By Polly Mikula A “Shark Tank” style entrepreneurship class at Castleton University took a field trip last Tuesday, April 11, to visit local entrepreneur Dale Patterson and tour his brewery, Rutland Brew Works, on Granger Street in Rutland.  Chris Coughlin, vice president of mortgage servicing at Heritage Family Credit Union, has taught the popular class for CU's…

By Curt Peterson Safety and security have been topics of Hartland Select Board meetings for years, but Monday night brought tones of urgency and resolve not evident in the past. Chair Phil Hobbie characterized the discussion as “a big step forward.” Last year the Vermont State Police, due to a shortage of personnel and growing…

The Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation, Water Quality Division has recently awarded the Rutland Regional Planning Commission (RRPC) a contract to administer water quality improvement programs to the 11 Regional Planning Commissions (RPCs) in the state of Vermont. The grant is funded through the 604(b) program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency…

Rolston Rest connects more than 140,000 acres of protected land CHITTENDEN—Trust for Public Land (TPL) has transferred Rolston Rest, the largest private unprotected inholding remaining in Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest, to the U.S. Forest Service for permanent protection. Adding the property to the Green Mountain National Forest will shield the land from the threat…

During mud season, which can run until Memorial Day in upper elevations, hiking and biking trails are extremely wet and muddy due to the combined effects of snow melt, thawing ground, and seasonal rain. FPR asks the public to avoid muddy, soft trails to protect sensitive vegetation and ensure trails are in good shape for…

By Katy Savage Parents and community members sounded off at an Otter Valley Unified Union School Board meeting April 11 over safety concerns in the wake of a series of unrelated violent threats made from two students and a teacher in addition to a School Board member’s transphobic remarks.  The lack of transparency around the…

By Cassandra Tyndall A song was quite famous here in Australia several years ago called “One Crowded Hour.” That’s how this week’s Solar Eclipse will likely feel. While technically an eclipse in Aries, its energy swiftly captures the Sun’s entrance into Taurus as our brightest star clashes with Pluto. This eclipse might feel like you’ve…

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image="194740" img_size="full" alignment="center"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=".vc_custom_1582852508329{margin-top: 40px !important;}"][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width="1/3"][vc_raw_html]JTNDc3BhbiUyMGNsYXNzJTNEJTIyaWNvbmlmeSUyMiUyMGRhdGEtaWNvbiUzRCUyMm1kaS16b2RpYWMtYXJpZXMlMjIlMjBkYXRhLWlubGluZSUzRCUyMmZhbHNlJTIyJTNFJTNDJTJGc3BhbiUzRQ==[/vc_raw_html][vc_custom_heading text="Aries" font_container="tag:h2|text_align:center" use_theme_fonts="yes"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1568082984251{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}"] March 21 - April 20 [/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]They say that opportunities multiply when they are seized. Another one I quite like is strike while the iron is hot. Are you beginning to see the picture I’m painting? If you second guess yourself this…

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 1 office and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) honored 11 New England companies and organizations, including Efficiency Vermont, as Energy Star partners for their outstanding leadership in promoting energy efficiency and tackling climate change, according to a news release March 28. “As we accelerate historic efforts to address…

I was turning 30 and I wanted to wake up in the woods. Of course, that meant that my dad was going to want to come with me, but he had never been actually camping before and certainly not winter camping. We would find out the next morning that he had never slept in a…

I started playing competitive basketball when I was in the fifth grade. That was the first year where the elementary schools in my town (of which there were many) formed a league for intramural play. I competed for Dana School, which was located a few blocks up the road from where I lived.  I started…

I’m often tempted to peek at the eggs inside a phoebe’s nest when the parents leave it to forage for food. I’ve picked up a fallen robin’s egg shell and admired its delicate color and smoothness. I’ve marveled at the primal determination of the chick that pecked its way out of an egg to become…

Careful what you wish for, because you just might get it. I’m sure that’s a phrase you’re familiar with. This week, agreeable Venus shifts signs from where she’s strong, stable and secure to where she’s adaptable, curious and more easily influenced. Sure, the social mood may become lighter and more fluid, but are you actually…

Dear Editor, At my local school board (of which I am a member) budget meeting last week, a community member asked, “What keeps you (individual board members) awake at night?” At that moment, I wasn’t able to find the courage to be candid. The weight of what I wanted to say, my sincere answer, felt…

Dear Editor, Last week, on March 29, Vermont senior U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was grilling Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz on the illegal union-busting activities used by that corporation.  In order to embarrass our senior senator, Schultz shot back that Vermont has a paltry minimum wage of only $13.18/hour. Starbucks, his company, pays more. We…