Seven Days, December 29, 2021

VE RMO NT ’S INDE PEN DENT VO IC E DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022 VOL.27 NO.13 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

DOUBLE ISSUE!

The stories behind the stories in 2021 PAGE 14 / Remembering Vermonters who died PAGE 34 Best bites and sips PAGE 50 / The news that shaped Vermont’s arts and culture scenes PAGE 58 The top seven art shows PAGE 62 / Musicians’ favorite music PAGE 68 / The year in film PAGE 72

Do you suffer from Headaches?

Eye Strain?

New Year's Resolution #1

Use your Danform Gift Card to get the gift that wasn’t on your list!

Neck Pain?

Dizziness?

Dry Eye?

Thank you for supporting local business so we can continue to be here to serve your needs.

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The last year

2021

V ER MONT’ S INDEPENDENT V OICE JANUARY 13-20, 2021 VOL.26 NO.15 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

Turning the mic around on

Jane Lindholm,

RADIO VPR’s most recognizable voice

HEAD B Y PAU L A R OU T LY, PA G E 3 6

CAPITOL GROUNDLESS

HEAD START

PAGE 15

HOLE FOODS

PAGE 34

Meet new Flynn exec Jay Wahl

IDENTIFYING EVERGREENS

CHOCOLATE TARTLETS FOR V-DAY

GRANDPARENTING IN THE PANDEMIC

Peace and Quiet Strolling Ripton’s Spirit in Nature paths

12

Couch Surfing

WITH SUPPORT FROM

Entertainment without leaving your living room

INSIDE!

February Staytripper

UVM scholars argue that cuts to the humanities would imperil the university’s mission

MAJOR FALLOUT

FLYING SOLO

BOILING OVER

PAGE 14

Scott aims to rewrite Act 250

PAGE 38

COVID-19’s impact on resto workers

JOBS! JOBS! JOBS!

PAGE 58

70 employment ads for 130 positions

MIRO HANGS ON

OLD SCHOOL

Weinberger reelected in squeaker

BHS alums recall being downtown

PAGE 5

PAGE 15

TRAVIA CHILDS SOUTH BURLINGTON

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

1. “Those Mittens Bernie Sanders Wears Campaigning Are Made in Vermont” by Sasha Goldstein. Our most-read story of 2021 was actually published in January 2020. But when Sanders wore his mittens to the inauguration, igniting a bonfire of memes, this story naming mitten maker Jen Ellis drew national attention.

BY CHELSEA EDGAR, PAGE 26

VT health clubs feel the burn in the pandemic PAGE 32 Talking shots with a vaccine test subject PAGE 34 The importance of hope for mental health PAGE 36

PAGE 15

PAGE 14

PAGE 15

Slide Away

Cross-country at Craftsbury Outdoor Center

9

Norwich U prez quarantines in a dorm

Dieng makes mark on BTV mayoral race

Strengthen Our Democracy!

SCORECARD INSIDE

Hearty

HIKERS

4

w

MISSION STATEMENT

INDEPENDENT STREAK

FEBRUARY 2021 10 COOL THINGS TO DO THIS MONTH

MOST-READ 2021 STORIES ON SEVENDAYSVT.COM

PAGE 15

Former BHS principal faults school board

THE YEAR IN COVERS

PAGE 48

Some diet in January; we doughnut

TOPTWENTY

FEBRUARY 2021

GOING GREEN

VERMONT’S I ND EP END ENT VOI CE JANUARY 27-FEBRUARY 3, 2021 VOL.26 NO.17 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

Dave Gram’s first column PAGE 12

V ER MONT’ S INDEPENDENT V OICE JANUARY 20-27, 2021 VOL.26 NO.16 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

FAIR GAME RETURNS

Trump loyalists cling to conspiracies

COMPILED BY KIRSTEN THOMPSON & MATTHEW ROY

INSIDE!

2. “Shots Fired: A Reporter Visits an Indoor Gun Range” by Kevin McCallum. A Seven Days reporter tried out some guns at Henry Parro’s new firing range in Waterbury. The story was shared far and wide online and seriously triggered some gun owners. (See Backstories, page 22.)

CLIFF NOTES

on Rural Education Finances threaten local schools such as Lincoln’s.

Can towns afford to lose them?

S T O RY B Y J O N AT H A N M I N G L E • P H O T O S B Y C A L E B K E N N A

PAGE 28

TINA COOK BENNINGTON

ESTHER THOMAS MIDDLEBURY REIER ERICKSON ST. ALBANS

STEPPING

THOMAS FRANCO RUTLAND

V E RM O N T ’S IN DE P E N DE N T V O IC E MARCH 17-24, 2021 VOL.26 NO.24 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

Vermont restos opt to close until spring PAGE 42

V ERM O NT ’ S INDEPENDENT V O ICE MARCH 3-10, 2021 VOL.26 NO.22 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

WINTER BREAK

V ER MONT’ S INDEPENDENT V OICE FEBRUARY 17-24 VOL.26 NO.20 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V ER MONT’ S INDEPENDENT V OICE FEBRUARY 10-17, 2021 VOL.26 NO.19 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VERMONT’S I ND EP END ENT VOI CE FEBRUARY 3-10, 2021 VOL.26 NO.18 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

Some health workers left behind PAGE 14

Framing

the Questions Facing an uncertain future, Vermont museum leaders draw inspiration from both past and pandemic present B Y D A N B O L L E S , PA G E 2 6

These Vermonters of color want to bring their perspectives to local office

-IMUM EFFORT

Vermont’s aging transmission network can’t keep pace with green power projects

GRID BLOCK

MARCH 2021 LEARNING THROUGH THE WALDEN PROJECT

ENCOURAGING KIDS’ SELF-SUFFICENCY

AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY TO HOMESCHOOLING

10 FUN THINGS TO DO THIS MONTH

PA G E 2 8

LOVE & MARRIAGE

BY C OURTNEY L AMD IN, PAGE 28

Burlington grapples with pandemic-era graffiti

APRIL 2021

5

PAGE 38

JOBS! JOBS! JOBS!

State of Mind

12 pages of employment ads

INSIDE PAGE 60

BRIGHTER DAYS AHEAD

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

INSIDE!

HANDY WORK

March issue of Kids VT

CHICKENING OUT

PAGE 34

Jen Ellis makes mittens for good

NEW ISSUE!

PAGE 38

Chic Full Gay’s fried sammy pop-up

Home, design and real estate

GEE WHIZ

PAGE 32

Let loose with SheFly pants

Inn and Out

Meet the Pitcher Inn’s adventure guide

OVER COOKING

PAGE 44

Chefs’ pandemic burnout hacks

PAGE 16

PAGE 15

IMPACT As vaccinations progress, writers — and a cartoonist — reflect on reentry anxiety B Y S E V E N D AY S S TA F F & C O N T R I B U T O R S , PA G E 3 0

for ages 21 and up

THE FOREST and

THE TREES How the climate crisis and pests are impacting four arboreal species in Vermont’s woods

MISSING JEAN-MARIE

STO RY BY MARGARET GRAYSO N • PH O TO S BY CALEB KENNA, PAGE 28

Barre City PD defends search efforts PAGE 16

TREATMENT PLANT

Vermonters heal with ayahuasca PAGE 38

CAFFEINE SCENE PROVIDER

NEW COLUMN! SECONDHAND

RESULTS

POETIC JUSTICE

Homeless Vermonters’ trouble with stimulus checks PAGE 17 / The public pension pinch PAGE 22 Financial empowerment for New Americans PAGE 34 / FAST of Vermont protects seniors’ wallets PAGE 36 The verdict on quarantine retirement PAGE 38 / Grant writing for social change PAGE 40 / Funding Piecemeal Pies PAGE 44

PLANTING ROOTS

PAGE 26

A haiku competition in Weybridge

PAGE 42

Meet food entrepreneur Joe Bossen

The

INSIDE!

Rite Stuff

THE CANNABIS ISSUE: Inside a Massachusetts weed shop PAGE 16 / Docs worry over teen use PAGE 17 After a boom-and-bust, Vermont’s hemp industry rebounds PAGE 20 / Who will advocate for medical marijuana? PAGE 30 Ben Cohen’s “joint” venture PAGE 38 / How to grow your own PAGE 40 / Cooking with cannabis PAGE 46

In a pandemic year, parents and kids share how they marked milestones

P. 22

April issue

PUNISHED

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

FOR BEING TRANS

MAY 2021

The Department of Corrections has endangered transgender prisoners, despite its own policies. Change is coming — but is it enough?

Mountain Mountain

Biking

CLOTHES ENCOUNTER

COVID-19 kept families and regulators from eldercare homes.

This is what happened. B Y DE R E K B R O U W E R & L I A M E L DE R - C O N N O R S , PA G E 2 6

Isolation Wards

STEPHANI E MAT TSON

PAGE 44

GOOD CITIZEN CHALLENGE

A PARENT-MADE FANTASY PODCAST

STYLE

People clearly had never dealt with someone like me before.

Three new spots for joe to-go

APRIL 2021 A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A CHILDCARE

VER MO N T’S I N DEP EN DEN T VO I CE APRIL 28-MAY 5, 2021 VOL.26 NO.30 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

PAGE 36

BRACING FOR

V ER MONT’S INDEPENDENT V OICE APRIL 14-21, 2021 VOL.26 NO.28 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

HILL TOP

World’s best brewer talks family and future

V ER MONT’S INDEPENDENT V OICE APRIL 7-14, 2021 VOL.26 NO.27 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V E RM O N T ’ S I N DE P E N DE N T V O I C E MARCH 31-APRIL 7, 2021 VOL.26 NO.26 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VER MON T’S IN DEPEN DEN T VOICE MARCH 24-31, 2021 VOL.26 NO.25 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

April issue of Staytripper

VER MO N T’S IN DEPEN DEN T VO ICE APRIL 21-28, 2021 VOL.26 NO.29 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

WITH SUPPORT FROM

INSIDE!

BY CHEL SEA EDGAR, PAGE 26

Designer Kat Whitledge pops up

8

PAGE 53

Ground Breaking

The beginning of the end-to-end Velomont Trail

22

High Rollers

Luxe trailside lodging at the Inn at Burklyn

27

Biker Bars

Happening hubs for refueling post-ride

INSIDE: ROLL WITH IT

WITH SUPPORT FROM

SPELL BINDING

PAGE 42

Bohjalian’s timely new novel

The Mountain Biking Issue!

THE CANNABIS ISSUE

JOBS! JOBS! JOBS!

TOXIC TOPIC

BECHDEL QUEST

PCBs a statewide issue in schools

New memoir on fitness feats PAGE 46

PAGE 16

IN THE ‘GAME’

QUIET REFLECTION

More than 190 “help wanted” ads

BURLINGTON BASH

Mark Johnson on Leahy, VTDigger

BTV vigil honors George Floyd on anniversary PAGE 5

PAGE 14

Vermonters observe Juneteenth

PASSING THE BATON

PAGE 72

PAGE 17

Dave Gram’s last Fair Game PAGE 15

BTV’s Beta Technologies is on the cusp of a breakthrough for electric aviation

Burlington’s property reassessment has set record-high values. What’s the cost to residents?

BY SASHA GOLDSTEIN & COURTNEY L AMDIN, PAG E 2 6

B Y D E RE K B ROU W E R, PA G E 3 2 MAY 2021 BECOMING A DOULA DURING THE PANDEMIC

A MOM-TO-BE CONTEMPLATES BABY GEAR

MOTHER TO MANY THERESA TOMASI

HOW TO ROCK MATERNITY STYLE

Sweet IT IS HOW

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

INSIDE!

LEGISLATIVE DISAPPROVAL Vermont towns buck state oversight

May issue

PAGE 16

NEW! LIFE STORIES

HAVANA BLAST

ANTI FUSS

PAGE 44

New Cuban takeout options

PAGE 38

JOBS! JOBS! JOBS!

PAGE 56

Art controversy in Northfield

15 pages of help wanted ads

The Shape of

JAZZ to Come

ALIVE TO TELL THE TALE

Growing pains in Burke PAGE 28 / Riding low with RAD-Innovations PAGE 31 The (new) Vermont Lake Monsters PAGE 34 / Seven in-person summer events PAGE 36 / Disc golf prodigy Finn Etter PAGE 38 Summer reboot at Vermont restos PAGE 40 / An ode to skateparks PAGE 46

Series remembers locals we’ve lost

INSIDE!

S TORY BY S TE VE GOLD S TE IN P HOTOS BY JA M E S BUC K, PA GE 3 2

DIVISION STREET

June issue

PLAYLIST SHUFFLE

PAGE 16

Public school culture wars in Essex

NEEDS

JULY 2021

6

Beach, Please

10

Livin’ the lake life at Burlington Surf Club

Steve “the Turtle Man” Parren retires

HE’S GOT THE BEAT

Twilight Zone

History comes alive in Brownington

16

Getaway Plan

Pamper yourself at the Woodstocker B&B

WITH SUPPORT FROM

INSIDE!

PAGE 17

Urian Hackney is on the rise

INSIDE

HOME DÉCOR THRIFTING TIPS

V ER MONT’S INDEP ENDENT V OICE JULY 21-28, 2021 VOL.26 NO.42 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

THE PRODUCER Joshua Sherman spearheads an arts-led revitalization in Norman Rockwell’s Arlington S TORY BY D A N BOLLE S , PA GE 2 6

TEEN WITH AUTISM FINDS HIS VOICE

VID E O BY E VA S OLLBE R GE R , ON LIN E AT S E VE N D AYS VT.C OM

Summer

BUCKET LIST PAGE 16

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

UP IN THE AIR

THE CARTOON ISSUE Day-Tripping With Guster’s Ryan Miller PAGE 28 / Richmond Garage Goes Electric PAGE 30 / Vermont Folklife Center Presents Turner Family Stories PAGE 32 / A New Vermonter Makes the Cut PAGE 34 / A Graphic Guide to U.S. Health Care PAGE 36 / To-Go Cocktails to Stay PAGE 40

PAGE 48

Ballet legend Kevin McKenzie to retire

SWEET RELEASE

NEW SERIES!

PAGE 54

Long-awaited debut LP from Ivamae

FEEL THE BURN

PAGE 32

251: Dispatches from VT towns

DRAWING ON HISTORY

PAGE 34

A hot sauce taste test

PAGE 32

Disc golf dispute in Waterbury

THERE’S THE BEEF

PAGE 38

All aboard the Burger Buggy

PAGE 52

tripper

Schools debate mask policies

PAGE 16

VISUAL APPEAL Art listings are back!

INSIDE Stay

FACING FEARS

Activists push logging ban on public lands

Long-awaited report on VT National Guard

Inside Vermont’s first indoor gun range

DOUBLE BOGEY

PAGE 40

Cartoonist Danziger’s Vietnam memoir

FOREST SERVICE

CORROSIVE CULTURE

TARGETED APPROACH

Beware the Buyers?

BY D E R E K BR OUWE R , PA GE 2 6

CURTAIN CALL

PAGE 28

Why so few rooftop restos in BTV?

THE ROAD MAP

BY KEVIN MCCALLUM, PAGE 28

VERMONT

The Animal Issue MUCHO GUSTO

PAGE 40

Viva el Sabor’s collective cuisine

A SCORE FOR KEATING

LISTENING SKILLS

PAGE 52

VT cellist on anxiety, Emmy nom

FRANKLY SPEAKING

PAGE 34

Musical addresses teen tensions

PAGE 40

Hot dogs rule at two local eateries

PICTURING JOY

B Y COU RT NEY L A MD IN & S A S HA G OLD S T EIN, PA G E 30

PEACHY KEEN

Ticks Harming Moose PAGE 16 / Best of the Beasts Pet Photo Contest PAGE 28 Mustang Makeover PAGE 32 / Animal Surrender PAGE 34 / Life Stories: Kira Jaye Serisky PAGE 36 Doggy Day Camps PAGE 38 / Andy’s Dandys PAGE 40 / Vermont Mealworm Farm PAGE 42

NEW ISSUE! INSIDE!

arts

performing

preview

V E R MO N T’ S I N DE PE N D E N T V OI C E SEPTEMBER 29-OCTOBER 6, 2021 VOL.26 NO.52 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VE R MO N T’ S I N D EP EN D EN T V O I C E SEPTEMBER 22-29, 2021 VOL.26 NO.51 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VERMONT’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SEPTEMBER 15-22, 2021 VOL.26 NO.50 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V E R MO N T ’S I N D E PE N D EN T V O IC E SEPTEMBER 8-15, 2021 VOL.26 NO.49 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

HOLY CLUCK

PL

PAGE 34

GO, CANADA!

BY CHELSEA EDGAR & C O L I N F L A N D E R S , PA G E 2 8

MASK UP?

PAGE 40

COARSE DESCRIPTIONS

PAGE 17

Businesses must make the call

Eating and drinking in Québec

PAGE 36

Odd class names at Vermont colleges

THIRST WRAP

PAGE 38

Sipping local booze-free bevvies

RED CARD

HEALTHY MEASURES

Growing calls to address racism in school sports PAGE 14

How to assess wait times for specialists PAGE 14

BEST-SELLING

BUNK

Vermont publishing house Chelsea Green is peddling coronavirus misinformation

BY CHEL SEA EDGA R , PA GE 26

B Y A L I S O N N O VA K, PA G E 2 4

PAGE 30

MAKE YOUR MEDICINE

Colchester firm manufactures mRNA

PAGE 14

Burlington School District superintendent Tom Flanagan persevered through a challenging rookie year

GRATEFUL BREAD

Back to School issue

Cop reform means negotiations

Rutland High mascot name change in limbo PAGE 16

First Impressions Remembering Elka Schumann

B Y M E LIS S A PA S A NE N , PA GE 2 8

INSIDE!

PAGE 52

CONTRACT TRACING

RAIDERS FOREVER?

Home, design & real estate

PAGE 15

MODERN MUSIC

Venues requiring vaccinations

PAGE 48

INSIDE!

FAST AND FURIOUS

PAGE 44

New troupe updates Hamlet

Patients wait months for treatment at Vermont’s biggest hospital

Communal mural in the ONE

OFFICIAL PROGRAM

Delta variant outpaces contact tracing

FOUL PLAY

PAGE 42

Family fruit biz blooms in Lincoln

The Doctor Won’t See You Now

PLACES, EVERYONE

PAGE 36

Fantastic fried chicken in Pittsford

MODERN FAMILY

PAGE 26

Performing arts return to VT stages

MAKING A SCENE

PAGE 36

Puppet theater thrives in NEK

DAM IT ALL

PAGE 54

Composer Willverine prizes collaboration

MUSHROOM TRIP

PAGE 34

Beaver rehab gets muddy

SO. MANY. JOBS.

PAGE 36

Foraging food with fungi experts

Animal defenders struggle to change hunting and trapping traditions in Vermont

BY KEV IN M C C ALLU M , PAGE 28

wildlife

WARS A DOOBIE-OUS CLAIM

PAGE 26

Will legal weed boost home values?

PAGE 71

17 pages of employment listings

BUBBLING UP

PAGE 44

A new wine bar in Essex

BREAKING THE MOLD

V E RM O N T ’S I N D E P E N D E N T V O IC E OCTOBER 13-20, 2021 VOL.27 NO.2 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

PAGE 17

New restaurateurs press on with grit and flexibility — even in a pandemic

V ER M O NT ’S I N D EP EN D EN T V O I CE OCTOBER 6-13, 2021 VOL.27 NO.1 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

HAUL TOGETHER NOW?

Burlington debates trash consolidation

n Passio ATE

Residents bear the brunt of Burlington’s first property reassessment in 16 years

V E R M O N T ’ S IN D EP E N D EN T V OI CE SEPTEMBER 1-8, 2021 VOL.26 NO.48 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V ER MO N T ’S IN D EP EN D EN T V O IC E AUGUST 25-SEPTEMBER 1, 2021 VOL.26 NO.47 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V ER M ONT ’ S IND EPE ND EN T V OIC E AUGUST 18-25, 2021 VOL.25 NO.46 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

Lake Memphremagog’s natural beauty belies worries about contaminants and fish with tumors

BY AN N E WAL L ACE AL L EN & COL IN FL AN DERS, PAGE 28

The Wizard of

WELLNESS

BY DAN BO L L E S , PAG E 2 8

Kimberly Quinn overcame a dark and turbulent past to become Champlain College’s guru of positive thinking

CHANGING WEATHER

B Y K E N PIC A R D , PA G E 2 8

STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN

PAGE 54

Local sculptor pushes boundaries

PAGE 35

A massive trail upgrade at Mount Philo

FLUFF PIECE

PAGE 44

Artisanal marshmallows in BTV

FILM FEST FUN

PAGE 46

TECH JAM

LAST SHOT

LOCAL COMMOTION

VTIFF returns in person and online

PAGE 26

PAGE 18

PAGE 22

GUIDE INSIDE!

PAGE 38

Cartoon book of VT migrant stories

WE ARE FAMILY

Kids up next for the vaccine

What’s behind Vermont’s COVID-19 surge?

SAT 10/23

PERILOUS JOURNEY

SLICE OF LIFE

PAGE 40

The great Burlington pizza survey

The

holiday shopping handbook

V E RM ON T ’ S IN D E P E N D E N T VO I C E NOVEMBER 17-24, 2021 VOL.27 NO.7 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

AND BROKEN LOCKS Mark and Rick Bove’s growing empire of affordable rentals vexes code enforcers

Scenes From Sears Lane

BY D E R E K BR O U WE R & LI A M E LD E R -CO NNO R S, PA GE 2 4

Lifting Spirits

Holiday shopping handbook inside

Market to Farm A new food waste disposal method raises fears that microplastics will taint fields B Y K E V I N M C C A L L U M , PA G E 2 8

A new wave of Vermont distillers pushes legislators to modernize liquor laws B Y J ORD A N B A RRY, PA G E 2 8

Burlington shuts down a South End homeless encampment

THE TECH ISSUE Meet Beta Technologies’ “Motor Ninja” PAGE 32 / Innovators Boost Vermont’s Battery Industry PAGE 26 Superplastic Turns Twisted Toys Into Influencers PAGE 45 / Can Kirk Dombrowski Make UVM a Research Powerhouse? PAGE 16 Benchmark Space Systems Blasts Off PAGE 39 / The Age of “Zoom Fatigue” PAGE 36 / Vermont Restaurants Dream of Robots PAGE 54

VE RM O NT ’ S I N D EP EN D EN T V O I C E NOVEMBER 10-17, 2021 VOL.27 NO.6 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

ROACHES

THAT’S A WRAP!

V ER M O N T’S I N D E P EN D E N T V O I CE NOVEMBER 24-DECEMBER 1, 2021 VOL.27 NO.8 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

ENERGY

B Y K E N P I C A R D , PA G E 3 0

V E R M ON T ’ S I N D EP E N D EN T V OI C E NOVEMBER 3-10, 2021 VOL.27 NO.5 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V E R M O N T ’ S I ND E P EN D E NT V O I CE OCTOBER 27-NOVEMBER 3, 2021 VOL.27 NO.4 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

NEW

Public health expert Tracy Dolan readies Vermont for Afghan arrivals

A GREAT SAVE

S T O RY B Y C O U R T N E Y L A M D I N , PA G E 1 8 P H O T O E S S AY B Y JA M E S B U C K , PA G E 2 0

PAGE 32

Woodstock ice rink goes net-zero

COOKING WITH GUSTO

PAGE 40

Fusion flavors pop up in Richmond

FURTHER ALONG

WINTER PREVIEW

PAGE 56

Dwight + Nicole prep for a breakout

XX

Climate Change Is Shortening Vermont Winter PAGE 20 Why Doesn’t Bathhouse Culture Exist Here? PAGE 38 Winter Tips for Flatlanders PAGE 36 / Locals Decry Sugarbush Firing of John Egan PAGE 30 Early Sales Strong at Ski Areas PAGE 15 / HBO Premieres New Burton Doc PAGE 50

WORTH A SHOT

PAGE XX

A CUT ABOVE

PAGE 15

UVM developing safer polio vaccine

PAGE 40

A new butcher/resto in Royalton

WINTER READING ISSUE

CRITICAL CONDITION

Xx

FUNNY BUSINESS

PAGE 50

VT expat comedians come home

CLEARING THE AIR?

PAGE 14

PAGE 15

Writer Tim Brookes creates works of art to save the world’s endangered alphabets

BY K E N P I C A RD , PA G E 2 6

V E R M O N T ’S I N D E P E N D E N T V O I C E DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022 VOL.27 NO.13 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VERMONT’S INDEPENDENT VOICE DECEMBER 22-29, 2021 VOL.27 NO.12 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V E R MO NT ’S I ND E P END E NT V O I C E DECEMBER 15-22, 2021 VOL.27 NO.11 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

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CONCERNING THE LOSS TRIUMPH

A Man of Letters

OF THE VSS CONQUEST SHORT FICTION BY AIMEE PICCHI, PAGE 30

Why independent physicians are disappearing from Vermont

The history and uncertain future of Burlington’s derelict downtown auditorium

B Y CO LIN F L ANDE RS , PAG E 2 6

BY CHRIS FARNSWORTH, PAGE 26

HE’S SLEIGHING IT

PAGE 46

Adam Monette’s holiday baking tips

STAGE RIGHT

PAGE 48

Cutting-edge theater in Middlebury

GENERATION NEXT

INSIDE PAGE 62

A youth movement in BTV hip-hop

CLIMATE CONTROL

PAGE 20

Council offers recommendations

KEEPS ON GIVING

PAGE 38

Shelburne biz makes reusable wrap

GIMME SHELTER

PAGE 15

New refugees in housing crunch

LIKE THE DICKENS

PAGE 34

Willem Lange reads A Christmas Carol

BEYOND BEER

PAGE 42

Halyard Brewing expands into soda

SUCCESS STORIES

PAGE 34

Sci-fi writer thrives in DIY publishing

TIK TOXIC

PAGE 36

An author on reluctant self-promotion

BOOKING DINNER

PAGE 14

New PCB guidelines cloud BHS’ future

DOUBLE ISSUE!

Surgeries canceled amid virus surge

DOWNHILL FAST

Scenes from the World Cup

Memorial Days

13. “Nowhere to Go: Vermont’s Exploding Housing Crisis Hits Moderate Wage Earners” by Anne Wallace Allen and Colin Flanders. An orthopedic trauma nurse forced to couch surf and a state legislator desperately seeking an apartment were among the sources for this story.

14. “Burlington High School Opens Downtown Campus in Former Macy’s”

by Alison Novak. Cat Cutillo’s video and photos of this department store-turned-high school were picked up by Buzzfeed, People magazine and the UK-based Daily Mail.

16. “New Haven’s Historic Train Station Has to Get Out of Amtrak’s Way — Literally” by Colin Flanders. Amtrak deemed the 170-year-old depot a safety risk because it was less than a dozen feet from the tracks.

WINTER ISSUE INSIDE

Wearables & Accessories • Food & Drink • Arts & Entertainment Outdoors & Recreation • Home • Kids • Beauty & Body Experiences & Classes • Listening & Reading • Pets & Their Humans

Rescue Lines

12. “13 Burlington Pizza Reviews: The Good, the Bad and the Unexpected”

by Seven Days staff. Our writers scarfed down and rated the most popular and “this is indeed pizza’” pizza.

15. “UVM Professor’s Viral Video Prompts Calls for His Resignation” by Chelsea Edgar. Professor Aaron Kindsvatter said he feels ostracized for being white. Not surprisingly, his complaint prompted a backlash.

The retirements of Tom Messner and Sharon Meyer forecast the end of an era in Vermont media

Do e-bikes pose a safety hazard?

IN SPITE OF OURSELVES

VERMONT

11. “A Spirited Lewis Creek Advocate and Her Husband Die in Boating Accident” by Anne Wallace Allen. Lewis Creek Association founding member Marty Illick and her husband, Terrence Dinnan, died when their canoe capsized. Their 3-year-old grandson made his way to safety.

to R E D I S C O V E R I N G

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V E RMONT ’S IND E PE ND ENT V OIC E AUGUST 11-18, 2021 VOL.26 NO.45 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VERM ONT’ S IN DEPE NDE NT VOI CE AUGUST 4-11, 2021 VOL.26 NO.44 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V ER M O N T ’ S I N DE P EN DE N T V O IC E JULY 28-AUGUST4, 2021 VOL.26 NO.43 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

BENEATH THE SURFACE

Vermont’s exploding housing crisis hits moderate wage earners

9. “Photo of CVU Student Flipping Off Anti-Mask Protesters Goes Viral”

by Chelsea Edgar. Photographer Glenn Russell captured the image of a masked student on a school bus flipping off sign-toting protesters outside.

PAGE 20

PAGE 16

Nowhere to Go

7. “Vermont Teacher Groomed Student From Age 11, Raped Her, Affidavit Says” by Alison Novak. Georgia teacher Matthew Toof was charged with sexually assaulting a former student.

10. “Sergeant Accused of Sexual Assaults Remains in Vermont Guard Despite Criminal Record” by Jasper Craven. Daniel Blodgett earned promotions and remained in the ranks, even as he piled up arrests, some for serious offenses.

Investors with questionable records want to buy five Vermont nursing homes. Will the state let them?

B Y C O L I N F L A N D E R S , PA G E 30

The Pollinator Issue Pesticide Politics PAGE 17 / Why Do Honeybees Swarm? PAGE 27 The Delicate World of VT Pollinators PAGE 30 / The Vermont Wild Bee Survey PAGE 32 / Beekeeper Chas Mraz PAGE 34 Prickly Pollinators PAGE 36 / Bee’s Wrap PAGE 37 / Bee the Change PAGE 40 / Brewing With Honey PAGE 42 / Bee Quilts PAGE 52

PAGE 46

MEET EDUCATOR KIA’RAE HANRON

SOUND EFFECTS In the F-35’s flight path, Vermonters’ lives have changed

JULY 2021 RECIPES FOR TROPICAL TREATS

V ER MONT’S INDEP ENDENT V OICE JULY 14-21, 2021 VOL.26 NO.41 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V E R M O N T ’ S I N D E P E N D E N T V O I C E JULY 7-14, 2021 VOL.26 NO.40 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

BEES

VERMON T’S I N DEPEN DEN T VOI CE JUNE 30-JULY 7, 2021 VOL.26 NO.39 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VERMONT’S INDEPENDENT VOICE JUNE 23-30, 2021 VOL.26 NO.38 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V E R M ON T’ S IN D E P E N D E N T V OIC E JUNE 16-23, 2021 VOL.26 NO.37 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

THE

INSIDE!

B Y C H E L SE A E D G A R, PA G E 2 8

Home, design & real estate

Anti-racism proposal lags in Winooski

Big Cannabis moves in on local weed industry PAGE 16

After a year in hotels, homeless Vermonters prepare to live in tents and cars

PAGE 17

REFORMED SCHOOL?

BUDDING CONCERNS

Thunder Road roars to life PAGE 17

KICKED    OUT OF HIS SHELL

PAGE 56

New gig for music editor Jordan Adams

BACK ON TRACK

SAVE THE DATES

Calendar listings return!

6. “The Firing of Skiing Legend John Egan Leaves Many Die-Hard Downhillers Soured on Sugarbush” by Ken Picard. The renowned extreme skier said he was shocked when Sugarbush relieved him of his position as chief recreational officer.

PA GE 3 2

PANDEMIC ALL STARS

BY JOR D A N A D A M S & D A N BOLLE S , PA GE 3 2

PAGE 74

5. “After Riots at the Capitol, Busload of Vermont Trump Supporters Returns From D.C.” by Derek Brouwer. They left Vermont believing the presidential election was stolen. They returned floating theories that Antifa was behind the siege of the Capitol. (See Backstories, page 14.)

8. “Police: Man Shot Wife, Dismembered Her Body Inside Their Camper”

by Sasha Goldstein. Joseph Ferlazzo was charged with the murder of his wife, Emily, after she was reported missing.

Celebrating the frontline team that helped Vermont through a less-than-stellar time

After a lost pandemic year, the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival is back

Vermont’s remaining World War II survivors bear witness

PAGE 52

NEW ISSUE!

VERM O N T ’ S I N DEP EN DEN T VO I CE JUNE 9-16, 2021 VOL.26 NO.36 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V ER MONT’S INDEP ENDENT V OICE JUNE 2-9, 2021 VOL.26 NO.35 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V ER MONT’S INDEP ENDENT V OICE MAY 26-JUNE 2, 2021 VOL.26 NO.34 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

FLIGHT PATH

V E RM ON T’ S IN D E PE N D E N T V OIC E MAY 19-26, 2021 VOL.26 NO.33 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

V E R M ON T ’ S IN D E P E N D E N T V OIC E MAY 12-19, 2021 VOL.26 NO.32 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

VER MO NT ’S INDEP ENDENT VO ICE MAY 5-12, 2021 VOL.26 NO.31 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

INSIDE

Gilded Age

4. “Burlington Mourns Beloved Bartender Monique Ford” by Dan Bolles.

A longtime employee of Three Needs Taproom, Ford died unexpectedly.

Friends and admirers created a shrine for her in front of the bar.

IT’S SPLITSVILLE Essex Junction, Town to part ways?

Church hosts 24-hour Bible reading

PAGE 63

Insider travel tips from Happy Vermont

JOBS! JOBS! JOBS!

PAGE 34

Harlan Mack’s unique worldview

FOREVER AMEN

17 pages of ads for 184 jobs

Kidding Around

Stay on a goat farm in Townshend 8

12

HANDMADE TALE

S T O RY B Y S A L LY P O L L A K P H O T O S B Y L U K E AW T RY

Couples share “how we met” stories PAGE 32 / Pandemic-safe date ideas PAGE 36 Love letters from the past PAGE 38 / Dating coach Marla Goldstein PAGE 40 VT Wedding Association vows to keep going PAGE 42 / Valentine’s Day takeout spots PAGE 44

3. “Society and Solitude: The World’s Top Brewer, Vermonter Shaun Hill, Reconsiders His Business” by Sally Pollak. The founder of Hill Farmstead Brewery discussed Greensboro, his family history and curbside pickup.

BY KE V I N M CCALLUM , PAG E 3 4

B Y A L I S O N N O VA K & S A S HA G O L D S T E I N

Can Max Tracy ride the city’s Progressive wave to become Burlington’s next mayor?

V ER M ONT’ S I NDE PE NDE NT VO ICE OCTOBER 20-27, 2021 VOL.27 NO.3 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

MAX

VAXXING QUESTIONS

VERMO N T ’S I N DEP EN DEN T VO I CE FEBRUARY 24-MARCH 3, 2021 VOL.26 NO.21 SEVENDAYSVT.COM

February issue of Kids VT

PAGE 44

Chefs’ favorite literary meals

The stories behind the stories in 2021 PAGE 14 / Remembering Vermonters who died PAGE 34 Best bites and sips PAGE 50 / The news that shaped Vermont’s arts and culture scenes PAGE 58 The top seven art shows PAGE 62 / Musicians’ favorite music PAGE 68 / The year in film PAGE 72

WINTER WONDERLAND

PAGE 36

A holiday spectacle at Shelburne Museum

BIGGER IS BETTER

PAGE 44

Roomy new digs for Burlington Beer

17. “Performers in Drag Shine at Burlington High School Halftime Ball”

by Alison Novak. Hundreds of shiny, happy people packed the bleachers at Burlington High School’s Buck Hard stadium to watch a football game and a drag show — two things that don’t often go together.

18. “WTF: Why Is the Old Pizza Hut in South Burlington Still Empty?” By Ken Picard. Lots of proposals have been discussed for the long-vacant building, but only one thing appears to be happening: more graffiti.

19. “Vermont Publishing House Chelsea Green Is Peddling Coronavirus Misinformation” by Chelsea Edgar. Florida osteopath Joseph Mercola’s best seller is full of vaccine skepticism and questionable claims about the pandemic.

20. “Chic Full Gay Supports Pride Center of Vermont and Budding Businesses With Popular Pop-Up” by Jordan Barry. The enterprise was a tongue-in-cheek reference to Chick-fil-A, which has contributed to anti-LGBTQ organizations.

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

5

DEUCES ARE WILD

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publisher & editor-in-chief

Paula Routly

Deputy publisher Cathy Resmer ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERS Don Eggert, Colby Roberts NEWS & POLITICS editor Matthew Roy Deputy Editor Sasha Goldstein consulting EDITOR Candace Page staff writers Derek Brouwer, Chelsea Edgar,

READER REACTION TO RECENT ARTICLES

RUSH TO PUBLISH?

Colin Flanders, Courtney Lamdin, Kevin McCallum, Alison Novak, Anne Wallace Allen

I enjoyed Chris Farnsworth’s article on Memorial Auditorium [“Memorial Days,” December 1] and was excited to see in the notable events box that one of my favorite bands, Rush, had played there in 1975.

When looking for more details on the show in the book Rush: Wandering the Face of the Earth, the Official Touring History, I found that they had played Burlington Memorial Auditorium in Burlington, Iowa, on April 17, 1975. It looks like there’s more than one Memorial Auditorium in a

A R T S & C U LT U R E

coeditors Dan Bolles, Elizabeth M. Seyler associate editor Margot Harrison art editor Pamela Polston consulting EDITOR Mary Ann Lickteig Music editor Chris Farnsworth calendar writer Emily Hamilton SPECIALTY PUBLICATIONS MANAGER Carolyn Fox staff writers Jordan Adams, Jordan Barry,

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6

Christopher Conant

DOWNHILL FAST

WINOOSKI

rld Cup

Scenes from the Wo

PAGE 15

OM

QUESTIONS FOR MOLLY GRAY

[Re Off Message: “Lt. Gov. Molly Gray Announces Run for U.S. House,” December 6]: Hello, Molly: I have been an enthusiastic supporter since you began your campaign for lieutenant governor.

And I was happy when you won.

But in not even a year in office, you have yet to show me any accomplishments or achievements. I see and hear you talking but not doing — which, along with your lack of NEXT N RATIO GENE STAGE RIGHT HE’S SLEIGHING IT experience in the nitty-gritty grind of legislative lawmaking, makes me wonder why you think you are qualified to represent Vermont in Congress city of Burlington. Rush’s website says the and why you feel you deserve my vote and same thing. I hope Rush did pass through my contribution to your campaign.

Vermont at some point. I was lucky to Show me your voting record. Show see them a number of times around New me how you’ve garnered support for bills England and in Canada before the passing that Vermont needs to feed our hungry, of the great Neil Peart. care for our sick and injured, warm our Casey Carmolli living spaces, teach our children, renew our roads and bridges, and protect our ESSEX JUNCTION environment. Let me see your initiative to reduce exploitation of low-wage workGRAY’S DAY ers. Remind us of your work on getting [Re Off Message: “Lt. Gov. Molly Gray Vermonters vaccinated against the Announces Run for U.S. House,” Decem- COVID-19 virus. ber 6]: It is time that Vermonters realize For that matter, release any available that electing an amazing young woman information on how you have worked with like Molly Gray to work for Vermonters Republican Gov. Phil Scott over the last in Washington, D.C., is a great, refresh- year. What issues and policy questions ing change from the many “status quo” have you discussed with him? candidates who become lifelong politiYou clearly are good at talking, and cians merely because they feel they are running a campaign and raising money entitled to work in public service. Gray has for it. Those activities benefit you, not the earned the right to represent Vermonters people of Vermont. There must be more in Washington, even with only a year of on the table than the historic opportunism

NO.9 SEVEND AYSVT.C ER 1-8, 2021 VOL.27 DENT VOICE DECEMB VERMON T’S INDEPEN

SALES & MARKETING director of sales Colby Roberts Senior Account Executive Michael Bradshaw Account Executives Robyn Birgisson,

political experience under her belt. Her roots growing up on a farm in Vermont, and her knowledge of the difference between what Vermonters actually need at home and where to reach for solutions, are essential keys to her successes.

We need a young, vibrant, strong, educated woman like Gray in Washington who knows what it’s like to be resilient, working hard not only to support her own family farm but also to reach out to the community to help neighbors. This is the way Gray was raised. Her education and experiences in life will continue to guide her during her initial years as a politician in Washington.

We need a true Vermonter in Washington who wants to work hard for you and me and continue to support all Vermonters with strong work ethics and results.

Lt. Gov. Molly Gray is just the person, and she will have my vote.

Memoria l Days The history and uncer ORTH,

BY CHRIS FARNSW

town auditorium gton’s derelict down tain future of Burlin

PAGE 26

PAGE 62

PAGE 48

PAGE 46

Adam Monette’s holiday

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

baking tips

r in Middlebury

Cutting-edge theate

A youth movement

in BTV hip-hop

of being elected as Vermont’s first female representative in Congress.

After the hoopla over “first” dies down, what would you do? How would you run your reelection campaign? What accomplishments and/or votes would you showcase as part of your vision for our country that would strengthen democracy?

I await your honest reply before donating a dime or a dollar for your campaign.

Euan Bear

BAKERSFIELD

BALINT BRINGS IT

The thought of Becca Balint representing us in Congress fills me with hope [Off Message: “Vermont Sen. Becca Balint Announces Run for U.S. House,” December 13]. I honestly can’t imagine anyone more prepared to show up and fight for us all, whether it’s taking care of the needs of working families or protecting democracy itself.

No matter how frenzied the political process, Becca can be counted on to rise above the fray, reflect deeply on issues that matter, reaffirm the humanity she sees in everyone and have the courage to be vulnerable herself.

Honestly, to have that kind of presence amid such fast-paced wrangling, you’re either the Dalai Lama or you’ve found the calling you were always meant for.

Becca shows us how powerful it can be when a leader is brave enough to approach their job with both their mind and heart fully engaged.

And she’s proven — year after year — that she knows how to get things done.

We need her in Washington, D.C. She’ll be a lawmaker who digs deep into the issues that matter; who has deep respect for all her constituents — even those who disagree with her; who has the courage to say the hard things; who recognizes that, no matter what divides exist on the surface, the reality is that we are all inherently bound together.

She will be the congressperson doing the work to bring people together — and who has the brilliant, strategic mind needed to enact change.

Political leaders like Becca are rare, and I am thrilled to vote for her for Congress.

Ann Braden

BRATTLEBORO

CLIMATE FOLLOW-UP?

Thanks to Kevin McCallum for exploring how the Vermont Climate Council’s climate action plan will equitably protect minority, disadvantaged and vulnerable lowerincome citizens [“Retooling Refueling: The New Climate Action Plan Talks a Good

WEEK IN REVIEW

TIM NEWCOMB

Game About Not Burdening Vermonters.

Can It Deliver?” December 8].

Both the ESSEX carbon tax plan (2015) and the Transportation and Climate Initiative (2020) recognized that those carbon tax schemes needed to protect minority, disadvantaged and lowerincome citizens. The answer was assigning some of the carbon tax revenues to pay for a menu of unspecified benefits and subsidies to compensate these groups for enduring the higher cost of carbon-based fuel, required to suppress carbon dioxide emissions to levels set in the Global Warming Solutions Act. The follow-up story to McCallum’s should be: “So how many tax dollars a year will the climate action plan need to produce to equitably buy off our minority, disadvantaged and vulnerable lowerincome citizens — and just who will be required to equitably foot the bill for those benefits and subsidies?

John McClaughry

KIRBY

THINK BIG ON CLIMATE

It’s wonderful to see the conversation about climate action finally start to shift from “We need to reduce emissions” to “We need to improve people’s lives in a way that also reduces emissions” [“Retooling Refueling: The New Climate Action Plan Talks a Good Game About Not Burdening Vermonters. Can It Deliver?”

December 8].

Effective climate policy can’t be a matter of carbon taxes and shuffling around renewable energy credits.

Action to address the climate crisis will be effective only with widespread

community buy-in, and that means (a) consulting with people — especially young people, families, and low-income and BIPOC folks — about their actual needs; and (b) providing solutions that improve people’s everyday lives now, as well as prevent ecosystem collapse and a future that’s just one giant extreme weather event.

Fortunately, there are so many ways we can do that! In addition to reducing emissions, investing in weatherization and heat pumps keeps people warmer, reduces their bills and leads to less money leaving the state overall. Building solar arrays for schools to power electric buses saves money that schools could use to buy more local food for school lunches, supporting local farmers (a solution for the Horizon situation, anyone?) and making kids healthier.

Vermonters are justifiably proud of our frugality, our ability to be creative with limited resources. Unfortunately, this mindset often comes hand in hand with a mentality of scarcity, the idea that there’s just not enough for everyone. I call BS. We have so many resources in our state, including money, if we’re only willing to share the burdens and benefits equitably.

Marisa Keller

MONTPELIER

WITNESS TO RACISM

At last, folks are beginning to take the issue of racism in kids’ sports seriously [“Winooski Athletes Say Enosburg Players Used Racial Slurs During Soccer Game,” September 27; “Winooski Incident Prompts Calls for Stronger Enforcement Against Racist Acts in

School Sports,” October 6; “BurlingtonSoBu Volleyball Game Called Off After Racial Harassment From Stands,” October 8; “Winooski Soccer Player Could Face Criminal Charge From Enosburg Game,” October 20; “Spectators, Media Banned From Winooski-Enosburg Soccer Game,” November 1].

Since 2009, I have witnessed racism on the soccer field and basketball court — at school, club and state levels. I have witnessed the biased decision making by the referees against our BIPOC kids, as well as reports of racist remarks made under the breath of opponents.

I remember a semifinal state basketball game at the University of Vermont’s Patrick Gymnasium, when Burr and Burton Academy spectators started shouting “USA” at the top of their lungs in support of their team — who were playing Burlington High School — while a kid with an American flag ran up and down the sideline. No one stopped them.

I remember hearing the Rice Memorial High School supporters shouting “Welfare” at the BHS kids while they played basketball.

Games have been lost due to the racism our kids have experienced through biased decision making. It takes an emotional toll. I commend our children for staying strong through the persistent abuse that they experienced and am appalled by the lack of protection that schools, clubs and state officials have given them, despite complaints made at all levels of the game. It’s just not good enough.

The training given to referees needs to be overhauled, and schools and clubs need to step up and talk with their supporters about how they behave on the sidelines, in order to expose and challenge all aspects of discrimination and unfair practices and conduct at every level of kids’ sports.

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contents DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022 VOL.27 NO.13

COLUMNS 10 68 73 101

Magnificent 14 Soundbites Album Reviews Ask the Reverend

SECTIONS 50 Food + Drink 58 Culture

62 68 72 74 82 83

Art Music + Nightlife On Screen Calendar Classes Classifieds + Puzzles 97 Fun Stuff 100 Personals

FOOD 50 What Was Delicious in 2021

Seven Days food writers share their favorite bites and sips of the year

50

STUCK IN VERMONT

Online Thursday

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NEWS & POLITICS 13

FEATURES 34

From the Publisher

Life Stories 2021

Remembering Vermonters who died this year

Backstories, Sidebars and Follow-Ups 2021

Hidden Figures

Seven Days writers reveal what it took to report the news in year No. 2 of a pandemic

Will Gebhard explores shape and color in “So It Goes” at Soapbox Arts

Top Seven

Journal of Another Plague Year in Film

Senior multimedia producer Eva Sollberger SUPPORTED BY: checks in with some of the friends she made this year and honors some of those she lost.

She also takes viewers behind the scenes to show what it takes to make an episode of this long-running series — and shares some viewers’ hopes for 2022.

High and low points of 2021 film

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Six stories that shaped Vermont’s arts and culture scenes in 2021

The 2021 art shows we liked best, and why

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Thank you for all your support this year! It means the world to us!!

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SATURDAY 1

Cat’s All, Folks Street cats have had the run of the Turkish city of Istanbul for thousands of years, living their own lives that intersect with their local humans in delightful and ephemeral ways. Kedi, a documentary investigating this parallel feline world, kicks off the Woodstock Vermont Film Series at Billings Farm & Museum.

MUST SEE, MUST DO

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 77

FRIDAY 31

COMPI L E D BY E MI LY HAMI LTON

ROCKIN’ EVE Emoji Nightmare and Nikki Champagne host New Queers Eve, the annual LGBTQ+ celebratory extravaganza at Higher Ground Ballroom in South Burlington. The ball-dropping bash features drag performances by the likes of Sasha Sriracha and Rhedd Rhumm, burlesque displays by dancers such as Katniss Everqueer and Ginge O’Lolly, and a bubbly midnight toast.

Submit your upcoming events at sevendaysvt.com/postevent.

SATURDAY 1

Rhythm and Snowshoes Highland Center for the Arts in Greensboro hosts Japanese-inspired percussion group Burlington Taiko at its celebration of both the New Year and the opening of its new Open Air Gallery. Audience members bundle up for the outdoor concert, drummers deliver exhilarating beats by the bonfire, and the café serves food and warm drinks.

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 77

SEE CLUB LISTING ON PAGE 70

FRIDAY 31

A Chorus Line Lyric Theatre and the Vermont Symphony Orchestra come together at the Flynn for Burlington Does Broadway, a rollicking revue for lovers of all the music and theatricality the Great White Way has to offer. Some of Vermont’s finest musicians reimagine classics new and old, ringing in the New Year with bright lights and big city vibes.

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 77

FRIDAY 31

Northeast Countdown Fireworks and festivities abound in St. Johnsbury during First Night North, a town-wide New Year’s Eve bash featuring some of the region’s best singers, circus performers, theater troupes and comedians. Revelers can catch delights such as the Bob & Sarah Amos Band at United Community Church, Valley Improv at Catamount Arts, and Her Majesty’s Secret Circus at St. Johnsbury Academy.

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 77

WEDNESDAY 5

Books and Ballads Tiphanie Yanique writes it all: Novels, short stories, poems and essays. The Caribbean American author of Wife, Land of Love and Drowning and, most recently, Monster in the Middle has been praised for her lyrical, evocative, epic prose and verse. The Vermont Studio Center in Johnson hosts her in its Visiting Writer Reading series.

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 78

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For You and Me

Is your New Year’s resolution to transform into a spell-spinning dwarf or a highkicking orc, by any chance? You know what they say: New year, new you. The Waterbury Public Library hosts Beginner Dungeons & Dragons every first and third Saturday, and dungeon master Evan Hoffman is spending the first day of 2022 running a fun-filled, fantastical campaign for role-players new and old.

The Hood Museum at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H., launches “This Land: American Engagement With the Natural World,” its first comprehensive retrospective on American art to feature Native American artists alongside Black, Asian, Latin and white Americans. One hundred and sixty works in four galleries compel visitors to reconsider their relationships to nature, home and history.

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 77

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Rainbow Connection The Pride Hikes series continues with something a little different: Forest Management at the Hinesburg Town Forest. Chittenden County forester Ethan Tapper meets LGBTQIA++ hikers at the Hayden Hill Road East trailhead for an afternoon of learning about sustainable logging practices and habitat regeneration. Hosted by Audubon Vermont, the Pride Center of Vermont, Outright Vermont, and the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation.

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 80

SATURDAY 8

SUNDAY 9

Twelve Drummers Drumming

Flash, Dance

Ladies dance and lords a-leap toward the Cabot Village 12th Night Celebration, a festival packed with theater, music, art and storytelling. Featured players include the Brass Balagan, the Dave Keller Band, the Midnight Capers, master storyteller Simon Brooks and Cabot Community Theater. Dragons are slain, wassails are sung, and locals and their homemade paper lanterns fill the streets.

Vermont Dance Alliance and CATV host VDA Mini Courses: Introduction to Cinematography & Video Editing, a daylong workshop for dancers and choreographers looking to learn the fundamentals of filming movement.

Lighting, editing software and sound design are among the topics covered by instructor Simon Reed, and all participants end the day with a completed short film.

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 80

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 80

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SUNDAY 9

Kimchi and Company

DR EA MS TIME

New variant? No problem: The Fletcher Free Library’s Food for Talk Cookbook Club brings the dinner party vibes to you. In January, members read Maangchi’s Big Book of Korean Cooking, a comprehensive guide

by Korean American YouTube star Maangchi, and pick a dish to cook and present at the virtual meeting.

P AP NR © RO

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SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 80

WEDNESDAY 12

Dam Good Wildlife rehabilitator Patti Smith has spent more than a decade with a particular colony of beavers in southeastern Vermont. Her online presentation, part of the North Branch Nature Center’s Naturalist Journeys series, tells the story of Willow, the colony’s matriarch, as well as the beautiful beaver world she’s created in her own little corner of a brook.

COURTESY OF MMFA

SEE CALENDAR LISTING ON PAGE 81

ONGOING

Portrait of an Artist The Montréal Museum of Fine Arts hosts “The World of Yousuf Karsh: A Private Essence,” a stunning collection of works by one of the greatest portraitists of the 20th century. If you’ve seen a British 5-pound note or a poster of Albert Einstein, you’ve seen a Karsh portrait, but you’ve never seen them like this: pristine, rare, large-format gelatin silver prints, developed by the artist himself.

SEE GALLERY LISTING ON PAGE 66

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FROM THE PUBLISHER

Hope Scrolling

READING THROUGH THESE MESSAGES IS

Every night, between 8 and 9 p.m., I receive a flood of emails. They’re notifications of recurring Super Reader donations to Seven Days. Depending on the day of the month, between 30 and 130 receipts pour into my inbox, all at once, causing whatever device I’m on to seize up for a few seconds.

Reading through these messages is the opposite of “doom scrolling.” The daily ritual fills me with hope and gratitude. I recognize the names of fellow journalists, friends, elected officials, letter writers, neighbors, sources, advertisers and artists who responded to our calls for help during the pandemic and are providing ongoing, reliable financial support. In addition, and just as moving, are scores of people I don’t know: readers who are pitching in because they rely on Seven Days and want it to press on.

Prior to the pandemic, the only measure of our readers’ loyalty was the number of papers that got picked up each week. Now we’ve got real proof. I can’t say these are the last emails I see at the end of the day — I’m a night owl and almost always work late — but they are undoubtedly the most uplifting.

Readers’ appreciation has sustained and motivated all of us at Seven Days to keep going through everything the past two years have thrown at us. The news team has delivered breaking local news coverage of the pandemic and in-depth explorations of its impacts on hospitals, schools, nursing homes, single mothers and the unhoused.

And they’ve covered so much more, as you can see from the collection of “Backstories” in this week’s double issue (page 14). Derek Brouwer started the year waiting in a parking lot to question a busload of Vermonters returning from the riot at the U.S. Capitol. He wrapped it up with an exposé of landlord Rick Bove and his real estate rental empire. In the months between, Brouwer’s colleagues dug into Burlington’s police problems, measured noise pollution from the F-35 fighter jets, and documented Vermonters’ warring perspectives on hunting and trapping.

The culture team, which includes two full-time food writers, carefully and creatively monitored performing arts centers, restaurants, museums, farmers and artists. Elizabeth M. Seyler, Dan Bolles and Melissa Pasanen are leading our lifestyle coverage now. That includes memorializing some of the remarkable Vermonters we’ve lost, as in this week’s “Life Stories” package (page 34), expertly managed by Bolles. He’s the curatorial force behind all of our theme issues and numerous other projects, such as April’s “Bracing for Impact,” in which Vermont cartoonists, poets and writers shared their humor and insight about a thing we coined post-pandemic “reentry anxiety.” If only!

Readers have contributed to our content, too. Our cover story about Vermont’s extraordinary wait times to see medical specialists relied on dozens of responses to our plea for personal experiences. A few months later, we asked about mail delivery; your answers revealed that postal service is wildly uneven in Vermont and prompted another timely report.

Through it all, Seven Days has sought to minimize the pandemic’s isolation with a healthy mix of accurate local news and artful writing about everything else that’s happening in our community. We’ve gradually reintroduced event listings in the calendar, music and art sections.

We hope they’re here to stay, but who knows what effect the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus will have in 2022.

Actually, you may have a better idea Interested in becoming a Super Reader? than I do: Seven Days takes the week off Look for the “Give Now” buttons at the top between Christmas and New Year’s, so of sevendaysvt.com. Or send a check with we produce this end-of-the-year paper your address and contact info to: in advance. As I’m writing this, nine days before you’re reading it, I’m nervously wondering, Are

SEVEN DAYS, C/O SUPER READERS

P.O. BOX 1164 we expecting a rainstorm or a tornado? No one seems to know.

BURLINGTON, VT 05402-1164 One surety: Postholiday, our talented and diligent team of reporters will find out.

For more information on making a financial We’re all in this together. I just got a boatload of emails contribution to Seven Days, please contact that make it official. Many thanks.

Corey Barrows:

THE OPPOSITE OF “DOOM SCROLLING.”

I CAN’T SAY THESE ARE THE LAST EMAILS I SEE AT THE END OF THE DAY — I’M A NIGHT OWL AND ALMOST ALWAYS WORK LATE —

BUT THEY ARE UNDOUBTEDLY THE MOST UPLIFTING.

READERS’ APPRECIATION HAS SUSTAINED AND MOTIVATED ALL OF US AT SEVEN DAYS

TO KEEP GOING THROUGH EVERYTHING THE PAST TWO YEARS HAVE THROWN AT US.

AS I’M WRITING THIS, NINE DAYS BEFORE YOU’RE READING IT, I’M NERVOUSLY WONDERING, ARE WE EXPECTING A RAINSTORM OR A TORNADO?

NO ONE SEEMS TO KNOW.

Paula Routly

VOICEMAIL: 802-865-1020, EXT. 136 EMAIL: SUPERREADERS@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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Backstories,

SIDEBARS and Follow-Ups 2021 Seven Days writers reveal what it took to report the news in year No. 2 of a pandemic

COLDEST STAKEOUT

“After Riots at the Capitol, Busload of Vermont Trump Supporters Returns From D.C.” January 6 wasn’t circled on my calendar. COVID-19, not electoral politics, was my reporting focus, so I didn’t give much thought to president Donald Trump’s Stop the Steal rally planned outside the U.S. Capitol. My to-do list for the day included conducting interviews about Vermont’s vaccine campaign, chasing a story involving the Tiger King and following up on some court cases. I was tired, though, because I’d stayed up the previous night watching the vote get tallied in two pivotal U.S. Senate races in Georgia. For fun, I guess.

Once the Capitol “rally” morphed into a violent mob that afternoon, everything else stopped. My colleagues jumped on the story, calling every reachable Vermont

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Republican and Democrat to get their reactions to the unfolding horrific spectacle.

