Hu nger Mou nt a i n Co - op's Democrat ic G over nance Ero d i ng?
• Page 12
Photo by Abigail Feldman
health & wellness
How Fit is Fitness in Montpelier?
IN THIS ISSUE:
I
t’s 6 pm at Planet Fitness in Berlin, and the blood is pumping.
Atop, inside, and underneath the more than 140 bright purple
Pg. 4 Shooting at MHS and yellow cardio and weight machines, arranged in military
rows, dozens of people are sweating out the calories of the holidays,
creating a sense of machinery in motion akin to a factory assembly
Pg. 7 Jump in Home Prices line, with treadmills standing in for conveyor belts.
Clearly, the initial success of Planet Fitness is significant, no doubt
to the chagrin—if not outright fear—of fellow Berlin gym First
Pg. 9 Spa Therapies in Fitness and Barre’s Snap Fitness. Whether the burst of activity
at Planet Fitness is long lasting or merely represents the thrill of a
new toy, the remorse of holiday consumption, or the fresh (and soon
Pg. 14 New Show at abandoned) resolutions of a new year, remains to be seen. However,
it inevitably raises several questions for residents of downtown
The Front Gallery Montpelier: Why is there still no gym in Montpelier more than
a year after the closure of the local branch of First in Fitness? Is a
gym sustainable in downtown Montpelier? Did Planet Fitness even
consider locating in Montpelier?
What Sustains a Gym
Peeking behind the business curtain is never easy when dealing
CAR-RT SORT
Permit NO. 123
Montpelier, VT
PRSRT STD
U.S. Postage
with corporations as large as Planet Fitness, which operates in more
PAID
than 1,400 locations across the country and claims annual revenues
topping a hundred million dollars. The owners of the Berlin Mall
where the gym is located, Heidenberg Properties, did not respond
to inquiries from The Bridge. But Justin Alleman, Senior Regional
Operations Manager of Planet Fitness, said, “When choosing a
location, we look at several factors, such as demographics, available
real estate, and build-out costs. We are very excited to have opened
a location in Berlin and appreciate the warm welcome that we have
received.”
The question of the sustainability of a gym in Montpelier remains
open and unresolved since the loss of the First in Fitness downtown
branch. It is still a sore spot for many and a source of ongoing debate
over the reasons for its departure. As city council member, Dona
Bate, noted, “We lost the facility we had. We let First in Fitness go
out of town with hardly a blink. I was very sad.”
Montpelier, VT 05601
Costs and Values of Membership
Any hope the proposed Hampton Inn & Suites project in downtown
P.O. Box 1143
Montpelier could offer some relief, as it will include a fitness center
The Bridge
and a pool, were dashed in a phone call with Fred Bashara, who noted
We're online! montpelierbridge.com or vtbridge.com
January 18–January 31, 2018
Photo by Michael Jermyn
by Mike Dunphy
that only hotel guests would get access.
Even if allowed, however, it’s reasonable to expect the membership
cost would be high, or at least much higher than the $10 base rate
Planet Fitness charges. Compare that with the $90-per-month rate
at First in Fitness, the $50 rate at Snap, and the $100-plus rates
at downtown yoga and fitness studios, it’s easy to understand the
attraction and excitement generated by Planet Fitness, regardless of
the fact that it lacks the pool, sauna, and racquetball courts of First
in Fitness, the group classes of Snap, or even the assistance of on-site
professional trainers. Indeed, once you get past the welcome desk at
Planet Fitness, there’s basically nobody on the floor to help members
manage the machines or adopt proper form (based on my five visits).
The Dream of a New Gym
Nonetheless, the dream of a downtown gym persists, and groups
like Jump and Splash, “a team of citizen volunteers seeking to fill
recreational gaps, foster community togetherness, and enhance the
quality of life for Montpelier,” have been diligently working toward
the goal of “launching an indoor recreational facility that will be a
crossroads for health and fitness for users of all ages and abilities,
providing flexible and diverse programming that will be accessible,
affordable, and sustainable.”
That’s a tall order indeed that engenders no small amount of debate
and conjecture over what the final product should look like, much
less how to get us there. “I do think it’s really critical to ask why are
things successful or not successful, and what is the right size and
what can sustain it,” says Gianna Petito, a member of Jump and
Splash, “What would the community be willing to support? What
is the right scale? What is the possible watershed of people who will
come to use it?”
Another part of the debate is over the public and private nature of
the business. “I would still like to see, as the ideas progress, a private/
public partnership, and that any facility that we look toward in the
future is viewed as a regional service,” says Dona Bate. “It’s a huge
financial burden for Montpelier to try to undertake on its own.”
Jump and Splash prefers a more community-based model but
understands the need for private business to at least assist. “We want
a community facility,” Petito explains, “We want something the
community has ownership over, so it’s not a private business. But I
Continued on Page 11
PAG E 2 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE

Cody Chevrolet Congratulates The Bridge

On Over 20 Years of Business!
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 3

HEARD ON THE STREET

Beau Loses its Bar and Bartender
Montpelier may have lost its best cocktail mixer, as Kate Wise has ended her tenure at Beau,
and the bar will not continue. However, her prodigious skills and experience will still be on tap
for Vermonters near and far through her new venture, Wise Consulting, LLC.
Wise will be working with Vermont bars and restaurants to train their staff in service and
product knowledge, as well as providing cocktail, wine, and beer menu services to help make
their programs both delicious and profitable. She will also offer cocktail and spirit classes and
seminars to anyone who wants to learn about spirits and how to use them.
As always, Wise is available for private parties and events. Reach her at betterthanbacchus@
gmail.com
Urgent call for blood and platelet donations during
National Blood Donor Month
This January, National Blood Donor Month, the American Red Cross has an urgent need for
blood and platelet donors of all blood types to make an appointment to give now and help
address a winter blood donation shortage.
Severe winter weather has had a tremendous impact on blood donations already this year, with
more than 150 blood drives forced to cancel causing over 5,500 blood and platelet donations
to go uncollected. This is in addition to seasonal illnesses, such as the flu, and hectic holiday
schedules collectively contributing to more than 28,000 fewer donations than what was needed
in November and December.
“Even temporary disruptions to blood and platelet donations can diminish the availability for
hospital patients,” said Mary Brant, external communications manager of the Northern New
England Red Cross Blood Services Region. “It’s the blood on the shelves that helps save lives
in an emergency, and that’s why we’re asking eligible individuals to make an appointment to
give blood or platelets today.”
Tulsi Tea Room Launches Take-Home Meal Service
Those missing the sit-down service at Tulsi Tea room can still enjoy the culinary talents of
its owner Solenne Thompson, who, as of two weeks ago, is now fully dedicating her time
and energy to the take-home meal service. It’s just part of her overall mission to help people
achieve greater health through nutrition, further exemplified by her work as an LPN at Central
Vermont Home Health and Hospice.
“Part of the reason I went into nursing,” she explains, “is that I am very interested in
preventative health, and I think that food and nutrition contribute a lot to that to a great extent.
In that way they overlap.”
In this case, they are also delicious, drawing on Thompson’s largely self-taught culinary skills
that lean heavily on Indian cuisine, noted for being both healthy and vegetarian. The health
content is further supported with local sourcing when possible, particularly from Black River
Produce, based in North Springfield, Vermont.
Each week, a menu is sent out to subscribers of the service (sign up tulsitearoom.com), who
then select the meal and amount, from a pint to a half-gallon each. Examples of dishes include
delicata squash and black bean curry, red quinoa with sautéed shiitake mushrooms, and black
dal seasoned with smoky lapsang souchong tea.
Customers then pick up the food, which comes in glass jars, on Saturdays.
Because dishes are often customizable, they are all the more appealing for those with dietary
restrictions and medical ailments, from thyroid and gluten issues to cancer. Thompson is
particularly interested in developing a larger component down the road for postpartum.
However, too much success at the take-home service may pose problems. “The model is not
for growth; it’s for maintenance,” she explains.
No doubt her many happy subscribers (including this managing editor) hope she can maintain
for some time to come.

While all blood types are urgently needed, there is a more critical need for the following blood
and donation types right now: Correction
• Platelets: The clotting portion of blood primarily given to cancer patients during treatment
and is always in great demand. In the December 21 issue of The Bridge, we incorrectly listed Birchgrove Baking as
“Birchgrove Bakery.” We also noted it as a “new” business in Montpelier, which is
• Type O negative: The blood type that can be transfused to almost everyone and is what incorrect. Birchgrove Baking was established in 2008. We apologize for these errors.
doctors reach for in trauma situations.
• Type B negative: The blood type that can be transfused to type B Rh-positive and negative
patients.
• Type AB: The plasma type that can be transfused to almost everyone and can be donated
Advertise in the NEXT ISSUE:
Valentine's Day
through a platelet or plasma donation, where available, or during a regular blood donation.
How to help: Eligible donors can find a blood or platelet donation opportunity and schedule
an appointment to donate by using the free Blood Donor App, visiting redcrossblood.org or
calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767). Donation appointments and completion of
a RapidPass are encouraged to help speed up the donation process. RapidPass lets donors
complete the pre-donation reading and answer the health history questionnaire online, on the In Circulation Feb. 1–14
day of their donation, by visiting redcrossblood.org/rapidpass from the convenience of a mobile
device or computer, or through the Blood Donor App. ALL AD MATERIALS AND AD SPACE
City Seeks Planning Commission Candidates RESERVATIONS DUE FRIDAY, JANUARY 26.
Two long-time members of the Planning Commission, Jon Anderson and Tina Ruth, have For more information about advertising deadlines,
resigned. The commission recently wrapped up its work on re-adopting the existing master rates and the design of your ad, contact one of our
plan and adopting new zoning regulations. Both were approved by the city council in early
January, with some changes. The commission will now turn to a number of other tasks before
representatives:
it, including working on a new master plan. Rick McMahan: 249-8666
The city council is seeking individuals interested in filling the remainder of the two two-year rick@montpelierbridge.com
terms. The terms expire in October 2019. Interested candidates should submit a letter of
interest and a brief resume by noon on February 5 to the City Manager’s office or by e-mail
to jgranfield@montpelier-vt.org. Appointments will be made at the Council’s February 14
Michael Jermyn: 223-5112 ext.11
meeting; applicants are encouraged to attend. If you have questions, call the planning office michael@montpelierbridge.com
at 223-9506.

