Guilford hosts Meet the Candidates night
GUILFORD - Broad Brook Grange will hold its annual Pre-Town Meeting on Thursday, March 1, 7 p.m. at the Broad Brook Grange Hall.
This is the only opportunity for voters to hear details of the articles that will be presented at the Town and School District Meetings, and to meet and discuss issues with the Selectboard and school board all in one evening, in advance of Town Meeting.
It will also be the last public opportunity to discuss the waterline bond issue that will be voted on by Australian ballot on Town Meeting Day.
State law prevents any “campaigning” by candidates at Town Meeting, when an Australian ballot is used, as in this instance. So this is the only time before the vote for the public to meet and hear the candidates all at once.
In addition, candidates for town and school board offices are urged to attend to introduce themselves to the voters.
Town Clerk Penny Marine reports that there is a candidate declared for each town and school position being voted by Australian ballot. Those interested in declaring as a write-in candidate should take this sole opportunity to appear before a group of voters.
Town Meeting itself will be held, as usual, on the first Tuesday of March, which this year is March 6, commencing at 10 a.m. in the gym of the Central School.
Broad Brook Grange is in Guilford Center, 4 miles west of the Country Store. Refreshments will conclude the evening.
WCHS presents Wags to Riches charity auction
PUTNEY - The Windham County Humane Society's Wags To Riches charity auction will be held on Saturday, March 3 at 6 p.m. at the Putney Inn.
Auction items include vacations to Hawaii and Africa, a Kindle Fire, local art, gift certificates, and more. Hors d'oeuvres will be provided by the Putney Inn.
This is the primary fundraiser for the WCHS. The cost is $40 per person and includes one drink.
Space is limited; call 802-254-2232 or email annie.wchs@gmail.com.
E-Book tour presented at library
BRATTLEBORO - E-books are becoming increasingly popular with patrons at Brooks Memorial Library. On Friday, March 2 at 3 p.m. in the Library's meeting room, join the library's staff for a free guided tour of Overdrive, the eBook and eAudio website.
Staff will show participants how to download books to one's compatible device for two weeks for free.
Access to eBooks and eAudio is free with a Brooks library card. For Brattleboro residents the card is free, for non-residents the cost if $48 per year or $25 for 6 months. The library also has 4 Kindles to borrow with pre-loaded content.
Compatible devices include desktop PC and Macintosh computers; mobile devices such as Kindle, Kindle Fire, Android, Blackberry, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Windows Mobile; and eBook readers that include the Nook, Kobo, Literati, NextBook, Pandigital, PocketBook, and Sony Readers.
Instructional handouts will be available. Call 802-254-5290 for more information.
Moore Free Library to hold book swap
NEWFANE - The Friends of the Moore Free Library will host a book swap at library, 23 West St., on Saturday, March 3 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Adult and children's fiction and non-fiction books will be available. CDs and DVDs also also welcome, but textbooks are not.
Leftover books will be added to the annual book sale in the fall.
Questions? Call librarian Meris Morrison at 802-365-7948.
Care and conservation of historic wallpaper discussed in Rockingham
BELLOWS FALLS - The Rockingham Historical Commission will present a “lunch and lecture” event, led by expert paper conservator Carolyn Frisa, who will cover the history, care and conservation of wallpaper.
Frisa is the head conservator and owner of Works on Paper. Her business in Bellows Falls specializes in conserving art on paper, maps, historic documents, wallpaper, and parchment.
Those wishing to purchase lunch before the lecture should plan to arrive by 12:30 p.m.
For further details, or to reserve a seat, email the Rockingham Historical Commission at clg@rockbf.org or call 802-463-3456, ext. 110.
The event will be catered by the Vermont Pretzel & Cookie Cafe at 24 Rockingham St. and takes place on Saturday, March 3 at 1:30 p.m. in the Newberry Gallery there.
Guilford presents annual Sugar on Snow supper
GUILFORD - The annual Sugar on Snow Supper will be held Saturday, March 3, at Broad Brook Grange on Guilford Center Road.
Traditionally the first sugar supper in Windham County, the meal features ham, baked beans, cole slaw, potato salad, rolls, pickles, homemade donuts, and Guilford maple sugar on snow.
There will be three seatings: at 5, 6, and 7 p.m. At each seating, a half gallon of Guilford maple syrup will be raffled.
Tickets for the supper are $10 for adults; $5 for children ages 5-12, and $2 for kids age 4 and younger.
Reservations for a particular seating are recommended, as the supper usually sells out in advance.
A waiting list will also be kept, and those with reservations who cannot make it are asked to phone their cancellation.
There are usually a few unreserved seats left for the 7 p.m. seating, for those who show up without a reservation.
Reservations may be made by calling Thayer Tomlinson at 802-257-5359.
Boys and Girls Club hosts youth poetry slam
BRATTLEBORO - A youth poetry slam will take place Saturday, March 3, at 7:30 p.m., at the Boys and Girls Club, 17 Flat St.
