Free!
PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID DENTON PUBLICATIONS P.O. BOX 338 ELIZABETHTOWN, NY 12932 POSTAL CUSTOMER
Take One
Community News, Sports, Arts, Entertainment and Food for Rutland and Southern Vermont
Vol. 3 No. 52 • January 4, 2012
Snowmakers: Vermont’s superheroes Okemo snowmakers save a resort season
By Bonnie MacPherson
newmarketpress@denpubs.com
Dick Danyow and Jo Ann R iley.
Castleton man is fuel winner CASTLETON — T om Johnson of Johnson Energy drew the winning ticket for the Castleton Community Center ’s 100 gallons of fuel raf fle held in December. This year ’s raffle winners wer e Dick and Elaine Danyow of East Hubbardton Road in Castleton. According to Jo Ann Riley, proceeds from the raffle support the pr ograms and services of fered by the Castleton Community Seniors at the center including senior and disabled transportation, seniors meals and wellness activities.
Springfield church plans 2012 Labyrinth Walk SPRINGFIELD — The Unitarian Universalist Church in Springfield will host a New Year ’s Labyrinth W alk. Chur ch members cr eated a labyrinth in the chur ch sanctuary for New Year ’s weekend. “Walking the labyrinth is an ancient practice – a journey into a maze-like pattern and back out again,” said U.U. chur ch member Erica Yuengling. The labyrinth will be open Dec. 30-31 and Jan. 2 from 10 a.m.-noon and 4-6 p.m. A wservice will be held Sunday, Jan. 1, at 10 a.m. and will be a communal exploration of the labyrinth. The church is located at 21 Fair ground Road and embraces people of all r eligious backgr ounds. Childcare is available.
THIS WEEK Clifford in Rutland ........2 Opinion ........................4
LUDLOW — The super heroes of the ski and snowboard season this year are Okemo Mountain Resort’s snowmakers. While the best snow of the season, so far, fell Dec. 28-29, snowmakers have kept the resort humming since Thanksgiving. Although the mountain typically r eceives 200 inches of natural snowfall annually, snowmaking plays a vital role in getting the mountain covered with snow at the start of the season. Okemo has spent 30 years building its r eputation for superlative surface conditions thro ugh its arsenal of snowmaking guns and snow management practices. Okemo has the capability to cover 96 percent of its ski and snowboard terrain with snowmaking. “We’re doing our best to keep snowmaking at maximum pr oduction,” said Okemo V ice Pr esident of Operations Barry Tucker. “We’ve brought in generators to ensure we have enough electrical power to maximize our potential thro ugh the holidays.” Okemo covers mor e than 600 acr es of terrain with snow-generating technology . HKD tower guns make up the majority of the 1,100 guns in See SNOWMAKERS, page 2
Sears, Kmart to close 120 stores in the U.S. Fate of Rutland, Burlingtonarea stores uncertain
By Lou Varricchio
newmarketpress@denpubs.com RUTLAND — Plummeting sales has for
ced
Sears Holding Corp. to begin shuttering up to 120 Sears and Kmart stores. Sears officials would not comment if Sears and Kmart stores in Burlington and Rutland are among those targeted for closure. Officials of the Illinois-based corporation said store said sales fell 5.2 per cent for eight weeks leading up to Christmas. Big declines in consumer electronics and clothing sales purchases are being
blamed for the decision. “Given our performance and the dif ficult economic envir onment, especially for big-ticket items, we intend to implement a series of actions to r educe on-going expenses, adjust our asset base, and accelerate the transformation of our business model,” CEO Lou D’Ambrosio said in a See SEARS, page 2
Local historical societies, museums to receive training By Lou Varricchio
newmarketpress@denpubs.com MIDDLEBURY—Vermont’s local historical societies and museums are getting a shot in the arm during the new year thanks to a program started by the Vermont Historical Society. The Barr e-based statewide or ganization announced that its V ermont Collections Car e Mentoring Program will provide local volunteers, and paid staffers, with high-level training. According to Mark Hudson, executive dir ector of the Vermont Historical Society , “Vermont’s local historical societies and museums play a critical ro le as the stewards of the cultural fabric of our state.” And that most townbased historical gr oups r ely on dedicated volunteers. With specialized training in how to present and preserve Vermont h istory, t he l ocal g roups c an i mprove a nd e nhance their various cultural offerings “While these or ganizations do a r emarkable job with limited resources, the dedicated staff and volunteers often lack the specialized training, experience, and See TRAINING, page 2
Jackie Calder, museum curator of theVermont Historical Society based in Barre, provides advice on preserving and handling fr agile textiles. VHS’ Vermont Collections Care Mentoring Program will provide local volunteers, and paid staff ers, with high-level training when it is r olled out statewide starting in 2012.
R. Brown & Sons INC
Mobile Car Crushers
608 Plains Rd. , Pittsford, VT • 802-483-2802 • Mon. - Fri. 8-5 • Sat. 8-4
Holiday in Ludlow ..........5 College Dashboard ........5 Classifieds....................6 Auto Zone ....................7
Okemo: “We’re doing our best to keep snowmaking at maximum production,” said Okemo Vice President of Operations Barry Tucker. “We’ve brought in generators to ensure we have enough electrical power to maximize our potential through the holidays.”
Roll off & flat bed service available
Buying... Scrap Metal • Scrap Cars • Scrap Copper • Scrap Brass Scrap Aluminum • Scrap Auto & Truck Batteries
Visit Us Online at www.gmoutlook.com • Subscribe to our eEdition, simply go to www.denpubs.com/eEditions
29057
Follow us on Facebook