The Citizen - 7-20-23

Hinesburg seeks new library director

COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER

Hinesburg’s Carpenter-Carse library is searching for a new director following the resignation of its current head of staff.

Beth Royer, who has been the library’s director since 2019, announced in June that she would be stepping down from the position. Jill Andersen has stepped into an interim role while the library searches for a new director.

“I appreciated the friendliness of Carpenter-Carse Library before I worked there in any capacity, so I am hopeful that they will find a great candidate to keep it the beloved community hub it was before (and while) I worked there,” Royer said in an email. “Certainly the existing staff, resources and volunteers will keep the trusty ship running until the board finds a new person to be in charge.”

During her four years, Royer “expanded our community’s vision of what a library can and should be,” staff at the library said, adding that during her tenure,

See

Consultant advises Charlotte on governance model

Should Charlotte switch to a town manager form of government?

That question has been looming over the town for nearly five months since a group of residents collected signatures on a petition that got over 200 votes in favor of the switch.

Although the petition has collected enough votes to force a town-wide vote, the selectboard has pleaded with petitioners to hold off the vote until all the information about the change has been presented to the public and town officials.

In order to gather threads, the town hired resident and former Shelburne town manager Lee Krohn as a consultant for $2,500 to thoroughly study what this could

mean for the town.

In a 13-page presentation given to the selectboard on Tuesday night, Krohn weighed the pros and cons of the switch along with sourcing from other similarly sized towns that have undergone the switch.

The two roles are different in that the authority of the town manager is laid out in state statute and they act more as a liaison

between staff and the board. An administrator works under direct supervision and direction from the selectboard.

See KROHN on page 12

Fort Ticonderoga presents “Defiance & Independence,” a two-day battle reenactment with over 300 participants. More on page 6.

Battle cry

LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER

Aquatic invasives targeted at Bristol, Monkton ponds

KATE KELLY AND PORTIA BUTRYM CONTRIBUTORS

Aquatic invasive plant species have long threatened the health and populations of native plants in the Lewis Creek watershed. By forming dense mats of vegetation, these species impede the activities of recreational boaters, swimmers and anglers, while degrading ecosystems and wildlife habitats.

Management can be difficult because they are easily spread via

seeds, roots, fragments, animals and humans.

Bristol Pond and Monkton Pond, popular destinations for anglers, recreational boaters and wildlife enthusiasts, both contain aquatic invasive plant species. As of 2022, there were three known invasive species in Bristol Pond — European frogbit, Eurasian watermilfoil and brittle naiad — and two aquatic invasive species in Monkton Pond, Eurasian watermilfoil and curly-leaf pondweed.

If left unmanaged, the invasive species in these ponds could spread throughout the rest of the watershed and the state. To prevent further spread, Lewis Creek Association, a local nonprofit watershed group, has maintained an educational boat launch steward program for three summers at Bristol and Monkton ponds.

The stewards greet boaters as they arrive at the ponds and offer to inspect their boats for aquatic invasive species, while also

collecting data on where the boat has been and how many aquatic organisms they encountered. They educate boat owners on how to prevent spread of invasives, which includes cleaning, draining and drying your boat (and other equipment that has been in the water) before moving to a different water body.

This could even include swimsuits and life jackets, which could carry small, microscopic organisms like the fishhook water flea, which was recently found in Lake

The much awaited and highly anticipated Pêche Medical, owned and operated by Kellie Malaney, PA and Sarah Dietschi, NP is now seeing patients.

Known for their ability to listen carefully and execute a natural-looking, “un-done” appearance, Kellie & Sarah are two of the most experienced, respected and appreciated clinicians in the Medical Aesthetic field in Vermont. Come see them for a consult or treatment and see the difference that experience, artistry and integrity makes!

Schedule online or by phone today!

Champlain.

Since 2020, boat launch stewards have interacted with nearly 1,600 boats, and intercepted 367 boats that had aquatic plants on them launching into the ponds. Next time you are out at Bristol Pond or Monkton Pond, say hi to Lewis Creek Association boat launch stewards.

If you’re interested in learning more, reach out to Kate Kelly, program manager for Lewis Creek Association, at lewiscreekorg@ gmail.com or 802-488-5203.

PHOTO BY LEE KROHN

A kayaker enjoys the stillness of Lake Champlain after days of rain deluge Vermont, causing widespread flooding and destruction. Most areas in the Champlain Valley were spared.

Champlain solitude

Chittenden County steps up to help post-flood cleanup

LIBERTY DARR AND COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITERS

With many towns in Chittenden County unaffected by the catastrophic flooding that devastated much of the state last week, volunteers have banded together to aid in the clean-up and fill needs as they arise.

Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale has been spearheading localized volunteer efforts in southern Chittenden County since last week by connecting devastated towns with resources and charging individual volunteers with supply drives and hands-on opportunities.

“I think most Vermonters, especially those who weren’t affected, just saw the news coming in and started to have their hearts and spirits drop,” she said. “Within 24 hours, I was just looking around and seeing that there were a lot of immediate needs that people in Chittenden County who were unaffected were looking for a way to help.”

While much of the state faced historic flooding last week, southern Chittenden County was left relatively unscathed. More heavy rain fell Sunday evening, dumping several inches of water onto land already saturated from last week and leaving some areas with standing water.

In Hinesburg, the rain caused flooding on Route 116 across North Road, and left standing water in the town’s village until 9 p.m. Some basements were flooded, and driveways were washed out, but there was no significant infrastructure damage, Hinesburg fire Chief Nick Baker said.

“We probably got 3 inches of rain within 30 minutes that just had nowhere to go, but it receded almost as fast as it came on,” Baker said. “Aside from noticing some rocks and some bark mulch where it shouldn’t be, it receded

pretty fast.”

As of Monday, Ram Hinsdale said that her team has sent out more than 20 vehicles full of supplies to different parts of the state, and they’ve made more than two trips to all the communities they have been in contact with.

“A text just came in from the Northeast Kingdom about Tyvek suits,” she said.

“Cabot had a sinkhole open up and I connected them with the National Guard. A lot of people are being thrust into volunteer roles where they don’t have the same connections at their fingertips, and they’re overwhelmed by what’s going on.

If from here we can get a specific line of expertise or a specific resource to them, we are doing our best to meet that need.”

She explained that the needs have changed slightly as the week progressed, but some of the biggest threats as cleanup efforts continue are mold and moisture damage.

“Dehumidifiers are the number one concern that we hear about,” she said. “Right behind dehumidifiers is generators because people are still without power in a lot of places.”

Although resources like bottled water are covered mostly by the National Guard and FEMA, the concern in towns like Morrisville came last week when “do not drink” orders were put in place and the Federal Emergency Management Agency was later than expected in dropping off supplies. The Charlotte Congregational Church and United Church of Christ received

word and immediately supplied over 200 gallons of water to the town.

“At 3 p.m., I just put out a note to everyone in our congregation and let everyone know that at noon on Thursday, we were going to send some carloads of water as much as we can collect,” Rev. Kevin Goldenbogen, senior pastor of the church, said. “By the next morning, at 9 a.m., we had 1,600 pounds of water, 200 gallons. It was incredible. People went and bought it, or they had it sitting around and so we had to get a truck because it was more water than we were expecting and then we had to get a second car.”

Although there remains a need for supplies like tarps, masks, paper plates and towels, the need has shifted to also include protecting small businesses and those affected from online scams and misinformation, while at the same time providing people with access to essential information and relief forms.

“Scammers are already coming out to take advantage of people who are trying to figure out how to get relief urgently,” Ram Hinsdale said. “I want to get a push out into the community this week to start asking people who are attorneys, grant writers and accountants to figure out how we get that volunteer help organized for people who need access to information and just someone to sit with them and go through forums. It’s really overwhelming if you just lost everything to do this by yourself.”

