Handcycle fundraiser schedules finale party for Sept. 1

A fundraising campaign finale party has been scheduled for the effort to purchase a state-of-the-art handcycle for Alicia Dana, a Putney woman who is in training for the U.S. National Paracycling Championship and other events.

The party will take place on Thursday, Sept. 1, from 5 to 8 p.m., at the Putney Inn. It will be a celebration of the fundraising and positive energy campaign surrounding the saga of Dana's stolen handcycle.

There will be hors d'oeuvres by the Putney Inn, a cash bar, and live music with Ben Mitchell, Donald Saaf, Steve West, and Mark Borax.

Suggested admission is one raffle ticket, which is $5. All previous donors are automatically entered.

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Vermont Public Radio launches local digital news service

Public Post connects Vermonters to their communities and local government

Vermont Public Radio has launched the Public Post, a local digital news service that gives Vermonters access to their town and city minutes, and a place to connect around local news and common issues. Public Post collects minutes from city councils and town select boards as a primary source...

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Has state’s education funding system hurt local businesses?

It appears there will be two new studies of Vermont's education funding system. The Legislature has commissioned one, and a California-based consultant recently won the contract. In addition, two communities in southern Vermont - Dover and Wilmington - have decided to pay for their own study of how their...

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Milestones

Obituaries Editor's note: The Commons will publish brief biographical information for citizens of Windham County and others, on request, as community news,  free of charge. • Mary Christine Bingham, 64, of Walpole, N.H. Died on Aug. 15 at her home. Wife of Wayne Brigham for 44 years. Mother of Scott Bingham and his wife, Sharra Way-Bingham, of Alstead, N.H.; Debora Bingham and her partner, Christopher Porter, of Langdon, N.H.; and Kimberly Stoughton and husband, Jeffrey, of Sunapee, N.H. Sister of...

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Food pantry in a pickle with concert delayed

The fourth annual Brattstock music festival, which was to have taken place on Aug. 13, has been rescheduled for the fall. In the meantime, a new event has been organized to benefit the Brattleboro Area Drop-in Center. According to Julian McBrowne, one of the event's organizers,, the free concert on the Common will now take place Oct. 8, to allow more time to secure a bigger lineup of local musicians. “Two of the bands we planned to have perform pulled...

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How climate change is breeding violence and unrest around the globe

Poverty and inequality often breed violence and war. Add climate change to the mix, and the result is chaos on a global scale. In Christian Parenti's new book, Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence, he describes what he calls a “catastrophic convergence” of the legacy of Cold War-era militarism, neoliberal economic restructuring, and the onset of climate change. According to Parenti, these events combine and express themselves as warfare, crime, repression, and state failure. Parenti,

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Hooked on rugmaking

Kris McDermet makes rugs to tell a story. Recently, she received her first commission from a family in her hometown of Dummerston who wanted her to document their house's 225th anniversary. Through images, textures and colors, she celebrates all the different people and their histories who lived in this house for over two centuries. In doing so, McDermet created a work of art. Yet she is a little hesitant to call herself a “fine artist.” This reluctance might seem astonishing...

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From Chaucer and MacBeth, to multicultural cuisine

Leland & Gray Union High School English teacher Carlton Smith vividly recalls one Halloween night when she heard a kind of chanting at her house. And that's just what it was. Students from Smith's 10th-grade class, who had been learning to recite the first 18 lines of The Canterbury Tales in Middle English, banded together and chanted the lines outside her house in the middle of Townshend. So, along with the trick-or-treat queries, Smith was also hearing, “Wan that Aprille...

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Vermont governors, past and present, unite in deploring Washington’s disharmony

Former Vermont Govs. Thomas P. Salmon, Madeleine Kunin, Howard Dean and James Douglas joined incumbent Gov. Peter Shumlin in a roundtable discussion on Aug. 15 to talk about what it is to be a political leader and how one of Congress' biggest problems is its unwillingness to work together. The event took place at the Hilton Hotel in Burlington as a part of the 96th annual conference of the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers. The conference allows...

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Vermont’s economy weakened but stable, officials say

Vermont is in good shape financially for the time being. The state has socked away $60 million in the stabilization reserve fund and $30 million in the human services caseload reserve. We have $10 million set aside for federal cuts to the Low Income Heating Assistance Program. Revenues are back up 11 percent ahead of last year's tax receipts. And our credit rating is the second highest in the country. Gov. Peter Shumlin and the leadership in the House and...

