday, Dec. 8, one can find either on the Mill's loading dock or in individuals' work spaces a similarly...
Get in the mood for Christmas with the Keene State Vocal Consort on Monday, Dec. 2, at 7:30 p.m., at Immanuel Episcopal Church, the stone church on the hill, 20 Church St. Directed by Matthew Leese, the 14-voice auditioned ensemble will sing a cappella medieval and renaissance music based on the Kings' College tradition of “Lessons and Carols.” The concert is hosted by Stone Church Arts, and admission is by donation. Composers include DuFay, Willaert, Gombert, Palestrina, and Giovanni Gabrieli.
Thanksgiving closings in Brattleboro BRATTLEBORO - In observance of the Thanksgiving holiday, all Brattleboro Town offices will be closed Thursday and Friday, Nov. 28 and 29, with the exception of emergency services. Brooks Memorial Library will close at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 27, and will be closed on Thanksgiving Day. It will be open for regular hours on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 29 and 30. Parking is free in all metered spaces and in the pay-and-display lots on Nov.
The Green Mountain Conservancy has signed a purchase-and-sale agreement to acquire and conserve 626 acres of wild land in Newfane and Brookline. According to a news release, this land abuts the first 287 acres conserved as part of the Deer Run Nature Preserve in Dummerston and Brookline. These 626 acres of forestland and ridgeline constitute the southern terminus of the Putney Mountain Ridge, contiguous to 287 acres the GMC has already conserved. The Phase II property rises from 360 feet...
The AIDS Project of Southern Vermont invites the public to a World AIDS Day observation Monday, Dec. 2, at noon at the Centre Congregational Church downtown. The commemoration of those affected by the virus and those working to combat it will feature a sidewalk candlelight vigil followed by Rev. Scott Couper, who will speak about his HIV/AIDS work in Africa. Music will be provided by the Green Mountain Strummers. “By providing people with information on how HIV is transmitted and...
Main Street Arts is holding auditions for its production of the British comedy Noises Off, scheduled for performances during its Great River Theater Festival next summer. Auditions are Friday, Dec. 6, from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 7., from 3 to 6 p.m., with call-backs Sunday, Dec. 8, from 1 to 3 p.m. Rehearsals will begin in May and will typically be held two evenings a week and weekend mornings. Performances are July 10-19. Those auditioning should expect...
Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present a contemporary folk singer-songwriter twin bill with Antje Duvekot and Matt Nakoa at Next Stage on Saturday, Nov. 30, at 7:30 p.m. Antje Duvekot is a German-born, American-raised singer-songwriter whose songs have been critically praised “for their hard-won wisdom, dark-eyed realism, and street-smart romanticism,” according to a news release. She has won some of the top songwriting awards including the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Competition, the Kerrville Folk Festival...
Everything is broken. My favorite plate, my favorite pair of heels, my favorite suede boots, my favorite holiday... In the midst of modern-day Thanksgiving come platitudes like this one: “I'm so thankful that Bobby got a 100 on his being a super-perfect kid test that no one else was taking. Thank you, baby in a manger.” And I roll my eyes to such great lengths that my eye whites catch a random gathering of twigs in my unraked lawn on...
Climate change has taken center stage, from youth-led protests, to newspaper op-eds, to conversations at the Tuesday night Selectboard meetings. Most of these events have reflected a high-pitched, we're-all-going-to-die-and-nobody-cares urgency. On Nov. 19, in a meeting at St. Michael's Episcopal Church, the state legislative Climate Solutions Caucus struck a different, more-measured and practical, note: Climate change is here. This is what we're doing about it. This is how you can help. The meeting was one of many the caucus is...
Award-winning author David Blistein doesn't consider his upcoming presentation at Next Stage so much a reading as a community conversation about the local opioid crisis. On Thursday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m., Next Stage Arts Project will host Blistein, who will be reading from his new book Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World, which tells the extraordinary and at times harrowing tale of how we arrived at today's crisis. “I will read a fairly short excerpt...
