75 years
Cutting garden
Shelburne Museum opens, looks for return to ‘normal’
Plan a bed — or two — and bring the color indoors
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May 19, 2022
Weekly news coverage for Charlotte and Hinesburg
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Chittenden County sees legislative shakeup Six of the county’s southernmost seats open for newcomers COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER
Chittenden County is seeing a shakeup in its legislative representation, with six of the county’s southernmost House seats open to newcomers as five incumbents step out of the political scene. In South Burlington, only one of four incumbents is seeking reelection, and a new fifth seat will be open as well thanks to the state’s new House district map. In Shelburne, longtime representative Kate Webb is stepping down, and Hinesburg’s Bill Lippert, who has served in the House for nearly three decades, announced this month he will not run again. “The time has come for others to ask for your support as they step into the legislative political arena,” Lippert said. “I treasure the opportunities I have had to support the town of Hinesburg, to have an impact on significant statewide policies and to assist so many of you when you needed help from state government.” While Hinesburg town clerk Melissa Ross said that no one has submitted a petition to officially run for Lippert’s seat, Champlain Valley Union High School librarian and social studies teacher Christina Deeley has announced her intention to run. (See related, page 4) In Shelburne, Webb, the chair of the House Committee on Education who has served in the Chittenden 5-1 district since 2009, announced last week that she would not run. See SEATS on page 11
PHOTO BY COREY MCDONALD
Maggie Miller plays the alto sax to “Just the Two of Us” by Bill Withers and Grover Washington Jr.
Hinesburg’s own ‘School of Rock’ Student band practices for live show at the school, one for general public COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER
Rehearsals begin around 3 p.m. but band members typically arrive early — ready to go before Niel Maurer even steps into the room. Their instruments are tuned, sheet music out, fiddling on their instruments and talking among themselves, waiting to start playing. A portrait of Ella Fitzgerald hangs on the wall. They start off with a somber song: “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” a 2005 alternative rock song by the punk rock band Green Day. “The classic middle school rock band song,” says Dylan Lutters as he positions
the microphone. “Dark vibes.” Lutters sings the tune, while the six other members of the band play along. Eleanore Lutschner plays the cello, providing an appropriate sound for the tone of the song. “More angst!” Tracy Tomasi-Applin yells to Lutters through the noise. By the end of the rehearsal, which, generally, turns into more of an improvised jam session, the band members are running outside of the rehearsal space, asking their parents if they can stay for 10 more minutes. Since March, this group of seven Hinesburg Community School kids have been practicing every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday in preparation for what will be the debut show for The Greenhawks on Friday.
Coming out of yet another wave of COVID-19 this fall, Niel Maurer, an educator at the school, was thinking of ways of giving the school and the community a good pick-me-up. The school’s fall musicals had been postponed for two consecutive years, and the theater space was being used primarily for storage. “At first I thought, let’s do a variety show. Let’s shake the tree and see who comes out,” he said. He eventually got six kids into one room, and it quickly developed into something exciting. “I realized, ‘Oh man, these guys have the chops,” Maurer said. “They’re into it, See BAND on page 10