Homeowners, landlords, small business owners, and other residents looking for ways to cut rising energy bills are invited to a free solar workshop presented by Brattleboro Climate Protection and the Brattleboro Energy Committee.
The workshop will be held on Saturday, Oct. 20 from 9 a.m. to noon at the Marlboro College Graduate Center, 28 Vernon St.
Workshop attendees will learn the advantages of installing solar hot water and solar electric systems, and about the different types of systems that are available. Local solar installers will be on hand to offer real-life case studies of solar installations and to answer questions about solar and its affordability.
The workshop will feature a presentation by Nick Ziter of SunFarm Community Solar of Putney. Ziter is starting a solar farm that allows community members to invest in the project and then receive a credit for the solar power on their electric bill.
RE: “V-Why?” [Letters, Sept. 25]. Why do the vast majority of anti-Vermont Yankee protesters emanate from outside Vermont?
State and federal officials celebrated on Oct. 5 the completion of a two-year project making upgrades and repairs along 190 miles of railroad track between St. Albans and Vernon. The two years of work on the route used by Amtrak's Vermonter and the freight trains of the New England...
Lexy Giallella of Brookline, daughter of Cherish and Randy Clark and Bob Giallella, was recently diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma. Lexy, 14, has a long road to recovery, including chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery. She will be traveling to Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and Dartmouth-Hitchcock in Hanover N.H. for treatment. A team of members from BPOE 1499 Elks Lodge in Brattleboro are planning several fundraisers: • On Oct. 14, a community breakfast buffet will...
After a film is fully shaped and cut, and the director has fully signed off and “locked” the picture, there is still a lot to do to add layers of sound. Some sounds, like those from trucks or cars, are taken from recordings. Others, like steps and door slams, are manufactured. I remember working with a Foley artist for my 1992 film Where the Rivers Flow North. We wanted to add tension to the moment when power company muscleman, New...
There are fractures in the armor housing Brattleboro's police and fire departments. Cracks in the walls, inefficient floor plans, doorways that are too small, and infrastructure that is either lacking or obsolete all contribute to health and safety deficiencies of the police and fire stations, said Town Manager Barbara Sondag. “These aren't maintenance issues we're trying to address. These are structural issues that require a bigger fix,” she said. Sondag offered that assessment at a recent meeting between representatives of...
RE: “In Denial” [Dispatch, Oct. 3]: It would help the public perception of global warming believers if some stopped calling all who disagree with them “deniers,” accusing them of not caring about Earth. Let's include in the discussion the absolute fact that climate changes were preserved forever in the fossil record before human beings existed; ice ages came and went. There is legitimate disagreement over climate change. Also, I have been unable to understand the contradictions among environmental groups. Some...
West Brattleboro Association to meet WEST BRATTLEBORO - On Thursday, Oct. 11, from 8-9:30 a.m., the West Brattleboro Association will hold its monthly meeting at Sunny's Deli on Western Avenue. The Association has been busy in recent months with the West Brattleboro Village Day in June, participation in both the town's traffic safety study as it regards Route 9 through West Brattleboro and the TriPark housing situation since tropical storm Irene, along with a concerted effort to help its recently...
Patricia Whalen has had some hefty titles in her career. Justice at the International Criminal Tribunal for Bosnia. Official Representative to the Hague Conference on Private International Law for the International Association of Women Judges. Vermont Project Director of the Afghan Women Judges Judicial Education Project. Founder of the Rural Women Leadership Institute of Vermont. Those are some pretty hefty titles for anyone. For Whalen, a Westminster resident, the bridge to her work with the War Crimes Chamber in Bosnia-Herzegovina...
Obituaries • Shayne Michael Baker, 16, of Wardsboro. Died Sept. 29. Son of Mindy Fitzpatrick of Wardsboro and Michael Baker II of Rockingham. Brother of Brynna Baker. Grandson of Jeff and Wendy Fitzpatrick of Wardsboro, Karen Baker Wolfe of Rockingham, and Michael Baker Sr. of Keene, N.H. A student at Leland & Gray Union High School, he took joy in doing the things he loved, such as snowboarding, hunting, playing soccer, skateboarding, and body building. He was loved by all...
