Santa Express train rides return to Bellows Falls

Who doesn't remember taking a Christmas Train ride with Santa and the Grinch, caroling elves, and special surprises on the Green Mountain Railroad in Bellows Falls?

This train is running again after a few years' break, so all aboard the historic Green Mountain Flyer, Bellows Falls to the North Pole (Chester Station) and back, on Saturday, Nov. 23.

Tickets are available at the Village Square Booksellers in Bellows Falls, at www.rails-vt.com, or by calling 802-376-9534. The fee is $25 for adults, $20 for children, and free for kids aged 2 and younger.

This scenic route dates back to 1964, when Monadnock, Steamtown and Northern Amusement Corporation set up Steamtown USA. Green Mountain Railroad was off and running the beautiful Bellows Falls to Chester route.

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Marlboro College, Snelling Center collaborate on leadership education

Marlboro College has begun a partnership with the Snelling Center for Government to introduce three new graduate level courses in leadership, public policy, and community engagement. The courses, based on learning from the Snelling Center's Vermont Leadership Institute, will be incorporated into Marlboro's Master of Science in Management–Mission Driven...

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DRB Chair resigns as Selectboard questions the lack of meeting minutes for 2013

Jack Lilly has resigned as both chair and member of the town's Development Review Board, effective immediately, citing health reasons. Lilly's letter of resignation was introduced at the Nov. 13 Selectboard meeting, where members accepted it unanimously. “Sorry for the situation,” member Steve Glabach said quietly, as the vote...

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Boys & Girls Club gets grant for STEM program

The Boys & Girls Club of Brattleboro was recently awarded the Sea Research Foundation's Immersion Mentoring Grant. This grant will help the club address their members' need for more education in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The Boys & Girls Club of Brattleboro was one of 35 youth-serving organizations in 31 states chosen to take part. Immersion Mentoring was founded in 2002 by Dr. Robert Ballard to be a fun, hands on program designed to bring...

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Milestones

Births • In Brattleboro (Memorial Hospital), Oct. 30, 2013, a son, Kai Julien Bashford, to Jessica Bashford and David Altstadt of Brattleboro; grandson to Debbie and Bob Bashford of Brattleboro and Ron and Judy Altstadt of Westlake, Ohio. • In Burlington (Fletcher Allen Health Care), Oct. 13, 2013, a son, Odin Sterling Ahkinga Royar Rabi­nowitz, to Arthina Royar and Moses Rabinowitz of Brattleboro. Transitions • Joe Milliken has been appointed as managing partner and editor-in-chief of Cider Magazine, a Bellows...

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A celebration of light when days are short

The Brattleboro Women's Chorus, directed by Becky Graber, presents its 18th annual fall concerts, “Where There is Light,” on Nov. 23 and 24 at the First Baptist Church in Brattleboro. Seventy local women and girls will perform, accompanied by guest musician Kate Parsons on piano. Included in the performance are two of Graber's compositions: “Travelin' Light” and “Let Your Light Shine On.” From Minnesota composer Elizabeth Alexander is a Chinese proverb set to music about light, beauty, harmony, honor, and...

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Shumlin receives Anna Marsh Award from Retreat

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin was presented with the Brattleboro Retreat's 2013 Anna Marsh Award before more than 160 guests at a gala fund raising event held Nov. 9 at The Hermitage in West Dover. Shumlin is the fifth recipient of the Anna Marsh Award, which has been given by the Brattleboro Retreat since 2009 to recognize individuals for their advocacy on behalf of people with mental illness and addiction. Also on hand to acknowledge Shumlin was filmmaker Bess O'Brien, whose...

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Forum on potential impacts of wind turbines to be held in Townshend

Vermonters for a Clean Environment is sponsoring the first of three public forums on wind development in rural communities on Friday, Nov. 22 at 6:30 p.m., at Leland & Gray High School. The focus of the event: the noise and health effects of industrial wind. Impacts on property values will be discussed on Jan. 17, 2014; the third meeting is Feb. 21. Stephen Ambrose, an expert on acoustical engineering, is featured speaker. A civil engineer and a member of the...

