On Wednesday, July 21, at 7 p.m., Laurel Green will facilitate a community discussion at the Rockingham Free Public Library on “Lessons Learned from Tropical Storm Irene.”
The Zoom discussion will be guided by two themes: how individuals, families, and businesses were prepared for this natural disaster that struck Vermont in August 2011, and how everyone can be better prepared for flooding in the future.
Archived audio clips from the Vermont Folklife Center recording “Rockingham's Irene Story Circle” will be shared in order to bring to mind the challenges experienced during and after the storm.
Participants on this recording include former state Rep. David Deen, who discussed the value of large culverts; Susan Hammond, who witnessed floodwaters carry away the Bartonsville covered bridge; Tim and Stacey Allen, who described the impact that flooding had on their business, Allen Bros. Farms, and the outpouring of community help they received; Nancy Bazin, who recounted memories of the rising waters that affected her family's cattle farm; and Mike Ghia, who helped in rescue efforts along the Saxtons River and reflected on the importance of bridge safety.
Amtrak passenger service to and from Vermont resumes on Monday, July 19, and the Vermont Agency of Transportation (AOT) says celebrations at all Amtrak stations in the state - including Brattleboro and Bellows Falls - will welcome the trains' return. Each event will begin 45 minutes before the train...
For hundreds of years, the Indigenous history of the Northeast has been systematically erased. It is time to speak up to make sure that the federal government and power companies do not continue that bitter legacy. Five hydroelectric facilities on the Connecticut River are renewing their operating licenses under...
The Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) announced on July 7 the planned reopening of its satellite office at 870 U.S. Route 5. That office, along with ones in St. Johnsbury and St. Albans, will reopen in early August. No plans have yet been announced to reopen satellite offices in Middlebury and White River Junction. The DMV says it is developing a reopening plan. All five satellite offices have been closed since March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Local...
As of July 11, 48 percent of the eligible population of the United States has been fully vaccinated, and 55.5 percent has received at least one shot/jab/injection. We fell short of President Biden's goal that 70 percent would be vaccinated by July 4. The reasons for being unable to reach that goal are puzzling, to say the least. Do we have a supply problem? No. In fact, the rate of injection has diminished from a height of an average of...
College news • Daphne Laurel Kinney-Landis of Guilford received an M.A. in community development and planning last month from Clark University in Worcester, Mass. • The following students received academic honors for the spring 2021 semester at Community College of Vermont. Named to the President's List, which recognizes full-time students with a 4.0 grade point average, were Amanda Conley, Rena Dimes, Finnlay Fisher, and Paige Mellish of Brattleboro; Morgan Stevens of Grafton; Evan Bernard of Townshend; Alexander Kemp of Vernon;
State GOP Chair to speak in Wardsboro WARDSBORO - The Windham County Republican Committee will host Deb Billado, chair of the Vermont Republican Party, on Wednesday, July 14, at 7 p.m. at the Town Hall, 71 Main St. All are welcome to attend. For more information, email Gerard Cloutier at [email protected]. Brattleboro to conduct survey to gauge housing needs BRATTLEBORO - A new housing survey is designed to help the town and its partners create solutions to address pressing housing...
The Brattleboro Music Center and Retreat Farm kick off their “Music Under the Stars” summer concert series on Saturday, July 24, with a performance by the Vermont Jazz Center Big Band. The concert will be held at Retreat Farm, 45 Farmhouse Square, and admission is free. Gates open 5:30 p.m.; the concert begins at 6:30 p.m. All are welcome to bring lawn chairs and a picnic, and to enjoy food truck fare, maple creemees, and craft beers at The Thirsty...
Wardsboro Curtain Call (WCC) is resuming programming, with three more shows planned for 2021 in the Town Hall on Main Street. • On Saturday, July 24, at 7 p.m., the Gene Pool, comprised of local musicians Gene Morrison, Dave Arnold, Colin Blazej, Jake Geppert, and John Pozzi, will offer the audience what they describe as “an evening of fine original acoustic Americana.” To minimize personal contact, admission for this show will be by donation, with no refreshments supplied. Plan to...
Weston Playhouse Theatre Company announces a return to live performance with the first production of its 2021 season: An Iliad, running July 14 through Aug. 6 under the Tent at Walker Farm, 703 Main St. The eternal, enchanting power of storytelling comes to life in Denis O'Hare and Lisa Peterson's acclaimed adaptation of Homer's classic. In this retelling, directed by Meredith McDonough, heroes clash in a quest for glory. A chorus of ancient muses perform original compositions by Jenny Giering...
The St. Michael's Episcopal Church Tag Sale Team is planning the Sharing for Meals Project - described as an outdoor, by-donation “un-tag sale” - on Saturday, July 17, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (The rain or excessive heat date is Saturday, July 24.) The event was hatched to meet two perceived needs in the region exacerbated by the pandemic over the past year: meeting Loaves and Fishes' needs, and distributing a surplus of donations of goods. A mission of...