Nature Watch
Support The Bridge
by Nona Estrin Become a Community Contributor!
Name______________________________________________________
Let in the Fresh Air Address_____________________________________________________

W
City____________________________________ State_____Zip__________
ith each successive
thaw, the snow pack Email_________________________________
slumps into gullies as All community contributions, whatever
water runs off the land. Many ❑ $25 ❑ $50* ❑ $100 ❑ $150
suits your budget, will be welcomed.
small creatures now begin their ❑ $200 ❑ $250 ❑ Other $________
life cycle. Snow in the woods was
peppered with snow fleas the last *Contributions of $50 or more are eligible to receive a one-year subscription.
thaw, and there will be more. Please mark the box if you have contributed $50 or more and would like The
Even tinier, influenza and other Bridge delivered to you. oYES, Send me every issue of The Bridge for one year!
microbes are moving through
our schools and workplaces. The Friends of The Bridge will be periodically acknowledged in future issues of
wisdom of the ancestors is still The Bridge. ❑ I wish to remain anonymous
good: drink lots of fluids and Send this form and your check to:
open the windows each day to let The Bridge, P.O. Box 1143, Montpelier, VT 05601 Thank
in the fresh air. Simple measures
that still work! Watercolor by Nona Estrin Donations may also be made online at montpelierbridge.com You!
PAG E 4 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE

Police Shoot and Kill Armed Man at MHS by Ivan Shadis

P olice shot and killed an armed man on the grounds of

Montpelier High School Tuesday morning.
The man is reported to have robbed the Vermont State
Employees Credit Union at 9:30 am Tuesday before fleeing
across the street onto the grounds of the school, where he
was cornered by police. State and local police from nearby
communities were called in to surround the grounds while the
school itself went into lockdown.
A standoff lasting just over an hour ended at 11:02 am, when
state police opened fire on the man from across the school’s
athletic field. Video of the shooting taken by WCAX shows
the man holding a firearm at his side, which turned out to be
a BB gun, before being shot by state police.
Nine officers opened fire on the man after he made threatening
and suicidal statements and refused to surrender the handgun,
according to a statement released by the Vermont State Police.
Later identified as Nathan Giffin, 32, of Essex, he was
transported to the Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin,
where he was pronounced dead. No officers, faculty, or
students were hurt according to Vermont State Police.
Giffin attended Montpelier High School as a student in the
early 2000's. His mother, Theresa Giffin, has worked as an
educator at Union Elementary School.
Court records on Nathan Giffin show a history of burglaries
and robberies, including another bank robbery, stretching
back more than a decade. Already on furlough for burglary,
Giffin robbed, at gunpoint, the Randolph National Bank in
Williamstown on Aug. 25, 2010, for which he served two
years in federal prison. As a parolee Giffin burglarized
Positive Pie in Montpelier in 2014 for which he was sentenced
to two more years in prison. Giffin was arrested as recently
as Christmas Day for attempted burglaries at Walmart and
Toys R Us in Williston, according to the Williston Police
Department. Giffin was scheduled to appear before the
Superior Court in Burlington on Jan. 18 to answer for the
two burglary charges.
State police are investigating the killing as an officer-involved
shooting, according to Colonel Matthew Birmingham of the
Vermont State Police. An investigation into the bank robbery
being conducted by state and local police is also ongoing, said
Birmingham.
Police first notified school officials of a suspected armed Washington County Sheriff's Department Officer guards high
robber fortified in the school’s outdoor bleachers at 9:45 school during Tuesday's standoff. Photo by Ivan Shadis
am, according to Montpelier School District Superintendent
Brian Ricca. The school was then put into lockdown, which Department officers closed off the driveway to the school,
lasted throughout the standoff and was lifted shortly before turning away reporters, parents, and even a student driver
noon. Ricca said he was able to alert parents to the lockdown returning from a lesson. “The doors are locked,” deputies
through the school’s electronic notification system at 10:30 were overheard telling worried parents through rolled down
am. windows before asking them to move along. Officers wearing
balaclavas and holding assault rifles were visible patrolling
One mother, Milan Graves, arrived on the scene after being
the drive in front of the school shortly before the killing shots
tipped off by her brother, who overheard police chatter on a
rang out.
CB radio. Her son, a senior, was locked in the school without
a phone. “He’s probably the only child who doesn’t have a Montpelier Police Chief Anthony Facos confirmed at a press
cellphone,” said Graves, who added that the last time there conference Tuesday afternoon that the man had been shot and
was a lockdown at the school she only learned about it when killed. “There was a shooting involving law enforcement, and
students posted selfies of themselves huddled in classrooms the suspect is deceased,” said Facos.
to Facebook. Facos said he was not then able to offer further details of the
Throughout the standoff Washington County Sheriff’s shooting, as both the investigation into the shooting and the
bank robbery are ongoing.