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SEVCA expands outreach efforts, moves Brattleboro office

The Brattleboro outreach office of Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA), based at the Marlboro College Graduate Center for the past eight years, has moved to 15 Grove St. (behind the Stone Church on Main Street). SEVCA says the move was required to accommodate expanded programs and services. Denice Brown will continue to provide a wide range of crisis fuel, housing and other emergency assistance. Susan Howes, SEVCA's community housing case manager, will join the new office to provide homelessness prevention,

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Additional Vermont Health Connect enrollment, extension information now available

Vermont Health Connect, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and MVP Health Care have outlined details of the additional enrollment options to give Vermonters peace of mind as they make health care decisions in the coming months. Fact sheets available at www.VermontHealthConnect.gov provide greater clarity on how to take advantage of the various enrollment channels, according to a press release. Here are the enrollment options: • Vermonters can continue to sign up for health coverage for their businesses or themselves through Vermont...

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Putney Foodshelf asks community to look for red, yellow, and white

Yellow means getting pretty low, and red means nearly empty! What are we talking about? Have you noticed the homemade sandwich board on the corner of Main Street and Christian Square? It's the easiest way someone traveling through Putney can learn that there is a food pantry in town, unless you are hungry and in need and ask someone who knows about it. Then, we hope, you have discovered the Putney Foodshelf at the Community Center on Christian Square. And,

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Brattleboro Energy Committee recognizes local green businesses

The Brattleboro Energy Committee announces the three recipients of its 2013 Sustainable Business Awards: Triple T Trucking, Cultural Intrigue, and the Brattleboro Food Co-op. These awards are given annually to Brattleboro-area businesses and nonprofits making extraordinary efforts to reduce energy and water use, lower carbon emissions, use renewable fuels, reduce solid waste, promote local food production, and use recycled materials and other environmentally-friendly products. The awards were presented at the Nov. 19 Selectboard meeting. Triple T Trucking provides weekly recycling...

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Around the Towns

Brattleboro Senior Center hosts annual Thanksgiving luncheon BRATTLEBORO - The Brattleboro Senior Center and Brattleboro Senior Meals host their annual Thanksgiving luncheon on Thursday, Nov. 21. The menu will include appetizers, roast Tom turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, and butternut squash, plus assorted breads and pies. Appetizers will be served at 11:30 a.m. Suggested donation for seniors over 60 is $4; all others $6. Make your reservations early, as seating is limited to the first 150 callers. For...

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‘A Buddhist View of American Foreign Policy’ is topic of Windham World Affairs Council talk

Tom Redden, Ph.D., a professor of history and politics at Southern Vermont College, and an ordained Zen Buddhist priest, presents “A Buddhist View of American Foreign Policy” at the Windham World Affairs Council on Friday, Nov. 22, at Marlboro College Graduate Center, 22 Vernon St. The evening begins with a silent meditation led by Redden - bring your own pillows or blankets - from 5 to 6:45 p.m., followed by a light vegetarian meal prepared by Javed Chaudhri. There will...

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Pace is picking up on I-91 bridge replacement project

Work has begun in earnest on a project to replace two existing bridges on Interstate 91 with a single, four-lane structure that will accommodate both northbound and southbound traffic. Northbound I-91 traffic has been relocated to one of the lanes on the southbound bridge. This will continue until the existing northbound bridge is demolished. Once the northbound bridge is demolished and the new bridge has been constructed, traffic will be rerouted to the new bridge while the southbound bridge is...

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Guilford Studio Holiday Sale returns this weekend

The 14th annual Guilford Holiday Studio Sale runs Friday, Nov. 22, from 3 to 8 p.m., and on Saturday, Nov. 23, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at 410 Green River Rd. The Holiday Sale is an opportunity to mingle with friends and neighbors, enjoy free snacks, and start the holiday shopping season buying Guilford arts and crafts directly from their creators. This year features five artists - all from Guilford - including two newcomers. Carol Schnabel has been weaving...

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Children encouraged to participate in school meal programs

The Vermont Agency of Education Child Nutrition Programs has expanded access to free or reduced-price meals for children served under the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the School Breakfast Program (SBP), and the After-School Snack Program (ASP). The Agency encourages children to participate in their local school's meal program, and encourages families to complete an application for free and reduced price meal benefits. Each school and/or central office provides free and reduced price meal applications and has a copy of...