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‘Teaching is a calling’

After 31 years of teaching math at Leland & Gray Union High School , mostly to seventh- and eighth-graders, Margaret Carusona, 51, retired this past June. Although she enjoyed teaching algebra to seniors, her hands-down favorites were the eighth-graders. “They're not quite high-school students - none of that 'don't-tell-me-what-to-do.' They have this ability to learn,” Carusona said. “You can see that and you can pull them through. It's incredible - you can see it in their eyes. That's what gets...

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Marlboro College Graduate School holds its commencement on Aug. 27

Marlboro College Graduate School will hold its 2011 commencement ceremony on Saturday, Aug. 27, at 10 a.m. Current Marlboro College Trustee Peter Galbraith will deliver the commencement address. Galbraith, currently a Windham County state senator, is also a best selling author and a former U.S. diplomat. In 1977, he was elected the youngest ever chair of the Vermont State Democratic Committee and helped lay the foundation for today's progressive politics. In 1979, he joined the staff of the U.S. Senate...

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Saxtons River Pirates take home CRVBL championship

The Saxtons River Pirates won the 2011 Connecticut River Valley Baseball League championship on Aug. 14, defeating the Claremont Cardinals 4-3 in a well pitched, exciting game at the new Walpole, N.H., baseball complex.  Veteran lefty Chris Lundberg, working on one day's rest, pitched a complete game for the win. He scattered 8 hits, with 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Saxtons River jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the second inning, but Claremont chipped away by...

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Consulting firm helps Brattleboro make traffic lights work in harmony

Spending a little time with the traffic-light engineers last Thursday was very instructive for me. Engaging and friendly, the engineers from Moulison North Corp. didn't just observe traffic. They engaged pedestrians as well and readily explained how they were able to make improvements in the light system. Their tweaks to the system were very effective, but they also made it clear that Brattleboro will need more than a well-tuned set of lights for traffic to flow smoothly. The system has...

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Two victims of governor’s reckless, wrong assumptions

One fish. Nine miles upstream from Vermont Yankee. Lots of fish right in front of the plant were caught and analyzed, but a single fish in Brattleboro is the only one found to have strontium-90 in its edible portions - and non-dangerous levels at that. But because of that one fish with an inconsequential amount of strontium-90 in its meat, and flying in the face of the expert opinion of the state's radiation chief and the state health commissioner, Gov.

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Without good jobs, young people will flee our area

As a recent college graduate, with many of my friends and classmates struggling with unemployment, I consider myself fortunate to be employed. I consider myself even more fortunate, as well as privileged, to be employed by such a company as Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee. I have been a lifelong resident of Hinsdale. While it is clear that this area is not, and has not, experienced tremendous business growth and is thus not attractive to young people seeking to start their...

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Vermont Tech opens nursing simulation center in Brattleboro

Vermont Technical College (VTC) opened its state of the art clinical learning and simulation center at its Brattleboro campus last week. The additional 1,000 square feet of educational space is possible thanks to a $600,000 grant awarded to VTC through the efforts of U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. Clifford LaPlante, nursing site director of the Brattleboro campus, said he is pleased and grateful for the new addition. “It enhances the entire educational experience. We can now teach things we wouldn't...

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Coal plants release more uranium than nuclear plants do

Given that Vermont Yankee uses a very small volume of nuclear fuel to produce 650 megawatts of electricity and to power one-third of Vermont homes, with enough electricity left over to sell on the open market, its production is incredibly efficient. A nuclear power plant uses fuel contained in bundles, each weighing 660 pounds. In an 18-month operating cycle, Vermont Yankee uses about 23 tons of nuclear fuel. Nuclear fuel is composed of Uranium-235, non-nuclear filler, and Uranium-238, which is...

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Entergy, state seek to keep lawsuit documents confidential

Entergy Corp. and the state have filed a joint protective order as part of the discovery portion of the Entergy v. Vermont case. The order allows both parties to stamp documents and evidence as “confidential.” Entergy, owner of the Vermont Yankee (VY) nuclear power station in Vernon, took the state to court in April. The company has claimed pre-emption, saying the Vermont Senate tread on the feds' toes in 2010 when it voted to deny the plant a Certificate of...

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Checkout-counter politics

In February, while standing in the checkout line at Rite Aid in Wilmington, I spotted a magazine I'd never seen before: a glossy publication celebrating the growth and success of the Tea Party. I picked it up and started flipping pages. Every single story appeared to be either a breathless tribute to conservative politicians or an attack on the policies of the Democratic Party. I remember thinking it was odd - and a little disturbing - to see a right-wing...

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Scholarship available for UVM Extension’s Master Gardener course

The Windham County Chapter of the University of Vermont Extension Master Gardeners will be awarding one $200 scholarship to residents of Windham County to be applied toward fees for the 2012 UVM Extension Master Gardener class beginning in February.  The UVM Extension Master Gardener Program aims to educate home gardeners about responsible and effective horticultural practices for landscaping and food production in our region. It is a 13-week course presented in three-hour sessions across Vermont via interactive TV sites. The...