Twilight Music begins its 18th Twilight on the Tavern Lawn series of folk, world beat, zydeco, Celtic, jazz, rock, and bluegrass summer concerts on Sunday, July 18, with contemporary folk and bluegrass quartet the Stockwell Brothers. Co-presented with Next Stage Arts Project, the five-concert series continues on Sundays, Aug. 1 and 22 and Sept. 5 and 19. July and August concerts begin at 6 p.m. in downtown Putney on the Putney Tavern lawn, or at Next Stage at 15 Kimball...
Epsilon Spires will host “A Celebration of Black Girlhood and Womanhood through Films, Poetry, Food, and Chocolate” on Friday, July 16 and Sunday, July 18 in the Backlot Cinema, the venue's outdoor theater. The multidisciplinary event will feature four poets from around New England, two film screenings, and custom chocolates (complimentary on the 16th) created by Tavernier Chocolates in response to the poems of one participating poet, Shanta Lee Gander. Antidote Books of Putney will have non-alcoholic specialty drinks for...
Public weighs in on potential refugee program BRATTLEBORO- At the July 9 Selectboard meeting, a few members of the public weighed in on a pilot program that would help refugees settle in town. The Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation is working with the Ethiopian Development Community Council (EDCC). The EDCC is one of nine agencies working with the U.S. State Department on a resettlement program that seeks to move New Americans to smaller, more rural towns. Ann Wright and former Selectboard...
The Selectboard meeting room on the second floor of the Municipal Center had a celebratory atmosphere last week. Board members, BCTV staff, and members of the public greeted one another with smiles and surprise as they assembled for the first in-person and online hybrid board meeting since the COVID-19 pandemic started last year. They conducted their July 6 regular meeting seated behind their table in the meeting room while also beaming the meeting through the Zoom videoconference platform with the...
The Brattleboro Community Justice Center and the Restorative Justice programs at Youth Services are joining forces. By creating one program under one roof, both organizations say they are creating more streamlined and intuitive approaches to a variety of programs that have one common thread: resolving conflicts small and large, from resolving neighborhood disputes to finding real justice for victims while helping perpetrators avoid the criminal justice system. “We think it's the sensible choice to have all the restorative justice programs...
With over 80 percent of Vermonters having received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and nearly 72 percent of us fully vaccinated, Gov. Phil Scott declared on June 15 an end to the State of Emergency and the termination of pandemic related social restrictions. It is significant that Vermont was the first U.S. state to reach an 80-percent vaccinated rate. It is also significant that throughout the pandemic, to that point, Vermont suffered only 24,339 known Covid infections...
The Southeastern Vermont Watershed Alliance (SeVWA) will present a virtual benefit concert available for viewing on Saturday, July 24, at 7 p.m. Donations will support SeVWA's ongoing effort to monitor, preserve, and restore area waterways. Join in at bit.ly/621-sevwa to watch the performers, who have volunteered their time and talent, ensuring that all donations will go directly to the organization's mission. The three-set fundraiser will feature Norfolk, Va., folk musicians Bob Zentz and Jeanne McDougall Zentz; Veronica Stevens of Newfane,
The district round of the Vermont Little League Baseball playoffs have begun as postseason baseball returned to South Main Street Field for the first time since the summer of 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic wiped out Little League tournaments across the nation last year, including the Little League World Series. This year, the tournaments are back and another fun part of summer in Vermont is restored. Once again, Brattleboro fields three all-star teams in the 10-U, 11-U, and 12-U age divisions.
I remember the moment that food shopping became a chore, a burden, something to just be gotten through. The scene is etched into my memory. I was in the Pathmark supermarket on Route 1 South in North Brunswick, N.J. It was the frozen food aisle, to be exact. In my mind, the scene exists as a still photograph. I am standing in the top quarter of the aisle. My right hand is on the edge of one of those older-style...
After a year of planning and writing, The Vermont Suitcase Company will bring Robin Hood to outdoor venues around Vermont from July 16 to 30. But this is not your mama's “Robin Hood.” The Suitcase Company's version, tongue firmly tucked-in-cheek and with a few suspensions of disbelief, includes Dry Anthony and Wet William as the Sheriff of Nottingham's two charming pig deputies; woodland creatures, including a chipmunk named Chippie, the union man; Fisher, a fisher cat, always sharpening his knife;
With a closing scheduled for July 14, the River Garden, at 157 Main St., is poised to have new ownership. The team behind the Whetstone Station Restaurant and Brewery plans to purchase the approximately-6,000-square-foot building and patio from the nonprofit Strolling of the Heifers. Co-owner Tim Brady said the restaurant and brewery, at 36 Bridge St., has needed a space for larger events for some time since it is not configured to host celebrations such as wedding receptions. Turning the...
A three-pronged program aimed at feeding people, keeping restaurants in business, and financially supporting farmers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic entered a third phase this week as its funding was extended through September. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will fund the Everyone Eats! program, said Stephanie Bonin, director of the Brattleboro Hub. Beginning on July 13, the food distribution hubs across Vermont - such the one on Flat Street - will ramp down from public distribution sites as it looks...