The Citizen - 8-3-23

Records

Town manager petition revised

petitioners to reexamine how they plan to move forward.

Residents seeking to move to a town manager form of government in Charlotte are forging ahead even after learning that state statute requires a town manager to also be the town’s road commissioner — an elected position that has been held by resident Hugh Lewis Jr. for more than 25 years.

Resident and former Shelburne town manager Lee Krohn first raised the issue in a report he was hired to compile outlining the pros and cons of switching from a town administrator to town manager. The news has forced

According to Charlotte Rep. Chea Waters Evans, to keep the road commissioner an elected position, a town charter would have to be created.

“In Vermont, we have what’s called Dillon’s Rule, which basically means that every town’s power over their own governance is granted to them by the state,” she said.

To keep an elected road commissioner, the town “would need to create a charter specifically for the town that lays out

See PETITION on page 13

Hinesburg plans central community gathering space

from the street — plus lots of trees.

A newly formed committee hopes to take an unused patch of lawn behind the town’s police and fire stations and turn it into a central community gathering space. If the town’s vision comes to fruition, what is now a mowed grassy lawn could in a few years become a place where neighbors meet for lunch or where families bring their kids to play. The plans, in the making for years, would feature a pavilion for events, a natural playground area for kids and walking paths with entry points

“Community is the glue that holds people together. The more opportunities there are for people to jump in and take part, whether those are events or just meeting people on the trails, that’s the glue,” selectboard member Maggie Gordon said. “I’m really invested in having spaces where people can do that — can bump into each other, can talk to each other, can talk to people that you wouldn’t normally talk with.”

“We’ve never had a public gathering space, and this is our

See HINESBURG on page 13

PHOTO BY AL FREY

Champlain Valley’s Max Strauss swipes second during the 10-12 Little League championship finals at Burlington’s Schifilliti Park on Saturday. .The All Stars lost to St. Johnsbury 8-5 in the Little League championship Sunday, a rain-delayed end to the season. See story on page 11.

Safe at second

LIBERTY DARR

STAFF WRITER

COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER

Charlotte Selectboard considers proposed cannabis regulations

LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER

Charlotte’s cannabis regulations — which have been over a year in the making — are set to go before the selectboard at a public hearing on Aug. 14.

Because the town already has multiple cultivation sites within its borders, the lack of regulations has caused a slew of confusion regarding how officials can regulate the budding industry and, in some cases, has led to an overreach of officials’ power when it comes to approving new licenses.

Although the selectboard appointed itself the town’s local cannabis control commission last November, members have consistently voiced their disapproval of the state-guided process for cannabis applications and even went so far as to improperly deny the first cannabis license that came before the commission in March, even though the cultivator had received a proper local permit from the town’s zoning administrator.

“This is Kafkaesque and represents everything that’s

wrong, in my opinion, with some of the things coming out of Montpelier,” member Lewis Mudge said in March, regarding the lack of control given to local commissions in the process.

Without regulations to guide cannabis cultivation, growers have been at the discretion of the town’s development review board. The new regulations, which have been spearheaded and completed by the planning commission under guidance from town planner Larry Lewack, offer a much clearer and streamlined path toward permitting.

The approved regulations, which are available on the town’s website, show where cannabis cultivations are permitted and what sort of review operations they need to undergo.

State law gives municipalities the authority to regulate cannabis businesses, including the ability to require these enterprises to comply with local ordinances and land use rules, but towns cannot regulate the industry more than they would any other business.

The town’s original draft regulations, which were approved in

April by the planning commission, were sent back to the drafting table when the Legislature updated the state’s cannabis rules under House bill 270 to exempt all outdoor grow operations from municipal permitting in the same way it regulates agriculture.

“Once you get (agriculture),”

Mudge said in June, shaking his head at the state’s ruling on the agricultural aspect of cannabis. “Smoke it if you got it.”

Under previous law, exemp-

tion from municipal permitting was restricted only to small outdoor cultivation projects up to 1,000 square feet of plant canopy or 125 plants.

Not only does one aspect of the bill exempt outdoor cultivation from local zoning, but it also forces the elimination of things like a proposed 200-foot setback from an outdoor cultivator’s property line that was initially suggested in the draft regulations.

Although cultivators in town

said the local regulations would place an undue burden on their farms, some residents urged the planning commission to increase the setback to 500 feet.

“I believe in the adage, ‘Good fences make good neighbors,’ and, with cannabis, a fence means distance,” resident Jen Banbury said at the public hearing on March 23. “That’s the main way to protect neighbors from odors and other negative fallout. The state, itself, requires a 500-foot buffer for schools. What about homes with school-aged children? What about residents that act as home schools? I believe that a 500-foot buffer should apply to residences.”

Another resident, Andrew Hale agreed a 200-foot buffer is a good start, but said he’d “prefer to see 500 feet there.”

The current regulations have been warned for the public hearing on Aug. 14.

“The selectboard can choose to submit proposed changes to the voters for ratification if they feel like an issue is of paramount public interest and importance, that it deserves some broader public debate and ultimately a vote by residents for or against,” Lewack said.

“However, the default position now in Vermont for small towns is that the selectboard can simply vote after holding the required public hearing.”

PHOTO BY LEE KROHN

Summer always brings the color to Vermont.

Judge sides with paper in suit seeking records

TOMMY GARDNER STAFF WRITER

A judge last week ruled that the town of Stowe could not withhold information about a police officer who was terminated last winter just because it sent that information to a statewide political body inclined to keep that kind of thing under wraps.

Judge Daniel Richardson ruled in Vermont Superior Court in Hyde Park that documents the town had sent to the Vermont Criminal Justice Council could not be shielded by the town.

“The fact that the town contributes material that the Council considers and keeps confidential for its own purpose does not extend this bubble of confidentiality to the Town as originator and supplier,” Richardson wrote in his July 26 entry order.

The judge’s ruling effectively ended a public records request that the Stowe Reporter filed against the town of Stowe and a lawsuit the town filed against staff writer Aaron Calvin and the newspaper’s parent company, the Vermont Community Newspaper Group.

Richardson, in noting the “undercurrent” to the case is the need for the public to see how government agencies are performing, quoted the Roman poet Juvenal’s line “Who watches the watchmen?”

“It is openness, public awareness, and access to information for the benefit of the general public that does this work by dispelling rumor, myth, conjecture, and conspiracy with the cold hard facts of objective reporting and good government process,” Richardson wrote.

“Over too many years, the public and the press have seen too many local officials shielding records that are clearly public,” said Greg Popa, editor of the Vermont Community Newspaper Group, which publishes The Citizen. “It’s a disturbing trend we will continue to see, that is unless the Legislature gets serious about transparency and clarifies the state’s public records laws. We will continue to fight for the public’s right to know what its public officials are up to.”

The court case began when Calvin reported in March and April that former Stowe Police Department patrolman Benjamin Cavarretta had left the department under mysterious circumstances,

and the Lamoille County State’s Attorney, Todd Shove, issued a so-called Giglio letter — such letters are issued when an officer’s conduct is called into question.

Shove, in the letter, called Cavarretta “untruthful,” specifically when referring to a Dec. 5, 2022, traffic stop he conducted in Montpelier. (See related story, page 1)

On April 17, Calvin filed a public records request with the town, which the town either denied, or produced with such heavy redactions that it was impossible to determine what was in them. Calvin appealed the decision and the town of Stowe sued Calvin and the newspaper.

him,” as Byrne put it.

The Vermont Criminal Justice Council is a 25-person body currently headed up by former attorney general William Sorrell and a half dozen other governor-appointed council members, along with the state commissioners for Vermont’s public safety, corrections, motor vehicles, fish and wildlife and mental health departments, as well as representatives from various law enforcement, human rights and municipal assistance organizations.

Stowe was seeking a ruling on whether Vermont state law regarding the Vermont Criminal Justice Council also applied to the town.

The newspaper’s lawyer, Matthew Byrne, argued in his court filings that the town of Stowe was obliged to produce incident reports involving Cavarretta, specifically documents regarding the Dec. 5, 2022, traffic stop that led to his termination; the termination letter sent to him; any final administrative investigation reports; and court records that the town produced in redacted form.

The latter was particularly egregious, Byrne argued, since those same court records with lines of blacked-out text are easily available, and unredacted, at the courthouse.