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Vermont’s well-child rank drops a notch, shows improvements

New data shows Vermont has dropped from third to fourth - behind New Hampshire, Minnesota and Massachusetts - in a nationwide ranking of the well-being and health of children, according to the KIDS COUNT Data Book, a project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The project looks at 10 indicators that measure the well-being of children through all 50 states, as well as Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. Vermont has improved in seven of the 10 categories, ranking No. 1...

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‘Something’s wrong with his brain’

My fondest memory from my second year of first grade was finally getting to be in a school play. The first grade holiday play was a re-enactment of the “Paul Revere's Ride” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The entire class was to read the poem out loud as various “special” people acted out the parts in period costume (made from construction paper). Because I could not read a word from the poem, I played the part of the lantern-hanging friend. My...

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Clean water improves the lives of women

Her day begins before dawn. She walks four miles on uneven paths to reach a hand-dug pit from which she fetches the day's water supply for her family. The water is polluted by flies, feces, and feeding animals. In the dry season, the walk is treacherous as steep-sided mud walls collapse, injuring the women and girls who come, sometimes twice a day, for precious water. By the time she returns home carrying a water jug on her head that weighs...

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‘Somehow, we failed here’

The recent events at the Brattleboro Food Co-op have disturbed me greatly and saddened me in a way that is beyond my connection to the people involved. I attended the vigil held on the Whetstone Path and must admit that I came away unsatisfied. Why is it, in the face of the horror of these inexplicable events, that our first need is to assure ourselves that we are fine, that our community is still wonderful, that whatever has happened is...

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40 years is not enough for VY

Some people seem to think that Vermont Yankee's presence here for the last 40 years has been long enough and it's time for it to go. I used to think 40 years was a long time until I grew older. Why, it was less than 40 years ago in 1973 that I had to push my car up to the pump on either a Tuesday or a Thursday (your day to fill up depended on your tag number) during the...

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State says VY tritium found in Connecticut River

The Vermont Department of Health announced on Aug. 17 that laboratory tests revealed low levels of the radioactive isotope tritium on the Connecticut River's shoreline adjacent to the Vermont Yankee nuclear power station. “We have been tracking the plume of tritium-contaminated groundwater as it moves slowly toward the river, and this new finding confirms that the tritium has traveled from the Yankee site to the Connecticut River,” said Health Commissioner Harry Chen, M.D. Although less than one-third the safety threshold...

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Workplace trends related to Co-op shooting?

In all the news coverage, editorials, and letters about the recent Co-op shooting, one aspect has never been mentioned. Nationally, the rate of incidences of workplace violence has been increasing. At the same time, workers have been losing health and retirement benefits, losing union protection, and being pressured to “do more with less.” Fear of losing jobs and a general lessening of job security has also added to many workers stress. Finally, real wages, for most, have declined in terms...

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What are we going to do now?

The opening of a recent New York Times editorial was striking: “The federal debt limit is far too dangerous and unstable for lawmakers to use as a political weapon.” One might ask, “If not that, what?” In the final debt limit vote, our own Senator Leahy sided with senior Democratic leadership in Congress while Senator Sanders and Rep. Welch opposed both the somewhat symbolic cost-cutting and the completely nonexistent revenue enhancement. After the fact, Leahy was among the first to...

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Share, and share alike

There are many professionals in Windham County who work out of their homes. But for some, the lure of working in their pajamas and slippers wears thin after a while. “Not everyone is cut out to work alone,” said Caleb Clark, the Educational Technology Program Director at the Marlboro College Graduate School. “The average person will go nuts.” But most freelancers and independent contractors can't afford the expense of renting out an office in downtown Brattleboro, and working out of...

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Sacred steel

The piece of twisted, slightly rusted steel sat on a card table at the back of the Brattleboro Central Fire Station. About four feet long and weighing about 170 pounds, there was nothing remarkable about it at first glance. Then you notice the numbers C-149 and NT-176 on the steel, the first clue that this is not just any piece of scrap metal. It is a piece of history. The piece of steel was once a floor joist truss that...

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Seminar offered on using Facebook to build community

 Want to know how to get your community, library, or social group connected using Facebook? Learn the essentials about using today's top social media tool in a free online webinar presented by the e-Vermont Community Broadband Project. Mary Danko of the Hartland Public Library will lead this live half-hour session, and anyone with high-speed Internet access can easily participate regardless of where they live. Interactive webinars are a great tool for bringing an expert (virtually) into your home or community...

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