MONDAY Â Â EDITION
ADDISON COUNTY
INDEPENDENT
Vol. 27 No. 34
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Middlebury, Vermont
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Monday, November 9, 2015
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36 Pages
75¢
Candidates  weigh  in  on  elder  issues Dunne,  Lisman,  Minter  talk  health  care,  housing By  JOHN  FLOWERS 0,''/(%85< ² 7KUHH RI WKH ÂżYH DQ- nounced  candidates  for  governor  faced  scrutiny  on  Friday  from  what  would  be  their  largest  grow- ing  constituency  â&#x20AC;&#x201D;  senior  citizens,  who  want  to  know  how  the  stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  next  top  executive  will  re- spond  to  their  economic,  transportation,  housing Â
and  health  care  needs. The  questioning  took  place  at  a  forum  on  elder  is- sues  held  at  the  EastView  at  Middlebury  retirement  community.  The  event  â&#x20AC;&#x201D;  sponsored  by  EastView,  the  Community  of  Vermont  Elders,  and  the  Addison  County  Retired  Teachers  Association  â&#x20AC;&#x201D;  was  de- signed  to  shed  more  light  on  the  candidatesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;  views  on  matters  affecting  Vermontâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  growing  population  of  senior  citizens,  including  affordable  housing,  health  care,  taxation,  transportation  and  communi- ty-Âbased  long-Âterm  care  services.
Participating  in  the  forum  were  candidates  Matt  Dunne,  a  Hartland  Democrat,  former  Vermont  law- maker  and  current  Google  executive;Íž  Bruce  Lisman,  a  Shelburne  Republican  and  former  Wall  Street  ex- ecutive;Íž  and  Waterbury  Democrat  Sue  Minter,  a  former  state  lawmaker  who  most  recently  served  as  secretary  of  the  Vermont  Agency  of  Transportation. The  two  other  announced  candidates  for  gover- nor  â&#x20AC;&#x201D;  Lt.  Gov.  Phil  Scott  and  House  Speaker  Shap  Smith  â&#x20AC;&#x201D;  could  not  attend  due  to  a  scheduling  con- (See  Candidates,  Page  35)
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Birdman MIDDLEBURY  COLLEGE  STUDENT  and  long-Âtime  falconer  Tarim  Contin-ÂKennedy  works  with  a  red-Âtailed  hawk  that  was  caught  at  Snake  0RXQWDLQ &RQWLQ .HQQHG\ DQG WKH ELUG RI SUH\ /D\OD YLVLWHG WKH 'LYHUVLÂżHG 2FFXSDWLRQV SURJUDP DW WKH +DQQDIRUG &DUHHU &HQWHU LQ Middlebury  recently. Independent  photo/Trent  Campbell
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Union petition challenges Porterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s change in benefits Medical center explains its financial reasons By  JOHN  FLOWERS MIDDLEBURY  â&#x20AC;&#x201D;  Members  of  Porter  Medical  Centerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s  nursesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;  union  on  Thursday  held  a  gather- ing  to  present  hospital  administra- tors  with  a  petition  opposing  a  Por- ter  decision  to  raise  the  minimum  number  of  hours  that  employees Â
need  to  work  in  order  to  qualify  for  KHDOWK LQVXUDQFH EHQH¿WV Porter  administrators  are  coun- tering  that  requiring  a  minimum  30- hour  workweek  (up  from  20  hours)  for  qualifying  for  health  insurance  is  consistent  with  regional  and  na- (See  Nurses,  Page  22)
Migrant  worker  community  pitches  in  on  transportation By  JOHN  FLOWERS MIDDLEBURY  â&#x20AC;&#x201D;  The  Open  Door  Clinic  (ODC)  was  unsuc- cessful  in  its  recent  application  for  grant  money  to  improve  transpor- tation  services  for  migrant  farm  workers  needing  to  get  to  medical  appointments,  but  the  Middle- EXU\ QRQSURÂżW ZDV SOHDVHG WR DQ- nounce  last  week  that  28  drivers Â
have  now  stepped  up  to  provide  rides  to  those  in  need. $QG 2'& RIÂżFLDOV ZHUH WKULOOHG to  report  that  25  of  the  28  drivers  hail  from  either  Mexico  or  Gua- WHPDOD PHDQLQJ WKDW WKH\ DUH Ă&#x20AC;X- HQW LQ 6SDQLVK DQG KDYH ÂżUVW KDQG knowledge  of  the  challenges  that  migrant  workers  face  in  access- (See  Migrant  workers,  Page  26)