LUDLOW—After serving the Black River Valley and the Okemo region for the past 16 years as LPCTV (Ludlow-Plymouth-Cavendish TV), the community TV station and media education center has decided to re-brand itself as Okemo Valley TV, in order to better reflect its mission and strengthen its identity. At its annual meeting on June 22, Board…

RUTLAND—Rutland Mental Health Services is relocating its Evergreen Substance Abuse Center this fall to unoccupied space in the administration building of BROC Community Action in Southwestern Vermont, adjacent to downtown Rutland on 45 Union St. Both organizations say the move, in addition to providing Evergreen with more space for programming and expansion, creates opportunities to…

CASTLETON—Castleton University partnered with the Vermont Early Childhood Consortium to offer the Early Childhood Summer Institute, July 24-27. The institute consisted of 10 graduate and undergraduate courses classes offered by 14 diverse institutions of higher education and early childhood. The courses were designed to promote Vermont’s core values for early education and to meet the…

Poultney archer scores state’s top buck POULTNEY—Brett Kelley, 21, of Poultney harvested the highest scoring “typical” buck deer taken with a bow and arrow in the state during 2016. The 9-point buck scored 123 6/8 in the Boone & Crockett scoring system, as reported in the Rutland Herald. In recognition of bagging the highest Vermont…

Grassland-nesting bird populations continue to decline in numbers in Vermont, according to recent surveys conducted by the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department (VTF&W) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Bird species that nest in grasslands include vesper sparrows, grasshopper sparrows, bobolinks, and eastern meadowlarks, among others.  The birds nest in hayfields or cow pastures,…

Dear Editor, Does Vermont really welcome tourists? We happened to visit Killington recently and as we passed through Killington we decided to stop at a local general store for snacks and we both needed to use the restroom. Guess what? The store had a rest room for employees only and I was told to use…

Dear Editor, From sun-up to sun-down (yes this rainy spring gave us perfect weather for the day) on Tuesday, July 18, Brandon was a-glow with donors, volunteers, bidders and buyers at the 29th Great Brandon Auction. After unloading our spiffy “Auction Storage Trailer” and organizing the donations that poured out from storage areas, barns, cars,…

By Angelo Lynn There he goes again President Ronald Reagan coined the refrain, “There you go again,” to disarm President Jimmy Carter’s repeated attacks during the 1980 presidential campaign. The refrain has made a comeback, in a completely different context, with Donald Trump’s numerous outrages since moving into the Oval Office. Adding to his mounting number…

By Tom Hughes Last week Governor Phil Scott took another step towards real climate action.  He signed an executive order creating a Vermont Climate Action Commission and reaffirmed the climate and clean energy goals set forth in the 2016 Comprehensive Energy Plan. In this era of federal backsliding, Gov. Scott has sided with the facts. …

Marty Illick and the Lewis Creek Association, a leading Vermont water quality and conservation organization, have been honored with the 18th annual GMP-Zetterstrom Environmental Award. The award, named for famed osprey advocate Meeri Zetterstrom of Milton, was presented to the awardees for more than 25 years of work and education to improve the Lewis Creek watershed, which…

The Killington Wine Festival, a fundraiser for the Killington Pico Area Association (KPAA), was held July 14-16. The weekend began with an estate Tasting at the Peak with over 200 guests sampling wine from 20 various wineries and distilleries. The event also was the public debut of the Killington Valley Initiative with Mike Solimano and Rutland’s…

Christopher (Bunky) Charles Zankowski, 68, of Chittenden Vermont passed away in his home on Saturday July 8 2017 “after many years of fighting the Good Life.” He was born in Uxbridge of Middlesex County, England the son to Casimir and Casimira (Kowalewska) Zankowski. Christopher leaves behind his three daughters, Chelsea Zankowski of Vail, Co., Racheal…

By Paul Holmes A climber hangs onto the cliffside of Deer Leap in Killington, taking advantage of a dry day to practice mountain climbing skills on the rock face. Deer Leap cliffs, just below the lookout and above Inn at Long Trail at the top of Sherburne Pass on Route 4, is a popular climb…

By Evan Johnson The annual Brandon Auction, Tuesday, July 18, attracted 175 people to downtown Brandon and raised over $10K for the town’s chamber.

ROCHESTER— The Rochester/Randolph Area Sports Trail Alliance (RASTA) and Green Mountain Trails (GMT) are partnering up on an initiative to connect their respective networks, according to a news release last week. The project, which recently won the support of a grant from Vermont Huts Association, is part of a statewide movement to offer greater year-round…