By Robin Alberti and Polly Lynn The Rutland Intermediate and Middle School staff entered the Cool School’s Penguin Plunge to honor their friend Keith Page and to support a cause that was near and dear to his heart: the Special Olympics. The 20th annual Penguin Plunge took place Saturday, Feb. 7 at noon on the…

Photo submitted Christine Frenette, left, presents GMP employee Bonnie O’Rourke with a dozen roses for her volunteer efforts for this year’s Gift of Life marathon. RUTLAND—Volunteers, organizers and host sites for the Gift-of-Life Marathon were feted as the American Red Cross held a recognition breakfast Tuesday, Feb. 3, to celebrate December’s GOLM 12 Days of…

A new culinary experience opens By Polly Lynn PITTSFIELD — The Backroom offers a new intimate dining experience unique to the area. Chef Kevin Lasko and Katie Stiles opened the kitchen and communal dining room the first week of February to share their passion for food and entertaining with others. The restaurant is essentially the private…

Longtime resident of Killington Maries Noe passed away on Nov. 4, 2014 in Palm Harbor, Florida. Maries Noe was born in Germany on Sept. 8, 1925.  She and her husband, Waldemar, owned and operated Chalet International on the Killington access road for over 20 years. Waldy Noe passed away in May 2000. Waldy had been…

Josie is a female lab mix, white and tan, approximately 35 pounds, that went missing at the Bear Mountain/ Sunrise area on Saturday, Feb. 7. Her owners are anxious to find her. If you have seen her or have any information, please call 802-779-4084, 860-575-5227 or 802-775-9729.

By Lani Duke CASTLETON—A four-foot-long, young Brazilian rainbow boa is still missing from the Castleton State College science labs. The classroom in which it resided in the Jeffords Science Center was locked over the weekend of Jan. 31-Feb. 1 and remained locked Monday, Feb. 2, due to a snow day. Tuesday morning the snake had…

By Stephen Seitz WOODSTOCK–When Woodstock voters assemble for Town Meeting, one thing they’ll be asked to consider is a one-percent local options tax on rooms, meals, and alcohol. Charles Kimbell, head of Woodstock’s Economic Development Commission, said the tax would raise about $160,000 a year. Kimbell said this isn’t because the town needs more money.…

PLYMOUTH — At the request of Plymouth Town Officials the Vermont State Police were requested to investigate several checks that had been written by the previous town clerk which were believed to be fraudulent. During there investigation it was found that Barbara Stone, age 57, now of Newport, N.H., had cashed several checks written to herself…

Editor’s note: The following letter was submitted by the Killington Selectboard on behalf of the citizens of the town of Killington, to Speaker of the House Shap Smith in response to his request to submit proposals for economic development and job growth strategies for consideration in this legislative biennium. As elected officials, we too have…

By Elizabeth Hewitt, VTDigger.org The Vermont Department of Taxes temporarily suspended the issuance of personal income tax refunds last week. The state suspended refunds on Wednesday in response to reports that other states across the country are seeing an increase in fraudulent filings. TurboTax, the popular tax preparation software company, announced on Friday that an…

City of Rutland awarded top allocation of $300,000; Town of Killington, $227,174 On Feb. 5 Governor Peter Shumlin and Transportation Secretary Sue Minter announced the recipients of $2.1 million in federal funds for municipal grant projects under the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP). The funding will be used for construction projects in 11 cities and towns around the state. “Investments in infrastructure are key to economic growth…

By Amy Ash Nixon, VTDigger.org Speaker of the House Shap Smith’s public request for ideas on education governance and finance reform drew 87 proposals, which are now available online. Smith asked Vermonters to submit ideas on the public education debate now playing out at the State House by New Year’s Eve. “The proposals had a…

By Elizabeth Hewitt, VTDigger.org A new bill in the House takes aim at so-called “revenge porn.” Introduced to the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, Feb. 3, H.105 would make illegal the disclosure of sexually explicit images of a person without the subject’s consent. The practice, a hot issue on the national stage, is termed “revenge…

“Sing us a song you’re the piano man Sing us a song tonight Well we’re all in the mood for a melody And you’ve got us feeling alright” ~Billy Joel Frank Chase has been making folks in Killington feel alright since October 1979 when the late, great Bob “Tuna” Evans first brought him to town…

On Friday, Feb. 13, the public health issue of suicide in Vermont will take center stage at the Vermont State House, during a day of advocacy and recognition of ongoing suicide prevention efforts.  From 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. representatives of the Vermont Suicide Prevention Center, Vermont Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention,…