Issue #828
The Faux Paws perform Aug. 24
PUTNEY-Twilight Music and Next Stage Arts Project conclude the 22nd Twilight On The Tavern Lawn series on Sunday, Aug. 24, with The Faux Paws.
The Faux Paws band members have deep ties to bluegrass, old-time, Celtic, folk, Americana, jazz, and singer-songwriter traditions and blend their elements to serve whatever musical idea is being presented.
Coming in hot
Football practices begin with new extreme-weather rules in place
-The 2025 high school football season began in Vermont on Aug. 11, the start of three weeks of practice for the players before the varsity season begins on the first weekend of September. Old-timers may grumble about the end of two-a-day football practices in the August heat. They are...
The loss of a woman's voice
'The Other Mozart' portrayed Nannerl Mozart, an exceptionally gifted woman, fully equipped by training and temperament to live a creative life until social expectations stopped her
Lisa Cox, a retired teacher/professor, writes cultural criticism and commentary in "Thoughts and Critiques," her blog about theater and the arts, where this essay first appeared. The Other Mozart was co-presented by Yellow Barn and Next Stage Arts and was performed on June 27 and 28. BRATTLEBORO-"Nobody saved my...
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The shining example of a truly loving soul
BRATTLEBORO-The legendary vocalist Sheila Jordan passed away on Monday, Aug. 11 at 3:50 p.m. at the age of 96. For those of you who aren't familiar with Sheila Jordan, I strongly suggest that you listen to her recordings and let her singing draw you into her world. Her music embraced poetry, and she sang like a storyteller who colored their tales with the nuance of song. Her melodies conformed at first to the composer's melody, but she characteristically used melisma...
Region rallies for a reeling farm
EAST DUMMERSTON-A three-alarm fire on Aug. 16 has destroyed a Windham County agricultural landmark. A building that housed the farm stand, cold storage, and maple sugaring operation at Dwight Miller Orchards on Miller Road was leveled in the Saturday afternoon fire. "The packing house building was home to our cold storage and produce coolers, our cider press and apple packing facilities, our retail area, our maple evaporator and sugaring equipment," the family posted on the farm's website in a message...
If we are not dissenting, we are submitting
Dan DeWalt, a frequent contributor to these pages and one of the founders of this newspaper, writes that if he didn't love his country, he "wouldn't spend so much time trying to get it to live up to its purported principles." NEWFANE-To succeed in overthrowing a political system, every tyrant needs a submissive public. If the public won't submit, then the tyrant is doomed to fail. If he can manipulate the people to give him free rein for a short...
Residents want shelter for unhoused neighbors
Isaac Evans-Frantz serves as the executive director of a national nonpartisan organization that campaigns for U.S. policies to save lives around the world. He also serves on the Brattleboro Selectboard as clerk. BRATTLEBORO-On Aug. 12, Gov. Phil Scott came to Windham County. On his itinerary were visits to Grafton Village Cheese, Jelley's Deli in Londonderry, Jamaica State Park, and the Vermont EMS Academy (VEMSA) in Newfane. Missing was a visit to a local agency that supports people who are unhoused.
Rich Earth Institute and Brightwater Tools launch Northeast's first liquid urine fertilizer
BRATTLEBORO-The Rich Earth Institute and Brightwater Tools announce the registration of U-Grow, a liquid, urine-derived fertilizer certified for use and distribution. U-Grow is a sustainable, nitrogen-rich natural fertilizer for farms and gardens, available for research, retail, and wholesale. It also supplies significant levels of phosphorus, potassium, and other micronutrients. U-Grow is made from urine collected through Rich Earth's community-scale urine nutrient reclamation program, "the nation's oldest and largest urine recycling program," wrote promoters in a news release. This program demonstrates...
Brattleboro Area Jewish Community welcomes Rabbi Debra Kolodny
WEST BRATTLEBORO-The Brattleboro Area Jewish Community (BAJC) welcomes Rabbi Debra Kolodny as their new spiritual leader. In a news release, BAJC said it "conducted a thorough search, and the community was inspired by Rabbi Debra's energy, knowledge, personal warmth, integrity, joy, musicality, and deep grounding in Jewish tradition and spirituality." Prior to ordination, Rabbi Debra (they/them) had a rewarding career in the labor movement, organization development consulting, and conflict transformation. Since 1998, they have been serving "spiritually nourishing, musically lyrical,
Around the Towns
Load the Latchis returns Aug. 21 BRATTLEBORO - The "Load the Latchis" food drive to benefit Foodworks returns on Thursday, Aug. 21, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. They are seeking donations of bags of groceries sufficient to fill all 750 seats in the Latchis's main theater. There are three ways to donate: • The virtual grocery bag option helps Foodworks purchase large quantities of food from the Vermont Foodbank at prices significantly lower than those at grocery stores. Donations...
