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Sanders Condemns Spying on U.S. Allies

by Not Signed In | Politics

BURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 18 – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today decried “outrageous” eavesdropping by the National Security Agency on some of the United States’ closest allies.

Sanders is cosponsoring legislation that would significantly rein in the sweeping surveillance activities of the NSA and other intelligence agencies.

In a letter to President Barack Obama, the senator also voiced concern that the U.S. actions could undermine cooperation in the fight against terrorism.

Local Food-Wine Event – Sunday Oct 27 11-3 – Alyson’s Orchard in Walpole

by Nan Stefanik | Food

Hello –

Some of you may know that I started a specialty food business last year. Part of Vermont Quince’s social mission is to reintroduce the ancient fruit to palates throughout the U.S. Toward that end, we are teaming up with our primary source of quince on “Honoring the Heirloom: A Culinary Celebration of Quince & Apples,” a food event happening this Sunday afternoon at Alyson’s Orchard in Walpole, NH. 

Brattleboro Selectboard and Town Manager Search Citizen Committee – Meetings and Executive Sessions

by Not Signed In | Town News

The Brattleboro Selectboard will hold a special meeting on Monday, October 28, 2013 at 3:00pm in the Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center. It is anticipated that the Board will enter into executive session at 3:15pm to discuss a personnel matter.

The Brattleboro Town Manager Search Citizen Committee will hold a meeting on Monday, October 28, 2013 at 3:15pm in the Hanna Cosman/Selectboard meeting room at the Municipal Center. It is anticipated that the Committee will enter into executive session at 3:20pm to discuss a personnel matter and meet with the Selectboard.

Jan Anderson
Executive Secretary
Brattleboro Town Manager’s Office
(802) 251-8100

Spoken Word and Theater Workshops Lead By Visiting Artist Lenelle Moïse

by SandglassTheater | Culture

Powerhouse poet, theatre artist and dynamic speaker Lenelle Moise will be in residence in Putney the week of Oct 27- Nov 3.   Lenelle is nationally renowned and celebrated for her writings, performances, and workshops on  race, class, feminism, LGBTQ identities, new theater aesthetics, immigration and Haitian-American culture.  She has taught and performed at colleges, theaters and conferences across the United States.

As part of her time here in Putney, Lenelle Moïse will conduct two workshops open to the community, at Next Stage Arts Project, 15 Kimball Hill in Putney.

2nd Annual Vermont Vision for a Multicultural Future Conference Registration Open

by Not Signed In | State News

Brattleboro – Vermont Partnership for Fairness & Diversity has opened the general registration for the 2nd Annual Vermont Vision for a Multicultural Future Conference. Individuals interested in attending this strategy-sharing event may register on-line at www.vermontpartnership.org .

Beginning at 1:00pm on Thursday, November 7th, Vermont Partnership will convene its signature conference at the Grand Summit Resort Hotel & Conference Center at Mount Snow in Dover, VT. The one and a half day conference will bring together Vermont leaders and interested parties who are working to strengthen business and institutional practices for an increasingly diverse marketplace within the state and beyond. The conference will close at 5:00pm on November 8th.

Windham Orchestra and Kurn Hattin Homes for Children Present Collaborative Works

by Not Signed In | Music

As part of the opening of the Windham Orchestra’s 44th season, Maestro Hugh Keelan and the Windham Orchestra, along with musicians and singers present Resounding Hills: A Transformative Musical Collaboration. This concert takes place at 7:30 PM November 1 at Kurn Hattin Homes’ Higbie auditorium and is open to the public. Admission is by donation at the door.

G.S. Precision Helps BMH Open “The New Doorway to Exceptional Care”

by BMH | Health

is the latest business to join Brattleboro Memorial Hospital’s “The Doorway to Exceptional Care” capital campaign. Hospital officials announced the Brattleboro-based company has made a $100,000 pledge to help renovate and expand the Emergency Department.