Busking, Music & Laughter for the Entire Family!

Downtown Burlington

“Scammers are already coming out to take advantage of people who are trying to figure out how to get relief urgently.”

— Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale

Hinesburg Police Blotter: June 27- July 13

Total incidents: 109

Traffic stops: 20

Arrests: 2

June 17 at 9:35 a.m., officers responded to a medical call on Pond Brook Road, where Toni Duba, 59, died unexpectedly at home, seemingly of natural causes.

June 28 at 12:00 p.m., an officer investigated a reported two-car motor vehicle crash on Route 116.

June 28 at 8:12 p.m., an officer investigated a reported traffic hazard on Mechanicsville Road.

June 29 at 3:45 p.m., officers responded to a single-car crash on Route 116.

July 1 at 9:30 a.m., officers responded to another single-car crash on Route 116.

July 1 at 9:45 a.m., an officer investigated a report of theft of property on Birchwood Drive.

July 4 at 11:32 a.m., officers investigated reports of a suspicious vehicle parked on Ballard’s Corner Road.

July 6 at 3:05 p.m., officers responded to a citizen dispute on Shadow Lane.

July 6 at 4:22 p.m., officers assisted Winooski police with the recovery of a stolen vehicle on Texas Hill Road.

July 7 at 3:30 p.m., officers investigated the report of an individual bit by a dog on Baldwin Road.

July 7 at 4:45 p.m., the report of a stray dog on Wile Street was investigated.

July 7 at 6:13 p.m., officers responded to a domestic dispute on North Road.

July 8 at 7:45 a.m., an officer assisted a citizen with questions concerning emergency services.

July 9 at 11:30 a.m., an officer assisted with a broken down vehicle on Route 116.

July 11 at 2:12 p.m. Jennifer Monness, 40 of Bristol, was taken into custody on a warrant for failure to appear to a court summons.

July 12 at 7:54 a.m., officers responded to a residence on North Road to assist first responders with a medical emergency.

July 13 at 7:21 a.m., officers responded to a two-car motor vehicle crash on Route 116.

July 13 at 11:25 a.m., officers responded to a business on Ballard’s Corner Road where two individuals were served trespass orders.

July 13 at 11:45 a.m., officers attempted to serve a temporary restraining order to an individual on Riggs Road.

July 13 at 2:25 p.m., an officer assisted with a traffic hazard on Pond Road.

July 13 at 4:56 p.m., on North Road, Terrance Hart, 62 of St. Albans, was arrested for violation of an abuse prevention order.

Psychologist pushes use of magic mushrooms to battle addictions

AARON CALVIN STAFF WRITER

“I think there’s plenty of evidence to show that psychedelics have the potential for a very positive impact on improving peoples’ lives, including people who struggle with addiction.”

Rick Barnett, a Stowe psychologist with specialization in addiction, provided this synopsis of his support for the decriminalization of psychedelics, that family of drugs that provoke hallucinations and other mind-altering effects in their users, for recreational purposes but also for their unique usefulness in treating a myriad of ailments of the mind, from addiction to eating disorders.

Sitting in his sun-dappled office on Old Farm Road with his soot-colored poodle Jessie asleep in her kennel, Barnett was fresh from Denver, where he had attended Psychedelic Science 2023, a conference where the most prominent researchers and practitioners in the world of psychedelic medicine gathered to share their findings.

Barnett, with his salt and pepper beard and clean-shaven head, speaks with the kind of precision endemic to therapists, a sort of patient exactness with which he seeks a certain level of specificity in his own language that he then requires from the other side of the conversation.

and its uses treating conditions like bipolar disorder, migraines and other maladies.

Barnett said he lent his expertise to Rep. Chip Troiano, D-Stannard, as he crafted the House bill proposing the decriminalization and regulated sale of psilocybin in Vermont, which has joined a similar bill on the Senate side. Both bills propose the creation of a Psychedelic Therapy Advisory Working Group.

Advertising Wendy Ewing wendy@shelburnenews.com (802) 985-3091 x12

Advertising Director Judy Kearns judy@otherpapersbvt.com (802) 864-6670 x21

News Editor Tommy Gardner

Staff Writers

Aaron Calvin Corey McDonald Liberty Darr

Production Manager Stephanie Manning stephanie@shelburnenews.com

Editor/Publisher Gregory Popa gpopa@stowereporter.com

Billing inquiries Leslie Lafountain leslie@stowereporter.com (802) 253-2101

Advertising submission deadline: Friday at 5 p.m. advertising@thecitizenvt.com classifieds@thecitizenvt.com

Editorial submission deadline: Friday at 5 p.m. news@thecitizenvt.com

Calendar submission deadline: Friday at 12 p.m. news@thecitizenvt.com

Contact: 1340 Williston Road South Burlington, VT 05403 (802) 985-3091

Having run a general practice in Stowe since 2005, Barnett has lately lent his expertise to a movement in the Green Mountain State to legalize psilocybin, the psychoactive compound found in a wide variety of mushrooms colloquially referred to as magic mushrooms.

Although he hopes to eventually see a variety of psychoactive drugs decriminalized, Barnett said that lawmakers and activists in Vermont have singled out mushrooms as the low-hanging fungi that will open the door for accessibility to psychedelics in the North Country.

That’s because it’s naturally accessible. The spore can be relatively easily grown and once decriminalized at the state level could be produced for personal consumption or sale, unlike other hallucinogenic staples like ketamine, ayahuasca, LSD and MDMA, a drug also known as ecstasy that’s nearing federal approval for treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Barnett testified before the Vermont Legislature during the most recent biennium regarding the efficacy of psilocybin in treating his own substance-disorder

Though the bill didn’t see much traction in the busy 2023 biennium, chair of the Joint Legislative Justice Oversight Committee Martin LaLonde, a Democrat from South Burlington, directed its members to return to the matter next year, according to VTDigger.

Psilocybin and other psychedelics have been severely criminalized at the federal level since President Richard Nixon passed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970 despite their long-established use in religious ceremonies and rituals across cultures. Mounting research establishing its therapeutic efficacy and general harmlessness has led to its decriminalization in states like Oregon, Colorado and Connecticut

While the trend of micro-dosing — taking small, incremental doses of psychedelics over a set period of time — has grown in popularity in recent years, Barnett said that, in the therapeutic setting, a large dose of psilocybin or another psychedelic, with several sessions of therapy leading up to the dose, is most effective.

Inducing a powerful psychedelic experience can be particularly effective in addiction treatment as the drug’s use lies in its potential to manufacture moments of realization or self-awareness that are typically only organically produced when an addict reaches rock bottom.

“What can happen for people is that they have some kind of experience under the influence of the psilocybin that shifts their understanding of how they relate to that drug or that pattern of behavior that’s not serving them anymore,” Barnett said. “They could have a mystical experience, they could have a spiritual experience, they could have just a deep, meaningful insight into their behaviors or the relationship to the drug or to alcohol.”

According to Barnett, research has also shown that psychedelics can help reduce the addicted person’s susceptibility to falling back into addiction after even just a brief relapse.

Barnett has pushed for full decriminalization of psilocybin without the qualifier that it only be available in therapeutic settings or used under the guidance of a licensed professional because he wants to avoid the crass commercialization of its use that could result.

While anyone familiar with psychedelics knows there are “good” and “bad” trips, and which path taken can often be influenced by outside factors, he asserted that truly impactful negative reactions to psychedelics are rare, and while there are some risks, it doesn’t make them nearly as potentially dangerous as the much more commonly prescribed antidepressant medication.

