By Julia Purdy On a recent early spring day, with snow still blanketing the woods, no green shoots were poking through just yet, but meltwater was trickling across the old woods road along the east flank of Birdseye, where deer and turkey had left recent tracks. At the top of the hike, a winter-beaten field…

By Mike Polhamus, VTDigger Nearly 1,400 students descended on the state capitol  Wednesday, April 12, for a rally against climate change. High school students organized the event, which was conceived three years ago by students in a civics class at Harwood Union High School. Several of the students provided testimony to legislators on the importance…

KILLINGTON—With this summer right around the corner, Vermont Adaptive announced its new adaptive mountain bike program, one of the first in New England. The program offers limited adaptive mountain bikes plus special dates for outings in various locations. The program quietly began last summer. This year multiple locations, outings and events are planned for all…

RUTLAND—Kindred Spirit, Rutland’s unique downtown furniture and home goods store, is moving around the corner and tripling in size, owners Stephen Willoughby and Allison Thompson announced Thursday, April 13. The store, located at 53 Merchants Row, will move to 116 West Street (former home to Small Dog Electronics). With the change in location comes a…

By Stephen Seitz LUDLOW — On May 30, voters in Ludlow and Mount Holly will decide whether to close Black River High School and send its students to Mill River High School in North Clarendon. On Thursday, April 13, a committee of Ludlow and Mount Holly school officials and School Board members met to hash…

By Alan J. Keays, VTDigger Four more Syrian refugee families are set to come to Rutland by the end of September. They will join two other Syrian refugee families who arrived in the city at the beginning of the year, before President Donald Trump issued an executive order that suspended the program for 120 days…

By Evan Johnson Vermonters serving in the Vermont Air National Guard and the Vermont National Guard will see a ramping up of trainings in advance of a possible deployment in 2020, Vermont’s Adjutant General Steven Cray announced on April 13. The announcement on Thursday morning was part of a town hall meeting presented by the…

By Evan Johnson RUTLAND—Vermont Congressman Peter Welch got an inside look at the Rutland Regional Chamber of Commerce’s efforts to increase the visibility of the Rutland area while on a statewide swing through the state last week. Welch sat down with business and community leaders on the steering committee on Thursday afternoon, April 13. Green…

By Polly Mikula KILLINGTON—The Killington Arts Guild, founded in 1998, will close its doors after an unsuccessful search for a president of the guild. The state of Vermont requires at least three directors to qualify as an active nonprofit organization. The stipulation will forced the organization to lose its non-profit status, according to Alice Sciore,…

Royalton voted “no”; a “yes” vote was necessary for school board merger to pass By Evan Johnson School district officials and community members are looking for a way forward after a plan to unify seven towns into three “side-by-side” districts in central Vermont failed last week. Royalton was the only one to vote down the…

By Dom Cioffi I took my family to the ocean this past weekend for a birthday celebration. This needed to be a bigger-than-normal event since my son was officially transferring into the realm of a teenager. The plan was to soak up some sun, play a little golf and eat to our hearts’ desire. I…

Five great bands, one great DJ. That is what is in store at the 3rd annual Dazed & Defrosted concert at Killington Resort this Saturday, April 22, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. The best part is, it’s free! Enjoy Earth Day with soft bumps, cold brews, on-snow demos, photo booth and an environmental village. If you are…

Thursday, April 20, 6:30 p.m.—RUTLAND—Phoenix Books Rutland will celebrate National Poetry Month with Vermont poets Dede Cummings, Megan Buchanan and James Crews at a reading Thursday, April 20 at 6:30 p.m. Dede Cummings is a writer, literary agent/publisher and commentator for Vermont Public Radio. At Middlebury College, she was the recipient of the Mary Dunning…

Sunday, April 23, 6:30 p.m.—RANDOLPH—The Chandler Film Society will conclude its season with the second of two western classics, “High Noon” Sunday, April 23, 6:30 p.m. Gary Cooper stars in perhaps his most iconic role, as Marshal Will Kane, who, on his wedding day, must face down four ruthless killers alone. Grace Kelly stars as…

Saturday, April 22, 7:30 p.m.—BRANDON—Jeremiah McLane and Timothy Cummings are an energetic Vermont-based duo who share music deeply rooted in the traditional dance repertoire of Northern Europe and North America. Wielding accordions and bagpipes—and often whistles and piano—they create a beguiling blend which utterly subverts the common stereotypes of their Old World instruments. Also known as “Wheezer…