After the Fire, Montpelier Rallies by Mike Dunphy

A
t first, when Hannah Bean smelled
burning at her two-level apartment
at 197 Main Street on the morning
of January 2, she ran upstairs to check if
she’d inadvertently left the space heater on. It
wasn’t. Next, she checked to see if any toys of
her 21-month-old daughter, Greta, had been
left too close to the baseboards. They weren’t.
“Then I starting seeing smoke coming up
from the floorboards. Then the alarms went
off,” she recalls. “I just grabbed Greta and ran
out the door.”
Indeed, it had been a space heater that sparked
the fire, but in the basement of the eight-unit
building, where a maintenance person was
attempting to thaw frozen pipes. Thankfully,
quickly reacting fire crews managed to put
out the flames, but not before serious damage
was inflicted on several of the apartments,
some of which were a total loss, or nearly so.
“Our apartment got the brunt of it,” Bean
recalls. “The fire came up into our house,
and a lot of the downstairs was pretty burnt.”
“You always think in your head what you
would do if there was a fire. You always think
you could grab something on your way out,”
she remembers, “but it was pure instinct, get
out of there as soon as you can. I reacted in
a way I’m thankful for.” Thankfully, all the
building’s tenants were either already away
or able to escape, save one bird (Buster) in
the basement apartment, who sadly, did not
survive.
Yet, as terrible as the tragedy and trauma
were—made all the worse by the sub-
zero temperatures—they were quickly
answered and overwhelmed by the
response of the Montpelier community.
Three of her friends—Amy Rahn, Emily
Warner, Kim Myers—offered to launch a
fundraising campaign on YouCaring, “a
free, crowdfunding platform that empowers
people to help others overcome hardships
and enjoy happier, healthier lives,” according
to the website.
It took some convincing, however. “I didn’t
actually want her [Amy] to do it at first,”
recalls Hannah’s partner, Jeff Thomson,
“I don’t take charity very lightly and felt
like there were other causes that needed it
more than us. Plus, we weren’t even clear
how much damage there was at the time.”
Ultimately their minds were changed. As
Thomson recalls, “Kim said, ‘People want to
help you, and whether or not you think you
need it, they want to give, so just accept it.’”
They did, but never did they expect how
much they’d have to accept. In less than
a week’s time, the campaign raised nearly
$12,000. The total now stands at $13,573
(at the time of writing this), thanks to the
donations of 202 people. “I thought the
number was outrageous when she first said
it,” Thomson remembers when it was first
mentioned. “I thought, ‘no way, that number’s
way too high, but then my thoughts went to
the neighbors who didn’t have fundraising, so
I was concerned about having it support them
if it was more than we needed.”
Several other victims of the fire, but not
everyone, also had campaigns launched on
their behalf. Those campaigns raised nearly
$15,000 through GoFundMe.com. Helping
to fill any deficits, others have stepped in.
“Local business, unprovoked, have been
finding us on the street and giving us gift
cards and gift certificates for stores and
restaurants,” Thomson explains.
Perhaps most notable have been the efforts
of Sweet Melissa’s and Charlie O’s, both of
which hosted benefit shows, on January 5
and January 13, respectively. “The benefit
came about because we wanted to assist
the residents of the 197 Main fire who
lost everything,” explains Beckie Sheloske,
booking manager/event coordinator of
Charlie O’s, who organized the show with
Juliana Jennings, Liz Beatty, and Kim Myers.
“This kind of benefit is special because it
actively brings the community together to
help each other in times of crisis, and it sets
the example that in Montpelier, this is how
we do it.”
The benefit show included Jessica Rabbit
Syndrome, Zeus Springsteen, and Thomson’s
own band, Lake Superior. In addition to the
money raised from tickets, a raffle was held
with items contributed from the following
businesses: Capital Kitchen, Capitol Grounds,
Splash Naturals, Woodbury Mountain Toys,
Guitar Sam, Three Penny Taproom, J.
Langdon, Bear Pond Books, Kismet, Bailey
Road, Alla Vita, Pinky's On State, Michael's
On The Hill, and artist Robert Morgan. All
together, it raised $1,375. Photo by Hannah Bean
The support goes a long way in helping new apartment, which is ongoing. “I don’t
overcome not only the loss of so many want to be on a third-floor apartment,” Bean
possessions to water, smoke, and fire damage, points out. When another landlord noted
but also the shock of the experience, which an apartment was right above the furnace,
still affects the couple. “It took me a while “so the heat comes right up from the floor,”
to sleep well,” Bean says, “but after going Thomson thought, “No, not that one.”
through our remaining stuff and facing it, Perhaps more importantly, the fire reminded
and with all the help from our friends, I’m them of the warmth of the Montpelier
feeling better.” Sadly, some of the items lost community. “It reinforced what I already
were irreplaceable, including the milkman knew,” Bean explains, “This community is
uniform jacket of Thomson’s grandfather. amazing, and everyone is looking out for
The experience also colors their search for a each other.”
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 5
After the Robbery at Capitol Deli,
What Should Businesses Do?
D
ecember 27 was like any sub-zero day at the Capitol Deli in Montpelier, with the
usual comings and goings of cars gassing up outside and people popping in for a
quick coffee or snack before before moving on with the day. A very different customer
walked in the front door around 6:30 pm. Covered in a light blue, hooded parka and a face
mask, and described as being a white male between 5 feet 4 inches and 5 feet 6 inches tall, he
pointed a semi-automatic handgun at the clerk and demanded the cash. The clerk complied.
The robber fled. The police were called.
On top of the expected shock that such a crime would occur in Montpelier, which has not seen
an armed robbery since 2015, was the high-traffic time of day it occurred and its proximity
to the State House.
Perhaps even more disturbing was a scene described by the owner of Down Home Kitchen,
Mary Alice Proffitt, who walked by the deli two days after the robbery on her way to see a
film at the Capitol Theatre:
I dropped my friend off to get tickets, and because it was crowded, I parked on the side street
toward the river and was walking by the deli, which was lit up, when I noticed a visibly worried-
looking woman inside behind the counter. I went in to see what was wrong.
As soon as I opened the door I smiled at her and said, "Are you okay?" This small, wiry, middle-
aged woman, obviously the only staff member in the building, was cowering behind the counter
shaking. She said, "No, I'm not." And I went around the counter and opened my arms up, and
she ran to me and started crying. I hugged her for a few minutes and listened to her through her
tears as she said that she had been held up by an armed robber and terrified for her life. The next
day she was told that she had to return to work right away or she would lose her job.
When I asked her where her boss was and why he wasn't there with her, she said that he wouldn't
come in. She said that she lived in Barre, and that this was the best job she could get, and she
didn't want to lose it.
The Bridge has reached out to Champlain Farms, which owns Capitol Deli, to discuss the
incident but has not been able to get a response.
Whatever the case, the story raises an important question. How should locals and businesses
react when such incidents occur? Indeed, it seems that although there are tremendous efforts
dedicated to crime prevention (for example, “If you see something, say something”), fewer are
aimed at addressing the aftermath, or at least communicating what resources are available to
locals, business owners, and the public alike.
First, Montpelier Chief of Police Anthony Facos wants to stress that Montpelier remains a
very safe place. “Overall crime is down over 13 percent here in the city, but, unfortunately,
2017 was book-ended by two very violent crimes. In January we had a murder and then on
December 27 we had this armed robbery at the Capitol Deli, but overall, crime wise, it’s a
pretty good bill of health.”
As to the cause of the Capitol Deli robbery, he can’t comment on the ongoing investigation.
However, it’s a good bet drugs are part of the equation. “I cannot even think of a robbery or
burglary that’s been solved, and when we’ve had the opportunity to interview the suspects
involved,” he explains, “when it wasn’t linked to drugs. I’m not going to say 100 percent, but
that is the number one driver, not only in Montpelier, but across Vermont.”
He also points to programs that help address this issue such as Project Safe Catch, which
allows drug addicts to dispose of the drugs through the police without arrest, and ideally, get
assistance in finding treatment programs. “We want to just get you help and start that support,
so you don’t do something that is so desperate you grab a gun and put it in a clerk’s face to
score your next bundle of heroin.”
Whatever the cause and details that eventually come out about the Capitol Deli robbery, it
doesn’t help the clerk who suffered the trauma of a gun in the face. As to how businesses should
The Bridge publishes every first and third
Thursday of the month, except in July when
we only publish on the third Thursday.
Our next issue comes out February 1.
by Mike Dunphy
treat such employees, Facos doesn’t want to dictate specific policies, but he does think the
businesses need to understand that it’s not a normal situation to go through. There is trauma.
“I would encourage business owners to make sure the employee is okay mentally and
physically. I’m not going to make recommendations to the private sector, but be aware that
the body just went through a lot.”
One place to which businesses and victims can reach out is Montpelier’s Community Justice
Center, one of 20 such centers in the state. There, they focus on what’s called “restorative
justice,” which the website defines as “a victim-focused, community-based approach for
responding to crime that focuses on the harm that was caused and what needs to happen to
make things better. The goal is to build understanding, encourage accountability, and provide
an opportunity for healing.”
“We focus on making the most positive outcome possible out of a negative situation in the
world of criminal offending,” explains center director Yvonne Byrd, “focusing on the needs of
those who have been harmed and the responsibilities of those who’ve caused harm. Basically
trying to resolve things through dialogue and actions that make amends and understanding.”
This often means bringing together both victim and perpetrator for direct dialogue, which for
many, helps give closure to the trauma of the event. “When someone does meet face to face the
person who broke into their house, all of the assumptions they made are clarified and corrected
by actual information and it’s a lot less scary. Ninety-nine percent of the time you walk away
thinking, ‘I don’t have to be afraid of that person.’”
However, violent crimes such as the one at Capitol Deli are not normally in the center’s
purview, as it normally handles misdemeanors and property crimes. Plus, because they work
with the police department, they cannot contact anyone until given clearance.
As to available resources for people who are victims of violent crimes, it depends on the
community and often the crime. “We do have a number of victim service organizations in the
state and victims advocates at the state’s attorneys’ offices. We have specialized victims services
and advocates who work with victims of sexual assault and domestic assault. We’ve got a pretty
good statewide system with that.” says Byrd.
Like Facos, Byrd recommends that business owners make every effort to speak with employees
after the event and to consider the trauma experienced. “Assuming it’s business as usual is
probably not the best approach,” she reflects. Plus, the business owners may project their own
reactions and concerns onto their employees, which can impede any resolution.
From the standpoint of the clerk, for example, she said, “Let’s say you’re the owner of
Champlain Farms. It’s going to be upsetting to you to have your store robbed. What’s
upsetting you is really different than what’s upsetting me; I was there and had the gun pointed
at me. I’m not going to be thinking at all about your business reputation or material losses; I’m
thinking about my personal safety and reliving that image.”
As with everything, better communication is part of the answer. “Maybe we should do some
kind of community forum or education about how business owners support employees,” she
considers, “and more generically how we as a community rally around people who have been
victims of crime.” Luckily, she points out, the Montpelier community already does that in
informal ways, noting the support for the family after the murder in 2017.
Perhaps updating the methods of communication could also help. For example, the police
do give people a list of resources when they talk to a crime victim, but do people read that?
“Probably not so much,” Byrd reflects. “If someone hands me a sheet filled with text, first I’m
gonna have to get my glasses.”
Whatever the case, the healing begins with a conversation that says, “We know this happened
to you; your community cares about you; how can we help?”
PAG E 6 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE
Identity: Diversity Within
The “I have walked through many lives,
some of them my own
Soapbox and I am not who I was,
though some principle of being
abides, from which I struggle
not to stray.”
—Stanley Kunitz, “The Layers”
T
hroughout much of my adult life various forms of identity politics have played
through the national consciousness: race with the civil rights and Black Lives Matter
movements; class with various labor and sociopolitical movements, including Occupy;
gender with the women’s movement; and sexual preference/orientation with the gay rights
movement.
While each focus has been invaluable in raising our national consciousness, bringing folks
out of the shadows, and correcting injustices, these categories of identity can also be divisive
and simplistic in their either/or-ness. Thus, the recent “Not the Same” protests. Simple
classification can ignore more unique, subtle, and complex ways we perceive our own personal
identities.
Some years ago, at a national conference on human development, I attended a presentation by
a young woman professor (self-identified as mixed race, bisexual) on categories of identity, in
which she bypassed the usual polarities. Instead of placing “attraction to women/attraction to
men” on one either/or line:
Attraction to women----------------------------Attraction to men
she gave each category a separate line, allowing each option its own scale of intensity:
Attraction to women: (weak)------------------------------------(strong)
Attraction to men: (weak)----------------------------------------(strong)
She did the same thing with gender identity, allowing both “femininity” and “masculinity”
their own separate degrees of identification. Clearly her own mixed categories of identity
allowed her to develop a much more nuanced and complex approach to identity politics.
Someone could be on a spectrum, from very or not very attracted to men and/or attracted to
women, or on a spectrum of very or not very “masculine” and/or “feminine.” This perspective
helps liberate us from the classic either/or of identity politics.
With that inspiration we can explore a more unified self-awareness while charting in a holistic
way a range of facets integral to our individual sense of identity. Such a process allows for
diverse, non-polarized, and fluid perceptions of identity, and can chart changes within the
whole over a lifespan. This does not ignore traditional categories of identity, but allows each
unique person to put them into their own meaningful perspectives and contexts through
individual images and stories regarding inherited circumstances, meaningful relationships,
and life choices.
What I believe is valuable about this perspective is that it helps us avoid stereotyping and
Opinion Montpelier Meets Senegal
W
hen we first drove into the village of Temento
Samba, in southern Senegal, in our two
cramped station wagons, a parade of kids
ran behind us as we were jostled around on the rutted,
dusty, one-laned road. The village was picturesque:
round-thatched huts, farm animals roaming everywhere,
cook-fires outside, and all around, the stunning African
savannah.
Last October, a group of eight other high school grads,
five instructors, and I travelled to Senegal with an
organization called “Where There Be Dragons,” which
runs cultural immersion programs in Asia, Africa, and
Latin America. We’d be spending nearly two weeks with
families in this isolated, rural farming village.
Having grown up on 40 acres of farmland in Marshfield
and currently living halfway between the happening
villages of Adamant and Maple Corner, I’m no stranger
to rural communities. I know what it means to walk
Photo by Micah LeMasters
down the road and exchange hellos with the neighbor
tending her garden, to go to the store and run into the same five people you always do on your
grocery run, or to simply open your back door to a vast expanse of undeveloped land. In this
specific sense, Temento Samba isn’t drastically different from my hometown. But as each hot
and hazy day passed, I began to notice what set this community apart.
When I first met my host “mom,” she ran up to me, held me by the shoulders and said, with
great enthusiasm and vigor, “Goulel!” My instructor explained that Goulel (pronounced
“Goo-lel”) was my Senegalese name. At first it was hard to remember my new name, but now
it is impossible to forget it.
Most days, after a hearty breakfast of peanut-rice porridge, I would go on a walk into the
peanut fields surrounding the village. As I walked, I’d pass neighbors tilling the fields and
they’d shout, “Goulel!” They’d always greet me with big, warm smiles. Sometimes kids would
pass me on the road and offer me the bushel of peanuts on which they had been munching.
Mid-afternoon, when the temperature was into the triple digits, my host brother and I would
sit under the shade of the mango tree while he prepared ataya, the tea of Senegal. Neighbors
often came by to talk and ask me questions. The daily afternoon ataya session was a time to
hang out, relax, and be in the company of others.
by Margaret Blanchard
stigmatizing, either of ourselves or of those who are different from us. As each of us recognizes
our own multifaceted uniqueness, hopefully we can begin to appreciate the complexities of
those who are different from us rather than typecasting them into one-dimensional frames
sometimes labeled “good” or “evil,” safe or dangerous, familiar or foreign.
So many current conflicts in our world are based on simplistic interpretations of “the other.”
The truth is, no matter how many underrated categories there are with which anyone might
identify, ultimately each person’s complex mix of categories is unique, and because of that,
special, interesting, and valuable. Each person, when encouraged to do so, can come up with
their own categories of identity, their own unique mix and meanings, and their own ways of
expressing them. During such a process, simplistic labels soon drift away…and deeper points
of connection can be discovered within oneself and with others.
In our contemporary culture, a mania for celebrity often borders on the narcissistic. This
focus on the spotlight leads to a cultivation of personality and popularity that attempts to put
the best face on every event. All too often such glamorous presentations lead to exposes or
intimate exposures that reveal the undersides of carefully groomed identities. Meanwhile, in
the shadows live a multiple of others, some labeled, some invisible, who dare not indulge such
pretenses and yet need their own recognition.
An extension of this idea of multiple identities within one individual can be found in the
concept of “intersectionality,” which explores how individual identities connect with systems
of oppression. Whether by wealth, health, white skin privilege, patriarchy, or heterosexuality,
certain categories inherently provide more advantages, from a step up to a step ladder, but do
not necessarily guarantee individual success or personal fulfillment.
Hunger for the limelight, lurking in the shadows or pushing up from under can expose
various trauma loops in the national psyche caused by splintered communities and individual
alienations. Recognizing the uniqueness of each identity attempts to re-balance our focus,
away from an individualism that is profoundly egotistic yet conformist or from an invisibility
that is starving for communal recognition, and toward an appreciation for the diversity
and uniqueness of our many and complex identities, as individuals and as members of
communities. By recognizing and valuing this unique diversity, we can understand more
deeply and creatively how we are all connected in the web and cycles of our shared lives.
Around the world identity plays a key role in, as well as a convenient excuse for, wars,
ethnic conflicts, corruption, territorial disputes, and discrimination of all sorts. In the
process, “identity politics” can be used by powerful elites as a distraction from exploitation,
profiteering, and tyranny, and as a tool for diverting the “masses” from deeper issues of
equality and opportunity. Yet in the face of potential climate disasters, the world is shrinking
and our collective wisdom is becoming more “global”—especially with the migrations of
massive populations and the development of communications technology and international
economics.
Some are beginning to understand, if not act upon, the fact that we’re all in this together, that
we share a common fate, and that one key to our survival dwells within our diversity.
by Adam Blachly
Another ritual I came to love was the evening star-gazing.
Every night, after supper, my family and I would lie on the
outdoor bed and stare up at the clear and crisp array of stars.
As we lay, the kids from the neighboring huts would join
us. Sometimes we’d all look for shooting stars and compete
to see who could spot the most. Sometimes we’d talk and
laugh and listen to music playing off my host sister’s flip
phone. Other times we’d just lie there, look up, and enjoy
the coolness of the night air, the whir of field insects, and
the collective moment.
On my final night I visited the neighboring families to say
goodbye. Without walking twenty steps I was already in
someone else’s yard, already a welcome guest in someone’s
home. Each family I visited welcomed me with big smiles
and insisted I sit down. They talked with me; they asked
me lots of questions; they said I was welcome any time to
return.
That night the entire community gathered on the other
side of the village. Each student got up with his or her host
family and thanked the village, and then the instructors did the same. One of my instructors,
Micah, said something that really struck me. He talked about driving through the countryside
here in southern Senegal and mentioned how, when driving along the road, you notice several
signs. They’re usually big and white, and they say something like, “This NGO helped build
a well in this village,” or “This group of Americans helped plant a garden here.” He said he
wished the same could be true in America. He said that he wanted to drive through a rural
road in America and see signs like, “The people of Temento Samba taught these people how
to sit down and have a meal together,” or, “The people of Temento Samba showed these people
what it means to be a part of a community.”
Looking back, I had few inhibitions. I was comfortable enough to dance in front of hundreds
of villagers and butcher the moves. I was comfortable enough to walk into anyone’s yard any
time of the day and help out, or play with the kids, or attempt the language.
I love the communities of Adamant and Maple Corner. I feel privileged to be a part of them.
But in Temento Samba, that communal force was undeniably stronger. I was welcomed by
everyone. I was taken care of by everyone. I was taught by everyone.
Here we say, “Good fences make good neighbors,” but in Temento Samba, they would do just
the opposite. That’s something I have yet to quite shake, and I hope never will.
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 7

