By Karen D. Lorentz After many years of work and extensive renovations, W. E. Pierce Groceries in North Shrewsbury, a.k.a. Pierce’s Store, reopened as a country store serving a small rural community on Aug. 25, 2009. The country store has served as the “original convenience store” but also has provided a “heartbeat” to the community,…

Dan McKeever, 66, of Bridgewater, Vt. died suddenly July 28 while visiting family and friends at the Jersey shore. His wife Betsy was by his side. Dan McKeever was born Dec. 4, 1947, in Trenton, N.J.  He graduated from Notre Dame High School in Trenton in 1965 and earned a BS degree in pharmacy from…

Accused: Scott Keefer and Aaron Roucoulet KILLINGTON — Two Killington men have been cited by Vermont state game wardens for illegally shooting two bears. Earlier in August, State Game Warden Timothy Carey responded to a report of a dead bear found in the backyard of a Killington residence. The bear had been shot with a rifle.…

By Robin Alberti WEST RUTLAND — On Saturday, Aug. 16, the parking lot of Bailey Motors in West Rutland was transformed to host a down-home chicken barbecue fundraiser. A committee of residents, veterans and decedents of those who served in WWII, formed almost a year ago to create a new granite memorial honoring local WWII…

RUTLAND — The Rutland Regional Planning Commission (RRPC) has selected Edward Bove as its new executive director. Bove, a senior planner at RRCP since 2008, will take over his new duties in early October, succeeding interim executive director Fred Nicholson. Bove is a certified planner with the American Institute of Certified Planners and holds a…

MT. HOLLY—On Aug. 14 at 4:45 p.m., the Vermont State Police responded to a report of a car vs. train equipment crash at the railroad crossing on Healdville Road. A 2006 Subaru Forester driven by Lisa Bixby, 49, of Belmont, Vt., sustained damage when it collided with railroad equipment operated by Matthew Godzik, 28, a…

POULTNEY—Green Mountain College continues to attract nationwide attention as one of the nation’s top colleges for environmental programming and operations.  Sierra, the official magazine of the Sierra Club, announced today that GMC ranked eighth in the nation in its annual “Cool Schools 2014” survey. Sierra’s “Cool Schools” list recognizes colleges and universities that are creating…

RUTLAND—The Rutland Regional Planning Commission (RRPC) and the Rutland Farm and Food Link (RAFFL) have been selected to host AmeriCorps VISTA positions.  For the next year, Monika Ganguly-Kiefner, a recent graduate of Green Mountain College in Poultney, will be working for RRPC, and Jenn Simons, who graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2012, will…

RUTLAND — Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is paving the streets in downtown Rutland and running the largest commercial laundry in the state, as well as heating the second largest hospital — and there is no gas pipeline in the area yet. Rather, the gas is arriving by a virtual pipeline, consisting of a fleet of high-tech…

RUTLAND–David Randall, who has coached at both the high school and college levels, has been named head coach of the Mount Saint Joseph Academy men’s basketball team.  He takes over a program that has consistently been a playoff contender and won its last state championship in 2012 in Division II.  Coach Randall stated, “I am…

By Lani Duke Thanks to Josh Butler, sales manager at Bailey Motors in West Rutland, who recently organized a chicken barbecue fundraiser for a planned World War II memorial in town. The stone memorial is to bear the names of everyone from town who served in the war. to Merchants Hall for hosting the 2014…

LUDLOW—The State of Vermont has named Fletcher Farm School the latest Vermont State Craft Center, a distinction designed to promote Vermont’s high-quality craft galleries and craft schools as well as its craftspeople. The well-known Ludlow art and craft school joins the Vermont Woodworking School in Fairfax–Vermont’s other State Craft Education Center–as well as the State…

By Lani Duke That time of year Public school starts, for the most part, Wednesday, Aug. 27. Be alert for children on their way to and from school. Tinmouth Elementary is expanding its preschool options to include a day-long program for 4-year-olds plus services for resident 3-year-olds. The 3-year-old program is two days a week,…

By Donald Dill LUDLOW—Lt. Governor Phil Scott visited one of Ludlow’s key businesses this past week. The Imerys Talc Facility, located on East Hill Rd. in Ludlow, has been in operation for almost 40 years. Formerly known as “Luzenac,” the facility has been mining and processing talc for applications such as building materials, paints, fillers,…

LUDLOW — Recently Susan Mollohan, of Derry, N.H. attended the Ludlow Rotary Club as guest speaker and spoke regarding her upcoming bicycle adventure. She will be riding the New England Parkinson’s Ride on Sept. 6, for the benefit of Parkinson’s Disease. Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system. Symptoms of…