Southeastern Vermont Community Action Inc. (SEVCA) is teaming up with Vermont Adult Learning to offer a free, two-week long, hands-on training to introduce weatherization as a career. The training will be on site at the SEVCA main office in Westminster from Monday, March 18, through Wednesday, March 27.
Energy Works trainings are for individuals aged 17 and older who are seeking a great job and want to learn more about how to start a career in the green energy sector.
Following completion of this training, participants will have gained vital skills and may be able to immediately start with SEVCA as a weatherization technician. Entry-level weatherization techs at SEVCA earn an average starting salary of $21/hour.
"This is a demanding job, working in all weather, all year 'round, but individuals who are willing to learn can move up after gaining some experience in the industry," said Vic Baisley, SEVCA's director of weatherization, in a news release. "We are always looking to find more people who are interested in working in this field."...
As we enter the spring season, be aware that gravel roads may become muddy due to the thawing of winter snow and ice. The Brattleboro Department of Public Works will be monitoring these roads and providing status updates through roadside signage, which will be placed at the end of...
The Rock River Players (RRP) announce their slate of productions for 2024, which opened with its annual Valentine's Cabaret. From May 30 to June 2, the Players will present another Evening of One-Acts, produced by RRP's co-Artistic Director Amy Donahue and featuring predominantly new works, most by area writers.
Brattleboro Police host rabies clinic BRATTLEBORO - The Brattleboro Police Department's Animal Control Officer will host a rabies clinic on Saturday, March 16, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Brattleboro Police Station, 62 Black Mountain Rd. Registration is not required for this event. This event is open for Brattleboro residents and non-Brattleboro residents. The rabies clinic is for cats and dogs. The rabies vaccines cost $15 per animal and will be a cash-only service. The rabies vaccine will be...
Vermont Independent Media, publisher of The Commons, invites the public to an online conversation on housing with U.S. Rep. Becca Balint on Monday, March 18, at 7 p.m. Balint will be interviewed by award-winning Commons reporter Joyce Marcel, kicking off a revived year-long series of Voices Live interviews, in-person events, and Special Focus sections in the pages of the newspaper. The discussion with Balint will focus on roadblocks and new opportunities to address Windham County's housing needs at the federal...
Martha Dale and Patty Eisenhaur, co-chairs of the Mountain Towns Housing Project (MTHP) Steering Committee, recently announced the completion of the Bob Perry Lane House and the transfer of ownership to Kara Corlew. The closing took place on March 1, and the family moved into the house shortly thereafter. "We are first and foremost deeply grateful to Don and Deb Hazelton, who donated the land for the project and put countless hours into managing and participating in the construction process,"
The next Artists Town Meeting will be held on Sunday, March 24, from 10:30 a.m. to noon, at Main Street Arts in Saxtons River. Artists, artisans, local food growers, and the general public are encouraged to participate. The focus of these meetings is to bring creatives together in order to share ideas, challenges, and opportunities. "The more we know each other and can identify ourselves as a constituency the more strength and credibility we gain," Robert McBride, director of Rockingham...
The Downtown Brattleboro Alliance (DBA) announced a new partnership with Green Mountain Gardening of Brattleboro to continue the downtown flower program. Green Mountain Gardening will take on the responsibility of cultivating and maintaining the downtown flower displays, starting this summer season. In a news release, DBA said that "this program, which has been a staple of our community for years, adds vibrancy and color to our streets, creating a welcoming atmosphere for residents and visitors alike. For the past 10...
College news • Grace Wilkinson of Bellows Falls, Lucy Daly of Jamaica, Annabelle Gray of Londonderry, and Althea Holzapfel of Marlboro were all named to the fall 2023 Dean's List at Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts. • Jessica Tatro of Brattleboro was named to the Dean's List for the fall 2023 semester at St. Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire. • Audrey LaMorder of Guilford was named to the Dean's List at St. Michael's College in Colchester for the fall...
