By Marguerite Jill Dye Do you have a friend whose healing hugs and spoken words encourage and inspire you? Do you have a friend who sees your strengths and teaches you how to overcome weaknesses? I do. Argentine born artist Graciela Giles emanates love, joy, and healing energy. Mom introduced us years ago. She feels…

. By Laurie D. Morrissey There’s a giant living in northern Coös County, New Hampshire. It’s a 61-foot tall tree, the country’s largest known American mountain ash. At last measurement, it stood at a height of 61 feet and had a circumference of 70 inches. That’s outstanding for a tree that’s described by most sources,…

Some of us (and that includes me) have had our Christmas decorations up since the day after Thanksgiving. But by mid-December “the spirit moves” just about everyone. As you bring out your boxes of decorations you will find them filled not just with “things,” but memories. When I start removing items from the boxes my…

Wednesday Dec. 12 KILLINGTON 6 p.m. Liquid Art Open Mic with Fiddlewitch 7:30 p.m. Sushi Yoshi Music Trivia Bingo with DJ Dave PAWLET 7 p.m. The Barn Restaurant and Tavern “Pickin’ in Pawlet” POULTNEY 5 p.m. Taps Tavern Beer Dinner and Craig Agus Ceol RUTLAND 9:30 p.m. Hide-A-Way Tavern College Night with DJ Mega Thursday…

The new Snowdon Six Express chairlift is open. Killington President and CEO Mike Solimano cut the ribbon and the new lifts started spinning at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 8. The new high-speed lift seats six people.  It’s manufactured by Leitner-Poma and features a bubble shield that will protect skiers and riders from wind and weather…

By Katy Savage KILLINGTON—A new restaurant and tasting room is coming to town. Dale Patterson, the owner of Hop’n Moose and Rutland Beer Works, LLC, is opening a tasting room in the Mountain Green condominiums across from the Killington Grand Hotel this Thursday. He plans to call the restaurant/tasting room Rutland Beer Works. The menu…

By Curt Peterson Holiday season commuters will have to get used to not seeing the lavishly decorated Christmas tree in Larry and Pat Fortier’s yard on Route 12 in Hartland after many years. The Fortiers’ son Kevin planted the tree 30 years ago, but it’s now proudly standing in front of the State House in…

By Katy Savage Stefanie Taylor had her first experience playing in an orchestra when she was 13. Taylor attended a two-week summer camp in Poultney, led by the Vermont Symphony Orchestra. She played violin among some of the best players in the Northeast. “When you’re sitting in the middle of an orchestra playing, the sound,…

By Katy Savage RUTLAND TOWN—About a month before Friendly’s abruptly closed its doors in Rutland Dec. 2, the building and property was purchased by the Friendly’s parent corporation. According to Rutland Town records, the 1.27-acre property sold to SIC Property ,LLC in Boca Raton, Florida, for $250,000 on Nov. 1. SIC Property is owned by…

Staff report Mason Zeglen had 30 minutes to purchase his ingredients and cook the meal. Zeglen, of Killington, competing on the Food Network Show, Guy’s Grocery Games,  ran through the grocery store, in competition with three other chefs. The challenge was to use ingredients of a gingerbread house, such as candy canes and M&M’s, in…

By Alan Sculley Stratton Mountain will host the first East Coast WinterWonderGrass Festival, Dec. 14-16. The Infamous Stringdusters are headlining the festival, performing at the kick-off party on Dec. 13 at 9 p.m. and on Friday during the festival. The Infamous Stringdusters have been on tour pretty much non-stop since the start of 2017 and…

By Dom Cioffi A couple weeks ago I sat down at my computer, cup of coffee in hand, and pulled up the morning’s email. I rifled through the prerequisite offers for discount drugs, quickly deleting them as fast as I could read their suggestive subject lines. There were also a few pertinent emails about work,…

By Alan Sculley The band 98 Degrees will come to the Paramount Theatre on Monday, Dec. 17 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $65-$85 at paramountvt.org. Nick Lachey has been television host, a reality television star, a dance contest competitor, an actor, a teen pop star (with 98 Degrees) and a music solo artist. Wearing many…

By Erin Forbes The holiday season has arrived and brings not only celebrations, presents, and decorations but also concerns for pet safety. There are many dangers to be aware of as you begin to celebrate this year. These includes specific types of plants, certain foods, and even decorations. Chocolate is in great abundance during many…

By The Valley News It is profoundly discouraging to witness adults failing in their obligations to the young people in their charge. Examples abound, from the thoughtless to the tawdry to the traumatic, and in each case they represent a betrayal. But what a glorious thing it is when young people, with right on their…