While the Legislature continues to consider decriminalizing mushrooms, Barnett is busy making a name for Stowe in the psychedelics community. Last year, he hosted a scientific conference on psychedelics at Trapp Family Lodge attended by 150 experts and researchers from around the globe. This fall, he’s hoping to double attendance with another conference at Spruce Peak.

PHOTO BY AARON CALVIN

Psychologist Rick Barnett in his office.

Helping hand shouldn’t become indispensable crutch

Fractals of Change

Tom Evslin

Free stuff creates demand — and dependency.

The New York Times wrote about the partial end of Vermont’s Emergency Hotel Program:

“In the first year of the expanded hotel program, the number of Vermonters counted as homeless more than doubled, to 2,590 in 2021 from 1,110 in 2020. In the most recent tally, completed in January, the total jumped again, to 3,295, in part because the hotel program made people easier to count but also because of the continuing housing crisis, with higher rents and fewer vacant apartments.

“The rural state, with a population smaller than any but Wyoming, had risen to the top of two national rankings by last year: It had the second highest rate of homelessness per capita in the nation, after California — but also the lowest rate of homeless people living outdoors.”

The Times did not consider the possibility that Vermont has such a high rate of homelessness at least in part because it provides such good accommodations for the homeless as evidenced by the low rate of people living unsheltered. The emergency program was a constructive answer to the immediate fear at the beginning of the pandemic that congregate housing for the homeless would be deadly.

The program also helped hotels and motels that had no customers during lockdown. But, as the Times notes, the program continued to expand after the immediate emergency passed. Free apartments are attractive. The hotels also liked the state’s policy of always paying the asking price for rooms.

WCAX tells about the increased demand for free food at social service organizations in Chittenden County. The story attributes the increase in demand to the end of the hotel program, but the stats quoted show free food demand increasing rapidly long before the partial end of the program.

Recipients tell of a line that stretches around the block. Food has gotten more expensive with inflation, but it is not in short supply like housing. Jobs are available to all who want them and can show up. Food stamps help supplement low incomes. Why does the demand for free food keep going up? At least in part, because it’s available — and free.

It’s an iron law of economics that, given enough time, there is no limit to the demand for free stuff.

Emergency programs are needed. We were right to use empty motel rooms. It is right to make free food available in an emergency. However, when programs are extended beyond the emergency that gave rise to them, people do become dependent. The anguish reported by many who have lost or might lose their free motel rooms is real, but many of them wouldn’t have

Letters to the Editor

Glad to see writers extol separation of church, state

To the Editor:

I’m glad to see that the authors of the guest perspective and letter to the editor in the most recent issue of The Citizen have “turned the page” on Rob Roper’s nasty whining complaints that Christians are being victimized by a refusal to send tax funds to pay for education at religious schools. (July 13, 2023)

James and Kathleen Bruce, Josh May and Katheryn Blume have made detailed, valid and highly articulate points about the necessity of an absolute separation of church and state, particularly in regard to education.

I can only add that I’ll be damned if any of my tax dollars go to schools that teach that the supernatural is truth and bigotry is divine will.

Peter Modley Hinesburg

MycoEvolve clarifies story on fungi use

To the Editor: Thank you for publishing the article,

“Shelburne Farms uses fungi to curb phosphorus.” (June 29, 2023)

I would like to share our view of the work from an ecological reconciliation perspective. First, we aim to team with fungi and nature rather than use it. This is a crucial distinction because our approach involves redirecting orientation from extraction toward collaboration, especially as we increase our work with endemic species.

Second, fertilizer use is only part of the story. Other colonial land practices are equally important. As we wrote in an article published in Restoration Ecology journal in 2022, a trajectory of devastating land practices contribute to this legacy.

In short this involves: the forced removal of Abenaki ancestors who practiced regenerative land care; killing, through land clearing, most mycorrhizal hosts present throughout agricultural landscapes and eliminating most underground networks on farms; tilling the soil, which further destroys the underlying nutrient recycling networks; introducing land practices such as monoculture and large herd grazing, especially during the sheep craze; increas-

become dependent if the program had ended after the immediate emergency was over.

It was right to suspend payments on student loans during the first few lockdown months. Now, because the suspension of payments went on for many years past the immediate need, people have taken on other debt and will struggle to fit payments back in their lives. Free food, with no means testing to qualify, has also become a staple.

In a constructive compromise after Gov. Phil Scott vetoed the Vermont budget (and after the federal funds which supported it have ended), the hotel program is finally being phased out, albeit slowly. As described by VT Digger, “The motel deal signed Thursday only applies to those who meet certain eligibility criteria — including families with children, the elderly, domestic abuse survivors, and those on federal disability.”

No one new can join the program. Recipients will have to pay 30 percent of their income for the housing that was previously free and must take substitute housing as the state finds it. That is very important for meeting housing needs in the longer term, and the compromise includes

advancing the date when duplexes will be allowed everywhere in the state. The phase-out would have been easier on the beneficiaries and on taxpayers if it had come much earlier, but at least it is happening.

We will have less emergency programs and less help for those in acute need if each “emergency program” becomes permanent. This is a particularly good time to wean people from the dependencies that should never have been allowed to develop since there are jobs available for all skill levels.

The Times story opens with an unnoticed irony. They quote the distress of a 43-year-old homeless person about to lose his hotel room and panhandling outside McDonald’s. He only made $3. If he’d been working inside McDonald’s instead, he would have earned much more than minimum wage.

Tom Evslin is a serial entrepreneur, author, and a former top official in Vermont’s state government. He also founded NG Advantage, the first company of its kind in the U.S. to truck compressed natural gas to large customers not served by pipelines.

Fort Ticonderoga presents two-day battle reenactment

Fort Ticonderoga’s signature event, Defiance & Independence, a two-day battle re-enactment takes place on Saturday and Sunday, July 22-23.

Featuring more than 300 historical reenactors, this is the largest battle reenactment of the year at Fort Ticonderoga. The battle will highlight the 1777 siege of Ticonderoga, when the British Army attempted to capture the entire American force guarding this strategic position on Lake Champlain.

This two-day battle re-enactment will portray the fighting and maneuvering that culminated in General Arthur St. Clair’s evacuation of Ticonderoga and British General John Burgoyne’s frustration in failing to capture the American force.

Watch, learn and experience first-hand as the battle spans across the historic landscape at 1 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday, during two unique battle scenarios. All weekend, through special programs, Fort Ticonderoga brings to life the real stories of soldiers and civilians caught up in this six-day clash between British and American forces.

A brand-new Saturday evening program will recreate the moment Continental Army soldiers prepared to escape capture, even as their cannons continued to hold the British at bay. (Pre-registration for the evening vignette is required; limited tickets available.”

“Ticonderoga was already a legendary place when American

forces held back the British here in October 1776,” Stuart Lilie, Fort Ticonderoga’s vice president of public history,” said. “The personal stories of soldiers, sailors, nurses, and warriors make the 1777 Battle for Ticonderoga compelling for visitors of all ages. For ticket information, visit fortticonderoga.org or call 518-585-2821.

COURTESY PHOTOS

“Defiance & Independence” runs over two-days at Fort Ticonderoga. The battle re-enactment includes more than 300 participants.

Too hot, too wet, maybe too late

Guest Perspective

Walt Amses

Last summer in Montana opened my eyes, which I presumed were already open, enlightened my perspective, which I thought adequately enlightened, and offered a crystal-clear glimpse of the future: humanity slow roasted in a well-aged, bubbling marinade of greed-infused climate change denial.

It’s startling how a couple of days over 100 degrees can put an exclamation point on your worldview.