Last month, my husband Mark and I took a trip out West. We landed in Sacramento and drove a scenic loop through Oregon and Washington state, stopping along the way to promote our newly-hatched book. I hadn't visited in about 20 years and missed it so. The Northwest reminds me of a slightly nicer version of the Northeast: progressive,-active,-and friendly-er. Maybe it's the wide skies and gentle weather, but there is an openness about the landscape and its people that...
There are a ton of great Web resources related to substance abuse and addiction, including www.allaboutaddiction.com and www.spiritualriver.com. For a great blog post specific to dealing with addiction during the holidays, visit bit.ly/QMA0FZ. In addition, here are several local resources and service providers to assist you. • 2-1-1 Vermont. Dial 2-1-1 from your home or cell phone and ask about resources and services available in your area. • Substance-abuse therapists in Windham County: bit.ly/SNU3n7. • Phoenix House: 802-257-5654; www.phoenixhouse.org. •
Hello and good day to you, residents of lovely Windham County, Vermont! I hope that this past week has been a good one for you. If you're reading this, you're still up and taking nourishment, as my father likes to say. As hard as adult life is sometimes, let's work to be grateful for even the simplest gifts in our lives. As for our weekly weather picture, we're going to see some showers move through on Wednesday. Winds will shift...
From gourd art, to award-winning handcrafted cheese and wine, to farm art, twisted glass, pottery, jewelry, and turned wooden bowls and more, the 22 working studios on Putney's artisan trail offer fine art and craft as well as the quirky and unusual. The 41st annual Putney Craft Tour (Friday, Nov. 29 through Sunday, Dec. 1, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) is the oldest continuous craft tour in the country and offers visitors a chance to meet the artists in the...
For the past several years, Groundworks Collaborative has tried to solve two seemingly intractable problems: finding a permanent home for the Seasonal Overflow Shelter (SOS) and finding enough space for the services that its Drop-In Center provides to the region's homeless population. It turned out that the solution was right next door. On Nov. 25, the nonprofit made it official: The SOS will make its permanent home in a 5,800-square-foot building on the now-vacant lot at 54 South Main St.,
The president of the United States is a Russian asset - which, as the dictionary describes it, is “a useful or valuable thing, person, or quality.” I've followed Donald Trump since my reporting days in 1980s Manhattan. One of my first scoops came when I was digging into the Marcos dictatorship and found that six condos in the Trump Tower had been bought by a shell corporation linked to Imelda Marcos for about $25 million. Now, after three years of...
The Gallery at Next Stage presents “A Mind of Winter” by Michaela Harlow. The exhibit will be on display through Feb. 11, 2020. Harlow has exhibited her paintings and drawings in galleries and juried shows throughout the U.S. for 25 years. Her work has been featured and reviewed in various publications -including SO Vermont Arts and Living, Santa Fe magazine, and Pasatiempo - and is included in public, corporate, and private collections in North America and Europe. Reflecting on this...
The Vermont Academy girls' soccer team has won the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Class D Championship tournament. On Nov. 17, the VA Wildcats defeated Christian Heritage School of Trumbull, Conn., 1-0, in the finals. Saxtons River junior Maggie Hodgson scored the goal and sophomore Elizabeth Pitts from Raymond, N.H. earned the assist. Sophomore midfielder Grace Bazin from Westminster, senior midfielder and Captain Ella Bushee from Walpole, N.H., and sophomore midfielder Hillary Berry, also from Walpole, contributed to...
Beginning the day after Thanksgiving - on the unofficial shopping holiday known as Black Friday - the local nonprofit arts organization Epsilon Spires will host a series of events exploring the consequences of free-market capitalism and globalization. The program kicks off with the six-part documentary Capitalism by Ilan Ziv, screened in three installments on the evenings of Nov. 29 and Dec. 4 and 8. Capitalism blends interviews with some of the world's great historians, economists, anthropologists, and social critics with...
