Issue #550
Last call for dancers to perform in ‘Can Windham County Dance?’
Are you interested in joining the 2020 cast of Can Windham County Dance? Have you ever imagined yourself dancing in the spotlight? Would you enjoy performing in front of a live audience? Are you looking for a way to positively influence the lives of young people and families in Windham County?
If you answered yes to the above questions, Youth Services wants you!...
Long-shot candidate seeks goal: the Democratic nomination
Mark Stewart, a recurring third-party candidate and a hockey activist, says he’s a ‘small l’ libertarian alternative to Bernie Sanders — and he owes his appearance on the Vermont ballot to Brattleboro
There are 13 candidates on the ballot for the Vermont Democratic Presidential Primary. Only one of those candidates can credit Brattleboro for putting him on the ballot. Mark Stewart Greenstein, a former lawyer who runs Educational Excellence, a college preparation firm in Newington, Conn., knows he has little chance...
New law breathes life into broadband planning process
Brattleboro Selectboard appoints Moreland as town point person for regional feasibility project
Within the last month, the idea of bringing broadband internet to underserved areas of Windham County through a regional project took a few steps forward. Last month, the Windham Regional Commission launched efforts to help communities create Communications Union Districts (CUDs) that could provide internet services on a local...
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Thanks for putting family first
MacLean Gander, thank you for your Viewpoint. After I read it, I did my weekly Bible lesson. I read James 3:17 “the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” I admired the grace you expressed that day, also the divine and human wisdom and mercy also. Having just taken another safe-driving course, we are taught to never leave a vehicle...
Heller: business owner, landlord, tech professional, environmental activist, and good neighbor
Oscar Heller is a young technology professional - he formerly worked at Mondo Mediaworks, then founded his own web design firm, 10F Design. In the past year, Oscar has served as a Town Meeting member for District 3, and also currently serves on the Representative Town Meeting Finance Committee. For those who attended or watched the Town Meeting last year, you'll remember Oscar from his comments regarding the sales tax issue. It was obvious that he had done his research,
Schoales: clearly committed to informed decisions for our community
Thank you, BCTV, for streaming the Selectboard candidates forum. It provided me with a fuller picture of where the candidates stand, and it has solidified my support for David Schoales, who clearly demonstrated his commitment to making informed decisions on behalf of our community. I was particularly impressed with his response to a question regarding 5G technology. A strong proponent of bringing fiber broadband services to our area, Schoales pointed out that fiber networks are far more reliable than 5G...
Town would be wise to get Heller on board to the Board
While Oscar Heller is relatively young and has lived here a relatively short period time (since 2014), he is an ideal candidate to guide the town. He has a long-term view, in that he has declared that if it's at all possible, he wants to live the rest of his life here. He has paid his dues, serving as town meeting rep, leading the Brattleboro Energy Committee and taking his turn running for Selectboard. Importantly, Oscar is intelligent and thoughtful.
Shoales: forward thinking
I write to support David Schoales in his bid for re-election to his three-year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard. He has been on the right side of many important issues facing us, from the vote to hire a sustainability coordinator to working to get high-speed fiber internet service throughout the town. David is forward-thinking, and that's what we need on the board.
Adams and Murphy for WSSD board
Recently, on BCTV, I watched the candidates forum for those persons running for the merged Windham Southeast Supervisory District Board. I was pleased to see so many people who value our children's education enough to run. It is a huge commitment of time, so thanks to all of you. Two of the seats are contested, and I have decided to support Liz Adams of Putney and Emily Murphy Kaur of Brattleboro. (Regardless of which town you live in, you can...
Let's see more data on Retreat salaries
I appreciate Rick Cowan's investigative reporting of the Brattleboro Retreat's top brass's salaries. It clearly shows where all that taxpayer money they are asking for would go. I'd like to know what the lowest paid workers (presumably the ones who interact most with the patients and perform the most challenging work) earn. How many patients does a psychiatrist need to see in a week to earn more than $200,000? Do the high earners live in Brattleboro, where they could reinvest...
Number of contested races bodes well
What a wonderful antidote to the daily news - early voting at the Brattleboro Town Clerk's office. The number of contested races bodes well for the vitality our self-governance. Please consider a vote for Oscar Heller and Daniel Quipp for Brattleboro Selectboard. Local issues and national issues have merged. Housing, energy, and the sustainability of our town are priorities that we must address. Emily Murphy Kaur, Jaci Reynolds, and David Schoales are running for the Brattleboro seats on the Windham...