“G.S. Precision’s slogan is, ‘Quality, Efficiency and Reliability,’ and that is exactly what they are supporting with their gift to BMH,” says Steven R. Gordon, the hospital’s president and CEO. “The number of patients coming to the Emergency Department each year has more than doubled since it was built in 1982. The additional 2,500 square feet of space will enable us maintain a high standard of care while also improving speed, comfort and privacy for patients and families.”

Washington Street Closed for Three Weeks

by Not Signed In | Town Plan

Washington Street will be closed to through traffic from Highland Street to Prospect Street for three weeks starting Monday, October 28, 2013. Renaud Bros. will be working with the Department of Public Works to replace the failed retaining wall. Motorists should plan to use alternate routes.

If there are questions or concerns, please contact the Department of Public Works at 254-4255.

-Department of Public Works

150 Years Ago (1863 10/24)

by BusyMom | History

Brattleboro, Oct. 24th, 1863

Dear wife –

I received your most welcome letter last night, and night before last I received Mr. Martin’s letter. It is strange that letters are so much delayed on the way. I have not much time tonight, but I will improve the time I have in writing to you. I do not mean to let you get the start of me. I am on guard tomorrow. I shall come off Sunday morning at nine o’clock and shall then try and get a pass to go over and see Susan and Mary Ann. I had a letter from Mary Ann tonight. Susan’s youngest child is very sick with the dysentery. I will enclose Mary Ann’s letter and let her tell her own story. I guess that she is homesick, she felt very well when I was over there.

Weekend Spanish Immersion Course in Brattleboro November 9th-10th

by Not Signed In | Education

Escuelita Spanish School is offering a weekend Spanish Immersion Course November 9th-10th at Hilltop Montessori School in Brattleboro. These courses make learning Spanish feel effortless, fun, and truly effective. Many of us have had frustrating experiences learning a second language. The way we were taught in school might have taught us the rules of the language but, in most cases, we did not learn how to speak the language.

Escuelita’s approach is based on brain and language acquisition research and it gets students understanding and speaking the language quickly and with a lot of laughter and fun along the way. After our weekend immersion course last June, one of our students wrote:

Free Brattleboro Film Festival Daytime Screenings and Discussion at Brooks Memorial Library

by Brooks Memorial Library | Arts

This year, the Brattleboro Film Festival has chosen two examples of film-noir that explore greed and the psychology of dependency in abusive relationships for free daytime screenings and discussions presented in collaboration with and at Brooks Memorial Library: 
On Monday, November 4, beginning at 3 PM, “The Strange Love of Martha Ivers” (US, 1946, 116 minutes) directed by Lewis Milestone will be screened.

Green Mountain Mummers Perform In Their 39th Year

by noe-hays | Entertainment

The Green Mountain Mummers, Windham County’s men’s sword dance troupe, will be performing on Halloween weekend for the 39th consecutive year! On Saturday, October 26 and Sunday, October 27, the group will present its symbolic death-and-resurrection “street theater” rain or shine in seven locations in Windham County, Vermont (see full schedule below).

The group of 12 men (mostly Windham County residents) is the oldest continuing sword dance and mumming troupe in the United States. Founded in 1975 and with only one of the original members still performing, the group has added many younger members over the last several years. However, it still operates in the manner of the traditional English morris and sword dancers from which the dances were originally collected: they meet to practice and perform only once a year. A favorite every year at election season is the group’s mummers play which has been characterized as a “live political cartoon,” drawing on current events and providing social commentary through humor.

Dummerston Emergency Fuel Fund Supper Fundraiser

by Dummerston Community Center | Dummerston

A Baked Bean & Ham supper will be held on Saturday Oct. 26th from 5-7p.m. at the Evening Star Grange in Dummerston Center.
Delicious baked beans, baked ham, (hot dogs if preferred) with tasty scalloped potatoes, coleslaw, marinated carrots, and rolls. Yummy gingerbread with real whipped cream for dessert.