“The Lamoille County State’s Attorney said that Officer Cavarretta was ‘dishonest,’” Byrne wrote in his July 5 motion for access filed in Lamoille County Superior Court, civil division.

“The people deserve to know why the State’s Attorney drew that conclusion. Yet, the Town of Stowe is hiding the truth behind a mountain of claimed exemptions to the Public Records Act.”

Police chief Donald Hull argued that the town sent “certain documents” regarding the investigation into Cavarretta to the Vermont Criminal Justice Council, and thus couldn’t even confirm or deny such documents existed.

That was despite his initial revelation to Calvin that there was indeed such an internal investigation, “before the lawyers got to

Its job, by statute, is two-fold. One task is to assist local, county and state government with law enforcement training.

The other is to maintain professional conduct standards for law enforcement officers by tracking complaints, adjudicating charges of misconduct and imposing sanctions on bad cops.

It is not, Byrne argues, an “escape hatch” for police departments and towns to send internal investigations to shield them from the public seeking such information. He noted that Vermont law only places a confidentiality requirement on the Vermont Criminal Justice Council and its staff.

“The plain language places no limitation on the Town of Stowe and what it can do with the material that the Stowe Reporter seeks,” Byrne wrote.

In a series of motions over the past month, the town’s lawyers — John Klesch and Beriah Smith of the firm Stitzel, Page & Fletcher — attempted to slow down the proceedings, arguing that the newspaper waited two months after its initial records request to file a public records act “enforcement” lawsuit and was asking the court to “jump the PRA suit to the front of the line,” ahead of the town’s countersuit seeking declaratory judgment.

The town was seeking a ruling on whether Vermont state law regarding the Vermont Criminal Justice Council also applied to the town.

The lawyers argued skipping that part could “unnecessarily expose” the town to paying the Stowe Reporter’s attorney’s fees.

Hinesburg Police Blotter: July 25 - 31

Total incidents: 33

Traffic Stops: 2

Arrests: 0

July 25 at 9:35 a.m., an officer responded to a dispute on Route 116.

July 25 at 3 p.m., a dog bite was reported.

July 25 at 3:58 p.m., an officer spoke with a resident on Texas Hill Road who reported being harassed.

July 25 at 7:22 p.m., suspicious activity on Richmond Road was investigated.

July 25 at 10:22 p.m., an alarm activated on Commerce Street.

July 26 at 4:35 p.m., a welfare check on Shelburne Falls

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(802) 985-3091 x12

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(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

Road was conducted.

July 28 at 8:30 a.m., officers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Baldwin Road.

July 28 at 10:50 a.m., officers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Route 116.

July 28 at 5:25 p.m., officers responded to a domestic dispute on Place Road West.

July 28 at 9:40 p.m., an officer responded to a single-motor vehicle crash on Silver Street.

July 29 at 11:59 a.m., officers investigated a dead eagle located on Route 116.

July 31 at 10:30 p.m., officers investigated suspicious activity on Ballard’s Corner Road.

Man who threatened court officials gets 20 months in jail

MIKE DONOGHUE CORRESPONDENT

A South Burlington man, who authorities said made threats to kill a state judge and defense lawyer and to rape a prosecutor, has been sentenced to 20 months in prison for three felony charges involving the intimidating phone calls.

Joshua P. Puma, 36, of Williston Road, called a Vermont Corrections Department reporting line on Sept. 30, 2021, to say he would kill a state judge and a defense attorney, U.S. District Court records show.

The indictment also charged him with making a similar call in October threatening to kill a state judge and to sexually assault a prosecutor. The third charge stems from a phone call in November 20231 to say he planned to kill a state judge.

of orders of hospitalization for 90 days to further check Puma’s mental status.

Puma was never sent to the state mental hospital in Berlin due to a federal detainer filed against him. The detainer came when a federal grand jury in Burlington indicted Puma on the three felony charges for threatening the public officials during the fall of 2021.

The biggest difference between the federal and state incompetency procedures is how the defendant gets returned to society.

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Puma, formerly of Shelburne, made close to 300 calls to the special recorded phone line that is available for jailed inmates, officials said.

Puma made clear that once he was released from prison, he had specific intentions to kill and maim those state officials, along with killing or harming other members of the legal community, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Wendy Fuller.

Puma has had ongoing mental health issues and had been ordered hospitalized at least twice by the state court.

While the federal sentencing guidelines had proposed a stiffer penalty, Chief Federal Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford said he would take the defendant’s past mental issues into consideration.

Puma pleaded guilty to the three felony charges in U.S. District Court in Rutland on Feb. 2.

Crawford told Puma, who once punched his public defender in the face, that he will be on federal supervised release for three years after he is discharged from prison.

He could receive up to five years in federal prison on each of the three death threat charges and fines up to $250,000 on each case.

Crawford and Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle both turned down requests from the defense during the prosecution to release

Puma from prison while the felony charges were resolved.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said in court papers there are no known conditions of release that “would assure the safety of the community, especially the safety of the people Puma threatened to kill, assault, and maim.”

Puma has been in custody since about September 2020 when arrested on state charges. The threats came when Puma was detained at the Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield after his arrest by South Burlington Police on a stalking case, records show.

Sarah Reed, his state public defender, was the intended target of one death threat, officials said.

During Puma’s arraignment, Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George was identified as the target for the rape threat.

The state has a process that eventually allows the mental health commissioner to privately make the release call. There is no notification requirement for the public.

The federal system normally has the defendant’s case remain in a public court setting and the community is informed about any planned release. Any release conditions for a defendant is a public record.

Puma is well known to police, especially in South Burlington and Shelburne. South Burlington police arrested him for stalking that involved a complaint from a neighbor on Williston Road.

Sarah Reed, Puma’s state public defender, was the intended target of one death threat, officials said, while state’s attorney Sarah George was threatened with rape.

Puma punched Reed in the face while she was representing him in state court in September 2019, Fuller has said. The punch caused Reed to fall to the ground and it took five security officers to restrain Puma, Fuller told the court.

He later pleaded guilty to assaulting his attorney and was sentenced to 4-12 months to serve, Fuller said.

In March 2022, Puma was found incompetent to stand trial on state charges for two criminal cases in Chittenden County. Vermont Superior Court Judge A. Gregory Rainville issued a pair

Shelburne police made a welfare check call at his parents’ home in December 2015, records show. Officer Brian Fox reported police responded to a report about a possible suicidal man.

Upon arrival officers found a broken window in the garage area and while checking police spotted Puma through a window with a rifle and a knife in his hands inside the residence, Fox said. Police got Puma to leave the residence without incident. Puma was taken into protective custody and transported to University of Vermont Medical Center for evaluation, police said.

He was later jailed for a probation violation and ordered into court on reckless endangerment and unlawful mischief charges, Fox said.

Joshua P. Puma

Flood recovery: Thinking fast, slow

mation and resources.

• Of the $733 million accounted for in Irene recovery, over $500 million was from federal sources.

Last week, the House Committee on Commerce and Senate Committee on Economic Development had a heavy, but enlightening hearing about the economic state of the families, small businesses and downtowns in our communities affected by the floods.

What became clear is that this current moment is highly consequential. We are in a race against the clock as mold overtakes buildings, deadlines loom for federal relief and families and businesses are asked to make major decisions that deeply impact their future while they struggle through grief and trauma. Still, in this context, many are asking us to maintain a longer time horizon and seize this pivotal moment to build resiliency and ensure we can and will recover stronger.

Here are some of my major observations and takeaways:

Thinking fast

Families and businesses are already leveraged from the pandemic and cannot absorb high interest loans.

• Help is here and more is on the way, but the need for grants and zero interest loans is much higher than the amount of capital available in that form.

• Small Business Administration loans can carry up to 8 percent interest after the first year.

Regardless of the outcome, Vermonters should file for any federal or state aid for which they may be eligible to document the need and bring them into the flow of infor-

• The more need demonstrated, the greater case the federal delegation can make for supplemental disaster relief.

• Most impacted Vermonters are eligible for either regular unemployment insurance or Disaster Unemployment Assistance and should make a claim in the next 30 days.

Unique challenges of this disaster include workforce shortages, housing crisis, interest rates and mold.

• There will need to be a massive marshaling of labor or no recovery can take place.

