The
Charlotte News Charlotte’s award-winning community newspaper
VOLUME LIX NUMBER 21
THE VOICE OF THE TOWN
The
WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2017
Charlotte Lens
For every storm, a rainbow, for every tear, a smile Charlotters discover town glory throught photography page 6
On the inside: • House demolished by fire for training, page 1 • People’s Climate March, page 3 • It’s time to sign up for a Dragonheart team, page 12
CharlotteNewsVT.org
Vol. 59, no. 21 May 17, 2017
Charlotte News
The
Thompson’s Point Lane’s Lane proposed site changes
Vermont’s oldest nonprofit community newspaper, bringing you local news and views since 1958.
Controlled burn served dual purpose Lynn Monty
EDITOR IN CHIEF
It was a conflagration like no other for the Metropoulos-Moulton family last weekend. Even though this blaze was planned, it was still breathtaking, Catherine Metropoulos said. She’s lived on Route 7 in Charlotte since 1984, and now her adult daughter, Christina Metropoulos Moulton, purchased a home right next door with plans to completely rebuild. “Better to knock it down and start new,” Catherine Metropoulos said. “How lucky am I to have my daughter living next door?” Since the Ethan Allen Highway home needed to be demolished, it was given to Charlotte Fire and Rescue where they and many other towns, including a SWAT team, used it for training over the past month until it was finally burned to the ground, Metropoulos said. The large-scale live burn included several agencies from all over Vermont
Keith Morrill
STAFF WRITER
The seven properties of Lane’s Lane stand apart from the nearly two hundred camps hemming the shoreline of Thompson’s Point. Though they’re readily accessible above ground, below is a different story, where they operate independently of the Point’s wastewater system. It’s that subterranean isolation that has recently come to the surface at Town Hall and Selectboard meetings, and while town officials are eager to see Lane’s Lane hook up to the municipal system, not all resident are as keen on the idea. The Thompson’s Point wastewater system dates back to the early 1990s. At that time, a number of Point residents experienced failures in their self-contained septic systems. Because all Thompson’s Point residents are leaseholders of the land—all of which is owned by the town itself—they appealed to the town to apply for the permits necessary to create an interconnected wastewater system. The state granted the permit, and a seasonal wastewater system was constructed—with one notable exception: Lane’s Lane was not connected. While the permit included Lane’s Lane and the system was built to handle the additional inflow, these properties were unlike the rest of Thompson’s Point in that they were year-round residencies. It didn’t make sense to connect them to what was essentially a seasonal system. Instead, new private septic systems were installed onsite for each property. There was one hitch: if a lease changed hands, the properties would become strictly seasonal, like the rest of Thompson’s Point. Over the years, most of those properties did change ownership and become seasonal camps, with only two holdouts. Yet each of the camps remains unconnected to the municipal system because the necessary infrastructure was never extended down Lane’s Lane. Town officials and residents are at odds as to whether that should be remedied. The Selectboard believes extending the main would be advantageous. Were the main installed, it would act as a safeguard and quick fix for residents of Lane’s Lane should their aging systems fail. To that end, the Selectboard put a request to voters at Town Meeting this year
see WASTEWATER page 4
About 50 area firefighters participated in month-long training at a Charlotte home scheduled to be demolished. Photo by Lee Krohn
see FIRE page 20
A Memorial Day tribute: three perspectives from Civil War contemporaries Dan Cole
CONTRIBUTOR
went out in those waves of anguish which seem to choke the very air that the happier and more fortunate must breathe. I do not think so much about the suffering of men, the fathers, the brothers, the sons bereft; but the women, the helpless, outnumbering, unconsulted women; they whom war trampled down, without a choice or protest; the patient, limited, domestic women, who thought little, but loved much, and, loving, had lost
all, to them I would have spoken.” The Soldier’s Perspective, Oliver Wendell Holmes, USA (1841-1935) and Sgt. Berry Greenwood Benson, CSA (1843-1923) as written by Shelby Foote “As time went by, it is no wonder if the men looked back on that fouryear holocaust with something of the
Memorial Day began as Decoration Day in the months and years following the Civil War. There were few hearths and hearthstones spared from suffering and sacrifice, and people were moved by a desire to commemorate the fallen. Here are three thought-provoking perspectives from see MEMORIAL DAY page 20 four Civil War contemporaries. The Woman’s Perspective, by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps (1844-1911) “At that time, it will be remembered, our country was dark with sorrowing women. The regiments came home, but the mourners went about the streets. The Grand Review passed through Washington; four hundred thousand ghosts of dead men kept invisible march to the drum-beats, and lifted to the stained and tattered flags the proud and unreturned gaze of the dead who have died in their glory. Our gayest scenes were black with crepe. The drawn faces of bereaved wife, mother, sister, and widowed girl showed piteously everywhere. Grayhaired parents knelt at the grave of the boy whose enviable fortune it was to be brought home in time to die in his mother’s room. Towards the nameless mounds of Arlington, of Gettysburg, and Memorial Day began as Decoration Day in the months and years following the Civil the rest, the yearning of desolated homes War. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division
Sports 12-13 • Senior Center 21 • Community Events 23
2 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Congratulations soon-to-be CVU graduate Jamie Monty! Looking back, it all seems to have gone by like a whirlwind. It’s indeed been quite a roller coaster of accomplishments, and we are thrilled to be on this journey right alongside you. Through it all you have proven yourself to be a strong woman of principle, filled with love for us and the world around you. There’s no doubt your generous spirit and determined attitude will guide you as our wild ride continues. What will this next chapter bring? We are excited to see! Congratulations on your graduation from Champlain Valley Union High School class of 2017! Love always, Mom, Dad and Jacob Do you have a child graduating from high school? Would you like to include their photo and a message like this one in an upcoming edition of The Charlotte News? If so call Monica at 4254949 today, and she’ll set you right up!
Notice of Lister Vacancy In accordance with 24 VSA §961, the Town of Charlotte Selectboard hereby provides a notice of vacancy for one of three lister positions. The position has a three-year term that expires in March, 2019; however, in accordance with 24 VSA § 963, the Selectboard can make an appointment only until the next election, after which the position will be posted for election. Inquiries regarding what the position entails can be made by calling the Lister Office at 4253855 ext. 3. Letters of interest should be submitted to Charlotte Town Office, Attn: Town Administrator, P.O. Box 119, Charlotte, VT 05445. Or by email to dean@ townofcharlotte.com
ChamplainValley Union High School Senior Jamie-Lynn Monty, winter 2016. Photo by Lynn Monty
ON THE COVER:
Jesse Paul of Charlotte photographed a stunning rainbow with Charlotte Volunteer Fire and Rescue Services Marine 3 at Point Bay Marina on May 2.
The Charlotte News The Charlotte News is a nonprofit community-based newspaper dedicated to informing townspeople of current events and issues. It serves as a forum for the free exchange of views of town residents and celebrates the people, places and happenings that make the Town of Charlotte unique. Contributions in the form of articles, press releases and photographs pertaining to Charlotte-related people and events are accepted and encouraged. For submission guidelines and deadlines, please visit our website or contact the editor at news@thecharlottenews.org. The Charlotte News is published in Charlotte by The Charlotte News, Inc., a Vermont domestic 501(c)(4) nonprofit corporation. Distribution is made every other Thursday to all households and businesses in Charlotte and to more than 50 outlets in Shelburne, Hinesburg, North Ferrisburgh, Ferrisburgh, Vergennes and Burlington. The Charlotte News relies on the generous financial contributions of its readers, subscriptions and advertising revenue to sustain its operations. Editorial Staff news@thecharlottenews.org / 425-4949 Editor in chief: Lynn Monty Layout manager: Anna Cyr Staff writers: Keith Morrill, Rowen Beck Contributing editors: Edd Merritt Copy editors: Beth Merritt, Vince Crockenberg, Carol Hanley, Edd Merritt, Janet Yantachka Business Staff ads@thecharlottenews.org / 343-0279 Ad manager: Monica Marshall Business manager: Shanley Hinge Board Members President: Vince Crockenberg Secretaries: Rick Detwiler, Carol Hanley Treasurer: Patrice Machavern Board members: Rachel Allard, Bob Bloch, Rick Detwiler, Carol Hanley, Gay Regan, Louisa Schibli Contributors Elizabeth Bassett, Jorden Blucher, Nan Boffa, Dan Cole, Bradley Carleton, Mariana Du Brul, Tai Dinnan, Chris Falk, Lee Krohn, Timothy Gould, Linda Hamilton, John Miller, Rob Mullin, Mary Recchia, Ruah Swennerfelt, Margaret Woodruff and Mike Yantachka Subscription Information The Charlotte News is delivered at no cost to all Charlotte residences. Subscriptions are available for first-class delivery at $40 per calendar year. Want a subscription? Please send a check payable to The Charlotte News, PO Box 251, Charlotte, VT 05445. Postmaster Send address changes to: The Charlotte News P.O. Box 251, Charlotte, VT 05445 Telephone: 425-4949 Circulation: 3,000 copies per issue. Copyright © 2017 The Charlotte News, Inc. Printed in Burlington, Vermont, by Gannet Publishing Services Member of the New England Newspaper and Press Association and the Vermont Press Association.
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 3
Opinion The People’s Climate March, a celebration of the earth and joy Ruah Swennerfelt, Charlotte
What a day it was in Washington, D.C., for the People’s Climate March on Saturday, April 29! An estimated 200,000 people showed up in the capital, and another 100,000 were counted in sister marches around the country, including one held in Montpelier that many of our Vermont friends attended. As well, there were many sister marches all around the world. I and my husband Louis Cox marched with fellow Quakers in the “Keepers of the Faith” contingent. The Quakers were squeezed in between the Muslims, Jews, Catholics, Presbyterians, humanists and pagans and many more faiths. Other contingents included Indigenous peoples, immigrants, environmentalists, unions and more. It was so exhilarating. The high temperature for the day tied with 1974 as the hottest on record for that date—quite apropos for a climate-change march. The day was also significant since it was the 100th day that Donald Trump, a climate-denier, had held the office of the presidency. Overall, the day was filled with joy and celebration of Earth and all her inhabitants. The signs were creative, funny, poignant and sad. The crowd snaked through D.C. and surrounded the White House. At 2 p.m. everyone who could sat down and began to drum a heartbeat rhythm on their hearts. Then after a few minutes all stood and yelled out a great sound. There was much cheering, and the march then spilled onto the mall, where people shared their hopes and dreams for a sane and healthy future for all that lives on our little blue planet.
