Reporter THE ESSEX
December 1, 2016 • The Essex Reporter •1
December 1, 2016
Vol. 36, No. 48
Prsrt Std ECRWSS U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 266 Burlington, VT 05401 Postal Patron-Residential
Essex PD to buy new guns, gear By COLIN FLANDERS
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ssex police department plans to buy new handguns, heavy armor vests and ballistic helmets for all officers with seized assets, Chief Brad LaRose said. The selectboard unanimously approved
the $46,000 purchase from its equitable sharing funds, or money brought in through seized assets from drug enforcement, during its November 21 meeting. “We ask a lot of our force going into dangerous situations,” selectboard chairman Max See GEAR, page 4
Green Mountain Power and GlobalFoundries partner in state’s largest solar project By KAYLEE SULLIVAN
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epresentatives from Colchester’s Green Mountain Power gathered at GlobalFoundries in Essex Jct. Tuesday to announce the companies’ partnership in a new solar project. Embracing the renewable energy revolution, the new facility located on GlobalFoundries’ land and
leased to GMP, will produce over 8 million kilowatt-hours per year. This energy will power GlobalFoundries, along with 1,100 Williston homes, GMP CEO Mary Powell said. The 4.7-megawatt project, located on the Williston side of the GlobalFoundries campus, will provide 500 kW to the company. The balance will go toward powering GMP customers in the area, See SOLAR, page 2
Photo by KAYLEE SULLIVAN Harold Bergeron, 101, is Vermont's oldest veteran. Wearing his World War II hat, Bergeron showcases his French Foreign Legion Medal of Honor in his Essex Jct. home last week.
A fountain of youth Vermont’s oldest vet still chuckling at 101
By KAYLEE SULLIVAN
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hen Harold Bergeron was a young man, he took a drink from the Fountain of Youth in St. Augustine, Fla. He’s now 101 years old. “I claim that’s the best thing I’ve done,” Bergeron said last week, rest-
ing at the kitchen table of his Essex Jct. home. As a clock ticked in the background, Vermont’s oldest veteran reminisced on the years passed. His time in the military, his job at the local auto garage and Essex Center Grange, memories of his daughter and his marriage – which is 73 years strong – were all of noted importance.
Mary, his wife, is 102 years old, and the two live independently at home. The pair tied the knot in February 1943. Two months later, Bergeron was deployed in the Army. That same year, he took his magical sip from the fountain. Bergeron, of the 66th Infantry See VETERAN, page 3
VTANG preps for short-notice deployment Photo by COLIN FLANDERS A partially burned residence at 57 Park St. is pictured, where Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity plans to build four new homes next spring.
Habitat finds home in Essex By COLIN FLANDERS Four Chittenden County families will have a chance to purchase an affordable home next spring thanks to Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity, which plans to build in Essex for the first time in its history, organization officials
A 'few hundred' airmen to be sent overseas By MICHAELA HALNON
said. Habitat recently purchased property at 57 Park St. and plan to tear down what’s left of a partially burned house from a July fire and build a two-story triplex in its place. A fourth home will be inside a carriage house at the back of the property and will be revamped
A few hundred airmen from the 158th Fighter Wing of the Vermont Air National Guard will be deployed overseas in the coming weeks, officials announced last week. The airmen will be sent to the United States Central Command, Major Gen. Steven Cray said at a press conference. That area includes Northern Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
See HABITAT, page 10
See VTANG, page 4
Photo by MICHAELA HALNON Gov.-elect Phil Scott joined VTANG Major Gen. Steven Cray to announce the department of hundreds of airmen in the coming weeks.
Who is ... Dan ChaFetz? Essex Jct. man competes on 'Jeopardy!'
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By MICHAELA HALNON
Courtesy photo Essex Jct. resident Dan Chafetz, right, is pictured with host Alex Trebek during his appearance on Jeopardy! this summer. Taped in August, the episode aired Tuesday night; Chafetz finished in third place.
ans of the hit game show Jeopardy! might have seen a familiar face flicker across their screen during Tuesday night’s episode. Dan Chafetz, an Essex Jct. resident, joined host Alex Trebek and two other contestants, answering trivia questions in pursuit of a cash prize. Taped in August, the show aired just this week. Chafetz, a data specialist for the bank JP Morgan in South Burlington, said he finished in third place after missing the Final Jeopardy! question.
Chafetz is a longtime fan of the show and took an online Jeopardy! quiz early this summer. The 50-question test is open to the public and administered every few months. The quiz featured similar categories, and questions were about as rigorous as the televised game, he said. Jeopardy! scouts were impressed with Chafetz’s performance and soon invited him to New York City for a live audition. The mock exercise included buzzers, a second written test and verbal questions. See JEOPARDY, page 12