Daims: always willing to help
I have had Kurt Daims for a landlord for going on four years, and he's one of the better landlords I've had in my time in Vermont. He's always willing to help - not only myself as a tenant, but other people by having his free fix-it day, on Saturdays, usually. And I think he would be a great candidate for our Selectboard. I think he could bring a lot to the community.
'Telling Our Stories' free writing workshop will give voice to survivors of sexual abuse
A year and a half ago, I received an outpouring of support when I published my story about both being sexually abused by my grandfather as a child and about Vermont Public Radio not allowing me to use the word “grandfather” to identify my abuser. I was also the recipient of many, many confessions of untold abuse. Ever since, I've been thinking about a way to help others break the silence that keeps this kind of abuse secret - and...
‘Support this business. It’s a gem.’
It's a nightmare for a small business owner: a major chain moves into town, undercutting a small business owner on price, and customers flee - with some just aiming to try the competition for a while. If the small business fails, it is not only a tragedy for its owner; the ramifications are also dire for its employees, for its loyal customers, and for those who have fled and who would no longer have the option to go back if...
Heller: pragmatic progressive is thoughtful, caring, and engaged
I've gotten to know Oscar Heller over the past year as we both served on the Representative Town Meeting Finance Committee. During our shared time on the committee, Oscar has proven to be a thoughtful, caring, and engaged resident. As he reviewed and reported on the municipal budget, he asked insightful questions and was persistent in finding answers. His work on the committee also leaves him with a deep understanding of the intricate workings of the town, and he will...
Nimbus Dance does residency, performance
Nimbus Dance, New Jersey's premier contemporary dance company, returns this week to The Putney School for its annual residency. This is the company's ninth consecutive year working with the Putney Dance Program, which culminates with an evening of dance at the school's Currier Center on Friday, Feb. 28, at 7:30 p.m., that is free and open to the public. Nimbus will preview new works by Italian choreographer Sofia Nappi and by New York-based Kristen Klein prior to their premieres at...
Milestones
College news • Haley Covillion of Bellows Falls, a nursing major and member of the Class of 2023, and Thomas Carroll of Vernon, a community education major and member of the Class of 2021, were both named to the Dean's List for the fall 2019 semester at Curry College in Milton, Mass. • Adam Culver of Grafton and Skyler Nupp of Newfane were both named to the Dean's List for the fall 2019 semester at the University of Hartford (Conn.)
Focus our climate efforts where we can do the most good
Regarding the recent doomsday articles about climate change, let's all be honest: Earth's climate has been changing, dramatically, for billions of years; today's Arctic was not always frozen; extinctions and land mass changes happened before humans existed and will continue. Climate doomsayers say we are going to die unless we listen to certain individuals and do what they say, which sounds so cult-like (think David Koresh, Harold Camping, Jim Jones). We can all do better. For example, we can't stop...
Vermont lawmakers, are you thinking?
Vermont legislators: What are you thinking? Are you thinking of our failed education policies? Where our cost per pupil is skyrocketing, while our student population dwindles? Are you thinking about our stagnant, now dwindling population? Where the cost of living makes it unaffordable for the average person/family to feel confident that they have a good job and can grow? Are you thinking about the ever-growing opioid/drug crisis? Where so many more youth are succumbing to a very hard life or...
Main Street Arts performance of ‘Cabaret’ opens March 13
The cast is set, rehearsals are going full blast, and tickets are on sale for Main Street Arts' production of Cabaret, which opens Friday, March 13, at the Bellows Falls Opera House for a two-weekend run. The cast of the award-winning musical set in 1931 Berlin features Aidan Flower Des Jardins in the role of Sally Bowles, a British songstress performing in the seedy Kit Kat Club against the background of the Nazis' rise to power, and her relationship to...
Annual Compass 'fiesta' benefits school's Global Connections program
On Saturday Feb. 29, from 6 to 10 p.m., Compass School will host its annual Global Connections Fiesta dinner, dance, and silent auction. A fabulous all-inclusive multi-course Mexican meal will be served, followed by the Eugene Uman Latin Jazz ensemble performing dance music. Uman is a renowned pianist and composer who is director of the Vermont Jazz Center. His band is sure to please with beautiful Latin jazz-inspired dance music. There will be a silent auction where you can get...
Spring session begins soon for Brattleboro Women’s Chorus
The Brattleboro Women's Chorus will begin their spring session with open rehearsals the first week of March. To celebrate the 100th anniversary of women's right to vote, the theme of the songs will be of strength, solidarity, and suffrage. Following the Chorus' concerts in May, those who choose to can join an additional performance of several songs at WomenSing100, a singing gathering in honor of women's strength and voting rights to be held in Worcester, Mass., in August. Open rehearsals...