Montpelier Home Prices

Jumped Last Year as Since 1972

Properties Sold Quickly Repairs • New floors and walls

Crane work • Decorative concrete
by Phil Dodd Consulting • ICF foundations
114 Three Mile Bridge Rd., Middlesex, VT • (802) 229-0480 

T
he real estate market in Montpelier was an active one in 2017. According to local gendronbuilding@aol.com •  gendronconcrete.com
realtors, there were multiple offers on some properties as a low inventory of homes
for sale caused buyers to snap up properties as they came on the market. The
average number of days it took to sell a Montpelier single-family home fell to 65 days—
half the time it took in 2016.
The strong demand helped push the median price of a single-family home in Montpelier
up 15.8 percent to $277,450, according to Vermont Realtors’ data for 2017 through
November. Condominium median prices in Montpelier rose 18.7 percent to $193,500.
The median is the point at which half the sales are higher and half are lower.
These figures do not mean that that every house or condo in Montpelier increased in
value by that much. Median and average prices also reflect other aspects of the market,
such as an increase last year in the number of higher-end sales in town (the highest 2017
sale was for $630,000). But values are increasing, and it remains a seller’s market.
“Last year was a busy year, and we are busy even now,” broker Tim Heney of Heney
Realtors said January 9. On that date, there were only 14 single-family homes and condos
on the market in Montpelier. “We should be closer to 80, but inventory has been cruising
under 20 for a couple of months,” Heney said. “This is one of the tightest markets we’ve
had.” All indicators suggest 2018 will see a continuing strong market.
Broker Ray Mikus, owner of Green Light Real Estate, also had a busy 2017. “Spring and
summer were very hot, and in some cases there were multiple offers,” he said. “A house
would go on the market one week, and we would get four offers over the weekend.” The
market leveled off later in the year, but was still active in January, according to Mikus.
Mikus said one trend he noticed last year was that “style is selling.” Buyers are excited
by interiors that have been upgraded, he said. “People used to be more tolerant of older
kitchens and bathrooms than they are now,” he added.
Montpelier’s median home price of $277,450 exceeded both the Washington County
median of $220,000, up 4.4 percent, and the state median of $221,000, up 2.4 percent.
But it remains well below some other towns and regions.
Burlington’s 2017 median single-family home price was $312,500, while Stowe clocked
in at $545,000. These prices pale in comparison to the national median price leaders of
San Jose, California ($1.2 million) and San Francisco ($900,000).
In central Vermont, both Heney and Mikus said they were struck by how much the
market varies from town to town. Barre Town was another active town in 2017, with the
average home price jumping 27.5 percent to $207,771, though that was after a big price
drop in 2016, according to figures calculated by Heney that include private sales.
Barre City, meanwhile, saw its 2017 average home price drop 7.7 percent to $125,137,
according to Heney’s figures. “A number of people start looking in other places but end
up buying in Barre City,” Heney said. “There are incredible values in nice neighborhoods.
A property there might go for half the value of a comparable home in Montpelier.”
Moreover, in November Barre City had five times as many single-family houses for sale
as Montpelier.
The average home price in the U-32 towns stayed flat compared to last year at $235,436,
according to 2017 statistics calculated by Mikus based on MLS sales. “That surprised
me,” he said. “In the past, the U-32 towns and Montpelier moved together.” Properties
in these towns took twice as long to sell in 2017, on average, as in Montpelier.
Montpelier’s tight market shows no sign of easing any time soon, although higher
mortgage rates, which the National Association of Realtors predicts are coming in 2018,
could cool things down, and a stock market crash or recession would change things in
a hurry.
Federal tax reform might also have an impact. The new law limits the property tax
deduction. Since Montpelier’s property tax bills are among the highest in the state, the
new tax law could crimp demand for homes, particularly at the high end of the market.
Heney said Montpelier’s tight market would be helped by building new houses to meet
the demands of young families, downsizers, and those moving here from away. While
more than 50 much-needed new apartment units are on the way in Montpelier and
condo construction is under discussion, the number of new single-family homes being
built here is relatively small.
Heney said one thing that deters developers and individuals interested in constructing
new homes from building in Montpelier is the city’s ordinance requiring sprinklers in all
new single-family homes, one of only a handful of such ordinances in the state.
Sprinklers can add as much as $10,000 to $20,000 to house construction costs, Mikus
said, and Heney said he knows of one Montpelier property where a sprinkler system
added $23,000 to the cost. Although there are property tax breaks for sprinklers, Heney
noted the systems also require annual maintenance and can go off accidentally.
High building costs, high property taxes and a limited number of places to build are also
thought to be holding back construction of new single-family homes in the capital city.
For now, anyone eager to buy a house in Montpelier will have to have deep pockets and
be quick on their feet, or be willing to wait for a market downturn or look in other nearby
cities and towns, where the inventory of homes for sale is higher and prices are lower,
sometimes significantly so.

RecyclE This Paper!