Bandwagon series presents Rhythm Future Quartet, DiTrani Brothers
PUTNEY-Next Stage Arts continues its Bandwagon Summer Series with a twin bill, featuring the Rhythm Future Quartet and the DiTrani Brothers on Saturday, Aug. 23, at 6 p.m. (gates open at 5 p.m.) at Putney Inn Field, 57 Putney Landing Rd. The evening will feature acoustic string jazz and swing energy. Rhythm Future Quartet, named for a Django Reinhardt composition, is an ensemble dedicated to keeping the spirit of Gypsy jazz alive - and expanding its horizons. With Jason Anick...
Four regional organizations receive state funding for substance education
LONDONDERRY-The Collaborative, a Prevention Lead Organization for the Vermont Department of Health's (VDH), Division of Substance Use Programs (DSU), recently announced more than $850,000 in sub-grant funding. This funding will support 21 vital community prevention partners across southern Vermont, enabling them to address disparities in Vermont's substance misuse prevention system by filling geographical gaps and expanding access to crucial services. Maryann Morris, executive director of The Collaborative, emphasized the profound impact of these partnerships, stating in a news release, "Our...
Erin Harpe Country Blues Duo, Jesse Lepkoff perform in Marlboro
MARLBORO-Thrush Hill Stage, 314 Upper Houghton Rd., hosts the Erin Harpe Country Blues Duo on Saturday, Aug. 23, at 7 p.m. Harpe has been playing country blues since she was a little girl, getting her chops from her dad, roots-blues musician, and Stella guitar player Neil Harpe. The award-winning musician and leader of the band Erin Harpe & the Delta Swingers has played stages large and small throughout the U.S., U.K., and Europe, and has opened for musicians such as...
MGFA presents new work by Dan Welden
BRATTLEBORO-Mitchell-Giddings Fine Arts, 181 Main St., debuts "Haystack Crescendo," etchings overpainted and hand-embellished by master printer and painter Dan Welden. Also featured is a series of new paintings by the artist. An opening and artist reception is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 23, from 5 to 7 p.m. The exhibit will continue through Oct. 26. Prior to the Aug. 23 opening, at 3 p.m., Welden will provide a short demonstration of his working techniques, and a discussion of the creation of...
Milestones
Obituaries • Shirley Ann Alsvig, 80, of Athens. Died on Aug. 6, 2025, surrounded by her loved ones. She was born in Meriden, Connecticut, on Nov. 17, 1944. She had five children, seven grandchildren, and 10 great-grandchildren. She beat lung cancer twice. She loved to fish and do her flowers when she was younger. She worked for Whitney Blake Company for many years and retired to relax, read books, and do puzzles at home. Memorial information: There will be a...
Green Mountain Conservancy invites community to learn about nature preserve
NEWFANE-On Thursday, Aug. 21, from 7 to 8:30 p.m., the Green Mountain Conservancy (GMC) will hold an informational meeting at Union Hall, 5 Church St., for the community about a new and ongoing effort to conserve 250 acres in Newfane. The Newfane Village Nature Preserve, as the project is called, began with one family's desire to protect their land and ensure continued public access to it. The land lies on a ridge between Route 30, the village of Newfane, and...
Library hosts poetry night with Ossmann, Mayo
BRATTLEBORO-Brooks Memorial Library, 224 Main St., presents an engaging, interactive night of poetry with April Ossmann and Tim Mayo on Wednesday, Aug. 27, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the Main Reading Room. Ossmann's new publication We "seeks what unites us," wrote organizers in a news release, "how to change our perceptions to heal families, friendships, and country of incivility and villainization by practicing greater compassion, by seeing past egos to souls." We suggests in conversation with Walt Whitman: "I...
VCP hosts screening of ‘The Photo Returner’
BRATTLEBORO-On Wednesday, Aug. 27, at 6 p.m. Vermont Center for Photography (VCP), 10 Green St., will host a screening of a new film, The Photo Returner, by Garret Harkawik, followed by a discussion with him. Harkawik, a VCP member, documentary filmmaker, and composer living in southern Vermont, will screen his short documentary film (15 minutes) and will provide a glimpse into the filmmaking process. He will be joined by the film's star, Erin Bohannon, who will also be answering questions...
Celtic lineup concludes BMC's Music Under the Stars series
BRATTLEBORO-The Brattleboro Music Center's 2025 Music Under the Stars series at Retreat Farm concludes Saturday, August 23, with "Celtic Night." The evening will include traditional music as the BMC closes this popular summer series. Performing will be Keith Murphy and Becky Tracy, with Jenna Moynihan and Màiri Chaimbeul. Tracy and Murphy form a cornerstone of the New England traditional music folk scene. Their music is the result of decades of teaching, performing, and many recordings. Steeped in the music of...