We also knew that a busload of Trump diehards had chartered a ride from Vermont to the event. Their departure the previous evening from a grocery store parking lot along Route 7 in South Burlington had been in the news. We watched as the riders posted, and later deleted, videos from outside the Capitol. We wanted to know what this group of Vermonters did and saw. I also wanted to know what they thought about the chaos — what they really thought, before the right-wing influencers mobilized and Trump’s team disseminated talking points to his faithful followers.

I spent the evening scheming. I knew that the bus was scheduled to depart Washington, D.C., in the late afternoon. The 10-hour drive would put its return at around 2 a.m., though traffic was bound to be bad. What if the trip took several hours longer? I couldn’t wait outside the whole 21-degree night.

Alas, there was no other way. I arrived at the dark Hannaford parking lot just before 2 a.m. and waited inside my car, trying not to fall asleep. By 2:45 a.m., I was ready to bail. I started my car, but as

B Y SEV EN D AYS S TAFF

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y reporting career had barely started when — after a bitter-cold night covering a department store fire on Burlington’s Church Street — a coworker grinned at me and said, “Remember, being a reporter is the most fun you can have with your clothes on.”

He was right, I thought then and still believe now, 40 years later.

The thrill of the chase for the truth. The pleasure of a scoop. The satisfaction of serving as the public’s eye on government, of revealing the missteps and questionable actions of public officials. And the unparalleled opportunity to be invited into people’s lives, learn their stories and share them with the world.

Once a year, Seven Days invites readers into our world. The backstories our reporters tell in this issue — the tales of how they got the news — offer glimpses of how we go about our work. You’ll learn how we were able to document monthslong wait times to see doctors at the University of Vermont Medical Center, how Burlington City Hall reporter Courtney Lamdin spotted the plagiarism in a well-paid consultant’s report and how great stories emerged from reporter Anne Wallace Allen’s personal quest to get a dateline from every town in Vermont.

You’ll also learn that our work is not all fun, whether you are news reporter Derek Brouwer, shivering at 2 a.m. on a January night waiting to interview Vermonters returning from the January 6 chaos in Washington, D.C.; or food writer Jordan Barry, white-knuckling down the road over Lincoln Gap; or reporter Colin Flanders, spending empty hours waiting for F-35 fighter jets to pass overhead.

Reporters commit to fairness so that their stories stand above the fray in a bloodless way. But this year’s backstories strike me as proof that journalists are anything but bloodless. Food writer Melissa Pasanen mourns the passing of a longtime source. A marathon Bible reading at a tiny church reminds Flanders of the importance of simple companionship. Lamdin goes to the Sears Lane homeless encampment in Burlington as a journalist and comes home with a new appreciation for her own privilege and the campers’ plight. And Statehouse reporter Kevin McCallum learns the price to be paid for a story that offends gun owners as far away as Texas. (Jeers, obscenities and a tampon are involved.)

So please enjoy these stories of the work we did, the challenges we faced and the fun we had in 2021, with our clothes on.

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“Weinberger Removes Racial Equity Director From Oversight of Policing Study” “Burlington Airport Director Gene Richards Placed On Leave Following Complaint” “Burlington City Councilor Is Accused of Sexual Assault”

In July 2019, I was lounging in a Maine hotel room when I took a break from my Jodi Picoult novel to check Twitter.

There in my timeline, I saw that a colleague had written the story I’d been chasing for weeks: Developers of the long-stalled CityPlace Burlington project downtown had announced that the entire development would be redesigned, from top to bottom.

I had worried that the story would break while I was on vacation, and I felt guilty that my coworker Kevin McCallum had to pick up my slack. My colleagues covered for me again when I went to Vacationland the following year, picking up a couple of stories about the city’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.

There seemed to be a trend: Every time I had a break, news broke, too. I began joking with my editor that maybe I shouldn’t take time off, lest some ugly fate befall the city of Burlington.

This year, not one but three stories broke while I was gone. In March, I was on a much-needed staycation when newly reelected Mayor Miro Weinberger made a controversial management decision: He removed Tyeastia Green, a Black woman who oversees the city’s racial equity department, as manager of a crucial study on policing — and gave the task to the white, male manager of the city’s electric utility. The city had just spent months reckoning with police violence and racism, and the move did not sit

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2021backstories Trump supporters marching to the U.S. Capitol on January 6

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I began to drive away, streetlights illuminated something in my rearview mirror.

It was a car parked at the opposite end of the long parking lot, with a WPTZ-TV logo emblazoned on its side.

The prospect of being scooped brought a jolt of adrenaline. I turned around. The bus pulled in just after 3 a.m., and the maskless rallygoers stepped out into the cold. Some retrieved the American flags they’d stowed in the luggage compartments. They were tired and a little grumpy, like a football team

Mayor Miro Weinberger

I FELT AWFUL KNOWING THAT MY COWORKERS ONCE AGAIN HAD TO COVER WHAT’S PROBABLY THE PAPER’S BUSIEST BEAT

WHILE I WAS BASKING IN THE OCEAN BREEZE.

returning after a defeat on its rival’s turf.

Yet their spirit had not been broken, I quickly learned, as one of the trip’s organizers calmly explained to me that left-wing infiltrators were responsible for the violence. Proof for this theory, he insisted, was already circulating online.

If I hadn’t been so tired, I might have asked to see his evidence. Instead I went home and filed my story at 6:45 a.m., just in time to catch a nap before my next interview at 9 a.m.

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D E R E K B R O U WE R

well with the public.

When the story broke, I couldn’t pry myself away from reading the Facebook comments.

My friends, who were visiting Burlington from Baton Rouge, La., asked me to explain why I was wildly scrolling social media. I could only stammer, “It’s a long story.”

In July, I was on another Maine trip when a city councilor was accused of sexual assault and the city’s airport director was placed on leave for what we’d later learn was a pattern of abusive behavior. I felt awful knowing that my coworkers once again had to cover what’s probably the paper’s busiest beat while I was basking in the ocean breeze.

So I soothed my anxiety the best way I knew how: with a steaming hot lobster roll and a pile of saltwater taffy.

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MOST FRUITFUL FACT-CHECK “Dodson Plagiarized Portions of Report on Burlington Police Transformation”

Kyle Dodson’s short tenure with the City of Burlington began and ended the same way: with a boatload of controversy. Mayor Miro Weinberger tapped Dodson, a Black man who serves as president and CEO of the Greater Burlington YMCA, to lead the city’s “police transformation” effort in September 2020. That month, protesters had occupied a city park to demand that the city fire three officers accused of violence and racism.

The mayor’s move might have been designed to appease them and city council Progressives, but the latter group

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saw the hiring of Dodson — who had no experience leading police reform or racial justice efforts — as a unilateral move by Weinberger, a Democrat. He did not seek city council input before bringing Dodson on board.

Six months later, in March 2021, Dodson turned in his final report, which was supposed to be an all-encompassing review of police operations and public safety, including an analysis of department discipline procedures. But when I opened the document, something just felt … off. For one, the report was only eight pages long, including the cover page. Its contents were equally unimpressive: In a section considering the role of police in communities, Dodson wrote that such a question should be “debated neighborhood-by-neighborhood, and resolved street-by-street.”

I sent my editor Sasha Goldstein a message on Slack.

“A fifth grader could have written this report,” I wrote, and emailed him a copy.

“Did you see the Mark Twain quotes?”

Kyle Dodson at his introductory press conference

It didn’t take long for Sasha to see what I meant. “Oh, man,” he wrote back.

“We should run this [through an online checker] to see if any is plagiarized.”

Reader, it was. I’d never heard of a plagiarism checker before, but the one we found on the web gave us a full picture of Dodson’s shoddy work: More than half of the 1,542 words in the report weren’t his

MOST RANDOM ASSIGNMENT APR

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C O U RT N E Y L AMDI N

— WOULD FORGIVE THE ETHICAL TRANSGRESSION. Pastor Neal Perry

Green Mountain Bible Church in Island Pond

see something new. And so, when I stumbled across a posting for a 24-hour Bible reading in Island Pond, I was on board.

What would inspire someone to do this?

What would they get out of it? Where the hell was Island Pond?

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

FILE PHOTOS: COLIN FLANDERS

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own. The city paid Dodson $75,000 for his six-month gig, and this was his last word?

I called Dodson, who owned up to his copy-and-paste job. He said Burlington’s polarized views around policing convinced him that the city wasn’t ready for a constructive dialogue about real change. Dodson told me he was uncomfortable in the go-between role and that some people accused him of being a sellout for working closely with the police.

When Seven Days published the story, some readers were angry to discover that the person tasked with finding solutions for a seemingly intractable problem had essentially thrown up his hands. Others accused the paper of tarnishing the character of an upstanding public servant and person of color.

The Burlington Police Department had a different take: On November 16, it honored him with a certificate of appreciation for his outstanding service and contributions to public safety.

HE SENT ME HOME WITH A SMALL POCKET BIBLE, WHICH I AWKWARDLY ACCEPTED, FIGURING THE GODS — JOURNALISTIC OR OTHERWISE

“The Holy Sprint: A Vermont church reads the Bible in 24 hours”

To explain how I ended up spending part of Easter weekend at a Bible reading in the Northeast Kingdom, it helps to understand how I was feeling at that time.

It was early April, and I had spent most of the previous year toiling away at home, emerging from my dim bedroom-turnedoffice only to make lunch or refill my water bottle. My neck felt permanently kinked from doing interviews with the phone propped against my shoulder. Too often I was forgetting to put on deodorant. And while the vaccine rollout offered hope, my age group wouldn’t be eligible for another two weeks. I was going stir-crazy.

Around that same time, I was speeding through This Land, a book by journalist Dan Barry that contains a collection of columns he wrote for the New York Times.

The stories painted intimate portraits of American life. You could smell the manure from the last-ever auction at a century-old Minnesota stockyard and hear the ripple of the flag planted on the side of a South Dakota dirt road — the geographical center of the nation.

I wanted to do more reporting like this, to go somewhere I’d never been, to

FILE: DEREK BROUWER

Backstories « P.15

I called the pastor and made my pitch.

He seemed hesitant; it was the height of mask mania, and there had been reports of churches not strictly adhering to indoor mandates, which had led to some outbreaks of COVID-19. I assured him that I had no interest in mask policing. I just wanted to take in the scene.

After a lengthy drive that included a stop at an NEK grocery store to ask for directions, I found the church and spent nearly three hours there, reveling in the feeling of being with strangers once again.

The pastor warmed to my presence the longer I stuck around. An interview in his office revealed more about him: his past

struggles with money and depression, and why he does what he does. He even sent me home with a small pocket Bible, which I awkwardly accepted, figuring the gods — journalistic or otherwise — would forgive the ethical transgression of accepting a gift from a source.

The high from the visit was quickly replaced by the dread of having to write it up. I racked my brain for a deeper meaning, for a way to convince readers, and maybe myself, that I hadn’t just wasted a tank of gas and a Saturday on a dud.

But then I remembered that I wasn’t the only one who had spent the last 12 months in isolation. So I wrote about what I saw: a group of people coming together to do something they enjoyed. That felt newsworthy enough to me.

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2021backstories

BEST HUNCH

“Case Dismissed?

Questions persist about the police investigation into missing Vermont man Ralph Jean-Marie” In April, I was assigned to cover a press conference in Barre. The event was meant to drum up interest in the case of Ralph Jean-Marie, a 38-year-old Black man who vanished from the Hollow Inn & Motel a year earlier. (As of this writing, he remains missing.)

But it was also a chance for authorities to push back on accusations that they were neglecting the case because Jean-Marie was Black and poor. As they recapped their yearlong investigation, I

APR

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“Nobody ever asked me a thing,” she said.

I’d watched enough procedural crime shows to find this odd. I could have thrown a rock from the woman’s porch and hit the door of the room Jean-Marie was staying in. Yet no one thought to talk to her even once over the past year?

The woman didn’t remember anything about the night Jean-Marie disappeared, though who knows what might have stood out had she been questioned closer to the date. The fact that the police had skipped this seemingly rudimentary step felt noteworthy. I had the beginnings of a story.

The woman named all the neighbors she knew. Back at home, I found their phone numbers and called them. The two I reached said they were never interviewed either. Both also lived within eyesight of the motel. I drove to Barre the next day and started knocking on doors in the neighborhood. Four more people,

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Tip #2

Ralph Jean-Marie

must admit that they had me convinced.

The police had conducted more than 50 interviews and nearly 30 searches, officials said, in some cases using canine and scuba teams. It sounded comprehensive.

Still, I had a duty to vet the investigation, so I kept an eye out for anything that might have been overlooked.

About halfway through the press conference, I noticed a man sitting on his porch across the street from the motel, smoking a cigarette and watching us.

For reasons I still can’t explain, a question popped into my head: I wonder if the police ever talked to him?

I waited around after the press conference while the rest of the media dispersed, then jogged across the street.

The man had gone inside, but a woman had replaced him on the porch. I introduced myself and made some small talk before asking what I wanted to know.

including one who lived directly next door to the motel, said the cops hadn’t asked them anything. Another man hadn’t known for months that a person was missing.

Confident that I had enough, I confronted the police chief, who eventually confirmed that his department had never canvassed the residential neighborhood. He said detectives would perform the interviews in the coming days: “I just think it escaped their thought process,” he said.

Later, I called the woman from the porch to check in. She said a pair of detectives had shown up on her doorstep that morning to ask about Jean-Marie. She immediately thought of me, she said: “I thought to myself, ‘You go, kid.’”

COLIN FLANDERS BACKSTORIES »P.18

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ALISON REDLICH/USA TODAY NETWORK

Backstories « P.17

FILE: OLIVER PARINI

Mark (left) and Rick Bove in front of the family restaurant in 2007

REFORMED SCHOOL?

Rice Memorial High School students protesting in June

2

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SEP

1

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“Degrees of Farce: An alleged fraudster and a cryptocurrency creator walk onto a college campus…”

“Beware the Buyers? Investors with questionable records want to buy five Vermont nursing homes. Will the state let them?”

“No Confession: Rice High says it handled sexual misconduct by the book.

An independent report says otherwise.”

“Roaches and Broken Locks: Mark and Rick Bove’s growing empire of affordable rentals vexes code enforcers”

There are two sides to every story, as the saying goes. But time after time in 2021, the subjects of my reporting found ways to avoid telling me theirs.

At first, this was frustrating: I want to include all perspectives in my reporting, and an interview is often the only way to fully represent an individual’s view of the facts. But, after a while, the lengths to which some people went to avoid answering questions became downright amusing.

In May, I emailed a Canadian businessman, Adrian Stein, who at the time 18

was laying claim to the former Marlboro College campus for a mysterious project involving a not-yet-existent cryptocurrency. First, Stein asked me to provide a link to my past work and inquired as to how I located his email address. Next, he requested a list of questions in writing. I made my case for a phone interview, and he agreed. But after I asked a couple of uncomfortable questions about his previous businesses, Stein said he didn’t have any more time to talk.

Next, there was the principal of

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

VOICE JULY 21-28, 2021 VOL.26 NO.42 SEVEN DAYSV T.COM

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Rice Memorial High School, Lisa Lorenz. She declined repeated interview requests over the summer to respond to allegations that the school mishandled reports of sexual misconduct by students.

Instead, the school sent a statement that included assertions that were contradicted Investors with que Vermont nursin stionable records want to buy by other documents I had five g homes. Will the state let them? obtained. Once I explained this conundrum, Lorenz sent a DOUBLE BOGEY THERE’S THE BEEF series of emails, attempting to VISUAL APPEAL clarify her earlier statement.

Finally, I sent a list of specific questions, to which she did not respond.

At least Stein and Lorenz acknowl- Public Radio twice to schedule it. But edged me. A group of investors seeking when the time came, he didn’t pick up to purchase five Vermont nursing homes the phone. Bove later texted us to say he ignored my entreaties entirely in July, would not speak to us for the story. He leaving me to wonder whether I had their didn’t explain why he’d changed his mind. correct phone numbers. To be sure that His brother, Mark, did take our call but I got their attention, I sent a detailed list also declined to be interviewed. of questions to their Vermont attorney, After the story ran in November, Mark Shireen Hart. The next day, I later learned, submitted a letter to the editor to Seven they removed an investor I’d been rais- Days, which read, in part, “I urge everyone ing questions about from their formal to understand the broader context. There application to the state. I think they got are always two sides to every story and my messages. to address every single one would only The clumsiest avoider, though, was lead to a back-and-forth where nothing landlord Rick Bove. He initially agreed productive would happen.” to an extensive interview about problems That answered one of my questions, I at his rental properties and even spoke to guess. me and Liam Elder-Connors of Vermont DE RE K BRO U W E R VERMO NT’S INDEP ENDEN T

MOST RELUCTANT SOURCES

Anti-racism propo sal lags in Winooski

Beware the Buyers?

BY DEREK BROUW ER, PAGE 26

Disc golf dispute

PAGE 32

in Waterbury

All aboard the Burge

PAGE 38

r Buggy

Art listings are back!

PAGE 52

2021backstories

Happy

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“Some Kind of Wonderful: Day-tripping with Guster’s Ryan Miller” I didn’t want to leave the food table at the outdoor, all-youcan-eat seafood fest at 18 Elm in Waterbury, onto which chef Eric Warnstedt was dumping steaming pots of shrimp, mussels, clams, corn on the cob, sausage and potatoes. But I needed a quote from someone in the crowd, so I scanned the attendees. My goal was to grab a quick quote about steamers and get back to my preferred activity: eating.

It’s hard to describe what makes a person eligible for ambush, the one you’ll interrupt mid-bite to ask, “Hey, whaddya think?” Justice Potter Stewart nailed its essence referring to pornography: “I know it when I see it.”

I knew it when I saw it that rainy night in June 2019. He held a cardboard container of food in one hand, rainsoaked sauce in the other. His eyes were shiny, his jacket slick. Like the rest of us, he was wet.

“Hi, I’m Sally Pollak,” I said, elbowing my way in and launching into a spiel. “I’m a reporter at Seven Days writing a story about—” Before I could finish the sentence, this guy was giving me a grade-A assessment of the food, with poetic rhythm.

He achieved this level of oratory talking about boiled potatoes and clams. Slow down, I implored, trying to scribble notes in my soggy notebook.

It turned out I was talking to Ryan Miller, the lead singer of the rock band Guster. Though I spotted him as an enthusiastic eater and colorful talker, I failed to notice he’d been playing music

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under the cover of a barn for most of the evening. (I heard the songs and liked ’em, but my gaze was on the food, and my mouth was unavailable for sing-alongs.)

Pretty soon, our conversation shifted from the meal in Waterbury to the one that Bob Dylan ate backstage in Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Thunder Revue. We also discussed what was served at Psychedelicatessen, an erstwhile café in Burlington’s Old North End. After a while, Miller and I hatched a plan: He’d come with me on occasional food stories; we’d explore Vermont meal by meal, Bayley Hazen Blue by Pete’s Greens.

I drove home psyched by the prospect of eating with an adventure seeker and quote machine rolled into one.

A few months later, the perfect story assignment came along, and I emailed Miller. Could he meet me at the Boardroom, a new board-game café in Burlington, to roll the dice and eat peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches? He was intrigued but booked at Hen of the Wood.

Then the pandemic hit, and no one went anywhere.

Over the summer, when Seven Days was planning its Cartoon Issue, an editor suggested that artist Michael Tonn and I tag along with Miller on one of his weird and wonderful adventures. We’d make a comic based on the trip: Tonn’s art, my words.

Of course, Miller would have to be willing, my editor cautioned.

“I’m pretty sure he’ll be up for it,” I said.

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Backstories « P.19

BACK ON TRACK

Thunder Road roars

PAGE 17

I pulled my car into Winooski’s O’Brien Community Center parking lot and braced for disappointment.

To my right: a plastic briefcase containing an expensive sound monitor I barely knew how to use, despite a two-hour lesson from the person who’d lent it to me.

To my left: a window cracked just enough to hear my surroundings without letting the summer heat into my air-conditioned car. Above, a clear — and quiet — sky.

I waited.

I had already wasted more than 10 hours chasing the F-35 stealth fighters, a pursuit that included two full afternoons anticipating their arrival while sitting on back porches in Winooski and South Burlington and a morning in the driveway of a Williston home.

I was writing about jet noise, and though interviews with several dozen people had given me a clear sense of just

JUL

7

VERM ONT’S INDEP ENDE NT VOICE JULY 7-14, 2021 VOL.2 6 NO.40 SEVEN DAYS VT.CO

“Sound Effects: In the F-35’s flight path, Vermonters’ lives have changed”

M

MOST EVASIVE SUBJECT

how loud it was, I wanted hard data to back it up. More than that, I wanted to experience it firsthand; though I live in South Burlington, the jets usually don’t fly over my apartment. I had never heard one directly overhead. That needed to change.

In the F-35’s fligh The only problem was t path, Vermonters’ lives have changed how to be in the right place at the right time.

The Vermont Air National UP IN THE AIR CURTAIN CALL Guard says national secuSWEET RELEASE rity concerns prevent it from releasing precise flight schedules, beyond a pair of two-hour windows in the morning and afternoon. was, doodling in my notebook and watchThe pilots also vary flight patterns based ing the minutes tick by. on the wind, sometimes taking off over After an hour and a few false starts, Winooski and, other times, Williston — a including once mistaking a garbage truck fact I learned the hard way. And so here I for a takeoff, I finally heard the sky start

SOUND EFFECTS

BY COLIN FL ANDE RS, PAGE 30

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PAGE 28

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PAGE 54

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“Ode to Combustion: At Thunder Road, normalcy reigns”

to rumble. I grabbed the sound monitor, jumped out of my car and craned my neck, catching the first jet just in time. Four more tore by in the next five minutes.

I’d heard enough descriptions of this moment to know what to expect: a full-body, “bonerattling” sensation that lingered long after the sound subsided. Still, I was shocked by how I felt. As the jets pushed the sound monitor to 110 decibels — the equivalent of a rock concert — I felt my pulse quicken, and I realized too late that I had forgotten to cover my ears.

For the next few hours, I felt myself subconsciously moving my jaw around, as if trying to dislodge a ball of cotton trapped behind it.

The moment earned only a passing mention in my story; the anecdotes I had collected proved more compelling. The experience did, however, impart one lesson: I need to be better prepared. On my way home that day, I bought a package of earplugs.

C O LI N FL AN DE RS

FILE PHOTOS: LUKE AWTRY

BIGGEST ROOKIE MISTAKE I’d never been to Thunder Road before I was sent there on assignment in July, and I assumed, based on no evidence, that there would be food. I also assumed that at least one vendor would accept credit cards, and, if not, that there would be an ATM machine on the premises. I believed these things with my whole heart, and therefore I did not bring cash.

So when my partner and I arrived to take in a Thursday evening race, neither of us was prepared for the electronic payment desert in which we found ourselves. Worst of all, we’d eaten nothing beforehand. We passed concession stand after concession stand, all of them cashonly. I asked a red-shirted attendant where I could find the nearest ATM. “Probably somewhere in town,” he said.

In a burst of magical thinking, I suggested we try the beer tent, but the man working the cooler also rejected our plastic money. My partner discovered a single $5 bill in his wallet, which we spent on a

PAGE 48

n McKenzie to retir

to life

Gov. Phil Scott

JUL

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20

Racers on the final turn

Fans at Thunder Road

Fans watching fireworks

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

tall can of Budweiser. The liquid staved off the gurgling in my innards for about 45 minutes. At some point, I began to have intrusive thoughts about Buffalo wings.

Eventually, we passed through hunger entirely and emerged on the side of terse apathy. If it had been possible to converse over the roar of the engines, I probably would have said something I regretted.

Just before the fireworks finale, we left for McDonald’s, the only place still open at that hour. In the parking lot, a guy was picking up a pizza from a Domino’s delivery driver. If only we’d been that resourceful.

C HE LS E A E DGAR

2021backstories

MOST INTRIGUING DRIVE-BY Staytripper: “Mind the Gap: A getaway on and around Lake Willoughby”

I love reporting and writing stories but don’t do it very often these days; running this newspaper is more than a fulltime job. Whenever I do get out, though, I talk to people, learn things and almost always return with a long list of potential story ideas to pursue. Although they’re hard to swing, these forays always make me happy. That’s why our special publications manager, Carolyn Fox, suggested that I take a plum assignment for the July edition of Staytripper: exploring the Northeast Kingdom area around Lake Willoughby and writing about it. Better yet, my research

JUL

COURTESY OF LAUREN-GLENN DAVITIAN

27

I made a mental note.

On the way home, we turned off the main road in Brownington in search of Amish farms and farmstands and found one pretty easily. A man stood in the drive, but he did not approach when we pulled over. Adhering to tradition — an Amish man should not speak to “English” females — he gestured to the house, and a young barefoot woman came out to help us. We admired her pickles and noted that her old-fashioned frock was held together with straight pins. She was reluctant to talk at first but quickly warmed up. She told us she came to Vermont to be a second wife — her new husband’s first wife had died. Another Amish family was building a house across the road. We looked over and saw shoeless men in button-down shirts wielding axes.

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would involve staying overnight. It was the closest I got over the summer to a real vacation.

I wanted a friend to join me, and my longtime pal Lauren-Glenn Davitian was game. Well suited, too. A skilled interviewer who runs Burlington’s CCTV Center for Media & Democracy, she’s even more extroverted than I am. Who makes the giant muffins at the Willoughby Lake Store? You can bet Lauren-Glenn and I will find out. In our shared view, questions are for asking, and no one is too shy to chat up.

But we were surprised to find so many Amish people, who in recent years have been buying land and settling near Willoughby. Driving east on Route 58 — L-G behind the wheel; me, taking notes — we carefully passed a horse and buggy.

Later, checking into the WilloughVale Inn and Cottages, we noticed a flyer advertising a benefit dinner to raise money for a local Amish family whose child was born with a life-threatening heart defect. Proceeds from these monthly community gatherings through the end of the summer would help pay for the surgery required to fix it.

tions would they accept medical treatment?

The plan was to convince another Seven Days reporter to find out.

We came close. Chelsea Edgar found the same farmstand on a trip to Burke. But the coronavirus and a number of other obstacles kept us from attending any of the three dinners. I really wanted Seven Days to do an in-depth story on the Christian group, and that urge — to be first — is a big part of what drives us journalists. I think I yelled out loud when I heard a teaser on Vermont Public Radio for a “Brave Little State” episode entitled “How’s Vermont’s Amish Community Doing?” I had been looking forward to answering that question.

Instead, all I got was an Amish icon at the bottom of the geographically correct watercolor map that Lauren-Glenn created to document our trip. We used her amazing art to illustrate my piece on Willoughby, which, like every story, was, in the end, incomplete.

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11/19/21 11/18/21 10:28 4:33 PM AM

Backstories « P.21 “Shots Fired: A reporter visits an indoor gun range” “You are a dirtbag.”

That was the entirety of the first email I received after a story I wrote about my visit to a new indoor shooting range in Waterbury, where I fired a 9mm pistol and a semiautomatic AR-15-style rifle.

In the days and weeks that followed, gun lovers across the nation pumped round after round of derision into my inbox.

“Dude, you are a f ***ing PUSSY!” concluded one.

“You’re a bitch. That is all,” offered another, an observation I could at least appreciate for its brevity.

“I bet you wet your panties so bad it’s not even funny,” a third shared.

Attacks on my honesty, manhood and bladder control were unrelenting. A smattering of support trickled in from those who took pity on me for being dumb enough to draw a target on my own back.

On balance, however, the response was of overwhelming disdain.

It wasn’t that I’d called the Heckler & Koch rifle an AR-15, which it is. It was that I had the audacity to refer to it as “high-powered” and an “assault rifle,” though I made clear that the second term is frowned upon in the firearms world as “inflammatory and imprecise.”

I also knew that I was being a bit hyperbolic when I described the experience of firing the rifle for the first time as “like a meteor had struck the earth in front of me” and the “deep shock wave” it sent through my body.

Such descriptions not only rang hollow for some readers familiar with firearms but also struck them as patently, provably false. I received videos of 7-year-old girls shooting similar rifles with no ill effects.

Others told tales of their 110-pound grandmothers taking down elk with far more powerful firearms, suggesting that I give one of those a try for perspective.

One commenter finished his diatribe against me with: “You don’t deserve to live in the ‘live free or die’ state.”

To which I replied, in an admittedly unprofessional manner, “That’s New Hampshire, numbnuts.”

One theory offered for the intensity of the reactions was that my story reminded some of a 2016 New York Daily News column. In that case, a reporter, following the mass shooting in Orlando, Fla., went to a gun range and described firing an AR-15 as “horrifying” and “like a bazooka.”

FILE: JEB WALLACE-BRODEUR

NASTIEST BLOWBACK

Kevin McCallum (left) and Josh Noble

AUG

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22

ONE COMMENTER FINISHED HIS DIATRIBE AGAINST ME WITH:

Parro’s Gun Shop

“YOU DON’T DESERVE TO LIVE IN THE ‘LIVE FREE OR DIE’ STATE.” The experience, he wrote, gave him “a temporary form of PTSD.” I would never go that far, but I did describe how it was “unnerving” to have the magazine jam and how I was “rattled” by the power of that first blast.

Upon reflection, however, I think what really galled people was the final line of the story, which I stand by: “I’m not sure what scared me more — the power of that

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

weapon or the fact that I could have taken one home that day.”

A week after the story ran, a package arrived at the Seven Days office. The small, light cardboard box was addressed to me from a company in Texas that shall remain nameless.

I carefully opened the box, as my newsroom colleagues watched, and found two items that didn’t immediately make sense together.

The first was a small plastic “holster” that looked like it was designed to carry a small cylindrical flashlight.

And the second item was cylindrical, but it wasn’t a flashlight. It was a tampon.

Get it? A guy in Texas went to the trouble to send a reporter in Vermont a holster for his tampon. And I’m the dirtbag.

KE VI N MC C ALLU M

2021backstories

TWISTIEST ROUTE AUG

10

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“Frass Forward: Vermont mealworm farm fuels plants, pets and people”

DRINK BEER.

“Ripe for the Picking: A Lincoln family has a peachy summer job with Paradise Fruit” morning’s disorienting twists and turns, I probably should have steered clear of the state’s highest-elevation vehicle-accessible road.

I was white-knuckling it down the west side of the gap when a peach stand suddenly appeared on the side of the still-dirt road.

I skidded into the driveway so fast that the frass hit the dashboard.

FILE: JEB WALLACE-BRODEUR

I’m not surprised that a story about mealworms is my most memorable of 2021.

Even if it had gone according to plan, I’d still tell all my friends about hanging out underneath the parlor of an old dairy barn, surrounded by 2.4 million wriggling insects.

It really grosses them out.

But on my way to interview Bob Simpson and Heather Adams at Vermont

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Mealworms

Mealworm Farm in Braintree, I got horribly lost. I had recently moved from Burlington to Vergennes, which makes getting to the eastern side of the state — by way of two mountain ranges — a bit more complicated.

I made it over the Ripton Gap no problem, zipping around hairpin turns with my Mini Cooper in sport mode. Then, halfway up Bethel Mountain Road in Rochester, I found that the road had been unceremoniously closed. I had zero cell service.

I did my best geographic guessing and skirted around the mountain instead, showing up 45 minutes late at the 900-acre hilltop farm, where Bob and Heather promptly led me to the basement bug room.

A couple of hours later, I headed home with a bag of mealworm frass on the passenger seat. To be safe, I thought I’d take a more familiar route, to Warren and over Lincoln Gap. I grew up in Vermont, and my dad taught me to appreciate back roads and shortcuts.

But the truth is: I’m not a great driver even when I know where I’m going. After the

Todd Goodyear glanced up from carefully arranging pyramids of peaches, plums and pears to greet me. As we chatted, I realized I’d stumbled upon the home base of his family’s summer gig, Paradise Fruit. The door-to-door fruit-delivery business had been on my list of story ideas for months.

If I’m doing this whole journalism thing right, one story should naturally lead to the next. But the only place I’d expected mealworms to lead to peaches was in a compost pile.

Todd and I set up an interview for the following week at the Addison County Fair & Field Days — a much easier drive. I bought 10 pounds of fruit on the spot out of sheer gratitude.

Back in the car, I buckled the bag of peaches into the passenger seat for good measure, except for one of the white doughnut variety that I grabbed off the top to sample. The juice dripped down my arm the rest of the way down the mountain.

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Backstories « P.23

BEST FAMILY HISTORY LESSON ADVENTUROUS FOOTWEAR & APPAREL FOR MEN & WOMEN

Thank you & Happy Holidays!

Thank you to all that shopped local this holiday season.

We wouldn’t be here without you!

Love, Roam

“A Historic Synagogue in Burlington’s Old North End Is for Sale” Trying to get the story on a historic synagogue for sale in Burlington’s Old North End, I didn’t expect to learn something new about my own people — specifically, my husband, Jeff ’s, paternal grandfather.

Jeff’s mom and her two sisters grew up in Burlington. Their father, Max Wall, was the rabbi of Ohavi Zedek Synagogue from 1946 to 1987.

I always knew that Rabbi Wall was a well-respected public figure in Vermont.

But when I met him in 2001, over salad and steaks at the erstwhile Sirloin Saloon,

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16

State architectural historian Devin Colman directed me to a 2014 Vermont PBS documentary, Little Jerusalem, to learn more about the old synagogue and the Lithuanian Jews who settled in the Old North End starting in the late 1800s.

Toward the end of the hourlong film, there was Zaidie, sitting on his living room couch in a cardigan and a kippah, just like I remembered him.

“I didn’t want to come to Burlington, primarily because I saw it as an elderly Yiddish-speaking community, and they felt that any change constituted a threat,” Zaidie explained in the film. He

Interior of the synagogue

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COURTESY OF RABBI JAN SALZMAN

IT’S SNOW JOKE!

he was well into his retirement. A warm and wise octogenarian, he wore cardigan sweaters, watched the Yankees and “Law & Order” on TV, and drove a Ford Taurus with the vanity plate “ZAIDIE,” which means “grandfather” in Yiddish.

In the course of my reporting, I called Jeff’s aunt Mindy — the eldest of the Wall sisters and a fount of knowledge about all things Jewish in Vermont — to find out what she knew about Ahavath Gerim, the synagogue on the market. To my surprise, she told me that her father actually led his congregation there for almost six years, before moving “up the hill” to the newly built Ohavi Zedek on North Prospect Street in 1952. I had visions of a young Rabbi Wall, fresh from his tour of duty as a World War II chaplain, standing at the bimah and conducting a service under the vaulted ceiling of the red brick building.

talked about being “very lonely” when he first arrived in Vermont, the fellowship he found with clergy members of other faiths, and how he modernized the congregation — bringing men and women together to worship, for example.

I felt a swell of pride, and got a little teary-eyed, as one fifth-generation Burlingtonian interviewed in the doc talked about how Rabbi Wall “made Jews proud, so that they could walk down a street and hold their head up high.”

Twelve years after his death, I realized just how profound Zaidie’s influence was on the place I now call home.

As for the red brick synagogue, it’s still listed for $650,000 on the Pomerleau Real Estate website.

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Reporters consider themselves lucky when even one person shares an anecdote that’s relevant to a broader story. We had dozens, from all corners of the state and all reaches of the health care system: waits for dental care, psychiatric appointments, surgeries.

After reading through all the submissions, my colleague Chelsea Edgar and I agreed we needed to narrow our scope to something manageable. We chose to focus on specialty care. We split the list in half, pulled out all the relevant entries and hit the phones. Within a week, we had interviewed more than 20 people. The story started to take shape. Six weeks later, it was on the cover of Seven Days.

The response was swift. State officials announced an investigation into the problem just a few hours after the story dropped.

The UVM Medical Center released an action plan documenting how it expected to reduce wait times. Many more people

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wrote in with new stories or thanked us for shedding light on the issue.

I was surprised by how much it all resonated.

The problem wasn’t new; a handful of other outlets had covered the issue in recent years.

But what set our story apart, I believe, were all the personal stories we were able to collect, MASK UP? thanks to the many people who wrote in.

The moral? We want to hear from you! Know something we should write about? Email us, or fill out a tip form by clicking on “contact us” on the sevendaysvt.com home page.

VERMO NT’S INDEPE NDENT VOICE SEPTEM BER 1-8, 2021 VOL.26 NO.48 SEVEND AYSVT.C

I was on the final day of a weeklong summer vacation when I made the mistake of checking my inbox.

That morning, I had been copied on an avalanche of emails from our publisher, Paula Routly. They were responses to a piece that she had written in the previous week’s paper about a very scary migraine episode that landed her at the University of Vermont Medical Center. Equally frightening: She’d have to wait 10 months for a follow-up visit with a neurologist. Suspecting that she wasn’t alone, Routly put out a call to readers, and more than 100 emails ultimately poured in about long wait times and other access problems. Unbeknownst to me, I was one of two reporters tasked with sifting through them all.

Routly later generously apologized for cc’ing me when I was still on vacation, but I didn’t mind — taken together, the emails constituted a journalistic gold mine.

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Backstories « P.25 “251: Bringing the History of Tiny Granby to Life”

Years ago, when I was a new reporter at the Associated Press, I liked visiting obscure nooks of Vermont to find stories that nobody else was writing.

8 SO. MAIN STREET ST. ALBANS Every AP story started with a dateline — the town name in all caps that indicates 524-3769 where the story was reported. The AP Curbside pick-up available bureau is in Montpelier, but I looked for stories from elsewhere in the state and the R A I LC I T Y M A R K E T V T.CO M experiences they promised.

This became what my colleagues dubbed my “dateline map” project.

12v-RailCityMarket060320.indd 1 6/2/20 9:47 AM Checking off each of Vermont’s 251 towns became a major impetus for the feature writing that I did on top of my primary job of covering actual news. Along the way, I produced some very unusual offerings for my otherwise staid employer. Many found their way to the AP’s national wire.

It’s not easy to find a story in a tiny town. I perused outdoor bulletin boards and buttonholed local librarians and historians. I chatted with strangers, letting the topics meander to interesting places.

Driving through snowy Morgan, photographer Craig Line and I spotted the body of a coyote hanging from a tree.

We were invited into the farmhouse for a conversation about the ins, outs and ethics of hunting these animals, which the farmer said were killing his calves, which led to another story.

My trip to the tiny Northeast Slopes ski area in Corinth included a few uphill runs on the rope tow. It shredded my mittens. A quest for a Wardsboro dateline led me to a little-known vegetable: a turnip-rutabaga cross that was nurtured a century ago by farmer John Gilfeather. Twenty years later, in 2017, the Gilfeather turnip was crowned Vermont’s state vegetable.

The challenge of finding odd stories energized me. It led to long conversations with polite, if puzzled, strangers in towns such as Hancock, where I eventually Become a Guardian ad Litem, wrote about an all-vegan B&B; Fairlee, a trained, court-appointed which bestows the ceremonial Boston Post cane on its oldest resident; and community volunteer Whitingham, where the Amos Brown who looks out for the House, the town’s oldest, was restored by best interests of a child. the Landmark Trust USA and turned into a B&B. I wrote about Vermont’s oldest bank, still family-run in Orwell.

VOLUNTEER TODAY! New Englanders aren’t known for their gregariousness, but my dateline quest has Call 1-800-622-6359 or visit shown me that Vermonters are a generous vermontjudiciary.org/GAL and openhearted people. When curious

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The student body in 1947. Rodney Noble is in the front row, second from right.

FILE: ANNE WALLACE ALLEN

Stay healthy,

COURTESY OF HOLIDAY IN THE HILLS

MOST SATISFYING QUEST

Rodney Noble and Connie Quimby in the schoolhouse

flatlanders arrive unexpectedly, they let them into their homes, barns and lives, offering pie, coffee and homegrown honey. They patiently answer hours of questions. They enjoy detailing the labors of love that go into their own hobbies and accomplishments.

I have learned a lot about Vermont this way.

I had about half a dozen towns to go when, after 12 years of working at Vermont’s AP bureau, I left the state in 2004. While I was gone, I freelanced for the national AP travel editor, racking up other semi-exotic datelines, like Zihuatanejo and Cholula, Mexico; Adelaide, Australia; and Sandpoint, Idaho. All wonderful places, but it bothered me to think that my Vermont dateline map might forever remain incomplete.

As life and luck would have it, I’m back in Vermont, working again as a journalist.

Despite the pandemic, I’m getting closer to my goal of reporting from 251 towns.

Since I returned in 2018, I’ve managed to get to Shrewsbury for a story about the cooperatively run country store and

to New Haven for one about a cabinetmaker who offers stingray hide as a finish.

And this summer I finally found a reason to go to Granby, a remote Northeast Kingdom town with just 80 residents, many of them retired. I’d visited the town and had often heard about plans to turn the oneroom schoolhouse, built in 1885, into a museum. But the project always seemed to be on hold.

In August, I called the town clerk and learned that fundraising was under way again. This led to an unexpectedly delightful trip to meet two siblings who went to school there in the 1950s.

Connie Quimby, 78, and Rodney Noble, 80, regret that nowadays young Granbyites don’t learn the history of their tiny Northeast Kingdom town, which once bustled with orchards, beekeepers, blacksmiths and a logging operation so large that it had a railroad to transport Granby’s lumber to market.

The two, whose parents were active in the community, have warm memories of growing up in a cocoon of family and neighbors.

Thanks to my dateline map, now missing just four Vermont towns, I’ve seen that you don’t need to justify your life’s inexplicable quest. Nobody else does.

My Marshfield dateline came through a gathering of David Smiths that was organized by Owen Bradley, then-principal of the Twinfield Union School. Asked why he had invited a dozen strangers with the same name to meet for a barbecue, Bradley replied: “Why not?”

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bear hounding in Vermont to bear witness to the activity — I’ll leave it to others to decide whether it’s a sport — in action.

“Wildlife Wars: I was more concerned about causing that outcome. Weren’t we, in effect, Animal defenders asking bear hunters to go kill a bear so we struggle to change could watch? And if so, was that ethical, hunting and trapping journalistically or morally? traditions in Vermont” War correspondents wrestle with these questions all the time — will their work to When the black bear bolted document atrocities end up causing them?

SEP from a cornfield in front of Did brigadier general Nguyen Ngoc our pickup shortly after Loan shoot a Vietcong prisoner in the dawn, my initial reaction head despite the presence of photojourwas relief. nalist Eddie Adams, or because of it?

Photographer Jeb Wallace-Brodeur The general certainly wanted the world and I had gotten up before 4 a.m. to drive to see what happens to the enemy on his to Newbury to catch a bear hunt in action, watch, and the photograph, which would and it now seemed like our efforts would win the Pulitzer Prize and become one not be in vain. of the most searing images of the brutality of the conflict, certainly accomplished that.

CONTRACT In the end, however, there was TRACING never much risk that Spear, the president of the Vermont Bearhound Association, was really going to plug a bear in the presence of two journalists.

He had already shot himself in the foot, so to speak, by barreling onto the property of a Peacham YouTuber Animal defenders named Morgan Gold while Gold’s struggle to change hunting and trapping cellphone video camera was rolling. traditions in Vermont The exchange and Gold’s snarky commentary went viral, and Spear had taken some serious heat for calling unwanted attention to his normally cloistered corner of the hunting world.

So Spear wasn’t about to let MOLD THE Seven Days document a bear BREAKING UP BUBBLING A DOOBIE-OUS CLAIM bloodbath. But he was willing to have us along to watch him scare a bear away from a farmer’s corn crop and then humanely let the trespasser off with a stern warning.

So that’s exactly what he did. Spear tracked his hounds — with the aid of GPS radio collars — over hill and dale to the base of a huge hemlock tree.

And then, as though taking a page out of Gold’s playbook, Spear turned a little video camera on me. Had they And yet my exhilaration quickly done anything wrong? Had I witnessed turned to dread. his hounds mistreating a bear? Burned As Butch Spear, armed with a loaded by social media, Spear wasn’t going to let .45 pistol, and his hunting partner began the lame-stream media burn him, too, by unleashing their baying hounds, it now misrepresenting his beloved pastime. seemed entirely possible that they would I didn’t consent to his impromptu follow their dogs off into the forest and interview. But Jeb and I did document kill the treed bear while we looked on. the sow’s safe escape, which was, after It was what we signed up for, and now all, the only reason we were allowed to the moment had arrived. be there in the first place.

I didn’t really want to see that outcome, KEVIN MCCALLUM but I felt an obligation as a reporter writing about animal rights activists’ criticism of BACKSTORIES »P.28

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COURTESY OF CHRISTINE HAN

Backstories « P.27

SADDEST EPILOGUE

“Busy Lady: Westfield farmstead cheese pioneer Laini Fondiller powers on” I never met Anne Saxelby, who opened Saxelby Cheesemongers in New York City in 2006, but I interviewed her via email and phone probably half a dozen times. Anne was a staunch, vocal supporter of the American artisan cheese movement before many people took it as seriously as the centuries-old European cheesemaking tradition. And she put her money where her mouth was by stocking only Americanmade cheeses and other dairy products.

Almost without exception, when I wrote about Vermont farmstead cheesemakers or small-batch makers of butter or buttermilk, they would mention Anne Saxelby. She and her well-trained staff

OCT

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Anne Saxelby, 1981-2021

were knowledgeable, articulate and passionate ambassadors for Vermont dairy. Not only consumers, but also chefs, national food writers and other tastemakers came to Anne for advice on the best cheese America had to offer, generating an invaluable multiplier effect.

Whenever I would email or call her for

BEST BROMANCE

“Changing Weather: The retirements of Tom Messner and Sharon Meyer forecast the end of an era in Vermont media”

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Messner was in rare form. “Welcome to the clown show,” he enthused as he and freshfaced meteorologist Ben Frechette joked around behind the scenes while preparing the evening’s forecast.

“Hey, Ben,” Tom deadpanned during a commercial break in the 5:30 show. “What time does the six o’clock news start?”

Frechette feigned exasperation with an eye roll at the clearly well-worn joke.

Messner’s goofy energy prompted me to ask the retiring weatherman if he perhaps had a case of senioritis. Frechette, who wasn’t yet born when Messner started at the station 31 years ago, nodded enthusiastically.

“Why does everyone keep asking me that?” Messner responded with that wide grin.

At the next break, Ledbetter strode into the studio and took his place alongside Alice Kang at the anchor desk. Messner, meanwhile, was due to lead off the first segment after the break, a fact that he seemed unaware of until curtly informed by anchor Brian Colleran.

Without averting his gaze from the camera as he straightened his tie at the desk across the studio, Ledbetter snarked, “Did you forget your Geritol again, Tom?”

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

she’d answer, and then say ‘next!’ or ‘what else?’ I love that about her.”

None of that anecdote made it into the final story, but it helped me better understand the pioneering Vermont cheesemaker I was writing about — as observations from the best sources do.

After I sent Anne my thanks for her responses, she wrote back, “Thank you for reaching out and for profiling Laini! She’s one of my heroes!!” On Wednesday, October 6, I sent her a link to the article, and on Friday morning she replied with a nice note.

The following day, I learned that Anne had died unexpectedly from a heart condition.

She was just 40 and left behind three young children and a husband, among other family members and close colleagues. Anne also left an extended family of cheesemakers, chefs and others who took to social media to share what she meant to them and to the vibrant American artisan cheese community that owes so much to her unwavering support. My loss is but a drop in the milk bucket, but I will miss her, too.

Messner chuckled, taking the jab in good humor — perhaps because he knew he had a counterpunch. In the following break, moments before the broadcast returned from commercial, Messner winked at me and took his swing at Ledbetter.

“Hey, Stew,” Messner called out from the backstage weather office.

“Seven Days wants to know what you use to color your hair.”

“Oh, they do not,” Ledbetter blurted, visibly flustered as Messner broke his concentration. Then, as he composed himself just before the cameras came back on, “And I don’t color my hair.”

“We have fun,” Messner said, beaming.

“They ’re always like this,” Frechette confirmed.

In later interviews, both Messner and Ledbetter noted that their brotherly teasing goes back decades and stressed that it’s born of brotherly love.

That was evident during Messner’s final broadcast, live from the snowy treelighting ceremony on the Church Street Marketplace in Burlington on the Friday after Thanksgiving. In a sweet segment leading up to Messner’s farewell, Ledbetter turned misty as he spoke genuinely

about, and to, his old friend and colleague.

“It’s been quite a ride,” Ledbetter concluded.

Messner, again, had a counter ready.

In his broadcastclosing segment, Messner thanked his coworkers, the station, his family and viewers while holding back tears of his own.

At the end of his heartfelt speech, he turned to Ledbetter, who was flanked by Kang, Colleran and new chief meteorologist Tyler Jankoski.

“One other thing, and this is more for Stew,” he said, reaching into the pocket of his blue NBC5 parka. “I just thought you might want to see this one more time.”

Messner proceeded to don the oversize brownrimmed glasses that were as much his trademark in the 1990s as his smile — Coke-bottle specs that likely account for one of his lessflattering nicknames: the Weather Geek.

“Stew,” he said in full toothpaste grin, “that’s for you.”

Then, waving to the camera one last time, he said, “Bye, everybody.”

FILE: MARC NADEL

“Tom Messner is the same guy on screen as he is off it.” That’s the refrain I heard over and over again while reporting an October cover story on the retirements of the NBC5 meteorologist and his counterpart at WCAX, Sharon Meyer. And it’s true.

I know from my own interactions with him over the years that Messner really is as smiley and upbeat in person as he is on TV. “With Tom, what you see is what you get,” his friend and former NBC5 anchor Stephanie Gorin told me.

But that doesn’t mean that’s all there is to Messner.

While it rarely comes out in front of the camera, Messner’s trademark grin can morph from merry to mischievous. As gifted as he was at relaying the weather, he is also an exceptionally talented shittalker. And his target is very often the man who hired him, and the only person who’s been at NBC5 longer: Stewart Ledbetter.

The typically stoic and serious reporter is unafraid to give it right back to his chipper broadcast partner, which speaks to the affection the two men have for one another.

On the day I visited the NBC5 studio in South Burlington to observe a broadcast,

OCT

comment, Anne was responsive, eloquent and generous with her time. When I sent her a link to the resulting article, she would always respond with a short note of appreciation and a positive comment. This is fairly uncommon — especially among big-city sources.

In late September, I emailed Anne for a story I was writing about Laini Fondiller of Lazy Lady Farm in Westfield. The two had known each other since before Anne opened her shop. She was on the road and requested that I send her questions via email.

Among her detailed answers, Anne recounted the first time she visited Laini.

“I stayed in a very odd bed-and-breakfast in Westfield, and drove to the farm — in the snow, in March, in a rental car that wasn’t very well equipped for the snow (very city girl of me!!) around 9 am. She was making cheese and invited me to sit in the cheese house and ask questions.

She wasn’t unfriendly, but you could tell immediately that she was a VERY focused, direct, driven person who didn’t want to waste any time. I’d ask her a question,

ME LI S S A PAS AN E N

DAN BO LLE S

FILE PHOTOS: JAMES BUCK

2021backstories Lexy Grundy at the encampment

Mitchell in his tent

Sarino Macri at home on Sears Lane

STORY THAT MOST CHANGED MY PERSPECTIVE

“Scenes From Sears Lane: The final days at a homeless encampment in Burlington’s South End” It took me a while to psych myself into going to the Sears Lane homeless encampment on a cold October day. The City of Burlington was in the process of evicting the 40-some campers following arrests related to guns and drugs.

According to the city, it wasn’t safe at the site; one official told me not to venture there alone. City staff would be there, he said, but wouldn’t be responsible for me if anything went awry.

I put on my boots and bundled up against the rain, steeling myself for a potentially dangerous situation. I was nervous. I didn’t know then that I’d return to my apartment feeling more uncomfortable than when I’d left.

At the encampment, I met photojournalist James Buck, who had already spent a lot of time with the campers for a photography project he was working on. James often freelances for Seven Days and offered to introduce me to the people he’d met.

I spent hours talking with the residents that afternoon and the following day. They told me about their struggles with addiction and about losing custody of their children. Others explained that it felt impossible to pull themselves out of their self-destructive cycles. Heartbreakingly, one man told me that he doesn’t sleep much because he hates waking up.

I watched as some campers panicked about where they would go next, while

OCT

26

others dug in their heels. I found myself struggling with how to end my interviews, feeling a need to close on something uplifting, on a feeling of hope. But that was hard to find at Sears Lane.

Back at home, I took a hot shower and put on clean clothes. I ordered takeout. When my boyfriend asked about the dazed look on my face, I couldn’t find a better explanation than “I feel like I’m on another planet” — one of privilege, with shelter and food and warmth. One that the people I’d just interviewed hadn’t visited in a long time.

James, who had spent hours at the camp that week, understood. As someone in recovery, he empathized with the people at Sears Lane and became engrossed with their stories. James has also done a lot of humanitarian work and noted that coming back to “normal” life was akin to the experience of reentry after visiting a developing country.

“Burlington felt strange and foreign and shiny,” James later reflected. “The camp felt like home.”

The more I processed these alien emotions, the more I welcomed them. Feeling uncomfortable — and telling uncomfortable truths — makes me a better journalist and my readers more informed. I’m glad I left the house that day. What I learned from Sears Lane, I will carry with me.

Noah playing with his dog

COURTNEY LAMDIN BACKSTORIES »P.30 SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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LAST SHOT

Backstories « P.29

Kids up next for the vaccine

MOST FORTUITOUS LAPSE IN JUDGMENT

“Roaches and Broken Locks: Mark and Rick Bove’s growing empire of affordable rentals vexes code enforcers” The sausages were on the grill, and the small talk went where it always does when journalists gather: to work.

In June, freshly vaccinated and feeling safe again, I joined some friends for an after-work barbecue at Burlington’s Oakledge Park. Most people there had some connection to journalism — a not-uncommon phenomenon, in my experience, because reporters often struggle to talk about anything other than reporting.

Most other people, apparently, find this insufferable.

Luckily, Vermont Public Radio reporter Liam Elder-Connors doesn’t. He and I had recently worked together on a joint series for Seven Days and VPR about eldercare homes. While the

NOV

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sausages charred, Liam mentioned that he had recently begun reporting on housing issues for VPR. One beer deep, I let slip a curious bit of housing news that I’d come across at the courthouse. A tenant won a judgment in 2020 against landlord Rick Bove for the return A GREAT SAVE of a security deposit, but more than a year later, Bove still hadn’t paid. The case wasn’t quite newsworthy on its own, but maybe Liam would want to look into it, I offered.

This was a dumb move, professionally speaking. I’d be in trouble if my editors learned that I had shown my cards to a competitor or, worse still, that I’d offered to hand over my lead.

Woodstock ice rink

ROACHES AN

D BROKEN LOCKS Mark and Rick Bove’ s growing empire of affordable rentals vexes code enforcer s

BY DEREK BROUW ER & LIAM ELDER -CONN ORS,

PAGE 32

goes net-zero

COOKING WITH GUSTO

Fusion flavors pop

PAGE 40

up in Richmond

PAGE 24

FURTHER ALONG

Dwight + Nicole prep

PAGE 56

for a breakout

I’D BE IN TROUBLE IF MY EDITORS LEARNED THAT

I HAD SHOWN MY CARDS TO A COMPETITOR.

To my surprise, Liam was already looking into another court case involving Bove. And to my relief, he agreed to continue exploring the topic together, in case there was a bigger story to be told.

There was. Our journalistic faux pas became the seed of a four-month investigation into Bove’s property management company. Together, we found problems at his rentals spanning decades and discovered that violations persisted despite previous efforts by newspapers, activists and town officials to call him out. Two weeks after our joint series published, the Essex Planning Commission rejected Bove’s proposal to build three more apartment buildings at the Essex Town Center, citing his history of noncompliance.

DE RE K BRO U W E R

FILE: LUKE EASTMAN

MOST RIDICULOUS BORDER CROSSING

“Sweat Equity: In cold climes around the world, people have sauna culture. Why can’t we?”

I had considered the possibility that my passport might have expired, but I didn’t bother to check before my partner and I set off for the Eastern Townships of Québec to do some high-stakes reporting on the local sauna scene. You might call that bad planning, but I prefer to think of it as self-preservation. If I had known that my passport expired at the beginning of this year, I would have freaked out, and then we would have had to cancel the trip, and then I still would have had to find a way to write the story, minus the exciting spa material. Better to forge ahead in ignorance, I thought, and let them spurn me at the gates!

When we arrived at the border checkpoint, I gave our passports to the customs agent and braced myself for the big reveal, as if this completely predictable event were the unboxing of Schrödinger’s cat. The agent looked at my passport, then at me.

“You know this expired in January 2021?” he asked with inscrutable Canadianness.

“I didn’t know that!” At least I didn’t have to feign surprise. My partner shifted uncomfortably in the passenger seat.

NOV

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30

The border patrol agent’s facial muscles gave no quarter. “Do you have any plants, fruits or vegetables with you?” So we’d moved on to the horticultural part of the inquisition! Passage might yet be ours!

“None!” I replied cheerfully. And then I remembered the enormous sack of mulch in the rear of my car, barely concealed beneath my bagged summer tires, which were visible through a window. Fuck.

The agent pointed at the tire bags. “And what are those?”

“Oh, just tires,” I said, trying to affect a casual tone that only managed to sound deeply unconvincing. The whole disaster was already unspooling in my mind: He’d ask to inspect the trunk, and then he’d find the mulch, and this reporting operation would be quashed because of my own idiocy and, for the love of God, mulch.

The agent handed back our passports.

“Safe travels,” he said. We drove on with my expired passport and organic contraband, feeling like the smallest of smalltime outlaws.

It seemed futile to dwell on what we would do if the U.S. customs agent didn’t

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

allow us back into the country; now that I’d chanced detainment in Canada so that we could have an evening at a spa, the only sane choice was to enjoy ourselves. A few hours later, we rolled up to the checkpoint again, fresh as newborns after two hours of sweating and cold-pool plunging. I handed my passport to the border patrol officer and tried not to think about when our next showers might be.

“What did you guys do in Canada?” the officer asked, studying our documents.

“We went to a spa.”

“And what did you do there?”

“At the spa?”

“Yes, at the spa.”

“We, um, relaxed.”

Miraculously, that was good enough for him.

C HE LS E A E DGAR

2021backstories

COURTESY OF MARK HARLAND

The Ramones, 1990

BEST MEMORY MAKER

“Memorial Days: The history and uncertain future of Burlington’s derelict downtown auditorium” “Hey!” a former coworker shouted from across Burlington’s Church Street. “Farnsworth!

What the fuck, man?”

I stopped, as one often does when hearing their last name screamed from the other side of a street.