Put a price on pollution Mariana Du Brul, Charlotte
On April 27, the Vermont House of Representatives heard testimony on a short form bill, introduced by Winooski Rep. Diana Gonzalez, which seeks to establish a “carbon pollution fee” in Vermont. The funds raised from the tax would be returned to Vermonters as quarterly dividends.
The establishment of a carbon tax is an idea that is being discussed at both the federal level and in states that recognize a commonsense approach to reining in carbon emissions. Why is a carbon tax such a smart idea? As an editorial in The Washington Post in February pointed out, “Put a price on the pollution, and businesses and consumers will change their behavior in thousands of ways that government regulators would not have predicted and could not have compelled.” And since Vermont does not produce any fossil fuels, a tax here is a no-brainer. But there are a lot of different ways to set up a carbon tax program. If Vermont wants to be able to call the shots in our own state so that our program serves us well, we need to have fruitful discussions about the strategy now. Across New England our neighbors are considering their own versions of carbon taxes, and we don’t want to be caught having to tag on to schemes other states have tweaked for themselves. In Massachusetts a senate bill proposes additional rebates to energy-intensive businesses and businesses that “face stiff out of state competition.” A house bill there establishes a green infrastructure fund that will make grants to municipalities or groups of municipalities working together. The house bill also returns guaranteed percentages of the funds only to the households in the bottom three income quintiles. Rhode Island has a provision in its proposed bill that the bill will take effect only when Massachusetts passes its own carbon tax bill. Connecticut has a proposed bill that returns an equal dividend to every state resident, including children. A carbon tax scheme in Vermont could levy the tax when fuels are brought into the state, or the tax could be applied at the point of sale, as Gonzalez proposes. It could allocate some funds to bolster our already sparkling green jobs sector. We could return all the funds to businesses and individuals, making sure to account for the burden of the tax on our lowestincome earners. According to the Congressional Budget Office, if 12 percent of carbon tax revenues are returned to the 20 percent of households with the lowest income, those
Ruah Swennerfelt and her husband Louis Cox inWashington, D.C. at the People’s Climate March on April 29. Courtesy photo households will be made “whole” and suffer no harm from increasing energy prices (see this report for more on the economic modelling of a Vermont carbon tax). We could be creative with slashing other taxes in the state, like current taxes on things we want more of: income and sales. Though there is some movement among national conservatives to pursue a carbon tax in lieu of federal carbon pollution regulations, we can’t afford
to wait while Washington dithers. A carbon tax is the smart thing to do, and our neighbors know it. By implementing a carbon tax that works for Vermonters we have an opportunity to be one of the voices setting the tone of the discussion at the federal level and with other states. We can decide how to do it. But to do it our way, we need to act now.
4 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Report from the Legislature
Stuck in session Rep. Mike Yantachka
Town officials are eager to see Lane’s Lane hook up to the municipal system, but not all resident are as keen on the idea. Photo by Keith Morrill
WASTEWATER
continued from page 1 to borrow $85,000 from the Housing Trust Fund. The money would have allowed the town to extend a force main down Lane’s Lane and to connect the camps, but voters rejected the measure. Some residents of Lane’s Lane attended the May 8 Selectboard meeting to express their concern that the town might force them to connect to the municipal system and that doing so could prove more expensive to them than their current systems.
Town Administrator Dean Bloch said, however, there is no legal mechanism that could force residents to connect at this time. “But when [the properties] change hands, the lease can change,” explained Bloch. At that point the town would seek to amend the leases in order require residents to connect. In the meanwhile, the town will have system engineers inspect all of the on-site systems at Lane’s Lane to ensure that they are functioning properly. Additionally, the town will assess the cost of installing the force main and pursue other avenues of funding its installation. Their hope is that at least some residents would be willing to connect if the option existed.
As I write this late Friday afternoon on May 12, I should be home in Charlotte. Instead, I am in a holding pattern in Montpelier. A number of bills are still under negotiation, all of which deal in some way with money. The budget cannot be passed until all the constituent parts are finalized. These parts include the capital bill that deals with the overhead required to run the state government, the fee bill that covers the expense of administering regulations and licenses, the transportation bill that maintains our transportation infrastructure, and the education tax bill that determines what the statewide property taxes will be. While the capital, fee and transportation bills have already passed both the House and Senate, the education bill has become the sticking point over how to deal with the new health care plans being proposed for public school teachers. The education tax bill, H.509, was close to being finalized until Governor Scott proposed within days of adjournment his teachers health insurance plan to capture an alleged $26M savings. The fact that only $13M would apply to the FY18 budget, since the new insurance plans don’t start until January 1, has not stopped him from repeating the $26M figure. The governor insists that the only way the savings can be achieved is with negotiations between the administration and the statewide union. This runs counter to the right of workers— the teachers—to negotiate directly with their employer, the school board. With the backing of the Republican caucus, he
has refused to compromise on this point. He also has proposed that only 30 percent of the savings should go for property tax reduction. Meanwhile, the House and Senate have been working toward a way to realize the estimated savings while maintaining the integrity of the employer-employee relationship of teachers and school boards. The latest amendment passed by the Senate would require $13M to be saved in the second half of FY18, which would reduce the statewide homestead property tax by 3 cents. Based on the number of employees, each school district would be allocated a proportion of the savings, which would be achieved by negotiations between the school board and its teachers, a process that is already taking place across the state, by the way. Any difference between what the district actually saves and the allocated amount would reduce the state’s payment to the district. Since each action on a bill requires a 24-hour waiting period, the failure of the governor to work with the Legislature to find a solution guarantees that the session will run beyond the budgeted 18 weeks. A couple of weeks ago the 2017 session seemed to be moving along nicely, with no new taxes and a budget that got nearly unanimous support. Yet, here we are. Despite agreement on what could potentially be saved, the issue has boiled down to labor relations and how much should be applied to reducing property taxes. I hope that by the time you read this we’ll have a solution and a budget that won’t be vetoed. I encourage you to let me know your concerns and opinions. I can be reached by phone (802-233-5238) or by email (myantachka.dfa@gmail.com). You can find this article and past articles at my website: MikeYantachka.com.
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 5
Around Town Edd Merritt CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Sympathy
: is extended to family and friends of Phyllis Aube who passed away May 4 at the age of 75. Her surviving family includes her sister Sandra and Sandra’s husband, Dwaine Hood. Phyllis’ husband, Bernard Aube, died previously. Her body will be interred in Charlotte where she lived for a number of years. is extended to family and friends of Leslie Botjer of Charlotte who passed away May 6 at the age of 73. In 1968 Leslie married Robert Botjer and they began an adventure of living, working and raising a family overseas. Over the course of that time Leslie was a teacher, documentary film maker, guidance counselor and school administrator. They maintained their U.S. residence with a home in the Hawk Colony in Rochester, Vermont. In the early 2000s they moved to Charlotte. Leslie continued her public service, serving on the boards of both the Lund Family Center and the Stern Center for Language and Learning. She was also a founding member of the of
Friends of The Charlotte News board, and she served as a proofreader until her illness prevented her from continuing. The family asks that those wishing to make donations in her honor consider giving to the UVM Medical Center, 363 UVM, 111 Colchester Avenue, Burlington, VT 05401.
Regional Bites: Lake Champlain wins award
Chocolates
Jim Lampman founded Lake Champlain Chocolates and later brought his son, Eric, into the fold as the company grew into one of the major chocolate makers in the East. The company recently won sofi’s (Specialty Outstanding Food Innovations) for two of its products. Moka Flek gained the Best New Product Award and the bronze award in the milk and white chocolate category. It’s Hot, Honey won a bronze award as a dark chocolate. While the base of each is dark chocolate, other items are added for flavor, and the Hot, Honey adds chili peppers in order to live up to its name.
NRG is sold to St. Louis firm
Esco Technologies recently bought out
Throw back to a great shot taken one year ago this week! Photo by Rik Carlson
Hinesburg’s alternative energy company NRG, founded 35 years ago by David Blittersdorf and his wife at the time, Jan. NRG grew into one of the major players globally for the design and use of renewable energy tools, particularly in regard to wind. Jan (now Blomstrann) took over as CEO and president of the company in 2004, after NRG had moved from its original site in Bristol to its current home in Hinesburg. She later left her positions as president and CEO to become chair and owner of the company. Esco looks to expand NRG’s products and markets.
Summer sails
The summer issue of Vermont Life magazine contains a lengthy article on Charlotte’s Suzanne Johnson, who guides people around Lake Champlain on her 28-and-a-half-foot yacht, Jubilee. Since 20014 over 500 people have sailed with her under a program called “Healing Winds” that “uses sailing as a way to provide a small window of respite for cancer patients,” according to the article. Suzanne hooked up with Underhill resident Glen Finholdt who had run a day-sailing company on the lake and whose wife had recently passed away from cancer. He became interested in Suzanne’s project and offered to pilot the boat. The article quotes Suzanne as saying, “I’ve seen what a simple, threeday sail can do for people who are facing the biggest hurdle in their lives.”
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6 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
ThroughYourEyes Charlotters discover town glory throught photography
Whether it’s rainbows, our precious lake, a color guard or a thermal imaging camera, there are special corners in town only some of us are fortunate enough to see. These Charlotters were in the right place at the right time over the past two weeks to capture some amazing images to share with their community. Enjoy. And please send your own shots to Lynn@TheCharlotteNews.org. We welcome the submissions. Next deadline is May 26.