PAG E 8 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE

Dog River Brewery Brings

Got a news tip? Tradition Back to Vermont
We want to know!
Send it to us at:
Brewing by Ivan Shadis

editorial@
Photo courtesy of Leo Foy
montpelierbridge.com

Y
et another brewery has opened its doors in Central Vermont, just off the Barre-
Montpelier road, in the former RadioShack space. After turning on the taps on
December 16, Dog River Brewery sold “over a hundred gallons” of beer in its first
month, according to proprietor Leo Foy. “It seems like most everyone enjoys beer and
having a neighborhood brewery now,” said Foy.
The brewery offers a rotating selection of beers, the fruit of Foy’s ongoing experimentation
with different recipes. “I find recipes I like and try to tweak them into stuff that sounds
good to me and that I think I could sell to the public,” said Foy. The current line-up
includes an American pale ale, an amber ale, a dark winter ale, and what Foy called his
“wildcard,”—a tart cherry ale.
Foy plans to distinguish his brewery by focusing less on the IPA-style beers, which
have elevated the state to a world renowned mecca for craft beer, and instead on more
traditional styles. “I don’t plan on creating beer with ingredients or flavors that sound like
they belong in a potpourri or an herbal emporium,” said Foy, “just solid recipes carefully
crafted and aged for smoothness and character.”
Customers can sit down to enjoy the beer on tap or buy it to go in a 32-ounce aluminum
can called a crowler. Dog River Brewery sells some snacks, but encourages customers to
bring their own food to enjoy in the beer hall. For now Foy is not distributing, so his beers
are only available at Dog River Brewery, or as part of event catering.
Foy, an engineer by trade, first got his feet wet in brewing as a hobbyist. “I was interested
in doing it and looking for ways to save money on drinking beer, so I figured out how
to make my own,” said Foy. But over the course of seven years Foy’s strategy for saving
money on beer turned into a passion culminating in a $100,000 investment in his new
brewery.
Visitors entering the beer hall through its double glass doors will find an irreverent mix
of the homespun, industrial, and commercial in the cavernous three-thousand-square-
foot room. Wooden picnic tables, characteristic of a European beer hall, span a smooth
concrete floor, while fluorescent lights in the Styrofoam-tile ceiling shine down on a
plank serving counter built from Foy’s son’s reclaimed treehouse. An enormous American
flag hangs above the corrugated metal wainscoting. And in the back, chained off behind
the bar, the works: the kettle, the fermentation tanks, the sinks, the glycol lines, which
feed the beer into four giant stainless steel tanks behind the bar.
“Myself, my wife, and my kid, we did the build out ourselves,” said Foy of the renovation,
which transformed the stripped hull of the old electronics store into a beer hall.
Foy, who lives in Berlin, said he picked the brewery’s location because it was close to
home, but also because he considers Berlin to be business friendly, and that’s where
space was available and affordable. “The biggest deal to us was space really. There isn’t
really a lot of commercial space in this area that is suitable or even halfway suitable for a
brewing operation,” said Foy, “Montpelier would have been cool, but there’s so little space
available there and whatever is available there, is really darn expensive.”

Bridge Community Media, Inc.

P.O. Box 1143, Montpelier, VT 05601 / Ph: 802-223-5112
Editor & Publisher: Nat Frothingham
Managing Editor: Mike Dunphy
Copy Editor: Larry Floersch
Layout, Calendar Editor: Marichel Vaught
Proofreaders: Adam Blachly, Sarah Davin
Sales Representatives: Michael Jermyn,
Rick McMahan
Distribution: Tim Johnson, Amy Lester,
Daniel Renfro
Board Members: Chairman Donny Osman,
Margaret Blanchard, Phil Dodd, Josh
Fitzhugh, Martin Hahn, Irene Racz, Ivan
Shadis, Tim Simard
Editorial: 223-5112, ext. 14, or
editorial@montpelierbridge.com.
Location: The Bridge office is located at the
Vermont College of Fine Arts,
on the main level of Stone Science Hall.
Subscriptions: You can receive The Bridge
by mail for $50 a year. Make out your check
to The Bridge, and mail to The Bridge, PO
Box 1143, Montpelier VT 05601.
montpelierbridge.com
facebook.com/thebridgenewspapervt
Twitter: @montpbridge
Copyright 2018 by The Bridge
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 9

Five Local Spa Treatments

to Revive Your Spirit by Sarah Davin

W
ith these especially cold temperatures lately, it’s easy to succumb to the winter
blues. The frigid air makes it unpleasant to go out, and with the smell of
green grass and and the sensation of sunshine feeling like a distant memory,
it can be easy to give into the grayness and neglect our bodies. That makes it the perfect
time to splurge on behalf of your body, mind, and spirit at the many quality Central
Vermont spas, starting with these five unusual spa treatments.

Pumpkin Pedicure by Green Mountain Day Spa in East Montpelier

Green Mountain Day Spa’s Pumpkin Pedicure ($50, 60-75 minutes) uses pumpkin pulp
and pumpkin seed oil, which dissolve dull, dead cells, to reveal healthy skin underneath.
A blend of oils, butters, and pure cane sugar is then applied to soothe tired feet. The
treatment also includes a soak, scrub, masque, and massage.
1528 Route 2, 793-0146, greenmountaindayspa.com

Cymatic Therapy by Lucid Path Wellness in Montpelier

Cymetic Therapy ($50, 30-40 minutes) stems from research done by British osteopath,
PG Manners, in the 1940s. The concept is that healthy tissues and cells have specific
biosignatures and certain sound frequencies can be used to restore resonance in
unhealthy tissue. Lucid Path Wellness offers 12 different cymatic frequency sessions, and
each 40-minute session has approximately 16 different tones. Cymatic therapy can treat
a wide variety of ailments, ranging from arthritis to depression.
97 State Street, 225-6413, lucidpathwellness.com

Chocolate Decadence Body Wrap by Do or Dye in Montpelier
Are you looking for a new way to enjoy chocolate? Do or Dye’s Chocolate Decadence
Body Wrap ($70, 60 minutes) uses organic cocoa powder to reduce signs of aging
and fight against sun damage. The treatment also uses other ingredients such as oats,
coconut milk powder, agave, aloe and milk thistle to soothe the skin, relieve pain and
itching, and alleviate the symptoms of psoriasis, eczema, and atopic dermatitis. Do Or
Dye likes to pair this body wrap with its peppermint body butter, leaving the client
smelling like a peppermint patty.
168 River Street, 229-4691, doordyesalon.com

Mild Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment by Community Hyperbaric in Montpelier,

VT:
Community Hyperbaric’s Mild Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment ($90, initial visit, $75,
60 minutes) is a unique treatment that uses pressure to treat over 80 different conditions.
Per Community Hyperbaric’s website, “As oxygen is delivered through a facemask, the
atmospheric pressure inside the chamber is gradually increased to 1.3 ATA. You and a
trained staff member remain in control of the process at all times.” In addition to having
powerful anti-inflammatory properties, the treatment allows oxygen to more effectively
penetrate the body’s tissues, promoting skin and muscle regeneration.
371 River Street, 613-3929, communityhyperbaric.com

Berry Silk Therapy by Sundara Day Spa in Berlin and Barre

Sundara Day Spa’s Berry Silk Therapy ($125) sounds like just the remedy for someone
missing warmer days. This body treatment features warm towel compresses, wild berry
body polish, and a strawberries and cream body masque. A relaxing head massage is
included. All of this is finished with a wild berry silk and honey lotion. Surrounded by
the smell of berries and wrapped in warm towels, the winter outside would certainly feel
miles away.
672 Route 302, 476-4476, sundaradayspa.com