“Dude, Primus!”

“The band?” I duly asked.

His arms shot out in disbelief at my betrayal.

“The band? No, the fuckin’ tugboat! Of course the band!” he bellowed.

DEC

1

“I didn’t write an article about Primus,” I protested.

“No, the one about the auditorium, dingus!” he shouted, strangely louder than he did previously. “You didn’t write about the Primus show we saw!”

He was referring to my recent cover story on Memorial Auditorium.

I explained: “Well, you know, the story wasn’t about all the shows that happened there, but its entire history. There was almost a hundred years of shows there, so it’s not like I could write about them all.”

“How could you forget about Primus, though?” he demanded. “Remember? We got so drunk, the security dudes almost kicked us out, but then we saw Steve and he let us stay, but then when they were playing some newer shit and you wanted to leave, but I was like, No way man! But you—” “Dan,” I interrupted him. “I never saw Primus at Memorial Auditorium. Sounds like a great night, though.”

His was one of many such outpourings, mostly about the shows I failed to mention, prompted by the piece.

“I saw Ween at Memorial,” Christie Mitchell, executive director of the South End Arts + Business Association, wrote in an email. New to town at the time, she

went to the show by herself. “I dressed up as Tippi Hedren’s character from The Birds, with a vintage dress and fake bloody birds plastered all over me!” she recalled.

Some of my favorite stories came from fellow Seven Dayzers: culture coeditor Dan Bolles remembered DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince; art editor Pamela Polston recalled catching Bob Marley.

In 1990, the Ramones were playing with the Tom Tom Club and Blondie at the auditorium, but art director Diane Sullivan, aka Sully, aka the Reverend, didn’t have a ticket.

“One of my friends going to the show was going to come out and give me a stub so I could sneak in,” she told me. “So I just waited outside by the entrance. But I think they sort of forgot me!”

So Sullivan hung outside, listening to the Tom Tom Club and the Ramones through the brick and concrete. That is, until a “roadie” came outside and saw her standing alone. After asking her what she was doing, the man gruffly ushered her into the show, where she would see the full Blondie set. Time and memory have jogged some details loose, and Sullivan now believes the man was no roadie.

“Look, other than Joey, I couldn’t tell a Ramone apart,” she said. “The roadie had that dumb bowl cut and black hair and a leather jacket. The more I think about it, he was probably a Ramone. So, yeah. I’ll say it was Dee Dee! Who knows?

The important thing is, I saw the whole Blondie show for free!”

It’s unclear what will happen to Memorial, and voters’ defeat of a renovation bond issue earlier this month did nothing to answer the question. But whatever happens can’t change the good times and memories associated with the old building. Getting to hear about them these past two months has been a privilege, and I thank you all — you, too, Dan — for that.

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WEEK IN REVIEW

FEED back « P.7

‘WHITE SAVIOR’ WON’T FIX IT

[Re “Winooski Incident Prompts Calls for Stronger Enforcement Against Racist Acts in School Sports,” October 6]: Of all the photos taken at the September 28 Winooski soccer game, two separate news organizations chose to headline their respective articles about racism with photos of Champlain Valley Union High School students supporting the Winooski soccer team. Is that what VTDigger.org and Seven Days see as the real story? “Students from an affluent, predominantly white school community offer support and add validation when racism rears its head in Winooski.”

Much to my dismay, the editorial choice of the headline photos in both articles inserted and perpetuated a whitedominated narrative of “the white savior.”

“The White Savior Industrial Complex is not about justice,” Teju Cole wrote. “It is about having a big emotional experience that validates privilege.”

The CVU students did not ask to be the headline photo for either of these articles.

Standing with others in solidarity matters.

Yet, if we are serious about dismantling racism, there must be a more honest discussion about how racism is being perpetuated and how white people can move beyond just standing with and move toward being curious together about the generational racist ideas and stories that have been passed down in our minds, bodies and cells.

In order to compel our institutions, organizations and systems to begin and sustain the work of becoming anti-racist, the impact of generational mindsets and narratives about race and privilege must be exposed and interrupted. “The goodness of white people abounds” is not the story that will move us toward a more equitable and just world.

Tori Cleiland

WINOOSKI

Cleiland is president of the Winooski School Board.

Editor’s note: The artwork that accompanied the story referenced above showed CVU students publicly supporting the Winooski soccer team by holding “We Stand With You” signs on the edge of the playing field. This display of support, at a public sporting event, accurately illustrates the story.

VIEW FROM QUÉBEC

I am a visitor to your beautiful state from Québec. I have grandchildren here, so I am horrified to learn of the environmental 32

toxins caused by the Vermont Air National Guard base in this area [Re Off Message: “Volunteer Group Finds PFAS in Water Samples From Winooski River,” November 30].

I read the article by Kevin McCallum discussing the cost of the climate action plan [“Retooling Refueling: The New Climate Action Plan Talks a Good Game About Not Burdening Vermonters. Can It Deliver?” December 8]. It is true that the poverty and hardship are noticeably worse here than when I last visited.

But how many Vermonters are aware of the cost of the F-35s that fly overhead every day? Each plane cost close to $100 million, and each flight hour it uses almost 1,500 gallons of fossil fuel. The plan is to have 20 of these in Vermont alone.

I am sure all of Burlington and its dogs are aware of the ear-shattering sound emitted every day. The waterways are now polluted with PFAS. So this once pristine and lovely area is now poisoned in air, land and water.

Shouldn’t we ask why? What could just the $2 billion do for struggling Vermonters? (The U.S. spends at least $800 billion per year on the military, more than any country in the world.)

What is the pollution going to cost in children’s health?

The guard doesn’t specify the threat or how it plans to defend against it. If asked, it would probably answer, “That is classified.” Very convenient!

What about the very real threat to the health of my grandchildren?

Ingrid Style

MONT SAINT-HILAIRE, QUÉBEC

SCHOOL PROOF

The Burlington School Board would like to respond to the recent letter [Feedback: “More on BHS?” December 8] and provide some clarifications.

In 2017, the school district looked at either building a new high school or renovating the current campus; these meetings were conducted by a community-led group known as the ReEnvisioning Committee charged with surveying the community and delivering a recommendation on a path forward for Burlington High School.

That committee recommended a plan to renovate the campus, including demolition of some buildings, renovation of others and some new construction. This plan was less expensive than building an entire new BHS and Burlington Technical Center.

The ReEnvisioning Committee brought this recommendation to the board, which approved the plan. Voters then overwhelmingly approved a renovation bond

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

in November 2018. It was during testing required for the renovation project that PCBs were found, which ultimately led to the decision this year to abandon the old campus and build a new high school.

As we move forward, the community can be assured that a new school building cannot be built without taxpayer input.

A new high school will require a bond, and the current plan is to seek taxpayer approval for such a bond in November 2022.

PCBs are a major issue in Vermont right now, and the state recently passed a law requiring all schools built or renovated before 1980 to undergo PCB air testing.

Please learn about the serious nature of this situation at www.bsdvt.org/buildingconstruction-oversight-committee-bcoc.

Clare Wool

BURLINGTON

Wool is chair of the Burlington School Board.

DOCTORS DISAPPEARING

The rapid disappearance of independent doctors in Vermont [“The Doctor Is Out,” December 8], especially from rural areas, should worry us all.

To me, there is a simple solution to the problem of rural health care’s financial woes and the loss of independent physician practices: a publicly funded universal health care program — single payer — that compensates independent doctors at the same rate as employed doctors and makes no distinction between “Medicare patients,” “Medicaid patients,” “commercial insurance patients” and “uninsured patients.” It would also relieve both employed and independent doctors of the immense administrative burden of dealing with insurance issues: getting approvals, billing, following up on billing issues, etc. And it would rid us of the convoluted and incomprehensible “all-payer model” experiment and the “accountable care organization” running it.

Would young doctors be more willing to practice in Vermont, especially in rural Vermont, if they knew they could practice under those conditions rather than the mishmash of nonmedical concerns that currently occupy them? I think so.

The legislature has an opportunity to resume an active role in solving the problem.

A bill in the House Health Care Committee, H.276, would begin the process of moving from our current madness to a sane, publicly funded system, starting with primary care. Is the legislature ready to step up?

Lee Russ

BENNINGTON

POLLUTION SOLUTION

[Re Off Message: “Volunteer Group Finds PFAS in Water Samples From Winooski River,” November 30]: As reported by Seven Days, the Vermont PFAS/Military Poisons Coalition has been conducting citizen science testing of PFAS. Since its inception more than a year ago, the coalition has worked to educate the public about PFAS and to mobilize grassroots advocacy to demand action on PFAS chemicals.

While it was encouraging that Vermont passed S.20 last year, so much more needs to be done. The poisoning of our air, water and soil must not be allowed to continue, because time is of the essence.

Remediation of these chemicals from the environment is expensive and difficult, if not impossible. The cheaper and more effective alternative is to prevent their release in the first place.

Like Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Gov. Phil Scott should issue and sign an executive directive limiting state purchases of products containing PFAS. Scott can easily take this action on behalf of our environment without having to go through the legislature.

We need our government officials and offices to act more quickly than our slow legislative process. Through such a directive, Gov. Scott can require Vermont to procure PFAS-free products whenever possible, a critical step toward using the state’s purchasing power to pressure businesses to stop using PFAS. Vermont needs to lead with science and work to keep families safe and protect people from toxins.

Marguerite Adelman

WINOOSKI

Adelman is a member of the Vermont PFAS/Military Poisons Coalition.

HOW TO MOTIVATE ANTI-VAXXERS

[Re “Collateral Damage,” December 15]: Isn’t it time for our giant health insurance industry to add its formidable weight to the effort to get everyone vaccinated by announcing to its customers that it will no longer pay claims for unvaccinated subscribers who are hospitalized with COVID-19? While unmotivated by science, Americans are usually motivated by threats to their wallets.

Why should the rest of us have important medical procedures postponed and see our insurance premiums increased because so many refuse to make responsible decisions?

Jeffrey Teitelbaum

FRANKLIN

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2021

‘She Carried Herself With Elegance’ VICENTA “VICKIE” FARRALES MCCLURE, September 11, 1920June 2, 2021

Remembering Vermonters who died this year B Y S E V EN D AYS STAFF

O

n December 15, the Fayetteville Observer in North Carolina published the obituary of a Texas woman named Renay Mandel Corren. I promise you, it’s unlike any obit you’ve ever read. Here is the opening line: “A plus-sized Jewish lady redneck died in El Paso on Saturday.”

Penned by the deceased’s son Andy Corren, the obit was an unflinching, unfiltered and flatout hilarious remembrance of “a Yankee Florida liberal Jewish Tough Gal.” Renay “played cards like a shark, bowled and played cribbage like a pro, and laughed with the boys until the wee hours … Hers was a bawdy, rowdy life lived large, broke and loud.”

Within a day or so of its publication, Renay’s riotous obit went viral. On Twitter, writer David Simon gushed, “This is first-rate writing on a life that sounds like a first-rate misadventure.

I love the entire family and I miss a woman I don’t think I ever met. Though who, given her meanderings, can be sure?”

It wasn’t just the humor or the brutal honesty that made Renay’s obit great. Threaded through the sassy recounting of a divorce, bankruptcies and jokes about an affair with Larry King — at least, we think they were jokes — was the unmistakable undercurrent of a family’s profound affection for a woman whom they will miss deeply. Renay’s obit wasn’t just funny, it was also incredibly moving.

The Fayetteville Observer obit offers a fine example of how grief works differently for everyone. For some, it’s overwhelming and dark.

For others, it may be tender, bittersweet or even laugh-out-loud funny. How we mourn our loved ones is every bit as unique as we are. And as we remember those we’ve lost, they stay close to us.

You won’t find an obit like Renay’s in the following pages, but you will find remembrances of Vermonters who died this year, told to us by the people who knew them best with honesty, compassion, heart and even some humor. All lived singular and compelling lives, all were loved dearly, and all will be missed.

DAN BOL L ES

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SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

PHOTOS COURTESY OF RYAN MCCLURE

LIFE STORIES

Vickie McClure

Q

uiet, particular and always impeccably dressed, where she met a charming soldier from Burlington named Vickie McClure had a way of demanding outsize Robert McClure, who also worked there. respect — at least, compared to her diminutive “They met in passing a few times, and then he finally stature. “She was a special lady,” said Priscilla worked up the nerve to ask her out,” Ryan said. “And that’s Blais, an assistant property manager at Fern Hill, the how it started.” retirement community in Burlington where McClure lived Vickie and Robert were married in the Philippines in her later years. “She could be a stubborn old lady,” Blais shortly after the war. In January 1948, Vickie gave birth continued, chuckling. “You had to treat her special because to their only son, Will. They returned to the U.S. later it was almost like she commanded that you do.” that year and traveled by bus, with infant Will riding on While McClure, who died in June of natural causes at their laps, from California to Vermont. They arrived in age 100, could indeed be stubborn, she was also fiercely snowy Burlington on Christmas Day. loyal and would go to great lengths to provide for and “I think it was quite a shock to her,” Ryan said of Vickie’s protect those she loved, particularly family. reaction to the weather.

“She could be very single-minded,” explained her grandson Ryan McClure, “both in positive and negative ways at times.”

Ryan, who grew up in Colchester and now lives in Johnson with his wife, Serena Vascik McClure, noted that few could hold a grudge as staunchly or for as long as his grandmother.

“If somebody rubbed her or someone in the family the wrong way, she would hold a grudge for years,” he said.

If Vickie held herself and others to high standards, it was because she overcame so much in her own life. “She was determined to make the best life she could for my father and his father and my brother and I,” Ryan said.

Vickie was born Vicenta Farrales in 1920 in a rural town in Zambales, a province of the Philippines. Her Vickie McClure (bottom row, second from left) with family in the Philippines father was a local politician who also ran a family farm. Vickie and her four siblings worked on the farm from But the cold wasn’t the only, or even the harshest, a young age into adulthood and would regularly walk miles challenge for Vickie. Though they eventually softened, to and from the nearest bigger town for supplies. It was a Robert’s parents were displeased that he had married a Filipino woman. simple and peaceful existence — until war came.

“It was pretty difficult for her, especially early,” Ryan In World War II, the Imperial Japanese Army invaded the Philippines. Vickie’s brother Hipolito fought against said. the Japanese in the Filipino army alongside the United Vickie found support in a local social group called the States. He was captured and died in the Bataan Death Overseas Wives Club, where she befriended other immiMarch in 1942. grant women in the area.

“She only started telling us about the war in the last few “It was a good means of support for her,” Ryan said. years,” Ryan said.

Vickie became an American citizen in 1978.

During the war, Vickie, who was a talented seamstress A devout Christian, she also found comfort and commubut had no formal medical training, was brought in to care nity at the First United Methodist Church of Burlington. for patients at a local American military hospital. That’s Her faith, Ryan explained, “gave her a sense of purpose.”

DAN BOL L ES

LIFE STORIES

» P.36

Richard Kemp on the campaign trail

COURTESY OF CHRISTINE HUGHES

But nothing mattered to Vickie more than her family.

Robert was a postal worker for most of his life. Vickie earned money as a dressmaker and seamstress, working from their longtime home on North Prospect Street in Burlington. When she was able to travel back to the Philippines, she often brought money with her to give to relatives there.

“I remember her saying it was too dangerous to send money via mail because the corrupt officials would take it,” Ryan said.

Vickie adored her son, Will, even if she didn’t completely agree with his life choices, Ryan said. Will, who died in 2004, was a free spirit, musician and actor who didn’t always follow a straight and narrow path.

“He could get into trouble and was not the most dependable guy at times,” Ryan said of his father. “But she supported him through whatever difficulties that came up.

“There was a cultural barrier and an age gap, so she might not have always understood his passion for rock and roll music,” he continued. “But she definitely wanted him to succeed.”

Ryan explained that Vickie went to great lengths to provide for him and his brother, Kristopher, who now lives in Colchester with his wife and two children. He noted that, although Vickie was hardworking and serious about family, she also had a lighter side.

She was a big fan of the Three Stooges comedians and, during the holidays, loved to watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. She was also a fan of baseball and basketball — in particular, the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls of the 1990s.

Robert died in 1994. A few years later, Vickie moved to Fern Hill. As she had in the Overseas Wives Club and at church, Robert and Vickie McClure she quickly found community at her new home.

“She was well liked and made friends easily,” Blais said. She recalled Vickie’s large and colorful wardrobe, most of which she made herself or received as gifts from former clients.

“She talked about how some of the women there would gossip about how she [seemed] to always have on a different outfit and speculated that she’d made a good amount of money selling her house,” Ryan recalled. He added, “Most of [the money] went to helping my father out of a financial jam.”

Her clothing, Blais said, gave Vickie a certain air of dignity: “She carried herself with elegance.”

Fern Hill is also where Vickie met Cindy Leclair. For the last four years of Vickie’s life, the Hinesburg woman volunteered as her caretaker and became one of her closest friends. Leclair would take her grocery shopping or out for pizza — though, true to form, not just any pizzeria would do.

“She loved eating Costco pizza,” Leclair recalled, chuckling.

She echoed the sentiment that Vickie could be stubborn — she was especially fussy about food and rarely let anyone else cook for her, Leclair said. But she also confirmed Vickie’s affection for her family and her sense of humor.

“She was a funny lady,” Leclair said. “She really was something else.”

‘He Was a Strong Voice’ RICHARD T. KEMP, October 12, 1932-September 28, 2021

R

ichard Kemp never found himself near a microphone with nothing to say. Not that he needed one. Standing more than six feet tall, he had a booming voice that matched his stature. Its strength conveyed the power of his convictions whenever he spoke about the causes he pursued: more affordable housing, righting the injustices of the American prison system, the government’s responsibility to take care of its most vulnerable citizens, and fixing racial and socioeconomic inequities at home and abroad.

Richard, who died in September at age 88, devoted his public, religious and personal life to social activism.

He was a founding member of the Peace & Justice Coalition in Burlington (now the Peace & Justice Center) and served on the board of the Champlain Housing Trust and the Burlington Community Justice Center — two of the many nonprofit groups with which he worked.

In Burlington, he became a familiar and consistent voice for economic and racial justice for more than 30 years. He was an early supporter of Bernie Sanders’ successful campaign for Burlington mayor in 1981.

Elected in 2001 as Burlington’s first Black city council member, Kemp played a pivotal role in passing the city’s livable wage ordinance during his one term. After he lost his reelection bid for city council, he ran unsuccessfully as a Progressive candidate for state representative in 2004 and lieutenant governor in 2008.

“His values, his commitment to social and economic reform, was all about moving the community and the country in a more progressive direction,” said Peter Clavelle, a fellow Progressive who was Burlington’s

mayor during Richard’s time on the city council and knew him for more than 40 years. “He was a strong voice, a booming voice, and he also made sure that he was part of the solution.”

Those who knew him best said Richard was particularly proud of his efforts to lift up people in poverty across the globe. He collected medical textbooks and delivered them to a medical school in Ghana. He ran the Vermont Committee on South Africa as part of his stand against apartheid. In 1984, he helped establish Burlington’s first sister city, Puerto Cabezas in Nicaragua, and joined the subsequent “Peace Ship” voyage to bring aid and supplies to residents there. He traveled with other Champlain Housing Trust representatives to Angola in 2008 to accept the United Nations World Habitat Award, which recognized the local organization for its work in affordable housing.

In Richard’s activism, socioeconomic justice was intertwined with racial justice.

“He communicated across racial lines, but he also represented the Black community as an African American man that just was a trailblazer in so many different ways,” said Mark Hughes, founder of the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance and the husband of Richard’s daughter Christine Hughes. Richard showed that “there is a path for Black folks in this community to make a significant impact and leave an indelible legacy.”

Richard’s oldest daughter, Kathleen Kemp, said she always pictures her father gripping a clipboard, stopping passersby on Church Street to ask them to sign a petition or register to vote. “He had some line or some ‘HE WAS A STRONG VOICE’ SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

» P.41 35

Life Stories « P.35 David Garrett at the Adirondack cabin he built

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DAVID GARRETT, DECEMBER 12,1942-AUGUST 17, 2021

I

n a big yellow barn on Thompson’s Point Road in Charlotte, David Garrett worked on two of his great 8v-earth&salt122221.indd 1 12/16/21 4:28 PM interests and talents: making furniJANUARY YOUTH ture and developing luxury hotels. His two vocations come together in a piece LESSON SERIES that stands in the 1790s barn at Cedar Farm, where David lived for 40 years.

The piece — a stellar display of creativJanuary 8th-30th, 2022 ity and craftsmanship — is a wine cellar cabinet crafted from dogwood twigs, corks, walnut, hickory and butternut. Six doors on the lower section are each inlaid with a painting — Adirondack Park landscapes in the Hudson River School style that together form a bucolic scene.

The cabinet holds more than 400 bottles of wine and was used at New A series of four one-hour ski/snowboard York’s Lake Placid Lodge, clinics for children ages 5-16 on either one of the resort properties Saturdays or Sundays through January David owned and developed.

Now it’s at home with the family of its creator, and it’s a piece that David especially loved, his daughter Caitrin said.

(View his furniture at corkiture.com.)

More of his eye-catching work fills 4 lessons for just $120! the high-ceilinged room at the end of the barn. It includes a section of a Japanese Kick off the new year with winter fun! elm tree that he stripped of bark one Special rates on equipment and helmet summer to create a wonderful sculpture. rentals available.

David seemed to find inspiration every place he looked: He used a log that was shaped by a beaver’s gnawing to construct Questions? Call 802-443-7605 the base of a table; he built a tree house 36

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

8V-middsnow122921 1

12/20/21 2:34 PM

for his grandchildren around an oak tree in his yard. The tree rises through the middle of the ground-level structure.

“No matter what David put his hand to, he could do it well,” said Christie Garrett, his wife of 53 years.

“What impressed me when I first met him [was], so many people say, ‘Someday, I’m going to do this,’” Christie, 75, said.

“And David would actually do it.”

David died at his home on August 17 at age 78. He contracted a breakthrough COVID-19 infection, and the virus precipitated his death from heart failure, according to his family.

David was born in New York City and grew up in Westchester County. As David a boy, he was enamored Garrett with Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone and their o u t d o o r a d ve n t u re s.

His childhood love of the outdoors stayed with him throughout his life. It inspired a project he embarked on more than half a century ago — an endeavor dear to his heart that would engage him until his death: building a cabin in the Adirondacks at a site accessible by a three-mile walk.

David and Christie were not yet married when they rode on his Suzuki motorcycle from New York City to the Adirondacks looking for land. They found the right spot deep in the woods near Moriah, N.Y., the spring before their September 1968 marriage.

David cut down trees to clear the site and used the logs to build his cabin. Over time, he added to it — a kitchen, a fireplace, a bedroom, another bedroom — to accommodate his and Christie’s growing family. Together, they raised three daughters; their six grandchildren are aged 5 to 21.

In 1980, David was working as a stockbroker when he and Christie celebrated their wedding anniversary at the Point, a lodge on Upper Saranac Lake that was once a Rockefeller home. Built a century ago, the Point features 11 guest rooms and communal dining.

“You fall into its spell very easily,” Christie said.

On that anniversary weekend, David told Christie that if the Point were ever for sale, he’d buy it. The Garretts returned to the Point for their anniversary for the next several years. In 1985, the owner told them the property was for sale.

True to his word, David purchased it.

“It was a bargain,” Christie said.

And so began David’s transition from stockbroker to hotelier, with a specialty in conceiving and developing high-end hotels and lodges. He and Christie were partners in the endeavor. She has a design background and managed the details; he envisioned the overarching concepts.

“He just thought he’d figure it out,” said his oldest daughter, artist Erin GarrettMetz. “And he did. He figured out how to do it in the best way.”

David was an artist and a maker.

Envisioning lodging places and developing the experience of staying there was a form of creation.

“He had a need to constantly be creating something,” Garrett-Metz explained.

“A hotel, a piece of furniture, a book.”

The book she’s referring to is the one the Garretts produced as a kind of highend brochure about the Point — a preinternet marketing tool. (David would make books to describe other properties he went on to develop, too.)

The hardcover book, The Point, was mailed to people who called to inquire about the lodge on a peninsula in Upper Saranac Lake.

“Visiting us is rather different from staying at an inn or resort,” the front page reads; “it is more like joining old friends for a house party in the woods.”

While David’s particular skill and interest was in conceptualizing a place, he also had a hand in its day-to-day workings. For example, after the Garretts bought the Point, they needed a chef for its kitchen.

“The food has to be better,” he told Christie. “I’m going to figure it out. I’ll make some calls.”

ow g her shh! in t s o h t Melo adio boo in the r

Oil portrait of David Garrett painted by his daughter, Erin Garrett-Metz

So he called the owner of Le Cirque in New York City. When that cold call didn’t yield a chef, David moved on to Albert Roux, a Michelin-starred chef in London. That call led to both a friendship with Roux and a pipeline of employees, Christie said.

About a decade after the Garretts

Verm livestroent Youth O amed S r pring cChestra's oncert

bought the Point, they purchased another property in the Adirondacks, Lake Placid Lodge. As they were overseeing structural renovations, David decided to try his hand at making furniture.

He pointed to a pair of dressers and told Christie, “‘I’m going to take two of these back’” to his workshop, she recalled. “‘I think I can make them look better.’”

Every challenge was an opportunity for David, not an obstacle, his son-in-law, Andrew Metz, said.

“I loved that sentiment about him,” Metz said.

In Vermont, David helped develop Twin Farms, a luxury resort in Barnard.

John Graham, managing partner of Twin Farms, in an email called David “one of the pioneers of the boutique luxury segment, a kind and generous man who knew and traveled the world, but also knew his neighbor. He loved great art and was an amazing artist himself. He cared.”

In 2010, the Garretts reshaped their business from acquiring properties to consulting on the creation and development of luxury hotels and resorts.

“We realized that what we really loved about the business was creating beautiful

hotels,” Christie explained. “We wanted to help other people who were getting into the business.”

Garrett Hotel Consultants is a family business in which Christie is president and cofounder, youngest daughter Caitrin is COO, and Erin is a writer. Middle daughter Moriah works in marketing for the Ivy Hotel in Baltimore. Her husband, Rob Arthur, is the Ivy’s general manager.

David’s daughters also carry on their father’s work making things with their hands. Caitrin’s Burlington home is furnished with pieces she built with her father. Erin renovated her family’s 19th-century house near Boston.

In the barn in Charlotte is a portrait Erin painted in oil of her father. He’s sitting outside the cabin in the Adirondacks that he began building more than 50 years ago. The colors are muted, and the fall light is warm. The artwork is a collaboration: David made the wooden frame.

“He was always all about family,” Caitrin said. “Always.”

S A L LY P O L L A K LIFE STORIES

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12/17/21 9:35 AM

Life Stories «P.37

COURTESY OF LUKE AWTRY PHOTOGRAPHY

Tommy Wheeler

‘Always Doing Really Cool Things’

N

TOMMY WHEELER, MAY 12, 1984-AUGUST 19, 2021

o matter what, Tommy Wheeler told it like it was. Friends and family of the chef, bartender and DJ described him as honest and direct, above all else. And he expected the same from others.

“I remember him saying something like, ‘You know, it’s OK to not be OK,’” recalled Tommy’s best friend, Nikolai Sears, of the night they met in 2002 as first-year students at the University of Vermont.

They cried in front of each other that night, Sears said, and forged a lasting connection.

“He was a really wonderful listener … I think people really felt comfortable opening up to him,” said Tommy’s sister, Mary Wheeler.

A recognizable member of Burlington’s nightlife and hospitality sectors, Tommy was the kind of person who liked to take care of others. But he struggled to take care of himself and to get help for his alcohol addiction and mental health issues. His ongoing struggle with alcohol eventually led to massive organ failure. He died on August 19, at the age of 37, at DartmouthHitchcock medical center.

Mary said she didn’t want to conceal the circumstances of Tommy’s death.

“Most people are going to see someone passing at 37 … and be kind of curious,” she 38

said. “He was so much about honesty and being up front; I don’t think it’s something to hide.”

Mary said she knew early in her brother’s life that he would never have a typical, nine-to-five career, but he was “always doing really cool things.” As a child, he collected cans for redemption and manicured neighbors’ lawns, showing industrious, entrepreneurial tendencies that he would carry into his adult life.

Growing up in Putney, the siblings started a small but “pretty legitimate” business making and selling paraffin-dipped autumn leaves, Mary recalled. With practically no overhead, they pulled in more income than expected — too much for an unlicensed business, which led to the startup’s downfall.

After attending high school in Brattleboro, Tommy moved to Burlington in 2002 to study political science at UVM. Sears, who would eventually become Tommy’s roommate, recalled meeting him at an outdoor drum circle.

Tommy “probably wouldn’t want anyone to know [that],” Sears joked. He described college-age Tommy as something of a neo-hippie, always sporting a bandanna on his head.

In 2004, during his sophomore year,

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

Tommy was instrumental in reviving the annual “420 rally” on the UVM campus, a protest and smoke-in for cannabis legalization. Both Tommy and Sears were arrested during the April 20 demonstration for allegedly rallying students to participate in the action, which wasn’t officially sanctioned. The American Civil Liberties Union represented the pair in their suit against the college for alleged violation of their First Amendment rights.

In the resulting settlement, UVM paid each of the two students $7,500.

After graduating, Tommy went west and lived briefly in San Francisco and Portland, Ore. Sears said he got the impression that the West Coast mentality “didn’t really vibe with him.”

Tommy returned to Burlington in the early 2010s and embedded himself in the city’s restaurant and bar circuit. He managed the Thai restaurant Pacific Rim Asian Café (now defunct), tended bar at the Half Lounge (also closed) under its original ownership, and was integral to Taco Gordo’s food-stand and pop-up business years before the taqueria got a brick-andmortar home.

“He was incredible at bringing people together,” said Charlie Sizemore, owner of Taco Gordo. “He was one of the most

empathetic people I’ve ever met in my life.”

Sizemore said he met his longtime girlfriend at Pop Rap Dance Party, a recurring hootenanny that Tommy cohosted with his DJ partner, Jory Reeves. They set up shop at Half Lounge, which Reeves’ parents owned, and toured their event around to other watering holes in the Queen City during the mid-2010s.

Reeves looked back fondly on the beautiful chaos the two created. Their sets weren’t typical DJ fare, he explained.

“We were kind of making a mockery of deejaying,” he said. “It actually pissed off a lot of DJs.” The pair eschewed seamless mixing and transition between songs — a practice that many DJs pride themselves on and see as essential to the craft. Tommy and Reeves didn’t use a professional outboard DJ mixer. Instead, they opted for a laptop and a free online platform called Two YouTube Videos and a Motherfucking Crossfader Dot Com (which is a perfect description of the program’s functionality).

“We were just hosting a party and were like, ‘Song selection is all that matters, and having fun,’” Reeves said. He noted that the pair loved to make “crude and fucked-up transitions” and sometimes played songs over and over on a single night, another intentional DJ faux pas.

Besides being a DJ, Tommy was a poet, participating in readings and creating zines. Sears said that not enough of his writing saw the light of day, and that Tommy destroyed some of his own work.

In Tommy’s social circle, heavy drinking and partying were par for the course.

But, as time passed, Tommy’s friends had to reckon with his evident addiction. Sears said Tommy’s drinking went beyond the usual social lubrication.

“It was a romance for him,” he said.

Sizemore recalled the dilemma that Tommy’s friends faced. “He [could] be introspective about his drinking, but not in a way that [he] had any plans on changing,” he said. “If [they’re] not destroying everything around you, it’s hard to step in and tell somebody that they need to stop.”

Like many people who are dealing with addiction, Tommy kept his dependency under wraps. For reasons not fully understood by those closest to him, he never found the help he needed.

“The addiction and mental health system is so complicated, and it’s so overwhelming, it’s hard to know where to get help,” Mary said. “There’s still a lot of shame with mental health and addiction.

Maybe people are ashamed to say, ‘I need help.’’’

JO RDAN ADAMS LIFE STORIES

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Life Stories « P.38

‘Brenda Was Humble. She Was a Helper.’

BRENDA CHURCHILL FLINT, JULY 1, 1977-OCTOBER 15, 2021

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Brenda Flint with her Disney World race medals in 2017

COURTESY OF BEN DEFLORIO PHOTOGRAPHY

ina Churchill often knew when her sister Brenda Flint had been out for a walk or a run. Afterward, Brenda might call or text her younger sister and say, “I’ve been thinking…,” Tina recalled. Even when doing long race training runs, she chose silence over music. “She told me that was her thinking time,” Tina said.

Midmorning on October 15, Brenda headed out on one of her several daily walks and runs on Brookfield’s Churchill Road, the dirt road where she was born and had lived her whole life. But that day Brenda didn’t call Tina after her walk.

Within a mile of their childhood home and the tidy, shingled house where Brenda lived with her husband and teenage daughter, a car hit and killed the 44-yearold. According to the Vermont State Police, the accident investigation remains active and involves the Orange County state’s attorney’s office.

The news rippled immediately through the tight-knit community. Churchills have farmed in Brookfield for 80 years, and Tina, Brenda and their older sister, Amy Ferris, grew up on the family’s small Jersey cow dairy. They had to learn how to milk before they could get their driver’s licenses. Brenda, who was an accountant, still loved to help with haying and sugaring.

After serving as a town auditor for six years, in July 2021 Brenda ran for a twoyear term on the Brookfield Selectboard and won. It was a leap for someone who was far more comfortable crunching numbers behind the scenes than speaking in front of people. “She was always quiet,” her mother, Lora Churchill, said.

As a child, “she didn’t talk out in public for quite a while, but she paid attention.”

After thorough consideration, Brenda decided to run for office because she thought she could help. “She wanted to bring an open mind to the table, to discuss things and work together for the town, not for herself,” said Dennis LaRocque, a fellow auditor and selectboard member.

He called her death “a tremendous loss to the community.”

It also devastated her colleagues within the Vermont State Colleges System, where she had worked for the last 13 years, most recently as the controller for Vermont Technical College and the Community College of Vermont.

She was an alumna of VTC and Johnson State College. A memorial scholarship at

Brenda Flint (left) and her daughter, Samantha

VTC has received more than $50,000 in donations.

Joyce Twing, professor and chair of VTC’s Business Technology & Management department, taught and later worked

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

with Brenda. The honors student stood out from the moment Twing saw the perfect math scores on her college application.

Twing also came to appreciate Brenda’s work ethic and attitude. “Some people

who are smart, they want everybody to know that they’re smart. Brenda wasn’t like that,” Twing recalled. “Brenda was humble. She was a helper.”

When Brenda was working at the VSCS chancellor’s office, a new systemwide payroll system proved challenging.

“Even Jesus couldn’t have figured it out,” Twing said. Brenda could, though. Twing’s former student was able and happy to answer all her questions. “I know Brenda did that for a lot of people,” she said.

“Brenda was really indispensable to [VSCS],” said Chris Black, who trained Brenda in 2008 for her VTC job and was a longtime family friend. “No matter how busy she was, when anybody came to her office or called her with a question, she always had a smile and plenty of time to answer,” Black said. “It was like you were the priority.”

For family and close friends, the tragedy left a gaping hole. Brenda married Paul Flint in 2000, and their daughter, Samantha, was born in 2005. Paul was a few years ahead of Brenda at Randolph Union High School, but they didn’t start dating until after college when they connected at a bluegrass festival in Brookfield.

“They were just smitten with each other,” her mother said. “You could look at them and see what love looks like,” Tina added. The couple was very close to their daughter and especially treasured annual summer trips to Maine.

Within her tight inner circle, Brenda was the person who organized everyday gatherings and milestone events, baked professional-quality cakes for every celebration, created family photo albums and genealogical trees, and planned excursions and surprises. And she was always there to listen and advise.

“She was my rock,” said Tina, detailing how Brenda supported her after a serious car accident and through several miscarriages before she had her son on October 2.

When Amy’s daughter was diagnosed with leukemia more than a decade ago, Brenda immediately set about researching the disease and suggesting questions for the doctors.

“Whatever Brenda was attacking, whether for work, for the town or for family, she was always very thoughtful about it, would research it and look at all sides,” Amy said.

Brenda also knew how to have fun.

She was a passionate fan of quarterback Tom Brady, the Duke University men’s

ME LISSA PASANEN

LIFE STORIES

» P.42

‘He Was a Strong Voice’ « P.35 conversation starter that he would offer people, and it was always around being active and being part of the community,” she said. “And he would talk to anyone.”

Even the wheelchair Richard used at Birchwood Terrace Rehabilitation and Healthcare before his death carried a sign on the back with the message “Vote,” Christine Hughes said.

For nearly 20 years, Richard hosted an interview show, “Near and Far,” on public-access Channel 17 (CCTV). He featured politicians and activists and introduced his viewers to such far-flung social justice issues as labor abuses in the global chocolate industry.

At the First Unitarian Universalist Society of Burlington, he sat on the social action committee and rarely missed an opportunity to share his ideas, said Gene Bergman and Wendy Coe, fellow UU members and longtime friends.

“One of the things he would really do for us at the UU is challenge our values,” Bergman said. “He would say we need to put our money where our mouth is.”

For example, Richard often prodded the church’s leadership — unsuccessfully — to turn one of its rental properties into housing for newly released prisoners. He also argued for divestment from South Africa while it was under apartheid.

Born in the Bronx and raised in Brooklyn, Richard was one of six kids in a Catholic home. He attended Catholic schools, and the church inspired his social activism; he was particularly influenced by the Catholic Worker Movement and its anti-poverty and anti-war work. He spent more than a year at a seminary in upstate New York but decided the monastic life wasn’t for him, according to Journey North: The Life of Richard Kemp, a book he self-published with writer Katherine Nopper in 2012.

In the 1950s, Richard worked for Friendship House, a Catholic organization that addressed homelessness and poverty in New York City. There, he met his wife, Frances, a white woman from Maine, who shared his commitment to nonviolent activism.

From an early age, his daughters heard political discussions at home among their parents and their parents’ friends. Their father campaigned for Shirley Chisholm in 1968, when she became the first African American woman elected to Congress, and he traveled to Washington, D.C., to hear Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Outside of politics, Richard worked his way through a series of jobs — shipping clerk at a paper mill, supervisor at a Job Corps career training center for teens, cafeteria manager at IBM — and moved the family to towns in Massachusetts and upstate New York. In West Brookfield, Mass., the Kemps lived on 32 acres, where they kept a sheep, chickens and bees and produced much of their own food. Richard ground fresh peanut butter with his own honey for sandwiches that his kids would take to school on their mother’s baked bread.

In 1973, IBM transferred Richard to its plant in Essex Junction, where he worked in the human resources department for 18 years. He and his wife raised their six children in Burlington’s New North End. A bumper sticker on their refrigerator carried one of Richard’s favorite mantras: “Question authority.” Despite

that conviction and his service as an Army draftee during the Korean War, he was a lifelong pacifist. From his city council seat, he opposed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He took a calm, thoughtful approach to confrontations of all kinds, including racist ones, his daughters said. Not long after the family moved to Vermont, they set up a booth at a craft show to sell jewelry, stained glass and candles that they had made.

As they were leaving the event, a drunk man approached and started calling their father names, telling him to “go back to Africa,” Kathleen Kemp said.

The Kemp kids thought their dad should have punched the guy, Christine Hughes said, but he called over a police officer instead. “You don’t solve stuff with violence,” she said of her father’s beliefs.

Richard Kemp “You don’t fight. You figure it out.”

Laura Solomon, Richard’s companion for 20 years after he and his wife divorced, said she witnessed many times his ability to diffuse tension. Once, on a trip to another city, the interracial couple was holding hands on a stroll and encountered a man who scowled his disapproval.

Instead of avoiding the person, Richard walked directly up to the man and stuck out his hand, introducing himself. They ended up chatting, Solomon said.

“His inclination was to approach and disarm the situation,” she said. “He had a personal sense and a confidence that he could handle the situation and it would turn out OK, and it usually did turn out OK.” In the 1990s, Richard became one of the earliest residents at the Flynn Avenue Housing Cooperative, an affordable housing complex run by the Champlain Housing Trust. He attended the housing trust’s ceremony for the 2019 opening of its new Kemp House, a home where former inmates can transition to live independently — one of the causes Richard championed most strongly.

“I just feel that the fact that you may be an ex-criminal, that you maybe made a mistake ... that shouldn’t keep you from getting housing or a job or be[ing] accepted in our community,” he is quoted as saying on the trust’s website.

His work has inspired the Richard Kemp Center, a project of the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance now under development in the Old North End to support and empower the city’s communities of color.

“His superhero social-justice legacy, I think, we’ve got to memorialize that,” Hughes, who is spearheading the new center, said of Richard.

A memorial service for Richard is scheduled for June 18 at the First Unitarian Universalist Society in Burlington.

The day before Richard died, Hughes went to his father-inlaw’s bedside with his wife. Richard took Hughes’ hand and squeezed it, like a “bear grip,” he said. Richard’s voice had weakened, and Hughes could barely make out the elder man’s words.

“Don’t quit,” Hughes heard him say.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF GILLIAN RANDALL

basketball team, country music and mini things, including Easy-Bake Ovens and her collection of airplane liquor bottles.

Her often whimsical, meticulously executed surprises for friends and family were legendary. Amy recalled one March when her sister frosted Cheerios, dusted them with sprinkles, boxed up the tiny doughnut doppelgängers and delivered them to coworkers as “leprechaun treats.”

For the 40th birthday of her close friend Julie Concha, Brenda showed up unannounced before dawn at her Bethel home with a light-up flamingo, a big sign and several more flamingos.

“She had staked out my house before, so she could make a plan,” Concha said.

“She’d brought an extension cord and knew where to plug it in.”

To Carol Ladabouche, another longtime friend, she sent birthday cookies that were decorated with a cringe-worthy eighth-grade photo of Ladabouche, without a card. “That was just like Brenda not to take credit for it,” Ladabouche said with a laugh.

Ladabouche and Tina were Brenda’s frequent race companions since she resolved a dozen years ago to get into shape in order to keep up with her daughter. Brenda started by training for a fundraiser 5K organized by the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock, where her niece was being treated for leukemia. She gradually worked her way up to half marathons, a spartan race and even a triathlon.

“Brenda never announced that she was going to start concentrating on exercise and having that be a priority in her life,” Ladabouche said. “She was steadfast and determined and just did it.”

In 2017, Brenda checked off a major goal when she traveled with Tina and Samantha to Florida for what is now called the Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend. The three ran the 5K together in matching capes that Brenda had bought. Then Tina and Samantha cheered Brenda on in the 10K and half marathon.

Ladabouche recalled a different kind of race highlight that epitomized her friend. A few years ago, the two were part of a six-person team doing the 100 on 100 Relay from Stowe to Ludlow. Brenda was on deck to run the final leg. “She had these huge blisters on her feet that would have brought down any strong human being,” said Ladabouche. “But she got them wrapped, shoved them into her shoes and brought us home.”

For more information about the June 18 memorial or to share stories about Richard Kemp for a future scrapbook the family is assembling, contact friendsofrichardkemp@gmail.com.

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Life Stories « P.40

‘He Could Be the Center of Attention’ WILLIAM “BILL” ANDREW JAMES, July 5, 1911-October 24, 2021

T

en years ago, Ted Lylis was driving down Fitch Avenue in Bristol when he saw a man who appeared to be adjusting an antenna on the garage roof of Bill James’ house. As Lylis got closer, he saw that it was Bill himself, his great uncle, who happened to be 100 years old. Alarmed, Lylis pulled into Bill’s driveway. “Bill, come down from there,” he yelled.

“No one wants to see you up there!”

“You can’t tell me what to do!” Bill replied in an aggrieved voice.

Lylis got in his car, drove the short distance to his home and immediately began phoning several of Bill’s many relatives in Bristol. Ted’s eyewitness account triggered a family intervention, and the centenarian was persuaded to return to terra firma. Lylis expected repercussions and was not disappointed.

“It was a long time before Bill talked to me again!” said Lylis.

William “Bill” Andrew James was born in Lincoln on July 5, 1911. And he died there on October 24, 2021, leaving an indelible imprint on his town, his friends and his family.

He was 110 years old, according to the calendar, but that measure seemed deficient. Better you should cut him in half, like a tree, and count the rings; such were his roots and To the dismay of stature in the town. family members, Bill In his time on Earth, he was regularly worked on an electrician, town select- the roof of his home. man, member of the rescue squad and parade marshal. He supported many local organizations financially, including the Bristol Historical Society.

At age 102, he appeared in a series of TV ads for a local car dealership, growling at the camera like a Halloween bogeyman. The ads went viral in Vermont.

“He loved that, and he became even more popular,” Lylis said. “He could be the center of attention.”

Of course, Bill couldn’t stay mad with his great-nephew for long, as the younger man knew. Bill had a car crush on Lylis’ classic 1968 Triumph Spitfire, and Lylis had invited Bill to ride in it in Bristol’s Fourth of July parade — thus creating a human “Antiques Roadshow.” Modest in stature, Bill looked outsize in the two-seat, pale-yellow sports car, so Lylis stuck a large key on the boot to complete the windup-toy effect. It was a smash hit.

For 75 years, Bill belonged to the Masons, but he was just as diligent in attending meetings of the Old Farts Club at Cubbers Restaurant — until he was the only one left at the table. He outlived everyone, including his beloved Mabel Jeanette Lucia James, who died in 2009, almost

42

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

Well past his century mark, Bill enjoyed riding in a 1968 Triumph Spitfire at Bristol’s Fourth of July parade.

a year after she and Bill had marked their 63rd wedding anniversary.

When they met, Mabel had been working at the Kennedy Brothers woodcraft factory in Bristol and was a frequent patron at the local barn dances. One evening, seeking company, Bill walked into the barn — “I mean, he walked all the way from Lincoln to Bristol, four miles there and four miles back,” said son-in-law John Teer. Mabel and Bill were married on New Year’s Eve in 1945.

Bill tried to enlist in the armed services during World War II but was given a deferment. “He told me the military doctors said he had some type of heart murmur and felt his heart would not be strong enough for military service,” said Joelle Muggeo, his granddaughter.

Bill was born in Lincoln — three years before the start of World War I. When he was a young boy, his parents divorced, and he moved to a farm in West Lincoln, where he was raised by his grandfather William York and York’s second wife, Emma. Electric service came to the farm in the late 1920s, and Bill was sufficiently impressed with the invention to go to work for Central Vermont Public Service, which has since merged with Green Mountain Power.

During his long career as a line worker for CVPS, Bill “never rode up in a bucket,” preferring to climb the utility poles, said Teer, his son-in-law. He added that his fatherin-law “had two close calls,” including once when a stirrup broke, causing him to fall and get “banged up.” As for the other…

“Well, they turned the power on by mistake while he was up top,” Teer recalled.

Fortunately, Bill had the presence of mind to throw a metal safety chain across the wires, triggering a circuit breaker. He finally did go up in a bucket — to mark his 100th birthday.

Bill’s values were consistently old school, said Muggeo.

Once, a visiting great-grandson had scattered his many toys

around Bill’s house, and the boy’s parents were frantically clearing the minefield, lest Bill trip over them. Bill looked amused. “When I got bored as a boy,” he explained to the child, “my grandpa gave me a hammer and a bucket of nails and said, ‘Here, have some fun.’’’

Bill stayed mentally sharp well beyond his century mark.

“One day, when he was about 105, he announced, ‘We are going for a ride,’ and he directed us up through Lincoln,” Muggeo recalled. “He still knew all of the back roads, like he had just driven them a week ago.”

During the ride, he called for a stop and pointed out where on the mountain he’d lived with his grandfather.

“Now, mind you, that was over 100 years ago,” Muggeo continued. “He felt joy by remembering it.”

His last years were filled with testimonials and nostalgia trips. On July 5, 2020 — Bill’s 109th birthday — the town threw him a parade. Virtually all of Bristol passed by his house, honking horns and shouting congratulations.

Muggeo sat by his side.

A couple of years before, Bill gave her his Masons ring, she said. “I told him I didn’t want it, and he should keep it.

He told me he wanted to give me something to remember him.” She looked at him in awe, she said. “I don’t need anything to remember.”

Not long before Bill died, he asked to be driven across the Lake Champlain Bridge, where he acted as grand marshal when the rebuilt span opened in 2011, according to Teer. “Bill is rumored to have gone out with a pilot buddy of his and flown under the old bridge,” he added. They drove across to Crown Point, N.Y., and then back to Vermont, stopping for a creemee in Vergennes.

In the spring of 2021, Bill let everyone know that he wasn’t going to change the battery in his pacemaker when it failed, and no one else should, either. His niece, Mary Fleming, went to see him and bring him muffins — which Bill called cupcakes.

“He said he was afraid he wouldn’t see me again. And he was crying,” Fleming recalled. “I put my arms around him and said, ‘When we meet again, we’ll probably be young.

And there won’t be any more pain.’

“And then he smiled.”

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‘His Enjoyment Was Other People’ ARTURO “ARTHUR” TORRES, May 17, 1976-October 23, 2021

COURTESY OF EMILY GLICK

f there was one place Arthur Torres was happiest, it was before a captive audience. Whether posting flyers for a fake parade on Burlington’s Church Street just to see who would gather, or at the center of a speed-chess tournament, or simply telling one of his countless stories to a rapt crowd, Arthur reveled in human interaction.

“His enjoyment was other people,” his friend Lydia Sanders summed up.

Friends nicknamed Arthur “the Mayor of Burlington,” and for years he was a familiar sight in the Church Street Marketplace, cruising in his battered motorized wheelchair accompanied by his dog Nori.

Arthur had lived with multiple sclerosis since 2000 and, more recently, with a second disorder, myotonic muscular dystrophy. He began using a wheelchair in 2011, but he never bemoaned his physical ills, and he lived life to its limits despite them, his friends and family say.

Insatiably curious, Arthur enjoyed everything from Alfred Hitchcock movies to televangelists. Forever mischievous, he once showed up at a speed-chess match in full drag in an attempt to psych out his opponent. An avid traveler, he flew all over the world and often tried to finagle upgrades to hotel suites and first-class airplane seats.

“He had an amazing ability to walk into any room and get people interested in him,” friend and chess partner Ron Stewart of Burlington said. The two bonded over classic ’90s video games, long car rides to chess tournaments and musing about life.

“He lived life on his own terms,” Stewart said. “There’s a lot to respect with him.”

Arthur made friends everywhere, said Sanders, who met him by chance at Muddy Waters in 1997. Arthur remembered people’s names and knew the badge ID of every bus driver in Burlington. Sanders recalled walking into one of Arthur’s favorite haunts, Foam Brewers, only to find him surrounded by people he had never met.

But they became his friends, Sanders said, “and then they were your friends, too.”

Born and raised in the Bronx, Arthur was a gifted, hyperactive child who felt misunderstood and sometimes even rejected by his family, according to his wife, Emily Glick. New York City felt claustrophobic to him.

He often described himself as a “toon,” one of the animated characters who lived alongside real people in one of his favorite movies, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He sought a space where he could be his zany, unencumbered self, and he found that when he came to Burlington in the 1990s.

“In New York, anyone can do anything, and nobody notices,” Glick said. But Vermont is different. “People appreciated and valued his quirkiness, especially in

Arthur Torres and Emily Glick

Burlington. He just really felt recognized.”

He considered Vermont home, even after he and Glick moved to Oregon in 2019, where Glick, a physician, had gotten a new job. His friends say Arthur never stopped missing Vermont.

Arthur met Glick when she was 18 and fresh out of high school. Young and rebellious, they embarked on a summer fling but then parted. Four years later, Arthur looked her up again and persuaded her to leave New York City and join him in Burlington.

Sanders remembers Arthur telling her the news. He showed up weeping during a party at her apartment — the only time she saw him cry — and announced that Glick was moving to Burlington to be with him.

“And he just kept saying ‘I found her, I found her,’” Sanders recalled. “It was beautiful.”

While Emily completed her medical residency in Burlington, Arthur held a

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

variety of odd jobs, including a factory position at Magic Hat Brewing and one notorious stint as a Price Chopper cashier. Disillusioned by the lack of sick time for employees and cajoled into a bet with a friend, Arthur set out to get fired from the store. Instead, after he dramatically fell to the floor and made a scene for the security cameras, the store offered him a position in loss prevention.

Though he much preferred Arthur, his given name was Arturo — a connection to his Cuban grandmother, Julieta. Though she spoke very little English, and Arthur very little Spanish, they remained close until she died a decade ago. Glick fondly recalled late nights around Julieta’s table in the Bronx, as she seared a steak for her grandson at 1 a.m.

Eventually, Arthur foreswore steaks. He

became a passionate vegan after learning about the environmental costs and abuses of factory farming. Sanders’ sister, July Sanders, is also a vegan. She and Arthur planned destination trips based on food — to a restaurant in Texas he’d read about, or to a vegan place in Greece. For years, Arthur had his favorite vegan gumbo shipped to him from Louisiana.

Arthur had a passion for travel — and for working the system to win airline points for trips abroad. A Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite member, Arthur was such a frequent traveler that pilots recognized him on his regular routes. Glick estimated that Arthur left behind close to 650,000 reward miles.

He especially loved his vacations to island destinations in the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean, where he reveled in poolside cocktails, exotic meals and swims in the ocean. Arthur kept bracelets from all-inclusive resorts long after returning home, wearing them down to filthy pieces of fabric. He claimed he held on to them in case he returned. He was wearing one when he died.

Though Arthur’s diseases limited him more each year, he didn’t dwell on the abilities he had lost. Instead, he never stopped finding new ways to thrive. When getting dressed became difficult, Arthur turned to nudism, forgoing clothes when he could. When he could no longer ride a bike, the passionate cyclist learned to love swimming. When his hands became too shaky to move chess pieces, he quit playing, and he and Glick read aloud famous chess opening and closing sequences.

Glick and Arthur were on vacation on the West Coast when he died on October 23. He had struggled with respiratory issues and urinary tract infections as a result of his illnesses, but his exact cause of death is unknown.

As she reminisced about Arthur this month, Lydia Sanders recalled the time Arthur invited her to dinner only to reveal a list of addresses on a crumpled sheet of paper he had found on the street. He wanted to send a letter to every one of the addresses.

His hands were too weak to write then, so he needed her help. He couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share himself with someone new and possibly make a friend. Arthur, his wife and friends agreed, was not the sort of person you forget.

“He’s just a good human experiment for how to unapologetically be yourself,” July Sanders said. “And succeed at that.”

HAT T I E LI N DE RT

COURTESY OF JOYA SMITHAYER

‘People Would Open Up to Her and Tell Her Their Stories’ SUSAN FAY SMITH, January 26, 1944-January 4, 2021

S

usan Smith had a soft voice, but she didn’t need to speak loudly to make herself clear. In the mid-1970s, she was one of the first woman residents in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Vermont Medical Center.

During a rotation in Plattsburgh, N.Y., she found herself in a late-night surgery with a male anesthesiologist who kept putting his arm around her. When she got tired of telling him to stop, Susan, a black belt in karate, threw him to the floor. He never put his arm around her again.

“Susan was maybe five-foot-one,” said her former partner, Carol Thayer, who was in medical school at UVM when she first met Susan. By the time Thayer started doing rotations in Plattsburgh, several years after Susan flattened the anesthesiologist, the story had become legend. But Susan, who had moved to Sweden in her twenties to avoid funding the Vietnam War with her tax dollars, preferred a gentler narrative.

“Susan would always say, ‘I did not flip him,’” Thayer remembered. “‘I simply laid him on the ground.’”

Susan had a penchant for understatement, especially when it came to her own accomplishments. When people at parties asked her what she did for a living, Thayer said, Susan would usually respond: “I work with my hands.”

Later, as she became more established, her obstetrics patients would recognize her on the streets of Burlington. “People would run up to Susan and say, ‘You delivered my baby!’” said Glo Daley, Susan’s partner and caretaker in the last decade and a half of her life. “And she always said, ‘You delivered your baby. I was just there to catch it.’”

For more than 20 years, Susan worked quietly and humbly to empower her patients. As a mentor to other women in medicine and as a mother, she was generous and unflappable; she also loved making stir-fries and driving a stick shift. On January 4, she died peacefully with Daley at her bedside, after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. She was 76.

Susan, the second oldest of four children, was born in San Francisco and grew up in Minnesota and upstate New York.

Her father moved the family for his job as a hospital administrator and to care for his parents, Thayer said, and Susan never felt rooted in any particular place. She excelled in school — she was valedictorian of her graduating class — but she didn’t have many close friends.

“She was kind of a rebel,” Thayer said.

“Her parents were very proud of her, but they weren’t very supportive of her being a lesbian.”

As an undergraduate at the University of Michigan, Susan moved to Sweden to protest the war in Vietnam.

After three years, Susan returned to the U.S. to complete her undergraduate degree at Michigan, where she later attended medical school. When she finally came to Burlington in 1976, for her residency at UVM Medical Center, she knew she’d found home.

Thayer and Susan raised four children — Emma, now 31; Joya, 30; Raina, 27; and Willy, 25. In 1991, they bought a house on Hoover Street in the South End. Their neighborhood was a small metropolis of lesbian couples who worked in health care, and Joya remembers a near-constant stream of kids flowing from one house to another.

“Community was so important to my mother,” said Joya, who now lives in Salt Lake City. “She wanted us to have roots.”

Deborah Kutzko, one of Susan’s closest friends and her next-door neighbor on Hoover Street, said that at one point Joya and Kutzko’s daughter, Rebecca, proposed the construction of a sky bridge to connect their two bedrooms. (The parents vetoed this suggestion, citing concerns about resale value.)

When her children were younger, Susan volunteered to teach a six-week course at the Schoolhouse learning center in South Burlington, where Emma and Joya attended kindergarten through sixth grade. She led a workshop on making stilts. “How did she even get into stilts? I have no idea,” Joya said. “I wish I’d asked her these things, because she never talked about herself.”

In the late 1990s, when Joya was in elementary school, Susan began wearing a bulletproof vest to work, after an abortion provider was shot and killed in Buffalo, N.Y.

Susan Smith reading with Nikki

“It was just there, on a bench by the doorway,” recalled Thayer, who separated from Susan in the early 2000s. “She’d put it on when she left in the morning and take it off when she got home at night. She was very matter-of-fact about it, like it was just something she had to do.”