I am amazed at how biased the coverage is in both the Brattleboro Reformer and The Commons about unionizing the Brattleboro Food Co-op. Just about every story seems to suggest that the Co-op should just embrace the unionization because it is requested. I even saw a comment about the Co-op board not allowing a local television station in to film the board meeting. Why would anyone allow that dog and pony show to be filmed? It would, however, have be...
Calling a 75-year-old West Brattleboro family farm paradise on a dazzling autumn day doesn't take a lot of imagination, but it's a tempting metaphor on this clear September Sunday. Huge, round clouds in the sharp, blue skies floated around Round Mountain, and cows made their determined way, on the worn path from the uphill pasture, to the free-stall barn down below, the first stop on the way to daily milking. On this afternoon, the routine has changed slightly as a...
Don't let his genteel speaking voice fool you. Doug Hoffer has won himself a reputation for being a “straight shooter.” The auditor needs the respect of those he audits, said Hoffer of his directness. “My work is not b.s. It's the real deal,” he said. Hoffer, a Democrat, describes himself as a numbers guy who can identify issues and is prepared to ask hard questions. A commitment to “evidence-based findings” reaches into his DNA, he said. Departments don't always want...
In “Slavery: not 'out there'” [News, Oct. 3], Brandeis scholar Mei Mei Ellerman says “an estimated 90 percent of porn “actors” are victims of human trafficking.” Say what? According to sociologist Sharon Abbott, in the book Sex for Sale, porn actresses typically earn middle-class incomes. After interviewing 31 of them, she found five primary motivations for entering the porn industry: money, fame and glamour, freedom and independence, opportunity and sociability, and being naughty and having sex. Sometimes new actresses earn...
Twin Valley is cruising toward a top seed in the Division IV boys' soccer playoffs with a high-powered offense and a shutdown defense. The Wildcats showed all of that last Monday in a 6-0 road win at Bellows Falls. Midfielder Colin Lozito scored four goals, two in each half, to lead Twin Valley. Dal Nesbitt scored the other two goals as the Wildcats moved the ball at will and peppered the BF goal with about two dozen shots. If you...
The Brattleboro Food Co-op should follow the lead of the food co-ops in Greenfield, Northampton, Montpelier, and Burlington and recognize their workers' union. The Brattleboro co-op should disclose the general manager's salary, as Wal-Mart, General Motors, and most big companies do. On Oct. 3, I submitted to the Brattleboro Food Co-op manager a petition signed by 10 members nominating me to be on the ballot for the Nov. 4 board election. If elected, I will support the workers' right to...
RE: “V-Why?” [Letters, Sept. 25]: I cannot substantiate the claim that the “vast majority” of pro-Vermont Yankee pieces come from New Hampshire, but I can speak for myself on this matter. I am not from the area and came here solely for employment at VY. I have no ties to the area and was relatively impartial and unbiased when it came to choosing a place to reside. I initially stayed in Massachusetts, but the more I learned of that state's...
We are a tax-exempt social welfare organization. We try to solve housing problems. And we watch Congresspeople work against us, obstructing housing efforts. Policies and elections are now regularly bought by moneyed interests masquerading as “social welfare” organizations - with the help of the IRS. Our organization is classified by the IRS as a 501(c)(3). Another organization, Americans for Prosperity, the IRS calls a 501(c)(4). Both are granted tax exemption, provided they're promoting “the common good and general welfare of...
My mom had been in a nursing home for most of a year when she passed away last month. In that time, she'd lost her balance, her memory, her language, and finally, her motion. Every visit was a confrontation with loss. As clear as it was that Mom needed care well beyond what Dad had been struggling to provide at home, it was also clear that Mom was fading away. What none of us could calculate was how long it...