The Vermont Department for Children and Families (VDCF) offers the Child Care Financial Assistance Program (CCFAP), which helps Vermont children access quality child care by covering some or all child care costs for eligible families. The CCFAP is a service of the Child Development Division, a part of the VDCF. To be eligible for financial assistance, families must have child(ren) ages 6 weeks to 13 years (19 years for those with special needs); have an approved reason for needing child...
Canal Street Art Gallery, 23 Canal St., presents their Spring Salon 3rd Edition, opening Friday, March 15, from 5 to 7 p.m. as part of 3rd Friday Gallery Night and running through June 1. It is an exhibition hung in the floor-to-ceiling salon style, this year showing artwork from 38 local artists. The gallery also welcomes back Trish Baggott to the Working Artist Program through April 6. This program is an artist's studio and exhibition space within the gallery, and...
118 Elliot presents Zounds!, a special performance by master saxophonist Jack Wright on Monday, March 18, at 8 p.m. Zounds! is a collaboration of Wright, of Easton and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on alto and soprano saxophones, and Patrick Crossland, of Baltimore, Maryland, on trombone, performing improvised solos followed by a duet. Crossland has had a long career as professional musician performing mainly new classical compositions and is now teaching at the University of Maryland. Wright has been playing free music the...
The news report of the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks posted to the Jewish Voice for Peace website is basically regurgitated Hamas party line. There is no horror, no outrage at the Hamas atrocities of that day. Instead, an anemic recital of general concern in the style of an official position drafted by a committee, followed by a standard-issue justification for Hamas's crimes, normalizing those atrocities and blaming Israel as entirely responsible for the Hamas attack. "Right now, Palestinians, Israelis, and...
As mentioned in a previous issue, the Voices section has had a record-breaking number of contributions in recent months. Despite our best efforts, some contributors have been waiting far too long to see their work in print - this week we have tried to catch up with the letters that follow. Some pieces have gone out of date faster than we could get them through the pipeline, particularly during the run-up to Annual Town Meetings and elections. This is a)
It's Wednesday afternoon, three days after the ski jump event. I walked through the woods to get to the field and trails past the parking area on Cedar Street, and continued on up past the Ice Pond to the top field, delighting at the clear sky, sunshine, and warm-ish air. When I got back to the base of the jump, I started picking up pieces of trash that were left over from the event. My hands were full by the...
We're about three months away from the start of the 2024 Vermont American Legion Baseball season, but it's not too soon to note some big changes for the upcoming season. Tom Haley of the Rutland Herald reported last week that there will be three new teams this season in Vermont. St. Johnsbury Post 58 and Champlain Valley Baseball will be added to the Northern Division, while Ludlow's Ballard-Hobart Post 36 will join the Southern Division. Champlain Valley Baseball, which will...
Thirteen years ago, no one knew how to remove radiation from water. Then the Great Tōhuko Earthquake occurred, and the Fukushima nuclear electric power station was flooded with water by the tsunamis of 2011. It is still flooded with water in an attempt to cool the reactors. Literally every step of the decommissioning of the Fukushima reactors is experimental. It has never been tried before. Maybe it will work. Now, after 13 years of collecting the water that runs over...
Someone you know may be an addict; in fact, you may love an addict yourself. Addiction to illegal substances - yes, drugs - destroys families. Using is personal to each individual, who often believes their actions affect only themselves; not surprising, because addiction to drugs is often described as an egocentric disease. As the user destroys their life, those people around them are drawn into the insanity. Thus, they become "sick," too. That's why substance use disorder is often referred...
Student actors and backstage crews at Leland & Gray Union Middle/High School have come full circle and have returned to the Town Hall as they prepare for a performance there of Hans Christian Andersen's The Emperor's New Clothes. "In terms of space, being in the Town Hall has been amazing," says Doran "Dory" Hamm, director of the Leland & Gray Players. "Just having the giant space to both rehearse and to give the kids a stage. I can't stress how...
Rep. Becca Balint has rightly called for a ceasefire in Gaza. Now it's time to make that call a reality. She should use her position as Vermont's sole member in the U.S. House of Representatives to pledge to vote no on any further funding for Israel's military in the absence of a ceasefire. Israel's military is escalating its bombing of Rafah, where more than 1.4 million displaced Palestinian people are seeking refuge. The United Nations is warning of mass atrocities...