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Thoughts about our working landscape

The experience and evolution of Vermont's working landscape has been in my thinking recently, particularly as our communities work on issues of solar arrays, wind towers, and zoning regulations with respect to views and landscaping. In my personal life, I struggle with my own 12 acres. How do I shape this land in a way that authentically fits my values and aesthetic sense, as well as my time and energy? I am aware that what my property looks like tells...

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Mark Erelli visits BF for rare brunchtime show

On Sunday, Nov. 24, folk icon Mark Erelli plays a brunchtime show at the Windham Ballroom. Erelli's not some grizzled road dog from the sepia-toned past but it's hard to imagine the modern folk scene without him. The 14-odd years that he's been making music professionally has helped to infuse the industry with his own youthful vigor, all while he became a fixture in his own right. With nearly a dozen records behind him, dErelli has a considerable oeuvre from...

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Career Center atudents attend 15th annual Women Can Do Conference

More than 40 young women from the Windham Regional Career Center recently attended the 15th annual state Women Can Do Conference at Vermont Technical College in Randolph Center. Women Can Do is sponsored by Vermont Works for Women, a 25-year-old organization whose mission is to help women and girls recognize their potential and explore, pursue, and excel in work leading to economic independence. This full-day conference featured dozens of hands-on workshops and action stations highlighting careers in trades and technology.

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WSWMD to suspend its recycling of some plastics

The Windham Solid Waste Management District Board of Supervisors has decided to suspend its recycling of plastic containers with the numbers 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 on the bottom of the container. The board says that this is due to the lack of a market to purchase those types of plastic containers. Markets are still strong for No. 1 PETE (polyethylene terephthalate) and No. 2 HDPE (high-density polyethylene), Spencer said, as those are easily and readily recyclable into other...

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BUHS recognized for energy efficiency efforts

Brattleboro Union High School is one of 11 schools around the state recognized by Efficiency Vermont and the Vermont Superintendents Association as achieving ENERGY STAR status through the Project Green School Initiative. This designation indicates that the schools are in the top 25 percent nationally for energy efficiency, and that they meet stringent standards for health, ventilation, comfort, and lighting quality. Project Green School is a collaboration that seeks to put all Vermont schools on the path toward ENERGY STAR...

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The Great American Smokeout: A Day To Be A Quitter

Thursday, Nov. 21 is your day to be a quitter. Each year, the American Cancer Society encourages smokers to use the third Thursday of November as the day to make a plan to quit. This year, Windham County prevention coalitions are promoting the Great American Smokeout by supporting activities in area schools and publicizing their local Vermont Quit Partners. As a special promotion of this year's Great American Smokeout, Greater Falls Connections is sponsoring a free turkey raffle. The winner...

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Social Security confiscates people’s hard-earned money

Has anyone contacted Senator Bernie Sanders about the Social Security Trust Fund status? I have. He repeatedly states that the “fund” will remain totally solvent well into the late 2000s and says it has many trillions of dollars backing it up. A politician's view. I asked about the money confiscated for years from working people who die before getting any return, money that is lost to their families. Galveston, Texas teachers have a nice, private program with great returns. It's...

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Next Stage features bluegrass with Claire Lynch Band, Hot Mustard on Nov. 22

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present an evening of bluegrass and Americana music with the award-winning Claire Lynch Band and double banjo bluegrass quartet Hot Mustard at Next Stage on Friday, Nov. 22, at 7:30 p.m. The Claire Lynch Band - that's Claire (guitar, vocals), Matt Wingate (guitar, mandolin, vocals), Mark Schatz (bass, clawhammer banjo, percussive dance) and Bryan McDowell (mandolin, fiddle, vocals) - has the innate ability to perfectly interpret the beauty, subtlety and genre-defying sophistication of...

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I am not Spock

When arguing in favor of nuclear power and especially Vermont Yankee, I sometimes felt I was channeling Spock. VY's opponents appealed to emotion: “I am so afraid.” As a pro-VY blogger, I appealed to facts and common sense. Sometimes I wanted to scream: “Nuclear energy is the only way to keep our civilization without destroying our world!” I never screamed it. I was Spock. When Entergy announced that it would close Vermont Yankee, my inner Spock continued even as the...

