By Mike Dougherty/VTDigger and Polly Mikula To safely return to child care while Covid-19 cases surge, Billie Slade asked all the families she works with to rapid-test their children. Slade runs Wonder in the Woods, an in-home child care program in Dummerston that serves six preschoolers and four school-aged children. She hoped that if each…

The Beast promotes from within, moving Kayla Sarajian into management Killington Resort announced Jan. 4 the advancement of Kayla Sarajian as the first female lift operations manager at the resort. “Kayla has a strong focus on customer service, staff well-being and retention,” said Tait Germon, director of mountain operations at Killington Resort and Pico Mountain.…

By Brett Yates The Chittenden Select Board discovered on Dec. 27 that five town road segments did not undergo proper review before having their speed limits reduced from 35 to 25 miles per hour. In September, aiming to improve traffic safety, the board approved a proposal to reconfigure the intersection of Holden Road and Dam…

By Liz DiMarco Weinmann As many of us look forward to a happier 2022, Covid is still ruling our world, and we are facing the most sunlight-challenged months of the year. No wonder many of us want to hunker down under a weighted blanket in front of a merry movie marathon, swilling gallons of cocoa,…

86 Killington Resort employees test positive, Dec. 30 By Polly Mikula On Sunday and Monday, Jan. 2-3, hundreds lined up in to be tested in their vehicles at the former Killington Fire Station on Killington Road — 642 to be exact, according to Police Chief Whit Montgomery who was covering the event. An additional 250…

  Killington Town Manager Chet Hagenbarth announced new Covid-19 protocols for town facilities on Dec. 29. “Effective immediately, the town is imposing the following procedures to protect against exposure to Covid-19,” he wrote in a memo to all departments. If you have Covid symptoms (fever, cough and difficulty breathing): • Do not come to work…

By Karen D. Lorentz Killington Ambassadors are dedicated volunteers who enjoy skiing or snowboarding so much that they commit to 21 days of wearing the green jacket, ready to help guests have fun. Ambassador Program Manager Pete Duffy noted, “They are passionate about the mountain, the sport, and they want to help people.” In 2021…

By Curt Peterson Dr. Josh White, chief medical officer at Gifford Medical Center, told the Mountain Times costs attributable to Covid total “well into millions.” The financial expense of the virus is important, but isn’t the only significant toll on providers. Located in Randolph, Gifford is part of a network of six healthcare facilities throughout…

By Ethan Weinstein When I first met Oke, he rolled up to the Mountain Times in his 90s Saab. I thought the sedan was a Porsche, black and angular. It looked like the past’s version of the future. Oke walked inside dressed in his usual: the straw hat he dons and doffs with neurotic regularity,…

State says Afghan refugees will start to resettle in Rutland over the next few weeks By Ethan Weinstein Several families of Afghan refugees will settle in Rutland next month, according to the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI). USCRI has been coordinating with Rutland organizations, such as Rutland Welcomes and the school system, to…

  Editor’s note: Karen D. Lorentz is an ambassador herself at Killington Resort. This is her first year with the program. Regular visitors to Killington may spy something new on the green-jacketed Killington Ambassadors this year. The new Mammut uniforms include shell jackets with the familiar “i” on the back, but the new word “Host”…

By Ethan Weinstein Amidst the year’s pandemic tumult, business is thriving in Rutland’s downtown. “We’re beginning to see a revived vibrancy,” said Lyle Jepson, executive director of the Chamber & Economic Development of the Rutland Region (CEDRR). “What’s exciting to me as someone who would call himself no longer young, is that there are young…

Sunday, Jan. 2 — RUTLAND — Rutland County Audubon’s annual Christmas bird count will take place this year on Jan. 2. Birds spotted within a 7.5 mile radius of Mead’s Falls in Center Rutland will be counted by teams of field birders and feeder-watchers in this count circle. Results will be tallied and posted on…

By Karen D. Lorentz When you talk with skier Karl Thomas Acker, he readily admits that he got the ski bug from his Pico experiences. Lots of people can lay claim to that, but Acker’s experiences were truly unique. And there may have even been a “ski gene” thrown into the mix along with a…

By Anita Lobel William Edward Giles, a country gentleman, an adventurous world traveler and entrepreneur, an easy New Yorker, was born in Windsor on July 31, 1946. He died at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City on Sept. 25, 2021 after an eight year struggle with progressive anti-MAG peripheral neuropathy, a disease that chips…