At the Bellows Falls Bike Project, our mission is simple, yet profound: to provide the Greater Falls community a space for all to access bicycles, learn bike repair, and safe riding skills. Our vision is a flourishing culture of bicycling as a means of alternative transportation, self-sufficiency and overall wellness. Our organization, fueled by the dedication of volunteers and staff, and supported by generous donations and grants, endeavors to make cycling accessible to all members of our greater community. Thank...
Also signing this letter were Brandie Starr, of Brattleboro, and Diana Whitney, of Brattleboro. In the recent WSESD candidates' forum, Kelly Young talks about empathy for survivors, and Tim Maciel says his "heart goes out" to them. Brian Remer says that he hopes survivors will someday "build resilience." These sentiments are misplaced and patronizing when referring to the fully empowered, accomplished adults who came forward and reported to Attorney Goddard. The fact that survivors remain anonymous does not give license...
Many of you have read of the vile and racist comments uttered by a police officer at the meeting of the Vermont Criminal Justice Council (VCJC) on Feb. 7. An undocumented worker spoke of being afraid to leave the farm because of Vermont's law enforcement's continued cooperation with federal immigration and his fear of deportation. Mike Major, a deputy at the Chittenden County Sheriff's Office, then said, on a hot mic, "You're f-ing here illegally and you're worried about being...
A tribute to Torpedoman Henry Breault is planned for Friday, March 15 at 9:30 a.m. (0930) to honor the 100th anniversary of this Vermont resident receiving the Medal of Honor. Rep. Michael Morgan of Grand Isle-Chittenden District is initiating a Legislative resolution to honor Breault, the first submariner and only enlisted submariner to receive the Medal of Honor. The date was chosen because the Vermont Legislature was in recess on March 8, the actual date in 1924 when the Medal...
It is my understanding that there have been four completed suicides from the Transportation Center roof in a little bit over a year. Surely, the parking revenues are not worth this tragic loss of life. The town needs to close access to the roof immediately, until a different solution emerges. Leo Schiff Brattleboro This letter to the editor was submitted to The Commons.
Plans are falling into place to make sure that a restored and reopened historic diner installed downtown 80 years ago heads into its next 80 years on a strong and sustainable foundation. Literally. Over a year ago, the citizen's group Rockingham for Progress Inc. signed a purchase-and-sale agreement with former owner Brian McAllister, for the Miss Bellows Falls Diner, on Rockingham Street. The 1941 Worcester Lunch Car has been closed for over three years. Rockingham For Progress, a civic organization...
Some of the things I don't understand these days: • How Donald Trump could possibly get insurance deals by inflating the value of his properties. It has always been my experience that the more something was worth, the more it cost to insure it. Do the wealthy get insurance deals? • Why a member of the South Carolina National Guard (Nikki Haley's husband) should be deployed to Africa. What are we cooking up in Africa now? Another Libya? Or has...
On Feb. 18, six Democratic members of Congress began a stealth six-day trip to Israel and Gaza in the midst of war. One of them was Vermont's lone representative, Rep, Becca Balint, D-Vt. Balint and her colleagues favor a two-state solution with Israel and Palestine existing side by side as neighbors and economic partners. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu rejects such a solution. The Times of Israel covered the trip by reporting, "Six U.S. House of Representatives Democrats returned...
The Vermont Jazz Center presents one of the greatest fusion guitarists in the history of the style. On Saturday, March 16, at 7:30 p.m., six-time Grammy nominee Mike Stern will perform with his wife, Leni Stern, on guitar, accompanied by Bob Franceschini on saxophone, Noam Tanzer on bass, and Juan Chiavassa on drums. Using the vocabulary of jazz, rock, fusion, funk, New Orleans music, and African music, Stern's masterful and grooving command of his instrument conveys a sense of joy...
Following is a roundup of Town Meeting news that came too late for last week's edition of The Commons. Most towns held their annual meetings on Town Meeting Day on Tuesday, March 5. Athens • One seat for school director that has been open for several years remains open after the Annual Town Election, with nine people having received one write-in vote each. Election would require a minimum of three votes. • Voters approved the proposed $643,357 general budget by...
