Duo Amphion – Jesse Lepkoff, baroque flute and recorder, and Gregory Hayes, harpsichord – will present a concert of baroque pieces of varied national styles at the historic Brooks House lobby (atrium) on Gallery Walk evening, Friday, Oct. 3, at 7 p.m.
The duo will feature works by C.P.E. Bach, Louis Couperin, Hotteterre, Leclair, Loeillet, and Bigaglia. There is a suggested donation of $12 for the concert.
Lepkoff resides in Marlboro and has been active as a musician for 35 years. He has had a long career playing renaissance and baroque music with various groups and especially with the Boston Camerata. He studied music at The Longy School of Music and The New England Conservatory and spent a year in graduate study with baroque flute virtuoso Wilbert Hazelzet at the Royal Conservatory, Netherlands.
He has performed in many festivals around the world including those in France, The Netherlands, Singapore, Israel, Japan, Norway, Great Britain, Germany, Spain, Portugal, and the U.S. His performances include appearances with the Smithsonian Chamber Players, the Musicians of Swanne Alley, The National Symphony, The Newberry Consort, and the Arcadia Players.
Free speech matters. Free speech matters so very much, that for generations, it has been at the core of both our collective values and our legal system. For many of us, the right to freedom of speech is a revered covenant. Sadly, this is not universal. On Sunday, Sept.
'Overflow the Opera House' set for Sept. 24 BELLOWS FALLS - WKVT's annual Overflow the Opera House food drive will take place Thursday, Sept. 24. From 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., volunteers will be outside the Bellows Falls Opera House on The Square, enabling curbside drop-off of food and...
Transitions • Grace Cottage Family Health announces the addition of Claire Bemis, RN, as the RN Care Coordinator on the Grace Cottage Community Health Team. Bemis earned her B.S., from Vermont College of Norwich and her A.A. from New Hampshire Technical Institute. She has 28 years of nursing experience, most recently as a nursing supervisor at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. As the RN Care Coordinator on the Community Health Team, Bemis will provide care coordination for complex and high risk patients.
Swimming hole conditions cause of concern DUMMERSTON - Selectboard Clerk Gurudharm Khalsa raised his concerns about the town's covered bridge swimming hole at the Aug. 19 regular Board meeting. Khalsa told the Board he is worried that two lengths of “inch-thick steel cable” buried under the stairs could pose a hazard to those using the beach area. Road Foreman Lee Chamberlin agreed the cable was a problem. “You can avoid them, but they're easily tripped upon,” he said. But, Chamberlin...
The second annual Electric Vehicle Fair, set for Saturday, Oct. 3, from 1 to 4 p.m., at the Marlboro College Graduate School, 28 Vernon St., will showcase a wide range of all-electric and plug-in hybrid cars, along with electric-assisted bikes, cargo bikes, and electric scooters. Many of these vehicles will be available for test rides. Electric vehicle owners and local dealers will be on hand to answer questions, and table displays will provide information. At 2:30 pm, local bike enthusiast...
The Windham County Sheriff's Department and the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, working with local law enforcement agencies and prevention coalitions throughout Windham County, will participate in the 10th National Drug Take-Back Day on Saturday, Sept. 26. The free, anonymous, no-questions-asked event aims to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of drug disposal while educating the general public about the potential for abuse of these medications. This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish...
Brattleboro Utilities Division crews will start fall flushing of the town water mains on Thursday, Sept. 24, at 10 p.m. and continue through Saturday, Oct. 10. Some daytime flushing will continue throughout the weeks of Oct. 12 and 19. Water main flushing will occur night and day. Customers are asked to check the flushing schedule closely, as flushing causes water discoloration, low water pressure, and, in some areas, periods of no water. Night flushing will take place from 10 p.m.
This fall, the Brooks Memorial Library will be hosting a number of book talks with Green Mountain Book Award authors. The Green Mountain Book Award (GMBA) is the Vermont Reader's Choice Award for grades 9 to 12. Each spring, teens vote on their favorite GMBA book. Most teens are encouraged to read at least three of the books on the nominated list to be able to vote on their favorite book. The first of these Skype book talks will be...