All middle- and high-school poets are welcome. Youth may sign up to participate in the slam competition (with judges) or in the open mic session (no judging). For more information, contact Teri Young at teriyoung3@gmail.com or 802-258-9054.
Pampered Chef fundraiser benefits Dummerston Community Center
WEST DUMMERSTON - The Dummerston Community Center will host its annual Pampered Chef fundraiser on Sunday, March 4, at 12:57 p.m., at the Center on West Street.
Kim Martin will host the event, which features new products, recipes, and demonstrations of many cooking needs. Proceeds will assist in operating expenses for the Community Center. For more information, contact Martin at 802-257-8602 or Jean Momaney at 802-254-9212.
Lunch and bake sale at Putney Town Meeting
PUTNEY - Eat lunch at the Putney Town Meeting on March 6 and help support the Four Winds Nature Program at Putney Central School.
Nature Program volunteers will once again host a bake sale/coffee/cider table throughout the day and will serve lunch during the break.
A variety of hearty soups, Cabot cheese, and Red Hen Bakery bread will be served. There is a suggested donation of $5 for lunch. Donations for the bake sale table (which can be dropped off the morning of the meeting) will also be much appreciated.
This fundraiser supports continued provision of a fun, hands-on, nature program for all students in kindergarten through grade 5. The Nature Program, which provides monthly science lessons to all PCS children in those grades, is fully taught by parent and community volunteers who are trained by the Four Winds Nature Institute to present a cohesive curriculum.
In addition to the time they spend training, prepping, and delivering programs, volunteers must raise around $1,300 to support this program, for which the school provides a match.
Donations are always appreciated, and new volunteers are most welcome. Call Pat Shields at 802-387-8595 for more information.
Grace Cottage offers Zumba classes
TOWNSHEND - Grace Cottage Hospital's Wellness Center will host a six-week Zumba class starting on Tuesday, March 6, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
The Zumba workout combines easy-to-follow dance moves with invigorating Latin music, creating a fitness program that is both effective and fun.
Appropriate for all ages and fitness levels, the only requirements are comfy clothes, low-tread sneakers, a water bottle, and the ability to have fun. Taught by certified Zumba instructor Carrie Goldsmith, this has quickly become one of the Wellness Center's most popular offerings.
The Grace Cottage Hospital Wellness Center is located at 133 Grafton Rd. (Route 35). The class is limited to 20 participants. The fee for the six-week series is $60; $13 for drop-ins. Call 802-365-3649 to pre-register.
Presentation looks at water quality after Irene
WEST DUMMERSTON - Marie Caduto and Lee Chamberlin will present a talk on water quality effects and concerns in the wake of last August's Tropical Storm Irene on Thursday, March 8 at the Dummerston Community Center.
Caduto will focus on the water quality impacts that result from the river dynamics discussed by Shannon Pytlik in her recent presentation. If you missed Pytlik's talk, you can access it at www.brattlebortv.org.
Caduto coordinates management planning for southeast Vermont watersheds as an environmentalist with the Agency of Natural Resources. She works with local communities to develop and implement water-quality management plans for surface waters.
She will discuss erosion and sedimentation effects, runoff from non-point source pollution, aquatic habitat impacts, and monitoring of the physical, chemical, and biological aspects of water quality.
Chamberlin, who is the Dummerston Road Foreman, will talk specifically about Dummerston's waterways.
For more information, contact Mary Ellen Copeland at 802-257-0012.
Local member of Green Mountain Care board to speak
BRATTLEBORO - Dr. Karen Hein, a national authority on health care organizations, will be speaking about strategic planning and the Green Mountain Care Board, on which she serves. The organization is developing the single-payer system reform for Vermont.
Hein's talk will be on Tuesday, March 6, from 6 to 7 p.m, at the Marlboro College Graduate School, 28 Vernon St. The presentation will take place during a graduate school class to which members of the public are invited.
Admission is free. Registration is requested online at gradschool.marlboro.edu or by phone at 802-451-7505.
Since 2003, Hein has served on boards that focus on health care reform, youth development, global health, and the professionalization of humanitarian assistance in other countries.
During the Clinton administration's health reform effort in the 1990s, she served as a Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellow with the U.S. Senate Finance Committee.
School offers scholarship for a teen cartoonist
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION - For the fourth year in a row, the Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction has donated a full scholarship to the Department of Libraries so a Vermont teen can attend their one-week workshop, “Create Comics,” this summer.
This scholarship, worth $900, includes the workshop, supplies, morning and afternoon snacks, lunch, and evening student activities. Lodging is not included, but a very inexpensive hostel option is available.
Any Vermont student age 16 or older by June 1 is eligible. The workshop will take place in White River Junction on July 16-20.
Vermont teens interested in the scholarship should apply through their local school or public library.
The applicant must also attend the entire workshop.
The contest will be conducted through the library (school or public) and librarians will be responsible for sending in the entry forms to the Department of Libraries by May 18. DOL will hold a drawing and will let the winning student's librarian know the results.
Entry forms are available for download. For more information about the workshop and the Center for Cartoon Studies, visit www.cartoonstudies.org.