• We lost 4,000 units of housing in an already existing crisis and will need to expedite availability of temporary and permanent housing.

• High interest loans are far more expensive to buy down in this lending market.

• Many communities experienced level three contamination that will require significant mold remediation and health inspections.

Thinking slow

Lessons from Irene have resulted in climate resilient infrastructure and more efficient disaster response where rebuilding occurred, but the road to recovery was and is long, and those at the margins are more likely to experience life-altering, compounded impacts.

• Waterbury, Brandon and Brattleboro are examples of communities that were devastated in Irene but rebuilt their infrastructure and public buildings with hydraulic pressures and floodplain management in mind.

• Renters, immigrants and mobile home park residents are in danger of being left behind once again as resource flows are designed and disseminated without them at the table.

• A lack of clarity, misinformation and malicious scams are causing additional stress and confusion, and the antidote is access to patient, informed, in-person support with appropriate lingual and cultural translation services.

• We cannot dismiss deep socioeconomic disparities during a crisis — in fact, that is when we must lean into identifying and closing them.

We can be a national model for rural resilience in our climate adaptation, inclusion and nimbleness as we anticipate continuing to face numerous crises in quick succession.

• Our sense of community and volunteerism already puts us ahead of most places in terms of compassionate disaster response.

• Recovery will take years of investment in assessing, planning, and building differently.

• We have an opportunity to rebuild

our communities and infrastructure in a climate-friendly, recovery-friendly and inclusive way.

• We need to move resources to our flood-affected communities to allow them to be experiment stations for the future of rural resilience.

Our committee is looking at a hearing in mid-August on housing and one further out on climate resilient infrastructure, and we look forward to partnering with all stakeholders to meet the enormity of this moment. As I will continue to say, the challenge is great, Vermonters are greater.

Kesha Ram Hinsdale, a Democrat from Shelburne, serves the towns of South Burlington, Shelburne, Charlotte, Hinesburg, Milton, Burlington, St. George, Westford, Underhill, Jericho, Richmond, Winooski, Williston, Essex and Bolton in the Legislature.

Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale

PHOTO BY SEN. KESHA RAM HINSDALE

A scene of downtown Montpelier, one of the hardest hit towns during July’s flooding.

Climate crisis demands action from governor

Guest Perspective

Sarah Copeland Hanzas

Vermonters have always rallied to protect and care for their friends and neighbors in a crisis. I am grateful for Gov. Phil Scott’s calm and measured response when Vermont is in crisis. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Scott followed the science and took the appropriate steps, despite considerable opposition, to keep Vermonters safe and to prevent a greater tragedy.

Now, we need the same courage and focus as we grapple with flood recovery and take action to address the underlying forces of climate change that drove its severity.

So far this summer, Vermont has seen a record heat wave in May, the state’s worst air quality in history in June, and recently a record rainstorm that dumped as much as two months of normal rain on towns around the state in just over a day.

This is clearly the new normal for Vermont as the impacts of global warming hit us. Nolan Atkins, the former chair of the atmospheric sciences department at Vermont State University said: “In a warmer world and a warmer climate, (we should expect) these more frequent and more intense weather events.”

Yet despite the science, and clear evidence of increasingly severe weather, the governor has vetoed every major piece of climate legislation the Vermont Legislature has put before him in recent years. We need Scott to direct state agencies to recognize the climate emergency and treat climate action with the same emergency response and focus we are seeing right now during the floods, and that we did during Vermont’s pandemic response.

As the former co-chair of the Legislature’s Climate Solution Caucus, I traveled throughout the state listening to Vermonters’ concerns about the looming impacts of global warming and the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I heard over and over that if we don’t act on climate and curb emissions we will run out of time and be too consumed by the effects of climate change to focus on transitioning to renewable energy.

I have seen our pragmatic governor do a policy pivot when faced with an emergency. After the shooting threat in Fair Haven High School, he was a constructive and supportive partner for meaningful gun safety reforms.

It is time for him to pivot on climate policy. There are a few simple things Scott can do

right now to make a difference and help Vermont be a leader in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. And more importantly, prevent greater tragedy.

First, Scott should direct his appointees on the climate council to shift to an emergency response. The most immediate and constructive action he could take at this moment is to make sure Vermonters whose heating systems were destroyed in the flood are encouraged and incentivized to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy.

Let’s help provide loaner heating systems to get through the upcoming heating season and accelerate our investment in a green energy workforce. This will not only speed up Vermont’s green energy transi-

Gender should be tied to human reproduction

To the Editor:

I was grieved to read the National Institutes of Health description of various described misgendering as generic harassment. (“What matters is that it matters,” July 27, 2023)

I guess I’m the culprit here. I wholly believe, in premises philosophical and religious, that a person’s gender should be tied to the constitutive elements of that human reproduction that is responsible for each of our existences on earth. I wish to present no arguments, only affirm I’m happy to say “they” referring to any person seen as a brother or sister in the human family.

It is because I wish to be “my brother’s keeper,” with equal biblical obligations to my sister, that I cannot pretend that a God-given body ever displays a “wrong kind” of humanness.

You may or may not share my philosophy of objective social terminology. I still wholeheartedly agree that who you are matters, and I ask all people to try to understand that the concern comes from my religion, not my philosophy on how to speak about biochemistry or genetics.

The Jewish tradition first penned the immortal rumor that each woman or man is individually a walking image of God (Genesis 1:27). We Christians adopted the phrase in a unique way, for we have always addressed our most important dialogue partner in the plural.

It is just such a lesson I would invite people to think

tion but also create jobs; we can combat climate change and help Vermont’s economy at the same time.

Second, he should direct the Agency of Natural Resources and Department of Public Service to become willing partners in implementing the clean heat standard to help all Vermonters transition from fossil fuels for heating and cooling their homes and businesses. Over one-third of Vermont’s greenhouse gas emissions come from heating and cooling our homes and businesses. Despite this, Scott and his administration have inexplicably been an anchor in getting this groundbreaking initiative into action.

Third, he should support legislation to ensure Vermont

gets 100 percent of its electricity from renewable energy by the end of the decade. With the passage of President Joe’s Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, wind and solar power are cheaper than ever and price competitive with new natural gas. Vermont needs to do its part to clean up its electric sector and end its environmentally unjust practice of importing power from oiland natural gas-burning plants in low-income communities in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Gov. Phil Scott should direct his appointees on the climate council to shift to an emergency response.

the challenges rural Vermonters face in heating their homes and getting to work. But if we think transitioning to renewable heating and transportation is inconvenient or possibly a little more expensive, just look around at what we will be facing if we don’t.

Can we afford not to?

I’m not saying it’s simple and easy. I understand firsthand

Letters to the Editor

about in religious terms. I just cannot speak in a way that seems, to me, to pit our bodily existence as members of a human family, sons and daughters all, against my belief that this world has a good and loving God behind it, who gave me such very brothers and sisters. In that belief I confess I have felt the call to imitate a complete self-giving, a total love, which is near our very articulation of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who I dare to refer to as the original they.

Fr. Timothy Naples

Pastor

St. John Vianney Catholic Church South Burlington

Carpenter-Carse helps new resident feel at home

To the Editor:

I moved to Hinesburg two years ago from Framingham, Mass., my home state. I’m a married retired senior and I was very homesick for the first year in Vermont. (“Hinesburg seeks a new director,” July 20, 2023)

I didn’t enjoy reading until I started college. Even after I had two daughters, it was my husband who took them to the library. In Framingham I used the two libraries often after they were grown.

Since moving to Hinesburg, I’ve gone to the Carpenter-Carse Library on average twice a week to browse for books and films, to print materials from newspapers or magazines, to sit in a quiet space outside of home to

read, to see the activity materials for children, to read notices on their bulletin boards, to pick up library passes, to pick up my books on reserve, and to attend many special events.

The current library director drove me to an event at a library in Essex Junction that interested both of us. The library staff also greet me by my name, which helped cure me of homesickness. I have decided that this library is as important to me as our local fire and police departments. I feel safe and welcome there. I read more now than I ever did.

Anne C. Sullivan Hinesburg

Bootstrap-pulling, tough love are no solution

To the Editor: Ok, hang on a moment. I just read Tom Evslin’s “Helping hand shouldn’t become indispensable crutch,” and I feel like my brain is about to implode. So, let me make sure I’ve got this straight.

