By Guy Payne  Editor’s note:  Guy Payne is executive director of SEON (Sustainable Energy Outreach Network). Embodying the New England dream entails not only appreciating the region’s natural beauty, history and culture, but also actively engaging in the community and building a sustainable home. To live the New England dream, you must first build…

  By Veronica Raussin Editor’s note: Veronica Raussin is the community outreach coordinator for Addicted.org. On Memorial Day, millions of American families took  time to honor the memory of those who lost their lives fighting in one of the nation’s wars. It can be challenging for families who recently lost a loved one.  We must…

  Dear Editor, Two years ago my spouse and I, ages 74 and 75, resided at the Sonesta ES Suites in Burlington. We stayed there for four weeks. We paid. We awaited a new condo to be ready that we had purchased.  We soon noticed that there were others housed there because of being homeless.…

  Dear Editor, In response to a local Protect Our Wildlife representative’s letter in Front Porch Forum I’d like to offer a timeline as to how we sportsmen and women lived without “help” before the advent of non-consumptive users. This information is available to the public on the Fish and Wildlife Department’s timeline page.  Here…

  By Jim Hurt Editor’s note: Jim Hurt is a resident of Woodstock. Here is the gist of recent recommendations to the Vermont Climate Council calling for the profitable renovation of Vermont’s two wood plants, McNeil and Ryegate, thereby transforming them into negative-emission power and storage stations. These stations will emit very little but remove…

  By Lola Duffort/VTDIgger Gov. Phil Scott on Saturday vetoed the $8.5 billion state budget sent his way by the Democratic-controlled Legislature. The governor’s action was widely anticipated, but in a more unexpected turn of events, House Speaker Jill Krowinski, D-Burlington, followed the governor’s announcement by calling on Scott to declare a state of emergency…

  By Lola Duffort/VTDigger With close to 3,000 unhoused Vermonters slated to leave a state-run motel program in two waves over the spring and summer and local shelters already full, the state is beginning to sketch out an emergency response — by looking outside Vermont’s borders for a solution. The Agency of Human Services on Wednesday,…

   The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department (VTF&W) is increasing outreach efforts to encourage Vermont residents and visitors to get ahead of an anticipated jump in bear conflicts this June.  “Last year, we saw reported bear incidents spike from 206 in May to 473 in June,” said the department’s Black Bear Project Lead Biologist Jaclyn…

  A celebration of life is scheduled for James Fiore at the Foundry in Killington on June 11 at 1 p.m.  The former deputy fire chief in Killington died May 6.  "Please join us in celebrating the life of Jimmy," the family announced. "Bring your stories and memories to share."

  Richard Blaise Garofalo, formerly of Monroe, New York and a 27-year resident of Pittsfield, passed away on May 18, 2023 after a long illness. He was born to Stella and Philip Garofalo on July 30, 1943 in Queens, New York. He attended Flushing High School, and joined the U.S. Army National Guard after graduation.…

On Sunday, June 4 at 4 p.m., a locally written play about early Woostock residents will be performed by locals at North Chapel in Woodstock.  Who was Lucy McKenzie? Why did the Baptist deacon want to reshape the fiddle? Have you heard the rumors of disinterment? Did you know Norman Williams was an engineer turned…

  By Brooke Geery  After a 37-year career in snow sports, Dan Bergeron is retiring. Prior to his 11 years as snow sports operations manager at Killington, he served as the ski school director at Okemo for 22 years and the ski school director for Mount Ascutney before that.  As a divisional clinic leader and…

  By Katy Savage Households spent an average of $326 on veterinary care in 2020, according to Forbes Magazine.   Ameila Jones, a student at the Killington School of Resort Management, wants to change that. She presented a product she said “will help save your pets' lives,” to a group of investors at Killington Grand…

  Rutland local Anna Tadio has co-founded Vermont’s first Young Democrats group along with Giovanni Falco.. Falco currently serves as the president of the organization while Tadio serves as general counsel.  The founders and board of directors of the Vermont Young Democrats officially launched the organization last week,  joining the Vermont Democratic Party at the…

By Katy Savage Samuel Koroma came to Vermont last August hoping to escape hardships from back home, but the hardships seem to have followed him. Koroma, 26, grew up in a rural area west of Freetown, Sierra Leone in West Africa. Just after his family dropped Koroma off at the airport so he could attend…