Effecting change, as individuals, by volunteering across the border
Given all the mind-boggling political events of the day, one might be forgiven for not remembering that there are still so many fleeing persecution and hoping to enter the U.S. We can still be drawn back to 2018 and the outrage we felt over the child separation policy news. As time has gone by, and while many organizations and individuals continue the fight for migrant justice, on a personal level it's not been easy to effect positive change - not...
Donation will subsidize entries for poetry contest
The Vermont Partnership for Fairness and Diversity and the Vermont African American Heritage Trail - an initiative of the Partnership - have donated $150 toward the Lucy Terry Prince Prize. Celebrated poet Major Jackson, who lives and teaches in Vermont, will serve as judge for the inaugural prize. Jackson is the author of five books of poetry, including The Absurd Man (2020), Roll Deep (2015), Holding Company (2010), Hoops (2006) and Leaving Saturn (2002), which won the Cave Canem Poetry...
Marlboro College presents panel discussion on racial bias
Marlboro College is pleased to welcome the local community to a panel discussion Feb. 28 on racial bias through historic, institutionalized, and lived perspectives. This event, titled “What is 'Woke,' and are you it?,” is hosted by the Marlboro College Alumni Speaker Series and Living in Color, with support from Diversity and Inclusion Task Force and Events and Lectures Committee. It will take place at 3:30 p.m., in the Snyder Center for the Visual Arts, Magnet Classroom, and is free...
‘Man with a Movie Camera,’ featuring a new soundtrack, to be screened in Williamsville Hall
The Williamsville Hall on Dover Road in Williamsville will present the renowned silent film, Man with a Movie Camera, featuring an original soundtrack composed and performed by Dan Dewalt, on Friday, Feb. 28, and Saturday, Feb. 29, at 7:30 p.m. Entry is by donation. In the past, Dewalt, who has electrified audiences with his masterful piano accompaniments for other silent films, such as Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times and Carl Dreyer's The Passion of Joan of Arc, also plays jazz, salsa,
Stone Church Arts presents fiddler Louise Bichan and mandolinist Ethan Setiawan
Stone Church Arts presents Orkney fiddler Louise Bichan and American mandolinist Ethan Setiawan on Friday, Feb. 28, at 7:30 p.m., at Immanuel Episcopal Church, the stone church on the hill, 20 Church St. Bichan and Setiawan's paths are steeped in the fiddle traditions of their respective sides of the Atlantic. Their musical journey wends through Scottish, old time, and Swedish-inspired music interwoven with contemporary compositions. Bichan is an artist and musician who grew up in Orkney, a group of islands...
Voters to select WSESD School Directors on Town Meeting Day
Voters in the four communities that make up the Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) - Brattleboro, Dummerston, Guilford, and Putney - will vote, by Australian Ballot, to elect School Directors to the WSESD School Board on Town Meeting Day on March 3. School Director positions are At-Large: All School Directors equally represent all four communities of the WSESD, and the voters of all four communities cast ballots to elect all School Directors, including those who reside in another town, on...
Correction
At the River Valleys Unified School District Annual Meeting on Feb. 11 at Dover Town Hall, the voters of Wardsboro and Dover passed Article 9 by unanimous vote, setting the annual tuition rate to approved independent schools at $17,990. The tuition rate published in the Feb. 19 edition of The Commons was incorrect.
Ladies of the Rainbow get hot for Windham County Heat Fund
“Heating it up with the Ladies of the Rainbow” on Saturday, March 7, at 8 p.m., at the VFW on Black Mountain Road will be this year's major fundraiser for the Windham County Heat Fund. In 2005, Daryl Pillsbury and Richard Davis decided to find a way to help people struggling to pay for home heating fuel who weren't eligible for existing programs. They simply decided to raise money and then figure out who was in need and help those...
Your guide to Annual Town Meeting in Vermont
On Town Meeting Day, the first Tuesday in March, citizens across Vermont come together in their communities to discuss the business of their towns. For over 200 years, Town Meeting Day has been an important political event as Vermonters elect local officers and vote on budgets. It has also been a time for neighbors to discuss the civic issues of their community, state, and nation. This piece is designed to help you learn about Vermont's Town Meeting Day, its history,
High-elevation snow early Thursday; seasonably cold and fair this weekend
Hello and good day to you, hearty residents of the hills and dales in southeastern Vermont! I want to start by saying how grateful I am for your readership over these past 44 months, through scores of weekly columns. I also wanted to let you know that this week's column will be my last regular submission for the foreseeable future as The Commons picks up and runs with other priorities at the paper to help ensure that it thrives well...