Speaking, writing, and teaching about the Holocaust
BRATTLEBORO-For the fall semester at Vermont State College, I have been asked to teach on the Holocaust. As always, I endeavor to cross-pollinate that which I study and teach with that which I preach. A friend recently loaned me Confronting Genocide: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, edited by Steven Leonard Jacobs, and it includes a chapter written by Stephen R. Haynes, "'Death Was Everywhere, Even in Front of the Church': Christian Faith and the Rwandan Genocide." Haynes writes: "Genocidal Rwanda is reminiscent...
The long, uphill battle against the working class
Tristan Roberts (tristan@tristanroberts.org) is a former state representative, a small-scale farmer, and a writer who explores the intersections of rural life, policy, and human dignity from Quill Nook Farm in Halifax. HALIFAX-I love going to downtown Brattleboro to shop. But I feel all kinds of terrible each and every time I cross the pedestrian bridge going to the food co-op. That's one of many places in Brattleboro and other U.S. cities and towns where I encounter fellow humans who are...
'I needed that'
BRATTLEBORO-Big thanks to Joyce Marcel for an excellent article/interview with Becca Balint, and big thanks to you, Becca, for such important, straightforward information laced with the beauty of examples of hope! (I needed that!) And thank you for your service! Constance Cline Brattleboro This letter to the editor was submitted to The Commons. This piece, published in print in the Voices section or as a column in the news sections, represents the opinion of the writer. In the newspaper and...
Jumping worms invade Vermont’s gardens
ROCKINGHAM-Rural gardeners and farmers have long known that the common earthworm (also known as the nightcrawler or fishing worm) is one of the best things for improving soil health. But in the case of the invasive jumping worm (also known as the snake worm or crazy worm), scientists are finding out that something that looks almost exactly like the well-known fishing worms we grew up with turns out to be very destructive to soils and eco-systems. In Vermont, Amynthas tokioensis...
Home-sharing eyed as part of solution to housing crunch
HomeShare Vermont, a nonprofit that connects people with extra space in their homes to those in need of affordable housing, is bringing its services to Windham and Windsor counties. With an acute need for all types of housing in the state, HomeShare Vermont's model will be another "tool in the housing toolbox for this region," said Connor Timmons, HomeShare's executive director. Timmons presented the matchmaking service at a recent meeting of the Housing Coalition of Southeastern Vermont, a cross-sector planning...
Calling it what it is
GUILFORD-In the subheading referring to "the 'cruelty' of the budget bill," I understand why you felt you needed to put the word cruelty in quotes. But in a world with any sense of ethics and justice, there could be no debating the term: The budget reconciliation bill, now law, denies assistance to great numbers of children and others in an unequal society and makes affordable and accessible health care even more problematic for many millions. The act also further empowers...
Gov. Scott: The damage is done
SAXTONS RIVER-An open letter to Gov. Phil Scott: On Aug. 10, I received an email from a valued member of our community who lives in Bellows Falls. The letter, addressed to you, Gov. Phil Scott, condemns your unilateral action to turn over SNAP-benefit applicants' and recipients' names and personal information to the Trump administration without the consent of those involved, the Legislature, the attorney general, or the public. This information should be protected and not thoughtlessly given over to a...
Sheriff explores a new approach to funding regional policing
The Windham County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) is attempting to change the way that local law enforcement resources are provided and how they are funded by working with the legislature to make the system more stable. According to Sheriff Mark Anderson, the Regional Policing Initiative could look to the Legislature to create one governing body to address the needs of the 19 towns in the county that are without their own policing infrastructure. Only Bellows Falls, Brattleboro, Dover, and Wilmington have...
That moment of contemplation
SOUTH NEWFANE-Respecting historic architectural elegance and adding their own imprimatur, Tom Concannon and Ravi Shimpi became stewards of the 1899 inn at the center of South Newfane a few years ago. Ever since, they've been building a following, not only as a center for art and wellness retreats, but also for offerings of fine art. Concannon and Shimpi will host "Flowstate: Connecting through Art," exhibiting the work of students, teachers, and alumni from the Grand Central Atelier (GCA) in Brooklyn,
Trump and Texas redistricting
BRATTLEBORO-As I listen to all the reports of what's happening in the Texas Legislature, I keep wondering about what caused President Trump to make such a demand for legislative redistricting. He needs to win, and he doesn't think he can unless he forces additional Texan votes. He has no faith in an honest election. Poor man. Cathi Wilken Brattleboro This letter to the editor was submitted to The Commons. This piece, published in print in the Voices section or as...