Another trip out West in August 2017 lands us in a Missoula motel, eating takeout, again dodging triple digit temperatures and dense smoke from the more than 100 wildfires charring hillsides and threatening the lungs of anyone daring to venture outside. We binge on pizza as an entirely different yet equally otherworldly scenario unfolds on TV as category-four hurricane Harvey makes landfall on the Texas coast, kicking off Houston’s third 500-year flood in three years, eventually dropping up to 60 inches of rain in places, inundating vast expanses of the city’s outlying subdivisions at a cost upwards of $125 billion.

After vowing never again to risk summers any hotter than the ones at home, I find myself in waterlogged Central Vermont, struggling with what has been described as biblical or thousand-year rainfall, flooding fields, washing out roads and dredging up awful recollections of Tropical Storm Irene, whose 2011 deluge ravaged the state’s infrastructure, destroying homes, businesses and bridges, and isolating entire communities, several for weeks.

Even during what was already shaping up to be a relentlessly tropical summer in Vermont, weekend storms unloading as they did on already saturated ground, quickly lifted rivers and streams above flood stage, prompting evacuation of low-lying communities

LETTERS

continued from page 5

ing herd size with the advent of trains and refrigerators; fragmenting landscapes via transportation and drainage routes without revegetating; applying superphosphate fertilizer in the 1940s; and introducing nonnative species.

Finally, where the article says our research shows better results for water purification than constructed wetlands is not accurate. While fungi can certainly be incorporated in various green infrastructure — either saprophyt-

and had weary first responders out in force, 24/7.

It feels distinctly as though recent trends and an ever-more volatile present portend an increasingly dangerous future, well beyond the mythical tipping point we may have already left in the dust — or mud, depending on location.

It’s notable my own experience with brutal heat as profound as I thought it was, occurred in what is essentially a high desert, with extremely low humidity, where moderate exercise is viable even with temperatures in the upper eighties. When the thermometer ticks up past 100 though, things change drastically, especially combined with humidity levels raising heat indexes to a life-threatening 120 in areas of the Deep South.

The heat, humidity and smoke of early summer have altered our own routines dramatically, relegating even moderate activities like walking to the early morning hours.

A United Nations study released last October suggests — not without controversy — that certain areas of the United States, including Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama and parts of California would become uninhabitable for humans by 2070. Touted last weekend by an NBC meteorologist as “probably closer than you might think,” the report states that without mitigation, including a reduction of greenhouse gasses, the global surge of rising temperatures will create levels of heat stress intolerable for the human body.

Further emphasizing the need to reassess the world’s climate policies, research suggests that without action up to one third of the global population will begin experiencing life-threatening conditions like the Sahara Desert. That effectively translates to the most vulnerable populations — those living in the hottest regions — fleeing to avoid heat and drought, pressuring the cities and

towns to which they move, creating a massive number of climate refugees that will ripple across the globe.

Early Tuesday morning we bounce over deep washboards, between water-gouged canyons with signage warning of temporary closures and roads that no longer exist. Small, usually crystal-clear brooks have crested their banks, muddy and threatening.

Startling drone footage depicts Montpelier’s business district eerily still and completely under water. Barre, too, is submerged with warnings to stay away. We return home still not quite sure if we can safely leave Calais, which doesn’t matter much. There’s no place else to go.

The impact of this storm in central Vermont will be devastating. Businesses are likely to lose a chunk of the summer tourist season. Lives throughout the area will be dramatically changed: homes unlivable or even destroyed; infrastructure compromised; roads under repair for months; rivers and streams tainted with copious, toxic runoff; and the agricultural sector — barely recovering from a late spring freeze — will again suffer the wrath of nature’s fury.

What happened in Vermont last weekend was shocking, but it shouldn’t have been surprising. It’s precisely what climate scientists have predicted forever and what the fossil fuel industry and its Congressional minions have consistently denied, even while knowing the truth for decades. Conditions over the past month — sultry heat and high humidity — interspersed with a series of heavy thunderstorms, provided a near ideal setup for last weekend’s deluge.

As the planet warms, the air can retain more and more moisture, a near perfect storm of conditions, according to one climate scientist, who believes the

See AMSES on page 12

LOCALS ONLY.

Hi, neighbor. Want to come over? Basin Harbor now has special Vermonters-only lodging deals starting at $189/night. Book your escape at BasinHarbor.com/VT or call 802-475-2311.

25% OFF REPAIRS

Performed by Our Master Jewelers | Same-Day Repair When Possible Ring Sizing • Cleaning • Stone Tightening • Rhodium Plating

20% OFF APPRAISALS

Performed by Our Graduate Gemologists

ic or mycorrhizal depending on context, contaminant, substrate and environmental conditions — comparing water purification of constructed wetlands to riparian buffers is like comparing apples to pears as they involve different mediums, contexts in the landscape and address different quantities of water.

To be sure, future green infrastructure, which recent storms indicate is sorely needed throughout the watershed, will increas-

ingly incorporate site-specific fungi as more funding, time and attention is given to mycological research and applications. These additional facts and details hopefully help readers understand the complexity involved in attempting to rehabilitate our watershed to be more resilient.

The sleepy town of Popcorn Falls has been forced into bankruptcy and their last chance is a large grant that can only be used if the town opens a theater and produces a play in a week. One big problem: no playhouse. Another problem: no play. Two actors play over twenty roles in a world of farce, love, and desperation, proving once and for all that art can save the world. July 12 – 22

Jess (Yepeth Perla) Rubin MycoEvolve University of Vermont research and restoration team

Joan Vachon Victor

The loving and beautiful Joan Vachon Victor, 92, died Monday, March 13, 2023. She had been living independently at The Residence at Otter Creek in Middlebury where she enjoyed the community and her ever-present dedication to physical fitness, until a series of events led to her precipitous decline.

Joan was welcomed to this world by her parents Joseph H. Vachon Sr., and Laura Margaret Ware Vachon at Webber Hospital in Biddeford, Maine on Feb. 17, 1931. She was raised by the sea, where a short path through the dunes carried her to the rhythms and the beauty of the beach which, despite the many places she ultimately lived, would always be home. She delighted in the wonders of that massive playground, even befriending a seal as a young girl.

Winters were spare and sometimes lonely, which perhaps sparked a creative streak that traveled with Joan (confusingly pronounced Jo-Ann) throughout her life. Joan would often recount her years in a one-room schoolhouse and the isolation of the beach with more nostalgia than regret and yet she welcomed the bustle of summer with joyful anticipation. The tightness of community and importance of family were indelibly imprinted in these early years and remained as a touchstone for the balance of her days.

Progressing to Thornton Academy from a one-room schoolhouse was initially fraught with anxiety for Joan, and yet her years at Thornton unfolded as rich, exciting and defining. Thornton became an institution she was dedicated to for the remainder of her life and was a catalyst to her lifelong prioritization and commitment to education. It is also where she met Milton to whom she would be wed for nearly 63 years. Once “retired,” Joan served on Thornton’s board of trustees for 18 years.

As high school years drew to a close, Joan recounted that her

OBITUARIES

parents gave her a choice of a festive wedding or an education — one or the other — and there was nary a decision as she knew she was headed to Orono and the University of Maine. It was at UMaine that Milton and Joan started to date and where lifelong friendships were formed.

Joan received a bachelor’s degree in psychology and was a member of an honorary psychology fraternity. She also enjoyed the mischief and fun of being a Tri-Delt, where as a beauty and lover of fashion she had some light-hearted fun modeling. As with Thornton, Joan and Milton were committed to the University of Maine, prompting them to establish a scholarship in 2004. In 2005 they were awarded the Block M award for their dedication to the university.

Joan served as president on the executive committee for the Class of 1952 and oversaw an exceptional year of fundraising in 1997. Found among her belongings were letters of thanks she had received from recipients of their scholarship, underscoring how near and dear to her heart this effort was.