(July 13, 2023)

At a time when the United Nations has said global inequality is at a record high, the richest 10 percent of U.S. households have 70 percent of the national wealth, and 10 percent of U.S. households can’t get enough food, at a time when we are living through a rapidly unfolding climate catastrophe in which much of humanity (including Vermont) has spent the last few months struggling to survive through heat, fire, smoke, drought, famine and floods, Evslin (who has, ironically, built

Sarah Copeland Hanzas was a Vermont House member for 18 years before being elected as Vermont Secretary of State in 2022. She lives in Bradford with her husband and has three adult children.

a robust business trucking fossil fuels around) is prophesying about the dangers of being too generous with those who have the least?

We are told that right now is an auspicious moment to “wean people from dependencies that should never have been allowed to develop since there are jobs available for all skill levels.” Of course, this assumes those jobs are stable and secure, pay a genuine living wage, are situated in communities where people can afford to live, provide necessary benefits like health insurance (don’t get me started on health insurance), and do not exploit or demean their workers. Anyone placing bets on that?

As James Baldwin famously said, “Anyone who has ever struggled with poverty knows how extremely expensive it is to be poor.”

It’s a well-honed, time-honored tradition to blame under-resourced and overburdened people for their own woes, and suggest, in one way or another, that a combination of tough enough love and firm enough bootstrap-pulling will solve the problem.

I don’t buy it. These folks are struggling because of unjust systems designed to benefit the designers while keeping the downtrodden extremely welltrod. Civilizations don’t collapse because of too much compassion. They collapse when they cannot bear the weight of their own inequities.

Kathryn Blume Charlotte

Student Milestones

Olivia Kinsel of Hinesburg graduated with a bachelor’s degree in arts management from the College of Charleston, S.C.

Anna Stevens of Charlotte graduated with a Master of Social Work from Widener University.

Isaac Bergeron of Hinesburg made Husson University’s honors list for the spring semester.

Cole Boffa of Charlotte made the dean’s list at James Madison University for the spring semester.

Cailean Sorce of Hinesburg made the dean’s honor list for the spring semester at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Cole Rehkugler of Charlotte graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering technology.

Frederick Marshall of Hinesburg has been named to the dean’s list for spring semester at the University of Hartford.

The following students from Charlotte have been named to the Champlain College dean’s list higher in the spring semester: Harrison Falk, Heloise Guyette and Brennan Murdock

The following students have been named to the Champlain College president’s list in the spring semester. Charlotte: Quinn Mlynarick and Stuart Robinson Hinesburg: Evan Turner

The following local students earned bachelor’s degrees from the University of Vermont this spring. Charlotte: Anne Bedell, secondary education; Daniel Bernier, biological science; Annabelle Creech, cum laude, art history; Enzo Delia, economics and political science; Mary Feeney business administration; Colvin Hathaway, theatre; Seamus Higgins, cum laude, chemistry; Kipper Marshall, psychological science; Alexa Pughe, sociology; Matthew Small, environmental studies; Samuel Weese, art education; Thomas Wright, mechanical engineering. Hinesburg: Gabriel Atkins, mathematics; Katherine Gingras, community and international development; Lena Heinrich, magna cum laude, zoology; Jack Landry, neuroscience; Harper Mead, elementary education K-6; Eileen Needham, public communication; Zoe Prue, biological science; Benjamin Ross, political science; Grace Washburn, animal sciences.

Elizabeth Toensing of Hinesburg was named to the College of Charleston Spring semester president’s list. Toensing is majoring in public health.

Hannah Cleveland of Charlotte graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in applied sociology from The University of Tampa in May.

Ryan Gardner of Hinesburg earned a Master of Science in computer science from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta.

Mary Titus of Hinesburg graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Castleton University following the completion of the spring semester in May.

Mullein Francis of Hinesburg made the University of Maine at Farmington dean’s list for the spring semester.

Ethan Provost of Hinesburg has been named to the Plymouth State University president’s list for the spring semester. He is majoring in exercise and sport physiology.

Frederick Marshall of Hinesburg made the University of Hartford presidents honors list for spring semester.

Wiley Simard of Charlotte made the Castleton University president’s list for the spring semester.

Mary Titus of Hinesburg made the Castleton University dean’s list for the spring semester.

Sophie Yarwood of Hinesburg was named to second honors on the Clark University dean’s list for outstanding academic achievement during the spring semester.

Abby Ferrara of Hinesburg made the University of Rhode Island dean’s list for the spring semester.

Cailean Sorce of Hinesburg made the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute dean’s list for the spring semester. Sorce is majoring in mechanical engineering.

Anna Stevens of Charlotte earned a Master of Social Work from the Widener University.

Olivia Kinsel of Hinesburg graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in arts management from the College of Charleston.

Isaac Bergeron of Hinesburg made Husson University’s honors list for the spring semester.

Cole Boffa of Charlotte made the James Madison University dean’s list for the spring semester. He is majoring in industrial design.

Graham Perry Coates-Farley of Hinesburg, a junior majoring in computer engineering, made the dean’s list for the spring semester at Clarkson University.

Hana Couture of Charlotte was awarded a degree during Salve Regina University’s commencement.

Claire Smith of Hinesburg graduated with a Bachelor of Science in biology and health from Grove City College.

Isa Kaplan of Charlotte has been named to Worcester Polytechnic Institute’s spring dean’s list. Kaplan is a majoring in electrical and computer engineering and was part of a student team that recently completed a research project titled “Heating Greenhouses Without External Power.”

Preston Webb from Hinesburg graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in finance with a concentration in capital markets from Bentley University.

Champlain Valley student gets $2,500 scholarship

student Kassidy Jay has been awarded a $2,500 scholarship from the Foundation for Rural Service, the philanthropic arm of the Rural Broadband Association, of which Waitsfield and Champlain Valley Telecom are members. The scholarship program awards one-time scholarships to students from rural communities for their first year of college, university or vocationaltechnical school. Each student is sponsored by a Rural Broadband Association member company, and his year a total of $124,000 was awarded to students across the country.

Champlain

COURTESY PHOTO

Valley Union

Community Notes

Substance abuse summit returns to Essex Junction

The second annual Coming Together substance use addiction summit will be held Friday, Aug. 11, at the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction.

The summit takes place from 10-11:30 a.m., with informational, resource booths and breakout rooms from noon to 4 p.m. Booth and breakout rooms cover the science of addiction, addiction and corrections intersection, recovery family support and more.

The event is open to the public and no registration is required.

Speakers include health commissioner Dr. Mark Levine, Vermont Department of Health; Matthew Prouty, Project Vision; keynote, Maureen Cavanagh, author of the book “If you love me”; Peter Mallary and Jeff Moreau, Vermont Alliance for Recovery Residences; Greg and Dawn Tatro, Jenna’s Promise; and others.

Senior Center hosts blood drive today

The Red Cross holds a blood drive at the Charlotte Senior Center on Thursday, Aug. 3, 2-7 p.m.

Visit redcrossblood.org and enter Charlotte to schedule an appointment.

Shelburne Trinity Church presents a puppet show

On Saturday, Aug. 12, at 2 p.m., Hinesburg puppeteer Peg Jarvis will present a show about Anansi the Spider who, although a beloved folk hero, is a mischievous rascal who plays pranks on his animal friends.

The show is free for all and will be performed in the McClure Room, Shelburne Trinity Church, 5171 Shelburne Road. Children under six should be accompanied by an adult.

Not only does Jarvis direct and perform in the shows but she makes the puppets, prepares and paints the set, designs the costumes and, together with help from her husband Jim, builds her stages. She was 6 years old when she and her mother together learned the ancient art of puppeteering at a School for the Deaf in Bangkok, Thailand.

She also has given many workshops in schools, libraries and churches.

Rokeby Museum holds pie, ice cream social

Having a great day will be as easy as pie at Rokeby Museum’s annual pie and ice cream social, Sunday, Aug. 13, from 1 to 4 p.m.

Yards and yards of homemade pies, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, live music from Bob Recupero and Young Tradition Vermont, raffle baskets, croquet and badminton on the lawn will be part of the day, and historic house and museum exhibitions will be open to the public.

Admission is free. Pie and ice cream is $8 per serving, $2 for ice cream and $1 for beverages. At the end of the event, if any pies are still available, they will be sold for $20.