Legislature: implement recommendations of pupil weighting report to correct inequities
The Marlboro School Board wishes to express its condemnation of the injustices that have persisted within the Vermont schools' pupil weighting system over the last 20 years. The 2019 Pupil Weighting Factors Report laid bare the egregious inequities that have existed for two decades, and the utter failure of the Agency of Education and Legislature to analyze and rectify these inequalities. The Marlboro School has felt this malfeasance most keenly in the last few years as we have attempted to...
Request at Town Meeting can prompt a school update
When I opened my Putney Town Report and looked at the warning for Annual Town Meeting, I faced the reality of our merged school district: no Putney Central School portion of the meeting on March 3. However, under Article 13, “To transact any other town business that may legally come before the Annual Town Meeting,” we voters can request from the floor that someone associated with Putney Central School give us an update on the school. A voter will make...
Daims: an activist gets things done
I have known and worked with Kurt Daims for several years. Although I do not always agree with his positions, I know that he is an activist and gets things done. Among the ideas I do agree with: the budget referendum he put before the Selectboard concerning the high cost of the then-proposed new fire station building, the Clean Air Resolution to demand that the Clean Air Act be put in action here, and the resolution to reverse Citizens United.
Poor service to Guilford from post office
Town Meeting is one week as I write on Feb. 25, and many residents of Guilford have not yet received a copy of the town report, which is vital to the Town Meeting process. The reports were delivered to the Brattleboro post office on Feb. 7. This is just another example of the very poor service we are receiving in our rural community. Mail is often delivered to the wrong box, or not received at all (when you know a...
Carnival should have passed on burning torch tradition
Appalling to find a burning torch at the top of Main Street in Brattleboro, in celebration of Winter Carnival week! Burning fossil fuel for looks-ism is a questionable choice in the face of the climate crisis emergency. Apparently the town manager, Selectboard, and Town Meeting members do not believe the climate crisis is an emergency! It most certainly is, folks! It truly is real. Forests are still burning in Australia, following the Amazon and California fires, and land masses in...
McLoughlin brings experience, compassion to work on Selectboard
Elizabeth McLoughlin is a thoughtful and experienced leader who has our whole community, not simply herself, in mind when doing her work on the Selectboard. Liz has valuable experience in town planning and environmental impact assessments, which are an important feature of our town's need for a stronger economic future. She has compassion, which also informs her work on the Selectboard, ensuring that residents all understand Project CARE, and what we all can do to help improve opioid-use problems in...
McLoughlin understands families in Brattleboro
I have had the pleasure of knowing Elizabeth McLoughlin for several years now; the more you know about her, the more I'm sure that you will want to vote to re-elect her to the Brattleboro Selectboard. The fact that Liz enjoys her public service and is seeking re-election to a three-year seat is really good news for Brattleboro. While some may say that it is her training and understanding in town planning that makes her a good Selectboard member, to...
Foley brings integrity to WRED
I support Mike Foley for the at-large seat on the West River Eduction District unified school board. During his term, I have found Mike to be open, honest, thoughtful, and diligent when addressing issues banal and controversial within our district. He studies, asks questions, and comes to well-thought-out conclusions on the issues. When the new unified board skirted some of the pre-merger promises made to our communities, such as the quick and drastic move of the sixth grades out of...
Heller offers creative solutions for pressing problems
Oscar Heller has lived in Brattleboro for six years, having made a commitment to town by buying a building on Elliot Street. He has served on the Energy Committee as its chair, as a Town Meeting rep, and on the Finance Committee. Oscar understands the impact that decisions can have on citizens, and he will be a proponent for creative solutions to pressing problems. He will also be a strong voice on climate and environmental issues.
In Brattleboro, a surplus of excellent candidates
It's a real pleasure for me to look at the ballot for March 3 and find excellent candidates for the seats on the Brattleboro Selectboard - a surplus of excellent candidates, in fact. For the two one-year seats, I'm voting for Oscar Heller and Daniel Quipp, both of whom have demonstrated genuine concern and competence in serving the town, Daniel as a thoughtful and forthright member of the Selectboard and Oscar on the Finance Committee, on the Energy Committee, and...
Surely, we have more intelligent choices
I do not call myself a “white ally,” nor do I label myself in any way which commits me to a formulaic list of prescribed behavior. When I lived there in the late 1970s, Main Street separated East Buffalo from West Buffalo. It was a “color line” in a town where open racism was common. When Diane and I went to a Gino Vannelli concert together, neither of us expected to end up in jail. Diane, star-struck, hoped to meet...