New England Youth Theatre is set to present Matilda: The Musical, the final show of their celebratory 20th season, Dec. 12 to 22 at 100 Flat Street in downtown Brattleboro. The show follows the story of an unlikely heroine who dares to take a stand and change her own destiny. Based on the novel by the brilliantly batty Roald Dahl, the musical features a book by Dennis Kelly, with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin. Directed by NEYT Executive Director...
“Thelma Appel: Observed/Abstract,” now on view at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, showcases five decades of paintings by a little-known, 82-year-old artist who co-founded the Bennington College Summer Painting Workshop. “This is the very first career survey of my life,” Appel said. “The fact that it is at such a respected museum, and in Vermont where I first became a serious landscape painter, is even more poignant. At my age, that means the world to me - and it's...
Ever since its dedication in Washington, D.C., in 1982, the black granite walls of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial has served as enduring recognition for the more than 58,000 men and women who gave their lives or remain missing in action during the Vietnam War. It draws nearly four million visitors each year, but there are many more people who want to visit but cannot go to Washington for one reason or another. That is how the Moving Wall was born.
Pamela Simmons: I am thankful for a loving family...I don't have my own family, and my husband's family has not only accepted me, but embraced me. I am grateful that we are able to help provide others with a holiday meal. * * * Kara Garvey-Knapp: I'm grateful for working through hard times because then they become OK times and grow into better times, sprinkled graciously with beautiful times. * * * Annie Laurie Macy-Purinton: I'm thankful for my family...
The Crowell Gallery at Moore Free Library, 23 West St., presents the paintings and pastels of four accomplished Massachusetts artists from the Deerfield Valley Art Association through the month of December. The works of artists Leni Gaudet, Karen Evans, Marie Welch, and Jenny Tibbits share a reverence for the natural world and a deep appreciation for reflective light and seasonal color. The oil miniatures of Welch will share space with the landscapes and still lifes of Evans, Gaudet, and Tibbits.
Townspeople gathered to give voice to an abundance of varied and deep concerns about the future plans of their town's college. On the morning of Nov. 23, a standing-room-only crowd packed the Community Center - a group comprised mostly of town residents, but also a handful of people from the college community - who wondered what will become of the Marlboro College campus on South Road. Earlier in the month, Marlboro College and Emerson College, based in Boston, announced the...
I received a gift of home-cured gravlax - salmon - every year at Christmastime from my mother-in-law, Pat, my husband's father's second wife. (Got that?) The first time she gave it to us, I was truly impressed. I had never had homemade gravlax before, and it was one of the best things I had ever tasted! My husband and I ate heartily for the next few days, and I greedily consumed more than my fair share. Pat owned and was...
When I co-founded Project Feed the Thousands 26 years ago, I never imagined that our mission would be so incredibly necessary all these years later - that the need would have increased so exponentially - that we would be supporting nine area food shelves and community meal programs. This year, I sought to visit all of the food shelves that Project Feed the Thousands supports, and to write about them so that we can all have a better understanding of...
You'll be asked to make this one again! This Dark Chocolate Mint Truffle Tart is not only a decadent chocolate dessert, it's also a simple one. Just give yourself plenty of time and start the day before. Actual hands-on time is pretty quick. Bake in a tart shell with a removable bottom for the prettiest presentation. If you like sweeter chocolate, use milk chocolate or a combination of milk and dark chocolates. For flavor variations, you can also use any...
Emerson College President M. Lee Pelton spoke about the future of Marlboro College's campus and the cultural similarities between the two institutions during a visit to Vermont last week. He spoke at Town Meeting, the college's weekly community gathering, and during a roundtable discussion with students in the library, addressing a concern at the forefront of the college community: what will become of the campus if, as envisioned, Marlboro's programming and assets are absorbed into Emerson. Pelton said during the...
As part of the Putney Craft Tour on Thanksgiving weekend, Sandglass Theater presents When I Put On Your Glove by Shoshana Bass, with performances on Nov. 29 and 30 at 7:30 p.m. This puppetry, dance, and spoken word piece explores a daughter's relationship to her father's work and builds upon a premise that puppets are containers of memory. In it, a daughter explores what it means to slip into her father's art - not just the form, but also the...