Rain and snow melt have lifted Lake Champlain’s water level. Visitors to Charlotte Beach will find spectacular views but few dry places to stand. Photo by Chris Falk “A double rainbow in Charlotte taken by my son Seth. Happy spring!” Submitted by Nan Boffa
Taken on the early ferry to Essex looking back toward the Vermont sunrise. Mt. Philo is on the right. Photo by John Miller
Last Tuesday’s rainbow over the Dinnan home on the south slope of Mt. Philo. Photo by Tai Dinnan
Charlotte Fire Chief Dick St. George explaining the dynamics of heat building within a structure fire and the use of thermal imaging cameras for interior navigation and search and rescue, among other uses. Photo by Lee Krohn
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 7
Town Vermont Urban and Community Forestry Program creates Hamilton Award for Outstanding Tree Warden Linda Hamilton CONTRIBUTOR
At the May 4 statewide Arbor Day conference, with the theme “Make Vermont a Shade Better,” the Vermont Urban and Community Forestry Program inaugurated a new award. This adds to their annual recognition of significant tree stewardship efforts with their awards to individuals, communities and academic campuses for care of community trees. The Hamilton Award was created in 2017 in honor of former Charlotte Tree Warden Larry Hamilton, to be presented annually in recognition of outstanding public service to promote the health and stewardship of community trees as a Vermont tree warden. As part of the conference’s annual awards ceremony, Vermont Urban and Community Forestry Program Technical Assistance Coordinator Elise Schadler presented the background of Larry’s long and energetic service as Charlotte tree warden, which included not only tree planting and protection but also an emphasis on community education and engagement. Elise presented Larry’s widow Linda Hamilton with the inaugural plaque, in a bittersweet moment for all who had known and worked with Larry. Dr. Lawrence S. (Larry) Hamilton served as tree warden in the Town of Charlotte, Vermont from March 1996 until his death in October 2016. He enthusiastically volunteered for this role, as a way to apply his forestry, conservation planning, and teaching experience to community service. His love of Nature, especially trees, was infectious. By popular demand, he expanded the role of Charlotte tree warden from monitoring and stewarding trees in the road right-of-way and on other public lands to include a strong educational component. Through a variety of means, he promoted understanding and appreciation of trees as especially important components of the web of life—from the practicalities of carbon dioxide and oxygen exchange to providing home and garden to a myriad of other organisms above and below ground, protecting from wind and sun, and of course providing awe, beauty and inspiration. He enlivened Arbor Day with Selectboard declarations and participation in studentassisted planting of a tree each year at Charlotte Central School. A popular leader of nature walks featuring tree identification and forest ecology, he initiated a community project to document Big Trees and Significant Trees in Charlotte on public and private land. He regularly cooperated with the Conservation Commission, and served on the Charlotte Park and Wildlife Refuge Oversight Committee. His educational efforts were most visible through the wideranging topics of the regular Tree Warden column he wrote for The Charlotte News. In dealings with landowners, the town road commissioner and utilities workers, Larry established a reputation for fairness and for consistently calling for replacement
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At the May 4 Arbor Day conference organized by Vermont Urban and Community Forestry Program and held at Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier, Linda Hamilton received the inaugural plaque for the new Hamilton Award for Outstanding Tree Warden. She is pictured here with current Tree Warden Mark Dillenbeck and Deputy Tree Warden Sue Smith. Photo by Elise Schadler plantings rather than fines. Having gained the community’s respect and confidence, he was able to successfully raise thousands of dollars from 2006–16 for a roadside tree restoration project. More than 450 trees were planted under his leadership. For on-going monitoring and maintenance of these, he recruited a cadre of tree keepers and organized a six-session training course for them in 2008. Other volunteers and advisors have also been drawn in to help with technical aspects. Larry Hamilton’s vision for the tree warden was not a solo act. He saw it as a leadership role to educate and engage more townspeople in the stewardship of trees as important public resources. Because of this vision, Charlotte now has a tree warden, deputy tree warden and an active tree team—all of whom are dedicated volunteers finding rewarding community service with tangible results, as well as opportunities for learning and for fellowship with others who love Nature and care about the future of their town.
Publication date: May 31 Columns/features deadline: May 22 Letters due: May 26 Ads deadline: May 26 Publication date: June 14 Columns/features deadline: June 5 Letters due: June 9 Ads deadline: June 9
Local Church Services Charlotte Congregational Church, UCC 403 Church Hill Road 425-3176 Regular Sunday service: 10 a.m. Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church Spear Street 425-2637 Sister parish: St. Jude’s, Hinesburg Regular schedule of masses: Saturday, 4:30 p.m., at St. Jude’s, Hinesburg Sunday, 8 a.m. and 11 a.m., at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Sunday, 9:30 a.m. at St. Jude’s, Hinesburg
8 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Students “rained in” on Arbor Day Linda Hamilton CONTRIBUTOR
For more than 25 years, Charlie Proutt of Horsford Nursery has donated and, with the help of the students, has planted trees at Charlotte Central School in a fun and informative celebration of Arbor Day. This year was no exception, despite the persistent rain. Thanks to Charlie, with support from Tree Warden Mark Dillenbeck and Deputy Tree Warden Sue Smith, a sturdy Swamp White Oak was planted at the school on May 5. Because the students did not all have rain gear with them, they stayed inside and anticipated meeting with Charlie, Mark and Sue at
another time to talk about trees together. Charlie says the students have not been “rained in” on Arbor Day since 1995. Later on May 5, a special tree was also planted on the Town Green. It is a 10-year-old Bur Oak generously donated by Charlie Proutt. It is the Charlotte Tree Fund’s Memorial Tree in honor of former Tree Warden Larry Hamilton, who died in October last year. The Tree Team who oversee the fund hope that this public shade tree will be appreciated and loved and will serve as a fitting tribute to Larry for his many contributions to the town. Larry lived to be 91; this Bur Oak may live to be 400 to 500 years old!
Charlie Proutt, Sue Smith and former CCS student Claire Dillenbeck plant a tree at the school May 5. Photo by Mark Dillenbeck
Friends gather to bless the planting of the Larry Hamilton Memorial Tree at Town Hall on May 5. Terry Dinnan (from left), Charlie Proutt, Lane Morrison, Marty Illick, Owen Clay, Sue Smith, Carol Clay, Carol Hanley, Bunky Bernstein and Linda Hamilton. Photo by Mark Dillenbeck
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 9
Moby-Dick for babies: Marvel or monster Susan Ohanian CONTRIBUTOR
A display at the Charlotte Public Library invites parents and others who care about young children’s literacy development to take a look at the new assault on childhood—baby versions of the classics. Cozy Classics, publishers of the baby board-book Moby Dick, claim the book “captures the essence of a literary masterpiece” and is the “perfect vehicle for early learning.” In just 12 words! A Wall Street Journal reviewer insists that this publisher has “done a service to literate families everywhere.” The infant can also settle in for War and Peace, also in just 12 words: soldier-friends-rundance-goodbye-hughorse-boom!-hurtsleep-snow-love. And then move on to Emma, Jane Eyre, Les Miserables, Great Expectations and so on and so on. BabyLit® offers Anna Karenina as a fashion primer: gown, earring, hairpins and so on. Or Romeo & Juliet: A BabyLit® Counting Primer: 1 balcony through 10 kisses. No deaths. With The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: A Camping Primer, parents can offer infants such words as “raft,” “river” and “fishing line.” KinderGuides: is another firm set on helping parents move on from Baby Einstein into great literature. The headline of a front page article in the Business Section of The New York Times offered this summary: “Forget ‘Pat the Bunny,’ My child is reading Hemingway.” Well, not quite. KinderGuides reduces the narrative of The Old Man and the Sea, a tale specifically mentioned when Hemingway was awarded the Nobel Prize, to explanation points and editorial intrusions:
Hemingway: “The old man was gaunt with deep wrinkles in the back of his neck. Everything about him was old except his eyes and they were the same color as the sea and were cheerful and undefeated.” KinderGuides: “The other fishermen make fun of Santiago, saying he’s forgotten how to catch fish. Hey, that’s not nice!” Blake Edwards knew he had to make dramatic changes to Holly Golightly’s lifestyle if he wanted to get a movie version of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” past the industry’s production code. As he explained to The New York Times, “We don’t say exactly what Holly’s morals are. In a sense, she can be considered an escort service for men.” KinderGuides doesn’t try to explain to sixyear-olds why Holly is paid $100 to pass on messages to the mob; instead the kinder-book devotes two pages of illustrations to Holly and the narrator wearing “funny Halloween masks around town.” Capote devotes one paragraph in an 85-page story to this event, telling the reader that Holly stole the masks at Woolworth’s. KinderGuides omits the one detail in the novel that would amaze today’s youth with their 24/7 phones at the hip: Holly and the narrator go to a bar six, seven times a day—to make telephone calls because “during the war a private telephone was hard to come by.” Here’s a glimpse of why Capote wrote the tale and what KinderGuides does with it. Capote: “Tiffany’s, the quietness and the proud look of it; nothing very bad could happen to you there, not with those kind men, in their nice suits and that lovely smell of silver and alligator wallets.”
see MOBY-DICK page 11
one additional adult and up to four accompanying children. (www. shelburnemuseum.org) Stay tuned for information about passes to Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Vermont State Historic Sites and Vermont State Parks. Don’t forget to join us for these upcoming programs right here at the library: TUESDAYS, MAY 2, 9, 16, 23 & 30, 9 am: Baby Time @ the Library! Join us to chat, sing songs, & read to Baby. Sponsored by Building Bright Futures. May 18th is National Museum Day and a reminder that the Charlotte Library has local museum passes available for checkout. If you’re thinking of an outing, check out one of these options before you go: Birds of Vermont Museum: Free admission with one paid admission. (www.birdsofvermont.org) ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain: $4 admission for up to four members of same party. (www. echovermont.org) Elder Education & Enrichment for Everyone: Pass for 2 adults to one lecture each semester. (www. EEEVermont.org) Shelburne Farms: Free family admission to Walking Trails and Children’s Farmyard. (www. shelburnefarms.org) Shelburne Museum: 50% off of one-day admission for library patron,
FRIDAYS, MAY 5, 12, 19 & 26, 10:30 am: Friday Free for All.* Join us each Friday for a new adventure with stories, experiments & snacks! For ages 3-5. WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 7 pm. Long Trail Canine Rescue. Meet the people & puppies in this life-changing group. Learn how to help their efforts or find a pet of your own! FRIDAY 19, 8:30 am: GARDEN SESSION: Plant a Seed, Defend the Future. Help sow the library garden, enjoy refreshments and “defend the future.” Slow Food Materials provided by a grant from Friends of the Charlotte Library. THURSDAY, MAY 25, 7 pm: Privacy & Safety on the Internet. Jason Duquette-Hoffman from the Vermont AG’s Office Consumer Assistance Program walks you through Internet safety basics common consumer complaints.