With her patients, Susan took a similarly direct approach. “She would sit down on a stool in the exam room, never harried or hurried, and just start a conversation by asking, ‘What are you here for?’” said Cheryl Gibson, who trained with Susan at UVM and later worked with her at Planned Parenthood and Vermont Gynecology.

“That was really unusual at the time.

Doctors usually set the agenda, but Susan didn’t do things that way. She just listened, and she only spoke when she needed to clarify something.”

The way Susan listened, Gibson said, was almost magical to behold. “She was so calming and reassuring, and people would open up to her and tell her their stories,” she said. Susan sometimes treated survivors of sexual assault, and Gibson watched their anxiety dissipate in Susan’s presence. “She was always one of the most steady people you would have ever met.”

Susan ate the way she lived and worked.

A lifelong vegetarian, she kept to a strict regimen of healthy, straightforward food — for breakfast, a toasted English muffin with butter and jam, washed down with a glass of milk and several cups of coffee; for lunch, a bowl of brown rice topped with a vegetable; for dinner, a salad with balsamic vinaigrette and a few slices of

seeded baguette. “She was such a creature of habit,” Joya said. “Everyone who knew her knew she ate exactly the same thing every single day.”

When Joya was in college, she spent time working in Guatemala, and Susan flew down to visit her for three weeks. “I was pretty nervous about it,” Joya said. “I was like, You’re not going to be able to eat your English muffin and, like, salad and bread. My host mother literally put food in front of us, and she had to eat it.”

But, to Joya’s relief, Susan dug in. After that trip, Joya said, Susan even started re-creating some of her host’s Guatemalan cooking at home.

By that point, Susan had already begun to show signs of Alzheimer’s, but Joya said her mother rarely discussed her symptoms.

Instead, she waged her own quiet campaign to slow the progression of the disease. She took turmeric pills, which she thought would boost her cognitive function; she often spent all day reading the newspaper and doing puzzles. Joya can still picture her mother at the kitchen table in their house on Hoover Street, poring over the Burlington Free Press or Seven Days with the soothing mumble of NPR in the background. Her cat, Nikki, fancied herself a paperweight, and she walked all over the pages as Susan tried to read them.

“She would turn her head sideways and stand in funny positions, just so she wouldn’t disturb the cat,” Joya said.

C HE LS E A E DGAR LIFE STORIES

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

» P.46 45

Life Stories « P.45

H

enry Weinstock loved talking to people. “It was probably No. 1 of his favorite things,” said Joanna Weinstock, his wife of 52 years.

Henry was never happier than when he could combine his love of conversation with his other passion: cycling. He loved riding on the Colchester Causeway, Joanna said, where Henry often stopped to talk to other cyclists if he overheard them speaking French. For years, he worked as a Francophone greeter on the Church Street Marketplace in Burlington, welcoming Québécois to the Queen City.

Henry excelled at connecting with others, especially in their native tongues.

Born and raised in Antwerp, Belgium, during World War II, he grew up speaking Hungarian and Flemish, then learned French, English, Spanish and German. He also knew Latin and picked up some Turkish and Swahili in Africa.

“He wasn’t shy about … making a fool of himself by pronouncing things wrong,” Joanna said.

Connecting with others was a skill Henry honed early in life. As a Jewish child raised during the Holocaust, languages became his lifeline, enabling him to forge what he once called his “surrogate family” when his actual family was imprisoned or killed.

Henry was 6 years old when the Nazis invaded Belgium in May 1940. As he told Vermont Public Radio in 2018, his Hungarian father, Eugene Weinstock, procrastinated their exodus from Belgium. (Henry’s parents divorced when he was a baby.) By the time the Weinstocks reached France — they had tickets to sail to America aboard the Queen Mary — they were prohibited from crossing the border. Hungary was an Axis country, and they were considered the enemy.

Through Eugene’s involvement with the Belgian Resistance, he met a Catholic priest who was sympathetic to the Jews’ plight. He offered to baptize Henry as Catholic and hide him with nuns in southern Belgium.

At the time, Henry was living with relatives. Though his aunt objected to separating the family, one night Eugene took the boy away.

The following morning, Eugene returned to retrieve Henry’s coat and found the apartment empty. According to a neighbor, just hours after their departure, Nazis arrested the entire family. All died in a concentration camp.

Henry was hidden from the gestapo by the Sisters of Bezonsonne in the Ardennes, and his name changed to Henri Albert Gerard. Along with 82 other Jewish children, he remained incommunicado from his family for more than two years. There, he learned French and witnessed some of 46

‘It Was That Generosity of Spirit in Him’ HENRY WEINSTOCK, February 7, 1934-October 2, 2021 Henry Weinstock

Henry Weinstock (left) with Édouard Froidure, the Catholic priest who baptized him, in 1946

the war’s fiercest fighting at the Battle of the Bulge.

“There was death all around us,” he recalled in his VPR interview. “It seemed bizarre, like a surrealistic dream. But it was real.”

Reunited with his father, who’d survived Buchenwald, Henry emigrated to the U.S. in 1946. They settled in New York City, in a Harlem apartment downstairs from singer, actor and activist Harry

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

Belafonte. After Henry dropped out of school at 16, he worked as a messenger, occasionally delivering items to Belafonte’s recording studio.

Drafted during the Korean War, Henry worked as an X-ray technician in a U.S. Army hospital in Germany. On leaves, he traveled by motor scooter to Paris, where he discovered his passion for French language and literature.

Henry’s longtime friend, Georgette

Garbès-Putzel of Jericho, a native of France, described Henry’s French as impeccable and graceful — “like taking a bath in the most beautiful water you can imagine.”

After his military discharge, Henry returned to New York and was hired as a translator by the United Nations, but he never worked there. He was dismissed after U.S. officials learned that Henry’s uncle was Louis Weinstock, longtime leader of the Communist Party of the United States, imprisoned in 1955 for conspiring to overthrow the U.S. government.

Henry went on to study at the Sorbonne in Paris, the City College of New York, New York University and the State University of New York-Albany, earning a doctorate in French literature. He met his future wife, American Joanna Smith, at a youth hostel in Denmark in 1967 while she was studying at the International College in Copenhagen.

“When I met him, I didn’t know that he lived in New York,” Joanna remembered.

“For three days, I struggled with my high school French to speak to him — and he knew it! I think he just loved French and was happy to speak it.”

The couple married in 1969 and in 1984 moved to Vermont, where Joanna had summered as a child. They settled in Jericho and had two children, André and Katherine.

While Joanna worked at the University of Vermont, Henry taught French and English at Rockland Community College, in Suffern, N.Y. Because of the long commute, Henry often slept in the back of his 1981 Volkswagen pickup, which ran on vegetable oil.

“It was his pride and joy, and everybody knew about it,” Joanna said. “When he was home, he would spend most of his time tinkering with it.”

Henry’s passion for veggie-oil vehicles was shared by his longtime friend Roger Putzel. Henry and Roger met in 1986 at the Jericho Post Office when Roger pulled up in his Citroën, a French car rarely seen in the U.S. Recognizing the vehicle, Henry immediately started speaking French. Because Roger’s wife, Georgette, is French, the two couples soon became good friends.

“It was a very eventful day in the life of Henry,” Roger recalled, “for the better and very much for the worse.”

Later that day, Henry was cycling on Route 15 when he was hit by a teenage driver. The wreck nearly severed his leg.

He would have bled out at the scene, said Joanna, a retired physician, had he not landed in the yard of a medic, who applied a tourniquet and kept him alive.

He was 52.

Henry recovered and continued cycling until the final months of his life.

He and Roger occasionally rode together in Québec, though Roger recalled that, because of Henry’s childhood experiences, border crossings unnerved him.

“He could never cross the border without making a quip that would get him into trouble,” Roger recalled. “I would tell him, ‘Henry, just answer the [guard’s] question like it’s the time of day, and we can deal with your feelings afterwards!’”

Though the Holocaust irrevocably shaped Henry’s worldview — he became an agnostic and seeker — friends and family said it never diminished his faith in humanity.

In fact, Henry considered it his duty to talk about the Holocaust, and he shared stories with school groups whenever he was asked.

One story involved the time Henry wandered off and got lost in Brussels as a boy. A Nazi soldier found him crying and took him home, then sternly warned his father not to let it happen again. According to Joanna, Henry believed that the soldier knew they were Jews. Amid so much cruelty, misery and death, it was a simple act of human compassion.

“What always astonished me was his capacity for always seeing good in mankind,” said Carolyn Subin, Henry’s longtime neighbor and friend. “[It] was not

an unsophisticated or uneducated view, but a deeply held conviction that people are more good than bad.”

As a lover of spirited debate, she added, Henry would talk to anyone, regardless of their politics. Subin recounted a trip she took with the Weinstocks to Montréal, where Henry struck up a conversation with an extremely right-wing couple.

Though she and Joanna found the couple’s worldview so hateful that they moved to another table, Henry continued their dialogue.

“It was that generosity of spirit in him that I always found just remarkable,” she added.

In September, Henry was diagnosed

with pancreatic cancer; after a short stay in the hospital, he came home and succumbed in his sleep four days later. As Subin put it, “He died as gracefully as he lived.”

Georgette Garbès-Putzel said she’ll fondly remember how good Henry made people feel when he saw them again, describing his typical greeting as, “Ah, beautiful people! I’m so glad to see you!

You are making my day!” Then, at the end of their meal, Henry often made the same joke: “What time is breakfast?’”

Henry Weinstock — polyglot, bon vivant and lover of people — never wanted the party to end.

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CACCAVO, ESQ. • MICHAEL KEHOE, LTD. • MICHAEL SCRODIN • MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE • MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE ARTS • MIDDLEBURY COMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER • MIDDLEBURY NATURAL FOODS CO-OP • MIDDLEBURY PEDIATRIC DENTISTRY • MIDDLEBURY SNOW BOWL • MIDDLEBURY STUDIO SCHOOL • MIKE BURKE • MILLDALE FARM CENTER FOR WELLNESS • MILLER HILL FARM • MILTON COMMONS, LLC • MILTON FAMILY COMMUNITY CENTER • MILTON TOWN SCHOOL DISTRICT • MINIKIN • MINOR FUNERAL HOME • MIO • MIRABELLES • MIRROR MIRROR • MISSISQUOI VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT • MJS CONTRACTING • MNLIT, LLC • MONAGHAN SAFAR DUCHAM PLLC • MONELLE • MONEY CARE, LLC • MONICA SARGENT • MONKEY DO PLAYGROUND • MONTESSORI SCHOOL OF CENTRAL VERMONT • MONTPELIER ALIVE • MONTPELIER BRIDGE, THE • MONTPELIER COMMUNITY GOSPEL CHOIR • MONTROLL, BACKUS & OETTINGER, PC • MONTSHIRE MUSEUM • MONTSTREAM STUDIO • MOOG'S • MORGAN EAST • MORSE FARM SUGARWORKS • MORTON BOSTOCK • MORWOOD & MORWOOD: ATTORNEYS AT LAW • MOUNTAIN LAKE PLASTIC SURGERY • MOUNTAIN TIMES • MOUNTAIN VIEW NATURAL MEDICINE • MS WALKER • MSI VERMONT • MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY ASSOCIATION - USA • MUSIC CONTACT INTERNATIONAL • MUST LOVE YARN • NADINE L. SCIBEK, ATTORNEY AT LAW • NANCY HAWLEY • NANCY JENKINS REAL ESTATE • NATALIE HILL • NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS • NATIVEENERGY • NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD • NBG TEAM • NCSS • NDI (ASCENSION TECHNOLOGY) • NECK OF THE WOODS • NECRASON GROUP • NED CHURCH • NEDDE REAL ESTATE • NEIWPCC • NEK BROADBAND • NEKCA • NELSON CALDWELL • NEW DUDS • NEW ENGLAND AIR SYSTEMS • NEW ENGLAND DAIRY • NEW ENGLAND DAIRY PROMOTION BOARD • NEW ENGLAND FEDERAL CREDIT UNION • NEW ENGLAND NEWSPAPER AND PRESS ASSOCIATION • NEW FRAMEWORKS • NEW HAVEN COMMUNITY LIBRARY • NEW MOON CAFÉ • NEW PERRENIALS AT MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE • NEW WORLD TORTILLA • NFI VERMONT, INC. • NG ADVANTAGE, LLC • NICHOLAS U. MCDOUGAL • NICHOLE ST. FRANCIS • NICOLE GUERIN • NICOLE VECCHIONE • NIGHT EAGLE WILDERNESS ADVENTURES • NMR GROUP • NOEL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT • NOMAD COMMUNICATIONS & PRESS C/O MASCOMA BANK • NORMAN WILLIAMS PUBLIC LIBRARY • NORTH ATLANTIC BAKING COMPANY • NORTH BRANCH NATURE CENTER • NORTH COUNTRY CREDIT UNION • NORTH COUNTRY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION • NORTH COUNTRY SCHOOL • NORTHEAST ESTATES AND TRUSTS • NORTHEAST KINGDOM HUMAN SERVICES • NORTHEAST ORGANIC FARMING ASSOCIATION OF VERMONT • NORTHEAST WILDERNESS TRUST • NORTHEASTERN VERMONT REGIONAL HOSPITAL • NORTHERN COUNTIES HEALTH CARE • NORTHERN LIGHTS • NORTHERN TIER CENTER FOR HEALTH • NORTHERN VERMONT UNIVERSITY • NORTHFIELD SAVINGS BANK • NORTHLAND CONSTRUCTION • NORTHSTAR SELF STORAGE • NORTHWEST FARMERS MARKET • NORTHWEST REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION • NORTHWEST SOLID WASTE DISTRICT • NORTHWOOD GALLERY • NORTHWOOD SCHOOL • NORTHWOODS STEWARDSHIP CENTER • NORWICH SOLAR TECHNOLOGIES • NORWICH UNIVERSITY • NOTCH GROUP LLP • NOURISH • NPI • NRG SYSTEMS • O'BRIEN BROTHERS AGENCY, INC. • O’BRIEN, PETER • OAK MEADOW SCHOOL • OASIS DAY SPA • OFFICE OF DEFENDER GENERAL • OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL • OFFICE OF THE STATE TREASURER • OHAVI ZEDEK SYNAGOGUE • OIL N GO • OLD SPOKES HOME • ON TAP BAR & GRILL • ONCE UPON A CHILD • ONE DIGITAL • ONECOWVT.COM • ONION RIVER CROSSROADS • ONION RIVER OUTDOORS • ONLOGIC, INC. • ONNI MILLER • OPEN DOOR CLINIC • OPPORTUNITIES CREDIT UNION • ORANGE COUNTY PARENT CHILD CENTER • ORANGE COUNTY RESTORATIVE JUSTICE CENTER • ORCHARD VALLEY WALDORF SCHOOL • ORLEANS COUNTY CONSERVATION DISTRICT • ORLEANS SOUTHWEST SUPERVISORY UNION • OTTER CREEK ASSOCIATES • OTTER CREEK BAKERY • OTTER CREEK BREWING • OTTO & ASSOCIATES • OUELLETTE PLUMBING & HEATING CORP • OUIMETTE & RUNCIE • OUR LADY OF PROVIDENCE • OUTDOOR GEAR EXCHANGE • OUTRIGHT VERMONT • OWL'S HEAD BLUEBERRY FARM • PACEM SCHOOL • PAINTER, THE • PALMER'S SUGAR HOUSE • PAPA FRANK'S • PARAMOUNT THEATRE • PARKER LORD MICROSTRAIN • PARLOUR • PATHWAY FINANCIAL ADVISORS • PATRICIA A HANNAFORD CAREER CENTER • PATRICIA COYLE • PATRICIA KNIGHT • PATRICIA POMERLEAU • PATRICK'S WORLD'S FINEST GRANOLA • PAUL ALLISON • PAUL ASBELL • PAUL FRANK + COLLINS PC • PCC • PEACE & JUSTICE CENTER • PEACHAM CAFÉ • PEASE MOUNTAIN LAW, PLLC • PEDIATRIC HOME CARE • PEOPLE'S UNITED BANK • PEOPLE’S HEALTH AND WELLNESS CLINIC • PERFORMANCE FOOD SERVICE • PERKINS-PARKER FUNERAL HOME • PET FOOD WAREHOUSE • PETER SCOTT • PETRA CLIFFS • PH INTERNATIONAL • PHILO RIDGE FARM • PHOENIX BOOKS • PHOTOGRAPHIC TV - VERMONT BURLESQUE FESTIVAL • PHYLLIS HOGEL • PICA-PICA • PINE PROPERTIES, LLC • PINNACLE SEARCH PROFESSIONALS • PIZZAGALLI PROPERTIES, LLC • PIZZERIA VERITÀ • PLACE CREATIVE • PLAINFIELD CO-OP • PLATTSBURGH STATE UNIVERSITY • PLAY IT AGAIN SPORTS • PLEASANT RANCH WOODWORKING • PLEASANT VALLEY, INC • POCO • POLLI CONSTRUCTION • POMERLEAU REAL ESTATE • POPPY CAFÉ • POPULATION MEDIA CENTER • PORTER MEDICAL CENTER

• POWER PLAY SPORTS • PP&D • PRACTICAL MAGICK, LLC • PRE-TECH PRECISION MACHINING • PRESERVATION TRUST OF VERMONT • PREVENT CHILD ABUSE VERMONT • PREVENTION TEAM, THE • PREVENTIVE MEDICINE • PRIDE CENTER OF VERMONT • PRIDE SUPPORT SERVICES • PROSPECT PRESS • PROTECT OUR WILDLIFE • PUBLIC ASSETS INSTITUTE • PURE WATER FOR THE WORLD • PURPOSE ENERGY • QHC LOT 3, LLC • QUARRY HILL CLUB • QUEEN CITY NURSING AND REHAB • QUINCY HOTEL ENOSBURG FALLS • RABBLE-ROUSER CHOCOLATE & CRAFT CO. • RACHEL WERTHEIMER • RADIANCE STUDIOS, LLC • RADIO VERMONT GROUP • RAIL CITY MARKET • RAY SOKOL • RAYCROFT MEYER LANDSCAPE ARCH • RAYMOND HUESSY • RCXRULES • READY FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATION SERVICES • REALTY RESULTS • REARCH COMPANY • REBECCA TOMASZEWSKI • RECOVERY VERMONT • RED HEN BAKING • RED HOUSE BUILDING, INC. • RED WAGON PLANTS • REDSTONE • REGAN LEADERSHIP, LLC • REISS BUILDING & RENOVATIONS • REMARKABLE THINGS AT STOWE CRAFT • REMEMBERING • REMY CRETTOL • RENEWABLE ENERGY VT • REPTILE CIRCUS • RESIDENCE AT OTTER CREEK, QUARRY HILL & SHELBURNE BAY, THE • RESOURCE • RETINA CENTER OF VERMONT • REVISION MILITARY • REVITALIZING WATERBURY • RHINO FOODS • RICE LUMBER COMPANY, INC. • RICHARD AND JEAN PAGE • RICHARD BONNEAU • RICHARD DEANE • RICHARD TERRASI • RICHARD WESTON • RICHMOND MOBIL MART • RICK BELFORD • RIELEY PROPERTIES, LLC AND THE SNYDER FC COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES, LLC • RIVER ARTS, INC. • RIVER COVE ANIMAL HOSPITAL • RIVER'S EDGE BUILDING DEVELOPMENT, LLC • ROAM • ROBBI HANDY HOLMES • ROBERT BATTEY • ROBERT KIMBALL • ROBERT RESNIK • ROBIN HALL • ROCHEL DEOLIVEIRA • ROCK ART BREWERY • ROCK FIRE FESTIVAL • ROCK POINT ADVISORS • ROCK POINT SCHOOL • ROCKY DALE GARDENS • RODGER ROWDY ROBERTSON • ROGER CURTIS • ROGER DEVOID • RON CARTER • RONA TYNDALL • ROOTS BUILDERS • ROSE DEMBROSZ • ROSIE'S CONFECTIONS • ROVERS NORTH • ROWLAND FOUNDATION • ROXY CINEMA • ROYAL BUTCHER, THE • ROZELLE COSMETICS • RUNAMOK MAPLE • RURAL ARTS COLLABORATIVE • RUTH ANN PATTEE • RUTH FURMAN • RUTLAND REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER • RYAN MCCLURE • SAFE HARBOR - SHELBURNE SHIPYARD • SAINT FRANCIS XAVIER SCHOOL • SAINT MICHAEL'S COLLEGE • SAINT MICHAEL'S COLLEGE - SOCCER CAMP • SAINT MICHAEL'S GRAD PROGRAM • SALLY ALLEN • SALLY PEREZ • SALVATION FARMS • SAM MAZZA • SAMMEL GROUP • SANA AT STOWE • SARA HOLBROOK CENTER • SARAH GALLAGHER • SARAH ROBINSON • SARAH SPENGLER • SARDUCCI'S • SAXON HILL SCHOOL • SB SIGNS • SCALE POKE BAR, THE • SCHOOL OF CREATIVE AND PERFORMING ARTS • SCHOOLHOUSE, THE • SCHUBART, PETER • SCOTT ADAMS • SCOTT METCALFE • SCOTT PARTNERS • SCOTT PERRY • SCOUT DIGITAL • SD ASSOCIATES • SEACOMM FEDERAL CREDIT UNION • SEAMWORKS • SEASONS CHANGE • SEEDSHEET • SELECT DENTAL MANAGEMENT • SELECT DESIGN • SELF • SEN. BERNIE SANDERS • SHACKSBURY CIDER • SHADER CROFT SCHOOL • SHANE LACHARITE • SHANNON FUNERAL SERVICE • SHARD VILLA LEVEL 3 RESIDENTIAL CARE HOME • SHARED LIVING PROVIDER • SHAW’S SUPERMARKET • SHEARER AUDI ACURA • SHEEHEY FURLONG & BEHM PC • SHEILA ROCHEFORT • SHELBURNE CLIFFS CONDOMINIUM OWNERS’ ASSOCIATION, INC. • SHELBURNE FARMS • SHELBURNE GREEN, LLC • SHELBURNE MUSEUM • SHELBURNE ORCHARDS • SHELBURNE PLAYERS • SHELBURNE VINEYARD • SHENK ENTERPRISES, LLC • SHERRI GEORGE • SHERYL L. GRAVES • SHIRLOCK HOMES • SILVER MAPLE CONSTRUCTION • SIMPLY READY • SISTERS OF NATURE • SKI ESSENTIALS • SKI VERMONT • SKINNY PANCAKE, THE • SKYRUN VERMONT • SLATE • SLATE VALLEY TRAILS • SLEDRUNNER MANAGERS • SLEEPY HOLLOW INN, SKI & BIKE CENTER • SMALL BOAT EXCHANGE • SMALL DOG ELECTRONICS • SMITH & MCCLAIN • SMITH-ALVAREZ-SIENKIEWYCZ ARCHITECTS • SMUGGLERS' NOTCH RESORT • SNOW FARM VINEYARD • SNOWFLAKE CHOCOLATES • SNYDER FC COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES LLC, THE • SOJOURN BICYCLING & ACTIVE VACATIONS • SOLARIS VOCAL ENSEMBLE • SOLIDARITY OF UNBRIDLED LABOUR • SOULSHINE POWER YOGA • SOUTH BURLINGTON SCHOOL DISTRICT • SOUTH END ARTS + BUSINESS ASSOCIATION • SOUTH HERO LAND TRUST • SOUTH HOLLOW CONSTRUCTION • SOUTH ROYALTON FOOD CO-OP • SOUTH VILLAGE COMMUNITIES, LLC • SPAFFORD & SONS • SPECIALIZED COMMUNITY CARE • SPECTRUM DAEP • SPECTRUM YOUTH & FAMILY SERVICES • SPIN-MEDIA RESOURCES • SPIRAL INTERNATIONAL • SPLASH CAR WASH WILLISTON, LLC • SPORTS AND FITNESS INC.CAMP EDGE • SPRAYED ON SYSTEMS • SPRUCE PEAK • SPRUCE PEAK PERFORMING ARTS CENTER • SRW ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING • SSC • ST. ANNE'S SHRINE • ST. JOHNSBURY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE • STACEY SHARROW • STACKPOLE & FRENCH • STATE OF VERMONT JUDICIARY • STATICWORX • STEPHEN TREDENNICK • STEPS TO END DOMESTIC VIOLENCE • STERLING COLLEGE • STERLING HOUSE • STERLING LAND CO., LLC • STERN CENTER FOR LANGUAGE AND LEARNING • STETLER, ALLEN, KAMPMANN & SUSSMAN • STEVEN MAECK • STEVEN MARSHALL • STEVEN PARMER • STILL NORTH BOOKS • STITZEL, PAGE & FLETCHER, PC • STONE BLOCK ANTIQUES • STONE CORRAL BREWERY • STONE ENVIRONMENTAL • STONE PATH ACADEMY • STONECREST PROPERTIES • STOWE CIDER • STOWE KITCHEN, BATH & LINENS • STOWE LAND TRUST • STOWE PERFORMING ARTS • STOWE STREET CAFÉ • STOWE TRAILS PARTNERSHIP • STRIDE CREATIVE GROUP • STRYKER STABLES • SUBATOMIC DIGITAL INC. • SUE HILL • SUGARBUSH • SUMMIT PROPERTY MANAGEMENT • SUN RAY FIRE & SECURITY • SUNDOG POETRY • SUNRUN SOLAR • SUNSOIL • SUPER THIN SAWS • SUPERPLASTIC • SUSAN HACKNEY • SUSAN JENAL • SUSAN MCKENNEY • SUSAN SWEETSER • SUSTAINABLE MONTPELIER • SUSUNHWA MASSAGE • SWEENEY DESIGNBUILD • SWEET WHEELS DONUTS • SWITCHBACK BREWING • SYLVAN LEARNING • T.S. PECK • TAI DINNAN • TAIKO STUDIO • TAMMY COOKE • TATA HARPER • TAYLOR BAKER • TEACHER APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM - CHAMPLAIN COLLEGE DIVISION OF CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL STUDIES • TEMPLE SINAI • TEN THOUSAND VILLAGES • TERRACES • TESSA DEFORGE • TETRA TECH ARD • THE AUTOMASTER • THEATER IN THE WOODS • THERESA LEFEBVRE • THOMAS GAUNTLETT • THOMAS HIRCHAK CO. • THREE NEEDS BREWERY & TAPROOM • THREE PENNY TAPROOM • TICK TOCK JEWELERS • TIMBERLOCK • TIMELY TIRE • TINY THAI RESTAURANT • TISH DIRUOCCO • TITUS INSURANCE • TIVOLY, INC. • TMTBTVLLC TWO MEN & A TRUCK • TOM CLEARY • TOM LITTLE • TOM MACLEAY • TOMGIRL KITCHEN • TOPNOTCH RESORT AND SPA • TOURTERELLE • TOVE WEAR • TOWN AND COUNTRY FURNITURE • TOWN HALL THEATER • TOWN OF BERLIN • TOWN OF BOLTON • TOWN OF BRISTOL • TOWN OF CALAIS • TOWN OF CAMBRIDGE • TOWN OF CHARLOTTE • TOWN OF COLCHESTER • TOWN OF DUXBURY • TOWN OF ENOSBURG • TOWN OF ESSEX • TOWN OF ESSEX COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT • TOWN OF FAIRFAX • TOWN OF FAIRFIELD • TOWN OF GEORGIA • TOWN OF HARDWICK • TOWN OF HINESBURG • TOWN OF HUNTINGTON • TOWN OF HYDE PARK • TOWN OF JERICHO • TOWN OF JOHNSON • TOWN OF LINCOLN • TOWN OF MIDDLEBURY • TOWN OF MILTON • TOWN OF MONKTON • TOWN OF MORETOWN • TOWN OF NEW HAVEN • TOWN OF NEWBURY • TOWN OF NORTHFIELD • TOWN OF RICHMOND • TOWN OF SHELBURNE • TOWN OF ST. ALBANS • TOWN OF STARKSBORO • TOWN OF STOWE • TOWN OF SWANTON • TOWN OF UNDERHILL • TOWN OF WAITSFIELD • TOWN OF WALLINGFORD • TOWN OF WATERBURY • TOWN OF WESTFORD • TOWN OF WILLISTON • TOWN OF WOODBURY • TOWNEPLACE SUITES • TRAMPOLINE • TRAPP FAMILY LODGE • TRI-PARK COOPERATIVE HOUSING CORPORATION • TRIAD DESIGN SERVICE, INC. • TRICIA GUYETTE • TRIDYNE • TRILLIUM HILL FARM • TRINA MAGI • TRINITY CHILDREN'S CENTER, INC. • TROY AVENUE ASSOCIATION LTD PARTNERSHIP • TRUE NORTH • TRUEX CULLINS ARCHITECTURE • TULA, LLC • TURNING POINT CENTER • TURNING POINTS NETWORK • TUSK PHILANTHROPIES

• TWIN VALLEY SENIOR CENTER • TWINCRAFT SOAP CO. • TWO RIVERS-OTTAUQUECHEE REGIONAL COMMISION • TYLER LABRIE • TYLER PLACE FAMILY RESORT • U.S. COMMITTEE FOR REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS • U.S. DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF VERMONT • U.S. ECOLOGY BURLINGTON INC. • U.S. POSTAL SERVICE VERMONT • U.S. PROBATION DISTRICT OF VERMONT • U.S. SHERPA • UNDERHILL-JERICHO FIRE DEPARTMENT • UNILEVER - BEN & JERRY'S • UNION BANK • UNION STREET MEDIA • UNITARIAN CHURCH OF MONTPELIER • UNITED ACADEMICS - UVM • UNITED WAY NORTHWEST VERMONT • UNITED WAY OF LAMOILLE COUNTY • UNIVERSITY MALL • UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS PRESS • UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT CAMPUS PLANNING SERVICE • UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT HEALTH NETWORK • UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT LAKE CHAMPLAIN SEA GRANT INSTITUTE • UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT MEDICAL CENTER • UNTAPPED • UP FOR LEARNING • UPPER VALLEY HAVEN • UPPER VALLEY SERVICES • USHIO AMERICA INC. • USS VERMONT SUPPORT GROUP • UVM ATHLETICS • UVM CANCER CENTER • UVM CAREER CENTER • UVM CENTER ON DISABILITY AND COMMUNITY INCLUSION • UVM CHILD WELFARE TRAINING PARTNERSHIP • UVM COLLEGE OF EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES • UVM COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES • UVM COLLEGE OF MEDICINE VACCINE TESTING CENTER, DEPARTMENT OF MICROBIOLOGY & MOLECULAR GENETICS • UVM CONTINUING & DISTANCE EDUCATION • UVM DEPARTMENT OF MEDICINE VACCINE TESTING • UVM DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY VERMONT CENTER FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES • UVM DEPARTMENT OF STUDENT LIFE • UVM ENGAGEMENT AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT • UVM FOUNDATION • UVM GROSSMAN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS • UVM HEALTH NETWORK • UVM HILLEL • UVM HISTORY DEPARTMENT • UVM HUMAN DEVELOPMENT • UVM LANE SERIES • UVM LARNER COLLEGE OF MEDICINE • UVM MEDICAL CENTER • UVM SODEXO • UVM STUDENT LIFE • UVM THEATRE • UVM UPSKILL VT • UVM VERMONT CHILD HEALTH IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM • VALLEY PLAYERS • VALLEY STAGE, LLC • VBT DELUX BICYCLE VACATIONS • VCAM • VELAN VALVE CORPORATION • VERGENNES RESIDENTIAL CARE • VERGENNES WINE • VERMONT ACHIEVEMENT CENTER • VERMONT ADULT LEARNING-WATERBURY • VERMONT AFFORDABLE HOUSING COALITION • VERMONT AFTERSCHOOL • VERMONT AGENCY OF HUMAN SERVICES • VERMONT AGENCY OF TRANSPORTATION • VERMONT ARTS COUNCIL • VERMONT ASSOCIATES FOR TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT • VERMONT ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND & VISUALLY IMPAIRED • VERMONT ASSOCIATION OF CONSERVATION DISTRICTS • VERMONT ASSOCIATION OF HOSPITALS & HEALTH SYSTEMS • VERMONT ASSOCIATION OF SNOW TRAVELERS • VERMONT ATV SPORTSMAN'S ASSOCIATION • VERMONT AUTO ENTHUSIASTS • VERMONT BALLET THEATRE SCHOOL • VERMONT BEER SHEPHERD • VERMONT BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU • VERMONT BUSINESS MAGAZINE • VERMONT BUSINESSES FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY • VERMONT CANNABIS SOLUTIONS • VERMONT CANOE AND KAYAK • VERMONT CAPTIVE INSURANCE ASSOCIATION • VERMONT CARE PARTNERS • VERMONT CARES • VERMONT CENTER FOR CRIME VICTIM SERVICES • VERMONT CHORAL UNION, THE • VERMONT COFFEE COMPANY • VERMONT COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS • VERMONT COMEDY CLUB • VERMONT COMFORTS OF HOME • VERMONT COMMERCIAL • VERMONT COMMONS SCHOOL • VERMONT COMMUNICATIONS UNION DISTRICTS ASSOCIATION • VERMONT COMMUNITY FOUNDATION • VERMONT COMMUNITY LOAN FUND • VERMONT COMPOST COMPANY • VERMONT CONSERVATION VOTERS • VERMONT CONSTRUCTION & GENERAL CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION • VERMONT COOKIE LOVE • VERMONT COUNCIL ON RURAL DEVELOPMENT • VERMONT CREAMERY • VERMONT DANCE ALLIANCE • VERMONT DAY SCHOOL • VERMONT DENTAL CARE • VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF BUILDINGS AND GENERAL SERVICES • VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF FORESTS, PARKS & RECREATION • VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH • VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES • VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM AND MARKETING • VERMONT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY • VERMONT ELECTRIC POWER COMPANY • VERMONT EMPLOYEE OWNERSHIP CENTER • VERMONT ENERGY EDUCATION PROGRAM • VERMONT FAMILY NETWORK • VERMONT FEDERAL CREDIT UNION • VERMONT FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER OFFICE • VERMONT FOODBANK • VERMONT FRESH NETWORK • VERMONT FUTBOL ACADEMY • VERMONT GAS SYSTEMS • VERMONT GATHERINGS • VERMONT GENERAL ASSEMBLY - OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE HUMAN RESOURCES • VERMONT HAND CRAFTERS • VERMONT HEALTH EQUITY INITIATIVE • VERMONT HIGHER EDUCATION COLLABORATIVE • VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY • VERMONT HITEC • VERMONT HOUSING & CONSERVATION BOARD • VERMONT HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY • VERMONT HUMANITIES COUNCIL • VERMONT INFORMATION PROCESSING • VERMONT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LEADERS • VERMONT INSTITUTE OF NATURAL SCIENCE • VERMONT INTEGRATED ARCHITECTURE • VERMONT INTERFAITH ACTION • VERMONT INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL • VERMONT LAKE MONSTERS • VERMONT LAND TRUST • VERMONT LAW SCHOOL • VERMONT LEAGUE OF CITIES & TOWNS • VERMONT LEGAL AID, INC. • VERMONT LEGISLATIVE JOINT FISCAL OFFICE • VERMONT LOW INCOME TRUST FOR ELECTRICITY • VERMONT MANUFACTURING EXTENSION CENTER • VERMONT MECHANICAL • VERMONT MEDICAL SOCIETY • VERMONT MORTGAGE COMPANY • VERMONT MOUNTAIN BIKE ASSOCIATION • VERMONT MOVING & STORAGE INC. • VERMONT NANNY CONNECTION • VERMONT NATURAL COATINGS • VERMONT NATURAL RESOURCES COUNCIL • VERMONT NEA • VERMONT NETWORK AGAINST DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE • VERMONT NURSERY & LANDSCAPE ASSOCIATION/GREENWORKS • VERMONT NUT FREE • VERMONT OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE HUMAN RESOURCES • VERMONT OXFORD NETWORK • VERMONT PAINTING COMPANY • VERMONT PARKS FOREVER • VERMONT PBS • VERMONT PROGRAM FOR QUALITY IN HEALTH CARE, INC. • VERMONT PUB & BREWERY • VERMONT PUBLIC INTEREST RESEARCH GROUP • VERMONT PUBLIC POWER SUPPLY AUTHORITY • VERMONT PUBLIC RADIO • VERMONT PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION • VERMONT PURE CBD • VERMONT RAILWAY, INC. • VERMONT REAL ESTATE COMPANY • VERMONT RIDE NETWORK • VERMONT SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION • VERMONT SELECT LLC • VERMONT SELF STORAGE, LLC • VERMONT SHORT TERM RENTAL ALLIANCE • VERMONT SMOKE AND CURE • VERMONT STAGE • VERMONT STATE COLLEGES • VERMONT STATE COURTS • VERMONT STATE CURATOR'S OFFICE • VERMONT STATE HOUSING AUTHORITY • VERMONT STATE PARKS • VERMONT STONE & HORTICULTURE • VERMONT STUDENT ASSISTANCE CORPORATION • VERMONT STUDIO CENTER • VERMONT SURROGACY NETWORK • VERMONT SUSTAINABLE JOBS FUND • VERMONT SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA • VERMONT TECHNICAL COLLEGE • VERMONT TECHNOLOGY ALLIANCE • VERMONT TECHNOLOGY COUNCIL • VERMONT TEDDY BEAR • VERMONT TENT COMPANY • VERMONT TIRE & SERVICE • VERMONT VIOLINS • VERMONT WEDDING ASSOCIATION • VERMONT WILDLIFE COALITION • VERMONT WINE MERCHANTS • VERMONT WORKS FOR WOMEN • VERMONT YOUTH CONSERVATION CORPS • VERMONT YOUTH DOCUMENTARY LAB • VESPA'S PIZZA PASTA & DELI • VHV COMPANY • VILLAGE OF ESSEX JUNCTION • VILLAGE OF MORRISVILLE WATER & LIGHT • VILLAGE VOLTAGE • VIRGINIA NEEL • VITAL COMMUNITIES • VOCREHAB VERMONT • VTDIGGER.ORG • WALKER TUTORING SERVICES • WARREN MILLER • WATER WANDERINGS • WICK & MADDOCKS LAW OFFICES • WIENER & SLATER LAW OFFICES, PLLC • WILLOWELL • WINDJAMMER HOSPITALITY GROUP • WINDOWS & DOORS BY BROWNELL • WINOOSKI HOUSING AUTHORITY • WINOOSKI SCHOOL DISTRICT • WND&WVS • WOMEN'S INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR PEACE AND FREEDOM BURLINGTON • WONDERFEET • WOODBURY MOUNTAIN TOYS • WRIGHT & MORRISSEY • WSP USA INC. • YMCA - CAMP ABNAKI • YMCA - CAMP KODA • YVES BRADLEY SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

49

DARIA BISHOP

food+drink

What Was Delicious in 2021 Seven Days food writers share their favorite bites and sips of the year

A selection of treats from Hangry the Donut Bar

B Y JOR D AN BAR RY & ME LISSA PASANEN • jbarry@sevendaysvt.com, pasanen@sevendaysvt.com

employees, as well as how to increase compensation and benefits.

Chefs, cooks, and food and drink entrepreneurs kept pursuing their passions, and we ate and drank really well.

So well, in fact, that we decided to review our favorites — the delicious things that crossed our palates in 2021. Here are 14 from this paper’s two food writers, in roughly chronological order.

J.B.

Best Diet Hangry the Donut Bar, St. Albans, hangrythedonutbar.company.site

Melissa wrote my favorite sentence of 2021 in our very first story of the year: “In January, others may diet; we doughnut.”

We’d decided to give the finger to so-called “clean eating” and briefly held New Year’s resolutions, opting instead to sample some of Vermont’s newest fluffy fried treats.

I headed to the St. Albans Park and Ride right at the beginning of the year to pick up the dozen assorted doughnuts I had preordered from Hangry the Donut Bar. Erica and Ed McClain launched Hangry in March 2020, making briochestyle doughnuts in their St. Albans home kitchen.

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FILE: CALEB KENNA

I

f 2020 was a roller coaster for Vermont’s food scene, 2021 brought the resulting whiplash.

As the COVID-19 vaccine rollout continued in the spring, the momentum was growing. The early summer, with restrictions lifted, was the release we’d dreamed of throughout the slow climb. We thought, for a glorious, fleeting moment, that the state’s restaurants might have avoided the mass closures that had been threatened (and felt elsewhere).

Then staffing challenges, rising food costs, new virus variants and increasing case numbers brought a painful redirect as the news of permanent closures started trickling in: Richmond farm-totable destination Kitchen Table Bistro; Old North End neighborhood spot Butch + Babe’s; Stowe venue the Rusty Nail and its associated restaurant, Tres Amigos; the Arcadian in Middlebury; Mary’s Restaurant in Bristol; and Drifter’s, the Swingin’ Pinwheel and Maya’s Kitchen & Bar in Burlington, to name just a few.

But it wasn’t all bad news. Somehow, new restaurants kept opening. Some replaced ones that had closed, and some were relocations to new spots with more pandemic-friendly concepts. Many restaurateurs are taking a hard look at lifework balance for themselves and their

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

Wellfleet oyster from Caspian Oyster Depot

I had just enough self-control to snap a photo of the flat white box — bursting with lemon-poppy, chocolate-peanut butter, orange-whiskey and cookie-butter doughnuts — before taking a single bite of each “for research” (but really to preempt any requests to share). Those bites stuck with me all year long. In 2022, it will be even easier to get Hangry: The McClains plan to open a brick-and-mortar doughnut shop on Main Street in St. Albans in the spring.

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J.B.

GET COOKIN’

Snowiest Slurps Caspian Oyster Depot, Bristol, caspianoysterdepot.com

Chef Justin Wright made some of my favorite food of 2020 at Burlington’s shortlived restaurant C’est Ça, but the pop-up fish market he and his wife, Sophie Wright, hosted at Bristol’s Tandem tops my winter 2021 highlight reel.

Caspian Oyster Depot helped turn small, outdoor pandemic gatherings into extra-special events in a way that only

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J.B.

Best Use of Lard All Souls Tortilleria, Burlington, allsoulsvt.com

Even through a mask, I could smell the toasty aroma of a late-summer wheat field in the All Souls Tortilleria flour tortilla operation in Burlington. Though All Souls is best known for corn tortillas made at

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an abundance of fancy seafood can. One week, my pod and I shucked dozens of oysters by moonlight, standing knee-deep in snow. Another, we roasted them over a warm fire, then grilled perfect slabs of tuna for a second course.

The couple put Caspian on hold to welcome their first child in the spring, though they have plans to revive it in the coming year. For now, Justin Wright is working the wood-fired oven at the Tillerman, making smoking-hot meatballs, veggie dishes, pizzas — and, yes, oysters.

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All Souls Tortilleria’s Sonoran-style tortillas

another nearby facility, the company started producing tortillas in the Old North End from regionally sourced flour in 2020.

I was there in April while reporting a feature about All Souls cofounder Joe Bossen, who also founded Vermont Bean Crafters. The crew was working on Sonoran-style tortillas made with lard that day. The team also makes flour tortillas with organic sunflower oil, dubbed Four Corners.

Fresh balls of dough went from a wedge press into a carousel oven, from which they emerged puffy with air bubbles. Biting into one warm from the oven, I was instantly smitten. The lard gives the tortillas a richness and pastry-like flakiness that oil just can’t match.

Mara Welton, co-owner of Chile Colorado, agrees. She uses Four Corners for the burritos she sells, but for personal consumption she’d pick the Sonoran style, which she called “a fluffy dream.”

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M.P.

Best Meading Place Golden Rule Mead, Middlebury, goldenrulebrew.com

Alexandre Apfel wasn’t a mead drinker when he started brewing honey-based beverages. And I wasn’t a mead drinker until I tried a bottle of his category- and expectation-bending Golden Rule Mead.

Golden Rule’s eight-ounce glass bottles quickly became my drink of choice for Zoom happy hours and early spring gardening, particularly the beet-based Jitterbug WHAT WAS DELICIOUS IN 2021

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JOY BOUNCED PALPABLY FROM THE DINING ROOM TO THE BUSY OPEN KITCHEN.

DARIA BISHOP

Diners at Poco

What Was Delicious in 2021 « P.51 and the floral, bubbly, wild-fermented Hilma with lavender and lemon balm.

Apfel is a wizard with wild yeast. A strain he propagated from Champlain Orchards’ apples shines in the simple Wild Light, as does the honey he sources from an array of Vermont beekeepers.

These meads are dry and resemble wine, beer or cider, depending on the local ingredients Apfel plays with in each batch.

And many have low ABV — the fuchsia Jitterbug is a sessionable 3.8 percent.

They’re all perfect for sipping on the porch, and Golden Rule’s tasting room on Middlebury’s Elm Street happens to have just such a spot for hanging out.

J.B.

Most Like Dining Out in Brooklyn

Poco, Burlington, restaurantpoco.com

When we tentatively returned to indoor dining after being fully vaccinated in the spring, one of the first places my husband and I headed to was Poco on Burlington’s Main Street. Everyone in the small, brickwalled eatery seemed so happy to be there; joy bounced palpably from the dining room to the busy open kitchen. A playlist hopscotched from Donna Summer to MF Doom; one pair of diners even busted a few dance moves.

Poco, which opened in 2019, blends a hip urban vibe with a warm Vermont-style welcome. North Bennington natives and siblings Susie Ely and Stefano Cicirello run the front and back of the house, respectively.

Cocktails are expertly conceived and shaken with a flourish behind the bar. The shareable plates burst and crunch with flavors and textures. A Caesar salad of Napa cabbage and mustard greens came with crispy chicken-skin “croutons” and a 52

Oat-milk cortado (above) and waffles with a Fernet Sour at the Great Northern & Zero Gravity Craft Brewery

funked-up black-garlic dressing. Buttery rich slices of salmon carpaccio glowed under a bright lemon-tarragon vinaigrette, briny capers, salty Parmigiano-Reggiano and crisp radish.

We returned in July with our visiting twentysomething, former Brooklyn-dwelling son, who marveled that a place this cool existed in Vermont. A few more spots like this might tempt him to move back.

M.P.

Most Whimsical Waffles

The Great Northern & Zero Gravity Craft Brewery, Burlington, thegreatnorthernvt.com, zerogravitybeer.com

Every year, we’re blown away by the number of coffee businesses that open in Vermont, and 2021 was no different. But only one had me constantly babbling about “Waffee and Coffles,” like a Sim trapped inside a video game coffee shop with no doors.

The silly name is a front for the very serious coffee and seriously good waffles at the Great Northern and Zero Gravity Craft Brewery’s combined pandemic-era operations on Pine Street. Every day from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the taproom, they serve perfectly pulled shots of Brio Coffeeworks espresso and ethereal, palm-size waffles with crispy, lacy edges.

Jamie Barrat-Bluck, Zero Gravity’s coffee/waffle person (a real title), told me that sitting on the brewery’s outdoor patio with a cappuccino and a couple of waffles is “the height of the experience,” especially when paired with French poetry.

I don’t often carry around a book of Baudelaire, but a Fernet Sour from the taproom, which starts serving other food and drink at noon — tends to have the same effect.

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

J.B.

Graham Unangst-Rufenacht harvesting sea kale at the Farm Between of Sterling College

Most Virtuous Vegetable

Sea kale; Jeffersonville, Marshfield and Plainfield; go.uvm.edu/perennial-vegetables

Everyone knows that vegetables are good for you. This year I learned that some may also be good for the planet.

In mid-May, I met Graham UnangstRufenacht and Aaron Guman, who are investigating the commercial potential

of three perennial vegetables I’d never heard of.

Perennial plants don’t need to be replanted each year. This reduces the need to disturb the soil, which keeps carbon underground, rather than in the atmosphere, helping to address the climate crisis. As a bonus, deep-rooted, hardy perennials also tend to manage weather

food+drink Thinly sliced stems and whole florets sautéed up beautifully with slivered garlic, anchovies and red pepper flakes. Longer stems with florets were also delicious roasted whole. This new-to-me vegetable brings fresh meaning to the slogan Eat More Kale.

M.P.

Wildest Party

SUSHI! BURGERS! BEER! OUTDOOR LOVER HERE

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THE FILLING STATION

bar & restaurant

Wilder Wines, Burlington, wilderwinesvt.com

Jordan Barry with a three-liter bottle of Domaine Marcel Lapierre Morgon from Wilder Wines (other bottles for scale)

Mad River’s Newest Apres-Ski Spot!

FILE: GLENN RUSSELL

Sipha Lam really shook up the local natural wine scene when she opened her tiny Wilder Wines shop on Burlington’s Cherry Street in early March. Lam is a champion for Vermont wine and affordable bottles, and she’s always spot-on with recommendations for a splurge. (That’s how I ended up with the most delightful threeliter bottle of Domaine Marcel Lapierre Morgon for my birthday, which was excessive in exactly the right way.)

I wasn’t at all surprised when her onenight takeover at Mike Dunn’s T. Rugg’s Tavern on July 12 brought out a who’s who of the Vermont wine and restaurant world.

The Old North End dive was packed with people, and the vibe was somewhere between a collective sigh of relief and fullon bacchanalia. After all, it was July, and we thought this pandemic shit was over.

Burlington Beer’s John Roettinger and Avery Buck sold out of 300 oysters in less than half an hour, and the 72 bottles of wine that Lam brought only lasted two hours. I snagged a bottle of No Es Pituko Chardonnay to share with friends and strangers, which we poured into pint glasses on the back patio. It was hot, blissful and just so much fun.

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J.B.

Most-Ordered Meal

Mandarin, Winooski, mandarinvt.com

extremes a little better than their annual counterparts.

I immediately became a vocal advocate for sea kale, which I like to describe as the love child of kale and broccoli rabe. The blue-gray leaves of Crambe maritima are interspersed with slender, broccoli-like florets. The vegetable delivers a mouthful of sweetness with a pleasant bitter edge.

I have ordered from Mandarin 27 times since March 2020. It became habit. Late night working to meet a deadline? Mandarin. A little sun-scorched from the lake and too tired to cook? Mandarin. Just because it’s Thursday and we’re stuck at home in a pandemic? Mandarin.

The order didn’t vary much, either: sesame chicken, egg rolls, scallion pancakes and sometimes dumplings — fried or spicy Sichuan. The chicken always packed a justright spice, and it came with green beans, so I wasn’t totally skipping vegetables.

I feel sort of guilty that I’ve never explored the other parts of the menu, dined in-person at the bottom of the Winooski circle or had one of the cocktails that my predecessor, Hannah Palmer Egan, raved WHAT WAS DELICIOUS IN 2021

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What Was Delicious in 2021 « P.53 about in her year-end wrap-up in 2018. But I’ll chalk it up to pandemic adaptation and a need for predictability.

Years from now, looking back on 2021, these Mandarin meals will likely stand out.

Right before moving out of our Burlington apartment at the end of July, after scrubbing the fridge and patching the walls, my husband and I tucked into that same order of sesame chicken, egg rolls and scallion pancakes in the empty living room, stopping only to wipe up the duck sauce we had dripped on the freshly mopped floors.

J.B.

Favorite Foodie Road Trip

Brattleboro; yallavermont.com, dosakitchen.com, hermitthrushbrewery.com

In August, motivated by an outdoor Pan Evolution Steel Orchestra concert at Retreat Farm, we took a road trip south to Brattleboro. The music was a big draw, but then the question became how many food and drink destinations we could squeeze in.

We started with lunch at Yalla Vermont, which promises authentic Middle Eastern food with influences from Israel, Morocco, Turkey and Yemen. The large black-steel pitabread oven in the corner of the counter -service spot hinted at the deliciousness ahead. I’m still salivating over the pillowy fresh pita, crisp falafel, silken fried eggplant, addictively sour pickles and cabbage, and herby-spicy skhug sauce.

Next stop: Hermit Thrush Brewery. The day was steaming hot, and I succumbed to the siren call of a fantastic and inspired Hermit “slush,” which featured their sour, fruity Party Jam brew blended with frozen strawberries and blackberries.

At the concert, we headed to the Dosa Kitchen food truck. Between the infectiously danceable beats of the Brooklyn-based musicians, we relished a dosa dog, a South Indian crêpe-style pancake wrapped around a grass-fed beef hot dog with masala-spiced sauerkraut and Grafton cheddar. We also enjoyed another dosa stuffed with a more traditional spicy potato filling served with dipping chutneys.

Brattleboro delivered a party for all our senses.

Scorpion Bowl and General Tso’s chicken with broccoli at Mandarin

Breakfast sandwiches from the Café Hot.

I AM STILL SALIVATING OVER THE PILLOWY FRESH PITA,

CRISP FALAFEL AND SILKEN FRIED EGGPLANT.

M.P.

Hottest New Breakfast Spot

The Café Hot., Burlington, thecafehot.com

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MELISSA PASANEN

WHAT WAS DELICIOUS IN 2021

Falafel bowls with pita at Yalla Vermont

MELISSA PASANEN

When brothers Allan and Travis WalkerHodkin landed on the vacated Mirabelles

food+drink

TWENTY-ONE YUM SALUTE Of course, the best of the year could not really be winnowed to just 14 picks. So here are small tastes of another 21 faves we encountered in 2021.

Fortified wines from Brattleboro’s VERMONT VERMOUTH became a staple of cocktail lists around the state — and at my house, where they’re always stored in the fridge.

VIVID COFFEE’s biweekly Roaster’s Choice subscription kept me stocked with rare coffees, including a real stunner from Yemen, between visits to its bright new Cherry Street café in Burlington.

Speaking of biweekly subscriptions, here’s a shout-out to my CSA: Monkton’s REAP & SOW FARM, where escarole and dragon tongue beans came with chef-tested recipes — and where pickup was at dreamy Windfall Orchard.

Alex Newton learned how to make French fries for LAZY BREEZE FARM’S BURGER BUGGY

JORDAN BARRY

in Waltham by watching YouTube videos; the double-fried, wedgeish results made me like and subscribe.

KATE WISE kicked off her #drinkitforward fundraiser in May — rhubarb season — by donating $1 from every 44 Rhubies cocktail sold at Burlington’s Juniper Bar & Restaurant to All Heart Inspirations’ Juneteenth celebration. (In September, Wise’s fundraiser went statewide, bringing in $13,792 for Outright Vermont.)

Henry Long set up his Big Green Egg on the lawn of a Burlington apartment complex and grilled up some GOOD GROCERY. That’s the name of his biz but also his term for Cloud Inversion cocktail a mouthful of really at Caledonia Spirits tasty food, which he produced with sticky Misty Knoll wings and delightfully charred, herb-topped sprouting broccoli.

RESCUE CLUB BREWING’s nonalcoholic IPA was my “one more round” order all summer long. The beachy cans from Burlington’s Zero Gravity Craft Brewing and Kris Nelson are beer without the buzz.

I love an aptronym, and chef JAMES KITCHENS really lived up to his name with the mushroom and ricotta toast special he whipped up at ANTIDOTE in Vergennes in August.

Also in Vergennes, LU•LU kept the summer garden vibes going well into October with my new favorite ice cream order: a scoop each of basil ice cream and blueberry sorbet.

I found a bit of magic in Montpelier with CALEDONIA SPIRITS’ Cloud Inversion, a tikiish drink with a lengthy list of ingredients featuring Barr Hill gin, East Hill Tree Farm’s northern hardy kiwis, and tree nut allergyfriendly pepita-orgeat syrup. And it had pebble ice, the best kind.

J.B.

Wine Tasting & Local Provisions

Misery Loves Co.’s Rough Francis sandwich AMES FILE: J

BUCK

Celebrate the New Year French style, as I did with a butter- and almond-rich galette des rois made by former Parisian Shelley MacDonald. She will soon announce a brickand-mortar spot for her Burlington-based BELLEVILLE BAKERY & CATERING. My whole family loved the ease and results of the cauliflower walnut “chorizo” recipe from Sustainable Kitchen: Recipes and Inspiration for Plant-Based, Planet-Conscious Meals, a cookbook by two Windsor County residents.

If nut milks are your thing, I highly recommend the additive-free, datesweetened, vanilla bean cashew shake from NUTTY LIFE in Woodstock.

I will miss the incredible Heart Swap raspberry double stout brownie I ate early this year at BURLINGTON BEER’s original taproom, though I am consoled by the superlative fries at the brewery’s newly opened Burlington restaurant.

Similarly, the loss of MISERY LOVES CO. as a Winooski dine-in destination was softened by the return of the excellent Rough Francis fried-chicken sandwich to its takeout menu.

Another of my enduring food crushes is the Hong Kong-style pineapple buns from Winooski’s MORNING LIGHT BAKERY because of their sweet hidden custard and golden tops that crackle into a pineapple skin pattern.

An estimated 1,000 people, myself included, waited patiently in Middlebury to buy truly authentic empanadas, gorditas and tamales prepared by the VIVA EL SABOR culinary collective of cooks from Mexico and Guatemala.

Unsurprisingly, BLACK FLANNEL BREWING & DISTILLING in Essex demonstrated a superior beverage game with its Disco Montage New England IPA and Maguey Meister cocktail made with mezcal, woodruff simple syrup, orange bitters and a froth of egg white.

ROMA’S BUTCHERY in Royalton crafts all its meaty offerings from whole animals processed in an on-site meat-cutting room, including a liverwurst that surpassed everything I thought I knew about liverwurst.

Although sushi pizza is not yet on the menu at the finally open SUSHI MAEDA in Burlington, I happily diverted myself with sparkling gems of sushi; rich broiled salmon collar with a gulpable, citrusy miso sauce; and soft-cooked daikon with spicy ground pork.

And finally, we are both in awe of the team at Burlington’s POPPY, which combined ingredients in novel ways every week to create sandwiches that we’re pretty sure no one else has ever dreamed up.

M.P.

Open Thursday - Tuesday Noon to 7 pm Reservations Recommended

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food+drink What Was Delicious in 2021 « P.54

Other Best Use of Lard

From left: Turnip cake, custard tart, shrimp har gow and sticky rice chicken from Café Dim Sum

MELISSA PASANEN

Bakery spot on Main Street for their new breakfast place, they knew they had big shoes to fill. The Café Hot., which opened in early September, is very different from its predecessor but is rocketing its way to similar success.

The Walker-Hodkins have focused on standout breakfast sammies, excellent coffee (including their decaf ) and “bonuts.” The latter are a clever use of their biscuit dough and a mouthwatering addition to the Cronut-inspired tradition of frying different doughs cut in a ring shape. The flaky, crunchy bonuts are always available with espresso glaze, made from the Brio Coffeeworks beans they serve. Other inventive glazes range from Nicholas sage to Key lime-chocolate chip.