Following graduation Joan went to work for the state of Maine as a child welfare worker in Aroostook County. While the work was challenging, Joan thrived and enjoyed the independence of making her way. In November 1954, after Milton returned from Korea where he was serving with the U.S. Marines, they were married.

Their three children were born in Maine and ensuing years brought them to Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York. Joan was funny, sometimes irreverent and consummately supportive of her family.

She was a sports fan in all her children’s pursuits, a math tutor, an editor, whoopie pie maker, a hostess, volunteer and wonderful chef. She loved to entertain and designed creative invitations and countless poems to commemorate whatever needed celebrating. She accessorized with a flair and in her 30s taught herself to sew, fabricating an array of beautiful items — even a tutu! — and a few articles remain to grace her granddaughter’s closets. Her creative streak extended to gardening, flower arranging and painting. She was not prolific or formerly instructed in the latter, but she produced a handful of impressive paintings that her family is lucky to have.

When her youngest was about to head off to college Joan enrolled in a real estate course at the University of Connecticut and ultimately received her GRI and CRS designations. She worked in real estate for 18 years, primarily in Connecti-

cut where she was a member of the greater Hartford Board of Realtors and often received accolades as a top producer.

Once retired it did not take long for Joan and Milton to decide to head back to Maine. In addition to their cottage, which has been a fixture for family reunions these past 30-plus years, they purchased their main home which they loved and lived in until Milton died in 2016.

Joan spent one year alone before deciding to move to Vermont to be closer to her daughter. Joan’s vital presence is ever missed, and we are fortunate to be graced with a lifetime of her love and memories.

Joan has a multitude of friends, nieces, nephews and cousins who were so important to her and who she cherished.

She is survived by her son, David, and daughter-in-law, Lolly of Seattle, Wash., and their children Zoe, Calista (Mike Venezia) and Helena. Calista and Mike are parents to Joan’s first great grandchild, Sofia. Also surviving are her son Peter of Ellsworth, Maine, and his children Luc-Oliver (fiance Sophie Lataille) and Eliott; daughter, Stephanie, and son-in-law, James Wells of Charlotte, and their children Alexandra and Nathaniel; and her brother, Joseph H. Vachon Jr. and his wife, Ruth of Stetson, Maine.

Joan was predeceased by many friends and family members who she mourned and missed, including her grandson, Zachary James Wells, and her beloved husband Milton who adored her and who, we can only hope was waiting, arms wide.

Born Oct. 18, 1935, in Burlington, N.J., Ken overcame a childhood of poverty, severe learning disabilities and a speech impediment to become his family’s first college graduate, a celebrated writer, educator, speaker, investigative reporter, TV news producer and world-renowned child advocate. Ken credited his amazing wife, editor and lifelong partner Martha for making all his successes possible.

A proud veteran of the U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division, Ken lived his life with zeal, reveling in the company of his large and adoring family, as well as thousands of friends from all walks of life. His many passions included his County Donegal Irish heritage, American history, the poetry of Carl Sandburg and Robert Frost, the New York Yankees, restoring antiques, Italian opera, winemaking, playing pinochle, cultivating flowers, Mediterranean cooking, entertaining in his “Kenny’s Irish Pub” woodshed, and most especially “polishing the jewel” — gardening, mowing and landscaping the breathtaking acreage of his remote cabin property nestled within Camel’s Hump State Park.

Ken and Martha first visited Vermont in the summer of 1970, and were instantly smitten with the beauty of the Green Mountains, the serenity of a culture in tune with nature, and the honesty, grit and generosity of its residents. In 1974, they bought the historic Honey Hollow Camp in Bolton, and spent summers and holidays there for a decade before moving to Vermont year-round, dividing their time between camp and their longtime residence in the heart of Shelburne village.

As the author of multiple juvenile justice books, including the Pulitzer-nominated “Weeping in the Playtime of Others,” which exposed corruption within America’s juvenile prison system, Ken delivered expert testimony to Congress on 16 occasions, and contributed groundbreaking child welfare reporting to dozens of major media outlets including The New York Times, CBS “60 Minutes,” Reader’s Digest and The Chicago Sun Times.

Department of Justice Award for Public Service, American Legion Public Spirit Award, and his favorite, the Giraffe Award “for sticking one’s neck out.”

Ken was a remarkable fighter possessed of undying determination. Whether fighting for justice for children, fighting a speeding ticket all the way to the Vermont Supreme Court, or bravely fighting his cruelly tenacious cancer, he always maintained his resolve, positivity and good humor. To symbolize his determination, at the age of 75 he got his first tattoo: the word “NUTS” on his right forearm, a reference to Brigadier General Anthony C. McAuliffe’s famous 1944 response to the Nazis demanding the U.S.A. surrender at the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. Ken loved showing his tattoo whenever he met someone new, always giving an impromptu history lesson, and urging them to join him in declaring “NUTS” to all life’s setbacks.

A romantic and poet until the end, when all treatment options for battling his cancer were depleted, Ken took the opportunity to pen a poignant farewell Christmas letter to his friends and loved ones, closing with the words, “As I now realize — and accept — that my ‘Sun’ is setting, there is no fear, only joy for life and the chance it gave this poor Depression kid of the 1930s. It’s been a creative, exciting journey with no regrets. With a big smile, I wish you one and all the best in life. Cherish it and continue to enjoy its many wonderful gifts. I love you.”

Ken is survived by his loving wife of 65 years, Martha Braun Wooden; adoring children, Grace Gilbert-Davis of Essex Junction, Rosemary Webb of Hinesburg, Jennifer Mitchell of Williston and John Allen Wooden of Studio City, Calif.; in-laws Jeff Davis, Scott Webb, Carl Mitchell, Anna Liza Bella and Tess Barbach; grandchildren, Calvin and Sarah Gilbert, Sophia and Preston Webb, Chase and Grant Mitchell, Simone and Ward Wooden; and great-grandson, Finn Gilbert.

Kenneth Wooden

Kenneth Wooden, 87, of Bolton and Kissimmee, Fla., died during a majestic sunset in Colchester on Monday, July 3, 2023, surrounded by his loving family, following a fiercely valiant 22-year battle with prostate cancer.

Ken researched, wrote and created the “Child Lures Prevention” education program, which teaches youngsters vital personal safety strategies to protect against abuse. Through this program — continuously published without philanthropic or public sector support for more than 40 years — Ken helped safeguard generations of children and families around the world, earning scores of accolades including an Emmy Award, U.S.

He was predeceased by his mother, Grace Theresa Ward; father, Edward F. Wooden; and brothers, Carl, Edward and Richard Wooden.

For friends wishing to celebrate Ken’s remarkable life, the family invites you to walk among the noble stone walls, burbling streams and rolling meadows of his cherished Honey Hollow, and remember Ken as you knew him, there within the “sublime tapestry of

Joan Vachon Victor

Kenneth Wooden

Wet weather brings slime mold

ANN HAZELRIGG UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT EXTENSION

With all the recent wet weather, conspicuous neon yellow masses have appeared on bark mulches and lawns. These brightly colored blobs, called plasmodia, are unique organisms called slime molds.

The harmless, yellow, foamy slime molds (Fuligo septica), often called the dog vomit slime mold, were originally classified as fungi. They are now in the Kingdom Protista since they more closely

resemble amoeba.

The size of slime molds can vary from a few inches to several feet in diameter. They are not pathogenic to plants although some can grow over plants and briefly decrease their access to sunlight. The plasmodium is the feeding stage of the organism, engulfing bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms as it grows.

The plasmodial stage can appear to creep and can move several feet in a day, alarming homeowners and gardeners. However, slime molds are beneficial since

they contribute to the decomposition of dead vegetation.