Tickets are $10.00 for adults, $5.00 for children 5-12 years old.
Take-out is available. Call 254-1138 between 5-7 p.m. on the 26th to order.

Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem at Next Stage on Saturday, October 26

by Not Signed In | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present roots music quartet Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem at Next Stage on Saturday, October 26 at 7:30 pm.

One of “America’s most inventive string bands” (The Boston Herald), Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem mix traditional, original and contemporary sounds on fiddle, guitar, bass and recycled percussion, and top that with joyous harmonies from four skilled lead singers. Hailed as “one of the most song- and arrangement-oriented bands in a field overgrown with pyrotechnic, jam- and solo-conscious virtuosos” (San Francisco Guardian), the band tackles the human condition with playfulness, courage and heart.

BMH Receives Komen Grant to Purchase Specialized Mammochair

by BMH | Health

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital (BMH) has received a grant from the to support access to early detection and treatment programs for disabled patients.

With the Komen grant, BMH has purchased a specialized “Mammochair” to enhance the patient experience and enable BMH technologists to maximize patient positioning and ensure better images for diagnosis. The mammography chair is maneuverable, allowing the technologist to manipulate positions without constant readjustment of the patient.

Award-Winning Game Designer Comes to Southern Vermont

by Not Signed In | Other

Kathryn Blume, co-founder and Executive Director of Vermontivate!, an award-winning sustainability game, will be coming to Brattleboro on Wednesday, November 6th hosted by the Brattleboro Energy Committee. She’ll be sharing the story of creating a frolicsome on-line/real-world competition which infuses joy and creativity into the serious and important work of tackling the global climate crisis.

Launched in May 2012, Vermontivate! has had players from towns all over the state racking up points for everything from changing lightbulbs and starting compost piles to writing energy-related poetry, decorating bicycles and reaching out to people around the world who’ve been affected by climate change.

School Board Gets An Earful From Teachers, Parents

by Lise | Education

Over 30 people crammed into a tiny conference room at the Brattleboro Food Co-op Tuesday night with another 25 or so out in the hall outside to participate in a School Board planning session for future “public outreach” meetings that the board plans to hold. The meeting began with an hour long open session during which people were allowed to speak for two minutes each.

A number of parents and teachers spoke with criticism of the schools including over-reliance on data and standardized tests, changes in teaching methods and management style, treatment of experienced teachers, and other issues.

Is There a Skatepark in Brattleboro’s Future?

by AHubbard | Opinion

It should never have come to this.

A skatepark at Crowell Lot was about a safe place for kids to roll around on their bikes, scooters and skateboards, a wonderful plaza. It’s not a hog farm or a strip club.

Skating is a rare and magical sport, where athleticism and art come together. It’s a way to get your heart racing, to challenge yourself, to express yourself. It’s largely free and gets kids outdoors and unplugged. It fills an important void for kids that do not play team sports or competitive sports. Skating creates amazing social bonds for kids of different ages and economic backgrounds. There is nothing like it.

Sandglass Theater’s Voices of Community Presents Lenelle Moïse, Nov 2-3

by SandglassTheater | Entertainment

Lenelle Moïse in Womb-Words, Thirsting

November 2-3, 7:30pm

$16 General, $13 students and seniors

For reservations email info@sandglasstheater.org or call (802)387-4051

Sandglass Theater’s Voices of Community Series kicks off on Saturday, November 2nd and Sunday, November 3rd, with poet/theater artist Lenelle Moïse and her one-woman show Womb-Words, Thirsting at Sandglass Theater in Putney, VT.

DHS Buildup

by tomaidh | Op/Ed

Reports are that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is engaged in a massive, military buildup.

An article by the Associated Press () confirmed an open purchase order by DHS for 1.6 billion rounds of ammunition.  

This has been confirmed elsewhere by (a private marketing news service).