Vermont's next Poet Laureate, Chard deNiord, will read from his new book of poetry, Interstate, on Friday, Sept. 25, at 6 p.m. at Bartleby's Books. DeNiord will also answer questions from the audience and sign copies of his books. Interstate is a collection of lyrical poems in four sections that concentrate thematically on animals, love and sex, compassion, and loss. The son of a doctor, deNiord anticipated going into the medical profession as well until his college professors introduced him...
The Hilltop Montessori School, along with its partners Guilford Sound and the Catherine Dianich Gallery, are waiting for eleven guest quilters from Gee's Bend, Ala. There will be a Gala Gallery Opening Reception on Thursday, Oct. 1, at 6 p.m., at the Catherine Dianich Gallery in downtown Brattleboro. Gala attendees will have the opportunity to quilt a Gee's Bend quilt alongside Gee's Bend quilters, be the first to view the Gee's Bend quilt exhibit, and meet the amateur actors who...
The Nature Museum at Grafton presents the seventh annual Fairy House Festival on Saturday, Sept. 26, and Sunday, Sept. 27, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Local individuals, families, schools, libraries, and businesses are collecting pine cones, acorn caps, feathers, moss, and more to create small fairy houses, which will be placed along a forest foot path. Visitors to the Fairy House Festival will be able to create their own fairy dwellings in the gardens. Tour-goers may try face painting...
In celebration of Banned Book Week (Sept. 27 – Oct. 3), the Rockingham Free Public Library is seeking volunteers to read banned and challenged books in the front window of the Village Square Bookstore. Readers are needed 9 a.m. to noon from Monday, Sept. 28 through Friday Oct. 2. A comfortable seat and a selection of banned/challenged books will be provided. Call 802-463-4270, email anne@rockinghamlibrary.org or stop by the library to sign up for a 30 minute reading session and...
SEEDs (self-esteem, empowerment, and education through dance) is coming to Brattleboro. This program blends mentorship and tribal style belly dance with the goal of empowering young women. SEEDs is an internationally recognized and award winning belly dance and mentorship program originally created 15 years ago in Santa Fe, N.M., by professional belly dancer and life coach Myra Krein. With dozens of SEEDs satellite programs now running across the United States and beyond, the Brattleboro SEEDs program will work to present...
Brattleboro School of Dance is holding open call auditions on Sunday, Sept. 27, from 2 to 4 p.m., for its upcoming production of The Nutcracker, being performed at New England Youth Theatre this Dec. 18, 19, and 20. Auditions are open to the public. Any interested dancer age 7 and older may attend the audition. Brattleboro School of Dance students enrolled in Children's Ballet 1 at BSD do not need to meet the age requirement. There will be a $40...
Not surprisingly, most scrutiny of the Vermont Yankee site revolves around radiological concerns. But, as indicated by a recent, months-long process of violation notices and responses, state officials also are deeply interested in what plant owner Entergy is doing with its non-radiological waste - so much so that the state has threatened a civil complaint and associated, unspecified penalties in connection with an inspection earlier this year. Some of the issues might seem surprisingly trivial: a half-full can of Sherwin-Williams...
The New England Coalition on Nuclear Pollution will hold its annual meeting on Saturday, Sept. 26, at the River Garden on Main Street. The schedule will include snacks and socializing, the business meeting, including presenting lifetime achievement awards to Arnie and Maggie Gundersen from Burlington and to Judi and Lou Friedman from Canton, Conn. The main speaker will be Gordon Edwards from Montreal. He is president of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility and will speak on radiological waste issues.
Master piper, Dick Hensold, will be doing a solo performance at Wendy's on Tater Lane in Guilford on Friday, Sept. 25, at 7:30 p.m. The concert with multi-bagpiper Hensold features different types of quieter, indoor bagpipes. He is the leading Northumbrian smallpiper in North America, and for the past 20 years has performed and taught in England, Scotland, Japan, Canada, and across the United States. Northumbria was the kingdom that formerly encompassed northern England and southeastern Scotland. Hensold has released...