There will also be a prize raffle. More at rokeby.org.

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, pineapple and oranges and milk.

To order a meal contact Kathleen at agewellstcath@gmail.com or 802-5031107. Deadline to order is Wednesday, Aug. 2.

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 Aug. 9, enjoy the sounds of the Hinesburg Community Band. On Aug. 16, In the Pocket entertains.

August programs at Charlotte Senior Center

The Charlotte Senior Center hosts a variety of special events in August. More information at charlotteseniorcentervt.org.

• Try out a boat, Friday, Aug. 4, noon-2 p.m., Ferrisburgh Town Beach.

The perfect event for those who are

new to paddling and want to learn about different types of kayaks and canoes. Or if you’re an experienced paddler and want to chat with other paddlers and try out other types of boats, that’s covered too. Paddles and life jackets supplied, but bring your own if you have them. Registration required at 802-425-6345. Questions? Call Dean Tuininga at 603-703-5092, or email dean.tuininga@gmail.com.

• Shape-note singing, Sunday, Aug. 6, 1-3 p.m.

Traditional a capella, four-part harmony sung for the joy of singing. Introduction to shape notes and scales is recommended and offered 30 minutes before each first Sunday singing. Contact Kerry Cullinan (kclynxvt@gmail.com) to schedule. No need to register, and it’s free.

• Make and take garden art, Monday, Aug. 7, 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Make a ceramic and glass art flower for your garden. All supplies will be provided. The studio is at 2257 Fuller Mountain Road in North Ferrisburgh. Ages 6 and all the way up—a perfect intergenerational activity with an adult child or grandchild. Cost: $40. Registration required.

• Men’s breakfast, Thursday, Aug. 10, 7-:30 a.m.

On the second Thursday of the month, men gather for breakfast and conversation. The August speaker is Jay Hall Carpenter, who recently moved to Charlotte. He’s a nationally known sculptor who works in stone and bronze. More at jayhallcarpenter. com.

Register by noon on Aug. 8, online or at 802-425-6345. Suggested donation is $6.

• Alzheimer’s caregivers support group,

Thursday, Aug. 10, 5-6 p.m.

Are you caring for someone with Alzheimer’s? Do you know someone who is? This monthly support group is held on the second Thursday of each month. Questions? Contact Susan Cartwright at scartwrightasg@gmail. com. Registration recommended.

• Women’s kayak trip at Waterbury Reservoir, Fridays, Aug. 11 and Aug. 25

Trips for active women who share a love for exploring local lakes, ponds and rivers. Details sent out the week prior. contact Susan Hyde at susanfosterhyde@gmail. com. Online registration required.

• Drawing for those who think they can’t draw, Friday, Aug. 11, 12:30-2 p.m. Fill a fun couple of hours learning that you can draw if you simply look at things differently. Local artist Mickey Davis enjoys bringing out the innate hidden artist in others. She has offered drawing classes for (she thinks) over 20 years, but at 85 says she has trouble recalling what she ate for breakfast. By donation. Registration required.

• Birding expeditions, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 9 a.m.

There are a wide range of birding habitats in Chittenden County. Join avid bird watcher Hank Kaestner and learn to identify the various bird species and habitats in Vermont. Group size is limited to 20 participants. Registration required.

• Recreational paddling trip, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 9:30 p.m.

On Indian Brook Reservoir in Essex, join Dean and Karen Tuininga for some recreational paddling trips. Space is limited so

COURTESY PHOTO

Rokeby Museum holds a pie, ice cream social on Aug. 13.

Melinda White

To register, reserve books or for more information, contact Rachel Matthews at rachel@carpentercarse.org. Masks required indoors.

Hands and needles

Mondays in August, 10 a.m.-noon

Bring whatever project you are working on — quilting, knitting, embroidery, etc. No registration required.

News from Carpenter-Carse Library

Chess club

Thursdays in August, 3:30-4:30 p.m. Players of any age or experience may drop in for a weekly game of skill and wits, hosted by Bruce Raymond. Children under 10 must be accompanied by an adult.

Weekly storytime

Tuesday, Aug. 8, 9:30-10:30 a.m. Stories, songs, rhymes, and crafts.

News from Charlotte Library

115 Ferry Road, Charlotte. 802-4253864. Register at charlottepubliclibrary.org or info@charlottepubliclibrary.org. More information and links can be found on the library website.

ONGOING

Preschool storytime

Tuesdays in August, 10-11 a.m.

Join us at the Charlotte Library for preschool stories, crafts and activities. No registration required. Age 2 and over.

Preschool free play

Wednesdays in August, 10-11 a.m.

Kids explore the sensory table, sorting, playing with blocks, play dough and more. Ages 3 and 4.

Book chat

Wednesdays in August, 3-4 p.m.

Join Margaret Friday on Zoom to discuss new books, old books and books missed.

Garden circle

Wednesdays in August, 4:30-6 p.m.

Join the garden circle of volunteers who will tend the educational gardens around the library this year. Contact Garden Stewards Karen Tuininga and Linda Hamilton at seed@charlottepubliclibrary.org to sign up.

Very Merry Theatre

Friday, Aug. 4, noon-2 p.m.

Join the Very Merry Theatre’s traveling teen tour for a production of “Crazy For You.” Charlotte Town Green. Bring low lawn chairs, blankets, water and sunscreen.

Instrument petting zoo

Tuesday, Aug. 8, 10-11 a.m.

Folklife Vermont and Young Tradition

COMMUNITY NOTES

continued from page 8

sign up early. Questions? Email dean.tuininga@gmail.com. Registration required.

• Walking and gentle hiking group, Thursday, Aug. 17

Enjoy Button Bay State Park. Meet at 9 a.m. in the parking lot at Charlotte Senior Center. Bring sunscreen, bug spray and water. Questions? Contact Penny Burman at 916-753-7279.

Registration required.

Vermont will have a large collection of musical instruments for kids from 1 to 100 to play.

Gaia’s garden group

Mondays, Aug. 14 and 21, 5-6 p.m.

Eco-printing with summer flowers

Wednesday, Aug. 16, 5:30-6:30 p.m. Create colorful bandanas with flowers from the library garden and natural dyeing techniques. Advance registration appreciated. email susanna@charlottepubliclibrary. org.

Mystery book group

Monday, Aug. 21, 10-11 a.m. This month’s pick is “The Nine Tailors” by Dorothy Sayers. Copies available at the circulation desk.

Kindergarten card party

Monday, Aug. 21, 5:30-6:30 p.m. All incoming kindergartners are invited to a party on the porch to receive a Charlotte Library card.

Better together book club

Wednesday, Aug. 23, 7-8:30 p.m.

“Amateur Hour” by Kimberly Harrington. Join this open group that discusses books related to parenthood. Registration encouraged; email susanna@ charlottepubliclibrary.org.

Tomato day on the porch

Friday, Aug. 25, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Ever tried Aunt Ruby’s German Green, Old Lillian (yellow) or Orange Banana Paste Tomatoes?

Come sample these and other heirloom varieties available from the seed library or other local seed savers, and maybe discover a new favorite.

Mid-grade book club

Thursday, Aug. 24, 5:30-6:30 p.m. For students to read and discuss books that are past or current Golden Dome Book Award nominees or winners. Generally, for students in the 9 to 12-year-old range. Contact jen@carpentercarse.org.

ADULTS

Folk Jam with SongFarmers of Hinesburg

Thursday, Aug. 3, 6-8 p.m. Do you play an acoustic instrument or just love to sing along to old time, blues, country and folk music? Join SongFarmers during its monthly gathering and participate in a live music offering. Free and open to the public in the library’s community room. Masks required.

Mystery book group

Wednesday, Aug. 9, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Meet the second Wednesday morning of each month to chat about a mystery book together. August’s pick is The Wife Stalker by Liv Constantine. Contact rachel@ carpentercarse.org to reserve a copy of the book

Circle sing with Jody Albright

Wednesday, Aug. 16, 6:30-7:45 p.m. Circle singing is a community singing and sounding practice, spontaneous and

evolving — like a drum circle for voices. Leaders create songs in the moment — patterns, percussive sounds, rhythms, harmonies, melodies, recognizable words or invented language — and teach the parts orally to the rest of the group. Sign up at the circulation desk or email rachel@carpentercarse.org.

