Courtesy of CSJ CSJ student Elizabeth Turco assembles packages of kid-friendly, nonperishable food for the BackPack Program at the Vermont Foodbank. RUTLAND—National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness week might still be two months away, but students in College of St. Joseph’s Provider Program aren’t waiting to do their part to stop hunger. Each Wednesday, as part…

Volunteers at the annual Shrewsbury Ham Supper sit down to feast after all the guests were served. This year marks the 63rd annual event at the Shrewsbury Town Meeting Hall. By Karen D. Lorentz Vermont has a long history of people in small towns coming together at community suppers and ice cream socials. The social…

RUTLAND—On Thursday, Sept. 24, Vermont State Employee Credit Union (VSECU) announced its 2015 Student LIFT (Loan Independence for Today) award recipients—its annual awards program designed to help Vermonters pay down their student loan debt by awarding three recipients with $5,000 each in monthly loan payments, on behalf of each recipient. This year’s award recipients are…

RUTLAND — Phoenix Books officially opened its doors Monday, Sept. 28, to a crowd of supporters and customers anxious to support the store, independent bookselling and the ongoing revitalization of downtown Rutland. “It’s a spectacular addition to downtown and a symbol of the ongoing rebirth of the city at large,” Mayor Chris Louras said. “The space, the…

By George Cook, Extension Farm Safety Specialist, UVM Most people know of the Great Chicago Fire of Oct. 8-10, 1871. From that conflagration came the establishment of National Fire Prevention Week with the first official proclamation in 1925 by President Calvin Coolidge. This year it will run from Oct. 4-10. The 1871 fire killed up…

By Lani Duke Rutland At last! Dorr Drive scheduled to reopen Friday, Oct. 2 Dorr Drive Bridge and the closed section of Dorr Drive are scheduled to open Friday, Oct. 2. If you're in a hurry, you may still want to avoid the site; traffic runs only in alternating, one-way orientations while finish-up work is…

CASTLETON—On Oct. 8 the Rutland Region Workforce Investment Board’s Council on Youth will collaborate with the high school counselors of Fair Haven Union, Mill River Union, Mount St. Joseph Academy, Otter Valley Union, Poultney, Proctor, Rutland, and West Rutland to organize the fourth annual Sophomore Career Summit. Sophomores from across the Rutland region will meet…

Submitted Dolly Parton sits with young readers to promote her Imagination Library program, which helps to distribute a new book to kids every month from birth to age 5. The Ludlow Rotary and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library aim to enhance local literacy LUDLOW—Imagine if every preschool child received a book in his or her…

By  Kim Peters Members of the Killington Active Seniors group listen to an AARP presentation. By Gerrie Russell Livable Communities, Village to Village and Complete Streets were a few of the concepts presented to the Killington Active Seniors during their weekly luncheon at the Lookout. Kelly Stoddard Poor, associate director of Outreach with AARP Vermont,…

Rutland Free skills training offered The Rutland campus of the Community College of Vermont is one of five centers offering free job training workshops and courses. Beginning in October, they will offer courses leading to industry-recognized certification in high-demand, high-wage sectors, with a focus on manufacturing, technology, and health care. In addition to technical knowledge,…

By Karen D. Lorentz Since 1916, the National Park Service, with the help of volunteers and park partners, has taken care of and safeguarded more than 400 places, with more than 275 million visitors every year. Visits to our national parks allow us to discover American history in all its diversity, enjoy wonderful hikes and…

By Stephen Seitz LUDLOW—With the aid of the Black River Academy Museum, sixth-grade students at Ludlow Elementary have been studying their town's history by living some of it. Last Saturday, the students shared what they learned with the public in a walking tour of the town. Students dressed in period costume and portrayed Ludlow residents…

By Stephen Seitz RUTLAND — Whither White's Pool? That is the question facing voters in March. If approved, a new pool would cost approximately $2 million, according to estimates. "The city has had a pool since 1929," said Cindi Wight, superintendent at Rutland Recreation & Parks Department. "Everyone from seniors to children can remember using…

HARTFORD—The White River Junction V.A. Medical Center has joined seven other Veterans Administration (V.A.) hospitals in a program that interviews veterans about their life stories and makes the transcribed oral histories part of the patients’ medical records. The program, called My Life, My Story, uses stories to foster a sense of connection between health care…

By Lani Duke Solar expansion ignites local flares PAWLET—About two years ago, Northeast Community Solar had begun laying out a solar field on Route 30, north of Blossom's Corner in Pawlet. The Vermont Public Service Board had granted the company a certificate of public good for the locally-funded, 150-kilowatt project, designed to provide power for…