Email your news announcements to news@thecharlottenews.org
10 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Education Health care, pet policies and homework discussed at last CVSD board meeting Rowen Beck STAFF WRITER
Teacher negotiations regarding health care jump-started the Champlain Valley School District board meeting May 2. The final proposal to the teachers association was that the board would put in 85 percent of the premium contribution to the HRA. The association would cover the other 15 percent. The next order of business was the approval of four 1.0 FTE special educators, Sarah Sargent, Elizabeth Birmingham, Thomas Daily and Sarah Gordon, as well as a 1.0 FTE personalized learning coordinator, Carly Rivard. In this clump of approvals Cris Milks was granted a leave of absence and a .80 FTE math coordinator position. The two subjects that created the most
discussion at the meeting were the pet policy on school property and homework. There was a lengthy discussion on whether dogs should be allowed on school grounds or at games. Some felt that dogs intimidated the children and created messes on the playground, and that they also disrupted games. Making a district-wide policy on this is complicated by the fact that many schools lease their fields from the town, which raised questions about enforcement of any new school policy on the matter. In the end the board decided to fall back on individual town ordinances regarding dogs in public areas. Mark McDermott was going to draft a document to be reviewed by the board. The policy on animals in school was to remain the same. Next came the discussion of homework policy. No homework was to be given to the students over vacations that were longer than three days. The board agreed that
reading could be excluded from this since everyone should be reading. This was more for large projects and tests not scheduled right after vacation. Student board member Thomas Daly said that most teachers at CVU already complied with this and gave options for large projects well ahead of time and did not schedule tests or project completion dates for immediately after a lengthy break. Difficulty came with the K-8 schools. Williston has no homework, while Shelburne and Charlotte have some teachers who assign homework and others who do not. All schools need to have the same policy as they are now under one board. Lynne Jaunich felt that the homework policy raised a much bigger issue, which led to a discussion on the copywriting policy for Graduation Challenge. While CVU is still working on Graduation Challenge requirements, she felt the copywriting
policy needed to be reviewed. Today more professionals are working with students. Therefore the students are working with more community mentors. The workspace has become much more collaborative, so how do you gauge what work is actually done by the students? McDermott agreed to research the issue and report back to the board. The CVSD board then moved to planning their upcoming retreat. Board members created a long list of topics and assigned the highest priority to the following: How many board members were needed for a quorum? What are the board’s goals and priorities? How will the board know it is effective in delivering services to the larger school community? Last, the board elected Colleen MacKinnon as vice chair and set its regular meetings, beginning in September, for the third Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m.
Cassandra Townshend joins CVSD special-education leadership team Staff report Cassandra Townshend will join the Charlotte Central School leadership team with principals Barbara Anne KomonsMontroll and Stephanie Sumner. Townshend brings many years of experience as a statewide consultant for implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Support. Townshend will be taking on a dual role for the Champlain Valley School District (CVSD). In addition to her duties overseeing special education in Charlotte, she will serve as the CVSD behavior systems director, coordinating district-wide efforts to promote social/emotional learning frameworks. Townshend is currently a doctoral candidate in the University of Vermont’s Educational Leadership and Policy Studies
Cassandra Townshend.
Courtesy photo
program. She is excited to return to CCS for the 2016-17 school year as the behavior systems coordinator and is looking forward to her new role across CVSD.
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 11
Education
Fire & Ice Meltdown
Rice High School honor roll
Sister Laura Della Santa, principal at Rice Memorial High School in South Burlington, proudly announces the following students achieved honor roll status for the third quarter:
Charlotte
First Honors Anna Schibli Alexa Pughe Andrew Slauterbeck Grace Slauterbeck
MOBEY-DICK
continued from page 9 KinderGuides: “Tiffany’s is a very fancy jewelry store.” Visit the library to see what happens to Jack Kerouac’s On the Road. Misspelling Morocco is the least of KinderGuides’ problems, but rest assured, they do eliminate sex, booze and drugs. Lots of exclamation points are used to indicate excitement, and when exclamation points seem insufficient, some words are magnified in size. And to convince parents they are doing something to boost baby’s future SAT scores and ensure entrance into the Ivy League, there are quiz questions in all the books: What can you buy at Tiffany’s? The back of every KinderGuides book proclaims. “Give your child a head start! KinderGuides aims to educate our youth on the stories and characters that have shaped our culture. Because classics are ageless. And so are their readers.” With baby board books of classic
Moira Brown Second Honors Saige Alpeter Hana Couture Mahntra Hennessey Cooper Harvey Hadley Murphy John Merrill Honorable Mention Daniel Boardman Santiago Vazquez
literature selling like hotcakes, an Australian physicist is trying to tap into parent aspirations with the Baby University series: Quantum Physics for Babies (It’s never too early to become a quantum physicist!), General Relativity for Babies (accessible introduction to Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity), Rocket Science for Babies (Baby will learn the principles of lift and thrust, the forces responsible for flight). And more. Ugly little books with this pronouncement on every back cover: “Simple explanations of complex ideas FOR YOUR FUTURE GENIUS!” Research shows the positive effects of reading to babies. But classics are not “ageless.” They are written for adults. Babies need to hear words sing; they need to see books that interest them. This means Moo, Baa, LA LA LA! and Dig Dig Digging, not Quantum Entanglement for Babies. Visit the children’s section of our fine local library, where you will find beautiful, fun, informative books for young children, books with words that sing.
The CVFRS banquet color guard presentation of the colors at the annual Fire & Ice Meltdown at The Old Lantern on April 28. Submitted by Rob Mullin
CVFRS members at the annual Fire & Ice Meltdown at The Old Lantern on April 28. Submitted by Rob Mullin
12 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Sports Team registration now open for the 2017 Lake Champlain Dragon Boat Festival Staff report There are 64 team slots available in the 2017 Lake Champlain Dragon Boat Festival and Races scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 5–6, at Burlington’s Waterfront Park. Community team registration is now open. Visit ridethedragon. org to learn about the event and register a team online. The festival continues to be a popular team-building event for businesses and groups who want to compete together and raise money to support cancer survivors in the local community. Members of Dragonheart Vermont are available to help interested groups organize their teams. Phyllis Bartling, captain of the Baystate Support Oars, said, “Nine years ago I watched the Lake Champlain Dragon Boat Festival from the shore. I have been in a boat ever since! All year I look forward to this one day of fun, camaraderie, love, competition and, yes, sweat! The spirit and excitement are infectious. The cause is sobering. And many of the Dragonheart team members are now my personal heroes. Where else can you find all that?” Community team registration is now open for the 2017 Lake Champlain Dragon Boat Festival and Races, Saturday and Sunday, August Courtesy photo The core of Dragonheart Vermont’s 5–6 at Burlington’s Waterfront Park. mission is to give back to the community, and over the last 12 years the Lake This year festival proceeds will sup- where kids with cancer have experienc- nering with Dragonheart Vermont this Champlain Dragon Boat Festival has port Camp Ta-Kum-Ta, which provides es of a lifetime. Visit Takumta.org for a year to raise funds to help us provide once-in-a-lifetime experiences for chilraised $1.8 million dollars to support year-round programs and activities for window into this magical place. kids with cancer and kids who have had Hattie Johnson, executive director of dren. We are excited for the festival this critical cancer programs in Vermont. cancer. It’s a safe, loving environment Camp Ta-Kum-Ta, said, “All of us at year and most grateful for Dragonheart’s Camp Ta-Kum-Ta are thrilled to be part- loyal support.”
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 13
Sports Edd’s Sports Report Burlington Invitational Track Meet provides the site for Tyler Marshall to set a record
CVU runner Tyler Marshall set a new state record for the 1,500-meter run at last Saturday’s Burlington Invitational track meet. He bested the previous record set five years ago by more than a second, running the race in 3 minutes, 56.18 seconds. He also won the 3,000 meters and was named the meet’s “Outstanding Track Athlete.” Coach Scott Bliss calls him a “special runner.” Tyler balances track in the spring with cross-country running in the fall, in which he has been the state’s top cross-country racer for the past two seasons. The women had some top finishes as well, starting with Charlotte’s Sadie Holmes winning the freshman 1,500-meter race. Ella Whitman followed in Tyler Marshall’s footsteps winning the 3,000 meters. Redhawk relay teams placed second in the 4X100 and 4X400 races. Alison Kloekner was among the top three in both shot put and discus. In the combined team scores, CVU placed third among 27 schools from across the state and several from Quebec.
