The Vermont Republican Party has unanimously approved a resolution at its state committee meeting on July 10 to oppose "vaccine passports" in Vermont. The resolution comes in response to concerns over medical privacy and individual rights as described in the 4th amendment to the U.S. constitution. Nationally, liberal thought leaders, such as author Naomi Wolf, have…

By Emma Cotton/VTDigger A state-funded collaborative designed to fuel recreation projects distributed $300,000 to towns around the state since its inception three years ago. This year, the collaborative has more than $5 million to spend. The Vermont Outdoor Recreation Economic Collaborative, part of the Dept. of Forests, Parks & Recreation, was formed in 2018 when Gov.…

By Brooke Geery Rutland Rec Superintendent Kim Peters has been working overtime throughout the pandemic. She and her team revamped the College of St. Joseph campus to create a diverse and well-stocked community center. They’ve added a new pool and made other improvements to existing parks in Rutland City. And behind the scenes, the department…

Joseph (Joe) Clarence Jones, age 97, died July 17, 2021 He was preceded by his wife Anne Johnson Jones, who died April 17, 2020, at the age of 90. The Jones' were from Mendon and most recently The Meadows at East Mountain in Rutland Town. Anne was born Aug. 3, 1929, in Boston, Massachusetts, the…

By Erin Petenko and Emma Cotton/VTDigger Washington, Oregon, California and British Columbia are in the midst of a brutal heatwave that has broken records with 115° temperatures and widespread highs above 100 °. It seems unthinkable to imagine Vermont, land of snow and frigid winters, experiencing such a once-in-a-lifetime event. But data and interviews with…

Vermont Fish & Wildlife is offering shooting range improvement grants to encourage upgrades of shooting ranges for enhanced safety and operation. The Shooting Range Improvement Grant Program seeks grant applications from clubs and government agencies involved in the operation of shooting ranges, including archery ranges. Grant applications must be received by 4:30 p.m. on October…

By Kevin O’Connor/VTDigger LUDLOW — Phish guitarist and lead singer Trey Anastasio and his Divided Sky Foundation have overcome neighbors’ opposition to win municipal approval to convert an Okemo Mountain property into a 40-bed treatment center for Vermonters facing alcoholism or addiction. “I started Divided Sky Foundation to offer people the same help that I was fortunate enough…

By Angelo Lynn The Washington Post published an interesting column Tuesday, July 13, by Ashish K. Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, in which the columnist noted the current rate of Covid-19 infection in South Dakota and Vermont were “remarkably similar” and rated among the lowest three (along with Massachusetts) in the country. It’s a…

By Laurie Cox The summer I turned 13, a friend told me how she made a lot of money picking strawberries. It sounded like a relatively easy deal, so my sister and I decided to give it a try. Lunch sacks in hand, we ferried to a nearby island and were loaded in the back…

Dear Editor, In Michael Long’s letter “OneCare is not the problem with Vermont’s health care” published in the July 7 edition, he asserts that “fee-for-service … is the reason health care in the U.S. is the most expensive, but not the most effective.” That’s a questionable claim at best. Canada, for example, largely continues to rely on…

BETHEL—State Police is investigating the death of a man whose body was found Thursday, July 15, 2021, outside a private residence in the town of Bethel. Police were notified at about 6:15 p.m. Thursday that a body had been located in a tent at a property on Findley Bridge Road. Troopers responded to the scene…

VIRTUAL — This year’s virtual Nonprofit Summer Camp will help all levels of professionals grow both professionally and personally while thinking about how we move forward post pandemic.  Each day (July 28 and Aug. 11) includes three sessions to enhance and drive our work and organizations’ missions forward. Register yourself and your staff for one…

On July 18, 2021, at approximately 5:20 p.m., troopers from the Rutland Barracks responded to a reported single-vehicle rollover crash on Danby Pawlet Road., in the town of Danby. Upon arrival to the scene,troopers located a maroon Chevrolet trailblazer that came to a position of uncontrolled rest, overturned on the roadway. Driver Scot Rafus was…

The 8th Annual event will be held Sunday Aug. 22, 2021 from 12-5 p.m. Please save the date and plan on joining us — everyone is welcome! The event is moving up a month to have some hopefully warmer weather and still be in summer vacation for the kids. It’s also moving from Mogul’s Sports Pub…

Dancing vegetables and farm animals come to life in an entertaining ballet performance, Sunday Sunday, July 25 at 6:30 p.m. — WOODSTOCK — Grab your blanket, picnic basket, and the entire family to experience "Farm to Ballet," an early evening, full-length ballet performance at Billings Farm & Museum on Sunday, July 25 at 6:30 p.m.…