The sound of south Indian classical music and the aroma of curry will take over Main Street Arts (MSA) on Thursday, Oct. 11, when Saxtons River residents Gordon and Jeanne Korstange share their love of the subcontinent. The first of the four Taste of the Arts, Tales from a Community events of the season begins with Gordon Korstange on the bamboo flute, accompanied by Douglas Mackenzie on the mridangam, the south Indian drum. The concert will be preceded by an...
One worker, one vote. That is reasoning behind the decision made late last week by Brattleboro Food Co-op General Manager Alex Gyori to have a formal election by the Co-op's employees on whether they wish to be represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW). On Oct. 1, the Co-op's Board of Directors declined to voluntarily recognize the union after workers presented them with a petition signed by a majority of eligible employees called for the board to...
Flowers are mistakenly sold as fish. The purpose of man's existence is the number 12. A day is twenty-five hours long. And this is only the beginning of the foolishness of the cursed Russian village of Kulyenchikov as brought to life Friday, Oct. 12 and Saturday, Oct. 13, on the Brattleboro Union High School stage for the BUHS Players production of Neil Simon's farce Fools. First performed on Broadway in 1981 under the direction of Mike Nichols, Fools tells of...
New England Youth Theatre presents Shakespeare's most enduring love tragedy, Romeo & Juliet, directed by Peter Gould, Oct. 12 to 21. This production will be powerful, emotional, physical, and faithful to the text, as the actors and audience grapple with issues that still tear at our hearts: youthful love and passion, communication between teens and parents, violence, revenge, and suicide; and how suddenly – brutally – fate can barge in and ruin all our best-laid plans. Romeo & Juliet is...
The Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center is preparing for its annual autumn theatrical performance, The Forest of Mystery. Each year, as the seasons begin to change and the temperature cools, the forests of Bonnyvale take on a special feel where mystery and drama lurk behind every tree. Bonnyvale invites all to walk Bonnyvale's forest trails by lamplight as the performance unfolds. This year's performance, “Into the Otherworld,” draws from Welsh mythology, Halloween imagery, and the theme of the noble quest. The...
What do the following have in common? • Wild romance erupts at the DMV during a registration renewal. • Two men discover that time is NOT money, and friendship is more valuable than a sale. • A bereaved mother and her son's lover clash at his graveside. Can the dead help? • A word with two meanings almost ends a veteran reporter's career. • An aging couple face terminal illness with surprising humor. • A drink between old friends becomes...
First, the Selectboard and town officials should be commended for their hard work and efforts on behalf of the residents of Brattleboro. We should all be grateful for their efforts. My comments are not meant as an endorsement or a condemnation of their efforts or of the improvements proposed for the municipal center/police/fire station. However, we should not implement an additional sales tax to pay for the improvements. Historically, our local legislative representatives, as well as those in other eastern...
Queer Catastrophe, a dance party for the LGBTQ community and allies, will be held on Saturday, Oct. 20, from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., at American Legion Post 5 on Linden Street. This fall dance party from the Men's Program and Crossroads is supporting Irene relief with all of its raffle proceeds. Yearly, these dance parties for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and allied communities, have taken place in the spring, summer, and fall. The 2011 fall dance party...
For the first time, photographers in Windham County will take part in Scott Kelby's annual Worldwide Photo Walk Day, which takes place this year on Oct. 13. Tom Singleton, who will be leading the photo walk through downtown Brattleboro, says, “All that is needed is a camera and a desire to take photos in Brattleboro.” According to the event's official website, the free walk, open to those of all ages and abilities, “is a social photography event where photographers get...
Several Windham County communities will be sharing in $2.3 million in state tax credits targeted at improving downtowns and village centers in Vermont. The Brooks House in Brattleboro topped the list of 30 projects in 17 communities that received $1.786 million in tax credits through the state's Downtown Program. The Downtown Program is an incentive and training program that helps maintain Vermont's compact development pattern by targeting state resources to promote the efficient use of land, infrastructure, and resources. More...