As the bright yellow slime molds age, they fade from bright yellow to a crusty dull tan and release spores that can stay dormant until the next round of rainy weather. No control is necessary for slime molds. They will disappear as soon as the

weather dries. To hasten their breakdown, you can break apart the blob with a rake. For more information, visit go.uvm.edu/ slime-mold.

Dr. Ann Hazelrigg is the University of Vermont Extension plant pathologist and director of the Plant Diagnostic Clinic.

PHOTOS BY JOELLE KRAFT / TODD CHRETIEN

Above: After a stretch of wet weather, bright yellow, foamy masses of “dog vomit” slime mold may appear on bark mulches and lawns. Right: As slime molds age, they fade from bright yellow to a crusty dull tan and release spores that can stay dormant until the next bout of rainy weather.

Community Notes

Free with season parking pass or paid day pass. Donations are encouraged.

Weather permitting, with the Charlotte Senior Center as the back-up rain location. Updates on Residents of Charlotte VT Facebook page.

Grange on the Green concerts in Charlotte

The Charlotte Grange invites friends and neighbors to enjoy four evenings of music and merriment on the Charlotte town green every Thursday in July from 5:30 p.m. until 7 p.m.

Bring a picnic and enjoy local music in good company.

Quitting sugar

On Tuesday, July 25, at 6:30 p.m., Pierson Library hosts Andrea Grayson as she discusses her new book, “The Sweet Tooth Dilemma,” about how sugar is seductive, dangerous and hard to quit.

Music at the Beach returns to Charlotte

Bring your friends and family and enjoy a summer sunset over Lake Champlain at the second and third installments of Music at the Beach in Charlotte, with classical music from the Vermont Youth Orchestra quartet.

The last two concerts are on Wednesdays, July 26 and Aug. 2, with picnicking at 5 p.m. and music at 6 p.m.

Tonight’s show, July 20, features Nick Carter offering original music and well-known folk. Minced Oats — neo-traditionalist Americana, bluegrass and folk — is on tap for July 27.

Shelburne Age Well hosts Grab

and Go meal

Age Well and St. Catherine’s of Siena Parish in Shelburne are teaming up to provide a meal to go for anyone age 60 and older on Tuesday, Aug. 8.

The meal will be available for pick up in the parking lot at 72 Church St. from 11 a.m. until noon and are available for anyone 60 or older. Suggested donation is $5.

The menu is: chicken and biscuits, gravy, red mashed potatoes, mixed beans, biscuit, pineap-

ple and oranges and milk.

To order a meal contact Kathleen at agewellstcath@gmail.com or 802-503-1107. Deadline to order is Wednesday, Aug. 2. If this is a first-time order, provide your name, address, phone number and date of birth.

If you haven’t yet filled out a congregate meal registration form, bring a completed registration

Check Locally First

form with you or send one to: Age Well; 875 Roosevelt Highway, Ste. 210, Colchester VT 05446. Forms will be available at meal pick up. Learn about restaurant tickets to dine at participating restaurants at agewellvt.org.

Hinesburg holds summer concerts in the park

The Hinesburg Recreation Department presents Summer Concerts in the Park, Wednesday evenings at 6:30 p.m. throughout July and early August at the gazebo behind the Hinesburg Community School in the Village.

On July 26, the Rough Suspects come to town. The rest of the summer lineup includes:

Aug. 2 – Shellhouse

Aug. 9 – Hinesburg Community Band

Aug. 16 – In the Pocket

Enjoy Age Well meals at Charlotte Senior Center

The Age Well meal pickup for Thursday, July 20, is from 10 to 11 a.m. at the Charlotte Senior Center features beef steak with mushroom sauce, mashed potatoes, broccoli florets, wheat roll, pumpkin and white chocolate chip cookie and milk.

You must pre-register by the prior Monday at 802-425-6345 or

meals@charlotteseniorcentervt. org.

The meal on Thursday, July 27 features breaded chicken breast, mashed cauliflower, spinach, wheat roll, Craisin and date cookie and milk.

The suggested donation is $5. Check the website for last-minute cancellations at bit.ly/3FfyLMb.

Charlotte library rain garden wins recognition

Charlotte Library rain garden was one of seven landscape projects recently recognized by the 2023 Vermont Public Places Awards program for promoting positive public uses and benefits through innovative and creative preservation or enhancement of exterior or interior public space, green corridors and networks of spaces.

The rain garden won a merit award.

The awards are co-sponsored by the Vermont Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, the American Institute of Architects Vermont, the Vermont Planners Association and the Vermont Urban and Community Forestry program. A jury of Vermont planners, architects, landscape architects and community and urban forestry professionals selected this year’s recipients.

Buying and shopping locally helps independent businesses, which in turn helps all of us shape our community’s distinct flavor, personality and character. We’re all in this together.

COURTESY PHOTO

Music at the Beach continues over the next two Wednesdays in Charlotte.

GET CONNECTED

JOIN OUR GROUP OF DEDICATED READERS

Our focus is on community: Real news that residents, homeowners and visitors depend on. From local government and politics to arts, entertainment, food and drink, sports and real estate, Vermont Community Newspaper Group provides comprehensive coverage of everything going on in the diverse neighborhoods that make up our north-central Vermont market.

1. JOIN THE ONLINE COMMUNITY/CREATE AN ACCOUNT. vtcng.com/users/signup

2. SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY E-NEWSLETTER. vtcng.com/users/admin/mailinglist

3. EXTEND YOUR PRINT SUBSCRIPTION WITH FREE ONLINE ACCESS; OR, PURCHASE AN ONLINE-ONLY SUBSCRIPTION. vtcng.com/users/admin/service/purchase

OWN A LOCAL BUSINESS AND WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ADVERTISING ONLINE? Reach 105,000+ monthly visitors with the area’s most popular website group. We offer year-long and campaign-style advertising options, weekly e-newsletters, Local & Social and more.

• VTCNG.com

KROHN continued from page 1

to address bigger problems facing the community. In other words, does the selectboard still need to hear and decide about every new curb cut or fee refund?

“Might it not make sense for many of these routine requests to be handled administratively, while perhaps retaining the ability to address the selectboard for questionable or challenging circumstances,” he wrote in the report.

He pointed out that one of the main concerns that some residents and officials may have about the switch is the fear that with one person in charge, there may be more decision-making happening behind closed doors without residents’ ability to respond directly to the selectboard and ultimately fewer opportunities for public dialogue on town issues.

“That concern relates to a strongly held desire to maintain a small town feel in Charlotte,” he wrote. “But with the right person on board and with a collaborative approach to communication and municipal practice, an appropriate balance can be created that can lighten the selectboard’s workload while still maintaining this small town feel and open dialogue with the residents they serve.”

He said Tuesday night that he took a look at a Vermont map and randomly picked over two dozen towns of comparable population size to Charlotte and it seemed that more small towns had town managers over administrators.

For example, through his correspondence with the town of Hinesburg — a neighboring town to Charlotte that recently made the switch to a manager government— he found that their municipal issues were getting increasingly more complicated with grants, building challenges and police departments that the switch to a manager became almost inevitable.

Krohn explained that these conversations are worth consid-

OBITUARIES

continued from page 8

nature” where his gentle spirit will linger forever.

Ken’s favorite quote was from George Bernard Shaw: “I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. Life is no ‘brief candle’ to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it onto future generations.”

ering from time to time to reexamine if past or current patterns and processes still serve the town well. He said there really is no harm in having the discussion because ultimately with a town vote required for the switch, it forces engagement with the issue and analyses by more residents. Additionally, if adopted the switch has the potential to create clearer lines of authority for personnel management and clearer delineation of roles and responsibilities for other municipal matters.