Their standard sandwich comes on a tender, house-baked milk bun with egg and cheese fused into a cohesive, mahogany-bottomed, gooey whole with a hit of harissa heat. The biscuit sandwiches are flakier than Lindsay Lohan and as delightful as the young actress was in the film Freaky Friday.

After several months of takeout, at press time the café was poised to open for on-site dining. Here’s to sitting in the hot seat(s).

Dedalus Wine Shop, Market & Bakery, Stowe, dedaluswine.com

SMALL CUSTARD TARTS RECALLED TASTES

FROM HONG KONG PASTRY SHOPS. MELISSA PASANEN

M.P.

Creemee Supreemee

M.P.

Offbeat Creemee, Winooski, offbeatcreemee.com

Best Reason to Eat a (Very) Late Lunch Café Dim Sum, Burlington, cafe-dim-sum.business.site

Pork pie from Dedalus Wine Shop, Market & Bakery in Stowe

M.P. SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

FILE: JAMES BUCK

Business has been so busy since Sam Lai and his wife, Li Lin, opened their small Cantonese-style dim sum restaurant in late October that they have stopped accepting takeout orders. They don’t take reservations, either, so your best bet, Lai counseled, is to come in between 3 and 4 p.m. on a weekday afternoon.

Those who can juggle their schedule will be rewarded by dim sum ranging from translucent-skinned dumplings to ginger beef tripe and chicken feet in black bean sauce. “Everything is made in-house, every day,” Lai said.

The care was evident in the single meal I’ve managed to obtain so far. The turnip cake was seared hard around a smooth-textured middle with a mild turnip bite. Juicy shrimp har gow dumplings delivered a pleasing, tooth-resistant chew. Sticky rice chicken steamed in lotus leaves balanced savory meat with sweet rice. Small custard tarts recalled tastes from Hong Kong pastry shops.

It’s never too late for lunch, right?

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I texted Jeremy Wood, chef de cuisine at Dedalus Wine’s Stowe location, in late October for an article on Pigasus Meats in South Hero. He confirmed that he buys whole pigs and strives to utilize every morsel of the heritage-breed, pasture-raised pork. Not only are the animals raised humanely, Wood said, they also yield “some of the most tender, flavorful pork I’ve ever had.”

A few weeks later, I happened to be driving through Stowe and stopped to check out the newest outpost of Burlington-based Dedalus. In the pastry case, my eyes lit upon a squat, goldencrusted, Melton Mowbray-style pork pie, a beloved treat from my British childhood.

The first taste was everything my memories had promised: a savory, crumbly crust cradling a deeply porky, perfectly seasoned filling. Wood later told me he uses Pigasus pork shoulder and belly for the filling and renders fresh lard for the crust. I’m quite certain it’s a better version than I ever ate as a kid; I certainly never met the farmer who raised that pork.

Lemon meringue pie sundae with vanilla plantbased creemee in a cone from Offbeat Creemee

When Aisha Bassett opened Offbeat Creemee at the newly renovated Myers Memorial Pool on the July 4 weekend, she “dove in deep and ditched all the dairy,” she said. Offbeat’s plant-based scoops and shakes were such a hit that it seemed most of Winooski had suddenly gone vegan.

Aisha and her husband, Dan, aren’t vegan themselves; the plant-based approach was their way of creating something new for the local food scene.

The clever coconut- and oat-milk base is creamy enough to fool even the most die-hard dairy lovers.

Offbeat’s flavors run from classic vanilla to Coconut Campfire and Sweet Potato Casserole; a “Cone It Forward” program makes sure no kids are left out.

The kombucha float I had over the summer was a perfect poolside treat.

But my favorite Offbeat scoop of the year was well after swimming season: My husband and I stopped by one of the mid-December pop-ups for a scoop of lemon meringue pie and a maple creemee to fuel our holiday shopping. It turns out that Offbeat’s got drip all year round.

J.B.

Blessings and gratitude from our home to yours…

For health, prosperity and happiness in 2022.

Catering For Your Lifestyle

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culture

Half Full

Six stories that shaped Vermont’s arts and culture scenes in 2021 B Y JORD A N AD AMS, DAN B OLLE S, CHRIS FAR NS W O R TH , S AL LY P O L L AK & E L IZABE TH M. S E YL E R

RETURN ENGAGEMENT

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival thrilled music-starved crowds in June

The 2021 Burlington Discover Jazz Festival didn’t feature headliners such as Sonny Rollins, Mavis Staples or any of the other iconic names that local audiences were used to seeing on the Flynn marquee every June.

Hot jazz and cool bebop didn’t spill into the streets from every nightclub in town. There was no reggae tent at Waterfront Park.

No, this year’s BDJF was not the biggest or best in the fest’s storied 38-year history.

But it was almost certainly something else: the most significant.

After a long pandemic year, the 2021 BDJF marked the triumphant return of live music in Burlington. It was almost entirely free, was held mostly outside and featured primarily local talent. Though necessarily 58

PERFORMING ARTS

scaled down, the festival drew huge and ecstatic crowds to outdoor stages throughout the city for 10 straight days.

As Flynn artistic director Steve MacQueen put it in June, “It feels metaphorically outsized.”

Held on the cusp of summer and just as the state and city lifted pandemic-era restrictions following Vermont’s initial vaccine rollout, BDJF did indeed feel like much more than just a music festival. It was a brassy, blaring symbol of hope — however ultimately short-lived — that a return to something like normal lay ahead.

D.B.

Related Story “After a Lost Pandemic Year, the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival Is Back” by Jordan Adams & Dan Bolles, June 2

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

The Maine Attraction

COURTESY OF KHOLOOD EID

2

021 was a year of two extremes. For the first six months, Vermonters remained hunkered down, bracing against the coronavirus as they had through most of 2020.

Especially in the cold winter months, that seemingly endless isolation forged a cultural void that even the best livestream shows couldn’t fill.

But as the weather eased, so did the pandemic — at least for a time. With a vast majority of Vermonters vaccinated, bars, restaurants, nightclubs and theaters reopened in the summer after being shuttered for more than a year.

If anything, that was the story of the year in Vermont arts and culture: the return of live, in-person music, theater, comedy and dance to local stages and performance spaces. So the following recap of stories that shaped the arts focuses largely on that theme. And it begins with events that took place in June, because, frankly, we’d rather not think about anything that happened — or rather didn’t happen — before then. D.B.

Ray Vega

FILE: CHRIS FARNSWORTH

STATE OF PLAY

White River Junction’s JAG Productions shone in a changing theater landscape

As live theater returned this year, many companies used pandemic-era workarounds, such as site-specific performances, masked audiences and reduced attendance capacities.

But White River Junction’s JAG Productions, the only Black theater group in Vermont, found a particularly elegant solution: It erected a temporary outdoor stage for a run of plays at King Arthur Baking’s Norwich campus.

Dubbed Theatre on the Hill, the series treated audiences to four diverse shows. The play a curious thing; or superheroes k’aint fly centered a queer couple working through trauma and pondering parenthood. Presented concert style, the Broadway musical Next to Normal focused on mental health. Life in Sepia: Vermont’s Black Burlesque Revue spotlighted Black women’s long history in the art form. And a staged reading of For the Love of Jazz, a brand-new period play, recounted an early-20th century female journalist’s experiences with love and relationships.

In the months preceding its fifth anniversary this year, JAG received two grants totaling $250,000.

“I think [that] sort of put us on the map in a way that we hadn’t been on the map before,” JAG Productions founder and producing artistic director Jarvis Green told Seven Days in August.

In its recently released annual report for 2021, the company laid out its plans for the New Year. These include the return of JAGfest, a playwrights’ workshop that develops new work; JAG Musical Lab, a new program that reimagines American musicals through Black people’s experiences; and the return of Theatre on the Hill next summer.

J.A.

Related Stories “JAG Productions Gears Up for a New Season at King Arthur Baking” by Jordan Adams, August 11

FEELING IT OUT

Local nightclubs paved the way for vaccination requirements as live music returned

For the performing arts in 2021, nightclubs were the coal mines and concertgoers were the canaries. Largely shuttered since March 2020, indoor music venues began reopening this summer. With COVID19 variants popping up faster than Pete Davidson could remove his tattoos, the process of opening clubs — and keeping

them open — was never going to be a smooth ride.

In mid-August, Radio Bean became the first Burlington-area music venue to require that patrons provide proof of vaccination to enter, following the lead of nearby bar the Three Needs Tap Room & Pizza Cube, which enacted a similar policy earlier that week. In a social media post announcing the policy, Radio Bean owner Lee Anderson wrote, “Hopefully, we can get over the hump within a few weeks, start trending downward, and this requirement can be short lived.”

It wasn’t. But the requirement did open the door for other venues to follow suit.

On August 13, the area’s marquee music venue, Higher Ground, announced that it, too, would require proof of vaccination for admittance. Richard Thompson’s show at the Higher Ground Ballroom on August 24 was the first at the club since March 2020. It was also the first test of the vaccination policy.

“We have a plan in place to enforce the new policy that aims to keep it as simple as possible,” Higher Ground marketing director Amy Wild explained by email.

Concerns about confusion and chaos at the doors of shows were for naught; it didn’t take long for fans to adjust to the new normal and have their vax card, or a picture of the card, ready to show with their ID as they queued up. From Swan Dojo to the Vermont Comedy Club, proof of vaccination quickly became the norm at nightclubs and performance spaces throughout the state.

Those protocols are likely to remain in place well into the New Year, and shows may be canceled over COVID-19 concerns.

It’ll be another year of caution in the clubs.

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Half Full « P.59 FILE: JEB WALLACE-BRODEUR

Peter and Elka Schumann in spring 2021

Elka Schumann profile with sculpted portrait, 1958

ART AND SOUL

Bread and Puppet Theater matriarch Elka Schumann died at 85

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S.P.

Related Stories “Elka Schumann, the ‘Heart and Soul’ of Bread and Puppet, Dies” by Sally Pollak, August 2; and “Elka Schumann ‘Loved Motion and Action and Enterprise’” by Sally Pollak, September 8

TURNING THE PAGE Montpelier author Kekla Magoon’s breakthrough nonfiction title nabbed National Book Award nomination

Kekla Magoon

In October, Kekla Magoon was named a 2021 National Book Award finalist for Young People’s Literature. While she didn’t take home the top prize in that ultracompetitive category, the Montpelier author triumphed on another level. Her YA nonfiction book for which she’d been nominated, Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People, closed the loop on work she’d begun well over a decade earlier.

Her first novel, 2009’s The Rock and the River, is set in the 1960s with characters involved in the burgeoning Black Panther Party. Though that work of fiction was itself somewhat educational, Magoon wanted to

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

pen an in-depth, historical account of the Oakland, Calif.-based political organization for young readers. No such tome existed, she found, and countless school librarians whose students read The Rock and the River told her their kids were eager to learn more.

“I was trying to bridge those [gaps] by writing something more accessible for a young audience that hopefully could be read by people of all ages,” she told Seven Days in September.

After poring over histories and biographies and conducting research in libraries, museums and historical archives around the country, Magoon constructed a comprehensive guide to an important political movement. Beyond that, she said the book makes connections to the broad history of Black America and examines systemic racism that endures today.

E.S.

Related Story “Flynn’s Grand Reopening Celebration Starts the 2021-22 Season With Heart” by Elizabeth M. Seyler, October 26 FILE: LUKE AWTRY

Audience members at Bread and Puppet Theater witnessed a moving sight last summer in the moments before the company started its shows.

Elka and Peter Schumann, partners in life and art, walked arm-in-arm in their white performance attire to take their seats on the grassy stage. In their mid-80s, the Schumanns were in tender tune with each other as Bread and Puppet marked the 50th anniversary of its Domestic Resurrection Circus.

At the July 31 performance, Elka played “The Internationale” on her recorder.

Playing the socialist anthem on woodwind would be her final appearance with Bread and Puppet. Elka died the next day, on August 1, at age 85.

“The Bread + Puppet theater has ceased to be a matriarchy because the matriarch who made it so is buried in the pineforest,” wrote Peter, Elka’s husband of 62 years.

Elka was born in Soviet Russia and lived in several places, including Germany and New York City, before she, Peter and their five children settled in Glover.

Peter founded Bread and Puppet in 1963 in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, before transplanting the theater to Vermont — first to Plainfield in 1970, then to the Northeast Kingdom four years later.

Elka was Peter’s principal collaborator and the “heart and soul” of Bread and Puppet, in the words of a longtime puppeteer. She managed the theater’s finances and ran the printshop; she booked shows and practiced shape-note singing. Elka welcomed NEK neighbors and folks from around the world to her table.

“She loved motion and action and enterprise,” Tamar Schumann, her oldest child, told Seven Days last summer. “She loved engagement with animals and people and projects. That’s why Bread and Puppet is possible, because there was somebody like that, centrally, within the theater.”

and Burlington’s Vermont Comedy Club were offering live events with varying COVID-19 protocols. But the Flynn Grand Reopening Celebration on October 23 marked the symbolic return of the performing arts in the Green Mountain State.

A dazzling evening of music, poetry, animatronic displays and a mural premiere, it brought community members together in a joyous affirmation of life and art. Vermont storyteller Ferene Paris Meyer recited a love letter to the Flynn.

The local Resistance Revival Chorus performed rousing songs, inspiring the audience to clap and cheer. Violinist and Flynn creative chair Daniel Bernard Roumain joined local trio Dwight & Nicole in dance-inducing soul and blues numbers.

And the headliner, four-time Grammy Award-winning Afro-pop superstar Angélique Kidjo, kept the audience hoofing and hollering with her electrifying show.

Even the lobby came to life, literally, with an animatronic water fountain and two actors dressed as trees. In the Flynn gallery, the U.S. premiere of the mural “A Portrait Without Borders,” a composition of hundreds of faces drawn in black and white, underscored the interdependence of art and community.

The Flynn has been open ever since, offering everything from tap dance to circus arts, burlesque to bluegrass, regularly adding shows to its lineup. The mural remains through the end of 2021, signaling that the performing arts are back.

J.A.

Related Stories “Montpelier Author Kekla Magoon Long-Listed for National Book Award” by Jordan Adams, September 21; and “Montpelier Author Kekla Magoon Named National Book Award Finalist”

by Mary Ann Lickteig, October 6

THE CURTAIN RISES

Flynn Grand Reopening Celebration marked the return of the performing arts

As pandemic angst eased in the summer, Vermont nightclubs and music venues began to reopen. By late September, the Barre Opera House, Rutland’s Paramount Theater, Middlebury’s Town Hall Theater

Angélique Kidjo

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art

“Saw a Blue Bird on the Bike Path”

Hidden Figures Will Gebhard explores shape and color in “So It Goes” at Soapbox Arts

BY AMY L IL LY • lilly@sevendaysvt.com

W

ill Gebhard knows what catches the eye. At his first gallery show — “So It Goes,” at Soapbox Arts in Burlington — overlapping curvy and geometric shapes in rich colors or grisaille fill canvases, glass vases, plywood cutouts and a vinyl record sleeve to their edges. Methodically distributed across surfaces, Gebhard’s distinct shapes and bold colors hold a viewer’s gaze until they merge into figures — or seem to.

Gebhard’s mural outside the gallery, on the back wall of Kerry’s Kwik Stop, may prompt a gallerygoer to expect abstract figuration. “Dreaming of Owning a Daybed,” commissioned for the 2019 South End Art Hop, shows a stylized figure composed of red, yellow, black and white shapes lying in the grass, knees propped and arms in the air. The background is sky blue.

But Gebhard’s newer works inside Soapbox often leave the viewer more to guess about. “Balancing Act,” a plywood cutout, quickly resolves from a puzzle 62

of shapes into a figure whom Soapbox also reading a book beside represents. a lamp. “Separation During a phone call, Anxiety,” meanwhile, Gebhard traced his only hints at a hidden use of precisely painted figure (or perhaps two) abstract shapes to a graphic among its densely layered artist’s tool familiar from red, orange and yellow his work: the divide function shapes woven into green of the Pathfinder tool in ones.

Adobe Illustrator.

Gebhard, who just “You can take shapes turned 30, takes his and divide them,” visual cues from the he explained. “[For world of graphic example,] the Venn design. After studydiagram becomes ing the discipline at three different Champlain College, shapes” — an almond “A Formal Vase” he joined Sticky Brand, and two crescents. a Burlington producer of Among his art-historical promotional goods run by influences, Gebhard cites John Moore and Dave Mullin.

Stuart Davis, a midcentury AmeriGebhard sold his art at Steak Frites, can painter with a flat, graphic style; a series of pop-up affordable art fairs and Henry Moore, the British sculptor that Moore and Mullin held at Signal whose abstract figures combine undulatKitchen. He has also designed beer cans ing forms and voids. for Foam Brewers and painted public In developing his own vocabulary walls with fellow muralist Mary Lacy, of shapes, Gebhard said, lately he has

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

become “more confident directly articulating a subject in pieces. I can render and address the subject while also obscuring it.”

He achieves that obscurity partly through shades of color. Gebhard previously used Bauhausian primary colors of red, yellow and blue, plus white and black, all straight out of the tube. He set his subjects against a solid background within the limits of the canvas.

His recent work transforms the solid background into competing shapes in an array of color gradations that appear to layer over and under the dominant shapes. The method complicates notions of foreground and background.

In “She Didn’t Name Either of the Cats,” for instance, discrete, almost-3D shapes in reds, oranges and yellows — a witch’s hat and broom among them — pop against deep-blue swirls in at least four hues. Yet the latter seem simultaneously to cast shadows on the warmly colored shapes, darkening their shades where they appear overlaid.

Similarly, “Saw a Bluebird on the Bike

ART SHOWS

NEW THIS WEEK mad river valley/waterbury

I CAN RENDER AND ADDRESS THE SUBJECT WHILE ALSO OBSCURING IT. W IL L GE BH AR D

“Balancing Act”

“Separation Anxiety”

Path” overlays an interlocking pattern of biomorphic shapes in blue tones on green swirls and swooshes that also appear to be applied on top.

“Separation Anxiety” is the largest of the paintings, at 62 by 98 inches, and the most complex in its weaving of shapes. As the title suggests, it challenges the eye to separate the red-orange-toned figure from its green-toned background. It’s difficult.

Shades of black characterize a number of works. “A Formal Vase,” one of two acrylic-painted glass vases, is patterned with black and gray shapes that might be projecting or receding.

Four small canvases, titled “Straight to Voicemail Nos. 1-4,” suggest the absence of a human presence both in their titles and in their flat, interwoven black-and-gray shapes.

While those works are entirely abstract, “A Bump in the Dark,” painted on a vintage record sleeve, suggests a gray-toned figure who takes surrealist form against a black background.

There may also be a beer can in the lower left corner.

“Walking Through Tall Grass With an Iron Deficiency” might keep viewers guessing the longest. An apparent figure in gray, its constituent shapes highlighted with thin lines of color, stalks the black background like a futurist machine. But the painting could also simply be a dynamic arrangement of forms.

Gebhard provides a wide-ranging explanation of his show in an artist statement, including a somewhat overwrought reference to “the infinite beauty of existence and its relentless absurdity. In the so-called shadow of the ever-nearing end.” He notes that the show’s title comes from a line in Kurt Vonnegut’s anti-war novel Slaughterhouse-Five, in which “So it goes” is a response to casualties.

But what stands out in Gebhard’s statement is a description of his style: “the ebb and flow of shape and color.”

With his exacting manipulation of those two elements, the artist successfully communicates what Soapbox owner Patricia Trafton calls his “visual breakdown of the world.” m

INFO “She Didn’t Name Either of the Cats”

“So It Goes,” paintings by Will Gebhard, through January 22 at Soapbox Arts in Burlington. soapboxarts.com

f HEATHER GUPTIL: “Musings in the Nurses Room,” large-scale intuitive abstract paintings. Reception: Thursday, January 27, 5 p.m. January 5-February 5. Info, 244-7801. Axel’s Frame Shop & Gallery in Waterbury.

ART EVENTS ARTIST TALK: MICHAEL ABRAMS: From his studio in Jamaica, Vt., the artist gives a Zoom talk about his installation, “Arcadia Rediscovered,” at BMAC as well as about his work in general. Register at brattleboromuseum.org. Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Thursday, January 6, 7 p.m. Free. Info, 257-0124.

HATCHSPACE LATHE DEMO: Woodworker Jeff Bower demonstrates using a lathe to create a piece of furniture from start to finish. Presented in conjunction with the current Guild of Vermont Furniture Makers exhibition. Space is limited; preregister at brattleboromuseum.org. Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Wednesday, January 12, 5:30 p.m. $5; free for BMAC members. Info, 257-0124.

‘PANDEMIC PASSAGES’: A monthly online workshop presented by the Passing Project using art to open the unexpected gifts that the pandemic life has given us. Participants can explore their experiences through writing, drawing, dancing or other means. Details at passingproject.org. Sundays, 4-5:30 p.m. Sliding-scale donations, $10-25. Info, infopassingproject@gmail.com.

TALK: EJ HAUSER: The Brooklyn-based visiting artist discusses her paintings, which teeter between the familiar and the abstract with references ancient and current. Red Mill Gallery at Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, Monday, January 10, 7-8 p.m. Free. Info, 635-2727.

WEAVING WEDNESDAY: Visitors can drop in to the gallery space and try out a few handlooms and weaving activities. Yarn and other materials are provided. Face masks required. Heritage Winooski Mill Museum, Wednesday, December 29, noon-4 p.m.

Free. Info, info@themillmuseum.org.

ONGOING SHOWS burlington

ARTWORK AT UVMMC: Oil paintings of cows by Stephanie Bush, wood shadowboxes by Sam Macy and abstract butterfly paintings by Maria Angelache in the Main Street Corridor and Ambulatory Care Center 3; mixed-media paintings by Kathleen Grant in McClure 4; acrylic paintings and monotypes by Elizabeth Powell and photographs by Kristina Pentek in ACC 2. Curated by Burlington City Arts. Through January 24. Info, 865-7296. University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington.

‘UNBOUND’: Painting, sculpture and works on paper by Kirsten Reynolds, Rob Hitzig and Rachel Gross that explore contemporary approaches to abstraction as it relates to architecture, space and materials. BRADLEY BORTHWICK: “Objects of Empire,” sculptural installation that evolved from the artist’s research on the Dorset marble quarry and ancient Roman storehouses, and ponders shared cycles of civilization. Through February 5. Info, 865-7166. BCA Center in Burlington.

JACKSON TUPPER: “Mayo,” a solo exhibition of paintings by the Vermont artist made in response to domestic isolation during pandemic lockdown.

Through March 9. Info, 233-2943. Safe and Sound Gallery in Burlington.

‘THE LARGE WORKS’: Locally made 2D works two to six feet in size hang in the hallway outside the S.P.A.C.E. Gallery. Through January 29. Info, 578-2512.

The Soda Plant in Burlington.

MALTEX ARTISTS: Paintings by Dierdre Michelle, Judy Hawkins, Nancy Chapman and Jean Cherouny and photographs by Caleb Kenna and Michael BURLINGTON SHOWS

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art

Top Seven

"Bittern" by Kate Gridley

The 2021 art shows we liked best, and why B Y PA M EL A POL ST O N • ppolston@sevendaysvt.com

“THE FLEMING REIMAGINED: CONFRONTING INSTITUTIONAL RACISM AND HISTORICAL OPPRESSION,” Fleming Museum of Art, University of Vermont, in Burlington

This title referred not to a single exhibit but to a reworking of the museum’s acquisition and exhibition mission, as well as the use of its spaces. Fleming staff took advantage of a pandemic-induced closure to think deeply about how its practices have reinforced notions of white supremacy — and how to move forward with more inclusiveness. They also created a strongly worded values statement called “A Living Document of the Museum’s Reckonings and Transformations.” In addition to their laudatory commitment to the necessary evolution of museums, the staff curated engaging exhibitions of works from the permanent collection.

Matt Neckers, “CATACLYSM: FAMILIAR ROBOTS & THEIR ANIMAL KINDRED,” Red Mill Gallery, Vermont Studio Center in Johnson

Kevin Donegan, “YOUR CART IS EMPTY,” Flynndog Gallery in Burlington

Timed for the South End Art Hop, Donegan’s exhibition was a testament to resourcefulness and environmental prudence. But the artist had a broader theme in mind. Using the spare iconography of shopping carts, recycling bins and trash cans, as well as the “medium” of detritus, Donegan assembled a reflective, provocative exhibition. The metamorphosis of found materials was ingenious. Donegan’s generative topic — what we acquire and what we throw away — confronted viewers with the human cost of our squandering, as well.

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For the 13th edition of this annual exhibition, cocurators Nel Emlen, Allyson Evans and David Schutz chose works that honored the makers of yesteryear. Some 250 pieces by 20 Vermont artists filled the rooms of the historic building, some depicting or repurposing antique tools. From paintings of old mills to handmade hats to sculptures using boulders or contemporary technology, this indoor and outdoor show invited a consideration of human ingenuity, as well as admiration for beautifully made things of the past and present.

"A woman with green hair" by Yoshi47

"Blue Bonfire" by HCA Scene Shop

“IT’S SMALLER THAN I THOUGHT,” group exhibition at Safe and Sound Gallery in Burlington

COURTESY OF AMY LILLY

The strictures of social distancing led to a creative solution for art viewing: VSC’s visual arts program manager, Kristen Mills, left the lights on at night so passersby could see Neckers’ exhibit through the gallery’s tall windows.

Inside, his riotously colored, found-metal structures looked kindergarten-safe — until you noticed the silhouettes of tanks, missiles and warships. The installation called to mind kiddie cartoons that embedded darker themes for the grownups. (A truncated version appeared in “Bubblegum Pop” at Burlington’s BCA Center in the summer.)

“20/20 HINDSIGHT,” group exhibition at Kents’ Corner in Calais

COURTESY OF MARIN HORIKAWA

I

n this newspaper we commonly make lists of seven, rather than the more typical 10. Admittedly, the smaller number makes it harder to winnow out favorite shows from, in this case, an entire year of art viewing. So, some selections are based not just on the artwork itself but on a compelling contextual aspect of the exhibition.

In addition, we considered only Vermont-based artists. (Apologies to out-of-staters who exhibited some fine work here this year.) And, a caveat: These selections were drawn from shows we were able to review in Seven Days. There was so much more art to see in 2021 — big thanks to the artists, gallerists and financial supporters who made that possible — and viewers surely had their own favorites. Here are seven of ours.

William Ransom, “KEEP UP/HOLD UP,” Brattleboro Museum & Art Center

Though modest in size, this exhibition of six sculptures was visually compelling and conceptually potent. In achingly eloquent ways, the Norwich artist, who is biracial, addressed the current national reckoning with systemic racism. Three pieces specifically referenced Black men killed at the hands of police. More abstract works fashioned primarily from wood strips were each held together with a workshop clamp. The tool became a metaphor for America’s aspirational motto, e pluribus unum — “out of many, one” — and for the fragility of that pluralistic ideal. The taut energy of Ransom’s pieces seemed to hold both promise and threat of what might be.

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

“THE OPEN AIR GALLERY SKI & SNOWSHOE TRAIL,” group exhibition at Highland Center for the Arts in Greensboro

Adapting to the pandemic-era necessities of fresh air and social distancing, HCA sited sculpture — including a painted bedsheet installation by Bread and Puppet Theater’s Peter Schumann — around its grounds and neighboring fields for “a pandemic-escape experience not to be missed.” Art adventurers, traveling by snowshoe or crosscountry skis, warmed up around fire pits with grilled-cheese sandwiches and hot bevvies.

Perhaps it’s the vaunted reputation of “Mona Lisa” — arguably the world’s most famous painting — that leaves many visitors to the Louvre in Paris surprised by its relatively modest size. The winking title of this show gives away its theme. Gallery owner Marin Horikawa invited 60 artists to riff on Leonardo da Vinci’s 1503 portrait; 15 of them responded, and the results could not have been more wildly diverse. The artists naturally worked in their signature styles and mediums, including collage, oil, pastel and print. Renaissance Lisa would likely not relate to most of their creations. The exhibit was not necessarily intended as a response to the pandemic, but how could it not be? As one of the first local shows to open for in-person viewing, the collection was a satisfying jolt of provocation, fun and catharsis. m

ART SHOWS

BURLINGTON SHOWS

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Couture in the building’s hallways. Curated by Burlington City Arts. Through March 31. Info, 865-7296. Maltex Building in Burlington.

‘THE SMALL WORKS’: An annual unjuried exhibition of locally made works smaller than 12 inches each.

Through January 29. Info, 578-2512. The S.P.A.C.E. Gallery in Burlington.

WILL GEBHARD: “So It Goes,” a solo show of vivid, graphic paintings by the Vermont artist. Through January 22. Info, 324-0014. Soapbox Arts in Burlington. ‘...WILL YOU SING?’ MURAL: A 43-foot, wall-size mural, a project of Big Heavy World, features photographs of more than 200 Vermont musicians and audio clips of their music. Collaborators include photographers Luke Awtry and Jim Lockridge, design firm Solidarity of Unbridled Labour, Vermont Folklife Center and Gamma Imaging of Chicago. On view during business hours in the building’s entry hallway.

Through December 31. Info, info@bigheavyworld.com.

Howard Space Center in Burlington.

WOLFGANG SCHWARTZ: “Divided as One,” an exhibit of ink on paper, gel works and limited-edition screen-prints that bring together nature and the last two years of our collective, and sometimes divided, emotional roller coaster. Through December 31. Info, 406-223-1333. Flynndog Gallery in Burlington.

chittenden county

ADRIENNE GINTER & ERIKA LAWLOR SCHMIDT: Hand-cut paper works that tell stories from nature, and monotypes that reflect the natural world and the interconnectedness of all life, respectively.

Curated by Burlington City Arts. Through January 31.

Info, 865-7296. Pierson Library in Shelburne.

ELLIOT BURG: Photographic portraits shot on the streets of Havana, Cuba. Gates 1-8. Through December

31. ERIKA LAWLOR SCHMIDT: Relief monotypes, Skyway. Curated by Burlington City Arts. Through March 31. MAREVA MILLARC: Acrylic paintings, Gates 1-8. Curated by Burlington City Arts. Through March 31. SHANNON O’CONNELL: Paintings with phosphorescent and UV-sensitive pigments mixed into the paint, allowing secondary paintings to be revealed.

In the Skyway. Through December 31. Info, 865-7296.

Burlington International Airport in South Burlington.

‘EYESIGHT & INSIGHT: LENS ON AMERICAN ART’: An online exhibition of artworks at shelburnemuseum.org that illuminates creative responses to perceptions of vision; four sections explore themes ranging from 18th-century optical technologies to the social and historical connotations of eyeglasses in portraiture from the 19th century to the present. Through October 16.

‘IN PLAIN SIGHT: REDISCOVERING CHARLES SUMNER BUNN’S DECOYS’: An online exhibition of shorebird decoys carved by the member of the Shinnecock-Montauk Tribes, based on extensive research and resolving historic controversy. Through October 5.

‘PATTERN & PURPOSE: AMERICAN QUILTS FROM THE SHELBURNE MUSEUM’: The museum presents 20 textile masterpieces from its collection dating from the first decades of the 1800s to the turn of the 21st century, organized by associate curator Katie Wood Kirchhoff. Online only at shelburnemuseum.org. Through February 1.

WINTER LIGHTS: The museum’s buildings and grounds are bedecked with multicolored lights for this holiday extravaganza. Purchase timed tickets in advance.

Thursdays-Saturdays, 5-8 p.m. $15 for adults; $10 for children ages 3-17. Info, 985-3346. Shelburne Museum.

‘THE GIFT OF ART’: An off-season exhibition featuring a changing collection of artworks. Open by appointment or during special events. Through April 30. Info, 434-2167. Birds of Vermont Museum in Huntington.

‘HOMETOWN WATERCOLORISTS’: Five members of the Vermont Watercolor Society show their work in landscapes, portraits, abstract and still lifes: Joey Bibeau, Lynn Cummings, Alice Eckles, Martin Lalonde and Lauren Wooden. Through January 7. Info, 536-1722. South Burlington Public Art Gallery.

JEFFREY TRUBISZ: “On the Trail: Scenes and Images,” photographs taken during hikes in New England, the Pacific Northwest and abroad; exhibited on the second-floor gallery wall. Through December 30. Info, 846-4140. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall.

‘WINTER COMPASS’: Works featuring Venetian plaster finishes by Sam Colt, along with works by 13 gallery artists in a variety of mediums. Through January 31. Info, 985-3848. Furchgott Sourdiffe Gallery in Shelburne.

barre/montpelier

‘THE CATAMOUNT IN VERMONT’: An exhibition that explores the feline symbol of Vermont through the lenses of art, science and culture. Through May 31. Info, 479-8500. Vermont History Museum in Montpelier.

‘CELEBRATE!’: An annual exhibition featuring fine art and crafts created by more than 60 SPA member artists, displayed on all three floors of the building.

Masks required. Through December 29. Info, 479-7069. Studio Place Arts in Barre.

‘CLIMATE OF CHANGE’: A mixed-media, multisensory exhibition by Susan Calza and Ken Leslie that responds to this global crisis, as well as sketchbooks that reveal how the two artists respond to the world around them. Through January 16. Info, 224-6827.

Susan Calza Gallery in Montpelier.

EMMA NORMAN: “In the Night of Day,” photographs of San Francisco Bay as the skies turned amber from wildfire smoke and fog on September 9, 2020.

Through December 31. Info, jess@cal-vt.org. Center for Arts and Learning in Montpelier.

GROUP SHOW #46: Gallery members exhibit their works in this group show. There’s also a holiday sale of items less than $100 through December. Through January 9.

Info, info@thefrontvt.com. The Front in Montpelier.

JASON GALLIGAN-BALDWIN: “Safety Procedures,” works incorporating acrylics, antique text, childhood books, film stills and other materials to explore American culture, or lack thereof. Curated by Studio Place Arts. Through February 26. Info, 479-7069. AR Market in Barre.

‘ONE MORE TIME!’: Ten artists who have exhibited at the gallery in 2021 return for a group show of works in watercolor, acrylic, oils, wearable art and photography. Through January 31. Info, 279-5048.

ART, etc. in Northfield.

SUSAN BULL RILEY: Three large oil and 32 watercolor paintings, from landscapes to intimate studies of plants and birds. Through December 31. Info, 2296206. North Branch Nature Center in Montpelier.

TUMBLING BLOCKS COMMUNITY QUILT PROJECT: Montpelier Alive exhibits the Capital City’s newest piece of public art, a project intended to help “stitch together” the community during the pandemic. More than 250 individuals, including more than 100 students, contributed designs for panels that Sabrina Fadial collated and made into a “quilt.” Through December 31.

Info, 488-4303. Montpelier Transit Center.

stowe/smuggs

2021 MEMBERS’ ART SHOW: The 40th annual unjuried exhibition that showcases member-submitted artwork alongside the Festival of Trees & Lights. Through December 31. Info, 253-8358. The Current in Stowe.

‘THE ART OF THE GRAPHIC’: Eight displays of snowboards that let viewers see the design process from STOWE/SMUGGS SHOWS

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NOW SHOWING THROUGH DECEMBER 31ST

SMALL WORKS , BIG IMPACT AT EDGEWATER GALLERY MIDDLEBURY

HOURS: Tuesday - Saturday 10AM – 5PM Sunday 11AM – 4PM Now with exhibitions and artist events at The Pitcher Inn, Warren, Vermont

One Mill St and 6 Merchant’s Row, Middlebury Vermont 802-458-0098 & 802-989-7419

edgewatergallery.com

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initial conception to final product; featuring artists Scott Lenhardt, Mark Gonzalez, Mikey Welsh, Mishel Schwartz and more. Through October 31. Info, 253-9911.

Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum in Stowe.

‘CALL AND RESPONSE’: An exhibition of images by eight members of the Photographers Workroom.

KRISTINA SNOOK: “Tradition/Improvisation,” fiber works by the Vermont artist. Through January 15.

Info, 888-1261. River Arts in Morrisville.

CATHY CONE: “There Was Once,” hand-painted photographs and black-and-white Piezography by the Vermont artist. Through January 8. MICHAEL MAHNKE: “A River Moving in You,” a large-scale, site-specific work by the gallery cofounder, located on the Johnson Village Green, that reflects the natural environment and our relationships to one another. Through December 31. Info, 646-519-1781.

Minema Gallery in Johnson.

middlebury area

“HENRY AT 200’: An exhibit celebrating the museum founder and collector of New England history with documents, photographs, scrapbooks, autographs, Middlebury imprints, diaries, music ephemera, relics and even a lock of Napoleon’s hair. Through December 31. ‘SIGHTLINES’: Photographs by Caleb Kenna and paintings by Jill Madden that explore the Joseph Battell and Breadloaf Wilderness areas of the Green Mountains. Through December 31. HOLIDAY TRAIN EXHIBIT: The popular Lionel trains return with a Green Mountain backdrop and a brand-new feature: a caboose that livestreams a video of the train traveling through its layout. Book timed visits on Saturdays at henrysheldonmuseum.org. Masks are required.

Through January 8. Info, 388-2117. Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History in Middlebury.

‘ITTY BITTY: TINY TEXTS IN SPECIAL COLLECTIONS’: Books from the 17th to 21st centuries that measure between 1.8 and 10 centimeters, from religious manuscripts to cookbooks, children’s books to Shakespeare. Visitors are not currently allowed in the library but may view the works online at go.middlebury.edu/tinybooks. Through May 31. Davis Family Library, Middlebury College.

‘KNOWING DARKNESS’: A group exhibition of new work by Bonnie Baird, Christine Atkinson, Charlotte Dworshak, Julia Jensen, Hannah Morris, Hannah Sessions, Pamela Smith and Susanne Strater.

Through January 31. Info, 877-2173. Northern Daughters in Vergennes.

MORE ‘SMALL WORKS, BIG IMPACT’: New small works from Julia Purinton, established gallery artists and new Edgewater artist Susan Abbott. Through December 31. Info, 989-7419. Edgewater Gallery on the Green in Middlebury.

‘PRIDE 1983’: Through interviews with organizers, photographs and scanned images of historic documents, the exhibit, curated by Meg Tamulonis of the Vermont Queer Archives, explores the origins and lasting legacies of Vermont’s first Pride March on June 25, 1983, in Burlington. It can also be viewed online at vtfolklife.org. Through March 25. Info, 388-4964. Vermont Folklife Center in Middlebury.

‘SMALL WORKS, BIG IMPACT’: The annual exhibition features new work from established Edgewater artists Jane Davies, Sage Tucker Ketcham and Rachel Wilcox, as well as favorite pieces from gallery collections and abstracted Vermont landscapes by guest artist Barbara Greene. Through December 31. Info, 989-7419.

Edgewater Gallery at Middlebury Falls.

rutland/killington

CORRINE YONCE: “Excerpts from Estate Sale,” mixed-media works that consider the intimacies of home and the figures who share that space, on display in the venue’s windows. Through January 15.

Info, info.77ART@gmail.com. 77ART in Rutland.

CALL TO ARTISTS ARTIST DEVELOPMENT GRANTS: Artist development grants support Vermont-based artists at all stages of their careers, funding activities that enhance mastery of a craft or increase the viability of an artist’s business. Funding may also support aspects of the creation of new work. Grant amounts range from $250 to $2,000. Details and application at vermontartscouncil.org. Deadline: February 14. Vermont Arts Council, Montpelier.

A CALL TO BLACK ARTISTS: Black History Month started as a time to remember vital events and people in the history of the African diaspora. Today, February is an important month of remembrance, recognition and education. The gallery invites Black artists to submit works for an exhibit that will run from January 14 to February 25. Send letters of interest by January 3 to info@chaffeeartcenter.org.

Artwork drop-off: Friday, January 7, and Saturday, January 8, or by arrangement. Chaffee Art Center, Rutland. Info, info@chaffeeartcenter.org.

upper valley

HOLIDAY SHOW: Prints and handmade gift cards by artist members. Through January 29. Info, 295-5901.

Two Rivers Printmaking Studio in White River Junction.

JACOB GRAHAM: “The Creatures of Yes: Snowflake Revue,” an experimental television show by the Brooklyn-based artist about people discovering the world around them and learning to appreciate each other’s differences. Puppetry by Graham and Stoph Scheer, sets made in collaboration with the gallery.

Through January 2. Info, 347-264-4808. Kishka Gallery & Library in White River Junction.

JUDITH VIVELL: “Meant for Each Other,” mixed-media abstractions on raw canvas. Also, jewelry by Stacy Hopkins, precious metal and volcanic bowls by Cristina Salusti and sculptural pieces by Ria Blaas.

Through February 1. Info, 603-443-3017. Scavenger Gallery in White River Junction.

JULIE CRABTREE & AMANDA ANN PALMER: Fiber-art landscapes inspired by the Scotland coast, and handthrown pottery, respectively. Through February 28. Info, 295-4567. Long River Gallery in White River Junction.

PAULA CLOUDPAINTER: “Cloudmaps and Other Travels Through the Atmosphere,” watercolors and mixedmedia paintings. Through December 31. Info, 457-2295.

Norman Williams Public Library in Woodstock.

northeast kingdom

ALAN JENNINGS: “Finding the Way Home,” animated films the artist created about growing up in Vermont, including “The Northeast Kingdom,” “Dream of Deerman” and “The Bill Jennings Mysteries”; and the drawings, paintings and sculptures he uses to make them. Watch at catamountarts.org. Through December 31. Info, 748-2600. Catamount Arts Center in St. Johnsbury.

ANNUAL HOLIDAY SHOW: Unique creations by members, including ornaments, paintings, fiber, hand-blown glass, woodworks and more. Through January 8. Info, 748-0158. Northeast Kingdom Artisans Guild Backroom Gallery in St. Johnsbury.

‘A LIFE IN LISTS AND NOTES’: An exhibition that celebrates the poetic, mnemonic, narrative and enumerative qualities of lists and notes. The objects on display span myriad creative, professional, bureaucratic, domestic and personal uses of lists through the ages. Through May 31. Info, 626-4409.

The Museum of Everyday Life in Glover.

‘LOCAL COLOR’: Nature-inspired works in a variety of mediums by members of Caspian Arts. Through December 31. Info, 533-2000. Highland Center for the Arts in Greensboro.

‘DRIP’: For an upcoming exhibition about water quality and quantity, artists are invited to consider the topics of scarcity and depletion of freshwater sources. Installations and traditional or nontraditional mediums are welcome. Details at studioplacearts.com. Deadline: February 5. Studio Place Arts, Barre. $10; free for SPA members. Info, 479-7069.

MICRO-GRANTS FOR ARTISTS: The Montpelier Public Arts Commission is offering a micro-grant program for Vermontbased artists for up to $1,500 for permanent or temporary art installations throughout the city.

The request for proposals is open for an indefinite period; artists may submit at anytime during the year. The commission will review and award grants twice yearly; the next deadline is March 30.

For more info and to review the RFP, visit montpelier-vt.org. Info, 522-0150.

including stained glass, lamps, paintings and mixed-media, in a collaborative public art project.

Through February 25. Info, eknarey@catamountarts. org. Various St. Johnsbury locations.

SUE HAVEN TESTER: Photographs of the unspoiled landscape of the Northeast Kingdom. Through January 7. Info, 525-3366. The Parker Pie Company in West Glover.

brattleboro/okemo valley

B. LYNCH: “Pull Back the Curtain,” a fantastical universe of the Reds and the Greys, disparate societal factions set in the 18th century, using puppetry, drawing, painting, linoleum block printing and digital animation. Through February 13. DELITA MARTIN: “Between Worlds,” a yearlong installation in the museum’s front windows that reimagines the identities and roles of Black women in the context of Black culture and African history. Through May 31. GUILD OF VERMONT FURNITURE MAKERS: “Evolving Traditions,” contemporary works in wood crafted by members of the guild. Through February 13. MICHAEL ABRAMS: “Arcadia Rediscovered,” a luminous, misty painting installation that invites viewers to be mindfully in the world. Through March 5. NATALIE FRANK: “Painting With Paper,” abstracted portraits of imagined female figures, each accompanied by an animal, in wet pigmented cotton and linen paper pulp. Through February 13. VERMONT GLASS GUILD: “Inspired by the Past,” contemporary works in glass exhibited alongside historical counterparts from the museum’s collection. Through March 5. WILLIAM RANSOM: “Keep Up/Hold Up,” mixed-media installations that speak to the current state of social tension in the U.S., the reckoning with a history of white supremacy, and the potential for flare-up or collapse. Through March 5. Info, 257-0124.

Brattleboro Museum & Art Center.

‘THE CALL OF THE LOON’: Expanded exhibition of new work by local artists Roxcell Bartholomew, Schuyler Gould, Collin Leech, John Loggia, Tina Olsen, Markie Sallick and Lydia Thomson, along with holiday cards and affordable gift options. Through December 31.

Info, 118elliot@gmail.com. 118 Elliot in Brattleboro.

PETER SCHUMANN: Paintings on bedsheets by the founder of Bread and Puppet theater from his “Bad Bedsheets” and “Handouts” series. Through February 28. Info, breadandpuppetcuratrix@gmail.com. Flat Iron Co-op in Bellows Falls.

SUSAN BREAREY: Paintings of animals in which primal, totemic images take the place of photorealistic details and are set against abstract surfaces.

Through February 20. Info, 387-0102. Next Stage Arts Project in Putney.

EVENTS MAY BE CANCELED DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS. PLEASE CHECK WITH EVENT ORGANIZERS IN ADVANCE.

manchester/bennington

‘TRANSIENT BEAUTY’: An exhibition of work by 25 contemporary photographers in response to Vermont icon Snowflake Bentley; a closed-bid auction of the photos benefits the museum and the artists. DUSTY BOYNTON: “Boundless,” new paintings and mixed-media works by the Vermont artist, curated in collaboration with Stowe’s 571 Projects. Through December 31. Info, jfranklin@ benningtonmuseum.org. Bennington Museum.

‘HIROSHIGE AND THE CHANGING JAPANESE LANDSCAPE’: An exhibition of Japanese woodblock prints by Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) that depict how the political climate of 19th-century Japan influenced its art and how the art influenced politics.

Through February 27. Info, 367-1311. Southern Vermont Arts Center in Manchester.

‘THE WORLD BETWEEN THE BLOCK AND THE PAPER’: A group exhibition of ecologically sound, sensitively produced mokuhanga prints, organized in collaboration with Japanese print collective the Mokuhanga Sisters. Through March 27. Info, 367-1311.

Yester House Galleries, Southern Vermont Arts Center. in Manchester.

outside vermont

ANNUAL HOLIDAY EXHIBITION AND SALE: “Wintry Mix,” works in a variety of mediums by member artists from Vermont and New Hampshire. Through December 30. Info, 603-448-3117. AVA Gallery and Art Center in Lebanon, N.H. ‘ECOLOGIES: A SONG FOR OUR PLANET’: An exhibition of installations, videos, sculptures, paintings, drawings and photographs that explore the relationship between humans and nature, and disruptions to the planet’s ecosystems caused by human intervention. Through February 27. ‘HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR ONE VOICE TO REACH ANOTHER?’: An exhibition of major works from the museum’s collection, along with new acquisitions and loans, that explore the theme of voice in both physical and metaphorical registers. Through February 13. ‘THE WORLD OF YOUSUF KARSH: A PRIVATE ESSENCE’: A showcase of 111 silver-gelatin portraits by the renowned Armenian Canadian photographer, shot and printed himself; donated by the artist’s estate and his widow.

Through January 30. RAGNAR KJARTANSSON: “Sumarnótt” (“Death Is Elsewhere”), an immersive installation by the Icelandic artist, filmed under the midnight sun, consisting of a seven-channel video and musical soundscape that surround the viewer.

Through January 2. Info, mbam.qc.ca, 514-285-2000.

Montréal Museum of Fine Arts.

FORENSIC ARCHITECTURE WITH LAURA POITRAS: “Terror Contagion,” an immersive, activist exhibition by the London-based research collective in collaboration with the journalist-filmmaker. Narration

by Edward Snowden, data sonification by Brian Eno. Through April 18. Info, 514-847-6226. Montréal Museum of Contemporary Art. ‘THIS LAND: AMERICAN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE NATURAL WORLD’: Drawn from the permanent collection, the museum’s first major installation of traditional and contemporary Native American art set alongside early-to-contemporary art by African American, Asian American, Euro-American and Latin American artists, representing a broader perspective on “American” art. January 5 through July 24. ‘THORNTON DIAL: THE TIGER CAT’: Part of a new acquisition of 10 artworks from the Souls Grown Deep Foundation, the exhibition looks closely at the late artist’s work and the ways in which it broadens an understanding of American art. January 5 through February 27. Info, 603-646-2808. Hood Museum, Dartmouth College, in Hanover, N.H. m

STJ ART ON THE STREET WINTER SHOW: Downtown businesses exhibit artworks in storefront windows,

= ONLINE EVENT OR EXHIBIT 66

VISUAL ART IN SEVEN DAYS:

ART LISTINGS AND SPOTLIGHTS ARE WRITTEN BY PAMELA POLSTON. LISTINGS ARE RESTRICTED TO ART SHOWS IN TRULY PUBLIC PLACES. SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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A Virtual Lecture Series

Free and open to all • Wednesdays at 7pm EST Register at www.henrysheldonmuseum.org/events

Jan. 12 Picturing Difference: 7pm Photography, Democracy, and Race in the 19th Century Michelle Smiley Center for Cultural Analysis at Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Feb. 9 7pm

Old Maps, New Pathways:

Cartography, Museum Collections, and Decolonial Possibilities

Rachel Hope Cleves University of Victoria

Apr. 13 21st Century Public Squares: 7pm When Art Meets History

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music+nightlife

Marcie Hernandez

COURTESY OF JACQUELYN POTTER

S UNDbites News and views on the local music + nightlife scene

B Y CHRIS FA R N S WO R TH

Vermont’s Playlist

68

COURTESY OF MACAULAY LERMAN

I’ve yelled at so many magazines in my life. Just flung them across the room, screaming obscenities so profane that I’d normally only utter them in extreme moments of road rage. One time, I actually picked up a lighter and looked at a Rolling Stone and said aloud, “Don’t think I won’t, you bastard.”

Hi, my name is Chris, and I’ve been violent to paper. I’m not proud of it.

It’s just that, occasionally, lists can be aggravating, particularly if you throw in some sort of ranking. The offending Rolling Stone was a ranking of the 100 greatest drummers, I think. It might have been bassists.

I can’t recall exactly, but the point is: One of those stupid lists left off someone I really liked, or maybe it just put them below other musicians I think suck, which is almost worse. How in the hell can you say NOEL GALLAGHER is a better guitarist than GRAHAM COXON? Are you on narcotics? Who am I yelling at right now? What list am I even talking about?

Sorry. I think we can all see why I can’t be trusted with a list just yet. That’s why I’m taking a pass on a long-standing Seven Days tradition and not compiling a list of my favorite Vermont music of the year.

I’m sure I’ll scale that mountain sooner or later, but I was just in a

different mindset in 2021. I was so grateful to see the records and singles and videos and shows all coming back, my brain consumed more than it cataloged. The algorithms had a tough time pegging me.

So, instead of making my own list, I chickened out — er, asked around to find out what music, local and otherwise, moved other Vermont scenesters this year. The responses were all over the map. Some folks leaned into comfort and nostalgia; others found new favorites. I

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

didn’t give parameters; I just asked what they were listing to this year.

HUDSON GRAY, Burlington musician and cohost of “Face for Radio” on 105.9 FM the Radiator, singled out REMI RUSSIN’s EP, Math for Poets. The bassist for indie rockers COMMUNITY GARDEN released the solo effort in July, a six-track collection of shoegaze that included Gray’s favorite song, “Most People Kill Plants.”

“Its laid-back approach to hope and positivity has been the perfect way to

The Burning Sun

stay sane the later part of 2021,” said Gray about his pick.

CRICKET BLUE’s LAURA HEABERLIN branched out a little farther geographically for her favorite music this year.

“The album I listened to over and over was Narratives, by ALISA AMADOR,” Heaberlin said. “Alisa is a Boston-based musician. She has one of the most special voices I’ve ever heard. And her songwriting is as emotionally available as a conversation with a good friend.”

Amador, who recently received attention from NPR and the Boston Globe, opened for Cricket Blue back in 2019 when the Burlington folk duo released its LP Serotinalia. Having witnessed that show, I can attest to Amador’s ethereal pipes and engaging songwriting.

MARCIE HERNANDEZ, who made one of 2020’s best local efforts with Amanecer, picked not only a local album but a debut, as well.

“My favorite track of 2021 would have to be by the BURNING SUN,” said Hernandez. The singer-songwriter particularly loved “Muted Greens” off of the album Marrow.

The record was the first for the band, called RUBY before becoming the Burning Sun. The project was started by KATY HELLMAN and STEVEN LEBEL, formerly of Burlington rockers JULIA CAESAR. Marrow

COURTESY OF EMMA SMITH

GOT MUSIC NEWS? MUSIC@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

traditional First Night shindig a few years ago, has a stacked lineup. In addition to a slew of activities, installations and the

return of CIRCUS SMIRKUS, there are lots of musical acts on tap.

Indie rock and folk singer-songwriter RYLEY WALKER plays a full-band show at the BCA Studios on Pine Street. If you FRIDAYS > 10:00 P.M. haven’t caught Walker live since he moved from New York City to Vermont this year, I highly recommend doing so. His latest, Course in Fable, was one of the best albums of 2021, full of progressive rock-leaning folk songs and thrilling guitar work.

11/29/21 9:13 PM AM 16t-vcam-weekly.indd 1 11/2/20 3:07 Highlight’s main stage at the ECHO 16t-vcam122921.indd Leahy Center for Lake Champlain features sets by ZACH NUGENT playing the WITH LIVE MUSIC AT THE T REX music of the GRATEFUL DEAD, plus Marcie THEATER AT ESSEX EXPERIENCE! Hernandez and jazz outfit FREEWAY CLYDE. That’s just a hint of what’s happening at Highlight, so be sure to take a look at the full lineup.

CRAIG MITCHELL brings his show PURPLE: A TRIBUTE TO PRINCE to Foam Brewers.

Higher Ground hosts New Queers Eve, the annual LBGTQ+ dance party, and Nectar’s has LAMP, a funk and jazz fusion trio including TREY ANASTASIO BAND alums RUSS LAWTON and RAY PACZKOWSKI. Or catch ’80s synth rockers NIGHT PROTOCOL at the Monkey House in Winooski.

JAN. 13 I’m not going to lie: I did a double take when I saw what Zenbarn has planned for New Year’s Eve. The Waterbury restaurant and venue brings in CAPPADONNA and INSPECTAH DECK of WUTANG CLAN for one of the most out-ofnowhere bookings in recent memory.

The schedule for the night is bonkers.

Tickets include a “decadent” buffet dinner, according to Zenbarn, followed by a local talent showcase hosted by JIMMY KANG from Wu-Tang Management FEB. 5 and Str8up Entertainment Group.

The showcase winner gets a distribution deal with Sony Music subsidiary the Orchard.

That alone is worth checking out: a night of hungry MCs going for deals.

F E B . 1 4 SONGS I’VE LIVED Wu-Tang in BE MY VALENTINE Waterbury. If that doesn’t sum up the TICKETS AVAILABLE AT weirdness that was 2021, DOUBLEEVERMONT.COM/SHOWS I don’t know what does. Or

THE PREACHING HOUR

START THE NEW YEAR OFF RIGHT

Ryley Walker

shows that Hellman continues to write captivating songs, layered with gorgeous harmonies and dreamy arrangements, aided by BENNY YURCO, who engineered the record and supplied guitar and synths.

“Katy’s voice just pulls you in,” Hernandez said. “I love the force that she sings with as the song progresses.”

The band plays New Year’s Eve at Radio Bean for those who want a closer look.

Going international, ROBERT RESNIK, host of Vermont Public Radio’s “All the Traditions,” selected COMO LA PIEL, the second LP from RITA PAYÉS and ELISABETH ROMA, for his best of the year. The record is an evolution of the Barcelona, Spain-based motherdaughter duo’s sound, incorporating jazz, classical and bossa nova music.

“Rita sings beautifully in at least three languages and is a drop-dead jazz trombonist!” Resnik raves. “And Elizabeth is an amazing guitarist. They make exquisite music together.”

Of course, I wasn’t going to do a survey without talking to chief scene correspondent/megafan TIM LEWIS. No one in Burlington sees as many shows as Lewis does every year; it’s not even close. Lewis also spins a huge collection of Vermont music on his Thursday night radio show “The Sounds of Burlington” on the online station WBKM. “Obviously, you hate me if you want me to pick just one,” Lewis quipped when asked for his favorite track of 2021.

After espousing his love for the entire local music scene and how it continues to inspire him, Lewis narrowed it down to one: “Queen of Flowers” by veteran Burlington rocker PEG TASSEY. Describing the song as Tassey “returning to power,” Lewis said he had

high expectations because he had been a fan of the singer-songwriter since the ’90s, particularly her stint with the KISSING CIRCLE. “The new song blew me away,” Lewis said. “It has heavy guitars and powerhouse vocals but also these catchy lyrics. They intertwine our spiritual relationship with the world and the growth, death and rebirth of flowers.”

What were your favorite tunes of the year? Email me or comment on Seven Days’ social media.

The Sounds of New Year’s Eve

Didn’t get to rage when 2020 was mercifully giving way to the New Year?

Yeah, nobody really did. Thankfully, there are some quality New Year’s Eve events happening this year. If you’re looking to start 2022 in style, great shows abound.

Read on for a selection of some fun options, with one important caveat: This column was written in mid-December, just as the Omicron variant appeared in Vermont.

The pandemic situation could be very Inspectah different by Deck December 29, the street date of this column, so check with event organizers. And be safe out there, folks.

In Burlington, Highlight, the New Year’s Eve celebration that replaced the

AMY HELM

KAT WRIGHT

maybe it’s more of the shape of things to come in the New Year. Here’s hoping!

21 ESSEX WAY, STE 300 | ESSEX JUNCTION, VT 05452 Whatever your New Year’s Eve plans, stay safe, Say you1 saw it in... 12/15/21 soundtrack your night, and I’ll6v-DoubleEEREV122921 see you all on the other side to hear what 2022 brings. m

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music+nightlife

CLUB DATES Events may be canceled due to the coronavirus. Please check with event organizers in advance.