Mike Hebert writes that continuing the emergency planning zone for Vermont Yankee “is unnecessary because the reactor is now empty and cold.” He is wrong! Yes, the reactor has been shut down from actively processing uranium to make electricity, but there are still radioactive spent-fuel rods in water storage cooling down at the site. If disrupted by any number of things, these fuel rods could create great damage, including massive radiation exposure to the local community. Until they are moved...
“The results from 2015 were really good,” Finance Director John O'Connor told the Selectboard on Sept. 15. According to the unaudited accounts for fiscal year 2015, the books closed out better than expected, he said. The town's three main budgets - general fund, parking fund, utilities fund - “all closed the year better than budgeted,” O'Connor said. O'Connor highlighted a surplus in the parking fund of $44,809, of which more than half he attributed to higher than expected revenues from...
The sidewalks on the east side of Main Street may look like sand dunes this week, but that's a good thing, according to Town Manager Peter Elwell. The town is replacing the sidewalks from the Kyle Gilbert Memorial Bridge to Walnut Street (across from Brooks Memorial Library). Work includes tearing out damaged sections and patching others. Contractors have added a decorative brick strip between the sidewalk and the granite curbing. The brick also provides quick access to an underground conduit...
The ichthys (or the “Jesus Fish” as it is more commonly known) has become an icon of modern Christianity. It so often can be seen on the rear of automobiles that it has spawned many parodies. The most familiar is perhaps the Darwin fish: an ichthys symbol with “evolved” legs and feet attached, and usually with the word “Darwin” or “Evolve” inside. The punch line plays up how Darwin's scientific theory of evolution contrasts with creationism which is often associated...
A special showing of the locally produced film, Quiet Rebel: Lynn Martin's Story, will be presented at the new arts venue, 118 Elliot, on Sunday, Sept. 27, at 4 p.m. The 80-minute film is produced by Paul Bennett and Vidda Crochetta, and is being presented with the help and support of BCTV and Write Action. Both the filmmaker and Lynn Martin will be present at this showing and participate in a question-and-answer session afterwards. Martin, a longtime Brattleboro resident, is...
The Brattleboro boys' cross country team is starting to peak. Earlier last week, the Colonel boys finished first in a four-team meet in Bennington, besting Rutland, Mount Anthony, and Burr & Burton. Against another strong field in the Pickering Invitational in Bellows Falls last Friday, the Colonel boys again finished second, this time to Woodstock. In the Bennington meet, Isaac Freitas-Eagan came in third overall in 18 minutes, 22 seconds, while Jonah Koch was close behind in fourth in 18:42.
After six years of hosting its Open Studio Tour on the last weekend of September, Brattleboro-West-Arts (BWA) is shifting the date one week later to coincide with Vermont Crafts Council (VCC) Fall Open Studio Weekend Oct. 3-4. Building on its Spring Open Studio Weekend, the VCC in 2011 launched another studio tour, to be held annually the first weekend in October. Seeking to recruit more studios and artists to its fall tour, the VCC was eager to have BWA host...
In the debate over whether Vermont should enact a law that mandates paid family and medical leave, Chad Simmons has a uniquely personal perspective. On one hand, he is a new dad who is taking unpaid leave from his job in order to help care for his daughter. On the other hand, Simmons' wife runs a small company in Brattleboro, and such businesses would be expected to comply with new mandates under such an initiative. So Simmons wants to be...
Melanie Zinn, owner of HoriZinn Early Learning Program in Vernon, is this year's recipient of the Windham Child Care Association's Early Childhood Educator of the Year Award. Zinn received her award at the River Valley Kids Fair on Sept. 19 on the Brattleboro Common. “I was inspired by my mother,” Zinn answers when asked how she got into the early childhood field. “When I was born, she started a child care program in our home and has continued for 34...
The New England Chapter of Sisters in Crime recently awarded $250 to Village Square Booksellers of Bellows Falls as part of their We Love Bookstores initiative. Sisters in Crime is an organization dedicated to promoting the ongoing advancement, recognition, and professional development of women crime writers. Bookstores within the U.S. can enter a monthly drawing for the award by submitting an entry form and a photo of one or more staff members holding three books by Sisters in Crime members.