Thank you for reading

The Bridge!
PAG E 10 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE
Did NCIS Lead to TMI?
by Larry Floersch
I
’m starting to understand why some folks tend to
eat dinner at four o’clock in the afternoon. I know
what you’re thinking, and it’s not just because
of early-bird, all-you-can-eat buffets, especially if
they involve barbequed peel-and-eat shrimp and
beer, although those can be interesting, We
don’t tend to have enough of those buffets
around here.
No, I think that many people are like my wife,
who has a thing about bodily functions. Why, she says, are we designed the way we are?
Who made the mistake of requiring the elimination of waste part of the equation? Why
can’t we just eat and drink, and that’s the end of it?
I try to point out that there are billion-dollar-a-year industries and millions of jobs based
on dealing with the byproducts of human existence, but she’ll have none of it. I’ll ask her,
“How would those cute bears who do the advertising for Charmin bathroom tissue make
a living if we didn’t need toilet paper?” I then get the “Apollo” argument. “If we can put a
man on the moon,” she says, “why can’t we humans just avoid the bathroom altogether?”
I’ve never been quite sure of the logic of that argument, but I digress. The reason people
eat early, if they tend to watch TV while they eat—like good, red-blooded Americans are
supposed to do—is to avoid eating during the news hour on television. The news hour
is an endless stream of advertisements for products that deal with all aspects of human
nutrition and elimination interspersed with short, poorly-researched, and written news
stories. (No offense, my TV news colleagues, but try to remember those pillars of good
print journalism, the five Ws: Who, What, When, Where, and Whatever).
I do not think of myself as a wimp. I mean, I can handle the sight of large needles in the
doctor’s office as long as they are being pointed at someone else, but sometimes, I must
agree with my wife. These ads often cross over the edge of Too Much Information, better
known in textspeak as “TMI.”
Advertisers apparently decided that, based on the recent popularity of television crime
dramas that also are known best by abbreviations, such as “CSI” and “NCIS,” we
could handle TMI. These TV shows often feature scenes of gruesome autopsies and
microscopic vignettes of bullets and knife blades piercing deep anatomic structures along
with “grisly” sound effects. Since viewers seem unbothered by watching Grissom study
how a body rots or “Duckie” Mallard sawing off the top of a victim’s skull to remove the
brain, it only makes sense that TV ads would begin to feature more explicit information.
Now by TMI in advertising I’m not talking about things like an image of a person with
their head in a vise to symbolize a headache or a foot with flames between the toes
depicting athlete’s foot. No, I’m talking about images that, even in the abstract, are
representative of more internal and therefore more intimate activity, especially for people
like my wife, who find that whole waste elimination thing disgusting.
There is, for example, an ad for an over-the-counter laxative that features a diagram
of a colon, which actually looks like a set of parentheses, ( ), rather than a colon. To
demonstrate the harshness of other laxatives, pulsating and downward-facing arrows are
shown forcing their way between these parentheses. According to my unnamed medical
source, this is meant to represent, and I quote, “forceful medication-induced stimulation
of natural peristaltic action.” I don’t know what that means, but it doesn’t sound good.
These arrows are then replaced with small droplets of liquid between the parentheses to
show how the product the advertiser wants you to buy is more gentle because rather than
forcing things to a conclusion, it draws water from the body to help things flow along.
It is at this point that my wife stops eating her mashed potatoes and gravy. The ad gives
her the willies.
Her least favorite ads are about an intimate affliction that falls at the opposite end of the
medical spectrum from what is called “irregularity.” These ads feature, for want of a better
name, a character I call “Miss IBSD.” If you are not familiar with the abbreviation, (again,
according to my unnamed medical source) IBSD stands for “irritable bowel syndrome with
diarrhea,” which is a nasty medical condition that the prescription drug being advertised is
designed to combat.
Cute and perky Miss IBSD, who has what appears to be synthetic red hair and is dressed in
a suggestive light-brown unitard, torments her victims by tugging them away from normal
daily events, such as making a business presentation or having dinner in a fine restaurant,
and toward public restrooms, or by showing up in a woman’s bedroom on her wedding
anniversary night.
To make sure you get the point, Miss IBSD has her entrails, in particular her large intestine,
emblazoned right there on the tummy of her light brown unitard. For all her cuteness, Miss
IBSD is not someone you want to hang with.
I can usually drive my wife from the room just by mentioning Miss IBSD, unless, of course,
my wife is waiting for NCIS to begin. She wouldn’t want to miss Dr. Mallard with his saw.
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 11
How Fit is Fitness in Montpelier?
think how that is operated in the end can look different. You
can have different sections of the facility, including rooms
that private businesses could rent out. Or you can have a
private climbing gym and manages the climbing side of it.”
Another huge question is where the facility would even go.
One option is to upgrade an existing facility, but as Bate
points out, that creates another set of challenges. “How much
do you put into a building that will never quite be right as far
as heating or structural aspects? Plus, it would be expensive to
maintain, let alone upgrade. Then you start looking at a new
facility, but if we start looking at a new facility, I think it has
to be very comprehensive.”
However altruistic, the comprehensive approach, which
embraces all needs and several communities, may be working
against progress, because it may be simply too much for
one facility to encompass. “Does it really need to be one
big facility?” Petite asks, “Maybe it’s a cluster of different
facilities.”
The State of Fitness in Montpelier
Amy Leventhal, owner of downtown’s Studio Zenith, which
runs one-on-one personal training, strength training flows,
free weights, Ashtanga and Vinyasa yoga, and boot camps,
has her eye on one empty space a few doors down. “If I had
the money, I would totally take that over the space formerly
occupied by One More Time and put machines in there but
make it a cool atmosphere and not like a gym at all.”
Leventhal doesn’t see Planet Fitness as a threat, partly because
she questions the limited benefits gyms of that nature bring
to most members. “Most people I know who have gone to a
How to Make the Most of Your Herbalist
M
ontpelier is exceptionally rich—in herbalists.
According to Laura Litchfield, co-director of
the Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism
(VCIH), located in Montpelier, central Vermont is probably
the most herbalist-dense place in the country.
Ultimately, herbalism can be a way to get to know more
about how your body works. Herbalists can teach you how
to bring your body into balance, and to become aware of how
your body acts when it’s out of balance.
Says Litchfield, “We’re here to make your life more
comfortable and pleasant.” And that’s something everyone
can get on board with.
But how can Montpelierites make the most of this unique
resource? Whether you’ve been to an herbalist a zillion times,
or don’t even know why you’d go to one, here are some key
info to know and guidelines to follow.
What is Herbalism?
“Herbalism is plant medicine that has been used for millennia
and has variations all over the world,” says Stephanie Cohen,
clinical herbalist at Grian Herbs, located in downtown
Montpelier. She notes that while traditions vary, in part based
on the local flora, there are elements that resonate throughout
all of them. For one thing, it’s a highly individualized
approach to health and looks at the interconnectedness of
body systems.
Rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach to treatment
(take this for that), herbalists make recommendations based
on the specific manifestation of symptoms, and underlying
issues.
Taking depression as an example, Cohen notes that there can
be many contributors, which each would need to be addressed
Continued from Page 1
gym, or had a gym membership, are unsuccessful. They’ll
run on the treadmill, do a couple sets of weights, take a
shower, and that’s their workout. That’s better than nothing,
but it’s very unmotivating, and you force yourself to do it.
It’s not something sustainable for life, and it doesn’t really
produce what you are looking for goal-wise.”
Furthermore, not all reports of the gym’s performance are
rosy. “A person who works at Planet Fitness came here
yesterday to my class and said, ‘It’s weird, the vibe is off, and
when people walk in they have no idea what to do. When
they are lifting weights, it’s terrible. The form is terrible and
they don’t know what they are doing.’”
Ultimately it brings more students to her, a sentiment
echoed by Lindsay Armstrong, owner of Embodied across
the street. “I think Planet Fitness helps businesses like mine
in Montpelier because members of more expensive gyms will
leave [those], pay the $10, and then they have money to spend
on yoga. I’ve heard that from several students.”
However, with monthly memberships reaching $150, the
cost of yoga and boutique studio classes can’t be ignored, and
both Armstrong and Leventhal are conscious of the issue and
trying to resolve it. “If I lived in a college town,” Armstrong,
says, “the price would be a lot lower.” Like Armstrong,
Leventhal is willing to negotiate the price. “For people who
can’t afford it, I accommodate them with a sliding scale,” she
explains.
Can a New Gym Survive?
Nonetheless, the challenges of keeping a downtown fitness
studio going are tremendous, just with the cost of insurance
differently. For example, it could stem from digestive issues,
disrupted endocrine systems, unresolved grief, or the change
of seasons.
When should you go to an herbalist?
As a form of complementary or alternative medicine,
herbalists can be there as your first line of help—say when
you have a headache—or in combination with other forms
of treatment—for instance, if you’re using medicine to treat
depression but want additional support.
You can think of herbalism as “maintenance healthcare,” says
Litchfield. “In terms of maintaining health, preventing illness
and keeping people in balance, herbalism is paramount.”
Where can you go?
VCIH offers an excellent and affordable student clinic,
staffed by third-year students, as well as a professional clinic,
run by faculty and other clinical herbalists. Both offer visits
on a sliding scale ($10 - $30 for the student clinic and $30 -
$100 for the professional clinic), as well as time trade through
the Onion River Exchange. If you have neither of those
resources at your disposal, VCIH can gift you an office visit.
Plus, there are many independent herbalists in and around
Montpelier. In East Barre, herbalist and author Rosemary
Gladstar runs Sage Mountain Retreat Center and Native
Plant preserve, where she hosts retreats and workshops
around herbs and earth awareness. In Middlesex, herbalist
Shona Richter MacDougall provides consultations at her
herb farm, Earth Rhythm Herbal.
What to expect in an herbalist’s office
There are two different types of consultations: walk-ins, for
immediate symptom relief, and longer consultations.
Cohen, who charges $1/minute for walk-ins, might send you
alone. “It’s a lot of work and not a huge profit margin,” notes
Armstrong, “You have to love it and believe in it for it to
work.” Thankfully, it’s a love shared by the students, who
come for more than just sweating out calories. “Most people
who come to this studio aren’t here for fitness but they are
glad that is a piece of it.”
Nonetheless, the lack of good quality facilities, both indoor
and outdoor, in Montpelier is something they’d like to
address, even if it brings a bit of competition. “I feel like a
small YMCA would be great for everybody, Leventhal muses,
“a place where I could go, lift weights, take a cheaper fitness
class, and I could bring my kid to the pool.” For Armstrong:
“My son would be over the moon for a skate park; now we
drive to Burlington.”
Armstrong is optimistic that a fitness club could succeed
in Montpelier, “It’s probably a lot of investment, but if the
money and energy were put in, and you built a nice facility
and you treated clients and employees well, I think a fitness
place in Montpelier would do just fine.”
by Kerri-Ann Jennings M.S., R.D.