One major point of concern with the switch is that per statute, one of the town manager’s responsibilities is, “to perform all the duties now conferred by law upon the road commissioner of the town, including the signing of orders …”

Should a vote pass, in order to keep the town’s current road commissioner for more than 23 years, Hugh Junior Lewis, a town charter will also need to be adopted concurrently with the vote to supersede that statutory requirement.

Krohn fielded questions from the public for nearly an hour, but no substantial resolutions were made. Since the town is currently conducting interviews with town administrator candidates, the selectboard has decided it will take an official stance on the issue at the Aug.14 meeting.

Since the beginning, the selectboard has been open with its disfavor for how the topic arose with the ad-hoc group of petitioners who could force a vote at any time, board members have fiercely fought to keep control of the situation.

Krohn says the town administrator or town manager question is really the tipping point of a much deeper conversation: “How can the Town of Charlotte’s elected and appointed officials best meet the needs of the community efficiently and effectively in the 21st century.”

Sky painting

An informal celebration of life for family and close friends will be held at Ken and Martha’s Honey Hollow Camp from 2-4 p.m. on Saturday, July 22, 2023.

Condolences and memories may be shared by visiting awrfh.com. In lieu of flower arrangements, direct donations to Holly’s House Child & Adult Victim Advocacy Center, P.O. Box 4125, Evansville IN 47724.

AMSES

continued from page 7

jet stream may also be a contributing factor.

Michael Mann, a distinguished professor at the University of Pennsylvania, points out on CNN that while “weather is weather ... it’s going to happen — rainfall, flooding events are going to happen, but climate change is supercharging them,” which means when a weather system is producing large amounts of rainfall, it’s probable it will produce even more.

LIBRARY continued from page 1

the library increased programming for patrons of all ages — “bringing the community together in person and online through reading, music, LEGOs and pie socials.”

Royer had been in the role since 2019, when Sara Armstrong-Donegan stepped down to take a position as development coordinator at the Intervale Center in Burlington. Donegan had worked with the library for nine years, The Citizen previously reported.

“(Royer) expanded the ‘Library of Things,’ allowing patrons to borrow everything from bikes to sewing machines to telescopes. In addition to new objects to borrow, she also expanded the physical space of the library, moving programming outdoors, enhancing exterior

Considered on the cutting edge of climate research, Mann explains that the Arctic is warming much faster than the lower 48, reducing the temperature difference between the equator and the pole and causing the jet stream to stall, keeping weather systems stationary for longer periods of time, exactly what happened here in Vermont.

The sobering fact is that storms of this magnitude are certain to continue unless we undertake a huge mitigation process and

even then, it is unlikely we’ll be around to see major changes. It’s “irreversible on the timescale of humans” currently alive. According to NASA, “If we stopped emitting greenhouse gasses today, the rise in global temperatures would flatten in a few years but remain elevated for many centuries.”

I’m afraid the bill for years of complacency has come due.

Walt Amses is a Vermont-based writer from North Calais.

spaces at the library, and launching nature-based programming,” library trustees said in a press release. “More than anything, Beth was a steady hand as (the) Carpenter-Carse library served a vital role for the community during the COVID-19 crisis.”

“The residents of Hinesburg will be forever grateful for the work she accomplished and her steadfast belief in the power of our community,” the library said.

The Carpenter-Carse library has since April embarked on a new strategic plan for the library, the first update in seven years. It conducted a community survey over two weeks earlier this year to garner input on how to improve and expand their operation.

Carpenter-Carse’s last strategic plan went into effect in 2016.

The library board planned to re- evaluate the plan after Royer became Carpenter-Carse’s director in September 2019 but halted that process during the pandemic. The library will be accepting applications for a new director through July 30, and said it is seeking “a visionary candidate committed to engaging with our community, continuing the library’s vital role in our growing town, and ensuring the library is accessible and inclusive.”

“As our community works to recover from the pandemic, Carpenter-Carse Library looks forward to continuing to be a vital space to gather, learn, recover, and grow with the residents of Hinesburg,” trustees said. “Thank you to the Hinesburg community for being part of that vision.”

PHOTO BY LEE KROHN

The sun breaks through the clouds.

SALES EXECUTIVE

Award-winning group of community weeklies with offices in Stowe, Morrisville and South Burlington seeks a sales person. Ideal candidate should have a basic knowledge of the local towns, business and communities we serve. A proven track record in sales and an ability to offer topnotch customer service is a required. In addition to servicing established accounts, candidate must be able to generate sales from qualified leads as well as establish new ones. Our company offers health benefits, vacation time, and provides on the job training in newspapers sales. Generous base salary during training and ideal hours (few nights or weekends). If you possess these qualifications and would like to be considered, please send your resume and cover letter to: Bryan Meszkat at bryan@newsandcitizen.com.

SHELBURNE

Shelburne has an outstanding culture of volunteerism and a full suite of public services, from parks and police to sewage and streets. The Town Manager’s team implements the vision of the Selectboard and leads the Town government. This position requires interpersonal, administrative, and project management skills. They support everything from the Town’s Annual Report to committee meetings, grant reports, procurement, and community events. This is local government at its best!

The Assistant to the Town Manager must be a versatile administrator with both technical and people skills. We are looking for a mix of education and experience showing strong communication and organizing skills, multitasking, and understanding of local government context and ethics. Government experience is a plus, but skills from the business, nonprofit, and education sectors transfer well.

Our pay range for this position is $22 to $27 hourly, depending on qualifications. The Town’s strong benefits include excellent healthcare and pension, leave and holidays, and more.

A complete job description is available at www.ShelburneVT. org/Jobs To apply, send a Town application and/or resume to SCannizzaro@shelburnevt.org. Our review begins immediately. Equal Opportunity Employer.

The week-long bait drop is a cooperative effort between Vermont and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services to stop the spread of the potentially fatal disease.

100 percent effective when given soon after a person is bitten by a rabid animal.

So far this year, 23 animals in Vermont have tested positive for rabies, and 14 of those have been raccoons.

SHELBURNE DAY

continued from page 4

RABIES BAIT

Rabies is a deadly viral disease of the brain that infects mammals. It is most often seen in raccoons, skunks, foxes, and bats, but unvaccinated pets and livestock can also get rabies.The virus is spread through the bite of an infected animal or contact with its

continued from page 2

The week-long bait drop is a cooperative effort between Vermont and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services to stop the spread of the potentially fatal disease.

Rabies is a deadly viral disease of the brain that infects mammals. It is most often seen in raccoons, skunks, foxes, and bats, but unvaccinated pets and livestock can also get rabies.The virus is spread through the bite of an infected animal or contact with its

According to wildlife officials, rabid animals often show a change in their normal behavior, but you cannot tell whether an animal has rabies simply by looking at it. People should not touch or pick up wild animals or strays – even baby animals.

saliva. If left untreated, rabies is almost always fatal in humans and animals. However, treatment with the rabies vaccine is nearly 100 percent effective when given soon after a person is bitten by a rabid animal.

Buying Sports and

So far this year, 23 animals in Vermont have tested positive for rabies, and 14 of those have been raccoons.

Shelburne Historical Society will have a display and president Dorothea Penar will lead a cemetery tour at 1 p.m. Food vendors round out the event with everything from coffee and lemonade to burgers and creemees. Kids will enjoy meeting animals from Shelburne Farms, craft projects, and

SHELBURNE DAY

continued from page 4

face burne-Hinesburg head the Golf depending land.

Rotary’s

According to wildlife officials, rabid animals often show a change in their normal behavior, but you cannot tell whether an animal has rabies simply by looking at it. People should not touch or pick up wild animals or strays – even baby animals.

