Issue #728
High levels of PCBs put BFUHS gym, auditorium off limits
A mandatory test for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) revealed the presence of the toxic carcinogen at Bellows Falls Union High School.
The building's gym and auditorium tested highest for contamination and have limited use at this point.
Misplaced public spending, from outer space to Putney Road
We spend 500 times more money to explore cold, dead space than to understand our wildly beautiful oceans. And we’re paying for unnecessary repaving while we suffer from heat waves, droughts, and floods around the world — including, of course, here in Vermont.
I don't know about you, but I'm feeling overwhelmed by the cascade of bleak news this year from around the world. Incomprehensibly huge forest wildfires in Canada (like the ones in California, or Australia a few years back, remember?). Heat waves, droughts, and floods around the world - including,
Sixty years of addressing ‘the urgency of the day’
Bread and Puppet Theater will perform ‘The Heart of the Matter Circus,’ an ‘outdoor spectacle of puppetry and performance’
Bread and Puppet Theater Cofounder and Director Peter Schumann, 89, bakes bread for each performance ahead of time, using a sourdough starter that is 150 years old. Think of all the loaves he's baked in the last 59 years as the company celebrates its 60th anniversary this summer, and...
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Of course, the PCB lawsuit is a conflict
Early in April, Attorney Pietro Lynn of the Burlington Law firm Lynn, Lynn, Blackman & Manitsky made an overture to superintendents of schools all across Vermont to join him an a suit against the chemical giant Monsanto over the widespread PCB contamination that is emerging as a significant health threat in a large number of the public schools in Vermont. And furthermore, he had the firepower to do it, too, having teamed up with a couple of giants of the...
Milestones
College news • Kharisma Boyd, an exercise science major from Brattleboro, was named to the spring 2023 Dean's List at Monclair (N.J.) State University. Obituaries • Kenneth Vincent Deuso, 85, of Hinsdale, New Hampshire. Died at his home, surrounded by loved ones, on Aug. 10, 2023. Kenneth was born on Sept. 26, 1937 in Montgomery, Vermont to the late John A. and Stella M. (Vincent) Deuso. Kenneth attended Enosburg Falls High School, after which he served in the Army. He...
New housing in the works for an area starved for options
If plans come to fruition, more than 600 mixed-income units would be added to the area's housing stock, which comes as welcome news to those working to address the urgent need for more housing in Windham County and throughout the state. With the end of the state's pandemic-era temporary shelter program, 113 households living in local motels have until April 1, 2024 to find housing or face eviction. An unknown number of households are sheltering in tents in the area.
VSAC receives $50,000 to support Afghan refugees
The Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC) has been awarded $50,000 from the State Refugee Office of the Vermont Agency of Human Services to serve people from Afghanistan who immigrate to Vermont. The funding, which will run through VSAC's Educational Opportunity Center (EOC), will enable VSAC to counsel Afghans on education and careers, as well as travel, materials, translation, and interpretation. Hundreds of Afghans moved to Vermont in 2022 and 2023. "Vermont continues to welcome refugees from across the globe who...
Our wildlife board won’t act in wildlife’s interests
Who's in on bludgeoning animals? Do you support the inhumane treatment of wildlife? Gov. Phil Scott wants you to apply to the Fish & Wildlife Board! During a recent Fish & Wildlife Board meeting where the board was required by the Legislature to come up with regulations on how to humanely trap and kill animals, one of Gov. Scott's board-appointed members representing Chittenden County recommended "bludgeoning" trapped animals. Some of you might recall those anti-fur commercials from the 1980s showing...
Time for Bernie to act on Yemen
On Aug. 10, as Sen. Bernie Sanders met with seniors in Brattleboro, Action Corps Vermont members submitted questions from Vermonters, he recommitted to taking action in the Senate to reclaim congressional constitutional responsibility over war, including in Yemen. Now is the time for Bernie to make good on that commitment. He needs to introduce and support legislation to stop U.S. complicity in the ongoing Yemen crisis. During the recent discussion in Brattleboro, constituents reminded him of his Dec. 13, 2022...
BIPOC Hair Clinic set for Aug. 28
The Root Social Justice Center will hold a free BIPOC hair clinic for all ages on Monday, Aug. 28, originally scheduled earlier this year. As explained in a Facebook post from the racial justice organizing and community group, Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color "have a variety of hair types and textures that require hair care that just isn't centered when we live and exist in predominantly white spaces." With hair stylists versed in working with BIPOC clients...
Hey! Where are the bus schedules?
The Windham Southeast School District was unable to finalize district bus schedules for publication by press time. You should eventually find them at the district's website, on its Caregiver/Community Resources page, at wsesu.org/parent-community-resources. This Special section item was submitted to The Commons.
Brooks Memorial Library marks 60th anniversary of historic March on Washington
Sixty years after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 28, 1963, poet and performer David Mills will present an hour-long dramatic presentation this Monday, Aug. 28, portraying Dr. King's transformation from his early uncertainties about Civil Rights into the iconic figure he became. This event, which is free and is accessible to people using wheelchairs, takes place at 7 p.m. in the Brooks Memorial Library's...
Brattleboro Savings & Loan celebrates Community Appreciation Day
Brattleboro Savings & Loan (BS&L) will celebrate its annual Community Appreciation Day on Friday, Aug. 25, at the Main Street branch in Brattleboro, and on Thursday, Aug. 31, at the Wilmington branch. Starting at 11 a.m. and going until around 2 p.m., BS&L will serve free hamburgers, hot dogs, veggie burgers, summer slaw, and other cookout standards on the front lawn of the Main Street branch. On Aug. 31, they'll offer Vermont Gelato at the Wilmington branch from 2 to...