downstairs to the apothecary and tell you how to prepare a
remedy for heartburn, for instance. In an initial consultation,
which can last up to two hours, your herbalist will ask you
detailed questions about each of the body systems.
But perhaps more importantly, your herbalist will ask you
about your goals, to make sure that your vision of success is
being addressed and met. “It’s not about fixing a person, but
tailoring a person’s quality of life by how they define being
alive,” says Cohen.
Cohen notes that the same set of symptoms would require
a different protocol depending on the whole picture of the
person. For instance, two people might both get cold in the
winter, but one person needs warming herbs, like cinnamon,
to stimulate circulation, while the other may need grounding
herbs, like roots of dandelions and burdock.
How do you take herbs?
There are many ways to take herbal preparations. Tinctures
tend to be the strongest form, and also the most expensive.
Tea is probably the most popular way to ingest herbs, but
powder forms can be incorporated into nutritious snacks.
What’s important is to find the form most pleasing to
your palette and your body, to ensure you take the herb as
recommended.
“There are often multiple preparations that would be effective,
but we choose them based on several considerations,”
says Cohen. “We use teas as eye washes, for example,
because powder in your eye would not be fun.” All of these
considerations vary from plant to plant and person to person.
In fact, the plant chemistry can dictate what forms the herbs
are available in as well. Not all plants taste pleasant as a tea,
and not all plant constituents are accessible in powder form.
PAG E 12 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE
The Hunger Mountain Cooperative: Will Its Business
Success Erode Its Democratic Governance?
A
t a time when two longtime and active member-owners of the Hunger Mountain
Co-op—Billy Donovan and Stephanie Kaplan—have been insisting on the tradition
of direct democracy in co-op governance, it would illuminating to go back to
Vermont's first co-ops: the Adamant Cooperative and the Putney Co-op.
Both had humble beginnings.
Adamant and Putney
As we learn from an article by Sally Johnson published in The New York Times on February
7, 1990, the Adamant Co-op began when “eleven families sharing the common bond of
Depression hardship, each contributed $5.00 to buy food in bulk and divide it among
themselves.”
According to the Putney Co-op website, the Putney Food Co-op was founded in 1941 when
fuel shortages, due to World War II, made it hard to obtain grocery items. To get the needed
supplies, a group of Putney citizens, led by Carol Brown, formed the Putney Co-op according
to the Cooperative Principles.
Those Cooperative Principles, first articulated in the town of Rochdale, England in 1844 and
known thereafter as the Rochdale Principles, suggest the following values.
• Voluntary and open membership
• Democratic member control
• Member economic participation
• Autonomy and independence
• Education, training, and information
• Cooperation among cooperatives
Concern for community
Kari Bradley who is the General Manager of the Hunger Mountain Co-op had this to say
about what led to the founding of those two early, Vermont co-ops, “Those co-ops were started
because people needed access to food. There wasn’t enough access to food.”
The Adamant Co-op, though it thrived for a time, almost closed in 1990.
Describing that moment of near-closure, Sally Johnson wrote as much about the decline of
farming and rural life as about the Adamant Co-op that nearly closed for the simple reason
that it was a failing business.
She used these words to report on the business crisis that almost closed the Adamant Co-op in
1990, “Hours go by, when not a single customer wanders into the cooperative grocery, one of
the oldest in the nation. It is 10 miles north of Montpelier, the state capital, at the crossroads
that locals call Adamant.”
Johnson concluded her story with a crack of light, “Short of a miracle, the Adamant Co-op
is likely to go out of business this spring. But a miracle of sorts has already happened. After
the nine-member co-op board voted in December (1989) to close the store on January 31,
fifteen neighbors promised to donate a total of $450 a month through April to keep the store
running.”
Ultimately the Adamant Cooperative survived—but that’s a longer story.
Hunger Mountain Co-op
In its membership base, workforce numbers, marketplace and café and annual customer sales
the Hunger Mountain Co-op is hardly in the same league as the Adamant or Putney Co-ops.
All three are co-ops. All three sell food. And all three enjoy community loyalty and support.
Many people remember the early days of the Hunger Mountain Co-op: no store, few if any
staff, and humble tasks such as putting together an order and organizing a co-op space in a
community hall or church basement, and then meeting and unloading the truck, breaking
down the food from large bags and boxes, and putting such things as flour and nuts and raisins
into smaller bags and boxes. Afterwards was the clean up.
When the early co-ops became storefronts, that was a big change. When the storefronts were
succeeded by supermarkets, that was another big change. As Hunger Mountain’s Kari Bradley
said during a recent interview, “Things have certainly changed. We do have a storefront. We
have a staff. We have evolved as the industry has evolved. We’re 45 years old now. The base
has grown to 8,000 members.”
by Nat Frothingham
He went on to note, “We’re still here to serve the community and our members. It’s still around
organic, natural food, and local food. I also think the values have not changed.”
As the interview continued with Bradley, also with Scott Hess, the co-op’s new president,
this question asserted itself in unmistakable ways. “When you are trying to run and expand
a business like the co-op, with about $24 million in annual sales, 8,000 member-owners,
and a workforce of 164 employees with union representation, won’t there always be tensions
between adhering to the original principles of the co-op, like the co-op’s commitment to direct
democracy and to member-owner inclusion in decision-making?”
With a competitive food industry and marketplace you’ve got to run a successful business.
Then on the other side is the cooperative itself and its democratic principles.
The Co-op Superstructure
In the beginning, the fledgling food co-ops were largely isolated. But over time, co-ops across
the country banded together to create institutions like the National Cooperative Grocers
(NCG).
As Kari Bradley explains it, NCG is a secondary co-op. It’s a co-op whose members are co-ops.
By aggregating the purchasing power of the 147 food co-ops that operate over 200 co-op stores
in 37 states, NCG claims to get better deals on food and other items for co-op members. NCG
is hardly a small potatoes business. It claims combined annual sales of $2.1 billion and over
1.3 million consumer-owners.
Another organization that serves co-ops in general is the Cooperative Development Services
(CDS). CDS consultant Michael Healey is helping the Hunger Mountain general manager
and co-op council prepare for an upcoming board and management retreat on February 3.
Defending Direct Democracy
In recent months, Hunger Mountain member-owners Stephanie Kaplan and Billy Donovan
have taken issue with Hunger Mountain General Manager Kari Bradley and the (up to nine
person) member-elected co-op council.
Kaplan and Donovan believe that the member-owners ought to be at the very top of the
co-op’s governing pyramid. They are the member-owners; they elect the co-op council, and
the co-op council hires a general manager, who serves at the council’s pleasure. But it’s the
member-owners, Kaplan and Donovan believe, who ought to supply needed direction.
Certainly a part of what’s happening has its roots in language that appears in the co-op’s
three-year business plan. One section from that plan states: “Prepare ourselves for potential
expansion.”
As explained by Bradley, “prepare ourselves for potential expansion” gives the co-op some
needed latitude in dealing with an uncertain future. “We may need to hang onto the market
share that we have,” Bradley explained. “Competitors are growing. It’s a dynamic industry…
and it may be in our interest to pursue a second location, a delivery service, and various other
ways, perhaps an online e-commerce business.” Again Bradley said, “So there’s no plan, there’s
no specific plan to expand the co-op.”
Stephanie Kaplan is cautious about any future expansion proposal at the co-op. “I have no
position on whether or not an expansion is a good idea. Some expansion might be a good idea,
some expansion might not be.”
But Kaplan has strong views on the importance of direct democracy. And she said, “What I
strongly believe is that any proposal to expand must be sent to the members in advance and
then brought up at a membership meeting where the members can ask question, discuss the
pros and cons, fully understand the proposal, and then, vote at the meeting.”
She went on to say, “My understanding of the existing bylaws is that the way it is now is that
voting can be by ballot via mail, electronically, or at a membership meeting. I think the best
way would be to only be able to vote at the meeting, after hearing or participating in the
discussion.”
Are Corporations Taking Over Member-Owned Co-ops?
Kaplan and Donovan worry about corporate influences taking over the food co-ops across the
country and look at CDS as the leading edge of a growing corporate influence. That corporate
influence they believe promotes expansion because expansion means more shelf space and
more shelf space leads to distributing more product and more product equals more profits to
distributors and consultants.
They also suggest that member-owners take a look at the website, takebackthecoop.com,
which tells the story of how the 17,000-member co-op in Santa Fe, New Mexico got into
serious financial trouble by listening to the consultants and expanding their co-op.
Continued on next page
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 13
General Manager Bradley is not buying the idea that the outside organizations that assist
Hunger Mountain Co-op are part of some conspiracy.
“I just don’t see it,” Bradley remarked. “It’s just that people are connecting the dots that aren’t
really there.”
Bradley praised the National Cooperative Grocers for helping the co-op reduce its energy and
water consumption and encourage members to purchase local and organic. He went on to
say, “You shared with me the co-op principles. The fourth one on this list is autonomy and
independence. What that means is co-ops, even though they have to work with each other
and collaborate, at the end of the day, are here to serve their members. They must remain
independent and maintain their autonomy. That’s a fundamental principle.”
Concerns about an Upcoming Retreat
Both Kaplan and Donovan expressed concerns about an upcoming Hunger Mountain Co-op
Council and management retreat on February 3.
They point out that the retreat would be a meeting that’s not warned, not open to members
and therefore a violation of the founding principles of the co-op and the bylaws.
Both Donovan and Kaplan observed that the agenda for the retreat was being developed by a
CDS consultant Mike Healy. In a draft agenda, Healy used these words for an agenda item:
“Membership Rift.”
When asked about the February 3 Co-op Council and management retreat, Bradley said that
the coop council “does not view this as a typical business meeting. This determination was
partly the result of advice from the co-op’s attorney, he said.“We’re not a public body like a
school or a city council. We’re not subject to a public meeting law.”
Bradley said that the word “rift” (as in membership rift) “was not a word we have used.”
Instead he said that what the council wants to achieve is good communications. “[The
council] is talking about how it communicates with itself and how it communicates with
members, he said.
It’s talking about how it communicates with itself and external communications (how it
communicates with members). He said, “We are trying to be inclusive. The council wants to
do a good job at communication with members—all 8,000 of them.”
A Vision for the Co-op’s Future
Billy Donovan shared his vision for the future of the co-op. He wants a co-op that understands
the proper relationship between members and the council. The members own the business,”
he said. The council members are their elected representatives. The council’s job is to represent
the members. The council’s job is to make the general manager accountable.
“How can the Hunger Mountain Co-op compete?” he asked. “By being competitive, and we
will be competitive by honoring our members. We can’t beat Wal-Mart, but we can involve
our members.”
At the moment, Donovan feels we walk into the co-op, fill up a shopping basket, spend the