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We must keep the health-care ball rolling

In an airport recently, facing life-threatening boredom, I broke down and tried to buy a book through Amazon's Kindle Store. Folks, I was not able to. Somehow this failed to make national news; somehow Wolf Blitzer didn't appear on the airport TV screens to discuss it for the rest of the day, but yes, it happened, and I'll bet it's not the only instance of a commercial website letting somebody down. Point being, it's time to be done with the...

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Only people are people

That is not the question. The question is whether organizations large or small should have the same voice and influence as individual people. In a world where money and political access dominate and where the institutions they control have the power and influence to disinform and misinform, there has to be a return to balance. Only people are people - corporations, unions, churches, and other such entities are not. Although our founding fathers were only people and susceptible to mistakes...

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Just give us the broadband, FairPoint

Have our telecommunication industry leaders lost their sense of industrious problem-solving? Have our elected officials lost the power of their voices? In 2010, FairPoint sent offers of high-speed Internet. When we called to “sign up now,” we were told “not available in your area.” In 2011, in calls to the governor's office, we were told that the state was making an effort to have a plan to provide Internet to our address by the end of the year. In 2012,

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‘Family is family’

A father and daughter, both talented musicians and former Vermonters, are returning to Brattleboro with a concert dedicated to two the greatest musicians in all of jazz. On Nov. 23 at 8 p.m. at its studio in the Cotton Mill, Open Music Collective presents vocalist Melissa Shetler and her father, Scott Shetler on sax, in a “Lady Day and Prez Tribute Show,” honoring singer Billie Holiday and tenor saxophonist Lester Young. Joining the Shetlers: guitarist Rudolph Vernaz-Colas, house bassist Jamie...

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BF Rotary builds new entrance ramp for Parks Place

What began in October as a conversation about Parks Place's need for a new ramp ended with a new one being constructed by the Bellows Falls Rotary Club just a few weeks later. “That's what you call amazing,” said Parks Place Director Barbara Ternes. The project was made possible by a crew of volunteers who provided everything from the hauling away of the old ramp to construction to pastries and snacks. Volunteers included Keith Clark, Bonnie Clark, Doreen Aldrich, Nick...

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Take a corporation to dinner

People who don't think it's a big deal that corporations have been elevated to the status of a person fail to appreciate history. All the founding fathers, and the country as a whole, were very suspicious of corporations and strictly controlled them. They fail to appreciate the economic power of corporations (many have the wealth of mid-sized nations), and they fail to appreciate the simple fact that corporations are legally bound to further the interests only of their shareholders -

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Instead of Black Friday, how about Giving Day?

Rather than “Black Friday,” how about declaring the day after Thanksgiving as “Giving Day,” a day to encourage philanthropy? This simple idea associates charitable giving and the celebration of philanthropy with our national holiday. All Vermonters would be encouraged to offer assistance to those in need, in whatever way they might be able to do so. Recent disasters have proven that lending support to those in need is an important part of our Vermont tradition and the American tradition. The...

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His name was McNamara, the leader of the band

Golf is in a recumbent state here in Vermont, before the full hibernation begins in what is likely weeks rather than months. In the chill season the Brattleboro Country Club is open only to members, and then only on the “old” nine holes, which takes some explaining. A nine-hole course designed by Tom McNamara of Boston opened for play on July 1, 1914, setting the stage for the club's 100th anniversary celebration next summer. Wayne Stiles redesigned the course in...

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Strolling on Main Street

After a decade of debate over what the Robert H. Gibson River Garden should be used for, Strolling of the Heifers founder and executive director Orly Munzing outlined her organization's vision for the downtown landmark now that it is the owner. Munzing announced on Nov. 15 that Building a Better Brattleboro (BaBB), the downtown organization that built the River Garden in 2001, had completed the deal to sell the property to Strolling of the Heifers. Strolling plans to launch a...