Heller: a strong addition to Selectboard
Oscar Heller, running for a one-year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard, has shown to be a steady advocate for climate and environmental issues for the town. He strikes me as very aware of the larger picture on the issues that come before the board. He is thoughtful, considerate, an attentive listener, and articulate in his beliefs and thoughts. He has been active on the Town Finance Committee. He has a clear grasp of the budget and the ways it can...
Millions versus billions: for Sanders and Bloomberg, scope and context matter
More than once now, Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg has lumped together the millionaire and billionaire candidates on the debate stage, proudly claiming that he is the only person on the stage who is neither. Let us look at the real difference between millionaires and billionaires. Here is one example: A house in San Francisco costs an average of $1 million. Bernie Sanders has roughly $2.5 million. Michael Bloomberg has roughly $64 billion. Q. How many houses could each buy...
Heller, Schoales: intelligence, knowledge, and capacity for leadership
There is an old saying about how, when asked to explain what one means by what one says, nine out of ten people will become angry or silent. The one who does not become offended or feel attacked but, rather, becomes stimulated and eager for an opportunity to learn would be a person like Oscar Heller, candidate for a one-year Selectboard seat. The desire and ability to listen and learn is also a strong indicator of self-confidence and thoughtfulness, both...
BMAC presents UMass Percussion Ensemble
The UMass Percussion Ensemble invites the community to celebrate Leap Day at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center Saturday, Feb. 29, at 7 p.m. The concert will feature works by Steve Reich, Nebojsa Zivkovic, and Toru Takemitsu, as well as newer, less frequently performed compositions by Christopher Dean and Viet Cuong. The Ensemble consists of 19 undergraduate and graduate percussion students from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, directed by Ayano Kataoka. Kataoka is a percussionist and marimbist known for...
Colonel boys win state nordic skiing title
The Brattleboro Colonels boys' nordic ski team had themselves one heck of a week as they won both the Southern Vermont League and Division I state championships. It started on Feb. 17, when they clinched the SVL title with a win in the relays on the Brattleboro Outing Club's trails at the Brattleboro Country Club. The boys' relay team of Declyn Tourville, Nolan Holmes, Sam Freitas-Eagan, and Henry Thurber finished in 35 minutes, 23 seconds - 36 seconds faster that...
Vermonter turned Brooklyn DJ returns for Leap Year dance party at Next Stage
Next Stage Arts Project celebrates Leap Year 2020 with a full-tilt dance party starting at 7 p.m. on Feb. 29. Brooklyn-based DJ Taj Campman will be spinning heavy dance tracks from his library, including a big collection of vinyl 45s he has painstakingly curated over the years. Originally from southern Vermont, Campman is returning for this one-off Leap Year celebration at Next Stage. Tunes will include deep funk, familiar dance classics, hip-hop beats, and everything in between. “We are very...
The apian way
The Crowell Art Gallery will be a hive of activity in March, featuring “Bees, Beehives, and Beekeepers of New England” by William Dixon. Dixon, a well-known photographer from the Brattleboro area, has used the camera to capture the respect he and his fellow beekeepers have for these industrious insects. For two years, Dixon traveled the rural and urban areas of New England and New York photographing honey bees. Fascinated by the efficiency of the bee colony and respectful of the...
Town Meeting Day is Tuesday
Athens Annual Town Meeting takes place at 10 a.m. at the elementary school. • Town budget: Voters will consider what sum of money will be needed for the town's expenses. • New school panel: Voters will consider forming the Athens School Advisory Commission, consisting of three members to be appointed by the Selectboard. The panel would advise the Windham Northeast Unified School District on budgets, facilities, and other matters of interest. • Bathroom for Town Garage?: Voters will consider the...
Legislators focus on housing, climate, health, transportation
So far, Senate President Pro Tem Tim Ashe, D/P-Chittenden, sees the current legislative session as “positive,” citing progress on bills related to climate change, housing, and updates to the Act 250 permitting system that he describes as “complicated, but important.” “The work between the House and the Senate is going pretty well,” said Ashe, who visited the region on Feb. 24, meeting with constituents such as students at Brattleboro Union High School. “We have a number of issues that are...
‘I have to speak up — not only for myself, but so that students start being heard’
What was your transition like to Landmark College and to Vermont, as a person of color coming into very White environments?I was okay with the transition only because I had already processed what it was going to look like. So I was already ready for it. And I felt like I connected to the community as soon as I got here. I was also able to connect with the students of color on campus. There were a lot of African...