MONDAY EDITION
ADDISON COUNTY
INDEPENDENT
Vol. 30 No. 34
Middlebury, Vermont
VTrans seeks input on Route 7 hot spot
By ANDY KIRKALDY FERRISBURGH — A public meeting next Tuesday could determine if the Vermont Agency of Transportation eventually makes improvements to the North Ferrisburgh intersection of Route 7 with Old Hollow and
Stage roads — and whether those improvements are a full set of traffic lights, a roundabout, or more modest changes. That Jan. 15 meeting at 6:30 p.m. in Ferrisburgh’s town office building will include a preliminary (See Route 7, Page 39)
Monday, January 7, 2019
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Brandon school identifies, addressing radon infiltration By RUSSELL JONES BRANDON — School administrators are assuring parents of students at Neshobe Elementary that they are taking steps to mitigate the dangers of elevated radon gas levels in the
Brandon building. In the district’s letter to parents last Wednesday, Rutland Northeast Supervisory Union Superintendent Jeanńe Collins said these screening values are (See Radon, Page 7)
Tiger gymnasts topple Ghosts
• MUHS won at home thanks to several strong performances this past Thursday. See Sports on Pages 30-32.
Big star on big screen at THT
• Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival screening series will feature a Melissa McCarthy picture. See Arts Beat, Page 10.
It’s a boy!
MEGAN HEDLEY OF Benson cuddles her son, Sawyer Jensen Porter Downey, the first baby born in Addison County in 2019. Sawyer, who weighed 7 pounds, 4.6 ounces and is 22 inches long, was born at 2 a.m. on Jan. 1, the day after his due date. Hedley added “Porter” in honor of the hospital, where her own mother used to work. Sawyer’s three-year-old sister, Jocelyn, had mixed feelings about the baby before he was born but was excited once she met him.
Vt. filmmakers to answer questions • After ‘Farmer of the Year’ screens in Middlebury this week its creators will talk with viewers. See Page 2.
Independent photo/John S. McCright
Free clinic wins grants, plans for the future By JOHN FLOWERS MIDDLEBURY — The Open Door Clinic (ODC) in Middlebury enters 2019 on a high note, with two recent grant awards and a strategic plan that will sharpen the focus of the free medical service for the next three years. The awards include a $20,000 Ben & Jerry’s Foundation “Vermont Economic Justice” grant, and a $15,000 financial commitment from the Walter Cerf Community Fund.
Heidi Sulis, executive director of the ODC, said the grants will help the clinic boost its wide range of services to the underinsured and uninsured, including migrant farm workers and those who simply can’t afford basic health care and dental services. “When we get grants of this scope, it provides us with the stability that we need to meet the growing and dynamic needs of our community within the context of an ever changing constellation of
funding sources,” Sulis said. “It’s very affirming to receive these gifts because we feel that prominent community organizations endorse our work, and their support will make a pivotal difference in helping us take ODC to its 30th anniversary. It’s fundamental help for a free clinic.” Established in 1991, the non-profit ODC now has eight full- and part-time workers and a cadre of local physicians and dentists who generously (See Free clinic, Page 38)