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VBSR to honor Carolyn Partridge as its ‘Legislator of the Year’

Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR) will present state Rep. Carolyn Partridge, D-Windham, with the organization's Legislator of the Year award for her work to pass legislation requiring the labeling of genetically engineered food. The presentation is planned for the start of VBSR's 21st annual Fall Conference at the Grand Summit Hotel at Mount Snow on Wednesday, Nov. 20. As chair of the House Agriculture Committee, Partridge helped oversee testimony earlier this year on H.112, a bill that would require...

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The center of the scene

Fiddler Peter Siegel encourages you to join the fun at the Brattleboro Contra Dance at the Stone Church, at the corner of Main and Grove streets, just north of the post office. “We honor our local participants as we showcase bands from around the country,” he says. Meeting on the second (well, mostly) and fourth Sundays of each month at 7 p.m., Brattleboro Contra Dance, affiliated with the national Country Dance and Song Society (www.cdss.org), recently organized as an educational...

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Selectboard gets briefing on nonprofit ambulance service’s financial hassles

Rescue Inc. says it is looking forward to health care reform leading to a reduction in its percentage of uninsured patients. Meanwhile, its fees, unchanged since 2010, are set to rise somewhat. Briefing the Selectboard at their regular meeting on Nov. 13, Drew Hazelton, Rescue's interim chief of operations, said the volunteer rural emergency medical service's call volume for ambulances is steadily increasing due to demand for transportation to large specialty hospitals. “We're seeing a huge need from our community...

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Rockingham Free Public Library, town take account of construction expenses

The addition and renovation to the Rockingham Free Public Library has ended up $153,089.60 over budget. While Municipal Manager Willis “Chip” Stearns III told The Commons this week that the “when, how much, from where, 'cash' is coming is not a known set of information,” he added that “the RFPL trustees have this amount of cash held in accounts under their control already.” The total library fund shows a healthy balance of $451,624, more than enough to cover the cost...

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Two years to a ribbon cutting?

Under the roof of the newly-sold Robert H. Gibson River Garden, Brattleboro Housing Authority staff and leadership highlighted achievements of 2013, including progress on its new venture, Red Clover Commons, which replaces Melrose Terrace. An audience of 25 attended the BHA's annual meeting at the River Garden on Main Street on Nov. 18. “2013 was a very busy year,” said William Bedard, chair of the BHA board of commissioners. Along with the Red Clover development, the BHA temporarily rehoused 80...

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State Department of Libraries ‘very interested in helping’ RFPL trustees, state librarian says

“Libraries are unique among municipal government and among town departments,” noted State Librarian Martha Reid, speaking to The Commons about the recent issues surrounding the Rockingham Free Public Library. Reid explained that there are two types of public libraries in Vermont: municipal libraries and incorporated libraries. “The Rockingham Free Public Library is a municipal library,” she said. Such a library, according to the state Department of Libraries, is a city, town, or village library established by a vote of the...

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Town, VLCT still at odds over insurance coverage costs

The Selectboard has blunted a spike in property replacement valuations for town buildings, but it has some work to do before the board re-signs with the town's insurance carrier. Overall, property replacement valuations shot from roughly $400,000 to $1.1 million, selectmen recently learned when the time came to renew annual insurance coverage through the Vermont League of Cities and Towns. According to published reports, one estimate shows the town's property insurance premium, now at $8,186, rising by $6,000 had the...

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Some public housing recipients may see rents increase

Ripples caused by federal budget sequestration of 2013 continue to make waves for public housing. According to Brattleboro Housing Authority Finance Director Mary Houghton, BHA has decided to lower its “payment standard.” For its part, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has decided to decrease the standard for fair market rents in the Brattleboro area for 2014. In plain English: Among other things, sequestration has squelched the amount of money HUD and the BHA can pay towards...

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Condos to discuss public records, open meetings, transparency in BF

Secretary of State Jim Condos will bring his “Got Transparency?” Tour to town on Wednesday, Nov. 20. Condos is in the process of visiting 10 towns across the state to discuss these laws with municipal and state employees, citizens serving on local government boards, and members of the public, who are invited and encouraged to attend. Bellows Falls is the only Windham County town on Condos's itinerary. “It is important that the public know their rights when it comes to...

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