Find the most up-to-date info on live music, DJs, comedy and more at sevendaysvt.com/music. If you’re a talent booker or artist planning live entertainment at a bar, nightclub, café, restaurant, brewery or coffee shop, send event details to music@sevendaysvt.com or submit the info using our form at sevendaysvt.com/postevent.

New Homecoming

THU.30 // RYAN MONTBLEAU BAND [SINGER-SONGWRITER]

RYAN MONTBLEAU had been living like a nomad, spending his

days on the road and living the life of a touring musician.

That all changed, though, after Montbleau recently set down roots in Burlington. Now a full-fledged member of

live music

the Vermont music scene, Montbleau has released four separate EPs titled Wood, Fire, Water and Air. Each EP’s

WED.29

title represents the tone and feel of its songs. But the whole

Irish Sessions (celtic) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 7 p.m. Free.

lot can be combined into a full, 15-track record. Catch the

Like a Chainsaw (Tribute to Limp Bizkit) (Limp Bizkit tribute) at Nectar’s, Burlington, 8 p.m. Free.

newly Vermonted Montbleau live at the Higher Ground Ballroom in South Burlington this Thursday, December 30.

The Nth Power with Beau Sasser, The Sensi All-Stars (soul) at Zenbarn, Waterbury, 8 p.m. $20/$25.

New England roots-rocker WILL EVANS provides support.

Pink Talking Fish with Swimmer (Pink Floyd, Talking Heads, Phish tribute) at Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington, 8 p.m. $20/$23.

Tell Your Friends: Emo Night hosted by Malachi (emo) at Club Metronome, Burlington, 10 p.m. $5.

The Ray Vega Band (jazz) at Hotel Vermont, Burlington, 8:30 p.m.

Free.

FRI.31

Wednesday Night Dead (Grateful Dead covers) at Zenbarn, Waterbury, 7 p.m. $5.

DJ Baron (DJ) at Red Square Blue Room, Burlington, 7 p.m. Free.

THU.30

American Roots Night at Zenbarn, Waterbury, 7 p.m. Free.

Andrew Richards & Company (jazz) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 9 p.m. $10.

Brett Hughes (country) at Filling Station, Middlesex, 6 p.m. Free.

Dalton & the Sheriffs (country) at Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington, 8 p.m. $15/$20.

John Lackard Blues JAM (blues) at Bent Nails Bistro, Montpelier, 7 p.m. Free.

Ryan Montebleau Band with Will Evans (singer-songwriter) at Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington, 8 p.m. $20/$25.

Ryan Sweezey (singer-songwriter) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 6 p.m.

Free.

Ryan Sweezy (singer-songwriter) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 6 p.m.

Free.

FRI.31

The Bubs (indie rock) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 9 p.m. $10.

DJ A-Ra$ (DJ) at Red Square Blue Room, Burlington, 11 p.m. Free.

The Burning Sun (indie rock) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 8 p.m. $10.

Capital City Queens Drag Ball (drag show) at Bent Nails Bistro, Montpelier, 8 p.m. $15.

Cappadonna & Inspectah Deck (hip-hop) at Zenbarn, Waterbury, 7 p.m. $95/$125/$150.

Dave Mitchell’s Blues Revue (blues) at Red Square, Burlington, noon. Free.

Deux Roc (Duroc tribute) at Bent Nails Bistro, Montpelier, 11 p.m. $15.

LaMP - Lawton, Metzger & Paczkowski (jazz, funk) at Nectar’s, Burlington, 7 p.m. $25/$30.

Lush Honey (funk) at Red Square, Burlington, 5 p.m. Free.

New Queers Eve (drag, DJ) at Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington, 9 p.m. $20/$30.

Purple (Prince tribute) at Foam Brewers, Burlington, 10 p.m. $15.

Sticks & Stones (covers) at On Tap Bar & Grill, Essex Junction, 9 p.m. Free.

SELL YOUR

STUFF!

The Wormdogs with Wild Leek River, Lone Gone John (bluegrass) at Arts Riot, Burlington, 8 p.m. $15.

SAT.1

Left Eye Jump (blues) at Red Square, Burlington, 7 p.m. Free.

Wednesday Night Dead (Grateful Dead covers) at Zenbarn, Waterbury, 7 p.m. $5.

djs

Memery (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 1 a.m. Free.

WED.29

DJ Steal Wool (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 6 p.m. Free.

Move B*tch: 2000s Hip Hop Night with DJ Svpply (hip-hop) at Club Metronome, Burlington, 10 p.m. $10.

Honky Tonk Tuesday feat. Pony Hustle (country) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 9 p.m. $5.

Wooly Wednesdays with DJ Steal Wool (eclectic) 6 p.m. Free.

SAT.1

WED.5

DJ Baron (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 10 p.m. Free.

TUE.4

Dead Set (Grateful Dead tribute) at Nectar’s, Burlington, 6 p.m. $20.

Irish Sessions (celtic) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 7 p.m. Free.

Joyner and Aunt Ant (indie rock) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 10:30 p.m. $5.

Painted Birds (indie rock) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 9 p.m. $5.

The Ray Vega Band (jazz) at Hotel Vermont, Burlington, 8:30 p.m.

Free.

DJ CRE8 (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 10 p.m. Free.

THU.30

DJ A-Ra$ (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 10 p.m. Free.

MON.3

DJ CRE8 (DJ) at Red Square Blue Room, Burlington, 10 p.m. Free.

Mi Yard Reggae Night with DJ Big Dog (reggae & dancehall) at Nectar’s, Burlington, 9:30 p.m.

Free.

Molly Mood (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 7 p.m. Free.

Mo’ Monday with DJs Craig Mitchell and Fattie B (soul, R&B) at Monkey House, Winooski, 7 p.m. Free.

WED.5

Wooly Wednesdays with DJ Steal Wool (eclectic) 6 p.m. Free.

Socializing For Introverts (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 6 p.m.

Free.

CLASSIFIEDS

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

footer-classy-stuff.indd 1

DJ Taka (DJ) at Radio Bean, Burlington, 11 p.m. $10.

Molly Mood (DJ) at Red Square, Burlington, 9 p.m. Free.

classifieds.sevendaysvt.com

70

DJ Matt Payne (DJ) at Red Square Blue Room, Burlington, 9 p.m. Free.

comedy WED.29

HED Talks: Powerpoint Comedy (comedy) at Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington, 6:30 p.m. $5.

Standup Comedy Open Mic (comedy open mic) at Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington, 8:30 p.m. Free.

THU.30

The Comedy Lab (comedy) at Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington, 8 p.m. $5.

Mothra! A Storytelling/ Improv Comedy Show (improv comedy) at Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington, 6:30 p.m. $10.

FRI.31

Laurie Kilmartin (comedy) at Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington, 8 p.m. $50/$60.

SAT.1

Laurie Kilmartin (comedy) at Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington, 7 p.m. $40.

trivia, karaoke, etc.

THU.30

Trivia Night (trivia) at Nectar’s, Burlington, 6:30 p.m. Free. m

List your stuff online and in print. Get the most from your post!

CALL

802-865-1020 EXT. 10

STAY CLASSY, VERMONT. 2/8/21 1:58 PM

GOT MUSIC NEWS? MUSIC@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

REVIEW this

What a year for album submissions! In 2021, Vermont’s musicians were flinging records at Seven Days like a bunch of psychopaths with Frisbees. Your friendly neighborhood music editor caught as many as possible, but as the year winds down, we look at some he (almost!) missed, including the following six submissions.

Dave Richardson, Palms to Pines

Jim Yeager, The Lonely Monkey

Windsor’s Dave Richardson makes folk music for the 21st century. While the singer-songwriter’s catalog bears all the hallmarks of the genre, his style and candid writing transcend folk tropes. Take “Apology to Mouse (Recently Deceased),” for instance. Full of delicately plucked acoustic guitar and soft fiddle, the earnest track finds Richardson grappling with the regret of killing a mouse in his house. “A fellow makes his home as a fortress to protect at all costs / And when that boundary is crossed / The instinct to defend kicks in,” he sings by way of explanation to the dead rodent.

Richardson cut Palms to Pines at Dimension Sound Studios with Dan Cardinal, who has produced records for Josh Ritter and Darlingside. It’s a good match, with Cardinal helping Richardson craft a folk record filled with whimsical reflections and clever love songs.

KEY TRACK: “Love for Love.” WHY: Richardson takes the lyrics of a traditional ballad and creates a gorgeous ode to unrequited love. WHERE: dave-richardson.bandcamp.com.

I love a good “lost” album. Woodstock’s Jim Yeager is a prolific singer-songwriter with multiple records under his belt, including 2020’s hard-rocking Identity Crisis.

On The Lonely Monkey, Yeager shows his softer side with a previously unreleased, largely acoustic EP. Originally recorded in 2001 in Philadelphia, the six-song collection is an all-ballads affair. In that more subdued setting, Yeager’s voice shows a surprisingly romantic bent, especially on tracks such as “Lonely in Heaven.”

His acoustic work is still clearly rock music, but on the gentler end of the spectrum. Listening to a record made two decades ago provides insight into a musician’s progression, but The Lonely Monkey demonstrates that Yeager has long been an engaging songwriter.

KEY TRACK: “The Messenger.” WHY: Yeager’s voice is resonant in a song that threatens to go full power ballad but stays reined in. WHERE: jimyeager.bandcamp.com.

(SELF-RELEASED, CD, DIGITAL)

Flywlkr and Gingervitus, Odyssey (SELF-RELEASED, DIGITAL)

If you like your hip-hop new wave’d out, Odyssey, the first foray from Flywlkr and Gingervitus, is for you.

Though tantalizingly brief at just three tracks, the EP is a strong statement from the Burlington duo. “Cloud Boys” establishes the vibe with a glitchy beat, melodic synth work and the two MC-vocalists trading verses. In keeping with a lot of Gen Y hiphop, the vocals are drenched in auto-tune, but the production is tastefully reserved.

Flywlkr and Gingervitus display easy chemistry in songs focused on establishing a flow, both lyrically and rhythmically.

KEY TRACK: “6am.” WHY: It’s a first-world-problems banger, with lyrics such as “All these blunts keep burning my throat / But I keep on smoking cos’ it’s all that I know.” WHERE: Spotify, Apple Music.

Ari Joshua, RAAR EP (MUSIC FACTORY RECORDS, DIGITAL)

South African-born guitarist and songwriter Ari Joshua spent much of his youth learning to play in Seattle, Wash. He studied at the New School in New York City before eventually returning to Seattle to found the Music Factory, an online and in-person music instruction company.

With his new RAAR EP, Joshua has made a decidedly Vermont record, however.

After linking up with Soule Monde and Trey Anastasio Band members Ray Paczkowski and Russ Lawton, Joshua decided to fly out to visit the Tank Recording Studio in Burlington. The trio came away with six tracks of jazz, psychedelic rock and funk jams. The interplay between Paczkowski on keys and Lawton on drums is as telepathic as ever, while Joshua’s guitar work weaves between them in a sort of dance. It’s easy to see why the band wowed the Phish crowd back in October when it debuted at the afterparty for the Vermont foursome’s Las Vegas shows.

KEY TRACK: “Star Lord.” WHY: While Paczkowski locks his organ into a groove with Lawton, Joshua drops lick after lick of jazz-infused guitar solos. WHERE: arijoshua.com.

(SELF-RELEASED, DIGITAL)

Multiple Me, Plastic People in Outer Space (SELF-RELEASED, DIGITAL)

The best way to categorize a band like Multiple Me might be to call it ADD rock. The local alt-rock trio channels a host of influences on its third record, Plastic People in Outer Space. Opening track “The Way You Move” leaps out like a cross between the tongue-in-cheek metal of the Darkness and stoned-out pop punk. The title track shades closer to ’80s new-wave anthems, and “Molecular Disco” pulls hard from ’90s arena-rock source material.

The variance in styles scarcely interrupts the flow or glorious weirdness of the record. With instrumental aplomb and clever lyrics, Multiple Me never let the energy ebb over 13 tracks. For a band that describes itself as “just three dudes from Vermont who like playing music,” Multiple Me have a lot going on, both on and under the surface.

KEY TRACK: “If You Were Mine.” WHY: The band goes full U2, swinging for the fences with echo-laden guitars and soaring vocals. WHERE: Spotify and Apple Music.

The Michele Fay Band, Zucchini Days (SELF-RELEASED, CD, DIGITAL)

The fifth record from the Michele Fay Band, Zucchini Days, finds the Ripton Americana act playing to its strengths. As they did on 2015’s Believe, the MFB present a tight, traditional-leaning set that moves through Appalachian folk, swing and bluegrass. Fay has a keen melodic sense and an evocative voice that rarely goes for bombast. Her backing band is a well-drilled unit: Tim Price on guitar and mandolin, Mike Santosusso on bass, Kalev Freeman and Freeman Corey on fiddle, and multiinstrumentalist Colin McCaffrey (who also engineered and mixed Zucchini Days).

The group has been making records since 2007, and the players’ comfort level is apparent on the breezy, pleasantly anachronistic songs. Without a doubt, the MFB have dialed in exactly how they want to sound. That sort of consistency, paired with solid songwriting, establishes Zucchini Days as the band’s best offering to date.

KEY TRACK: “By the Otter Creek.” WHY: Fay’s voice shines as she sings of mountain waters and northern geese. WHERE: michelefayband.com.

CHRIS FARNSWORTH

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

71

on screen Journal of Another Plague Year in Film High and low points of 2021 film

B Y M ARG OT HAR RI S ON • margot@sevendaysvt.com

O

ver the summer, it seemed as if moviegoing might return to “normal.” With COVID-19 cases on the decline and state restrictions lifted, indoor theaters reopened their doors. On a rainy Sunday at the Essex Cinemas, I saw The Green Knight in a crowd of maskless people, most of whom didn’t seem to realize they’d turned out for an art flick and not a rousing Arthurian adventure.

Like me, they were probably just excited to be in a theater.

What a difference five months makes.

Many theaters now require face masks again. Schedules remain curtailed. When I saw West Side Story at Merrill’s Roxy Cinemas, only five people were there to savor Steven Spielberg’s exuberant spectacle on the big screen it deserved.

It’s too early to say how many movie theaters will survive this pandemic. One thing is for sure, though: COVID-19 has exacerbated industry trends that were apparent well before 2020. In 2021, the list of big box-office earners consisted almost solely of franchise and family films. While superheroes continued to soar, seemingly crowd-pleasing musicals flopped — even West Side Story, which is sure to be a major awards contender.

Here’s what stands out about 2021 for me: With the exception of 2007, the year I started reviewing, it’s the only year in which I saw not one superhero film. I went from reviewing one such flick in 2008 to five in 2019 — a shift that reflects the changing landscape of American film. Nearly gone from theaters are rom-coms and middlebrow dramas, replaced by action, animation, and endless sequels, prequels and origin stories.

Vermonters are lucky enough to have several theaters that still screen smaller, indie films. Case in point: The latest from local filmmaker Jay Craven, Jack London’s Martin Eden, will have a Vermont International Film Foundation screening on January 6 and then play for a week at Montpelier’s Savoy Theater (starting on January 7) and St. Johnsbury’s Catamount Arts (starting on January 8).

For many film fans, though, streaming has become the dominant way to watch.

That even applies to some blockbusters, given Warner Bros.’ decision to release its entire 2021 slate simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max. For me, the future of film poses a dilemma: I love theaters, but I don’t love the kinds of movies that dominate theaters these days. In 2021, freed from the grip of the theatrical release schedule, I saw all sorts of “smaller” movies instead — and it was pretty awesome.

Here are some of my highlights and lowlights from this year’s releases. When applicable, I’ve noted where the films are streaming with a subscription; many can also be rented on demand.

MOVIES

72

Daphne Patakia (left) and Virginie Efira in Benedetta

COURTESY OF SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES

COURTESY OF IFC FILMS

Most kick-ass woman of a certain age

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

This year, the always-regal Charlotte Rampling played two mother figures you wouldn’t want to mess with: Reverend Mother Mohiam in Dune and the Mother Superior in Benedetta. While the latter had more screen time, both were formidable.

Perhaps even more kick-ass, however, was Rita Moreno, a standout alumna of the 1961 West Side Story who returned in Spielberg’s version to play a character written just for her. Ninety years old this month, she brings down the house with her rendition of “Somewhere.”

Most gripping documentary

This year brought us fine documentaries on many subjects, ranging from the joyful Summer of Soul (or… When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (Hulu) to the tense and mournful COVID-19 doc In the Same Breath (HBO Max).

My personal favorite is Flee, a Danish doc currently in limited theatrical release.

Director Jonas Poher Rasmussen pairs interviews with animation and news footage to illustrate the harrowing story of Amin Nawabi, who fled Afghanistan as a child. Told mostly in Nawabi’s own words, the story is as compelling as any drama, offering an indelible account of the refugee experience — the trauma of displacement, the grief of separation and the soul-crushing uncertainty of waiting.

The 5th Dimension performing in Summer of Soul

Best line delivery

Princess Diana (Kristen Stewart) to her

dresser in Spencer, in a breezily imperious tone: “Now leave me, I wish to masturbate.”

Bill Murray in The French Dispatch

Best plague film

The invisible force threatening the characters in Claudia Llosa’s literary adaptation Fever Dream (Netflix) is not actually a virus. But the Peruvian director’s film about an interrupted summer idyll captures the skin-crawling sensation of knowing something microscopic and very bad might be invading your body at any second. It’s almost too real.

So maybe Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (Hulu) isn’t a comic masterpiece for the ages. But cowriting costars Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo are clearly having a ball in this very silly movie about two Midwestern, culotte-wearing BFFs who foil an evil mastermind’s plot. And the fun they’re having is contagious.

Best WTF movie

If you’ve been reading my reviews, you know I’m partial to movies that make me say, “What was that?” It’s a stereotype, bien sûr, but French filmmakers seem to have a special knack for tying our brains in knots.

This year, I had high hopes for Julia Ducournau’s Titane, a body horror film about a woman with an erotic fixation on cars. But that movie, which won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, approaches its characters so elliptically that it’s ultimately more fun to describe its bizarre plot twists than to watch them.

So, this year’s WTF title goes to Leos Carax’s Annette (Amazon Prime Video), by far the oddest musical of 2021. Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard play a pair of show-biz archetypes who somehow give birth to a puppet that evokes more pathos than many real child actors do. Both visually and aurally, it’s a sumptuous film for those who like their musicals with a hefty dose of dark humor.

Most exquisite filmmaking

Every frame of Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch looks like a poster I would hang on my wall. Combining black-and-white and color cinematography, live action and animation, meticulously constructed

As already mentioned, musicals were plentiful this year, with In the Heights and West Side Story hitting many joyous notes. But for a refreshing lack of cynicism, you can’t beat the South by Southwest sensation Best Summer Ever (Hulu), which was produced and shot in Vermont by the Lincoln nonprofit Zeno Mountain Farm.

Not only are the tunes tuneful, the lyrics clever and the choreography exhilarating, but the movie also features people with disabilities in major roles, including a wheelchair-using heroine with a killer voice. Best Summer Ever isn’t about disability; it simply shows that no-fuss inclusiveness is possible. Hollywood should take note.

COURTESY OF SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES/TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX

Best on-screen friendship

COURTESY OF NIKO TAVERNISE/TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX

Maybe the trailers led me to expect too much from House of Gucci. I was psyched for glitz, glam, Gaga and murder, but what I got was a leisurely 158-minute biopic that never gets under the skin of its characters or gives us any reason to care about them.

Ah, but at least the faux Italian accents, ranging in commitment from half-hearted (Jeremy Irons) to full provolone (Jared Leto), were entertaining.

Sweetest musical

COURTESY OF PABLO LARRAÍN/NEON

Biggest bore

tableaux and breakneck physical comedy, this film about a New Yorker-type publication is a feast for the eyes.

And yet, as a narrative, I found the movie a little too broad (the town of Ennui-surBlasé, anyone?) and a little too inert. Mileage may vary.

Best book-and-movie pairing

Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog (Netflix) is a powerfully acted, visually stunning revisionist Western that could triumph come awards time. And yet, watching it, I kept feeling as if the characters’ interactions had more subtext than was apparent on the screen.

When I picked up Thomas Savage’s 1967 novel, I found all the layers of context I’d missed in the movie. An unsung masterpiece, the book enhances the film version, and vice versa.

Best film

Ariana DeBose (center) in West Side Story

Kristen Stewart in Spencer

Among likely award contenders I couldn’t see by press time were Adam McKay’s satire Don’t Look Up (Netflix, December 24) and Paul Thomas Anderson’s comingof-age dramedy Licorice Pizza (in theaters).

So far, my favorite film of 2021 is Paul Verhoeven’s Benedetta. Because 1) it was a bit of a WTF; 2) it made me think (believe it or not, the director of Showgirls sees himself as a serious scholar of the life of Jesus); and 3) it told an actual story, with twists and turns and evolving characters.

Many art-house directors seem to think it’s enough for their films to set a mood — telling a rousing good yarn is the job of streaming TV. For the reasons I mentioned in my introduction, today’s prestige TV does indeed tell many of the complex, “grown-up” stories that movies used to tell. Case in point: Barry Jenkins’ “The Underground Railroad” (Amazon Prime Video), a limited series that was one of my best “cinematic” experiences of the year.

Let’s raise a glass to seeing more great stories on the big screen in 2022. m

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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EVENTS MAY BE CANCELED DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS. PLEASE CHECK WITH EVENT ORGANIZERS IN ADVANCE.

calendar

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

WED.29 crafts

FIRESIDE KNITTING GROUP: Needle jockeys gather to chat and work on their latest projects. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Free. Info, 888-3853.

film

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: An educational and entertaining film takes viewers on an epic adventure through some of Earth’s wildest landscapes. Northfield Savings Bank 3D Theater: A National Geographic Experience, ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, Burlington, 11:30 a.m., 1:30 & 3:30 p.m. $3-5 plus regular admission, $14.50-18; admission free for members and kids 2 and under. Info, 864-1848.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: Moviegoers join scientists on a journey through a surreal world of bug-eyed giants and egg-laying mammals. Northfield Savings Bank 3D Theater: A National Geographic Experience, ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, Burlington, 11 a.m., 1 & 3 p.m. $3-5 plus regular admission, $14.50-18; admission free for members and kids 2 and under. Info, 864-1848.

‘THE MAN WITH A PLAN’: An old Vermont farmer decides to run for Congress in this cult classic satirical mockumentary. Catamount Arts Center, St. Johnsbury, 6 p.m. Free.

Info, 748-2600.

MOVIE NIGHT: Tim Burton’s beloved film starring Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder screens in the library’s auditorium. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 6-8 p.m.

Free. Info, 846-4140.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: Sparkling graphics take viewers on a mind-bending journey from the beginning of the time through the mysteries of the universe. Northfield Savings Bank 3D Theater: A National Geographic Experience, ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, Burlington, 10:30 a.m., 12:30, 2:30 & 4:30 p.m. $3-5 plus regular admission, $14.50-18; admission free for members and kids 2 and under. Info, 864-1848.

food & drink

SENIOR CENTER WEEKLY LUNCH: Age Well and the Kevin L. Dorn Senior Center serve a hot, sit-down lunch.

South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 12:30 p.m.

Donations; preregister; limited space. Info, 923-5545.

WEEKLY WINE TASTING: Themed in-store tastings take oenophiles on an adventure through a wine region, grape variety, style of wine or

LIST YOUR UPCOMING EVENT HERE FOR FREE! All submissions must be received by Thursday at noon for consideration in the following Wednesday’s newspaper.

Find our convenient form and guidelines at sevendaysvt.com/postevent.

Listings and spotlights are written by Emily Hamilton. Seven Days edits for space and style. Depending on cost and other factors, classes and workshops may be listed in either the calendar or the classes section. Class organizers may be asked to purchase a class listing.

games

CHESS CLUB: Players of all ages square off against each other at every level from beginner to seasoned. Howe Library, Hanover, N.H., 6-8 p.m.

Free. Info, 603-643-4120.

health & fitness

ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION EXERCISE PROGRAM: Those in need of an easy-on-the-joints workout gather for an hour of calming, low-impact movement. United Community Church, St. Johnsbury, 1:302:30 p.m. Free; preregister.

Info, 751-0431.

seminars

CITIZENSHIP TEST PREP CLASS: Adult green card holders practice English literacy and expand their civics knowledge. Winooski Memorial Library, 10-11:30 a.m.

Free; preregister. Info, 654-1704.

theater

‘THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE’: Four siblings discover a world of talking animals and nefarious winter witches in this C.S. Lewis classic performed

by Northern Stage student actors.

Byrne Theater, Barrette Center for the Arts, White River Junction, 7:30 p.m. $19-29. Info, 296-7000.

THU.30

» P.76

DEC. 31 | HOLIDAYS

FALL PREVENTION SUNSTYLE TAI CHI: Humans boost their strength and balance through gentle, flowing movements. Twin Valley Senior Center, East Montpelier, 10:3011:15 a.m. Free; preregister.

Info, 223-3322.

TAI CHI: SUN-STYLE 73: A sequence of slow, controlled motions aids in strength and balance. Twin Valley Senior Center, East Montpelier, 11:20 a.m.-noon. Free. Info, 223-3322.

holidays

‘’TWAS THE NIGHT...’: The New England Center for Circus Arts’ annual holiday extravaganza streams

art Find visual art exhibits and events in the Art section and at sevendaysvt.com/art.

film See what’s playing at theaters in the On Screensection.

music + nightlife Find club dates at local venues in the Music + Nightlife section online at sevendaysvt.com/music.

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

FESTIVAL OF TREES: DOWNTOWN TREE WALK: Local businesses deck out their display windows with quirky and captivating Christmas trees. Downtown St. Albans. Free. Info, vtfestivalof trees@gmail.com.

WINTER LIGHTS: Warm drinks in hand, visitors take in the all-aglow museum grounds.

Shelburne Museum, 5-8 p.m. $10-15; free for kids 2 and under; preregister. Info, 985-3346.

EARN WHILE YOU LEARN: Unemployed job seekers ages 55 and up learn about the Senior Community Service Employment Program, a federally funded jobs training program for older individuals. 9-10 a.m. Free.

Info, mcullen@a4td.org.

CHAIR YOGA: Waterbury Public Library instructor Diana Whitney leads at-home participants in gentle stretches supported by seats.

10 a.m. Free. Info, 244-7036.

FIND MORE LOCAL EVENTS IN THIS ISSUE AND ONLINE:

Learn more about highlighted listings in the Magnificent 7 on page 11.

74

producer’s offerings. Dedalus Wine Shop, Market & Wine Bar, Burlington, 5-8 p.m. Free. Info, 865-2368.

CHRISTMAS AT THE FARM: Merrymakers dip candles, toast s’mores and snowshoe across the grounds, all while taking in traditional 19th-century decorations. Billings Farm & Museum, Woodstock, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Regular admission, $8-16; free for members and kids 3 and under.

Info, 457-2355.

THT’S HOLIDAY JUKEBOX: Local musicians package together a jolly, joyful, virtual revue to benefit Middlebury’s Giving Fridge. $10-25; preregister.

Info, 382-9222.

= ONLINE EVENT

Auld Lang Syne The Queen City’s annual New Year’s Eve bash goes hybrid, with in-person, virtual and combination events making for the most accessible Highlight festival yet. Online programming and locations across Burlington, including Burlington City Arts, the ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, the Fletcher Free Library and Vermont Comedy Club, pack the day and evening with fun and fireworks for revelers of every age. Families catch high-flying feats by Circus Smirkus; party people enjoy fine dining and islandthemed cocktails from Adventure Dinner; and music lovers rock the night away with bands such as Sylvie, Marcie Hernandez, and Jenni Johnson & the Jazz Junketeers.

HIGHLIGHT Friday, December 31, 11 a.m.-midnight, online and at various Burlington locations. $10-215.

Info, hello@highlight.community, highlight.community.

COURTESY OF VINCENT COTNOIR

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: A tenacious mammalian matriarch fights to protect her family in a desolate environment.

Northfield Savings Bank 3D Theater: A National Geographic Experience, ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, Burlington, 10:30 a.m., 12:30, 2:30 & 4:30 p.m. $3-5 plus regular admission, $11.50-14.50; admission free for members and kids 2 and under. Info, 864-1848.

online for high-flying fun from home. $15-50. Info, 254-9780.

LIST YOUR EVENT FOR FREE AT SEVENDAYSVT.COM/POSTEVENT

FAMILY FUN Check out these family-friendly events for parents, caregivers and kids of all ages.

• Plan ahead at sevendaysvt.com/family-fun.

• Post your event at sevendaysvt.com/postevent.

WED.29

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: Mothers-to-be build strength, stamina and a stronger connection to their baby. 5:45-6:45 p.m. $5-15. Info, 899-0339.

burlington

ITTY BITTY PUBLIC SKATE: Coaches are on hand to help the rink’s tiniest skaters stay on their feet. Gordon H. Paquette Ice Arena, Burlington, 10:30-11:30 a.m. $8. Info, 865-7558.

STEAM SPACE: Kids explore science, technology, engineering, art and math activities. Ages 5 through 11. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 5:30-7 p.m.

Free. Info, 863-3403.

northeast kingdom

STORYTIME BY APPOINTMENT: Kiddos get one-on-one reading and play time in 30-minute time slots, plus an activity to take home. St. Johnsbury Athenaeum, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 745-1391.

outside vermont

PLAYGROUP FOR AGES 0-2: Babies, toddlers and their caretakers meet new friends and play to their hearts’ content.

Howe Library, Hanover, N.H., 9:30-11 a.m.

Free. Info, 603-643-4120.

THU.30

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 12:30-1:30 p.m.

burlington

SLED DOGS LIVE: October Siberians brings its impressive team of huskies for a meet and greet on the terrace.

ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, Burlington, 11 a.m., 12:30 & 2 p.m.

Regular admission, $14.50-18; free for members and kids 2 and under. Info, 864-1848.

chittenden county

PRESCHOOL MUSIC WITH LINDA BASSICK: The singer and storyteller extraordinaire leads little ones in indoor music and movement. Birth through age 5. Masks required for kids 2 and up. Dorothy Alling Memorial Library, Williston, 10:30-11 & 11:30 a.m.-noon.

Free; preregister; limited space. Info, 878-4918.

STORY TIME: Librarians read their favorite books and lead little ones in song and dance. Masks required ages 2 and up.

Winooski Memorial Library, 11 a.m. Free.

Info, 655-6424.

barre/montpelier

PRESCHOOL STORY TIME: Energetic youngsters join Miss Meliss for stories, songs and lots of silliness. Masks required for all kids 2 and up. Kellogg-Hubbard

Library, Montpelier, 10:30 a.m. Free; limited space. Info, 223-3338.

stowe/smuggs

MIDDLE SCHOOL ADVISORY BOARD MEETING: Students ages 10 through 12 kick off the library’s new participatory program for preteens. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 3 p.m.

Free. Info, 888-3853.

middlebury area

DIY ENGLISH MUFFIN PIZZAS: Teenage cooks warm up with their friends by baking their own mini pizza pies. Ilsley Public Library, Middlebury, 1-2 p.m. Free.

Info, 388-4095.

MNFF SELECTS FILM SERIES: ‘SHEPHERD: THE STORY OF A JEWISH DOG’: The family-friendly movie series continues with the story of a pup separated from his boy in 1930s Germany.

Town Hall Theater, Middlebury, 7 p.m. $7-16. Info, 382-9222.

upper valley

PARENT & CAREGIVER MEETUP & PLAYGROUP: Those with new and prewalking babies gather to chat and sip coffee while the little ones play. Older siblings welcome. BYO mug. Norwich Public Library, 11 a.m.-noon. Free. Info, roger.arnold@norwichlibrary.org.

TODDLER STORY TIME: Toddling tykes 20 months through 3.5 years old hear a few stories related to the theme of the week. Norman Williams Public Library, Woodstock, 10:30 a.m. Free. Info, 457-2295.

FRI.31

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 12:30-1:15 p.m.

burlington

NOON YEARS EVE: A fun-filled story time counts down to 2022, with a confetti toss at noon. Ages 2 through 6.

Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 11:30 a.m.-noon. Free. Info, 863-3403.

stowe/smuggs

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: Players ages 9 through 13 go on a fantasy adventure with dungeon master Andy. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 3:304:30 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 888-3853.

SAT.1

burlington

NYE DROP-IN FUN FOR KIDS: Curious elementary-age kids explore the fun of science, art and technology with Legos, crafts and other activities. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, noon-3 p.m. Free.

Info, 863-3403.

SUN.2

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 10:15-11:15 a.m.

PERSONAL MEETINGS & STORY TIME WITH MRS. CLAUS: Santa’s better half reads festive books over a video call in half-hour time slots.

Presented by GigginVT and New Hampshire’s Christmas Farm Inn & Spa. 5:45-6:15 p.m. $30; preregister. Info, 503-0001.

MON.3

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29.

PERSONAL MEETINGS & STORY TIME WITH MRS. CLAUS: See SUN.2.

burlington

ITTY BITTY PUBLIC SKATE: See WED.29.

STORIES WITH MEGAN: Bookworms ages 2 through 5 enjoy fun-filled reading time. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 11-11:30 a.m. Free. Info, 863-3403.

barre/montpelier

SHAKESPEARE CLUB FOR TEENS: Burgeoning bards work together to put on a play or make a movie. Masks required. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, Montpelier, 5:30-8 p.m. Free. Info, 223-3338.

TUE.4

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 12:30-1:30 p.m.

chittenden county

ARTS & CRAFTERNOONS: From painting to print-making and collage to sculpture, creative kids explore different projects and mediums. Ages 8 and up, or ages 6 and up with an adult helper. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 3-4:30 p.m. Free. Info, 846-4140.

STORY TIME: See THU.30.

TODDLER TIME: Miss Kelly and her puppets, Bainbow and La-La, take over the Wiggle Room for a story hour geared towards kids ages 1 through 3. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Free. Info, 846-4140.

barre/montpelier

PRESCHOOL STORY TIME: See THU.30.

stowe/smuggs

FULL STEAM AHEAD TUESDAYS: Kids learn art, science and math through games and crafts, including paper airplane races, Lego competitions and origami. Ages 6 and up. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 3:304:30 p.m. Free. Info, 888-3853.

PRESCHOOL STORY TIME: The 5-andunder crowd meets up for an hour of stories, songs, crafts and playtime. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Free. Info, 888-3853.

upper valley

BABY STORY TIME: Librarians and finger puppet friends introduce babies 20 months and younger to the joy of reading. Norman Williams Public Library, Woodstock, 10:30 a.m. Free. Info, 457-2295.

WED.5

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29.

burlington

CRAFTERNOON: Weaving, knitting, embroidery and paper crafting supplies take over the Teen Space. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 3-4:30 p.m. Free.

Info, 863-3403.

ITTY BITTY PUBLIC SKATE: See WED.29.

SPANISH MUSICAL KIDS: Vengan a cantar y aprender! Kids ages 1 through 5 learn Spanish through song out on the

lawn. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 11-11:45 a.m. Free. Info, 863-3403.

STEAM SPACE: See WED.29.

chittenden county

BABYTIME: Teeny tiny library patrons enjoy a gentle, slow story time featuring songs, rhymes and lap play. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 10:30-11 a.m. Free. Info, 846-4140.

LEGO BUILDERS: Elementary-age imagineers explore, create and participate in challenges after school. Ages 8 and up, or ages 6 and up with an adult helper.

South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 3-4:30 p.m. Free. Info, 846-4140.

STORY TIME: Little ones from birth through age 5 learn from songs, sign language lessons, math activities and picture books. Masks required. Brownell Library, Essex Junction, 10:30-11 a.m.

Free. Info, 878-6956.

stowe/smuggs

TEEN ADVISORY BOARD MEETING: Teenagers snack on free food and take an active role in their local library. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 3-4 p.m. Free. Info, youthservices@centenniallibrary.org.

THU.6

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 12:30-1:30 p.m.

burlington

BABYTIME: Librarians bring out books, rhymes and songs specially selected for young ones. Ages birth to 18 months.

Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 10:1510:45 a.m. Free. Info, 863-3403.

T(W)EEN WRITER’S GROUP: Budding authors, scriptwriters and graphic novelists ages 10 and up learn more about the craft via prompts and group exercises.

Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 3-4 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 863-3403.

chittenden county STORY TIME: See THU.30.

barre/montpelier

PRESCHOOL STORY TIME: See THU.30.

stowe/smuggs

MIDDLE SCHOOL ADVISORY BOARD MEETING: See THU.30.

upper valley

PARENT & CAREGIVER MEETUP & PLAYGROUP: See THU.30.

TODDLER STORY TIME: See THU.30.

FRI.7

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 12:30-1:15 p.m.

chittenden county

LEEP VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY: MAKE SNOWFLAKES: Middle schoolers make it snow by cutting paper snowflakes to decorate the library. Brownell Library, Essex Junction, 4-5 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 878-6956.

OUTDOOR PLAY TIME: Energetic tykes ages 2 through 5 bundle up to play with hoops and parachutes out in the snow.

Brownell Library, Essex Junction, 11:30 a.m.-noon. Free. Info, 878-6956.

PAJAMA STORY TIME: Puppets and picture books enhance a special prebedtime story hour for kids in their PJs. Birth through age 5. Masks required.

Brownell Library, Essex Junction, 5:30-6 p.m. Free. Info, 878-6956.

barre/montpelier

STORY TIME & PLAYGROUP: New youth librarian Sasha McGarvey encourages creativity and exploration in kids under 6. Jaquith Public Library, Marshfield, 10:30 a.m. Free. Info, 426-3581.

stowe/smuggs

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: See FRI.31.

SAT.8

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 8:30-9:15 a.m.

burlington

FLYNNZONE KIDS HOUR: EMMA COOK: The Music for Sprouts educator leads audience members ages 3 through 5 in movement, song and improv activities.

The Flynn, Burlington, 10 a.m. Free. Info, 863-5966.

chittenden county

DROP-IN FAMILY CRAFT TIME: The whole fam chooses a winter-themed project to make together. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Free. Info, 846-4140.

LEGO FUN: Wee builders of all ages construct creations to be displayed in the library. Children under 8 must bring a caregiver. Brownell Library, Essex Junction, 10 a.m.-noon. Free. Info, 878-6956.

upper valley

CREEPY CRAWLY CRAFT PARTY: Bug buffs of all ages learn about the inspiring world of insects through crafts and science activities. See calendar spotlight. Montshire Museum of Science, Norwich, 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Regular admission, $14-17; free for members and kids under 2. Info, 649-2200.

SUN.9

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 10:15-11:15 a.m.

burlington

DAD GUILD: Fathers and their kids from birth through age 5 drop in for playtime and connection. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 3:30-5 p.m. Free. Info, 863-3403.

DROP-IN 3D PRINTING: MINECRAFT KEYCHAINS: Teens and tweens stop by to print their very own blocky, video game-themed keychains. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 4:30-6 p.m. Free.

Info, 863-3403.

GENDER CREATIVE KIDS: Trans and gender non-conforming kiddos under 13 and their families enjoy coloring, games and snacks. Outright Vermont, Burlington, 2-4 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, david@ outrightvt.org.

SENSORY-FRIENDLY SUNDAY: Folks of all ages with sensory processing differences have the museum to themselves, with adjusted lights and sounds and FAMILY FUN, SUN.9

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film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

THU.30 business

HIRING2DAYVT VIRTUAL JOB FAIR: The Vermont Department of Labor gives job seekers a chance to meet with employers from around the state.

11 a.m.-noon. Free. Info, 828-4000.

crafts

THURSDAY ZOOM KNITTERS: The Norman Williams Public Library fiber arts club meets virtually for conversation and crafting. 2-3 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, programs@normanwilliams.org.

6-8 p.m. Various prices. Info, gustogastronomics@gmail.com.

games

holidays

‘’TWAS THE NIGHT...’: See WED.29.

CHRISTMAS AT THE FARM: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

WHIST CARD GAME CLUB: Players of all experience levels congregate for some friendly competition. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 12:30-3 p.m.

Free. Info, 888-3853.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

health & fitness

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

food & drink

SUP CON GUSTO TAKEAWAY DINNER SERIES: Philly transplants Randy Camacho and Gina Cocchiaro serve up a three-course, family-style menu of seasonal Vermont produce and meat. See supcongustovt.com for menus.

Richmond Community Kitchen,

LIBRARY YOGA WITH LINDA: Every week is a new adventure in movement and mindfulness at this Morristown Centennial Library virtual class.

10:15-11:15 a.m. Free. Info, 888-3853.

FAMILY FUN

film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

FESTIVAL OF TREES: DOWNTOWN TREE WALK: See WED.29.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

THT’S HOLIDAY JUKEBOX: See WED.29.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

WINTER LIGHTS: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

theater

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

‘THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE’: See WED.29, 2 & 7:30 p.m.

food & drink

JAN. 8 | FAMILY FUN

DAVE KELLER’S NYE DANCE PARTY!: The bluesman rings in the New Year, courtesy of the Bethany Center for Spirituality

STORY TIME: See THU.30.

TODDLER TIME: See TUE.4.

barre/montpelier

PRESCHOOL STORY TIME: See TUE.4.

upper valley

BABY STORY TIME: See TUE.4.

WED.12

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29.

burlington

CRAFTERNOON: See WED.5.

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29.

ITTY BITTY PUBLIC SKATE: See WED.29.

burlington

SPANISH MUSICAL KIDS: See WED.5.

ITTY BITTY PUBLIC SKATE: See WED.29.

STEAM SPACE: See WED.29.

chittenden county

STORIES WITH MEGAN: See MON.3.

barre/montpelier

BABYTIME: See WED.5.

COMICS CLUB!: Graphic novel and manga fans in fourth or fifth grade meet to talk about what they’re reading and do fun activities together. Hosted

by Brownell Library. Essex Teen Center, Essex Junction, 3-4 p.m. Free. Info, 878-6956.

SHAKESPEARE CLUB FOR TEENS: See MON.3.

TUE.11

ONLINE PRENATAL YOGA: See WED.29, 12:30-1:30 p.m.

LEGO BUILDERS: See WED.5.

burlington

STORY TIME: See WED.5.

stowe/smuggs

Insects and Imagination Kiddos obsessed with all things wriggly and squiggly swarm to the Montshire Museum of Science’s Creepy Crawly Craft Party, an all-day extravaganza of bug-themed art and activities. Daring little entomologists attend a meet and greet with the museum’s collection of critters. Future researchers look at insects through microscopes and draw their favorites. Hands-on crafters go crazy with rubber stamps, play with puzzles, and craft their own fuzzy caterpillar friends or beautiful butterfly toys.

Along the way, everyone learns fun facts, such as what makes butterfly wings so colorful and why centipedes have so many legs.

CREEPY CRAWLY CRAFT PARTY Saturday, January 8, 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., at Montshire Museum of Science in Norwich.

Regular admission, $14-17; free for members and kids under 2. Info, 649-2200, montshire.org.

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CHRISTMAS AT THE FARM: See WED.29.

FULL STEAM AHEAD TUESDAYS: See TUE.4.

MON.10

CARTOONING CLASS WITH RICK STROMOSKI: Aspiring illustrators learn how to create characters, draw facial expressions and depict their favorite animals. For elementary students. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Free; preregister. Info, sbplprograms@ southburlingtonvt.gov.

‘’TWAS THE NIGHT...’: See WED.29.

stowe/smuggs

trusty sensory backpacks. ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, Burlington, 9-10 a.m. Free. Info, kvonderlinn@ echovermont.org.

chittenden county

QIGONG WITH GERRY SANDWEISS: Beginners learn this ancient Chinese practice of meditative movement.

Presented by Norman Williams Public Library. 8:30-9:30 a.m.

Free; preregister. Info, programs@ normanwilliams.org.

PRESCHOOL STORY TIME: See THU.30.

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TABLETOP: The Pickering Room fills up with snacks and board games.

Ages 10 and up. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 3:30-5 p.m. Free. Info, 863-3403.

ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION EXERCISE PROGRAM: See WED.29.

holidays

MIDDLEBURY FARMERS MARKET: Produce, prepared foods and local products are available for purchase at this year-round bazaar.

Middlebury VFW Hall, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Free. Info, middleburyfarmers mkt@yahoo.com.

Check out these family-friendly events for parents, caregivers and kids of all ages.

• Plan ahead at sevendaysvt.com/family-fun.

• Post your event at sevendaysvt.com/postevent.

FAMILY FUN, SUN.9

health & fitness

FRI.31

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

P.E.N. TEEN CREATIVE WRITING GROUP: Writers of anything from poetry to fan fiction convene to discuss their work. Ages 12 through 18. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 3-4:30 p.m. Free. Info, youthservices@centenniallibrary.org. K

Wishing you a safe and joyous holiday season.

LIST YOUR EVENT FOR FREE AT SEVENDAYSVT.COM/POSTEVENT

Through the Arts. BYOB. Masks and proof of vaccination required. Bethany United Church of Christ, Montpelier, 7 p.m. $35; preregister; limited space. Info, bethanycsa21@gmail.com.

FESTIVAL OF TREES: DOWNTOWN TREE WALK: See WED.29.

FIRST NIGHT NORTH: Local institutions throw a New Years’ Eve party packed with music, comedy, fireworks and more.

See catamountarts.org for full schedule. Masks and proof of vaccination required. Various St. Johnsbury locations, 4 p.m.-midnight. $15-30; free for preschoolers. Info, 748-2600.

HIGHLIGHT: The Queen City’s all-day and all-night New Year’s Eve festival features music, magic, fireworks and family fun.

Virtual options available. See highlight.community for full schedule. See calendar spotlight.

Various Burlington locations, 11-midnight. $10-215. Info, hello@ highlight.community.

NEW YEAR’S EVE TROPICAL OASIS: Surf rock tunes, tropical drinks, an indoor beach and a four-course tropical meal ring in 2022 island style. BCA Studios, Burlington, 6 p.m.midnight. $215. Info, sas@ adventuredinner.com.

THT’S HOLIDAY JUKEBOX: See WED.29.

WINTER LIGHTS: See WED.29.

music

BURLINGTON DOES BROADWAY: Some of Vermont’s finest singers and musicians lovingly reimagine Golden Age classics and contemporary favorites of the Great White Way. Flynn Main Stage, Burlington, 7:30 p.m. $3565. Info, 863-5966.

theater

‘THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE’: See WED.29.

FOMO? Find even more local events in this newspaper and online:

art Find visual art exhibits and events in the Art section and at sevendaysvt.com/art.

film See what’s playing at theaters in the On Screensection.

music + nightlife Find club dates at local venues in the Music + Nightlife section online at sevendaysvt.com/ music.

Learn more about highlighted listings in the Magnificent 7 on page 11.

= ONLINE EVENT

SAT.1

SUN.2

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

film

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘CINDERELLA’: An all-new English translation of Massenet’s Cendrillon graces the screen, courtesy of the Metropolitan Opera. Catamount Arts Center, St. Johnsbury, 12:55 p.m. $16-25.

Info, 748-2600.

‘CINDERELLA’: See SAT.1. Town Hall Theater, Middlebury, 1 p.m. $10-24. Info, 382-9222.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

WOODSTOCK VERMONT FILM SERIES: ‘KEDI’: A Turkish documentarian reveals the lives and loves of the street cats of Istanbul. Masks and proof of vaccination required. Billings Farm & Museum, Woodstock, 3 & 5:30 p.m. $12-15; $115-130 for season pass. Info, 457-2355.

food & drink

WEEKLY WINE TASTING: See WED.29. Dedalus Wine Shop, Market & Wine Bar, Stowe, noon3 p.m. Info, 585-7717.

games

BEGINNER DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: Waterbury Public Library game master Evan Hoffman gathers novices and veterans alike for an afternoon of virtual adventuring. Teens and adults welcome. Noon-4 p.m.

Free. Info, 244-7036.

holidays

‘’TWAS THE NIGHT...’: See WED.29.

CHRISTMAS AT THE FARM: See WED.29, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

THT’S HOLIDAY JUKEBOX: See WED.29.

WINTER LIGHTS: See WED.29, 5-8 p.m.

music

THE BLACK JACKET SYMPHONY: SOLD OUT. The rock tribute band makes its Vermont debut with a full, meticulous re-creation of Queen’s A Night at the Opera.

Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center, Stowe Mountain Resort, 7 p.m. $35-45. Info, 760-4634.

BURLINGTON TAIKO: The Japanese-inspired drum group gives an outdoor concert by the bonfire. Highland Center for the Arts, Greensboro, 1-3 p.m. Free.

Info, 533-2000.

theater

‘THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE’: See WED.29, 2 & 7:30 p.m.

Celebrate

film

Sober!

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

health & fitness

COMMUNITY MINDFULNESS PRACTICE: New and experienced meditators are always welcome to join this weekly class, virtually or in person. Evolution Physical Therapy & Yoga, Burlington, 6:30-8:30 p.m. Donations. Info, newleafsangha@gmail.com.

holidays

‘’TWAS THE NIGHT...’: See WED.29.

CHRISTMAS AT THE FARM: See WED.29, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Resources to help available at www.howardcenter.org

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HOW’S THE RIDE FEELIN’?

Let us keep the wheels rolling along with your mojo!

Call for an appointment today!

theater

‘THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE’: See WED.29, 2 p.m.

MON.3 film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

• • • • • • •

diagnostics alignments tire repair brake service oil changes exhaust systems inspections

QUALITY CAR CARE, DELIVERED WITH RESPECT.

491-4911 girlingtongarage.com

health & fitness ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION EXERCISE PROGRAM: See WED.29.

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politics

CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING ON DRAFT LDRS: South Burlington citizens listen in on proposed changes to the town’s land development regulations.

Virtual option available. South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 7:30 p.m. Free. Info, 846-4107.

TUE.4

community

CURRENT EVENTS DISCUSSION GROUP: Brownell Library hosts a virtual roundtable for neighbors to pause and reflect on the news cycle. 10-11:30 a.m. Free. Info, 878-6955.

TUE.4

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VERMONT’S FINEST SELECTION OF SUITS AND TUXEDOS

81 MERCHANTS ROW | RUTLAND, VT | 802.773.7760 | SHOP ONLINE AT MCNEILANDREEDY.COM 6H-McNeil&Reddy122921.indd 1

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IT’S SNOW JOKE!

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crafts

FIRESIDE KNITTING GROUP: See WED.29, 6-7 p.m.

KNITTERS IN PERSON: Yarn enthusiasts of all abilities bring their knitting projects and help each other out when needed.

Norman Williams Public Library, Woodstock, 10:15 a.m.-noon.

Free. Info, 457-2295.

dance

SEVENis onDAYS Vacation!

Look for our first issue of 2022 on January 12!

Want to reserve advertising space? Contact sales@sevendaysvt.com.

HIRING? Promote your job openings with us throughout the holidays and into 2022 by contacting Michelle Brown at michelle@sevendaysvt.com or sevendaysvt.com/postmyjob.

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VDA MINI COURSES: EYE IN MOTION / DOCUMENTARY PRACTICE FOR DANCE: Dancers explore introductory video production as applied to capturing choreography through the lens of experimental film, documentary and cinéma vérité. ORCA Media, Montpelier, 6:30-8 p.m.

Free; preregister. Info, info@vermontdance.org.

film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

games

MAH JONGG: The Thompson Senior Center’s biweekly games move to the library.

Norman Williams Public Library, Woodstock, 1-3 p.m. Free. Info, 457-2295.

seminars

DIGITAL ACCESS: KEY ELEMENTS FOR INCLUSION OF DISABLED PEOPLE: Inclusive Arts Vermont and the Vermont Arts Council partner up for a series of seminars on creating more accessible arts programming.

See vermontartscouncil.org for full schedule. 9:30-10:30 a.m.

Free; preregister. Info, 828-3291.

words

Easy Does it.

WakeRobin.com 802-264-5100 78

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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8/25/21 1:13 PM

food & drink

SENIOR CENTER WEEKLY LUNCH: See WED.29.

games

CHESS CLUB: See WED.29.

health & fitness ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION EXERCISE PROGRAM: See WED.29.

CHAIR YOGA: See WED.29.

music

WILD WOODS SONG CIRCLE: Singers and acoustic instrumentalists gather for an evening of music making. Zoom option available. Godnick Adult Center, Rutland, 7:15-9:15 p.m. Free. Info, 775-1182.

talks

ILYSE MORGENSTEIN FUERST: The University of Vermont professor of religion ponders race and gender in the context of Black Muslim women and Islamophobia. Presented by Kellogg-Hubbard Library and Vermont Humanities. 7 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 223-3338.

words

VISITING WRITER READING: TIPHANIE YANIQUE: The awardwinning poet and author of Wife and Land of Love and Drowning reads from her work. Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, 7-8 p.m.

Free. Info, 635-2727.

THU.6 business

HIRING2DAYVT VIRTUAL JOB FAIR: See THU.30.

crafts

THURSDAY ZOOM KNITTERS: See THU.30.

FOMO?

WORK IN PROGRESS: Members of this writing group motivate each other to put pen to paper for at least an hour, then debrief together. Morristown Centennial Library, Morrisville, 5-7 p.m. Free.

Info, 888-3853.

Find even more local events in this newspaper and online:

WED.5

film

crafts

Some retired people want to hang ‘em up, and some are just getting warmed up. The people at Wake Robin are definitely in the latter camp. They’re busy, curious, and part of a dynamic Life Plan Community in Shelburne, VT. Come see for yourself.

Wake Robin. It’s where you live.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

art Find visual art exhibits and events in the Art section and at sevendaysvt.com/art.

See what’s playing at theaters in the On Screensection.

FIRESIDE KNITTING GROUP: See WED.29.

music + nightlife

film

Find club dates at local venues in the Music + Nightlife section online at sevendaysvt.com/ music.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

Learn more about highlighted listings in the Magnificent 7 on page 11.

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

= ONLINE EVENT

JAN. 6 | ETC. etc.

NIGHT OWL CLUB: Astronomers and space exploration experts discuss the latest in extraterrestrial news with curious attendees.

Presented by Fairbanks Museum & Planetarium. See calendar spotlight. 7 p.m. Free. Info, 748-2372.

film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘FRANCE’: A TV journalist’s life is turned upside-down when she accidentally runs over a delivery man in this satirical drama. Presented by Vermont International Film Foundation.

Film House, Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center, Burlington, 4-6:15 p.m. $6-12.

Info, 660-2600.

‘JACK LONDON’S MARTIN EDEN’: A poor sailor falls for a highsociety lady in this new adaptation of the classic autobiographical novel. Q&A with director Jay Craven follows. Presented

by Vermont International Film Foundation. Film House, Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center, Burlington, 7-9:15 p.m. $6-12; discounted or free for VTIFF Members. Info, 660-2600.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

Montpelier

LIST YOUR EVENT FOR FREE AT SEVENDAYSVT.COM/POSTEVENT

HAPPY NEW YEAR

ARTS • DINING • SHOPPING

Happy New Year!

Serving Lunch & Dinner

Thank you to our many customers for your support!

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Raise the Star

On the first Thursday of every month, the Fairbanks Museum & Planetarium hosts its online Night Owl Club, an informal discussion about astronomy, extraterrestrial exploration and all the space news that’s fit to print. Presenter Christian Bradley Hubbs and other stellar experts draw on updates from planetarium director Mark Breen and dispatches from recent NASA projects to bring attendees the latest. What’s the Mars Perseverance rover been up to lately? What’s with all those rockets being launched from Maine? How did the recent James Webb Space Telescope launch go?

Grab your favorite flavor of astronaut ice cream, listen in and find out.

GREAT ITALIAN FOOD | OUTSTANDING SERVICE

featuring organic produce from local farmers Fireworks COME8H-MontpAlive122921 SEE US &1 ENJOY NEW SPECIALS DAILY AT12/17/21

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2:07 PM

Thursday, January 6, 7 p.m. Online. Free. Info, 748-2372, fairbanksmuseum.org.

3 MAIN ST, MONTPELIER, VERMONT | 802 223 0229 | WWW.SARDUCCIS.COM

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

food & drink

SUP CON GUSTO TAKEAWAY DINNER SERIES: See THU.30.

games

WHIST CARD GAME CLUB: See THU.30.

health & fitness

LIBRARY YOGA WITH LINDA: See THU.30.

words

BOOK GROUP MEETING: The Kellogg-Hubbard Library book club reads Afterlife

by Julia Alvarez. 6:30 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, msinger@ kellogghubbard.org.

LIBRARY BOOK CLUB: Readers discuss Climbing the Mango Trees, cookbook author Madhur Jaffrey’s memoir of growing up in India. Fairfax Community Library, 3:30 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 849-2420.

SEAN PRENTISS: The hiker shares stories from his memoir in verse, Crosscut: Poems. Presented by Green Mountain Club. 7 p.m. Donations; preregister. Info, 244-7037.

FRI.7 film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘FRANCE’: See THU.6.

Online.

‘MEERKATS 3D’:1See WED.29.

Untitled-19 ‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

7/18/16 3:14

FIVE COURSE DINNER

games

MAH JONGG: See TUE.4.

WITH DRINK PAIRINGS

health & fitness

JOIN US FOR A SPECIAL EVENING OF FOOD & DRINK

ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION EXERCISE PROGRAM: See WED.29.

JANUARY 16TH, 2022 | $120 PER PERSON

QIGONG WITH GERRY SANDWEISS: See FRI.31.

music

UVM LANE SERIES: CHIEN-KIMWATKINS TRIO: Three brilliant musicians present a celebration FRI.7

THREE PENNY TAPROOM

» P.80

( TAX & GRATUITY INCLUDED )

Tickets must be pre-bought at the bar

Further questions? Please email info@threepennytaproom.com 108 Main Street Montpelier | www.threepennytaproom.com | 802. 223. 8277 6H-ThreePenny121521 1 1 2V-Montpelier122921.indd

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calendar FRI.7

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of Beethoven’s plethora of pieces for piano trios. UVM Recital Hall, Burlington, 7:30 p.m. $5-40. Info, 656-4971.

food & drink

words

health & fitness

NATURE BOOK CLUB: ‘BRAIDING SWEETGRASS: INDIGENOUS WISDOM, SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE AND THE TEACHINGS OF PLANTS’: Readers enjoy Robin Wall Kimmerer’s treatise on Indigenous ways of connecting to nature. North Branch Nature Center, Montpelier, 7-8:30 p.m.