Men’s lacrosse sends down Mount Anthony
Jake Schaefer’s hat trick and Charlie Bernicke’s two goals led the way for CVU men’s LAX team to defeat Mount Anthony 10-2 last Saturday. The Redhawks ranked behind South Burlington in the Division I ratings. Charlotte’s Brauns, Will and Walter, have been top attackers. Will had a single goal against Mount Anthony, and Walter scored a hat trick in the previous defeat of Essex.
Women’s lacrosse
Undefeated Middlebury proved to be too much for CVU’s women in lacrosse, although the Redhawks gave them a run for their money before losing 19-14. As she has been doing much of the season, Lydia Maitland led CVU scorers with seven goals and two assists. Charlotte’s Jenna Baginski had a goal and an assist. Both team’s goalies had to come up with similar numbers of stops, 6 for the Tigers, 8 for the Redhawks.
Tennis tops Rice
Rice was able to send only two singles players to the court, giving CVU singles players forfeit wins in the 3-5 brackets. Charlotter Hadley Menk and her partner Sami Brown lost only one set in their doubles match. Ellery Harkness and Riley Boucher went 6-0, 6-0. The Redhawk women stand at 8 wins and no losses for the season.
Golf courses are trimmed and ready for putting
Cedar Knoll, Kwiniaska, Vermont National, Enosburg and the Burlington Country Club are courses that tested the putters of CVU golfers. On the women’s side of the ledger, Charlotte’s Ashley Clark led the Redhawk scorers on the National course and at Enosburg. She and her partner, however, were not able to compete strongly with a skilled pair from North Country. The men have not sent any Charlotters onto the courses in the last five meets.
Baseball pitches toward the season’s tournament
Sometimes it takes a Redhawk to drop a Hornet, and that is what CVU’s baseball team did to Essex last Saturday. Essex had won its last seven games before hosting the Redhawks. Jacob Bortnik went two for four with a fourth-inning double that scored a run and breaking a 2-2 tie up to that point. Liam Reiner earned the victory
on the mound, giving up only three hits over five innings. Ian Parent relieved him, and the Hornets went hitless for the last two. In addition to his work on the mound, Reiner collected an RBI for the cause.
Runs do and do not come easily for softball women
Essex’s two pitchers threw a nohitter and their team batted in 19 runs to smother CVU 19-2 on Saturday. The two Redhawk runs came as results of infield outs by Hattie Roberts and Kylie McClaire. The loss came shortly after the Redhawks buried Burlington 24-8. That game seemed to belong to the Gagnons who knocked in 9 runs between the two of them.
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14 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Arts
Hinesburg Artist Series spring concert Come join friends and neighbors at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 21, at the CVU High School auditorium for a concert featuring the Hinesburg Community Band and the South County Chorus, under the direction of Rufus Patrick. The concert will also feature flutist Laurel Ann Maurer. The Hinesburg Community Band will perform “Star Wars Heroes,” “Kirkpatrick’s Muse,” “At the End of the Rainbow” and “Wild Rose Jamboree.” Flutist Laurel Ann Maurer will be the soloist for “Carmen Fantasie Brilliante,”
based on the music from the opera by Bizet. The South County Chorus will sing “Aura Lee,” “Flight Song,” “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” “I’m Gonna Ride That Glory Train” and a great Greg Gilpin arrangement of George and Ira Gershwin’s “Clap Your Hands.” Guest artist Laurel Ann Maurer has appeared as flute soloist throughout the United States and Europe, including performances at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center. She has
appeared as concerto soloist with the Monte Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, the National Flute Association’s American Flutist Concerto Orchestra, the Salt Lake Symphony and the Long Island Chamber Orchestra. Laurel is based in Barre, Vermont, and enjoys her dual roles as performer and teacher. She is a previous guest artist with the Hinesburg Artist Series and is the artistic director of Vermont Virtuosi. The event is free, with donations gratefully accepted.
Laurel Ann Maurer.
Courtesy photo
Elaine Ittleman landscapes celebrated Staff report
Elaine Ittleman of Charlotte paints large abstract landscapes. She’s passionate about art and has been painting for more than two decades in various media including oil, watercolor and pastel. Her work has evolved through impressionistic landscapes to a more abstract approach. She will exhibit fourteen recent oil paintings in the Jackson Gallery in Middlebury at an artist’s reception from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, May 19. Ittleman creates art simply for the joy of it, she said, and has taken classes at the Arts League in NYC, Community College of Vermont, and many workshops. Her paintings have been included in numerous regional exhibits. “We all approach art as individuals with all the experiences that make us who we are, so we all react to art differently,” she said. “Therefore, I prefer to create rather than interpret my work.” She’s a practicing labor and delivery nurse at UVM Medical Center and when she is not working or painting, she and her husband Frank welcome the public to their Lemon Fair Sculpture Park in Shoreham during the summer and fall months. The pastoral setting is home to their collection of outdoor works by several sculptors. The self-guided mile long path is the realization of their vision to share the beauty of the land and the sculpture with everyone. The Jackson Gallery is located in the lower level of Town Hall Theater, a community and cultural venue located in the center of Middlebury. Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday noon to five, and an hour before any public events in the building. For further information call (802) 382-9222 or visit www.townhalltheater.org.
ElaineIttlemanofCharlottewillexhibitfourteenrecent oil paintings in the Jackson Gallery in Middlebury from May 19 through June 25. Courtesy photo
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 15
Charlotte Public Safety Log As submitted by the Shelburne Police Department
Saturday, April 1 - April 27 Saturday, April 1 03:06 Accident PI Ethan Allen Hwy. & Wildwood W., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a 2-car motor vehicle collision with injuries. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched and Vermont State Police was notified. All patients refused transported to the hospital. Monday, April 3 23:56 Medical Assist High Manor Park, Waltham. Charlotte Rescue assisted Vergennes Rescue at a medical call. The patient refused transport to the hospital. Wednesday, April 5 17:05 Medical Call Greenbush Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. Thursday, April 6 11:12 Medical Call Ferry Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. 22:18 Medical Assist Main St., Vergennes. Charlotte Rescue assisted Vergennes Rescue at a medical call. The patient was transported to the hospital by Charlotte Rescue. Saturday, April 8 01:33 Medical Assist Covington Ln., Shelburne. Charlotte Rescue assisted Shelburne Rescue at a medical call. The patient was transported to the hospital by Charlotte Rescue. 01:38 Medical Call Ethan Allen Hwy., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue and Vergennes Rescue were dispatched. The patient refused transport to the hospital. 09:16 Medical Call Spear St., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital.
19:25 Medical Call Ethan Allen Hwy., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. Sunday, April 9 07:43 Medical Call Spear St., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. 16:02 Fire Alarm Thorpe Cove Rd., Charlotte. Caller reported fire alarm activation. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched. The alarm was determined to be a false alarm. 18:16 Fire Alarm Thorpe Cove Rd., Charlotte. Caller reported fire alarm activation. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched. The alarm was determined to be a false alarm. Monday, April 10 09:04 Agency Assist Pine Haven Shores Rd.; Shelburne Bay, Shelburne. Charlotte Fire and Rescue assisted Shelburne Fire and Rescue at a fire call. Wednesday, April 12 03:41 Fire Call Dorset St., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a residential fire. Charlotte Fire, Rescue, Ferrisburgh Fire, Hinesburg Fire, Shelburne Fire were dispatched. The fire was extinguished, no reported injuries. 07:09 Fire Assist Shelburne Rd., Shelburne. Charlotte Fire assisted Shelburne Fire at a motor vehicle crash. Thursday, April 13 17:04 Fire Alarm One Mile Rd., Charlotte. Caller reported fire alarm activation. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched. The alarm was determined to be a false alarm. Friday, April 14 05:55 Fire Call Dorset St., Charlotte. 911
caller reported a rekindle at location of residential fire. Charlotte Fire, Rescue, Ferrisburgh Fire, Hinesburg Fire, Shelburne Fire were dispatched. The fire was extinguished, no reported injuries. 22:21 Fire Call Fat Cow Farm Cir., Charlotte. 911 caller reported an uncontrolled burn in the area. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched. The fire was located and determined to be an unpermitted burn. The fire was extinguished, no reported injuries. Saturday, April 15 13:10 Medical Call Ferry Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. 22:15 Accident PI Mount Philo Rd. & McGuire Pent Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a 2-car motor vehicle collision with injuries. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched and Vermont State Police was notified. All patients refused transported to the hospital. Tuesday, April 18 01:08 Medical Call Greenbush Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient refused transport to the hospital. 16:29 Fire Assist US Route 7, Ferrisburgh. Charlotte Fire assisted Ferrisburgh Fire at a motor vehicle crash involving powerlines down. Wednesday, April 19 12:13 Medical Assist Monkton Rd., Vergennes. Charlotte Rescue Paramedic assisted Vergennes Rescue at a medical call. The patient was transported to the hospital by Vergennes Rescue. Thursday, April 20 10:41 Fire Alarm Thompson’s Point Rd., Charlotte. Caller reported fire alarm activation. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were
dispatched. The alarm was determined to be a false alarm. 17:30 Accident PI Mount Philo Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a 2-car motor vehicle collision with injuries. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched and Vermont State Police was notified. The patient was transported to the hospital. 20:22 Medical Call Wesley Dr., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. Friday, April 21 18:15 Medical Call Palmer Ln., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue, Shelburne Police were dispatched and Vermont State Police were notified. The patient was transported to the hospital. Sunday, April 23 11:15 Medical Call Church Hill Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient refused transport to the hospital. 17:22 Fire Alarm Crosswind Dr., Charlotte. Caller reported fire alarm activation. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched. The alarm was determined to be a false alarm. Tuesday, April 25 07:36 Medical Call Hinesburg Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. 11:26 Fire Assist Hedgerow Dr., Shelburne. Charlotte Fire assisted Shelburne Fire at a motor boat fire. Thursday, April 27 09:10 Medical Call Lake Rd., Charlotte. 911 caller reported a medical emergency. Charlotte Rescue was dispatched. The patient was transported to the hospital. 15:33 Medical Assist Terraces, Shelburne. Charlotte Rescue assisted Shelburne Rescue at a medical alarm. The alarm was determined to be a false alarm. 21:28 Fire Alarm Mount Philo Rd., Charlotte. Caller reported fire alarm activation. Charlotte Fire and Rescue were dispatched. The alarm was determined to be a false alarm.