After a very close March 5 race for the two three-year school director seats for Brattleboro representative, a recount has been initiated for votes cast for those two seats. The three candidates, and the number of votes each candidate has unofficially received from the four member towns of the Windham Southeast School District - Brattleboro, Dummerston, Guilford, and Putney - are Tim Maciel, with 1,677 votes; Colleen Savage, 1,661 votes; and Rich Leavy, 1,659 votes. Leavy confirmed he submitted a...
Giving unrestricted U.S. military aid to Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu is like one parent telling a teenager they're grounded while the other parent slips them the car keys. President Biden has stated many times that Israel must be more careful to protect civilians when they bomb Gaza. Meanwhile, our country continues to send billions in unconditional military aid, even slipping more than a hundred "secret shipments" to Netanyahu's government. Six months in, Biden persists in bypassing Congress, pursuing a war...
After attending a meeting that The Commons reporter, Robert F. Smith, was covering, I want to state that I wholeheartedly support the Vermont Abenaki tribes. The controversy from the Québec tribes reads as a disrespectful attack on our state-recognized tribes and individuals within them. If there is ever any effort to rescind that state recognition and disenfranchise Vermont Abenaki of their heritage, I would stand with them and hope that fellow Vermonters would do so as well. Emily McAdoo Putney...
Re: Viewpoints by Valerie Abrahamsen ("What can businesses do to prevent Trump's return?") and Nancy Braus ("Trump is too dangerous for his opponents to play nice"), Jan. 10: Nancy Braus claims "President Trump is too dangerous for his opponents to play nice." If Braus and her supporters are comfortable with the open southern border, with a record high of 12,600 illegal crossings in one day since recordkeeping began, and with a daily average of illegal crossings on the border at...
In 2002, my partner, Marty, and I took a bus to Washington, D.C. to protest the looming war in Iraq. There was a huge turnout. But on the bus heading home we were all aches. A wake-up call - we are no longer young and able to do what needs doing. "The young have to step up!" we felt like shouting. Maybe we did! At the time and for many years after, there seemed scant chance of that happening. But...
Why are refugees and people who are not citizens of the United States of America granted more rights than U.S. citizens? We have a homelessness problem. We hold vigils for people who are homeless while refugees get to sleep in nice warm beds. We have insurance for our pets, when some can't get insurance for themselves, human beings. Landlords make rents so high, people can't afford to pay it on income from a Social Security check. Something is wrong here,
If the massacre of Oct. 7 in Israel were to have happened at our border with Canada, would the United States be willing to urge a ceasefire without the return of the hostages? It is disappointing and surprising to me that our Vermont leaders, Bernie Sanders, Becca Balint, and Peter Welch, are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza when over 100 hostages are still being held by terrorist organizations entrenched there. Our concerned politicians seem to forget that there was...
While I applaud Spoon Agave's passion and appropriate highlighting of several important issues we must address, his choice to praise Kurt Daims as an exemplar, while well-intended, is misguided. Communities are formed based on a set of expectations and constructs. Among those are respect for your neighbors, respect for the rules and regulations that govern the community, and respect for the behavioral tenets that define community membership. These unwritten guidelines keep communities functional and dynamic. Mr. Daims's abject disregard for...
I noticed some text in this article that I, as a woman, found annoying at best and at worst, disturbing, considering the emphasis on the history of women being excluded from these events. To include pertinent details for one athlete while omitting them for another is a subtle, yet powerful, way to imply that one athlete's achievement holds a higher value than another. My case in point is in the second paragraph: "The winner in the Men's Open class was...
Klara Charlton describes herself as an "artist, writer, activist, naturalist, and unabashed tree hugger." People who know me here in Brattleboro, know that I work a lot, and I work hard. For many years, I lived under the worries and pressure of struggling to make ends meet as a single mom without a safety net. Now that my daughter is grown, I do so because of the many worries that go along with the terrible economic situation in this town...