Free; preregister. Info, 229-6206.

SAT.8 etc.

HAVE YOU

NOTICED OUR LEGAL ADS?

• Act 250 Permit applications • Foreclosures • Notices to creditors • Storage auctions • Planning and zoning changes

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

CABOT VILLAGE 12TH NIGHT CELEBRATION: Storytellers, musicians, dancers and actors from around New England celebrate the end of the holiday season. See cabotarts.org for full schedule. Various Cabot locations, 11:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Free. Info, 793-3016.

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL FILM SERIES: ‘HOLLYWOOD SHUFFLE’: Poet Rajnii Eddins hosts a screening of Robert Townsend’s satirical look at racism in the movie industry. Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 3-5 p.m. Free.

Info, 863-3403.

‘CINDERELLA’: See SAT.1.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘FRANCE’: See FRI.7.

‘JACK LONDON’S MARTIN EDEN’: See THU.6. Catamount Arts Center, St. Johnsbury, 7 p.m. $4-9. Info, 748-2600.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

Contact Katie for a quote at legals@sevendaysvt.com; 865-1020 x110.

2v-legals.indd 1

fairs & festivals

film

Turn to the Classifieds section or go to sevendaysvt.com/legals for a list of legal notices including:

80

STAMP CLUB MEETING & AUCTION: The Chittenden County Stamp Club meets in person and sells off rare and collectible postage. Shaw’s (Shelburne Road), South Burlington, 1-3 p.m.

Free. Info, kevinbruce59@gmail. com.

7/14/21 4:38 PM

WOODSTOCK VERMONT FILM SERIES: ‘STREET GANG: HOW WE GOT TO SESAME STREET’: This loving documentary takes viewers inside the minds and hearts of the creators of the beloved TV show. Masks and proof of vaccination required. Billings Farm & Museum, Woodstock, 3 & 5:30 p.m. $12-15; $115-130 for season pass. Info, 457-2355.

MIDDLEBURY FARMERS MARKET: See FRI.31.

BIPOC COVID-19 BOOSTER SHOT CLINICS: Vermont Health Equity Initiative administers vaccines to BIPOC Vermont residents and their households. Transport and interpreters available on request.

The Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Burlington, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Free. Info, info@vermonthealthequity.org.

SUN STYLE TAI CHI FOR FALL PREVENTION: Seniors boost their strength and balance through gentle, flowing movements. Father Lively Center, St. Johnsbury, 10-11 a.m. Free; preregister. Info, 751-0431.

lgbtq

PRIDE HIKES: FOREST MANAGEMENT AT THE HINESBURG TOWN FOREST: LGBTQIA++ hikers learn about logging, conservation and forest ecology from Ethan Tapper, the Chittenden County Forester.

Hinesburg Town Forest, 12:30-3 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, gwendolyn.causer@audubon.org.

words

POETRY EXPERIENCE: Local wordsmith Rajnii Eddins hosts a supportive writing and sharing circle for poets of all ages.

Fletcher Free Library, Burlington, 1-3 p.m. Free. Info, 863-3403.

SUN.9 dance

VDA MINI COURSES: EDITING ESSENTIALS: Media Factory instructors teach dancers how to think like video editors. Presented by Vermont Dance Alliance. 2-4 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, info@ vermontdance.org.

VDA MINI COURSES: INTRODUCTION TO CINEMATOGRAPHY & VIDEO EDITING: CATV leads a full-day filmmaking and editing workshop for dancers. Briggs Opera House, White River Junction, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Free; preregister.

Info, info@vermontdance.org.

film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘JACK LONDON’S MARTIN EDEN’: See SAT.8, 1:30 & 7 p.m.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

food & drink

FOOD FOR TALK COOKBOOK CLUB: Home chefs make a recipe from Maangchi’s Big Book of Korean Cooking and meet to compare results. Presented by Fletcher Free Library. 3 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, bshatara@ burlingtonvt.gov.

health & fitness

COMMUNITY MINDFULNESS PRACTICE: See SUN.2.

music

UVM LANE SERIES: CHIEN-KIMWATKINS TRIO: See FRI.7, 3 p.m.

WESTFORD MUSIC SERIES: THE YOUTH COMMISSION: Teenage chamber music wunderkinds perform a stunning set. Masks required. Westford Common Hall, 4-5 p.m. Donations. Info, 363-0930.

MON.10 business

FEMALE FOUNDERS SPEAKERS SERIES: INVESTORS: Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies hosts a panel of women sharing advice on investing. Masks and proof of vaccination required. Hotel Vermont, Burlington, 5:30-7 p.m. $15; preregister; cash bar. Info, sam@vcet.co.

film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘BULLETPROOF’: A chilling documentary explores the normalization of school shooting prevention rituals. Presented by Vermont International Film Foundation. $6-12; VTIFF members benefits apply. Info, 660-2600.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

health & fitness ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION EXERCISE PROGRAM: See WED.29.

language

ENGLISH CONVERSATION CIRCLE: Locals learning English as a second language gather in the Board Room to build vocabulary and make friends.

South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, noon-1 p.m. Free. Info, 846-4140.

LIST YOUR EVENT FOR FREE AT SEVENDAYSVT.COM/POSTEVENT

montreal

‘1, 2, MAYBE 3’: Contemporary dance duo jean&syd perform a piece full of tension, complications and compromise. La Chapelle, Montréal, 7 p.m. $1530. Info, 514-843-7738.

words

MUST READ MONDAYS: Brownell Library patrons unpack The Yellow House, Sarah M. Broom’s memoir of her New Orleans family. 6:30-7:30 p.m.

Free; preregister. Info, 878-6955.

TUE.11

community

CURRENT EVENTS DISCUSSION GROUP: See TUE.4.

crafts

FIRESIDE KNITTING GROUP: See WED.29, 6-7 p.m.

KNITTERS IN PERSON: See TUE.4.

dance

‘1, 2, MAYBE 3’: See MON.10.

VDA MINI COURSES: EYE IN MOTION / DOCUMENTARY PRACTICE FOR DANCE: See TUE.4.

film

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

‘BULLETPROOF’: See MON.10.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

games

MAH JONGG: See TUE.4.

words

BOOKS & LUNCH ON TUESDAYS: Brit Bennett’s debut novel, The Mothers, makes for a riveting noontime conversation. Virtual option available. Howe Library, Hanover, N.H., noon-1 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, mike.morris@ thehowe.org.

CAROL WESTBERG & LAURA FOLEY: Two poets celebrate the publication of their new collections, Ice Lands and Why I Never Finished My Dissertation, respectively, with the Norwich Bookstore. 7 p.m.

Free; preregister. Info, 649-1114.

WHAT’S ON YOUR NIGHTSTAND? THE NOT-A-BOOK-CLUB BOOK CLUB: Rebel readers discuss anything from book jacket design to the ebook revolution at this nonconformist meeting.

Norman Williams Public Library, Woodstock, 10:15-11:45 a.m. Free.

Info, 457-2295.

WINTER 2022 BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP: The Rokeby Museum and the Charlotte Library team up for a book club discussion of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teaching of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer. 6:30 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 877-3406.

crafts

FIRESIDE KNITTING GROUP: See WED.29.

art

environment

JONATHAN ROSENBLOOM: The professor of law explains how racist public policies impact environmental health. Presented

by Kellogg-Hubbard Library and the League of Women Voters. 7 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 223-3338.

Find club dates at local venues in the Music + Nightlife section online at sevendaysvt.com/ music.

film

Learn more about highlighted listings in the Magnificent 7 on page 11.

‘AUSTRALIA’S GREAT WILD NORTH 3D’: See WED.29.

= ONLINE EVENT

SENIOR CENTER WEEKLY LUNCH: See WED.29.

TAKE-OUT COMMUNITY DINNER: Local chef Said Bulle of Jilib Jiblets cooks a delicious Somali meal for pickup. Presented

by Winooski Partnership for Prevention. O’Brien Community Center, Winooski, 4-6 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, jhenderson@ winooskiprevention.org.

games

CHAIR YOGA: See WED.29.

Find even more local events in this newspaper and online:

music + nightlife

food & drink

RECITE!: Poets of all levels, from fledgling to professional, celebrate the spoken word at this virtual reading. 7-9 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, programs@ normanwilliams.org.

WED.12

See what’s playing at theaters in the On Screensection.

‘SPACE: UNRAVELING THE COSMOS’: See WED.29.

CHESS CLUB: See WED.29.

FOMO?

film

‘MEERKATS 3D’: See WED.29.

KAI COGGIN: Phoenix Books hosts the poet, whose latest collection, Mining for Stardust, was written during the COVID-19 pandemic. 7 p.m.

Free; preregister. Info, 448-3350.

WORK IN PROGRESS: See TUE.4.

Find visual art exhibits and events in the Art section and at sevendaysvt.com/art.

‘JACK LONDON’S MARTIN EDEN’: See SAT.8, 1:30 & 7 p.m.

See what’s playing at local theaters in the On Screen section.

‘BULLETPROOF’: See MON.10.

‘DINOSAURS OF ANTARCTICA 3D’: See WED.29.

health & fitness ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION EXERCISE PROGRAM: See WED.29.

outdoors

NATURALIST JOURNEYS: PATTI SMITH: The wildlife rehabilitator shares stories and videos from her decade with a beaver clan. Presented by North Branch Nature Center. 6-7 p.m.

Free. Info, 229-6206.

tech

HERMAN TAVANI: The professor of philosophy unfolds ethical quandaries related to emerging technologies.

Presented by the Howe Library.

7-8 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, jared.jenischthehowe.org.

words

BILL MARES: The author of I Could Hardly Keep From Laughing: An Illustrated Collection of Vermont Humor shares cartoons and tales.

Q&A and book signing follow.

South Burlington Public Library & City Hall, 6-7 p.m. Free. Info, 846-4140.

FFL BOOK CLUB: ‘NOTHING TO SEE HERE’: A woman starts nannying for a pair of twins who spontaneously combust when agitated in Kevin Wilson’s funny, freaky novel.

Hosted by Fletcher Free Library.

6:30-8 p.m. Free; preregister.

Info, bshatara@burlingtonvt.gov.

JILLIAN CANTOR: The author discusses Beautiful Little Fools, her new retelling of The Great Gatsby, with fellow bestselling writer Miranda Beverly-Whittemore.

Presented by the Norwich Bookstore. 7 p.m. Free; preregister. Info, 649-1114. m

We are working hard to do our part.

Please, do yours.

Across the UVM Health Network, we are doing everything we can to respond to the ever-changing challenges of COVID-19. Today, nearly two years into this pandemic, we continue to fight the impact of this virus. Our emergency rooms are packed. Our Intensive Care Units are nearing capacity. All of our people, providing all types of care throughout our health system, are being pushed to the brink.

If you have not received your COVID-19 vaccines, you are putting yourself, your loved ones, your friends, your neighbors and your health care workers at risk.

The battle is far from over. Roughly 75% of the patients we treat in our ICUs for COVID-19-related illness are unvaccinated. In some cases, that number is much higher, and the outcomes are not always good. Similar trends prevail across Vermont and Northern New York.

What’s frustrating to all of us is that we know our best hope of ending this crisis is vaccination. The vast majority of eligible people living in Vermont (80%) and in New York (75%) have been vaccinated.

Yet, if you’ve chosen not to get vaccinated, you’re keeping the virus alive and putting everyone at risk.

We know vaccination isn’t a silver bullet against COVID-19 infection, especially with what we are learning about variants. But vaccination is the best protection we have against a severe case, and it’s the best way for you to stay out of the hospital or the ICU. Keeping you out of the hospital means we have more beds available if someone else has a heart attack, gets into a major car accident, or needs emergency surgery. It means reducing the pressure on our regional health care system and giving our workforce the relief they deserve.

It also may save your life.

There’s a lot of misinformation out there about COVID-19 vaccines. It’s time to set all of that aside and focus squarely on the real-life, hard-earned lessons we’ve learned through the pandemic. With those lessons in mind, here’s what we ask of you: • • • •

If you are not vaccinated — Get Vaccinated.

If you are vaccinated — Get Your Booster.

If you know someone who is not vaccinated — Help them get a vaccine.

And regardless of your vaccination status, continue to do the things we know make a difference: Wear a mask. Clean your hands.

Get tested when necessary. Distance when you are around others.

Do not socialize when you feel ill.

Please, share this message. Together, we can save lives.

COVID-19 vaccines are widely available in our region at pharmacies, doctors’ offices and other places. To find a vaccine appointment near you, go to www.vaccines.gov or call 1-800-232-0233.

John R. Brumsted, MD President and Chief Executive Officer UVM Health Network

David W. Clauss, MD Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer UVM Health Network

Annette Macias-Hoag, DNP, MHA, BSN, RN, NEA-BC, CENP Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer UVM Health Network

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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classes EV E N T S O N SA L E N OW BUY ONLINE AT SEVENDAYSTICKETS.COM The Wormdogs with Wild Leek River, Long Gone John FRI., DEC. 31 - FRI., JAN.1 ARTSRIOT, BURLINGTON

Living with Loss: A Gathering for the Grieving WED., JAN. 5 ONLINE

Father Figuer with Remi Russin, Beneath Black Waves FRI., JAN. 7 ARTSRIOT, BURLINGTON

Vermontijuana Ski Daze

SUN., JAN. 9 SMUGGLERS’ NOTCH RESORT, JEFFERSONVILLE

Female Founders Speakers Series: Investors MON., JAN. 10 HOTEL VERMONT, BURLINGTON

Burlesque Yoga Warmup SAT., JAN. 22 HILTON GARDEN INN, BURLINGTON

Burlesque 101 with The Doctor Vu

Gender Expansive Sensual Performance with Theydy Bedbug SAT., JAN. 22 HILTON GARDEN INN, BURLINGTON

MORE EVENTS ONLINE AT SEVENDAYSTICKETS.COM

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

Seven Days Tickets122221.indd 1

astrology ROMANCE AND YOUR STARS: Discover your potential for love and romance in this personalized course that equips you with knowledge of both your stars and your future. Provide your birth info and current location when you sign up. You will get charts and a recorded personal session. 10 students. Instructor Sue Mehrtens, teacher-astrologer. Jan. 5, 12, 19, 26 & Feb. 2, 7-9 p.m. Cost: $75 via Paypal or check. Location: Jungian Center, Zoom. Info: Sue Mehrtens, 802-244-7909, info@jungian center.org, jungiancenter.org.

Generator

SAT., JAN. 22 HILTON GARDEN INN, BURLINGTON

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DAVIS STUDIO ART CLASSES: Discover your happy place in one of our weekly classes. Making art boosts emotional well-being and brings joy to your life, especially when you connect with other art enthusiasts. Select the ongoing program that’s right for you.

Now enrolling youth and adults for classes in drawing, painting and fused glass. Location: Davis Studio, 916 Shelburne Rd., South Burlington. Info: 802-425-2700, davisstudiovt.com.

COLLEGE/CAREER PREP TRAINING: Attention families: Join CFES Brilliant Pathways for our College and Career Readiness Training to find out how to access billions in aid and help your child get into college or find a career.

Jan. 20, 6 p.m. 4 30-min. sessions. Location: virtual or CFES Conference Center, 2303 Lake Shore Rd., Essex, N.Y. Info: CFES Brilliant Pathways, Jon Reidel, 802-578-0447, jon@brilliantpath ways.org, brilliantpathways.org.

WED., JAN. 19 ONLINE

WE CAN HELP! • No cost to you • Local support • Built-in promotion • Custom options

art

family

Seasons of Life: A Supportive Community for Women

SELLING TICKETS? • Fundraisers • Festivals • Plays & Concerts • Sports • Virtual Events

THE FOLLOWING CLASS LISTINGS ARE PAID ADVERTISEMENTS. ANNOUNCE YOUR CLASS FOR AS LITTLE AS $16.75/WEEK (INCLUDES SIX PHOTOS AND UNLIMITED DESCRIPTION ONLINE). SUBMIT YOUR CLASS AD AT SEVENDAYSVT.COM/POSTCLASS.

SELL TIX WITH US!

Contact: 865-1020, ext. 110 getstarted@sevendaystickets.com

ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR SKILLS WORKSHOP: Learn the basics of Adobe Illustrator with Sam Damphousse including the pen tool, pathfinder, image trace and more. This class will include instructor-led exercises and projects. You will leave with a strong foundation of skills that can be used to create vector graphics for laser and vinyl cutting and design. Wed., Jan. 26 & Feb. 2, 5:30-9 p.m. Location: Generator, 40 Sears La., Burlington. Info: Sam Graulty, 802-540-0761, education@generatorvt.com, generatorvt.com/workshops.

LIVE EDGE END TABLE: Emma Garvey will lead students through both the wood and metal shops as they build an end table composed of live edge walnut and steel tubing. They’ll cover skills including welding, preparing and finishing both wood and steel.

Plus, students will leave with a custom side table they created!

Thu., Jan. 27, Feb., 3 & 10, 6-9 p.m.

Location: Generator, 40 Sears La., Burlington. Info: Sam Graulty, 802540-0761, education@generatorvt. com, generatorvt.com/workshops.

MAKE A WOODEN BOX WORKSHOP: This workshop is a great way for folks to get more comfortable in a woodshop.

Instructor Alex Brumlik will use a simple box design that utilizes just about every tool in the woodshop to teach setup, adjustments and operation of each, including jointer, planer, router, saws and more. Mon., Jan. 31, Feb. 7 & 14, 6-9 p.m. Location: Generator, 40 Sears La., Burlington. Info: Sam Graulty, 802-540-0761, education@generatorvt.com, generatorvt.com/workshops.

SPOON CARVING WORKSHOP: Join Eric Cannizzaro to learn one of many ways to carve a spoon using a few quintessential green woodworking tools: the drawknife, gouge and spokeshave.

You will cover getting material out of a log, steam-bending the crook, using milk paint and finishing. All skills levels are welcome. Sat., Jan. 15-16, 9:30 a.m.-noon. Location: Generator, 40 Sears La., Burlington. Info: Sam Graulty, 802-540-0761, education@generatorvt.com, generatorvt.com/workshops.

healing arts PANDEMIC PASSAGES WORKSHOP: In this monthly series, we’ll explore the landscape of our pandemic lives, opening the unexpected gifts, sadnesses, letting-go, longing and missing. We’ll utilize movement, guided meditation and storytelling. Bring your own materials for writing, drawing, music, dance — whatever you wish! Sharing what you create is optional. Drop-ins welcome! 1st Sun. of each mo., Nov. to Apr. at 4 p.m. Cost: $10-25; sliding scale; donations appreciated. Location: the Passing Project, Zoom. Info: infopassingproject@gmail.com, passingproject.org.

kids LET’S SING!: Greater Burlington Children’s Chorus begins its second semester on Jan. 10. New to advanced singers in grades 1 to 8. Join us in creating something beautiful; it’s a perfect time for inspiring harmony! Mon. beginning Jan. 10. Cost: $295; generous financial assistance avail.

Location: Rice Memorial High School, South Burlington. Info: Greater Burlington Children’s Chorus, Christa Loescher, 802-598-4693, gbcchorus@ gmail.com, greaterburlington childrenschorus.org.

language ALLIANCE FRANCAISE WINTER SESSION: Join us for online adult and children French classes this winter! Our six-week session starts on Jan. 17 and offers classes for participants at all levels. Please go to aflcr.org to read all about our offerings. 6-wk. session begins on Jan. 17. Location: Alliance Francaise, Burlington. Info: education@aflcr.org, aflcr.org.

SPANISH CLASSES STARTING SOON: Adult Spanish classes start in January, using online Zoom videoconferencing. Our 16th year.

Learn from a native speaker via small group classes. You’ll always be participating and speaking.

Five different levels. There is still some space — don’t delay. See our website or contact us for details.

Beginning week of Jan. 10. Cost: $270/10 classes of 90+ min. each, 1 class/week. Location: Spanish in Waterbury Center. Info: 802-5851025, spanishparavos@gmail.com, spanishwaterburycenter.com.

martial arts VERMONT BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU: This school was developed to communicate the importance of proper, legitimate and complete Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instruction. We cover fundamentals of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with a realistic approach to self-defense training skills in a friendly, safe and positive environment. All are welcome; no experience required. Develop confidence, strength and endurance. Julio Cesar “Foca” Fernandez Nunes was born and raised on the shores of Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Earning his black belt and representing the Carlson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Team, Julio “Foca” went on to become a five-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu National Champion, three-time Rio de Janeiro State Champion and two-time IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Champion! Julio “Foca” is the only CBJJP, USBJJF and IBJJF-certified seventhdegree coral belt in Brazilian JiuJitsu and self-defense instructor under late grand master Carlson Gracie Sr. currently teaching in the USA. Accept no Iimitations!

Location: Vermont Brazilian JiuJitsu, 55 Leroy Rd., Williston. Info: 802-598-2839, julio@bjjusa.com, vermontbjj.com.

CLASS PHOTOS + MORE INFO ONLINE: SEVENDAYSVT.COM/CLASSES 12/16/21 3:12 PM

COURTE SY OF KELLY SCHULZ E/MOUNT AIN RAPHY

DOG PHOT OG

Noah’s Happy Tail

Dear Friends, I am enjoying my new retirement home! I have met everyone in my new family, which has meant so many toys, treats and love! I like everyone to be where I can see them, so I trot between rooms to check on everyone. It is exhausting, but every time I enter a room, it’s all about me, which I love! My mom thought I’d sleep in a crate at night, but after a quick chat we settled on sleeping in my bed together.

My very little siblings (one rabbit and two HSCC alum ferrets) are a bit much for me right now, but I watch them through the gate. As for dogs, I met another old man like me who was great; we agreed that we didn’t care about each other and moved on. Another introduced himself to me very aggressively and, while I was angry, I listened to Mom and kept walking after a few barks.

My birthday was December 14, and I spent the day baking dog-friendly cupcakes with my new great-grandpawrents. I opened so many toys that I know how to take the tag off myself before I run away with it! A huge thanks to all of you at HSCC for my wonderful care!

Humane

Society of Chittenden County

housing »

APARTMENTS, CONDOS & HOMES

DID YOU KNOW?

The New Year is a great time to confirm that your pet’s contact information is up to date!

Proper identification (collars, tags and/or microchips for both indoor and outdoor pets) increases your chances of finding a lost pet who may have been mistaken for a stray. We love helping best friends meet, but keeping them together is even better!

on the road »

CARS, TRUCKS, MOTORCYCLES

pro services »

CHILDCARE, HEALTH/ WELLNESS, PAINTING

buy this stuff »

APPLIANCES, KID STUFF, ELECTRONICS, FURNITURE

music »

Sponsored by:

INSTRUCTION, CASTING, INSTRUMENTS FOR SALE

jobs »

Visit the Humane Society of Chittenden County at 142 Kindness Court, South Burlington, Tuesday through Friday from 1 to 6 p.m., or Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call 862-0135 or visit hsccvt.org for more info.

NO SCAMS, ALL LOCAL, POSTINGS DAILY

NEW STUFF ONLINE EVERY DAY! PLACE YOUR ADS 24-7 AT SEVENDAYSVT.COM. SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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CLASSIFIEDS

housing ads: $25 (25 words) legals: 52¢/word buy this stuff: free online services: $12 (25 words)

display service ads: $25/$45 homeworks: $45 (40 words, photos, logo) fsbos: $45 (2 weeks, 30 words, photo) jobs: michelle@sevendaysvt.com, 865-1020 x121

MISCELLANEOUS

We Pick Up & Pay For Junk Automobiles!

on the road

CARS/TRUCKS

Route 15, Hardwick

802-472-5100

3842 Dorset Ln., Williston

802-793-9133

services

AUTO

CASH FOR CARS! SAVE MONEY ON AUTO We buy all cars! Junk, REPAIRS affordable spaces for high-end, totaled: It Our vehicle service your business. Visit sm-allmetals060811.indd 7/20/15 1 5:02 PM doesn’t matter. Get free program can save you mainstreetlanding.com towing & same-day up to 60% off dealer & click on space avail. cash. Newer models, prices & provide you Melinda, 864-7999. too. Call 1-866-535excellent coverage! Call 9689. (AAN CAN) Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

(PST) for a free quote: 866-915-2263.

SERVICES

housing

OFFICE/ COMMERCIAL OFFICE/RETAIL SPACE AT MAIN STREET LANDING on Burlington’s waterfront. Beautiful, healthy,

WE PAY CASH FOR PROPERTY We pay cash for land, homes & investment properties of all kinds.

Get paid in 30 days or less! No commissions.

No fees. For homes & investment properties, we will purchase “as-is.”

This means you don’t have to put another dime in repairs or move unwanted belongings out! Call us today for a fair cash offer: 802-495-6337.

CLASSIFIEDS KEY appt. appointment apt. apartment BA bathroom BR bedroom DR dining room DW dishwasher HDWD hardwood HW hot water LR living room NS no smoking OBO or best offer refs. references sec. dep. security deposit W/D washer & dryer

EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1968 and similar Vermont statutes which make it illegal to advertise any preference, limitations, or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, handicap, presence of minor children in the family or receipt of public assistance, or an intention to make any such preference, limitation or a discrimination. The newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate, which is in violation of the law. Our

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print deadline: Mondays at 4:30 p.m. post ads online 24/7 at: sevendaysvt.com/classifieds questions? classifieds@sevendaysvt.com 865-1020 x110

Peter Scott’s

Body Mechanics

yyyyy

WORLD CLASS, 5-STAR PROFESSIONAL MASSAGE IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR HOME OR OFFICE! If it's not one of the best massages in your life, you don't pay for it!

Vaccinated & masked Call or email for an appointment

802.522.3053 PsMassageVt@gmail.com

4G LTE HOME INTERNET Now avail.! Get GotW3 w/ lightning-fast speeds & take your service w/ you when you travel!

As low as $109.99/mo.!

1-888-519-0171. (AAN CAN) ATTENTION, VIAGRA & CIALIS USERS! A cheaper alternative to high drugstore prices!

50-pill special: $99 + free shipping! 100% guaranteed. Call now: 888-531-1192. (AAN CAN)

BATH & SHOWER UPDATES In as little as 1 day!

Affordable prices. No ClassyDisplay-Scott092921.indd 9/30/21 1 11:34 payments AM for 18 mos.!

Lifetime warranty & BECOME A PUBLISHED professional installs.

AUTHOR! Senior & military We edit, print & discounts avail. Call PSYCHIC COUNSELING distribute your work 1-877-649-5043. (AAN Psychic counseling, internationally. We do CAN) channeling w/ Bernice the work; you reap the Kelman, Underhill. 30+ rewards! Call for a free CABLE PRICE INCREASE years’ experience. Also Author’s Submission AGAIN? energy healing, chakra Kit: 844-511-1836. (AAN balancing, Reiki, rebirth- Switch to DirecTV & CAN) save & get a $100 Visa ing, other lives, classes gift card! Get more & more. 802-899-3542, channels for less money. kelman.b@juno.com.

Restrictions apply. Call

BIZ OPPS

COMPUTER

COMPUTER & IT TRAINING PROGRAM! Train online to get the skills to become a computer & help desk professional now.

Grants & scholarships avail. for certain programs for qualified applicants. Call CTI for details! 1-855-554-4616.

(AAN CAN)

ENTERTAINMENT DISH TV $59.99 for 190 channels & $14.95 high-speed internet. Free installation, smart HD DVR incl. Free voice remote.

Some restrictions apply.

1-855-380-2501. (AAN CAN)

readers are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised in this newspaper are available on an equal opportunity basis. Any home seeker who feels he or she has encountered discrimination should contact: HUD Office of Fair Housing 10 Causeway St., Boston, MA 02222-1092 (617) 565-5309 — OR — Vermont Human Rights Commission 14-16 Baldwin St. Montpelier, VT 05633-0633 1-800-416-2010 hrc@vermont.gov

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

HEALTH/ WELLNESS

List your property here for 2 weeks for only $45!

CONTACT KATIE, 865-1020, EXT. 110 FSBO@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

now. 877-693-0625.

(AAN CAN)

on TV! 877-310-2472.

(AAN CAN)

DONATE YOUR CAR TO KIDS Your donation helps fund the search for missing children.

Accepting trucks, motorcycles & RVs, too! Fast, free pickup.

Running or not. 24-hr. response. Max. tax donation. Call 877-2660681. (AAN CAN)

HONDA VAN LEATHER SEATS Excellent condition, 2 captains & small jump seat (8th seat). Gray from 2011 Odyssey. $250. Photos available.

Plattsburgh, N.Y. Call/ text 518-563-5338

LEO’S ROOFING Slate, shingle & metal repair & replacement.

Snow removal & more! Free estimate: 802-503-6064. 30 years’ experience. Good refs. & fully insured.

Chittenden County.

LEGALS »

DIRECTV SATELLITE TV Service starting at $59.99/mo.! Free install!

160+ channels avail.

Call now to get the most sports & entertainment

HOME/GARDEN

JOHN TURNER, HANDYMAN Fully insured. Roofs, interior or exterior painting, misc. Free estimates! Leave a message. 802-735-4009.

HUGHESNET SATELLITE INTERNET Finally, no hard data limits! Call today for speeds up to 25mbps as low as $59.99/mo.! $75 gift card, terms apply.

1-844-416-7147. (AAN CAN)

Say you saw it in... sevendaysvt.com

Buyer or Selling?

Let’s make it happen.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! Robbi Handy Holmes • 802-951-2128 robbihandyholmes@vtregroup.com Client focused Making it happen for you!

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services

APPLIANCES/ TOOLS/PARTS HUSQVARNA SEWING MACHINE Excellent condition Husqvarna Viking Designer 1 w/ touch screen, displaying 18 stitch designs for all your embroidery needs. Tuned this year at Vacuum City.

Discounted to $750.

Call, 802-349-0139.

Homeshares

12/14/20 1:47 PM

MONTPELIER

Share lovely home near downtown w/ active, senior gentleman looking for help w/ meals and household chores. Furnished BR, shared BA. $400/mo. all inc.

CHARLOTTE Senior interested in literature & classical music, seeking a housemate to cook a few meals/week, share companionship & help w/ snow removal. $300/mo. Private BA. Must be cat-friendly!

MILTON Seeking eco-friendly housemate to share rustic, rural home w/ nature photographer in her 70s. $450/mo. plus lawn & snow help. Shared BA.

Finding you just the right housemate for over 35 years!

Call 863-5625 or visit HomeShareVermont.org for an application. Interview, refs, bg check req. EHO

Homeshare041520.indd 1

12/16/21 4:26 PM

SEVENDAYSVT.COM/CLASSIFIEDS

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BY JOSH REYNOLDS

Post & browse ads at your convenience.

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There’s no limit to ad length online.

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Hosting virtual or in-person classes?

Spread the word in the Seven Days Classifieds.

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BY JOSH REYNOLDS

DIFFICULTY THIS WEEK: HH

DIFFICULTY THIS WEEK: HHH

Fill the grid using the numbers 1-6, only once in each row and column. The numbers in each heavily outlined “cage” must combine to produce the target number in the top corner, using the mathematical operation indicated. A onebox cage should be filled in with the target number in the top corner. A number can be repeated within a cage as long as it is not the same row or column.

Place a number in the empty boxes in such a way that each row across, each column down and each 9-box square contains all of the numbers one to nine. The same numbers cannot be repeated in a row or column.

crossword

Extra! Extra!

7 6 4 2 3 8 9 2 5 7 1 5 8 9

16+

Open 24/7/365.

View and post up to 6 photos per ad online.

36x

3÷ 2÷

Show and tell.

»

ANSWERS ON P.86 H = MODERATE HH = CHALLENGING HHH = HOO, BOY!

CONTACT KATIE FOR A QUOTE AT 865-1020 x110 katie@sevendaysvt.com

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»

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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Legal Support Groups Notices CONTACT CLASSIFIEDS@SEVENDAYSVT.COM OR 802-865-1020, EXT. 110 TO UPDATE YOUR SUPPORT GROUP

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS Daily meetings in various locations. Free.

Info, 864-1212. Want to overcome a drinking problem? Take the 1st step of 12 & join a group in your area.

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ALZHEIMER’S ASSOCIATION CAREGIVER SUPPORT GROUPS Support groups meet to provide assistance & info on Alzheimer’s disease & related dementias.

They emphasize shared experiences, emotional support & coping techniques in care for a person living w/ Alzheimer’s or a related dementia.

Meetings are free & open to the public.

Families, caregivers & friends may attend.

Please call in advance to confirm date & time.

Four options: 1st Mon. of every mo., 2-3 p.m., at the Residence at Shelburne Bay, 185 Pine Haven Shores, Shelburne; 4th Tue. of every mo., 10-11 a.m., at the Residence at Quarry Hill, 465 Quarry Hill Rd., South Burlington; 2nd Tue. of every mo., 5-6:30 p.m., at the Alzheimer’s Association Main Office, 300 Cornerstone Drive, Suite 130, Williston; 2nd Mon. of every mo., 6-7:30 p.m., at Milton Public Library, 39 Bombardier Rd., Milton. For questions or additional support

5

PUZZLE ANSWERS

ALATEEN GROUP Alateen group in Burlington on Sun. 5-6 p.m. at the UU building at the top of Church St.

ADULT SURVIVORS OF SUICIDE LOSS - WILLISTON Adult Survivors of Suicide Loss is meeting on the 3rd Thu. of every mo. via Zoom, 7-8:30 p.m. during this time of physical distancing due to the pandemic.

The support group is for anyone who has been touched by suicide loss recently or long ago, who wants

2

THE CONTENTS OF STORAGE UNIT 01-04210 & 0104106 LOCATED AT 28 ADAMS DR, WILLISTON VT, 05495 WILL BE SOLD ON OR ABOUT DECEMBER 30TH 2021 TO SATISFY THE DEBT OF ERYN SHEEHAN. Any person claiming a right to the goods may pay the amount claimed due and reasonable expenses before the sale, in which case the sale may not occur.

A CIRCLE OF PARENTS FOR SINGLE MOTHERS Please join our parent-led online support group designed to share our questions, concerns & struggles, as well as our resources & successes! Contribute to our discussion of the unique but shared experience of parenting. We will be meeting weekly on Fri., 10-11 a.m. For more info

AL-ANON For families & friends of alcoholics. Phone meetings, electronic meetings (Zoom), & an al-Anon blog are avail. online at the Al-Anon website. For meeting info, go to vermont alanonalateen.org or call 866-972-5266.

4

SEVEN DAYS NOTICE OF LEGAL SALE View Date 01/06/2022 Sale Date 01/07/2022 Jeremy Bushey Unit # D156 Easy Self Storage 46 SWIFT SOUTH BURLINGTON VT 05403 (802) 863-8300

A CIRCLE OF PARENTS WITH LGBTQ+ CHILDREN Please join our parent-led online support group designed to share our questions, concerns & struggles, as well as our resources & successes! Contribute to our discussion of the unique but shared experience of parenting. We will be meeting weekly on Mon., 10-11 a.m. For more info or to register, please contact Heather at hniquette@pcavt.org, 802-498-0607, pcavt. org/family-supportprograms.

3

The hearing will be held on Tuesday, January 4, 2022 at 4:30 p.m. via Zoom. Please contact Bruce Hoar, staff person for LIRD, at 878-1239 for the zoom log in and for copies of information relating to the proposed budget.

to work through their grief in a safe, respectful environment. Please contact cofacilitator Joanna Cole at joanna.colevt@ gmail.com or 2333299, or Maria Grindle at mariagrindle@msn. com or 879-9576.

Leave a message so we can get back to you w/ a mutually satisfying time to talk. Take care to be well in this extra stressful time.

1

LAKE IROQUOIS RECREATION DISTRICT NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING The Lake Iroquois Recreation District, a Union Municipal District located in Chittenden County, Vermont, will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, January 4, 2022 to receive public comments on its proposed operating budget for Fiscal Year 23.

A CIRCLE OF PARENTS FOR MOTHERS OF COLOR Please join our parent-led online support group designed to share our questions, concerns & struggles, as well as our resources & successes! Contribute to our discussion of the unique but shared experience of parenting. We will be meeting weekly on Wed., 10-11 a.m. For more info or to register, please contact Heather at hniquette@pcavt.org, 802-498-0607, pcavt. org/family-supportprograms.

or to register, please contact Heather at hniquette@pcavt.org, 802-498-0607, pcavt. org/family-supportprograms.

6

PLACE AN AFFORDABLE NOTICE AT: SEVENDAYSVT.COM/LEGAL-NOTICES OR CALL 802-865-1020, EXT. 110.

VISIT SEVENDAYSVT. COM TO VIEW A FULL LIST OF SUPPORT GROUPS

group listings, call 800-272-3900.

Info: 800-639-1522, 802-888-2180.

ALZHEIMER’S ASSOCIATION TELEPHONE SUPPORT GROUP 2nd Tuesday monthly, 4-5:30 p.m.

Preregistration is required (to receive dial-in codes for toll-free call). Please dial the Alzheimer’s Association’s 24-7 Helpline 800-2723900 for more info.

BRAIN INJURY ASSOCIATION OF VERMONT Montpelier daytime support group meets on the 3rd Thu. of every mo. at the Unitarian Church ramp entrance, 1:30-2:30 p.m. St. Johnsbury support group meets on the 3rd Wed. of every mo., at the Grace United Methodist Church, 36 Central St., 1:00-2:30 p.m. Colchester evening support group meets on the 1st Wed. of every mo., at the Fanny Allen Hospital in the Board Room Conference Room, 5:30-7:30 p.m. White River Jct. meets on the 2nd Fri. of every mo., at Bugbee Sr. Ctr. from 3-4:30 p.m.

Call our helpline at 877-856-1772.

ARE YOU HAVING PROBLEMS W/ DEBT? Do you spend more than you earn? Get help at Debtor’s Anonymous plus Business Debtor’s Anonymous. Wed., 6:30-7:30 p.m., Methodist Church in the Rainbow Room at Buell & S. Winooski, Burlington.

Contact Jennifer, 917-568-6390.

BABY BUMPS SUPPORT GROUP FOR MOTHERS AND PREGNANT WOMEN Pregnancy can be a wonderful time of your life. But it can also be a time of stress often compounded by hormonal swings.

If you are a pregnant woman, or have recently given birth & feel you need some help w/ managing emotional bumps in the road that can come w/ motherhood, please come to this free support group led by an experienced pediatric registered nurse. Held on the 2nd & 4th Tue. of every mo., 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Birthing Center, Northwestern Medical Center, St. Albans. Info: Rhonda Desrochers, Franklin County Home Health Agency, 527-7531.

BETTER BREATHERS CLUB American Lung Association support group for people w/ breathing issues, their loved ones or caregivers. Meets on the 1st Mon. of every mo., 11 a.m.-noon at the Godnick Center, 1 Deer St., Rutland.

For more info call 802-776-5508.

BRAIN INJURY SUPPORT GROUP Vermont Center for Independent living offers virtual monthly meetings, held on the 3rd Wed. of every mo., 1-2:30 p.m.

The support group will offer valuable resources & info about brain injury. It will be a place to share experiences in a safe, secure & confidential environment. To join, email Tom Younkman at tyounkman@vcil. org & ask to be put on the TBI mailing list.

CANCER SUPPORT GROUP The Champlain Valley Prostate Cancer Support Group will be held every 2nd Tue. of the mo., 6-7:45 p.m. via conference call. Newly diagnosed? Prostate cancer reoccurrence?

General discussion & sharing among survivors & those beginning or rejoining the battle. Info, Mary L. Guyette RN, MS, ACNS-BC, 274-4990, vmary@aol.com.

CELEBRATE RECOVERY Overcome any hurt, habit or hangup in your life w/ this confidential 12-Step, Christ-centered recovery program. We offer multiple support groups for both men & women, such as chemical dependency, codependency, sexual addiction & pornography, food issues, & overcoming abuse.

All 18+ are welcome; sorry, no childcare.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m.; we begin at 7 p.m.

Essex Alliance Church, 37 Old Stage Rd., Essex Junction. Info: recovery@essex alliance.org, 878-8213.

CELEBRATE RECOVERY Celebrate Recovery meetings are for anyone struggling w/ hurt, habits & hang ups, which include everyone in some way.

We welcome everyone at Cornerstone Church in Milton, which meets every Fri. at 7-9 p.m. We’d love to have you join us & discover how your life can start to change.

Info: 893-0530, julie@ mccartycreations.com.

87 DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

ATTENTION RECRUITERS: POST YOUR JOBS AT: JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM/POST-A-JOB PRINT DEADLINE: NOON ON MONDAYS (INCLUDING HOLIDAYS) FOR RATES & INFO: MICHELLE BROWN, 802-865-1020 X121, MICHELLE@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

YOUR TRUSTED LOCAL SOURCE. JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM NEW YEAR, NEW CAREER!

Cleaning Crew Now hiring CAREGivers and Key Players Work for an organization that makes a difference and offers meaningful work while providing care to seniors in the community

(P/T positions)

STARTING HOURLY RATE OF $20/hour.

Join our team and help us keep our brewery and taproom looking their best. Evening and weekend shifts. Experience preferred.

Apply here: lawsonsfinest.com/about-us/careers

Rhino Foods is hiring! Whether you are entry-level OR experienced, our Production, Sanitation & Distribution teams are growing. Training provided, plus lots of benefits and perks with a first-class company.

Please visit our website: rhinofoods.com/about-rhino-foods/jobs-and-careers

Estate Planning Litigation Parlegal

1 12/3/21 12/16/212h-RhinoFoods120821.indd 1:34 PM Become part of the Home 2h-LawsonsFinest1222AND122921.indd 1 Instead team! CAREGivers no experience necessary. Key Players previous experience Gravel & Shea PC, a law firm in downtown preferred. Pays up to $20/hour.

Burlington, Vermont is looking for a legal assistant Let’s get to know each other.

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES WORKER for our estate planning and trust administration Military friendly employer. practice group. The ideal candidate will have experience working Now offering sign on bonuses up to $5,000! as a legal assistant, extensive knowledge of Microsoft Office Apply today! homeinstead.com/ Join The University of Vermont Medical Center in programs, and experience with editing and formatting estate and location/483/home-care-jobs/ Burlington as an Environmental Service Worker. The EVS trust documents, experience with Juris software a plus. In addition, Worker is responsible for the cleaning of all areas of the this position requires a strong work ethic, eagerness to learn and facility with the exception of the OR. acquire new skills, and excellent typing skills. Communication skills are a must, as Gravel & Shea legal assistants work as a Qualifications: team with paralegals, lawyers and other legal assistants. Minimum • High school diploma or equivalent preferred. qualifications include an Associate’s degree or a minimum of three • Prior health care or hospitality industry cleaning years of experience as a legal assistant. experience is highly desirable.

We offer a competitive salary and benefits package including health Employees at UVM Medical Center receive comprehensive insurance, 401(k) and Profit Sharing. benefits packages, including medical, dental, retirement

IS CURRENTLY SEEKING

MULTICULTURAL YOUTH PROGRAM MANAGER

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Learn more and apply: bit.ly/2Xy5r0u.

12/19/21 5:32 PM

NORTHEASTERN VERMONT REGIONAL HOSPITAL has exciting opportunities!

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MULTICULTURAL YOUTH PROGRAM COORDINATOR

and paid time off. E.O.E.

E-mail cover letter, résumé & references to: fmiller@gravelshea.com www.gravelshea.com E.O.E.

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SUPERVISOR Evenings

NVRH is looking for dedicated and compassionate RNs, LPNs and LNAs to join our team and provide high quality care to the communities we serve. NVRH provides a fair and compassionate workplace where all persons are valued by the organization and each other, providing ongoing growth opportunities.

The EVS Supervisor coordinates all routine and project assignments and activities for EVS, maintains all schedules, training, evaluations and performance improvement plans.

Eligible for a sign on bonus up to $5,000.

SUPPORTED HOUSING YOUTH COACH

FT and PT employees are eligible for excellent benefits including student loan repayment, generous paid time off, health/dental/vision, 401k with company match and much more!

Qualifications: • Associate’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.

• Minimum of three years of supervisory experience in a Health Care environment. Employees at UVM Medical Center receive comprehensive benefits packages, including medical, dental, retirement and paid time off.

https://bit.ly/3DhwI6B

APPLY TODAY AT NVRH.ORG/CAREERS.

Learn more and apply: bit.ly/3b6DzUZ E.O.E.

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12/20/21 9:41 AM 4t-NVRH092921.indd 1

9/24/21 2:47 PM

5:17 PM

ATTENTION RECRUITERS:

88

POST YOUR JOBS AT JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM FOR FAST RESULTS, OR CONTACT MICHELLE BROWN: MICHELLE@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

LEGAL ASSISTANT Monaghan Safar Ducham PLLC, a downtown Burlington law firm, has an immediate opening for a full-time legal assistant position, in a fastpaced, exciting environment.

Multiple Positions Open!

Hayward Tyler, a leading manufacturer of industrial pumps and motors in Colchester, is seeking candidates to fill the following positions:

Responsibilities include supporting the firm’s litigation attorneys in producing legal filings and correspondence, proofing documents, and general office assistance.

STAFF ENGINEER I: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/staff-engineer-i/

Competitive salary and benefits including health insurance, dental, vision and 401(k).

DESIGN ENGINEER: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/design-engineer/ SENIOR DESIGN ENGINEER: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/senior-design-engineer/

The ideal candidate has excellent computer, organizational and interpersonal skills.

ELECTRO-MECHANICAL ENGINEER: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/electro-mechanical-engineer/

Interested persons please email a cover letter and resume to mcain@msdvt.com.

MANUFACTURING ENGINEER: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/manufacturing-engineer/ QUALITY ASSURANCE ENGINEER: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/quality-assurance-engineer/

Brewery Assistant

IT ERP ADMINISTRATOR: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/it-erp-administrator/

The Brewery Assistant - is a Utility Player who will work throughout the brewery assisting with all processes associated with production and packaging while adhering to SOPs and safety guidelines to achieve the best possible consistency in Fiddlehead beers.

We offer a competitive salary and excellent benefits package. If you meet our requirements and are interested in an exciting opportunity, please forward your resume & salary requirements to: Hayward Tyler, Inc. – Attn: HR Department 480 Roosevelt Highway – PO Box 680, Colchester, VT 05446 Email: Careers@haywardtyler.com Equal Opportunity Employer 12/20/21 12:29 PM

ATTENTION RECRUITERS: POST YOUR JOBS AT: PRINT DEADLINE: FOR RATES & INFO:

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Wake Robin seeks a Sous Chef to help manage daily kitchen operations.We provide a fine dining experience with a focus on farm to plate freshness, and a work environment that is hard to find in the restaurant industry. Our Sous Chef will have experience with menu planning, food production, safety and sanitation. Most importantly, they will lead staff in delivering a fresh, innovative, and high-quality dining experience our residents have come to expect.

Must have at least 5 years of experience as an advanced cook in a restaurant/hotel setting, demonstrated experience managing food planning and production, and strong staff leadership skills.

Send resumes to: hr@wakerobin.com.

Wake Robin is an equal opportunity employer.

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PROJECT MANAGER: haywardtyler.com/job_listing/project-manager/

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SOUS CHEF

Benefits: • Fun Team • Competitive Pay • Health Insurance w/ Vision and Dental after 90 days of employment • PTO, 401K For full description go to bit.ly/3rGOOwQ

SEVENDAYSVT.COM/POSTMYJOB NOON ON MONDAYS (INCLUDING HOLIDAYS) MICHELLE BROWN, 802-865-1020 X121, MICHELLE@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

Send resumes to: haleychurchill@ fiddleheadbrewing.com

OFFICE ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Red House Building is looking for a full-time Office Administrative Assistant.

Responsibilities will include bookkeeping, data entry, payroll assistance and other general office support. Must be detail oriented. Experience with Quickbooks and within the construction industry is helpful, but not required. This position has flexible hours and assumes 30-40 hours per week. Remote work is possible for a portion of the weekly responsibilities. Red House is an Employee-Owned, Award Winning Company with a supportive team environment and excellent benefits.

Wage dependent upon skill level.

Please send resumes to info@redhousebuilding.com.

Learn more about our work at RedHouseBuilding.com.

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12/6/213v-RedHouseBuilding1222AND122921.indd 2:37 PM 12/16/21 2:12 PM 12/16/21

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @SEVENDAYSJOBS, SUBSCRIBE TO RSS, OR BROWSE POSTS ON YOUR PHONE AT JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM

NEW JOBS POSTED DAILY!

89

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

Real Estate DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR Evernorth is growing and hiring! Evernorth is a nonprofit organization that serves the low- and moderate-income people of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont by creating affordable housing and making community investments. We are a group of more than 45 professionals working to serve communities across Northern New England. Our staff has deep knowledge of local markets, close relationships with regional organizations, and a shared passion for affordable housing, diversity and social justice.

The Real Estate Development Coordinator is a member of the real estate development team. This individual coordinates activities between Evernorth and our partners to purchase, close and maintain real estate transaction records. The role encompasses broad activities related to due diligence, paralegal support, research, insurance, proof reading, and many other related activities. This position requires working in a team and individually. We are looking for someone with a bachelor’s degree in a related field, paralegal skills, 3-5 years of related experience, excellent communication skills and a highly proficient user of Microsoft Office 365.

<job title title here> <job here> Manager - Shared Living Program

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• Ensure prompt and accurate payments to contracted shared living providers • Pursue excellence through continuous improvement and quality management

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Full-time, Part-time, SubstitutePositions PositionsAvailable Available ••Flexible Schedules • Competitive Full-time, Part-time, andand Substitute Flexible Schedules • Competitive Compensation • Great Benefits,including including36 36 days Work Culture Compensation • Great Benefits, days of ofpaid paidtime timeoff off• Inclusive • Inclusive Work Culture

howardcenter.org•• 802-488-6946 howardcenter.org 802-488-6946

To apply, please send cover letter and resume to HR@evernorthus.org.

Evernorth is an equal opportunity employer.

HowardCenter Centerisisproud proudtotobe bean an Equal Equal Opportunity Employer. The agency’s culture and Howard Opportunity Employer. and service servicedelivery deliveryisisstrengthened strengthened thediversity diversityofofits itsworkforce. workforce.Minorities, Minorities, people people of of color and persons bybythe personswith withdisabilities disabilitiesare areencouraged encouragedtotoapply. apply.

EOE/TTY.Visit Visit“About “About Us” Us” on our website EOE/TTY. website at atwww.howardcenter.org www.howardcenter.org to to review review Howard Howard Center’s Center’sEOE EOEpolicy. policy.

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12/21/21 10:15 AM

Now Hiring Culinary Leaders for Two New Slopeside Restaurants

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12/19/21 5:38 PM

Chef de Cuisine | Banquet Chef | Assistant Pastry Chef ($5,000 signing bonus)

($5,000 signing bonus)

($3,000 signing bonus)

Spruce Peak, Vermont’s premier slopeside community at the base of Mount Mansfield, is excited to announce the completion of our $6 million restaurant renovation with the opening of two new outlets: Tipsy Trout and Alpine Hall.

We are actively interviewing culinary leaders to join our team at this pivotal time in our development! Whether you want to settle down at a premier property that will keep you engaged, or aim to build a career with Hyatt Hotels to span the globe, we have an opportunity for you.

Spruce Peak partners with regional and local farms, brewers, and producers to curate the best of Vermont and New England, including world-class events, festivals, and more year round.

Play as hard as you work: benefits include free Stowe Ski passes, discounted golf, and free hotel stays at Hyatt hotels worldwide, in addition to competitive pay, health & dental insurance, and 401k.

Professional culinarians at every level of their career are encouraged to apply now at SprucePeak.com/Careers Proud diversity advocates and EOE 10h-Lodge@SprucePeak1222AND122921 1

AT SPRUCE PEAK

12/20/21 4:29 PM

ATTENTION RECRUITERS:

90

POST YOUR JOBS AT JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM FOR FAST RESULTS, OR CONTACT MICHELLE BROWN: MICHELLE@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

Hinesburg Community Police Department

Police Officer – Full-time The Hinesburg Community Police Department is seeking qualified candidates for a full-time Police Officer position. This community-based department focuses on law enforcement and quality of life issues for its residents.

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12/17/21

ADMISSIONS ADVISOR For position details and application process, visit jobs. plattsburgh.edu and select “View Current Openings.”

SUNY College at Plattsburgh is a fully compliant employer committed to excellence through diversity.

AFTERSCHOOL SCHOOLDIRECTOR DIRECTOR AFTER AFTER SCHOOL DIRECTOR

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Successful candidates will have the ability to deal with the public tactfully under difficult circumstances; to function as part of a team; possess exceptional judgment; have high moral character; be able to 3:39 PM successfully pass a background investigation; and possess Vermont Criminal Justice Council Level III Law Enforcement Certification.

Please submit a resume and letter of interest to Chief Anthony Cambridge at the Hinesburg Community Police Department, PO Box 1, Hinesburg, Vermont 05461.

Or send via email to Anthony.cambridge@vermont.gov.

Resumes will be reviewed as received. The position is open until filled.

12/16/214t-TownofHinesburg1222AND122921.indd 1:41 PM 1

10:30-5:45 5:45//////$19.50 $19.50per perhour hour 10:3010:305:45 $19.50 per hour Schedule:Work Workday daybegins beginsatat at10:30 10:30am aminininsupport support Schedule: Schedule: Work day begins 10:30 am support ofbreaks breaksof ofour ourearly earlyed edprogram program(10:30am-1:00pm).

(10:30am-1:00pm). of of breaks of our early ed program (10:30am-1:00pm).

Planningtime time(for (forthe theAfter AfterSchool SchoolProgram) Program)will willbe be Planning Planning time (for the After School Program) will be availablefrom from1:00 1:00pm-2:30 pm-2:30pm. pm. available available from 1:00 pm-2:30 pm.

JobDuties: Duties:Direct Directdaily dailyAfter AfterSchool SchoolProgram Programfrom from2:30 2:30pm-5:30 pm-5:30pm pmand andhire hire Job Job Duties: Direct daily After School Program from 2:30 pm-5:30 pm and hire supportstaff, staff,set setdaily dailyactivities, activities,and andmaintain maintainaaahealthy healthyand andactive activeprogram. program. support support staff, set daily activities, and maintain healthy and active program.

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Also Also direct the After School Program during the summer days week).

AFTERSCHOOL SCHOOLCHILDCARE CHILDCAREPROVIDER PROVIDER AFTER AFTER SCHOOL CHILDCARE PROVIDER

1:30---5:30 5:30//////$15.00 $15.00per perhour hour 1:30 1:30 5:30 $15.00 per hour Responsibilities:Supervise Supervisefree freeplay playon onthe theplayground playgroundand andinininthe theschool school Responsibilities: Responsibilities: Supervise free play on the playground and the school building,implement implementactivities, activities,provide providehomework homeworksupport supportfor forgrades grades2nd-5th, 2nd-5th, building, building, implement activities, provide homework support for grades 2nd-5th, andcommunicate communicatewith withparents parentsas asneeded neededand andwith withthe theprogram programdirector directordaily. daily. and and communicate with parents as needed and with the program director daily.

Requiredhours: hours:1:30 1:30pm-5:30 pm-5:30pm, pm,and andopenings openingsare areavailable availableon onMondays, Mondays, Required Required hours: 1:30 pm-5:30 pm, and openings are available on Mondays, Tuesdays,Wednesdays, Wednesdays,Thursdays Thursdaysand andFridays.

Fridays.Candidates Candidatesmay mayapply applyfor forthe the Tuesdays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

Candidates may apply for the numberof ofdays daysthat thatbest bestsuit suittheir theirschedule. schedule. number number of days that best suit their schedule.

Sendresumes resumesto: to:chill@sfxvt.org chill@sfxvt.org Send Send resumes to: chill@sfxvt.org

FARM TO PLATE NETWORK MANAGER

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12/9/21 4:20 4:20PM PM 12/9/21 12/9/21 4:20 PM

Join our values driven team and be responsible for supporting the 2nd decade of the Farm to Plate Network through planning, facilitation, coordination, and project management. Specific areas of focus and experience are needed, so please read the full job description at vsjf.org/about-vsjf-vermont/job-openings.

WORKING BRIDGES RESOURCE COORDINATOR

Do you like solving puzzles? Do all kinds of people find you easy to talk to? Queen City P.I is hiring an assistant private investigator for our busy PI practice in Burlington.

Hours are flexible, but you must have 2 full days per week available for fieldwork. The ideal candidate is a detail-oriented critical thinker, has excellent writing skills, and has experience working with criminal defense attorneys.

You must be willing and able to travel and knock on doors throughout the state of Vermont to interview witnesses and serve 1:25 PM subpoenas. This is not a job for the faint of heart, and it's not a job for someone who wants to "get the bad guys." It's a job for someone with natural curiosity who finds joy in the unexpected.

Email queencitypi@gmail.com with a resumé and cover letter if you think you are a good fit.

Ready to make a real difference in the lives of working Vermont women and families? Then we are ready for you!

We need a flexible extrovert and multi-tasking wizard (also known as the Resource Coordinator) who has an exceptional knowledge of community resources and state services. This knowledge will serve you well as you help employees at our on-site partner workplaces navigate non-work related issues.

THE GRIND GOT YOU DOWN?

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12/20/21 5:22 PM

The Working Bridges program also includes offering on-site individual or group training for employees, mobile tax preparation, coordination of income advance loans for employees and participation in employer collaborative meetings.

The Working Bridges Resource Coordinator is a key component of both the Working Bridges program and Working Communities Challenge initiative. The Working Bridges program improves business and workforce stability by bringing innovative practices to employers and employees using the workplace as a platform for human services.

Based in Washington County with the home office located at a community hub/fitness facility in Barre, Vermont, this position comes with added benefits of working with a great team, generous PTO and excellent benefits.

Send cover letter, resume and writing sample by 5pm, 1/5/22 at jobs@vsjf.org.

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12/15/21

The Working Communities Challenge (WCC) is a targeted threeyear initiative that aims to increase economic mobility and overall well-being for Greater Barre Area women-led households experiencing financial instability. The primary role of the Resource Coordinator in this innovative project is to support aligned coordination of employment support utilizing the components of the Working Bridges program and individual wrap-around support.

Employee health and dental insurance, paid time off, and retirement contribution. VSJF is an equal opportunity employer. People of color are encouraged to apply.