Evening book group

Tuesday, Aug. 29, 7-8 p.m.

This informal group meets virtually on the last Tuesday of each month to chat about a book together. The pick for August is “The 100-Year-Old-Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared” by Jonas Jonasson. Reserve a book at rachel@ carpentercarse.org.

Creative café

Saturday, Aug. 12, 10 a.m.-noon

Adults and teens drop by for snacks, drinks and artistic community. Bring your own writing, art or craft project, find inspiration, or unwind with adult coloring books.

Summer trivia live

Wednesday, July 26, 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Exclusively for the summer, trivia night will move from Zoom to the library courtyard. Pizza, music, head-scratching questions and, of course, prizes for the winning individual or team. The theme is summer and all it entails, so bring your sunglasses and your A-game. Sign up at rachel@ carpentercarse.org.

• Play reading, Thursday, Aug. 24, 2-4:30 p.m.

With Sue Foley and Wally Gates. No tryouts, no rehearsals, no critical reviews. The group meets monthly and is for people who enjoy reading plays aloud or listening to others perform. Each month a play is selected, parts are assigned and scripts are distributed. Contact Sue at ssnfoley@ icloud.com with questions.

PHOTOS BY AL FREY

Cockwise from top:

The Champlain Valley All Stars after losing to St. Johnsbury Sunday.

The St. Johnsbury team celebrates its 8-5 state win in the 10-12 Little League championship final held at Burlington’s Schifilliti Park.

Champlain Valley’s Evan Dore makes the throw from short during the 9 inning loss.

Jamie Nassar reaches for an outside pitch during Champlain Valley’s rain-shortened game against the St. Johnsbury All Stars Saturday afternoon. Play resumed Sunday.

St. Johnsbury beats Champlain in dramatic fashion

COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER

If there ever was a little league baseball game to watch, it was Sunday afternoon’s edge-of-yourseat, winner-take-all matchup that went to the bottom of the ninth — three innings past regulation.

Or perhaps it was Saturday’s game, where the 10-to-12-yearold Little League baseball all-stars from St. Johnsbury and Champlain Valley battled through rain and thunder before a late homer forced the decisive Sunday game.

Or even Friday, when St. Johnsbury won out 6-4 over the Lamoille County All Star team after a back-and-forth game that was decided in the fifth inning.

There was no shortage of dramatics this weekend — where St. Johnsbury went on a three-game winning streak to beat Lamoille and Champlain Valley to advance to the New England Region Tournament in Bristol, Conn. That’s the last stop before the Little League World Series, played Aug. 16-27 in Williamsport, Penn.

It was a heartbreaking loss for the Champlain team, which at more than one point throughout Sunday’s game built those kind of dramatic comebacks that only baseball can produce.

“It was an emotional time for all of us,” Champlain head coach Mike Niedbur said. “I told them to try not to hang their heads and how proud we were of them.”

Lamoille v. St. Johnsbury

St. Johnsbury’s weekend run toward the Little League World Series began on Friday, where a close matchup with the Lamoille all-stars made for a great game.

The Lamoille team got on the board early when leadoff batter Stevie Barnes smacked a solo home run to left field for the first play of the game.

The scoring didn’t stop there. St. Johnsbury responded in the bottom of the first after Lamoille walked in a runner. Then, a single by Owen Ruane drove in a run to give Lamoille a 2-1 lead in the top of the 2nd inning.

Landon Mosier tied the game for St. Johnsbury at 2-2 after driving in a run but Lamoille then retook the lead in the 3rd inning when Stevie Barnes hit a hard ground ball to first, scoring Conner Mayo.

Both teams were tied 4-4 entering the fifth inning when St. Johnsbury pulled ahead. Maddox Stacey’s two-run homer to center field put the team up 6-4 in the bottom of the fifth. Tayton Goodwin then struck out three batters to close it out.

“While the loss really stings, they are a great group of boys and

tremendous ballplayers and should be proud of what they accomplished together,” Rick Stram, Lamoille’s head coach, said. “It has been a privilege and great pleasure to coach them during this journey and we have become a family. While our journey isn’t continuing as we had hoped it would, we are very proud of them as people and as ballplayers, and of how hard they worked to get to this point.”

Champlain v. St. Johnsbury

Saturday’s game at Schifilliti Field in Burlington had hardly begun when the rain came, and it continued throughout the afternoon. Despite the weather, Evan Dore, of Charlotte, pitched well — striking out 10 batters through five innings.

Dore ran into a bit of trouble in the fourth, hitting a batter and walking two to load the bases with two outs before striking out the final batter of the inning.

The Champlain team’s offense had some early trouble against St. Johnsbury’s pitcher, Tayton Goodwin, who kept the team at bay through the early innings with his arsenal of off-speed pitches.

That didn’t last very long, however. Champlain’s offense came alive in the third when Tyler Niedbur of Hinesburg doubled to center, scoring Holden Rodliff to give the team the lead.

As the rain grew heavier, St. Johnsbury responded in the fifth when Caleb Decker launched a two-run homer to give the team

the lead, 2-1.

By then, the heavy rain was accompanied by thunder and lightning, forcing officials to call the game for St. Johnsbury — setting up for some Sunday dramatics.

Scoring in this game started right away, with St. Johnsbury driving in three runs in the first two innings before Champlain responded in the second, putting up two runs off the bats of Pete Stephen of Hinesburg and Braden Cook of Charlotte.

Champlain was backed into a corner in the bottom of the sixth, with two outs and Carl Giangregorio of Charlotte on first base when Dore ripped a double to center

field —missing a game-winning home run by mere feet but scoring Giangregorio on a game-tying double, with the Champlain crowd erupting in the bleachers.

Both teams dueled through the seventh and eighth innings. St. Johnsbury would add a run off the bat of Caleb Decker, but the Champlain team responded in the bottom half, scoring two runs from a costly error.

But a three-run homer in the top of the ninth by St. Johnsbury’s Maddox Stacey dealt an insurmountable lead for the team. With runners on in the bottom of the ninth, a double play clinched the win for St. Johnsbury, giving the

team its first Vermont state title since 1985.

The team will now face Massachusetts in the regional tournament on Saturday, Aug. 5 — televised on ESPN+.

After the loss, Niedbur said the players “weren’t as sad about the loss as we were about the fact that this journey and our time together had come to an end.”

“We reminded them about how much we loved them, how much fun we had over the past couple of months working together, watching them grow as baseball players, but, most importantly, the friendships they forged that will last a lifetime.”

PHOTOS BY AL FREY

Above: St. Johnsbury’s Barrett Somers slides safely into third as Champlain Valley’s Isaac Russell tries to play the ball during a 9 inning, 8-5 state championship win over the Champlain Valley All Stars in the 10-12 Little League final held at Burlington’s Schifilliti Park Sunday. Below: Braden Cook pitches in relief of Reid McAvey.

OUTDOORS

Reimagining forest management takes holistic vision Into the Woods

Ethan Tapper

When I walk in the woods with people, I often invite them to reimagine the forest. Whether you are a forester or a forest lover, we all tend to focus on trees. While there is no question that trees are a vital component of forests, they aren’t everything. Reimagining forests means broadening our definition of the forest from “a bunch of trees” to a dynamic and diverse community of trees, plants, animals, insects, fungi and more.

When we allow ourselves to reimagine the forest, we can see that the way that the trees in a forest are growing is as vital as the trees themselves. We can see the importance of the composition (different species of trees) and structure (different sizes and ages of trees) of the trees in the forest, the importance of having some big trees (including big trees that are declining, dying, hollow and full of cavities), dead-standing trees (snags), lots of dead wood on the forest floor and healthy soils.

Each of these conditions is vital to the function of the forest community, its resilience and adaptability, the natural processes that make it work and the way that it changes over time. Each is a condition to which the tens of thousands of species that comprise the reimagined forest have adapted to for millennia, and each is underrepresented in our modern forests.

As we reimagine what forests are, we also need to reimagine what it means to take care of them. Reimagining forest management means understanding that the job as a forester is to care for the reimagined forest in its entirety — not just its trees. My success as a forester should be measured not by my ability to keep every tree in the forest alive, but by my ability to support and enrich the forest community.