Members of the Selectboard and Town Clerk Pam McFadden joined Roads Foreman Lee Chamberlin for a tour of the town's roads on Aug. 26. “It was a good tour, especially for the three newer members of the board,” Board Chair Zeke Goodband wrote in an email to The Commons. He said the event gave the group the opportunity to see Chamberlin “in his natural habitat.” “They were able to see how competent he is and how seriously he takes his...
Though three new judges have been tapped to fill Vermont Superior Court vacancies, Windham County's courts still are doing more with less. It's a situation not unique to this county, as Vermont Chief Superior Judge Brian Grearson has had his hands full crafting a patchwork system of judicial assignments to address a growing caseload in criminal, civil, and family courts around the state. Grearson notes that help is on the way. The state's three newest judges soon will assume their...
The exhibit spaces in All Souls Church Unitarian Universalist in West Brattleboro are hosting Stu Copans' annual exhibit of papercuts and other artwork with a “peace” theme through the end of October. Images in this show, as in previous years, are paper cuttings containing the word “peace,” in English, Arabic, or Hebrew. The cuttings have been inspired by a range of sources, including Copans' work with children at the Kids for Peace Camp in Guilford this summer, brass lanterns in...
Rachel Clark and Bob DeMarco, the Vermont duo Blackbird, will perform traditional Celtic and Scandinavian music as well as tunes of their own creation at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 26 at the stone church on the hill. The concert is presented by Stone Church Arts. Fiddle, Irish flute, whistles, accordion, cittern, piano, guitar and voices, are combined to serve up a lively musical mix. Their albums Whistle and Sing and Good Morning, Good Night have both received critical acclaim. Whistle...
In a town hit hard by the shutdown of Vermont Yankee, officials say a natural-gas plant - with development costs estimated at $750 million - may be in the works. The optimism in Vernon is carefully qualified, however. For one thing, the plant is far from a sure bet, and it's not yet been disclosed which sites are under consideration. Also, there have been a few recent hints of opposition from the general public, though the town government has been...
Last Thursday, like every other Thursday in the recent past, a group of area residents stood together along Gulf Road in Northfield, Mass., fighting for the future of their neighborhood, their town, and the climate. Kinder Morgan, an offshoot of the late and not-lamented Texas corporation, Enron, is planning to build a large pipeline from the New York–Massachusetts border in the Berkshires, to the town of Dracut, Mass. The route includes our very nearby neighbors to the south and east:
Landmark College celebrates the 30th anniversary of its founding during the weekend of Sept. 25-27. That same weekend is the alumni reunion for Windham College, whose campus Landmark now occupies. Landmark was born as the Landmark School in Beverly, Mass., as a high school for children with learning disabilities. Windham College, whose enrollment hit its peak in the 1970s, was founded by Walter Hendricks, a name familiar to many locals. Hendricks started two other area schools: Mark Hopkins College in...
The sunny lawn just up the hill from the field formerly known as Sweet Pond was the site of a celebration this past Saturday. “We'll be looking to party,” State Rep. Mike Hebert, R-Vernon, said on May 27, when he announced to the Guilford Selectboard the state would award the town $405,000 to restore the Sweet Pond dam, thus allowing the now-empty pond to fill back up. Guilford got its party. Susan James, part of the Sweet Pond Steering Committee,
Remember,” my friend said through the phone, “when everything felt like it was the end of the world as teenagers, and that feeling ended when we were 28?” She finished her sentence with a certainty, but I quickly chimed in, barely letting silence nestle between her statement and my reply. “It ended? No, it still feels like the end of the world when things end... especially relationships.” We continued our conversation, and as we talked, we discussed the fact that...
Michelle Simpson-Siegel climbed on a chair so she could see the many visitors packed into Oak Meadow's new offices in the former ballroom of the Brooks House. “Thank you,” she said. Oak Meadow, one of the first providers of curriculum for distance-learning and home-schooling families, celebrated its 40th anniversary on Sept. 17. And Simpson-Siegel, the organization's executive director, also announced that Oak Meadow had become the first of its kind to receive accreditation from the country's oldest accreditation agency, the...