Celebrating First Strides

BY TAYLOR ANTONIOLI Special to the Observer

Despite pouring rain, thunder and the threat of lightning, First Strides Vermont met in the Village Community Park on a recent Wednesday evening.

First Strides Vermont is a summertime beginner running and/or walking program that is in its 20th season. Michele Morris started the Vermont chapter in 2004, basing it on the original First Strides founded by Jane Serues in Pennsylvania.

About 100 participants joined this year, with each of them in one of eight groups led by two mentors.

June 14 was supposed to be one of the days they met for their 12-week training, but the weather prevented any running from occurring. Mentors Kim Luebbers and Eileen McCoy said the group still meets to take attendance on rainy evenings, then makes the call on if it’s safe to run.

There are purely walking groups and purely running groups, which are broken up by pace. While some in their first year might simply walk or hope to show up each week, often, if they return for a second year, their goals will evolve to be timed.

“I think it’s about making movement a sustainable goal in a supportive way — to be able to reach as many women as possible to come together to meet that goal and to meet everybody where we’re at,” McCoy said.

Mentors aim to support everyone in the group no matter what level they’re at and to support whatever their goals are, Luebbers said.

Luebbers said joining First Strides has taught her how to run and do it safely — and to enjoy it. She even started doing half marathons and became a mentor to “give back to this group who catalyzed my running,” despite her originally hating to run.

McCoy also hated to run before she joined. She was originally just a participant, but became a mentor three years in.

In reflection of First Strides Vermont’s motto, “It doesn’t matter where you start, only that you start,” she said: “Well, it’s pouring rain tonight and we’re going to show up for each other, check in with each other and make an action plan no matter what.”

While this season of First Strides ends July 19, the participants are excited with the progress they’ve made and can’t wait for next year.

Williston’s tax rate for the new fiscal year was set at the end of June at 0.3362 That means property owners will be assessed 33.6 cents for every $100 of assessed property value to support the $13.9 million annual town budget that voters approved at Town Meeting Day in March.

The new tax rate is a slight decrease from the rate town administrators estimated in the leadup to Town Meeting Day. At that time, the estimate was 0.3391 — or 33.9 cents per $100 of assessed value. Last year’s tax rate was 0.3068.

The new tax rate is an increase of roughly 3 cents per $100 of assessed value over last year, costing the owner of a $300,000 home, for example, an additional $90 on their annual property tax bill.

The selectboard approved the new tax rate at its June 28 meeting. The town plans to send out tax bills in mid-July with an Aug. 15 due date on the first payment.

The lower-than-anticipated rate can be attributed to larger-than-anticipated growth in the town’s Grand List — the total taxable value of property in town — according to Williston Finance Director Shirley Goodell-Lackey. During budget formation, town administrators used a conservative estimate of Grand List growth of $5 million, or .25 percent.

According to Assessor Bill Hinman, the actual Grand List growth over the past fiscal year was $24 million, or 1.1 percent. Williston enters the new fiscal year with a Grand List of $2.147 billion.

— Jason Starr