ASSISTANT PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR

Apply online: gmunitedway.org/working-bridges-resource-coordinator.

1 12/6/216t-GreenMtnUnitedWay121521.indd 3:20 PM

Perk up!

Browse 100+ new job postings from trusted, local employers.

Follow @SevenDaysJobs on Twitter for the latest job opportunities

jobs.sevendaysvt.com

1 12/10/21 3v-CoffeCampaign.indd 11:43 AM

8/26/21 5:17 PM

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @SEVENDAYSJOBS, SUBSCRIBE TO RSS, OR BROWSE POSTS ON YOUR PHONE AT JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM

NEW JOBS POSTED DAILY!

91

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

EMT / FIREFIGHTER Life Savers Wanted!

KITCHEN STAFF Hiring full-time and part-time chefs & cooks with commercial kitchen experience.

Competitive pay & benefits available!

Explore this beautiful state while creating some of Vermont’s best cuisine, powered by local and seasonal produce.

If interested, please email christinecloud9vt@gmail.com.

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WE JUST RAISED SALARIES AT CCS. SIGNIFICANTLY. And that’s on top of being a “Best Place to Work in Vermont” for three years running.

Opportunities for Direct Support Professionals ($18 per hour) and Service Coordination ($45k) at an award-winning agency serving Vermonters with intellectual disabilities.

Make a career making a difference. Check current openings at ccs-vt.org/current-openings.

E.O.E.

12/14/214t-ChamplainCommServicesRAISED121521.indd 11:38 AM 1

OPERATIONS SUPPORT

Williston Fire is an E.O.E.

➢ Guaranteed employment *

Provide an accessible home for an easy-going 38-year-old gentleman who enjoys being part of a dynamic household. This individual has a comprehensive team, strong family support, along with respite and weekday supports.

In addition, CCS has been voted as one of the Best Places to Work in Vermont for the third year in a row.

➢ Starting wage of $15.78 with potential to earn $16.57 after one year

TRAIN TO BE A PHLEBOTOMIST GUARANTEED JOB IN 8 WEEKS*

➢ Performance-based salary increases

Work for Vermont’s Largest Employer!

➢ National Certification as a Phlebotomy Technician

Over the past twenty years, Vermont HITEC educated and employed over 1,600 individuals in the healthcare, information technology, advanced manufacturing, and business services fields. We are accepting applications for our latest healthcare program. The program offers eight weeks of Phlebotomy training at no cost and immediate employment and 1:20 PM apprenticeship as a Phlebotomist with The UVM Medical Center (up to 12 positions) upon successful completion.

3Enrollment in a Registered Apprenticeship 3Up to 12 full-time positions available 3Guaranteed starting wages with shift differential (where applicable) 3Performance-based increases 3Full benefits, including health, dental, paid vacation, 401k, and more 3No cost for qualified VT residents * Employment guaranteed upon successful completion of the 8-week program.

The ITAR Program (Information Technology Apprenticeship Readiness) is a partnership of:

Send resume to Karen Ciechanowicz at staff@ccs-vt.org.

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JOB FEATURES: ➢ Work for Vermont’s largest employer ➢ Direct patient care ➢ Team environment ➢ Rewarding work ➢ High-growth occupation ➢ Day shifts available

LEARN MORE APPLY ONLINE

iaahitec.org DEADLINE FOR WINTER 2022 SESSION: SUNDAY, JANUARY 23, 2022

Continue your career in human services in a compassionate & fun environment. Join us today & make a career making a difference.

ccs-vt.org

PROGRAM FEATURES: ➢ Dedicated student support

SHARED LIVING PROVIDER

SERVICE COORDINATOR

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Visit www.willistonfire.com for an application and to view full job posting. Applicants must send a completed application, resume and cover letter by e-mail to applications@willistonfire.com or by mail to:

12/13/21 3:26 PM

True North Wilderness Program is seeking a fulltime, year-round Operations The ideal provider will have strong interpersonal communication and Support person. The ideal personal care skills as all aspects of ADL’s will be provided. This position candidate is an adaptable includes a comprehensive training package, tax-free stipend team player with a positive and a handicap accessible van for transportation. attitude who is willing to work both indoors and outdoors Contact Jennifer Wolcott at jwolcott@ccs-vt.org or 802-655-0511 x 118 for more information performing a variety of tasks associated with the logistics Join us! Visit ccs-vt.org to apply today. of running our program. Tasks including food packing and ccs-vt.org E.O.E. rationing, gear outfitting, transportation and facilities maintenance. Candidates 4t-ChamplainCommServicesSLP120821.indd 1 12/7/21 must be willing to work weekends and occasional evenings. A clean and valid driver’s license is required.

Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits Join our team of professionals providing case management for offered. Benefits include individuals with intellectual disabilities and autism. Work with health, dental, vision and individuals and their team to create goals and maintain a safe and accident insurance, an healthy lifestyle. employee assistance program, Compensation package is $45k annually plus mileage and on call a Wellness Fund, student loan stipend; and includes affordable health insurance, paid time off plus repayment reimbursement, 12 paid holidays, retirement match, dental plan and so much more. and a SIMPLE IRA. All True North employees must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 and provide proof of vaccination status prior to employment. Please apply at: truenorthwilderness.com.

Minimum requirements include National Registry - EMT certification at the time of application, with current Firefighter I, AEMT or Paramedic certification preferred. Current Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) certification is required prior to employment start date. Candidates without Firefighter I certification must be willing to obtain said certification within the first 12 months of hire as required by 20 V.S.A. Chapter 179.

Williston Fire Department, Attn: Chief Aaron Collette 645 Talcott Road, Williston, VT 05495

Join us! Visit ccs-vt.org to apply today. ccs-vt.org

The Williston Fire Department has full-time openings for a Career EMT/Firefighter. Applications are due by January 30, 2022 with an expected start date of April 1, 2022.

E.O.E.

The ITAR Program is funded in part by a grant from the Vermont and U.S. Departments of Labor. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetics, political affiliation or belief.

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12/21/21 10:06 AM

92

ATTENTION RECRUITERS:

POST YOUR JOBS AT JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM FOR FAST RESULTS, OR CONTACT MICHELLE BROWN: MICHELLE@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

CASE MANAGER HomeShare Vermont is a 40-year-old non-profit dedicated to promoting intergenerational homesharing to help people age in place while creating affordable housing arrangements for others. We have an opening for a Case Manager in our Montpelier office. The Case Manager will work with both those looking for housing and those considering sharing their homes and provide community outreach & education about homesharing.

EXPERIENCED COOK Experienced Cook needed for Shrine on Lake Champlain in beautiful northwestern Vermont.

The preferred candidate must have excellent interpersonal and organizational skills, minimum 3-5 years experience working in housing or human services. Job includes travel throughout the Washington, Orange and Lamoille counties so must have reliable vehicle and VT driver’s license.

COVID vaccinations required. Position is 40 hours/week with benefits.

Send cover letter and resume via email ONLY to Joyce@homesharevermont.org. EOE.

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Compensation is competitive and may include health and dental insurance, 403b retirement plan, life insurance, and paid time off.

St. Anne’s Shrine is conducted under the sponsorship of the Society of St. Edmund, a Roman Catholic religious community of priests and brothers. Visit us at saintannesshrine.org, contact Nancy at 802.928.3362 or ndulude@sse.org for more information or an application. Please see our full listing at bit.ly/3cQHwOh.

WHERE YOU AND YOUR WORK MATTER...

12/9/21 3:40 PM

PUBLIC RELATIONS AND OUTREACH COORDINATOR Our team at the Central Vermont Solid Waste Management District helps residents and businesses in our 19 member towns reduce, reuse, recycle, and rethink their waste for a more sustainable future.

Are you a creative, motivated, collaborative, and highly organized person who can lead outreach, marketing, and public relations for our team? If you enjoy a fast-paced, goal-oriented work environment and want to be part of a team who cares about effecting positive change, we want to hear from you!

You will be working directly with residents, businesses, landlords and event planners to help them reduce waste; answering calls about what can go in a recycling or compost bin; producing fresh content for our website, social media, fliers, and ads; working to promote our award-winning Additional Recyclables Collection Center (and more); and you will serve as a subject matter expert and communicator of CVSWMD’s image.

This is a full-time position based in our Montpelier Office, with some remote work offered. Off-site, evening and weekend work, and travel throughout our district is occasionally required.

We offer an outstanding benefit package that includes generous leave, 100% medical/dental/vision/disability/life insurance, 150% 401k match, a pet-friendly workplace, and more that provide our staff an excellent work/life balance.

Compensation is at Grade 6 on CVSWMD’s pay scale, or $18.59-$24.28 per hour, depending on experience. For full details about this position and how to apply, please visit cvswmd.org. Position will remain open until filled.

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Saint Anne’s Shrine, in Isle La Motte, Vermont is looking for a creative individual to prepare and serve delicious meals from scratch, using fresh local products, year-round, for retreat groups of varying sizes with an average of 30-40 guests as well as serving the public in our cafeteria on Sundays and Wednesdays during the summer pilgrimage season, plus a few special events per year.

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Would you like to make a valuable contribution supporting statewide design and construction? We are currently accepting applications from all architectural and engineering candidates. Candidates should have experience associated with capital improvement and maintenance projects. In addition to project management, this position will also assist the Design and Construction Program Chief with managing technical reviews, vendor evaluations, design guidelines, standard specifications, and procedures. For more information, contact Jeremy Stephens at jeremy.stephens@ vermont.gov. Department: Buildings and General Services. Status: Full Time. Location: Montpelier. Job Id #19529. Application Deadline: Open Until Filled.

DDS IT SPECIALIS T IV – WATERBURY

An exciting and rare opportunity for an IT professional to join our team! The Vermont Disability Determination Services is seeking an individual to serve as technical expert in all aspects of DDS IT systems administration, case processing systems, LAN administration, mainframe operations and network infrastructure.

Microsoft Server 2016, Microsoft Windows 10, Active Directory, MS Exchange, laptop and server hardware and imaging, file security, SQL and basic concepts of VOIP technology preferred. For more information, contact Jack McCormack at jack. mccormack@ssa.gov. Department: Children’s and Families. Location Waterbury. Status: Full Time. Job Id #21265. Application Deadline: January 10, 2021.

EDUCATION PROGRAMS COORDIN ATOR - ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS – MONTPELIER

Seeking individual with experience in both English language (EL) instruction and EL program and/or assessment management to be the Agency’s English Language Learner/Title III Director. Position plays a key role on the Consolidated Federal Programs team, managing two federal grant programs related to instruction of EL students, which includes coordinating the EL assessment program. Will assist with Agency and external partners regarding instruction, civil rights requirements, and data reporting. For more information, contact Anne Bordonaro at anne.bordonaro@ vermont.gov. Department: Education. Location: Montpelier. Status: Full Time. Job Id #26261. Application Deadline: January 9, 2022.

VERMONT DRINKING WATER PROGRAM POSITIONS – MONTPELIER

The State of Vermont has several exciting opportunities available in its Public Drinking Water Program. If you are interested in working in a fast paced, productive, and collaborative work environment to make sure citizens and visitors to Vermont have safe and affordable drinking water, we strongly encourage you to review the open positions and apply today! Find our open positions here: https://bit.ly/3oWYcdK . For more information, contact Ben Montross at ben.montross@vermont.gov. Department: Environmental Conservation. Location: Montpelier. Status: Full Time. Application Deadline: January 2, 2021.

Learn more at :

careers.vermont.gov

10/11/21 6t-VTDeptHumanResources122921ONLY 1:07 PM 1

The State of Vermont is an Equal Opportunity Employer

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DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

MULTIPLE OPENINGS! Burlington Housing Authority (BHA) in Burlington, VT is seeking candidates to continue BHA's success in promoting innovative solutions that address housing instability challenges facing our diverse population of extremely low-income families and individuals.

HCV INTAKE SPECIALIST is responsible for waitlist management of federally subsidized rental assistance programs. This position works directly with program applicants and maintains applications, records and computer entries for all programs and provides administrative support to rental assistance department.

LEASING COORDINATOR is responsible for the waitlist selection, screening for program eligibility, gathering information for Property Managers to screen for tenant suitability, processing lease ups, processing tenant move out files, monitoring vacancies and providing back up assistance to the Property Managers.

MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN performs general maintenance work in BHA owned and managed properties, including building exteriors, common areas, apartments, building systems, fixtures, and grounds. Our Maintenance Techs are required to participate in the on-call rotation, which covers night and weekend emergencies.

OFFENDER RE-ENTRY HOUSING SPECIALIST provides housing placement and retention services to high-risk offenders returning to the community from longterm incarceration. This grant funded position works as a part of a skilled Housing Retention Team and in close collaboration with Burlington Probation and Parole and Dept. of Corrections Central Offices.

RECEPTIONIST manages the main office lobby and answers phones while providing great customer service, processes office mailings, and provides administrative support.

RENTAL ASSISTANCE SPECIALIST assists in the operation of all rental programs, including tenant and project-based voucher and grant funded rental assistance programs. This position works with applicants, participants, and landlords to ensure that the required paperwork and annual certifications are processed timely.

STAFF ACCOUNTANT- RENTAL ASSISTANCE provides financial administration, accounting, and reporting for the various Rental Assistance and HUD Grant programs. This position is responsible for the financial administration of the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) and Mainstream programs including the processing of monthly Housing Assistance and Utility Allowance payments by check or ACH; monthly VMS submissions to HUD; annual processing of 1099 forms for landlords; responding to periodic inquiries from landlords, Rental Assistance staff, or HUD. To learn more about BHA and these career opportunities, please visit our website: https://burlingtonhousing.org.

BHA offers a competitive salary, commensurate with qualifications and experience, and an excellent benefit package. If you are interested in these career opportunities, please send a cover letter and resume to: humanresources@burlingtonhousing.org.

Human Resources , Burlington Housing Authority 65 Main Street, Suite 101, Burlington, VT 05401 BHA is an Equal Opportunity Employer

DENTAL HYGIENIST Middlebury Pediatric Dentistry is looking for a dental hygienist to join our friendly, close-knit team. Help us take care of Vermont kids’ oral health! Full or Part time. Health insurance. Paid vacation.

Please contact us and include your resume,

frontdesk@middleburypediatricdentistry.com TIRED OF WORKING WEEKENDS & HOLIDAYS? New World Tortilla at UVM is looking for a new shift supervisor. The position offered is Monday-Friday 10am - 6pm. We are closed major holidays and offer paid time off. Competitive wage based on experience.

Send your resume to newworlduvm@gmail.com

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REGIONAL MANAGER

12/20/21 11:10 AM

Serving the Southeast Corner of Vermont Are you interested in making Vermont a better place for children and families? Do you believe that the best way to tackle complex social issues is to bring together a diverse group of partners to work toward a common goal? Building Bright Futures (BBF) is seeking a collaborative leader to join our team!

Building Bright Futures (BBF) is seeking a Regional Manager to support the Building Bright Futures regional early childhood councils in the Northern Windsor Orange, Springfield Area and Southeast Vermont regions.

The Regional Manager will promote the importance of early childhood (Prenatal through age 8) and connect people and resources. They will serve as the liaison between regional and state teams to communicate regional priorities, gaps and needs experienced by children, families and early childhood partners.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE: • Engage partners and build trusting relationships to collectively build a seamless system experienced by families with a focus on the prenatal period through age 8 and beyond.

• Support and strengthen Regional Council operations in Northern Windsor Orange, Springfield Area and Southeast Vermont regions (i.e.: planning meetings, communications, monitoring progress toward regional action plan, grant deliverables and spending).

• Empower and elevate families as leaders and partners in the Council and across the BBF network • A resident of Orange, Windsor, or Windham county is preferred. This is one of four Regional Managers working collaboratively at BBF. Application deadline is Sunday, January 2 at midnight.

Find a full job description and how to apply here: https://bit.ly/BBFRegionalManager

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ATTENTION RECRUITERS:

POST YOUR JOBS AT JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM FOR FAST RESULTS, OR CONTACT MICHELLE BROWN: MICHELLE@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

COMMUNITY SUPPORT

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT PETE’S RV IS SEEKING an experienced executive assistant to become part of our fast-growing business. This person will be expected to help keep projects on track, review and analyze reports and be able to work independently. Our ideal candidate has advanced computer skills including Excel, is self-motivated, reliable, and efficient.

Requirements: • Strong research, math, and computer skills • Advanced in MS Office • Excellent time management skills and ability to multi-task and prioritize work • Attention to detail • High school diploma or GED equivalent • Valid driver’s license • Flexibility to travel on occasion

CALL CENTER REPRESENTATIVE We are looking for a friendly and hard-working Call Center Representative to join our growing team. You will be responsible for all incoming calls and emails, making outbound calls to customers, handling customer questions and complaints, and transferring potential leads to our sales team. Candidates should have an outgoing and positive demeanor, a positive work ethic, and have a track record of working well with others in a team environment. We prefer applicants who have some customer service experience, but we are willing to train the right person!

PETE’S RV WILL PROVIDE THE RIGHT PERSON THE FOLLOWING:

• Training (Immediate and ongoing) • Hourly plus BONUS with the opportunity for unlimited earning potential

Benefits: • Cigna Health Insurance • 401K Retirement Plan with Company Match • Personal Time Off Accrual • Paid Holidays • Life Insurance • Employee Discounts • Advancement Opportunities

• Health Insurance • Dental and Vision available • Paid time off • 401K with employer match • Life Insurance

About our Company: Pete’s RV Center is a family owned business that has been keeping New England, Northern New York, Mid-West, and Southern families enjoying the great outdoors since 1952. As the #1 RV dealership in New England, we take great pride in all six locations. The Pete’s RV dealer group consists of dealerships in the great states of Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and South Carolina. We are a growing company that values its employees and their contributions in making us successful in today’s ultra-competitive marketplace.

About our Company: Pete’s RV Center is a family owed business that has been keeping New England, Northern New York, Mid-West and Southern families enjoying the great outdoors since 1952. As the #1 RV dealership in New England, we take great pride in all six locations.

The Pete's RV dealer group consists of dealerships in the great states of Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Indiana and South Carolina. We are a growing company that values it's employees and their contributions in making us successful in today's ultra-competitive marketplace.

For full description and to apply: https://bit.ly/PetesRVexecAsst

Full description and to apply online: bit.ly/PetesRVcallCENTER

Pay: $50,000+ based on experience

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New, local, scam-free jobs posted every day!

Begin a career in 2022, don’t start a job! Spend your time doing work that makes a real difference. We need great people who want to help great people. Are you compassionate, kind, resilient, and adaptable?

Specialized Community Care is seeking unique individuals who will act as mentors, coaches, and friends to provide support for adults in Addison, Rutland, Franklin, and Chittenden Counties with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

This is a fun and rewarding career spent “Off the Couch.”

We provide extensive training, support, professional growth and advancement opportunities in a family work environment.

We offer pay increases after a probationary period and further advancement and pay for selfpaced skill building. We want to hire your values and train the skills that will help make you successful. Let’s talk!

Please contact us at 802-388-6388 Web: www.sccvt.org Or email denise.smith@sccvt.org

12/21/21 11:36 AM

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DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

SAME DAY DELIVERIES (802) 862-7662

Director of School Business Management and Finance Patricia A. Hannaford Regional Technical School District is seeking a Director of School Business Management and Finance to manage and execute the fiscal and business affairs of its school district. The successful candidate will demonstrate a strong background in accounting and finance with a solid understanding of a school-based chart of accounts.

MEDICAL COURIERS AND DELIVERY DRIVERS Currently, we are seeking drivers to join our growing team. We are hiring for several full time and part time positions, as well as different shifts.

Feel free to stop in to our office at 54 Echo Place, Suite# 1, Williston, VT 05495 and fill out an application.

Or fill out an application via our website at shipvds.com or email Tim a copy of your resume at timothy@shipvds.com.

Interested applicants should submit a letter of interest, résumé, three letters of reference, and any applicable transcripts and/ 4t-GreenMountainMessenger082521.indd or certificates via Schoolspring or mail/email to: Patrice Alexander, Admin Assistant Hannaford Career Center 51 Charles Avenue Middlebury, VT 05753 802-382-1012 palexander@pahcc.org

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8/24/21

Estate Planning and Probate Administration Paralegal Prominent mid-size law firm in downtown Burlington, Vermont seeks paralegal for our estate planning and probate administration practice. The successful candidate will have a strong work ethic; excellent writing and communication skills; fluency in Microsoft Office programs and adaptability to technology generally; good time management skills; and the flexibility to work with multiple attorneys. Qualified candidates must have prior estate planning and probate administration experience, including drafting estate planning documents, deeds and property transfer returns, probate court filings and other trust administration duties.

We care most about excellent analytical, organizational and communication skills and initiative. We offer a competitive salary, comprehensive health insurance and other benefits.

Days ForSeven more information about Gravel & Shea, please visit 2:18 PM gravelshea.com.

Issue: 12/22

Due: 12/20 by 11am A qualified candidate should promptly submit a cover letter, résumé at least Size:and3.83 x 7 one writing sample to: Cost:Miller, $570.35 1 weekGravel online) Flossie Office (with Administrator, & Shea PC P.O. Box 369, Burlington, VT 05402-0369 fmiller@gravelshea.com

Engaging minds that change the world

Seeking a position with a quality employer? Consider The University of Vermont, a stimulating and diverse workplace. We offer a comprehensive benefit package including tuition remission for on-going, full-time positions.

Gravel & Shea is an Equal Opportunity Employer Community Health Workers - Ext - Migrant Education - #S3287PO & #S3294PO - The University of Vermont Extension Program is recruiting six new positions as Community Health Workers spread across the state of 3v-PatriciaHannafordCareerCenter1222AND122921.indd 12/21/21 1:10 1 PMVermont. Positions may be .75 to 1.0 FTE based on assigned territory. Five 5v-GravelShea121521.indd 1 bilingual Spanish/English positions will be assigned to a specific geographic region: Central West, Northwest, Northeast Kingdom, South, and Central East. One position will work exclusively with Jamaican H2A workers.

General Assembly SESSION-ONLY USER SUPPORT SPECIALIST The Legislative support offices are currently hiring. The nonpartisan offices are an interesting, challenging, and exciting place to work.

You will be part of a highly professional and collegial team that is proud of, and enthusiastic about, the mission of the state legislature.

The Community Health Worker will assist in, coordinate, and implement community-based outreach activities, initiatives, and programs that contribute to health equity within designated migrant communities. Improve quality of life at an individual, household, and population level by acting as a liaison, cultural broker, educator, advocate, navigator, and interpreter between individuals and community-based organizations to promote health, reduce disparities, and improve service delivery. Coordinate clinical outreach efforts and collaborate with local health and social service organizations to assist them in addressing systemic barriers to health and social services.

Each position functions with minimal daily supervision, while working in collaboration with a statewide migrant health team to fulfill programmatic objectives. Education and experience equivalent to bachelor’s degree in social sciences or humanities and two to four years of related experience. Applicant must be bilingual in English and primary language of population served and possess a strong understanding of the community to be served either because of prior work, relationship in/to the community and/or other life experience.

Cultural agility required. Must demonstrate ability to plan, organize, and coordinate access to health and social services effectively and independently.

Strong interpersonal and communication skills required with experience and capacity to work with diverse audiences. Proficient computer and multimedia skills essential. Willingness to travel and work a flexible schedule which at times will include evenings and weekends.

Applicants may apply for a Community Health Worker I or Community Health Worker II based on level of experience. The University is especially interested in candidates who can contribute to the diversity and excellence of the institution. Applicants are encouraged to include in their cover letter information about how they will further this goal.

To apply, please go to 'Career Opportunities' at

For further information on this position and others currently available, or to apply online, please visit www.uvmjobs.com. Applicants must apply for positions electronically. Paper resumes are not accepted. Open positions are updated daily. Please call 802-656-3150 or email employment@uvm. edu for technical support with the online application.

legislature.vermont.gov.

The University of Vermont is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.

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12/13/21 5:07 PM

CASH MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTANT We are seeking a Cash Management Accountant to join our Finance Team at Capstone Community Action. The Cash Management Accountant is responsible for managing accountability and control of company bank accounts, as well as managing the accounts receivable system. This position will work closely with other members of the finance department and administrative staff.

The ideal candidate will have an Associate’s degree in a related field or prior experience in cash management. Strong interpersonal and computer skills a must.

Interested applicants should submit a letter of interest and resume to: Capstone Community Action, Inc. Human Resources, 20 Gable Place, Barre, VT 05641 Or e-mail to: jobs@capstonevt.org Capstone offers a generous benefits package, including health and dental insurance, paid vacation, sick and personal time, 13 paid holidays, and 401k match and more.

Capstone Community Action, Inc. is an E.O.E. and Provider. Applications from women, individuals with disabilities, veterans, and people from diverse cultural backgrounds are encouraged.

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12/17/21 3:14 PM

ATTENTION RECRUITERS:

96

POST YOUR JOBS AT JOBS.SEVENDAYSVT.COM FOR FAST RESULTS, OR CONTACT MICHELLE BROWN: MICHELLE@SEVENDAYSVT.COM

DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Champlain Islanders Developing Essential Resources (C.I.D.E.R) Champlain Islanders Developing Essential Resources (C.I.D.E.R.) is seeking an Executive Director. C.I.D.E.R. provides transportation, meals, and wellness services to seniors and people with disabilities in Grand Isle County, Vermont in collaboration with other agencies.

The Executive Director is responsible for the organization vision and strategic planning, agency administration, staff development and supervision, fiscal development and management, board relations, community relations, and community advocacy for seniors and people with disabilities.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES: Client Services – Transportation, Meals, Wellness · Provide oversight to C.I.D.E.R programs · Identify/implement changes to services driven by changing client needs/external impacts · Investigate opportunities to increase service to Grand Isle County.

Human Resources & Work Environment · Manage a small work force of staff and volunteers for transportation, meals and other services · Comply with all federal and state labor laws and regulations · Manage the facilities and environment and ensure current processes and software systems are in place

Donations & Grants · Manage C.I.D.E.R.’s annual donation campaigns · Investigate and Secure grants and contracts to help secure funding to support the mission

Fiscal Control · Develop an annual budget and present to board · Maintain a balanced budget · Ensure all financial controls are in place and current

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Community & Board of Director Relations · Keep the Board of Directors and members informed about C.I.D.E.R business · Develop/maintain positive relationship with county community, clients, volunteers, businesses · Advocate for C.I.D.E.R.’s mission via collaboration with organizations that serve the same population.

Strategy · Manage partnership with Cathedral Square for providing services to the Bayview senior housing facility · Assist BOD committees in implementing actions in support of the current 5-year strategy · Work with the BOD, community members, and other organizations to review/update 5 year strategy

QUALIFICATIONS: · Excellent communication skills · Experience working for and managing small non-profits preferred · Experience in rural community preferred · Bachelor’s degree preferred

Proposed Start Date: May 2, 2022 Background check and current Covid-19 vaccination required.

Submit Letter of Interest and resume to cidervthr@gmail.com.

The Letter of Interest should include relevant experience/ interest with working in rural areas, federal and state regulations pertaining to non-profits, financial responsibilities, grants, fundraising, working with elderly and disabled.

Applications review will start Jan 1, 2022 and continue until a candidate is found.

A full position description and information about C.I.D.E.R and Grand Isle County can be found at cidervt.org and Job opportunities – C.I.D.E.R. (cidervt.org)

12/20/21 12:31 PM

CALCOKU & SUDOKU (P.85) CROSSWORD (P.85)

fun stuff HARRY BLISS

JEN SORENSEN

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

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fun stuff RYAN RIDDLE

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Keep this newspaper free for all.

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7/14/20 3:32 PM

Have a deep, dark fear of your own? Submit it to cartoonist Fran Krause at deep-dark-fears.tumblr.com, and you may see your neurosis illustrated in these pages.

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY BY ROB BREZSNY REAL DECEMBER 30-JANUARY 5 caused by the guinea worm parasite. When Carter began his work, 3.5 million people per year suffered from the parasite’s debilitating effects. Today, there are close to zero victims.

Will 2022 bring an equivalent boon to your life, Aries? The banishment of an old bugaboo? A monumental healing? I suspect so.

CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19)

Microbiologist Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928. It was later described as “the single greatest victory ever achieved over disease” — an antidote to dangerous infections caused by bacteria. But there’s more to the story. Fleming’s strain of penicillin could only be produced in tiny amounts — not nearly enough to become a widespread medicine. It wasn’t until 1943 that a different strain of penicillin was found — one that could be massproduced. The genius who made this possible was Mary Hunt, a humble researcher without a college degree.

By 1944, the new drug was saving thousands of lives. I mention Hunt because she’s a good role model for you in 2022. I believe you’ll have chances to improve on the work of others, generating excellent results.

You may also improve on work you’ve done in the past.

ARIES (Mar. 21-Apr. 19): Historians disagree about the legacy of Jimmie Carter, who was President of the United States from 1977 to 1981. Was he effective or not? Opinions differ. But there’s no ambiguity about a project he pursued after his presidency. He led a global effort to eliminate a pernicious disease

TAURUS (Apr. 20-May 20): In 2022, I hope you will express more praise than ever before. I hope you’ll be a beacon of support and inspiration for the people you care for.

The astrological omens suggest this could be a record-breaking year for the blessings you bestow. Don’t underestimate your power to heal and instigate beneficial transformations. Yes, of course, it’s a kind and generous strategy for you to carry out. But it will also lead to unforeseen rewards that will support and inspire and heal you.

GEMINI (May 21-Jun. 20): If you search

Google, you’ll be told that the longest biography ever written is the 24-volume set about British political leader Winston Churchill. But my research shows there’s an even more extensive biography: about Japan’s Emperor Hirohito, who lived from 1901 to 1989. His story consists of 61 volumes. In the spirit of these expansive tales, and in accordance with 2022’s astrological aspects, I encourage you to create an abundance of noteworthy events that will deserve inclusion in your biography. Make this the year that warrants the longest and most interesting chapter in that masterpiece.

CANCER (Jun. 21-Jul. 22): One of the 20th century’s most famous works of art was “Fountain.” It was scandalous when it appeared in 1917, since it consisted entirely of a white porcelain urinal. Marcel Duchamp, the artist who presented it, was a critic of the art market and loved mocking conventional thought. Years later, however, evidence emerged suggesting that “Fountain” might not have been Duchamp’s idea — that, in fact, he “borrowed” it from Cancerian artist and poet Baroness Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven. There’s still disagreement among art scholars about what the facts are. But if definitive proof ever arrives that von Freytag-Loringhoven was the originator, it will be in 2022. This will be the year many Cancerians finally get the credit they deserve.

LEO (Jul. 23-Aug. 22): Author Carson McCullers wrote the novel The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. Early in the story, the character named Mick Kelly has a crisis of yearning. McCullers describes it: “The feeling was a whole lot worse than being hungry for any dinner, yet it was like that. I want—I want—I want—was all that she could think about—but just what this real want was she did not know.” If you have ever had experiences resembling Mick’s, Leo, 2022 will be your year to fix that glitch in your passion. You will receive substantial assistance from life whenever you work on the intention to clarify and define the specific longings that are most essential to you.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sep. 22): After careful research, I have concluded that one of your important missions in 2022 will be to embody a perspective articulated by poet Rand Howells: “If I could have but one wish granted, it would be to live in a universe like this one at a time like the present with friends like the ones I have now and be myself.” In other words, Virgo, I’m encouraging you to do whatever’s necessary to love your life exactly as it is — without comparing it unfavorably to anyone else’s life or to some imaginary life you don’t actually have.

LIBRA (Sep. 23-Oct. 22): If your quest for spiritual enlightenment doesn’t enhance your ability to witness and heal the suffering of others, then it’s fake enlightenment. If your quest for enlightenment encourages you to imagine that expressing personal freedom exempts you from caring for the well-being of your fellow humans, it’s fake. If your quest for enlightenment allows you to ignore racism, bigotry, plutocracy, misogyny and LGBTQIAphobia, it’s fake. Everything I just said about enlightenment is equally true about your quest for personal success. If it doesn’t involve serving others, it’s meaningless. In this spirit, Libra, and in accordance with the astrological omens, I invite you to make 2022 the year you take your compassion and empathy to the highest level ever.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Two mating rabbits could theoretically engender 11 million relatives within a year’s time. Although I suspect that in 2022 you will be as metaphori-

cally fertile as those two hypothetical rabbits, I’m hoping you’ll aim more for quality than quantity. To get started, identify two projects you could pursue in the coming months that will elicit your most liberated creativity.

Write a vow in which you state your intention to be intensely focused as you express your fecundity.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): A

blogger named Soracities writes, “The more I read, the more I feel that a good mark of an intelligent book is simply that the author is having fun with it.” Sagittarian author George Saunders adds that at its best, “Literature is a form of fondness-for-life. It is love for life taking a verbal form.” I will expand these analyses to evaluate everything that humans make and do. In my opinion, the supreme sign of intelligence and value is whether the creators had fun and felt love in doing it. My proposal to you, Sagittarius, is to evaluate your experiences in that spirit. If you are doing things with meager amounts of fun and love, what can you do in 2022 to raise the fun and love quotient?

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Catherine

Pugh wrote a series of children’s books collectively known as Healthy Holly. Later, when she became mayor of the city of Baltimore, she carried out a scheme to sell 100,000 copies to hospitals and schools that did business with the city. Uh-oh. Corruption! She was forced to resign from her office and was arrested. I’d love for you to be aggressive and imaginative in promoting yourself in 2022, but only if you can find ethical ways to do so. I’d love for you to make money from doing what you do best, but always with high integrity and impeccability.

PISCES (Feb. 19-Mar. 20): Piscean Vaslav Nijinsky is regarded by many as the 20th century’s most brilliant dancer. He had a robust relationship with beauty, and I want you to know about it. Hopefully, this will inspire you to enjoy prolonged periods of Beauty Worship in 2022. To do so will be good for your health.

Memorize this passage from Nijinsky: “Beauty is God. God is beauty with feeling. Beauty is in feeling. I love beauty because I feel it and therefore understand it. I flaunt my beauty. I feel love for beauty.”

CHECK OUT ROB BREZSNY’S EXPANDED WEEKLY AUDIO HOROSCOPES & DAILY TEXT MESSAGE HOROSCOPES: REALASTROLOGY.COM OR 1-877-873-4888

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KINDNESS, CREATIVITY AND FUN I am an independent, vibrant person.

I work hard, and I play hard. I am also nurturing, and I come with excellent references. I love the outdoors, and I care about humanity, my friends and family.

I live the good life in Burlington and beyond and could use someone to share it all with! Bevviejo, 60, seeking: M, l LOOKING FOR A TRUE PARTNER Isn’t online dating a blast? OK, maybe it can be challenging at times, but it’s still exciting that you have the chance to meet someone special who you might never have met elsewhere. I’m a proud mom/grandmom, an avid rower (concept rower), a professional and, if you ask my friends, a kind (and a bit quirky at times) person. Leelady, 57, seeking: M WOMAN, HONEST, NEW CHAPTER I’m at a crossroad in life. I’m just looking for nothing serious, but if it develops into more, I’m also OK with that. I’m an open book. If you want to know anything, just ask. I’m an open-minded individual looking to develop something new with someone who will cherish my time and energy, which people have taken for granted. vtwomen31, 31, seeking: M LOTS OF ENERGY! I’m a high-energy, highly educated person in Vermont for winter skiing and fun. I love live music and get out as much as I can to hear good acts. I am interested in making new friends but would be open to a relationship, even an LTR, if the right connections develop.

Winter_friend, 55, seeking: M, l WARM BBW FOR CUDDLY T-BEAR Warm BBW seeks cuddly teddy bear (or two) who’s silly, soulful, spiritual and sensual, as I am. Enjoy being near water, eating out or cooking together, drives to nowhere, plays, movies, live music.

I’m polyamorous and hope you are, too; I believe it’s possible to have more than one loving relationship at once.

Also please be intelligent, reflective and fun! Myzeffy, 63, seeking: M, l DISCREET FUN AND FRIEND WITH BENEFITS I am in my early 40s, married to a wonderful man who doesn’t know I enjoy the company of a woman occasionally.

Looking to find another female who would like to be a friend with benefits.

Discretion is a must. If we decide, then maybe meet for dinner/drinks and get a room for the night. Send me a message. DiscreetFun, 42, seeking: W SEEKING ELUSIVE CHEMISTRY Genuine nice gal — low maintenance, avoider of negative energy. Aim for peaceful coexistence in a beautiful setting. Love nature: big view, mountains, lake and sky; birds and animals; swimming in streams, lakes and waterfalls. Seek similar male who is tall, educated, kind and upbeat. Emotionally stable. Well read. Bonus points if you like cooking garden-to-table, and yard projects. swimwstars, 65, seeking: M, l

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

COZY, LITERATE HOMEBODY SEEKS CO-CHEF Voracious reader and creative thinker seeks playmate. If you’re someone who thinks deeply, values friendships, respects the world beyond humankind, chooses science over suspicion, and tempers your thinking with compassion and humility, let’s be in touch. I’m a SF, 55, healthy, active and COVID careful. Sanguinely, 25, seeking: M SEASONED WOMAN DESIRES SEASONED MAN 73-y/o woman who wants to meet a man who desires to have a committed relationship to find what life reveals to us. I enjoy theater, walking, hiking (short distances), reading, writing (personal journals). Working part time in the field of DD/ID MH. flynrn, 73, seeking: M LOVING AND KIND I am a very nice person who is open to love at any time. When I say “love,” I mean sharing ideas, spending time. I live a very quiet life and do not like the limelight. I love military men. I also love intelligent conversation. Some looks are necessary, but taking care of oneself is important. AnLuv, 50, seeking: M, l HOPING FOR COMPANIONSHIP Don’t need a fancy trip to France. Would enjoy the company of someone for more realistic adventures — things like breakfast. I love getting breakfast out, playing board games, day trips here and there. bluemonarch, 55, seeking: M, W, TM, TW, Q, NC, NBP, Cp, l LOVE TO LAUGH, KIND, AUTHENTIC Been separated for a while now and, though very happy/content to be solo during that time, I think I’m ready to meet new people. Looking for some fun social times to start. I love to go out for drinks, play darts/cards. Love watching sports on TV, especially Boston teams. Love animals, travel and new but sane adventures. Not looking for FWB. AlmostReady, 64, seeking: M, l

MEN seeking...

CAN I MAKE YOU LAUGH? I’m tall, well put together, and I’ve got a great job that I love. I’ve been career-oriented my entire adult life, and now that I’ve come to a comfortable place in my career, ideally I’m looking for someone to talk to, then hang out with, then see where things go.

Blueeyedandbearded, 35, seeking: W, l LOOKING FOR MY DISCREET LOVER A total bottom guy who likes to go out and do things, but I always want to have extra fun with him at the end. So, if you’re the type who wants to maybe go out for a pizza and a beer on a Saturday afternoon, then end up in your bed afterward, send me a message. borpsalm69, 46, seeking: M NEVER THOUGHT I’D BE HERE I’m as normal as I am abnormal. Just looking around. No preference. Don’t be shy. Notsurewhattoputhere, 22, seeking: W

READY TO SHARE LIFE AGAIN Things are going well for me! Career is on track. Family is healthy. I’m financially secure. And I have been vaccinated. (That is important these days, LOL.) What I’m missing in my life is a special friend/partner/ LTR. Someone to rejoice with our individual/together life events. And to help soften the sting when life’s little failures arises. I’m ready to share life.

VTMtnAdventures, 58, seeking: W, l STING IS MY BIGGEST FAN OK, I don’t actually know Sting. Just moved up to Vermont a minute ago and would love to meet some fun folks.

I’m not looking for anything serious.

That part of my life is accounted for. I’m still fond of female company in all its other forms, though. PlentyOfToast, 39, seeking: W, TM, TW, Q, NC, NBP, Cp, Gp, l Y KNOT I’m looking for some NSA, discreet fun. MD515, 54, seeking: M, W, TM, TW, Q, NC, NBP, Cp, Gp, l HAPPY BI MAN Looking to meet others for sensual experiences. Into many things, but mostly hot, lustful fun. paulccc, 61, seeking: M, Cp HONEST, SPIRITUAL, CARING, LOVING Recently relocated to Colchester and work as an RN at UVMMC in Burlington.

Highly educated with BSN and BS Chem.

Honest, open-minded and willing for LTR. Have faith, hope and love. Seeking female companion/soul mate to share fun times when not working. I enjoy most indoor cultural and outdoor recreational activities. No drugs or alcohol, please.

Nursesteve1, 60, seeking: W, l LOOKING FOR A NEW FRIEND Hello! I am looking for a new friend and looking to have more fun this winter than last winter allowed. The friendship I’m looking for may be a bit “unconventional,” but it would be a lot of fun! Who likes conventional anyway? Let’s chat or get together and see if we could be friends. Forfun802, 38, seeking: W CURIOUS, SEEKING ACTION Looking for after-midnight hookup. If you are horny and not ugly and local, hit me up. jasper, 62, seeking: M SILVER HEAD, FOR GOOD COMPANY Friendly, social guy seeks good male company with possible benefits. orion, 68, seeking: M

KANGA1 I am a pretty quiet man who has been referred to as somewhat serious and highly passionate in things that I believe in and find important, like the environment and human influence and its effects on our planet. Pretty intelligent person and very inquisitive on many fronts. Ex-massage therapist.

Many other aspects of me to discover.

Kanga1, 65, seeking: W, l

NONBINARY PEOPLE seeking...

FEMININE CROSS-DRESSER SEEKS THOSE INTERESTED I’m looking for others interested in femininity and sensual possibilities. Let’s chat. Nicole123, 62, seeking: M, TW, Q, NC, NBP

TRANS WOMEN seeking...

BE MY CUDDLE BUDDY? Cute 50-y/o vegan straight-edge polyam ace enby trans girl. Love my parallel polyam primary nesting partner, so I’m looking for a part-time snuggle buddy for walks and talks and handholding and kissing and romance! I fall in love really easily! I’m half in love with you already just because you’re reading this!

Anyone but cis guys. EnbyTransgirl, 53, seeking: W, TM, TW, Q, NBP, l T GIRL LIVE IN VT Trans girl. Offbeat sense of humor.

Looking for that certain someone. I like dinner and a movie or a game at Centennial Field. I like to ride my bike on the bike path and see shows at Higher Ground. At home I spend my time listening to my record collection and taking care of my house. Luv2BaGurl, 61, seeking: M, W, TM, TW, Q, NC, NBP, l DEPTH AND DESIRE Finding both is not easy. Active TG seeks motivated, aroused, real playmate for trysts of all sorts. Inside, outside, day, night. If you are 50ish to 60ish, very fit and hot to trot, get in touch.

2PartsofDesire, 64, seeking: M, Cp, l

TRANS MEN seeking...

FRIENDLY VERMONTER, MEETING NEW PEOPLE I’m looking to meet folks in the Burlington area. I’m 28 and work at a local college. I like doing things outdoors but also like to do low-key things, too, like hang out with a dog or watch a movie. I identify as trans masculine. I’m getting into cooking and would like to make some good meals with someone. llido, 28, seeking: W, TW, Q, NC, NBP, l

COUPLES seeking...

STILL LOVING CURIOSITY Creative type — still trying to figure out life. Looking for someone who questions, explores, is happy to be out of the mainstream and is looking for a partner in crime. With the right person, ready to give and get constant touch and affection. timeandtouch, 62, seeking: W

FUN 40S M/30S F COUPLE Really want to surprise my partner and make our fun fantasy a reality. Fun and mostly fit couple looking to explore some fun times with a third person or possible couple. He’s straight, but I’m a switch hitter. Let’s grab some drinks or burn one and see what happens. Clean, hygienic and good sense of humor a must. GoodTimes4All, 42, seeking: W

OLD BUT STILL HORNY At 83, I am blessed to be healthy and “vital,” and am looking for older women who are the same. I believe couples should make the rules that work for them. I am open to a variety of activities and types of relationships. I don’t judge and believe that mutual respect is most important if a relationship is going to work. barreloves, 83, seeking: W, TW, Cp, Gp, l

READY TO EXPLORE THE UNKNOWN My girlfriend and I want to live out our fantasies! So, we are looking for a couple or a female who we can explore and have fun with. We are both fairly attractive and clean. I can be wild, and she wants to learn how to unleash the hidden inner beast.

BigRed_Little_Tuff, 41, seeking: Cp

i SPY

If you’ve been spied, go online to contact your admirer!

dating.sevendaysvt.com

BABY YODA PAJAMAS You were a tall, handsome man walking north in Hinesburg while I was walking south. I was wearing green Baby Yoda pajamas, and you said they looked great! If you are single and interested, I’d love to hear about other fashion interests! When: Friday, December 17, 2021. Where: Route 116 in Hinesburg.

You: Man. Me: Woman. #915473 FOREST IN THE EASTWOOD Two strangers meeting for a fall hike.

Two nature-loving woods wanderers. I love listening to your sexy voice, your smile and twinkling eyes, your amazing hugs and kisses. I shared my favorite spot with you. We can heal together.

You know how to reach me when you are ready to start over and give us another chance. Dang! When: Friday, October 22, 2021. Where: Mount Horrid cliffs.

You: Man. Me: Woman. #915472 I MISS YOU, SUNSHINE I made a mistake, and it cost me the best woman I ever knew. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about my Montpelier girl. I do wish the best for you but wish we split on better terms.

You will always be in my heart, Smarty Pants. When: Monday, September 27, 2021. Where: Montpelier. You: Woman. Me: Man. #915428 SHELBURNE ROAD, ADVANCED AUTO PARTS You and your guy were waiting at the counter as I walked by and wished you good luck on your project. Did I imagine it, or did you come over by me a few times and then bend over in front of the air fresheners for my benefit? If so, I’m really glad you did. Meet for a drink? When: Friday, September 24, 2021. Where: Shelburne Rd. auto parts store. You: Couple. Me: Man. #915425

THOUGHT YOU SHOULD KNOW! Our paths are running next to each other. I hope they cross sooner rather than later. I hope you turn here as much as I do. When: Sunday, October 10, 2021. Where: my daily read.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915432 BLOND HAIR IN THE SUN Was walking out at Kingsland Bay, sharp cold wind blowing across the water.

I walked by you going the other way and caught your smile. You smelled so nice. I love the smell of patchouli, and I can’t stop thinking about you.

I hope our paths cross again. I think they will. When: Sunday, December 12, 2021. Where: Kingsland Bay. You: Woman. Me: Man. #915471 SWEET AT DENNY’S You’re a waitress, and I kept stealing glances. You came up to compliment my son on his mask and explained you had a superhero Xmas tree at home.

He was taken aback, and my chest fluttered and my ears got warm. Your personality matched that gorgeous expression and smiling eyes. Hope I’m lucky enough to meet you again one day! When: Saturday, December 11, 2021. Where: Shelburne Road Denny’s.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915470 BURLINGTON CUMBERLAND FARMS, GAS, SMILES You: F, light brown hair in a bun, blue Volkswagen wagon parked at the pump.

Me: M, tall, salt-and-pepper hair, shorts, floral mask, held the door for you as you came in. We caught each other’s eye, smiled as you walked to the pump.

I said hi. I should’ve come over to talk.

Care to do that sometime? When: Tuesday, September 21, 2021. Where: Cumberland Farms, Pine St., Burlington.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915424

Ask REVEREND the

Irreverent counsel on life’s conundrums

Dear Reverend,

My 19-year-old son came home from college for the holidays. The first thing he told me was that he got married to one of his friends whom I don’t even know. Apparently, they did it to get some financial benefits. This makes me very sad, because I’ve been married for 20 years and I consider it to be a sacred institution. I’m heartbroken that he would treat it like a frivolous arrangement that doesn’t really mean anything. I’m also very upset that he didn’t talk to me about it before doing it.

Matrimommy (FEMALE, 44)

YOU’RE STILL A MIRACLE I wish you the best and hope our paths cross again soon. You still mean the world to me. I don’t hate you, even if you’re still an HP fan after all the stuff JKR said. I’m sorry if I made you question the things that brought you joy. You’re still a miracle to me. Please be kind to yourself. When: Monday, November 22, 2021. Where: Burlington.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915469 FOREVER, EVER? Forever never, seems that long until you’re grown / And notice that the day-by-day ruler can’t be too wrong. / I wish I could become a magician to abracadabra all the sadder / Thoughts of me, thoughts of she, asking what happened to the feeling that her and me had. When: Sunday, October 14, 2018. Where: separate ways.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915416 PURPLE HAIR AT CITY MARKET You rang me up in the evening. Your purple hair is awesome, and you were really friendly. I appreciated you bagging for me while I paid. Thanks for making my night brighter with the beautiful purple and with your kindness. I hope I see you at the cash register again soon. When: Wednesday, December 8, 2021. Where: City Market. You: Woman. Me: Trans man. #915468 LAUGHS AT WILLISTON CVS You asked how a fan of my team ended up here. I replied quickly, and we shared a quick laugh. You wished me a good rest of the day as you passed me at the self-checkout. I would have asked you to coffee if I had seen you outside. If anything, thanks for the smile. When: Monday, December 6, 2021. Where: Williston CVS. You: Woman. Me: Man. #915467 FOUND! GODDESS TO SPOIL Goddess V: You truly are the unicorn of unicorns! So glad you took the chance and responded to our personal ad.

One of the most epic weekends of our lives is in the books. Next up? More adventures, laughs, great conversation, cuddles on the couch, continuing to spoil you in and out of the bedroom, and contributing to your sexual awakening!

When: Sunday, November 14, 2021.

Where: Seven Days Personals. You: Woman. Me: Couple. #915466

Dear Matrimommy,

Your son is an adult, and if he’s legally married, there’s nothing much you can do about it now. It’s a bummer that he didn’t talk to you ahead of time, but I have a feeling that he probably knew you wouldn’t approve.

Platonic marriage, without romantic or sexual attachment, has been talked about a lot lately, but it’s nothing new. Marriage started out

MIDDAY SHAW’S SHOPPER To the hat-wearing bearded lunchtime grocery shopper stuck in a long checkout line: We crossed paths a few times.

Please know you were the main character in my lunchtime errand. I want to know what happens next! When: Thursday, December 2, 2021. Where: Waterbury Shaw’s. You: Man. Me: Woman. #915465 MEMORIES OR FEELINGS No matter how hard I tried, it wouldn’t work. Once a single imperfection is revealed, I’m toast. In the end, all I could do was run while looking back at memories of feeling alienated. In brief reflective moments, almost asleep, feelings go deep and life feels free. All that work so eternity can stay a little longer with each visit. When: Tuesday, November 30, 2021. Where: somewhere out there, somewhere near here.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915464 SWEET GIRL MAKING CONFECTIONS I am so very grateful to have initiated our conversation, which led to a first meeting, which has subsequently led to another and another, and I hope they don’t stop. You have given me the feelings I have been searching for, and I look forward to us getting to know each other more and more and being your wood stacker. When: Wednesday, November 24, 2021. Where: Montpelier.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915463 MY LOVE BURNED IT DOWN Was it because you were afraid or because you didn’t love me? Every memory is suspended here. They’re ghosts armed with knives. I could have laid my head on your chest every night ’til I was old. “You broke my heart from the start ... made me work so hard ... The last recluse ... Or was it, ‘Courage ... it didn’t come...’”? I am gutted. When: Sunday, November 21, 2021. Where: at the stupid end.

You: Man. Me: Woman. #915462 WORKING AT SWEET CLOVER We chatted briefly at the Weird Meat fridge. I came in for coffee and a chance to say hello to you, but I lost my nerve.

Catch up for a cup of coffee and another chance? You: slender, long straight hair, moving with purpose, making eye contact over your shoulder. When: Monday, November 22, 2021. Where: Essex. You: Woman. Me: Man. #915461

SAW YOU AT THE ANTIDOTE You: very cute hippie girl eating dinner with someone I assume was your boyfriend. Me: alone at the bar eating the Thursday special. I caught your eye a couple of times, and got the “I’m interested” look. I’m there every Thursday. Want a new friend?

Could get interesting! Hotter than the fried chicken! When: Thursday, November 18, 2021. Where: Vergennes.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915460 BURKLYN/VTANTRA LAST TRY I and M: You look like a fun couple, but I never get a response from you on #Open, OkC or Feeld. I’m disappointed.

Me: masculine-presenting muscular climber, polysexual, multiamorous, tatted. When: Sunday, November 21, 2021. Where: #Open/Burklyn. You: Couple. Me: Genderqueer. #915459 WORKING AT DUNKIN’ DONUTS IN MONTPELIER I only see you once or twice a week, early mornings. I would like to take you out for dinner and chat with you.

When: Sunday, November 21, 2021.

Where: Dunkin’ Donuts in Montpelier.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915458 RICHMOND BEAUTY Came to Sweet Simone’s for the coffee but stayed for your (cinnamon) buns.

Saw you next door at Hey June, too!

I had coffee and a scone and was looking for holiday cards next to you.

Let’s get coffee? When: Thursday, November 18, 2021. Where: Richmond.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915457 TRYING TO CONTACT SMARTY PANTS I’m looking to be reunited with the most amazing girl. I made a mistake, and I’ve paid dearly for it. Please reach out to me. #Sunshine #Smartypants #Montpelier When: Monday, November 1, 2021. Where: Montpelier. You: Woman. Me: Man. #915453 DUNKIN’ DONUTS, EARLY 11/1 You: an adorable tiny lady, full of fire.

Me: just a guy on his way to work. We both shook our heads at the garbage truck flying through the parking lot.

Just wanted you to know I thought you were adorable. Be careful of those candy trucks. When: Monday, November 1, 2021. Where: Williston Dunkin’ Donuts.

You: Woman. Me: Man. #915451

as more of a transactional arrangement between families. These unions have been around for centuries; all the lovey-dovey trappings are fairly contemporary. Dowries and arranged marriages still exist in some places today.

People have been getting married for all kinds of reasons forever. If this arrangement works out to the benefit of your son and his friend, and they’re both happy about it, then there’s no real problem. If, in the future, he meets someone he wants to marry for love, hopefully he can get out of this one easily enough.

Good luck and God bless,

The Reverend What’s your problem?

Send it to asktherev@sevendaysvt.com.

SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

101

Bi-curious male, 40s, seeking pen pals and phone freaks.

Confess your closet kinks, freaky fetishes and taboo tales. I’m open-minded and nonjudgmental. I want to know all your sexy secrets. All are welcome. I’ll reply if asked. #L1539 36-y/o SWM seeking captivating pen pal. Looking to establish an upright, modest relationship with like-minded people. I’m funny, energetic, appealing and enjoy the little things. I love the beauty the outdoors bring. Open to all. Life’s too short to miss an opportunity. Can’t wait to hear from you. #L1538

60-y/o SWM seeking 40- to 60y/o SWW. Love to swim in clear Vermont streams. Love music.

Spiritual, honest, faithful. #L1545 Woman, 56. Need a simple life in the country with a gentle, caring man sharing similar values to keep the relationship healthy.

Desire to engage in deep conversation, be active in nature and support good health. Must love coffee, good food and the art of cooking. Phone number, please. #L1543 SWM bi top seeks sub bottom.

Enjoy fem heels, stockings, panties, painted toenails. No drugs. Clean. Vaccinated. Steady lover. Phone. #L1542

Outdoorsy 63-y/o WM looking for someone special for companionship and affection, a good movie, long walks — even bike riding and dinner with the families. Loves animals, bowling and am open-minded. If you’re between 50 and 60, give me a call. #L1544 Gay white male looking for gay males in the area of Tunbridge/ South Royalton. 5’10 and a half.

Slender build. Dark brown hair and brown eyes. Good looking. Can be discreet. Contact me. #L1541 I’m a GWM, 60s, 5’9, 170 pounds, seeking a man or men into spanking and/or wearing/ using adult diapers. #L1540

HOW TO REPLY TO THESE LOVE LETTERS: Seal your reply — including your preferred contact info — inside an envelope. Write your penpal’s box number on the outside of that envelope and place it inside another envelope with payment. Responses for Love Letters must begin with the #L box number.

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SEVEN DAYS DECEMBER 29, 2021-JANUARY 12, 2022

I am a rural woman interested in building a romantic relationship.

I follow the teachings of Dr. Pat Allen, inspired by science and Taoist philosophy. I want to be cherished by a gentleman who wants to be respected. #L1537 65-y/o woman, but not showing my age yet, looking to meet calm, mature, honest men. I enjoy adventures with most outdoor activities, animals, music. #L1536 49-y/o woman seeks male 55+. I love nature along with water and walking. I’m spiritual, looking for companionship with truth and honesty, building life through good and bad, and becoming stronger. I enjoy dancing, music, charity work and adventure to learn from. #L1535

Internet-Free Dating!

Reply to these messages with real, honest-to-goodness letters. DETAILS BELOW. Slim guys 18-36 wanted. Willing to meet at any time of your calling. #L1534 GWM seeking other GM for friendship and more. Write me with name and phone number. #L1532 SWM seeks SBF for lovers. Winter is coming, and I need someone to keep me warm. Honest and clean. Phone. #L1530 How feral’s feral? Energetic Luddite(s) indeed, but easier to be progressively backward with a mischievous coconspirator.

Artist here, resourceful cottager, surrounded by books and mason jars. Worth every penny of your $5. If you disagree, I’ll reimburse!

M seeking F. #L1529 Humble, honest, loving and fun 69-y/o searching for his soul mate to enjoy life’s adventures with. Looking for that special gal who enjoys skiing, beaches, boating, biking, animals and cares for our natural environment. Someone spiritual who can “see the light.” A love of theater, music and dancing a plus. #L1528

I am a crossdresser (M-to-F) seeking female friends for coffee, friendship or just corresponding. Any age, race and ethnicity OK. Retired and ready. Will answer all letters. #L1531 Discreet oral bottom. 54y/o SWM, 5’8, slim, dark hair, blue eyes. Seeking any wellhung guys, 18 to 55 y/o, who are a good top and last a long time for more than one around.

Phone only, but text. Champlain Valley. #L1526 GM in Rutland County seeking other GM or bi for social interaction. Maybe leading to FWB or more. I’m easygoing, stable and like adventure.

Phone only. Hope to hear from you. #L1523 Fit 50ish M, green-eyed, kind and witty, seeks fit F 40 to 60.

Well read, rugged, capable, collected, patient. Values community, gardens, art, acts of making. Let’s cook, share absurdist humor, read together.

Prefer handwritten to the screen. Simple! #L1522

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