16 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Health Matters Timothy Gould Imagine your average golfer. Is he or she lazily leaning on a golf club on the tee box? Are they slumped in a golf cart as they ride beside the fairway, beer cans rattling in the cup holders? Perhaps they are somewhat overweight and have a lingering smell of cigar smoke about them? At the very least, they are wearing shorts with gaudy print on them, right? In any case, chances are you aren’t picturing the fittest or most graceful of athletes. In fact, many might argue that “golfer” and “athlete” don’t belong in the same sentence. The stereotype is strong, and history has generally supported it. In recent decades, however, change has come to the game of golf and those who play it. Namely, golfers have increasingly acknowledged the physical forces associated with the game and have embraced fitness to address them. This has resulted in a new breed of golfer. One who is stronger, more flexible, more powerful and, yes, more athletic than those before.
The effect of a golf swing on the human body
To understand why golfers have made this transformation, one must appreciate the impacts the golf swing has on the human body. While golf appears on its surface to be a slow-moving game of etiquette and white belts, it actually involves one of the most explosive movements in all of sports. Rarely do we see tranquility erupt into ferocity in such fashion as when we witness the golf swing. The effects on
Yes, golfers are, in fact, athletes the body are tremendous. Consider these measures: The average club head speed (using a driver) for an amateur male golfer is 94 mph and for an amateur female golfer is 78 mph. Low handicap and professional golfers typically generate swing speeds from 105 up to 125 mph. From the top of the backswing (at which point the club is momentarily not in motion) to impact takes approximately 0.25 seconds. That means the body accelerates the club from 0 mph to around 100 mph in a quarter of a second. Compressive forces on the spine equal approximately eight times body weight during the golf swing; compressive spinal forces are only three times body weight while running. Studies show compressive forces in the spines of professional golfers to average 7584 Newtons. An average of 8679 Newtons of compressive force are exerted on the spine when college football linemen slam into a blocking sled. A swing speed of 100 mph increases compressive forces on the lead knee approximately 6.5 times body weight. This compressive force is greater than those measured on the knee during stair descent, jogging, and while playing tennis. Walking 18 holes (of regular play, not just straight line walking) averages five miles, and spine height shrinks approximately six millimeters while carrying a golf bag over nine holes. Bear in mind, finally, the number of swings golfers take. Range balls, practice swings, real swings, mulligans (well, hopefully not too many of those). They all add up. The cumulative effect on our bodies is significant. It is no wonder that 62 percent of amateur and 85 percent of professional golfers sustain injuries at some point during their careers.
Golf training programs
In view of these factors, it becomes
apparent that physical fitness and training are requisite for purposes of injury prevention as well as performance. Golfers must prepare their bodies to sustain these stresses in high volume, transferring energy from their bodies to the golf ball with maximum efficiency. Golf-specific training programs typically consist of a combination of mobility (joint range of motion, soft tissue flexibility), stability (dynamic balance and body control), power (force generation and energy transfer) and motor control (movement patters or “muscle memory”). Golfers can now be found exercising at the gym, at home, with trainers and even on the driving range to adequately prepare
their bodies for the game they love. The results are recognizable. Golfers are hitting the ball farther, playing longer into their years, and looking more trim in those gaudy print shorts. Here’s to a positive revolution in a centuries-old game: The athlete golfer. Dr. Timothy Gould is a physical therapist at Dee Physical Therapy in Shelburne (deept.com). He can be reached at timothygould@deept.com
Spring Has Sprung
May flowers like these daffodils have finally sprung! Photo by Lynn Monty
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 17
Outdoors Soak up some seasonal activities Elizabeth Bassett CONTRIBUTOR
In Charlotte mud season is a distant memory. Outdoor thoughts stray to hiking, biking, kayaking and wildflower walks. Trees are in leaf and lilacs bursting. What’s a body to do in the outdoors? Kayaking and Canoeing It’s early in the season with Lake Champlain a chilly 43° at this writing, but spring high water makes for great explorations on local waterways. Floodplain or riparian forests hug the lake and its tributaries. Paddling is easy as the trees are tall with few side limbs and few understory plants grow. Both pickerel and northern pike spawn here. Swamp white oak, green ash and silver and red maple, as well as hybrids of the two, tolerate sodden ground for part of the year. To explore the LaPlatte River, launch from the boat access on Bay Road in Shelburne and paddle up Lewis Creek from Long Point. When the water is warmer these are good departure points for Lake Champlain as well. Get the spiders out of your craft and locate your paddles, life jacket and sunhat. When the day is right you will be ready! Hiking Until Memorial Day weekend the Green Mountain Club and Vermont Forest, Parks and Recreation encourage hikers to stay off
of high-elevation trails. As snow and ice melt, the ground gets saturated, and trails can turn into mud pits. Walking around the mud only worsens the situation as the trails widen, damaging vegetation and soil structure that in turn fosters erosion. Just don’t do it! There are plenty of other great places to walk and hike. The Trail Around Middlebury, the TAM, is marking its 25th anniversary. With completion of two bridges, the 18-mile loop encircles the town over farmland, conserved property, schools and public lands. Outside magazine lists the TAM as one of the country’s best trail-running destinations, and several segments are bike and jogstroller accessible. Segments range from 0.6 to 4.6 miles—a walk in the woods, a gambol across a sheep pasture or an exploration of marshland. Maps and descriptions of each section are online at maltvt.org, as well as the Middlebury Land Trust (MALT) office, Frog Hollow Bikes, Middlebury Mountaineer and Addison County Chamber of Commerce. There is parking for each section. Burlington’s Intervale Center hosts miles of trails and dirt farm roads that hug the Winooski River winding past farmland and community gardens enroute to the Ethan Allen Homestead. These trails are also part of the Cycle the City loop that highlights Burlington’s natural, human and architectural history: localmotion.org.
Local Business Directory
The 16,000-acre Moosalamoo National Recreation Area is part of the Green Mountain National Forest. More than 70 miles of trails stretch across the western slopes of the Green Mountains south of Middlebury. Trails are open year round for walking, hiking, biking, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. This land includes the Robert Frost Interpretive Trail on Route 125 in Ripton, a gentle one-mile walk dotted with Frost’s poetry. This is an easy walk for young and old that is enriched by poems inspired by this landscape. moosalamoo.org. History Hike, Little River State Park. A moderate four-mile walk past abandoned hill farms, cemeteries, a school and an old sawmill. Foundations, wells and dooryard plantings are evidence of the lives of selfreliant farmers whose homes and land were flooded in the 1927 flood and soon abandoned. vtstateparks.com. Biking Pump the tires, check the brakes, don some high-visibility clothes and add some blinking lights for safety. The deaths of local cyclists in recent years have heightened awareness of the need for both cyclists and vehicle drivers to be attentive to and respectful of one another and to obey the laws that govern use of our roads. Pedestrians and bikers have rights, but they also have responsibilities, including obeying stop signs and lights. Bikers must use hand
The bike ferry that goes across the “cut” between Colchester and South Hero. Photo by Elizabeth Bassett signals for turns and stopping and should ride single-file unless in designated bike lanes, which include paved shoulders. From a half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise, bikers are required to use front and back lights. Now to the fun of biking! Champlain Bikeways (champlainbikeways.org) is a rich resource for short loops as well as the 363mile route around Lake Champlain and the Richelieu River in Quebec. Theme loops range from 10 to 47 miles on both paved and unpaved roads. Longer routes include one or more ferries across the lake. Addison County rides include Rebel’s Retreat at 42.5 and Otter Creek Wandering at 28.5 miles. The Champlain Islands feature the Island Line Trail, which uses the bike ferry to connect Burlington, via the Causeway in Colchester, to the islands. Among the shorter theme loops: Stone Castles (South Hero), A Trail to Two Beaches (Alburg and Isle LaMotte), and Island Life through Grand Isle. Happy spring!
18 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Parenting Quietly making noise: Reminiscing on the toddler years Jorden Blucher CONTRIBUTOR
We have let Noah out of the giant play pen we once called a living room, which consists of his toys and a couple of chairs. He had been happy with this arrangement for months, until last week, when he began standing by the gate yelling and often dragging his sippy cup across the bars. We had no choice but to let him out. The first time we gave him free rein of the house there were really no problems. I was doing the dishes. Noah crawled into the kitchen and watched me load the dishwasher. Then he found the drawer filled with Tupperware and was happy to play with that for the rest of the evening. This is great, I thought; he didn’t even get into the other cabinets. This won’t be so bad after all. I am not sure why, when you become a parent, you begin to think such irrational thoughts as “He’s happy with that one kitchen drawer; I don’t have to worry about the others.” But you do, and it causes nothing but trouble. The next morning, very early the next morning, I was sitting at the table trying to write when I heard a loud crash from the kitchen. Noah had discovered another cabinet and had pulled out the
“This is great, I thought; he didn’t even get into the other cabinets. This won’t be so bad after all. I am not sure why, when you become a parent, you begin to think such irrational thoughts.”
