Art by Gary Blomgren
Volume 32 Issue 1
Winter ~ 2022
Free • Since 1990
Fiber-Optic Broadband Internet Connections On Track for End of 2022 By Eric Lineback
photo by roger turner
photo by len oppenheim
Dummerston CUD Representative
Two Remarkable Women Who Enriched Dummerston Life Winnie Vogt—A Teacher Reflections on Mary Lou and Champion of Literacy Schmidt—A Champion By Susan Wilmott and Linda Rood Winnie Vogt was seldom seen without a book nearby. Reading was central to her life and she shared this passion with both adults and children for decades, especially here in Dummerston. Winnie was one of the early founders of the Friends of the Library at Dummerston School. For years she volunteered in the library shelving books, doing the end-of-year inventory, and reading to students. Town meeting day was her favorite day of the year, when she could encourage people to adopt a book to add to the school’s collection. She was also very vocal at town meeting, always speaking in support of teachers and the school budget. It was hard to say no to Winnie when she exerted all the force of her sweet charm on continued on page 14
of Land Preservation By Gail Sorenson My first meeting with Mary Lou (ML to those close to her) was in December 1988, my first year in Vermont, when my husband Lew and I went on tag days to pick out a Christmas tree at Elysian Hills Tree Farm, and where we chose our tree for years thereafter. I loved seeing the many families from throughout the area happily hiking though the tree lots, trying to find that perfect tree. At the time I was the Windham Family Court manager and dealt daily with families experiencing much dissension and I rarely saw happy families. Seeing ML greet both new and old customers, knowing most everyone’s name, and their continued on page 15
DVFiber’s goal of connecting all unserved and underserved premises in twenty-four towns by the end of 2024 will require more than 900 miles of fiber-optic cable construction and installation. DVFiber, the communications union district (CUD) that Dummerston is part of, was recently awarded a $4.1 million pre-construction grant by the Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB), and is now applying to the VCBB for a construction grant. Fiber connections to homes in the district are expected to begin in October of 2022, although Dummerston will not likely see any construction until Phase II of the project. Following a public hearing in November, in compliance with requirements of Vermont state statute, DVFiber’s governing board approved an annual report for public posting on December 15, 2021 which includes the 2022 annual budget. Based on anticipated grant funding, this budget will be revised as we move from network design and pre-construction to Phase I of actual construction. The DVFiber Annual Report has now been sent to the selectboards of all twenty-four member towns for review and feedback. Pole surveys, make-ready work (work to get poles ready for network installation), and detailed design for Phase I towns will be completed under the pre-construction grant. To meet its 2024 goal, DVFiber has signed a Master Services Agreement (MSA) with Great Works Internet (GWI) of Biddeford, Maine. The MSA formally establishes a public/private partnership between DVFiber and GWI and provides the framework for developing Statements of Work covering all aspects of the project, including planning and design, pre-construction, construction, operations, internet service, maintenance, continued on page 2