While forest management includes many different tools and techniques, one of the most powerful ways to help the reimagined forest recover from the wounds of the past, endure the challenges of the present and move into an uncertain future is through the thoughtful and strategic cutting of trees.

If we think of forests as “a bunch of trees,” the cutting of the tree is a loss. If we reimagine forests, we can see that the cutting of a tree — as part of a holistic forest management approach — can be as profound a gift to the forest as its life. Following forest management, gaps in the forest’s canopy will become foraging habitat for birds and bats; the understory will bloom with a diverse mix of plants, shrubs and young trees; the trees and treetops on the forest floor will become rich communities of mosses, invertebrates and fungi to benefit soil hydrology and help build richer soils.

In the reimagined forest, the death of trees can help young forests become more like old growth forests, can help create habitat for species which are declining and under threat, and can help us actively respond to the many threats that our forests face.

If we reimagine forest management as a

means to care for this reimagined forest — as it is often applied in Vermont today — the fact that forest management can be commercial is one of its greatest assets and the mills, markets, foresters, loggers and truckers that make commercial forest management possible are vital to forests’ biodiversity, integrity and resilience.

Forest management is the only form of ecosystem restoration that can pay for itself and can even generate income that landowners can use to pay property taxes and other

costs associated with keeping forests intact and healthy. As such, it can be applied on a much larger scale than any other form of restoration. In a world of non-local, non-renewable resources that cause harm to peoples and ecosystems across the globe, forest management is also the only form of ecosystem restoration that generates local, renewable resources.

Reimagining forests and forest management means forming a more holistic and expansive vision of what forests are and what

it means to truly care for them. Doing what is necessary to protect forests, and all their pieces and parts, will often require us to make compromises as bittersweet as cutting a tree to enrich a reimagined forest.

Ethan Tapper is the Chittenden County forester for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. See what he’s been up to, check out his YouTube channel, sign up for his eNews at linktr.ee/chittendencountyforester.

PHOTO BY GARY STURGIS

A yellow warbler.

PETITION

continued from page 1

what our particular process is for choosing a road commissioner.”

Lane Morrison, a resident and member of the group spearheading the petition, explained that they in no way want to jeopardize Lewis’ role within the town. In addition to holding the title of road commissioner, Lewis also supplies all the snowplows and other equipment used to maintain Charlotte’s roads.

With no retirement in sight, Lewis told The Citizen he has no opinion one way or another over the decision to switch to a town manager form of government.

“I’ve always gotten along good with any selectmen. I’m sure I’ll be able to get along fine with whoever her or she is next,” he said.

Petitioners have instead decided to revise their original petition for a town manager to include the request for a new charter for the town.

“Junior Lewis is the most popular person in Charlotte, he always gets the most votes,” Morrison said. “We have a revised petition that’s been carefully prepared that requests a town manager and a charter for the town to allow the position of road commissioner to be elected.”

The Catch 22 is to ensure that

HINESBURG

continued from page 1

opportunity,” she said.

Gordon is spearheading the newly formed Town Common Committee, created by the selectboard in July to add some people power to moving the idea past its conceptual phase. The selectboard appointed her to the committee and is still in the process of interviewing other candidates.

“Once we have some additional brain power and people power on board in terms of a committee, I think we can walk through the steps that we know are necessary a little more deliberately and with a little more energy and speed,” Alex Weinhagen, the town’s planning and zoning director, said.

Hinesburg’s village area off Route 116 is set to see a boom in housing development in the coming years with more than 400 units of residential housing in the queue.

With a population of just under 5,000, the town hopes to embrace its growth by creating a gathering space with a strong sense of place, akin to what towns like Bristol or Vergennes have in their town centers.

Aside from the seasonally

the 220 people who signed the original petition will sign the new one, but the petition only needs 180 signatures to force a vote.

“We have a letter prepared to go out plus the new petition,” Morrison said. “For those that we have emails, we’re going to use electronic means and ask them to mail back a paper copy. Those who don’t have emails, we’re going to do snail mail, and we’re going to have an enclosed envelope. We’re hoping to get those back in the next 10 days or so.”

To be adopted, a charter or a charter amendment must be voted by Australian ballot, which would then need to be approved by the Legislature.

“My committee in the Statehouse is government operations and military affairs, and we have jurisdiction over charter changes,” Evans said. “We do them on a regular basis. A lot of time is spent on these. Sometimes they’re really quick and easy and sometimes they’re kind of long and complicated.”

“We could craft the bill ahead of time before the session starts, and then when the session starts in January it would come in front of my committee,” she said. Once approved by the House, it would then move to the Senate

SALES EXECUTIVE

for approval, but Evans said the timeframe remains relatively uncertain.

“I obviously have no control over the Senate committee. They might have a million other things they’re trying to do too,” she said. 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 its Aug.14 meeting. Regardless, petitioners have notified the selectboard that they plan to drop the petition the day after the meeting, should all the votes come in on time.

“The town may have hired a person for the town administrator but with this petition out there, the candidate knows there’s a possibility that job could become a town manager,” Morrison said.

Since the beginning, the selectboard has been open with its disfavor for how the topic arose with the ad-hoc group of petitioners and members have fiercely fought to keep control of the situation.

“The selectboard is opposed to it, they’re going to vote on the 14th whether they support it or not. We expect they’re going to say no and then hopefully we will be prepared to release our petition the next day,” Morrison said.

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CHARLOTTE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOARD

Will hold a public hearing at Town Hall, 159 Ferry Rd., Charlotte, VT on the following application during its regular meeting of August 23, 2023:

7:30 PM 23-041-SDA Hergenrother – Pave a driveway at 3572 Lake Rd.

For more information, contact the Planning & Zoning Office at 802.425.3533 ext. 208, or by email at: pza@townofcharlotte.com.

SHELBURNE

erected ice rink, and a pop-up event in 2019 that attracted some 200 community members, the 2.5-acre plot of grass is virtually unused.

Two conceptual designs — one in 2011 and another in 2013 — were previously prepared, according to a town memo, but they lacked community input and did not generate much interest. But the town has continued to grow, and it is “thinking about how to improve the space and foster community use has evolved.”

A conceptual design, commissioned by a seven-person design committee and presented to the town in August 2022 by landscape architects at Dubois & King, features an array of possible improvements that could be made to the space, which will, of course, cost money.

The town is still working out how to pay for a state-mandated wastewater treatment facility that just weeks ago came in at $15 million.

Weinhagen — along with Gordon, Lenore Budd, Alyssa Lasher, Kate Webster, Nicolina Baldwin and Andrea Morgante — was part of the seven-member

design committee and that the newly formed group will need to focus on grant writing and fundraising.

“It’s not as simple as just taking that design and fundraising and making it happen,” Weinhagen said. “Additional planning decisions will have to be made, like which elements can we actually afford. If we’re going to have certain structures — like we’ve talked a lot about a pavilion of sorts — there would need to be some additional design work. Having a crew of volunteers to shepherd that is important.”

Officials involved in the planning offered a rough timeline of five to seven years for the Town Common’s completion.

The town currently has a capital budget item for improvements specifically for this property — referred to in the budget as “Lot 1.” Actual improvements will be decided on and implemented in phases, according to town officials.

“We really do need a group of people who will help make it happen,” Weinhagen said. “But it’s not like we have enough money to just throw at it and make it all happen next summer.”

Assistant to the Town Manager

Join a dedicated team and contribute to the great quality of life in 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.

zen center yard sale

RABIES BAIT

continued from page 2

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

saliva. If left untreated, rabies is almost al ways fatal in humans and animals. However, treatment with the rabies vaccine is nearly 100 percent effective when given soon after

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

We can help you discover, learn about and sell:

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

RABIES BAIT

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

Porches

Outdoor Structures

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www.pleasantvalleyvt.com

PLEASANT VALLEY, INC.

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Showroom at 2997 Shelburne Rd • Shelburne Open Wed-Sat, with walk-ins to sell every Thursday. www.bittnerantiques.com

According to wildlife officials, rabid animals often show a change in their nor mal behavior, but you cannot tell whether an animal has rabies simply by looking at it. People should not touch or pick up wild

saliva. If left untreated, rabies is almost al ways 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.

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

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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.

SHELBURNE DAY

10 Flavors of Milkshakes Snack Bar • Creamee Window • Hard Ice Cream Propane

9am-6pm • Closed Sun.