Courtsey photo vegetable steamer and two cake pans, which he proceeded to bang together, bang on the floor and bang on the cabinet. It was so loud I thought the roof was falling in. I directed him back to the Tupperware drawer, blocked the cabinet with the garbage can and went back to stare at my coffee cup. By the time I
sat down he was at another unprotected cupboard and had pulled out our rather large cheese grater. I dashed into the kitchen and carefully pried it from his hands. Placing a bench in front of that cabinet, I went back to my cold cup of coffee. Later that day, with most of the dishes piled on the counter so that Noah
could not get to them, I thought it might be time to childproof the cabinets. The locking of the cabinets turned out to be the least of my worries. My memory is the greatest threat to keeping Noah from getting into things now. I will put him down and off he will race for the open bathroom door. I am always amazed at how fast he can crawl— or maybe it’s how slow the neurons in my brain are firing due to lack of sleep. Regardless, he is already into the bathroom before I have gotten out of my seat. This pattern continues until I have managed to get everything out of his reach and all doors are closed. Then the cat starts to meow and look around for his food and I inadvertently leave a door open. The cycle is repeated again, often several times throughout the day. One would think that with all the laps that Noah does around the wall that separates our kitchen and living room, coupled with the throwing of Tupperware, he would be worn out. But his energy level seems only to increase while mine has gone into a nose dive. When he was immobile and not sleeping more than a few hours, I thought I could not get more tired, but then he began to move, then crawl, then pull himself up and reach for things. I figure by the time he starts walking I am going to need a second coffeemaker to have enough energy to keep up with him. At least I am getting my legs in shape for ski season with all of the squatting, jumping out of my seat and sprinting I am doing to grab things out of Noah’s hands.
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The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 19
The birds came — a sight I will never forget Bradley Carleton CONTRIBUTOR
I once knew a man who introduced me to myself. His name was Tony. He owned a buffalo farm here in Charlotte and a chain of some of the finest restaurants in Vermont. I was a host in one of his restaurants and happily greeted our customers. I had just left a short-lived career as a stockbroker and was struggling to find my purpose. I had learned that I had been pursuing the image of a financial paragon, when reality came crashing down on me and I saw what I was doing for what it was—artificial egoism. Occasionally Tony would come in to our restaurant, and in larger-than-life fashion (I think he was a reincarnated buffalo) he would always recognize me and pat me on the back with gusto. Over time our friendship grew. He would always ask me about my greatest passion: waterfowl hunting. He remembered what I told him, and the next time I saw him we would start our conversation where we left off. Tony loved to hunt, but his intention was different from mine at the time. I was young and full of vinegar. I hunted to bag limits of waterfowl. He hunted for a spiritual connection. His approach to this passion of mine rubbed off on me and caused me to begin to question why I hunted. Eventually he hired me as a guide to take him and a few of his cronies out for a goose hunt. I was working for another
guide at the time, and he set up a hunt in a field where literally thousands of snow geese had been feeding the evening before. Eight of us spent four hours in the dark, setting up Texas ragstyle windsock decoys—2,000 of them. Our palms bled from shoving the wooden dowels, which acted as flagpoles for the windsocks, into the hard clay of Addison County. We retreated to a wood line on the edge of the Snow geese. field and covered ourselves with shrubbery for camouflage. As the sun began to rise over the distant mountains, we heard a dull roar from the northwest. It was an odd sound, like that of a train whistle but in basso profundo. As the sound got closer it started to sound like if 10,000 pigs tried to bark like a dog. “Snows! Here they come!” came the shout from somewhere down the line. A little background information should be inserted here. Snow geese had been granted a “Conservation Order” status under the Clinton administration. This meant that the population had grown so large that the habitat on which they depend for food is being degraded to a point that it could not support the one and a half
million birds in the flyway. The US Fish & Wildlife Service was directed to reduce the population by relaxing daily bag limits, adding a second season in the spring, liberalizing the number of shots a hunter is allowed to have in their shotgun, and allowing electronic game callers. At the time, this meant that each hunter Courtesy photo could shoot 15 birds in a single day’s hunt. Multiply that by eight hunters and it was legal to shoot as many as 120 birds. Now it is important to understand that, while numbers like that are never actually harvested here in the Champlain Valley, they do occasionally happen in the Mississippi flyway, where the population is more than double our flyway. Well, the birds came. And it was a sight I will never forget. We managed to decoy the entire Dead Creek Refuge—14,000 birds in all. Snow geese fly in a cylindrical landing pattern that looks like a reverse cyclone we called “the toilet bowl flush.” The mature geese stay up high and let the juveniles
land first. They’ve seen this movie before. If the “juvies” land and are not shot, the mature birds will begin to trickle down into the funnel. When 14,000 birds are hanging overhead, their calling is so loud that you can’t hear the person next to you shouting. And they can’t hear the gunshots. Within minutes we had over 40 birds on the ground. Tony stood up, his imposing figure announcing to the birds and us that he was finished. He proclaimed, “That’s enough,” in a calm but deliberate manner. He was the client, and when the client says he’s had enough, it stops. In that moment, I had an epiphany. Hunting was not about getting my bag limit every time. It was about “enough.” Tony Perry passed away this winter on his ranch in Colorado, in the presence of his loving wife and family. After a miraculously entertaining and rich life he had finally had “enough” to satisfy his spiritual bag limit. On Sunday, June 4, I will be honoring this great man’s life by attending a memorial service at Shelburne Farms. I will thank him for teaching me how to hunt. Bradley Carleton is executive director of Sacred Hunter.org, a nonprofit that seeks to educate the public on the spiritual connection of man to nature, and raises funds for Traditions Outdoor Mentoring. org, which mentors at-risk young men in outdoor pursuits.
20 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
FIRE
continued from page 1 and a couple from New York who came to learn about Charlotte’s compressed air foam system. Crews also worked on ventilating roofs, rescue and evacuation, observing fire behavior and used thermal imaging cameras. The house was also made available to The Vermont State Police. Collectively the building was used for close to 1,500 man-hours’ worth of training that would not be available any other way to these departments, Charlotte Fire Department Chief Dick St. George said.
MEMORIAL DAY
continued from page 1 feeling shared by men who have gone through, and survived, some cataclysmic phenomenon; a hurricane or an earthquake, say, or a horrendous railway accident. Memory smoothed the crumpled scroll, abolished fear, leached pain and grief, and removed the sting of death.
Shelburne volunteer firefighter Lee Krohn said, “While some may decry burning down what may appear to be a perfectly good house, it was going to be demolished anyway; and the skills practiced over these past several months may well be lifesaving one day, whether for firefighters themselves and/or occupants of a home or business. And that’s priceless.” The Charlotte Fire Department would like to thank everyone who participated or helped make the live burn training weekend happen, St. George said. “The number of people who were involved is huge, starting with a homeowner willing to donate a structure, to the people making lunches, to the firefighters patently waiting their turn to go in. Great weekend. Thanks to all.”
Once a year at least—aside, that is, from regimental banquets and mass reunions, attended more and more sparsely by middleaged, then old, then incredibly ancient men who dwindled finally to a handful of octogenarian drummer boys, still whiskered for the most part in a clean-shaven world that had long since passed them by—these survivors got together to honor their dead. On Decoration Day in 1884, Oliver Wendell Holmes said in part, ‘You could not stand up day after day, in those indecisive
Fire and rescue training at the Moulton residence on Route 7 in Charlotte on May 6. Photo by Catherine Metropoulos contests where overwhelming victory was impossible because neither side would run as they ought when beaten, without getting at last something of the same brotherhood for the enemy that the north pole of a magnet has for the south, each working in an opposite sense to the other, but unable to get along without the other. For one hour, twice a year at least—at the regimental dinner, where the ghosts sit at table more numerous than the living, and on this day when we decorate their graves—the dead come back and live with us. I see them now, more than I can number, as once I saw them on this earth.’ In time, even death itself might be abolished. Sergeant Berry Benson saw it so when he got around to composing the Reminiscences he hoped would ‘go down amongst my descendants for a long time.’ Reliving the war in words, he began to wish he could relive it in fact, and he came to believe that he and his fellow soldiers, gray and blue, might one day be able to do just that: if not here on earth, then afterwards in Valhalla. ‘Who knows,’ he asked as his narrative drew toward its close, ‘but it may be given to us, after this life, to meet again in the old quarters, to play chess and draughts, to get up soon to answer the morning roll call, to fall in at the tap of the drum for drill and dress parade, and again to hastily don our war gear while the monotonous patter of the long roll summons to battle?’ Who knows but again the old flags, ragged and torn, snapping in the wind, may face each other and flutter, pursuing and pursued, while the cries of victory fill a summer day? And after the battle, then the slain and wounded will arise, and all will meet together under the two flags, all sound and well, and there will be talking and laughter and cheers, and all will say: ‘Did it not seem real? Was it not as in the
old days?’” The Poet’s Perspective, by Walt Whitman (1819-1892) Pensive On Her Dead Gazing (1865) “Pensive on her dead gazing I heard the Mother of All, Desperate on the torn bodies, on the forms covering the battle-fields gazing, (As the last gun ceased, but the scent of the powder-smoke linger’d,) As she call’d to her earth with mournful voice while she stalk’d, Absorb them well O my earth, she cried, I charge you lose not my sons, lose not an atom, And you streams absorb them well, taking their dear blood, And you local spots, and you airs that swim above lightly impalpable, And all you essences of soil and growth, and you my rivers’ depths, And you mountain sides, and the woods where my dear children’s blood trickling redden’d, And you trees down in your roots to bequeath to all future trees, My dead absorb or South or North—my young men’s bodies absorb, and their precious, precious blood, Which holding in trust for me faithfully back again give me many a year hence, In unseen essence and odor of surface and grass, centuries hence, In blowing airs from the fields back again give me my darlings, give my immortal heroes, Exhale me them centuries hence, breathe me their breath, let not an atom be lost, O years and graves! O air and soil! O my dead, an aroma sweet! Exhale them perennial sweet death, years, centuries hence.”
