Terrace St. closing for repairs
BRATTLEBORO - Terrace Street was closed to through traffic on Sept. 12, and will continue to be closed intermittently for the next two weeks, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., to prepare for paving. Brattleboro Public Works is upgrading the drainage and also making sidewalk repairs in this area.
Vehicular access to residences and businesses will be maintained throughout the project. If you have any questions, contact Hannah Tyler, Highway and Utilities Superintendent, at 802-254-4255 or htyler@brattleboro.org.
Singers wanted for Deerfield Valley Players Broadway cabaret
WILMINGTON - Local singers are invited to participate in the Deerfield Valley Players cabaret of songs from Broadway musicals. The performance will be held on Saturday, Oct. 28, at Memorial Hall, 14 W. Main St., at 7:30 p.m. and is sponsored by Friends of Historic Memorial Hall.
Rehearsals will be held at the Hall on Thursday nights beginning Sept. 21, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. For more information, contact Barbara Lipstadt at 802-368-7707.
Mending Bee at Putney Library
PUTNEY - The Mending Bee returns to Putney Public Library for fall. Do you have a pile of nice wool socks with holes, favorite jeans that would be perfect if not for a rip in the knee, or sweaters with moth holes? Bring your ailing fabric items to the library at 55 Main St. on Saturday, Sept. 23, from 1 to 4 p.m., to get assistance (or just company) in reviving them.
Sewing machines, darning tools, knitting needles and other repair and patching materials will be available. Skilled seamstresses will be present to offer advice and assistance. Tea will be served. Other menders also are welcome to join in. This program is free and open to the public.
'Can Cops Cook?' fundraiser returns
BRATTLEBORO - Can cops cook? You'll find out on Saturday, Sept. 23, at the third annual Can Cops Cook event at the American Legion on Linden Street, sponsored by Windham County Safe Place Child Advocacy Center and Southeastern Unit for Special Investigations.
Local law enforcement personnel are already cooking up ideas to bring the best of their culinary delights. This will be a fun (and slightly competitive) event that's sure to bring lots of laughs.
Tickets are $10 for adults. $5 for kids 10 and under, and free for kids 3 and under.
Windham County Safe Place Child Advocacy Center and Southeastern Unit for Special Investigations are a multidisciplinary task force that strives to ensure that allegations of child abuse and sexual assault are properly investigated and that victims have a safe environment to speak with professionals.
Vermont Wildlife Festival is back at Mount Snow
WEST DOVER - Join the Southern Vermont Natural History Museum for the seventh annual Vermont Wildlife Festival on Sunday, Sept. 24, at 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Mount Snow Resort.
This year's event will feature a live wolf, birds of prey, native and exotic reptiles, and hands-on exhibits by Vermont Fish & Wildlife, the National Parks Service, local environmental groups, the Deerfield Valley Sportsmans' Club, Ascutney Audubon, watershed and animal rescue groups, and more.
Check out live animals, kids' activities, guided walks and talks, and the beauty of Mount Snow in the fall. This is a free event aimed at the whole family and all who enjoy the nature of Vermont. Donations are accepted at the door to assist with expenses. Visit www.vermontmuseum.org or www.facebook.com/vermontmuseum for more information.
Lead certification for landlords, contractors offered
BRATTLEBORO - Lead Safe & Healthy Homes is offering federal lead paint safety courses for contractors, landlords, and others interested in using lead-safe renovation techniques. The federal Renovation, Repair, and Painting Certification offered in 2012 is nearing expiration.
The EPA RRP course is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 26, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Brattleboro VFW. Cost is $150 per person. Anyone receiving compensation for significant renovation work in housing or child-occupied facilities built before 1978 should be certified.
This course will focus on state and federal regulations governing lead, the health effects of lead in children and adults, lead-safe work practices, and liability issues. Most contractors and landlords will need to take state and federal courses to be in compliance with the law. Pre-registration is required. Contact Denice Brown 802-463-9927 ext. 107 or denice@parksplacevt.org.
Guilford Cares offers trail walk for seniors
GUILFORD - Guilford Cares is sponsoring a guided walk for seniors on the Weeks Forest Carriage Trail on Tuesday, Sept. 26, at 1 p.m. The trail is suitable for all who enjoy walking. It is short, smooth, level, and shaded. Water and snacks will be available. There are benches along the trail and companions who will stay with slower walkers.
The trail head is on Carpenter Hill Road in Guilford, across from the one-room schoolhouse a short distance past the Guilford Free Library. There is limited parking at the trail head, more at the library. Transportation from the library to the trail head will be provided. Contact Guilford Cares at 802-579-1350 or gcares@comcast.net for more information
Climate Change Café looks at grieving process
BRATTLEBORO - The September Climate Change Café will present a workshop entitled, “Grieving for Our Planet in the Age of Climate Change,” on Tuesday, Sept. 26, at 6 p.m., at Brooks Memorial Library on Main Street.
As always, the event is free, and light refreshments will be available.
Because of the success of her presentation on climate grieving last year, Connie Baxter, the Bereavement Program Coordinator for Brattleboro Area Hospice, will again lead this workshop.
Grieving for our planet and the cataclysmic changes it is experiencing is essential to fully accepting and acting wisely in the face of climate change. While grief can be paralyzing at times, it has to be acknowledged and experienced in order to find hope. In coming together to share grief, support can be found to face the emotional challenge that despair for our planet presents.
In this workshop, there will a range of activities designed first to identify the unique grief each person feels for our changing planet and then to explore how this grief can be transformed into hope and action.
The Climate Café is a project of Post Oil Solutions that convenes the fourth Tuesday of most months. For further information, contact Tim Stevenson at bereal@vermontel.net or 802-869-2141.
Debating Our Rights series continues at Putney Library
PUTNEY - On the last Wednesday of the month, Meg Mott, professor of politics at Marlboro College, has been leading discussions on the Bill of Rights at the Putney Library, 55 Main St.
On Sept. 27, at 7 p.m., the Debating Our Rights series continues with a focus on the Fifth Amendment and the rights of the accused. All discussions are free and open to the public.
Mott has long been interested in the tension between expert wisdom and democratic deliberation. “When it comes to constitutional issues, citizens generally leave the decision-making to the experts on the bench. Every so often, however, a decision comes along that makes a lot of people angry,” she says. “It's healthy for citizens to take on the major constitutional questions of the day.”
September's discussion will focus on the rights of the accused in a criminal case, such as the right to a speedy trial and the right to remain silent. Questions to be considered are: What happens to a main component of our civic education when most criminal cases are decided through plea bargains instead of juries? Why is the right to remain silent so important to our democracy? What makes confession problematic?
Death Café comes to Marlboro College
MARLBORO - On Thursday, Sept. 28, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Brattleboro Area Hospice and Marlboro College will sponsor a free Death Café for students and community members in the Coffee Shop on campus.
The Death Café is an international movement which started in Europe, dedicated to taking death “out of the closet” and discussing it publicly.
This is not a support group or a counseling session, but a lively, interesting discussion about something that affects us all. And cake will be served!
These cafes are often full, so an RSVP is requested. For more information or to RSVP, contact Bereavement Counselor Cicely Carroll at 802-257-0775, ext. 108.
Townshend Library seeks donations for book sale
TOWNSHEND - The Friends of the Townshend Library are seeking donations for their annual book and bake sale on Columbus Day weekend.
They are accepting books, audiobooks, CDs, and DVDs, but cannot use encyclopedias, textbooks, or magazines. Donations can be dropped off at the Townshend Public Library during open hours.
For more information, or to volunteer time or baked goods for the sale, contact the Townshend Public Library at 802-365-4039.