A very untranquil summer for Becca Balint
Most people don't get six weeks of summer vacation, but as a member of Congress, U.S. Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vermont, does. Unfortunately for Balint, of Brattleboro, her time away from the Capitol coincided with a major natural disaster in Vermont, four big indictments in four major cities for former president Donald Trump, and a looming budget crisis when she returns to Washington. It was keeping her busy almost around the clock, but she managed to find time last week for...
Alvarez, Nied to co-headline Stage 33 Live
Doctora Xingona Diana Alvarez and Olivia Nied will co-headline Stage 33 Live at 33 Bridge St. on Sunday, Aug. 27, in a 3 p.m. matinee. Multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter Nied has been performing as a soloist, ensemble leader, and side person since she was 9 years old in styles ranging from edgy pop to jazz fusion to hip-hop and straight up rock-and-roll. Her solo performances often incorporate looping and multiple instruments. As a transgender/queer musician, Nied often includes LGBTQ+ lyrical themes...
The Drawing Studio hosts its re-opening day on Aug. 26
The Drawing Studio, a nonprofit community art center at 28 Williams St., will hold a celebratory Re-Opening Day on Saturday, Aug. 26, from 4 to 7 p.m. From a one-person effort, it has grown into a community cooperative, supported by 19 working and financially contributing members. There will be food, drink, art materials, activities for children, and conversation. Visitors can learn about drawing sessions for adults and children, community open studio times, art and music workshops, membership opportunities, and much...
Art in all sizes
Leonard Ragouzeos's art rivets attention to detail, exposing the essence of his subjects from a graceful kohlrabi plant - "that I grew," he says - to an intricately stitched baseball to a dark-eyed, bearded fellow. The artist's black ink drawings, on display through Friday, Aug. 31, in the Crowell Gallery at Moore Free Library, employ a technique he's been honing for a few decades. Using brushes, pens, rollers, and other tools, he applies India ink to Yupo paper - an...
A bill of goods that turned out to be a lie
For the last century or so, we Americans have been taught that we can live better lives by relying on a fossil fuel economy. We were sold a bill of goods, but it turned out to be a lie - and now rapid changes in the climate are, in a very real way, hitting us back with the actual truth. The truth is, we have all become addicted to the mined fuel commodities known as oil, gas, and coal. This...
Brattleboro forum will discuss EMS options
As the Selectboard continues to unpack and scrutinize the myriad details involved in deciding upon a new emergency services (EMS) delivery plan, the next big date is Aug. 29. That's when requests for proposals (RFPs) from potential interested third-party providers are due. "We have been moving through a process over many months," said board Chair Ian Goodnow during a fire/EMS transition update at the Aug. 15 board meeting. "I see the discussion tonight as an opportunity for us to set...
BFUHS to reopen as planned Aug. 30
It's all hands on deck for returning students to Bellows Falls Union High School next week. In a unanimous vote Tuesday night, the Bellows Falls Union High School (BFUHS) Board of Directors granted Windham Northeast Supervisory Union (WNESU) Superintendent Andy Haas and BFUHS Principal Kelly O'Ryan operational authority to reopen the high school next week for the 2023-24 academic year after elevated PCB levels were found in the building earlier this month [story, page A1]. The motion, originally presented by...
Special flood clean-up day Saturday
To combat the lingering effects of this summer's devastating flooding, Green Up Vermont is organizing a statewide clean up day on Saturday, Aug. 26. Operating very similarly to the annual May Green Up Day, this new event will use orange bags instead of the iconic green bags. Two Windham County towns - Londonderry and Grafton - are among those around the state that are asking volunteers to help with specific projects. In Grafton, volunteers can pick up bags and gloves...
Windham school, one of smallest in state, prepares for new year amid turmoil
Windham Elementary School ended the 2022-23 school year this spring with three staff members resigning. With high turnover rates for educators nationwide, the departure of three employees might not be cause for concern at most schools. But at the tiny Windham Elementary, those three employees - a principal, a teacher, and an administrative assistant - represented 100% of the school's staff. The school has since hired a principal and teacher, and it has made an offer to an administrative assistant...
Around the Towns
Route 142 detour extended until Sept. 8 BRATTLEBORO - Due to the run of bad weather this summer that is affecting the contractor working on the Brattleboro-Hinsdale bridge project, the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) says that the closure period of Vermont Route 142 has been extended until the end of the day Friday, Sep. 8. VTrans says that the active detours for cars and trucks will remain as configured. Uniformed traffic officers will be present as needed to assist...
New works from Gil Perry on display at Gallery in the Woods
A new body of paintings by visionary artist Gil Perry is on exhibit at Gallery in the Woods throughout the month of September with an opening reception on Friday, Sept. 1, from 5 to 8 p.m., during Gallery Walk. Perry is an artist-painter currently living and working in Springfield, Vermont. Exhibit organizers say his drawings and paintings have "a remarkably delicate and detailed touch that allows one image to unfold in surprising ways over time." "Through my drawings and paintings,
Fossils win third straight CRVBL title
The Putney Fossils defeated the Connecticut River Iron Men, 6-3, on Sunday, August 13, to retain the Richard W. Bissell Cup as champions of the Connecticut River Valley Baseball League (CRVBL). The victory marked the Fossils' third CRVBL championship in a row and fifth in the past six years. Fossils starting pitcher Peter Wagner capped a stellar season with a complete-game gem for Putney, allowing only five hits while striking out 10 and walking one. Wagner went 4-0 with a...