College of St. Joseph has been awarded a grant by the Bowse Health Trust, a department of Rutland Regional Medical Center. The grant awards $88,400 over three years. Marble Valley Grows, the farm-to-school network run by Kimberly Griffin, College of St. Joseph’s farm manager and wellness coordinator, will use the grant to continue working within…

New model of group care educates and empowers women RUTLAND — Rutland Women’s Healthcare at Rutland Regional Medical Center announced Dec. 9 that its site was approved for CenteringPregnancy®, a holistic childbirth program committed to the empowerment of pregnant women. “This is an exciting time for our practice as we offer CenteringPregnancy, a nationally recognized…

WOODSTOCK — The Woodstock Farmers’ Market announced Dec. 14 that its annual effort to support the Woodstock Community Food Shelf continues this holiday season and that the name of the campaign will be changed to “Harvest For Hunger” to better reflect the mission of providing fresh produce to the organization. The market’s goal is to…

By Polly Lynn Nearly 500 people took a seat in the Paramount Theatre for the annual 13th annual Festival of Trees held Saturday, Dec. 5. It was the largest turnout in the history of the event and raised a record level of funds for the theatre’s operation costs, said Bruce Bouchard, executive director of the…

By Lindsey Rogers Jacob Prior was among the many Rutland area children elated to visit the Grinch. RUTLAND — The Grinch was a popular character at Phoenix Books this past weekend: he attracted about 400 attendees at the Rutland event (and 150-200 in Essex). Attendees in Rutland Saturday, Dec. 5, got to meet the Grinch,…

Courtesy of RRMC Edgar Holmes III, M.D. RUTLAND — Dr. Edgar Holmes III, M.D. orthopaedic surgeon and principal founder of the Vermont Orthopaedic Clinic, was recently inducted into the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame honors athletes, pioneers of Vermont skiing and special contributors who promoted and or contributed…

By Polly Lynn PLYMOUTH — A new brewpub will be opening mid-December in the Salt Ash Inn in Plymouth, Vt., owners Paul Kowalski and Tad Dedrick recently announced. Five Corners Pub & Brewhouse has started brewing small-batch microbrews for its anticipated public opening date of Dec. 18. Kowalski and Dedrick share a passion for tasting,…

By Elizabeth Hewitt, VTDigger.org A private equity firm will acquire Keurig Green Mountain in a $13.9 billion deal. The Vermont-headquartered company, which specializes in single-serve coffee machines, announced the deal Monday, Dec. 7, with an investor group headed by JAB Holding Co. JAB is already involved in several major coffee and beverage companies. The private…

Anonymous family offers $20,000 additional match KILLINGTON—On Wednesday, Dec. 2, Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports announced that it had raised more than $58,000 during the national #GivingTuesday campaign. The total includes a $20,000 matching donation from an anonymous Vermont Adaptive participant family. “It’s a bit overwhelming but this incredible effort shows that people really do…

RUTLAND—On Dec. 3, the Hannaford Charitable Foundation announced a $75,000 donation to Vermont Foodbank in support of its new 24,000 square foot distribution center, which allows the Foodbank to properly store and distribute more fresh produce throughout Rutland County to nearly 15,000 individuals and families in need. The donation supports the purchase of equipment that…

Agency of Natural Resources Secretary Deb Markowitz will accompany the governor Gov. Peter Shumlin will travel to Paris this week to attend 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference. Shumlin joins governors Jay Inslee of Washington State and Jerry Brown of California at the summit, which brings together political leaders to develop a worldwide framework and…

Pilot program begins in January On Dec. 3, Green Mountain Power announced that it is the first utility in the country to offer home batteries to its customers, under an innovative filing. Vermonters now have the option to purchase the Tesla Powerwall home battery outright or lease it with no upfront cost. The cutting-edge battery…

By Tiffany Danitz Pache, VTDigger.org On Dec. 2, the Shumlin Administration recommended a 1-cent increase in the statewide property tax rates—the lowest increase in three years—for residential and commercial property for fiscal year 2017. Each year, the Agency of Education, Department of Taxes, and Joint Fiscal Office work together to predict what will be needed…

On Dec. 1, the Emergency Board approved Gov. Peter Shumlin’s recommendation to increase the cap on the Vermont Employment Growth Incentive for projects in economically distressed regions of Vermont. The approval allows for consideration of proposals that could create 200 new full-time jobs and $6.5 million in new payroll. Regions of the state that have…

Courtesy of KES Abigail Masillo, Hannah Black, and Heidi Alf tested the angles of solar panels at the angles of zero, 22, 40, 60, and 90 degrees. By Hannah Black, Grade 6 The Killington Elementary sixth-graders have been working on experiments with photovoltaic cells, also known as solar power. We split up into groups to…