802-425-2180

continued from page 4 face burne-Hinesburg head the Golf depending land. Rotary’s

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

Jackon Hill Road • Charlotte (at Spear and Hinesburg-Charlotte Rd)

continued from page 4 face burne-Hinesburg head the Golf depending land. Rotary’s

SHELBURNE DAY

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

SERVICEDIRECTORY

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

Spring Cleanup & Mulch

Roofing

Lawn Maintenance

Siding

Renovations

Landscape Design

Stonework & Planting

Mini Excavation

Painting Decks

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802-343-4820

www.pleasantvalleyvt.com

ARIES

March 21 - April 20

Aries, someone in your life says they’re making changes, but when you look closely it seems like much of the same. A little encouragement on your part can help this person along.

TAURUS

April 21 - May 21

Tread lightly if you broach a dif cult conversation with someone close to you, Taurus. These are tricky waters you are navigating and you want to maintain the relationship.

GEMINI

May 22 - June 21

Problems may seem to you to be bigger than they really are, Gemini. Step back, take a few breaths and then look at things from another perspective. Ask for a second opinion as well.

CANCER

June 22 - July 22

Look for the double meanings in conversations you’re having with coworkers this week, Cancer. They could be trying to tell you something, so read between the lines.

LEO

July 23 - Aug. 23

Leo, you are typically good at reading others’ moods, so use that skill this week when placed in a sensitive situation. It will help guide you on what to say and what to keep quiet for now.

VIRGO

Aug. 24 - Sept. 22

There is a lot of socializing going on in your life right now, Virgo. Enjoy the excitement while it lasts and maximize all of the events you can attend. Things may start to slow in a few weeks.

LIBRA

Sept. 23 - Oct. 23

It’s probably best to keep your head down for the next few days and just go about your normal routine, Libra. Don’t get pulled into anyone’s drama or offer your take on things.

SCORPIO

Oct. 24 - Nov. 22

Scorpio, it is time to be more proactive about getting what you want. Make a list of the things that most interest you right now, and then devise a plan to make things happen.

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

Figure out which stance you want to take right now, Sagittarius. Are you seeing the glass half full or half empty? Perception can affect your daily life in many ways.

CAPRICORN

Dec. 22 - Jan. 20

Good news is on the way, Capricorn. This will leave you oating on air for some time afterwards. Surround yourself with the people you love this week so that they can share the good fortune.

AQUARIUS

Jan. 21 - Feb. 18

There is a lot that you have been juggling for some time, Aquarius. Unless you take a break or ask for help, one of those balls are going to fall and that could have a domino effect.

PISCES

Feb. 19 - March 20

Pisces, you have every right to express your opinions. Others will just have to accept what you say even if they don’t agree with it.

CLUES ACROSS

1. Indicates tire pressure

4. Request

7. Clairvoyance

10. 007’s creator

11. Adult male

12. Scandinavian god of battle

13. Cloths spread on a cof n

15. Breeze through

16. Lady sh genus

19. It’s good to take them

21. Noble-governed territory

23. Members of U.S. Navy

24. Card game resembling rummy

25. Affected by injury

26. Member of a Semitic people

27. Left 30. Woman’s cloak

34. S. American plant 35. Prohibit

36. Offense

41. Dish soap brand

45. Ottoman military commanders

46. Ancient Greek City

47. Makes unhappy

50. Discuss again

54. Medical instrument

55. Promote

56. A beloved carb

57. Tag the base runner to get him out

59. Prehistoric people

60. Large African antelope

61. Vehicle

62. Georgia rockers

63. Scienti c instrument (abbr.)

64. A major division of geological time

65. Attempt

CLUES DOWN

1. Plant of the nettle family

2. Fit to be sold

3. Rather

4. Collected

5. A baglike structure in a plant or animal

6. Patella

7. Ageless

8. Lists of course requirements

9. Pokes at

13. TV network

14. They __

17. Cooking hardware

18. U.S. Army title

ANSWERS

20. Iron-containing compound

22. Swiss river (alt. spelling)

27. Former French coin

28. Electronic countermeasures

29. Taxi

31. Helps little rms

32. Woeful

33. Midway between northeast and east 37. Glowing

38. Tasks which should be done

39. An informal body of friends 40. Intrinsic nature 41. Neural structures 42. Brews 43. Where ships unload cargo 44. Singer 47. Sino-Soviet block (abbr.) 48. Southwest Scotland town 49. Most worthless parts 51. Viscous 52. Put to work 53. Old world, new 58. Swiss river

Community justice centers empowered to help victims of violence

GRACE SHERWOOD COMMUNITY NEWS SERVICE

With the Legislature’s passage of Act 11 last session, survivors of sexual and domestic violence can now take matters to a nearby community justice center.

Before the new law, those cases would have only been allowed to go through the traditional criminal justice system. In Vermont, sexual and domestic violence cases were the only cases outlawed from being referred to a community justice center. Act 11 updates the law governing the centers to give survivors an alternative to lengthy, taxing trials — or the chance to find closure by talking with the person who has harmed them.

Stakeholders say it’ll take about a year before there’s a process in place to make that happen, though.

A community justice center is a place where victims can meet with the person who committed a crime against them after being referred by prosecutors, the court or other authorities. The victim has the opportunity to explain how the crime affected them and can then request action from the offender with the aim of mending the harm and preventing further offenses. Rather than the state punishing the perpetrator, the process allows the victim to advocate for what they believe will help them most.

“Agencies were finding folks didn’t want to go through the court system — they just wanted folks to stop the abuser or

take accountability for it,” said Rep. Karen Dolan, D-Essex Junction, lead sponsor of the legislation.

Survivors can go through the court system and take part in this kind of peacemaking process, called restorative justice, broadly. But “that conversation doesn’t always happen in court,” Dolan said. “That can happen now that this law is in effect.”

There are 17 centers across the state, in every county but two, though those missing counties are served by centers in neighboring ones.

The biggest piece of this legislation is giving victims a choice; the restorative justice method is there if they want to use it. A case can be taken to a community justice center at any point in time: instead of a criminal court case, along with a criminal court case or even years after a crime has been committed, Dolan said.

Act 11 says both parties must agree to bring it to a community justice center and commit to the restorative method.

“Restorative justice isn’t restorative if it’s mandatory, if it’s being forced,” Dolan said. If one of the parties declines to participate, a community justice center can send a referred case back to the criminal system. Trying to take the restorative route with an uncooperative offender “causes more harm and trauma for the victim,” Dolan said.

Centers are not yet taking referrals for sexual and domestic violence cases. The new statute requires each of the state’s centers to draft and agree to a memorandum of under-

standing with a local member of the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence. Each may differ county to county, and the entire process is being overseen by the Vermont Attorney General’s office.

The agreements aim to make clear to everyone involved what exactly the given community justice center can do. The agreements must include protocols to ensure survivors’ safety, train staff and establish confidentiality standards, among other requirements.

“The idea was it’ll probably take about a year for these MOUs to take place — for the attorney general’s office to get set up to be this central oversight agency, for relationship building and for training of staff and volunteers and for fundraising,” Rachel Jolly, director of the Burlington Community Justice Center, said.

Jolly said step one will be finding the money. “Right now, we don’t have any money that is backing this concept even though it’s allowable because of Act 11,” she said.

Erin Jacobsen, assistant attorney general and co-director of the state office’s community justice division, said the legislation

came with no appropriations. Until legislators decide to fund the work, Jacobsen said, leaders will look to federal grants from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs.

Jacobsen said her office supported Act 11 (then H.41) from the start.

“There’s a lot of research now about how victims express the difference between the traditional criminal justice approach and when they had a restorative option and how the restorative option just feels so much more like justice,” Jacobsen said. “We’re very interested in seeing how this shifts things in terms of helping people who are harming others stop harming people, helping people understand what the harm was, how to stop that kind of behavior and also to get the resources they need so they can do that.”

Learn more about the South Burlington Community Justice Center at bit. ly/3QkzAd8.

Grace Sherwood is a reporter with the Community News Service, a program in which University of Vermont students work with professional editors to provide content for local news outlets at no cost.

“There’s a lot of research now about how victims express the difference between the traditional criminal justice approach and when they had a restorative option.”

— Erin Jacobsen