The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 21
Senior Center News Mary Recchia CONTRIBUTOR
Please look for the new summer program as an insert in the next issue of The Charlotte News. Note that the Center will be closed on Monday, May 29, in celebration of Memorial Day. Save the date! Our annual Plant Sale will be held on Saturday, May 27, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., rain or shine. You will find lots of buds, blossoms and bargains! Seedling or plant donations will be accepted at the Center from May 22 to May 26. Hope to see you there. The Birding Expedition scheduled for May 24 has been canceled, but mark your calendars for June 7 at 8 a.m. when Hank will treat you to the early birds of summer through his “Oh My God” telescope. Getting Ready for an Active Summer? Ginger Lambert will help you achieve that goal on Tuesday mornings
from 9:15–10. Using timed intervals and a series of stations this class will incorporate body weight, light weights and other cardio/strength building tools to boost strength, cardiovascular fitness, agility and flexibility. Joint and ligament issues will be taken into account. Every exercise can be modified for any ability or level of fitness. If you have been looking for a class that challenges you but doesn’t leave you in the dust, then this is for you. Registration necessary. Limit 10. Fee: $10 per class. The last after luncheon program of the season will be pianist, Annemieke Spoelstra McLane. Originally from the Netherlands and having played throughout Europe winning awards and praise, Annemieka made her way to Vermont in 2004. She takes a break from her current work as pianist for the Handel Society of Dartmouth College to share selections from her new program “Gardentours… Birds and Bees and Flowers and…” with Couperin, Debussy, Grieg, Rachmaninov, Rimsky-Korsakov and more. Please join us for this special performance Wednesday, May 24, beginning at 1 p.m.
Spring Tea hosted by Liz Fotouhi and Friends with Margaret Titus, Harriet Brainard, MaryLou Payne and Nancy Hinsdale. Courtesy photo
Puzzles
SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 23:
45. Dummkopf 49. Six-line poem 51. Achievement 54. ___ power 55. Cal. col. 56. Ostrichlike birds 57. Atlas section 58. “Calm down!” 62. Brown, for one 63. Adhesive 64. Bait 65. Pipe joint 66. Gas additive 67. Challenges
Across 1. Italian beverage 6. Black 11. Calphalon product 14. They were created in 1912 15. Mountaineer’s tool 16. ___ Rancho (suburb of Albuquerque)
17. Be in charge 20. Go for 21. Egg 22. Faint 23. Bass, e.g. 24. Castle part 25. Diminutive 28. Turning chisel accompanier
30. N.B.A.’s Unseld 31. Be off base 32. ___ physics 36. Carbamide 37. Fancy frocks 41. Indian tourist site 42. Annoying 43. Debate position 44. Ribosomal ___
Down 1. Lite 2. Interstice 3. Afternoon service 4. Cause for a lawsuit 5. D.C. setting 6. It doesn’t hold water 7. Carry on 8. Road shoulder 9. ___-tzu 10. Oozes 11. Chief administrative officers 12. Cause of inflation? 13. Discouraging words 18. Furrow maker 19. Remain unused 24. Set aside 25. California’s San ___ Bay 26. Elder, e.g. 27. Pitching stats
29. Maori war dance 30. Rings up? 33. ___ the town 34. 100 kurus 35. Breed 36. Drew on 37. Beanies 38. Beast 39. Ocular problem 40. Discharge 44. Enter again 46. Insect stage 47. Idle 48. Hamlet et al. 50. Call on 51. ___ Thieves
52. Chart holder 53. Old English character 56. Corn dish 57. Atlas stat 58. Do-it-yourselfer’s purchase 59. Party time, maybe 60. Buttermilk morsel? 61. Common contraction
22 • May 17, 2017 • The Charlotte News
Boating Congress urged to keep recreational boating part of the national park system Staff report In his testimony to a House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee, Chris Edmonston, the founding president of the Boat Owners Association of the United States, gave the half-millionmember boating group’s support for more public-private partnerships and technology investments in an effort to improve visitors’ experiences at national parks. At the hearing, Edmonston urged Congress to ensure that tough budget times do not jeopardize recreational boating access in America’s national parks. “To state the obvious, without adequate waterway access there is virtually no opportunity to go boating,” Edmonston said. “We suggest that investment in facilities that provide access to public lands and waters should remain a priority.” The Boat Owners Association of the United States is 50 years old and is one of the nation’s largest organization of recreational boaters. “We are the boat owners’ voice on Capitol Hill and fight for their rights,” Edmonston said. Edmonston pointed out the success of public-private partnerships that can meet the needs of boaters. He cited the Boat Owners Association’s own TowBoatU.S. water-assistance service that began as a result of federal cost saving measures and today preserves
“To state the obvious, without adequate waterway access there is virtually no opportunity to go boating.” CHRIS EDMONSTON
President of the Boat Owners Association of the United States
At a hearing held last month by a House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee, Chris Edmonston, the founding president of Boat Owners Association of the United States, urged Congress to ensure that tough budget timesdonotjeopardizerecreationalboatingaccessinAmerica’snationalparks. Courtesy photo
vital resources for emergency missions while giving boaters the routine towing services they need at a reasonable cost.
In his testimony Edmonston also discussed the boater-funded Sportfish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, recently reauthorized through 2020. The “user pay — everyone benefits” fund uses taxes that boaters and anglers pay to match state, local and private investment
for boating access, such as launch ramps or transient slips. “Boaters are not looking for a free ride and are quite willing to pay reasonable fees provided they can count on the facilities being available and well managed,” he said.
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The Charlotte News • May 17, 2017 • 23
Community Events Reunion: Champlain Valley Union High School Class of 1972 will host a reunion from 3 to 8 p.m. at Cedar Knoll Country Club in Hinesburg on Saturday, July 15. Light fare. Golf is available. Please RSVP to Gary Shepard at gshep18@yahoo.com by May 26. Open house: Vermont artists with original art or handmade crafts are invited to participate in Shelburne Pond Studios’ Vermont Craft Council Spring Open Studios weekend. Saturday, May 27, and Sunday, May 28, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Application fee $35. Contact kastockman@aol.com for an application and details. Plant Sale: The annual Senior Center Plant Sale is back, Saturday, May 27, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., rain or shine. You will find lots of buds, blossoms and bargains! Seedling or plant donations will be accepted at the Center from May 22 to May 26. Summer tai chi: Open to all adults whether beginners or advanced students. Designed to keep you engaged and current in your practice. All programs offer a falls prevention component and are safe for persons with inflammatory joint conditions. These will be held on Mondays from 10 to 11 a.m. from June 5 to Aug. 14 at the Charlotte Congregational Church. To register please contact Mary West at (802) 9220498 or email igolflikeagirl@gmail.com. SCHIP: This spring as you sort through your clothes please remember SCHIP’s Treasure Resale Shop, which has donated
more than $615,000 to other nonprofits in the past decade. Donate, volunteer or shop. SCHIP accepts any season clothing at any time during the year, provided it is gently used. It also accepts home décor, jewelry and other small items. Call the shop at 985-3595 for more information.
Tuesdays and Thursdays. For more information call 425-6129, ext. 204, or email recreation@townofcharlotte.com. Yoga: Mom and baby yoga on Tuesdays at 8:15 a.m. at Charlotte Central School. For more information call 4256129, ext. 204, or email recreation@ townofcharlotte.com.
Ongoing: Basketball: Multi-age pickup basketball on Mondays at 7 p.m. at Charlotte Central School. For more information call 425-6129, ext. 204, or email recreation@townofcharlotte.com. Baby playgroup: Building Bright Futures Baby Playgroup, first and third Tuesdays of the month from 9 to 10 a.m. at the Charlotte Library. Ages 0 to 2. For more information email bbfcharlotteplaygroup@gmail.com. Playgroup: The Charlotte Playgroup meets Wednesdays from 9:30 to 11 a.m. in the multipurpose room at Charlotte Central School. Follows the school calendar—no playgroup when school is not in session. For more information visit buildingbrightfutures.org or contact Colleen at bbfcharlotteplaygroup@gmail. com. Riding lessons: Steeple Ridge Farm hosts weekly afterschool horseback riding lessons. Students learn the basic care of the horse, including grooming, bathing, feeding and upkeep. This program is offered to all grades on
Please email Lynn@TheCharlotteNews. org to list your community event. ANSWERS TO THIS ISSUE’S PUZZLES FROM PAGE 21:
Classifieds Reach your friends and neighbors for only $7 per issue. (Payment must be sent before issue date.) Please limit your ad to 35 words or fewer and send it to The Charlotte News Classifieds, P.O. Box 251, Charlotte, VT 05445 or email ads@thecharlottenews.org. Since 1977, Lafayette Painting has been providing the best interior and exterior painting services available. Let our experts transform your home. Call us at 863-5397 and see our work, references and more at LafayettePaintingInc.com Redstone: Affordable small office spaces available on Ferry Rd. Starting at $250.00 including all utilities. For more information or to schedule a tour call 658-7400. Interior and Exterior Painting If you’re looking for quality painting with regular or low voc paints and reasonable rates with 35 years of experience call John McCaffrey at 802-999-0963, 802-338-1331 or 802-877-2172 Mt. Philo Inn A unique hotel situated at the base of Mt. Philo State Park with stunning panoramic views of Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks. Spacious 3 bedroom suites with 2 bathrooms and a complete kitchen. Thoughtfully designed for casual elegance. Privacy, space and tranquility. Bigger on the inside. MtPhiloInn.com 802-425-3335 Does your home need a fresh coat of paint or brand new color? Lupine Painting can help with any of your painting needs. 20+ years of stress-free painting. Call for a free consultation (802)598-9940. Tree Service. Lot clearing. Tree and brush removal. Local and fully insured. Call Bud 802-734-4503 Offices For Rent in west Charlotte village, SW corner of Greenbush and Ferry. Lake views, basic Internet included, common kitchen, deck and showers, $300-$525/ month, contact 802-318-6228 or 2848. Greenbush@gmail.com Services: GARDENING. Could you use some help with your garden? Sunnyside Gardener is now open for the season. We can assist you with planting, weeding, edging, mulching, vacation watering and care. Now in our ninth year of operation. Master Gardener trained. Call 864-3268
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