Bob & Jessica Trautwine Cell/Txt: 802-233-1451 • O ce: 802-497-1681 Hyperreliccards@gmail.com • hyperrelic.com

Shelburne Historical Society will have a display and president Dorothea Penar will lead a cemetery tour at 1 p.m. Food ven dors round out the event with everything from coffee and lemonade to burgers and creemees. Kids will enjoy meeting animals from Shelburne Farms, craft projects, and

face burne-Hinesburg head the Golf depending land. Rotary’s

for rates: call 985-3091 or email advertising@shelburnenews.com

ARIES

March 21 - April 20

Sometimes you feel a need to be in charge to prove that you are capable, Aries. This week take a back seat and fall in line with the established modus operandi.

TAURUS

April 21 - May 21

You may get into the habit of focusing on past mistakes, Taurus. This week, instead of falling into old habits, think about how you can grow and learn from your mistakes.

GEMINI

May 22 - June 21

Gemini, it’s time to be sociable and put out feelers for different adventures. Make sure you share on social media channels that you’re available and ready to have fun.

CANCER

June 22 - July 22

Cancer, keep track of your mood this week, as it is easy to swing from glad to glum in no time at all. Friends can help keep you on a more even keel for the time being.

LEO

July 23 - Aug. 23

Leo, a refreshing sense of energy comes your way, and you start to jump head- rst into all of those projects that have been pushed aside. You’ll sail through tasks in no time at.

VIRGO

Aug. 24 - Sept. 22

An interesting travel opportunity comes your way, Virgo. However, at rst glance it might not seem like the type of trip you would normally take. Keep an open mind and be surprised.

LIBRA

Sept. 23 - Oct. 23

Treat yourself to something special in the days to come, Libra. Perhaps it is a costly fragrance you’ve been spying or a new piece of furniture. You earned the indulgence.

SCORPIO

Oct. 24 - Nov. 22

It’s time to take your foot off the gas and slow down to a crawl, Scorpio. A well deserved break should be on your itinerary; otherwise, you may burn through all of your fuel prematurely.

SUDOKU

Here’s How It Works:

Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve a sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must ll each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can gure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!

CROSSWORD

SAGITTARIUS

Nov. 23 - Dec. 21

Sagittarius, teamwork is the answer right now, especially when your to-do list seems to be growing exponentially. Recruit some close con dantes to help you along the way.

CAPRICORN

Dec. 22 - Jan. 20

Make your career a priority this week, Capricorn. You may be feeling unsettled where you are now. There is no saying where things will go, so exercise caution when making decisions.

AQUARIUS

Jan. 21 - Feb. 18

Aquarius, wanderlust is on your brain. You’ve been fantasizing about all of the grand adventures you can take. Figure out a way to fund a getaway and get started.

PISCES

Feb. 19 - March 20

Pisces, something profound may have happened to you and you may need to sift through all of your feelings over the next few days. Take all the time you need to process.

CLUES ACROSS

1. Commoner

5. Tea leaf

11. They save you a table

14. Submissions

15. Secretly revealed

18. Personi cation of the sea (Norse)

19. Unreal

21. No seats available

23. Bangladeshi currency

24. Leaders

28. Famed garden

29. Denotes past

30. Not living

32. Midway between south and southeast

33. Small island (British)

35. Woman (French)

36. Wife

39. Two-toed sloth

41. Blood group

42. Soaks

44. Biu-Mandara language of Cameroon

46. Japanese prefecture

47. Place to be during a rock concert

49. Fully grown humans

52. Emaciation

56. Sparkling

58. Fruits you peel

60. Derived from a noun

62. Popular items to grill

63. Port in Yemen

CLUES DOWN

1. Before

2. Actress Dunham

3. This (Spanish)

4. Director Peter

5. Dominant

6. English artists’ society (abbr.)

7. NY Giants legend

8. It’s in the ground

9. No No No

10. Pesky insect

12. Danish-American muckraking journalist

13. Kids love to do it

16. Good Gosh!

17. Fakes

20. A citizen of Denmark

22. Mystic syllable

25. Commercial

ANSWERS

26. Letter of the Hebrew alphabet

27. Helpers

29. Water (French)

31. Young woman

34. Red-brown sea bream

36. Messenger ribonucleic acid

37. Comprehends

38. Walk with con dence

40. Home of the Flyers

43. Appetizer

45. News organization

48. Source of the Nile

50. A way to march 51. Soluble ribonucleic acid

53. Egyptian bull-god

54. Children’s author Blyton

55. Baseball pitching stat

57. Rude young person

58. Table napkin

59. Monetary unit in Asia

61. One-time AL MVP Vaughn

Guest Perspective

Liz Dengate

Spittlebugs are the color of a new spring leaf, their bodies both tiny and so fat that you hardly notice their six miniature legs underneath. This plumpness makes them an appetizing snack for various insect predators — or would, anyway, if spittlebugs didn’t have an elaborate adaptation to keep them safe.

Spittlebugs live in a variety of habitats throughout North America. They are especially noticeable in open, sunny meadows and along the edges of forests — every few feet, sometimes every few inches: a blob of white froth clinging to a stem.

When I guided visitor hikes during my three summers as an interpretive park ranger on Isle Royale National Park in Michigan, I’d see these characteristic dollops of foam on the stems of thimbleberry bushes, tall asters and all manner of other shrubs and wildflowers along the trails. I often stopped and swiped a finger through the foam, then held it up for visitors to see — a hapless creature clinging there in the remnants of its cover. I could have fit 10 of them on the pad of my index finger. “I thought someone was just spitting on the plants!” one of my program attendees said.

Spittlebugs are the nymphs of froghoppers, insects in the order Hemiptera and the superfamily Cercopoidea. These nymphs hatch from their eggs in the spring and progress through a series of molts through the summer, growing larger and sometimes changing color. Spittlebugs spend their days sucking the juices of plant stems.

To do this without becoming food themselves, they urinate a whopping amount, blow bubbles into this foul-smelling substance to create the world’s grossest bubble bath and bury themselves within it. No wonder no one eats them! If people urinated the same quan-

tity proportionate to our body size, it would translate to about 2,700 gallons a day.

Like many other insects, spittlebugs can respirate through microscopic openings in their exoskeleton called spiracles. These pores on their abdomens allow spittlebugs to breathe even through their protective foam. Researchers have found that spittlebugs use their abdomens like snorkels to break the surface of the foam.

The insects can also retreat deeper into the foam and pause breathing when frightened. In especially dire situations — perhaps a spider looming nearby — spittlebugs can pop several of the tiny bubbles in their froth and breathe the oxygen trapped within until the threat passes.

Although they are ubiquitous, spittlebugs don’t play an outsize role in any ecosystem. They suck dilute sap from plants’ xylem, but not enough to really damage a plant. They are no animal’s primary food source.

As adults, their most notable trait is what gives them their “froghopper” name — they can hop farther, relative to body size, than even fleas, leaping as high as 70 centimeters: wild, when you consider they’re less than a centimeter tall. Froghoppers’ legs contain structures shaped like archery bows, and they are constantly ready to launch. Whether as young or adults, these critters are not often caught by predators.

There is something to be said about a curiosity hidden in plain sight. On my walks I couldn’t guarantee a sighting of a moose or even a loon on my ranger walks, but I could always guarantee a spittlebug encounter.

Liz Dengate is an environmental science teacher at a public high school in Minnesota. Illustration by Adelaide Murphy Tyrol. The Outside Story is assigned and edited by Northern Woodlands magazine and sponsored by Wellborn Ecology Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, nhcf.org.

In plain sight: Spittlebugs blow bubbles to keep themselves safe

ILLUSTRATION BY ADELAIDE MURPHY TYROL