money, and walk out the door. Donovan wants more from the co-op. He wants us to ask
questions and get answers about natural food, local food, pure, unadulterated food: Where
was it grown? How was it grown? Is it organic? “We can’t compete on price,” he said, “but we
can create a local organization that’s democratic and transparent.”
Hunger Mountain Co-op by the numbers
• Name of Co-op General Manager: Kari Bradley
• Name of Co-op Council President: Scott Hess
• Founding date of Hunger Mountain Co-op: 1972
• Co-op membership 10 years ago: 4,950 -- Co-op membership today: 8,675
• Percentage of local food sold: 40 percent
• Percentage of certified organic food sold: 40 percent
• Net Sales FY 2007: $13,262,532 – Net Sales FY: $23,909,666
• Storefront opened: 1978 -- Stonecutters Way Store opened: 1997
• Number of Co-op employees today: 164
• Total annual Co-op payroll: $5,286,244
• Starting hourly wage: $13.05
• Coop’s Benefits Contriibution to Full-Time Employees 100 percent health, dental, vision
– to Part-Time Employees: 50 percent
• Benefits Contribution to Part-Time Employees: 50 percent
• Paid Vacation, Sick, Personal Time Off: Four Weeks
• Time Off after 11 years: Seven Weeks
Join in Coop Conversations. Hunger Mountain Co-op is always balancing its limited
resources with the goals of providing healthy food at affordable prices, being a good
employer, paying fair prices to farmers and food producers, and meeting the diverse
needs of the membership and community. Over the past year, the Co-op Conversations
series has focused on member-owner discounts, which have been growing at rapid rates
over the past few years. Based on the feedback gathered in meetings, interviews and
surveys, a committee of members, council members, and staff has developed a revised
set of recommendations for the discount programs and is again seeking feedback from
members and staff.
Contact info@hungermountain.coop or (802) 262-3202 to attend one of these
meetings:
Small Group Discussion Friday Jan. 19, noon-1 pm, Co-op Community Room
Community Forum Tuesday Jan. 23, 5:30-7 pm, Montpelier Senior Center
Small Group Discussion Thursday Jan. 25, 5:00-6 pm, Co-op Community Room
–Contributed by Hunger Mountain Co-op
We want to hear what you think!
Send your opinions to:
editorial@montpelierbridge.com
PAG E 14 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE
Show 23 Goes with the Flow at The Front Gallery
by Suzanne Podhaizer
S
ome galleries host shows with themes, such as “tiny art” or “America under Trump.” Some
offer juried exhibits, meaning that judges select pieces based on merit. In Montpelier, at
The Front—a cooperative gallery with 16 members—they do things a bit differently: For
each show, all member artists submit whatever they feel like putting on the walls, pedestals,
or even the floor.
Show 23, featuring work from all 16 members of the cooperative, opened January 12. A more
formal reception is scheduled for February 2, during the Montpelier Art Walk.
Why 23? “We’re pretty sure it’s our 23rd show,” says gallery founder Glen Coburn Hutcheson.
The exhibition, which runs until February 24, hosts a variety of media. Janet Van Fleet’s
contribution includes a disconcerting metal-and-fabric sculpture, entitled “The Long Haul:
Invasion.” A gauze-wrapped bundle in a cage, pricked by curled bits of metal, it brings to mind
thoughts of prisons, factory farms, and hospitals.
Original member James Secor offers an impressionistic acrylic painting of Montpelier’s
outskirts—featuring a pair of semi-trucks on Route 2—called “Homosapiens’ Last Hurrah.”
“Toothache,” by Jesse Cooper, is a tall wedge of cherry
wood knotted in a strip of cloth, with half of the bow tie
tinted red and the other blue.
In addition to featuring the work of Front members, Show
23 has a guest artist in Jeanne Thurston of Wolcott, who
makes three-dimensional paintings that “change color” as
the viewer walks past.
Because there is no motif—nor shared medium—to unite
the works of art, the trick, Hutcheson says, is to create
a show with flow. “That’s actually my favorite part,” he
explains. “That lack of curation, in a way, that lack of
censorship, sets up the problem of how to arrange [the
works] in the space so that people can see them easily, and
they’re interfering with each other minimally.”
Do patterns emerge as Hutcheson and company look
at the submissions? Yes. “Sometimes there are uncanny-
feeling similarities,” he says. “Sometimes everybody will
be working with the same kind of squiggly hand motion,
or nine-tenths of everything is blue.” But, he suggests,
“Humans are pattern finders…I honestly think it’s mostly
random, but it’s a wonderful tool for us to use to give the
show cohesiveness.”
Although the membership has changed over time, after two years of cooperative shows there
are surely ways in which the members influence each other, Hutcheson guesses. They regularly
examine each others’ works, share thoughts and criticism, and have meetings to discuss, or
sometimes argue about, the gallery’s direction. Some folks want to do themed shows. Others
wish to show their works solo. “It’s a question of keeping the artists engaged, and also the
community,” Hutcheson explains.
The Front was built by honoring the idea of "community." At some point in 2014, Hutcheson
explained, he began using the 6 Barre Street space as his personal gallery, but the rent was
too high for him to make a go of it solo. Then, for a time, he shared it with a handful of
other artists. When that group broke up, he thought about handing in the keys, but his fans
encouraged him to find a way to keep the gallery going.
He put out a call to all of the artists he knew to see if any had the means to go in on the studio
space. He found a dozen interested parties, and The Front was born. Around half of those
members are still part of the group.
Even with sixteen members, however, the gallery is operating close to the bone, and the group
is always seeking new ways to bring in revenue and expand the gallery’s hours.
A coffee shop operated in the space for a time, creating more opportunities for visitors to view
the art and get caffeinated while doing so. Another arrangement like that, Hutcheson says,
could be beneficial for all of the parties involved. “[The members] all have jobs and stuff to
do,” he notes. “Let’s do events, let’s do sublets…we’re interested in finding ways to have the
gallery open more, and make it useful for as many people as we can.”
When it comes to art, one of the things that makes it useful is its ability to provoke thought.
In Show 23, pieces such as Van Fleet's sculpture and Hutcheson's own “John LePage for City
Council”—a work in crayon depicting the eponymous politician sporting a clown nose—fit
the bill.
In a gentler way, so does Hannah Morris's “The Day Before.” The piece—of gouache, paper,
glue, and varnish on wood—depicts seven figures, three of whom are packing a car with
suitcases, as if for a journey. The title, and the imagery, offer a bit of mystery to the viewer.
How do these characters fit together? What are they about?
In that respect, Morris's work echoes the story of Show 23. To engage with it means considering
the elements separately, and as a whole. It means seeking patterns and making meaning. And
that, as Hutcheson says, is part of what it is to be human.
Show 23 is on display at The Front at 6 Barre Street in Montpelier on Fridays, 5-8 pm,
Saturdays, 11 am-8 pm, and by private appointment thefrontvt.com
"The Day Before" Hannah Morris
Cure Cabin Fever at the
Spice on Snow Winter Folk
Music Festival by Michael T Jermyn
G
et ready for some foot-stomping good times in Montpelier. The eighth annual
Spice on Snow Winter Folk Music Festival is right around the corner and just
in time to beat the cabin-fever blues. It all starts at the Unitarian Church in
Montpelier on Thursday, January 25, with a 4:30 pm show by Americana act Mayfly,
featuring Katie Trautz, founder of the festival.
From there the fun and entertainment hits full throttle with music, dance, storytelling,
workshops, and jam sessions at multiple venues in and around Montpelier, ending on
Sunday, January 28th.
Main acts this year include Toronto’s April Verch Band, which is steeped in the Acadia
school of traditional music and guaranteed to get you dancing. “We were delighted that
the festival directors invited us to perform at this festival,” fiddler-singer-stepdancer
Verch tells The Bridge. “We love sharing our passion for music and dance, so we’re really
looking forward to the workshops where we’ll get to play and dance together.”
Hailing from Lafayette, Louisiana, and representing a new wing of Cajun and Louisiana
roots music are duo Blake Miller and David Greely, who will be accompanied by
Vermont's own Green Mountain Playboys.
Rounding out the headliners this year is Brattleboro's Scott Ainslie, who may or may not
be playing a homemade “dilley bow,” i.e., a cigar box guitar. Ainslie brings the history,
roots music, and sounds of America alive. He also has published the book on delta blues
legend Robert Johnson (Robert Johnson, At The Crossroads, 1992).
Not to be missed is the ultimate event of the festival, the concert showcasing all three
headliners starting at 7 pm, Saturday night at the Bethany Church. It's guaranteed to
be a hootenanny.
Cajun culture is also famous for its hot, spicy food (perfect for these icy winter nights),
and there will be no one going hungry this year with local chef, Bill Koucky, handling
the cooking. On the menu is jambalaya with shrimp, Andouille sausage and chicken
with baked kale (Friday, 6 to 7:30 pm at the City Hall Arts Center), and barbecued
pork with soft rolls and other tasty entrees on Saturday, (5 to 6:30 pm, Bethany Church
basement). So, make sure to bring your appetites as well as your dancing shoes.
“The idea of getting to combine these things that we love with great food,” Verch
enthuses, “and to be a part of a great community that also loves these things—in the
wintertime when there aren’t as many music festivals going on—is the best part of all!”
Make sure to have tickets because it's likely to sell out ahead of time. For more
information about other musicians and performers, tickets, free shows, venue locations,
precise times and schedules, go to the Summit School website at summit-school.org.
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 15
C a l e n d a r o f E ve n t s
Community Events
Events happening
January 18–February 3
THURSDAY, JAN. 18
Third Thursday: Family Humor with Dawn
Andrews. Andrews will speak about family
storytelling and humor in early 20th century
central Vermont, and how family culture can
persist through generations. Noon. Vermont
History Museum, 109 State St., Montpelier. Free.
vermonthistory.org. 479-8500
Adult Day – What, Why, When, and How!
Shelly Ehrman, Project Independence’s Outreach
and Caregiver Support Specialist and a nurse
since 1985 with extensive experience in mental
health, homecare and geriatrics, will answer such
questions as: What are the benefits of Adult Day?
Why should I consider Adult Day? When is it
time for someone to attend? How is it different
from a senior center? Shelly offers creative
strategies for transitioning to adult day. 1–2 pm.
Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St.,
Montpelier. 223-2518.
FRIDAY, JAN. 19
Art Class. “Unusual landscapes from around
the World” Fridays through Feb. 16. All levels
welcome. 3–5pm. Twin Valley Senior Center, Rt.
2, East Montpelier. Register: 223-6954.
Benefit for People with AIDS Coalition. Hosted
by the Savoy Theater. Featuring the film “Call
Me By Your Name.” Reception precedes film
showing. 4:30 pm. Savoy Theater, 26 Main
St., Montpelier. $7.50–9.75. Reservations
encouraged. savoytheater.com
Slideshow: Mother-Daughter Long Trail
Hiking. Come to look and listen as Montpelier
Green Mountain Club members Lexi and
Linnaea Shear, mother and daughter, present a
slideshow on their Long Trail End-to-End hike
this past summer. 7 pm. T.W. Wood Gallery &
Art Center, 46 Barre St, Montpelier. 262-6035.
SATURDAY, JAN. 20
Snowshoe White Rock Mountain with Green
Mountain Club. Moderate. 5.2 miles. Worcester.
Start at the Hunger Mountain trailhead
in Worcester and hike up to White Rock
Mountain, returning on the same trail. We will
use snowshoes or microspikes depending upon
conditions. Contact Steve or Heather Bailey,
622-4516 or stevecbailey@gmail.com for meeting
time and place.
Capital City Winter Farmers Market. Eat local
all winter long. Shop from over 20 farms and
producers. Our producer-only market means
everything is grown or handmade in Central
Vermont. 10am–2 pm. City Center, 89 Main St.,
Montpelier. montpelierfarmersmarket.com.
Plainfield Resistance Fair. Join your Central
Vermont neighbors to re-energize, re-connect,
and re-commit, with social justice groups,
music, poetry, soap box, activities. 10 am–noon.
Plainfield Town Hall Opera House, Rt. 2,
Plainfield. theplainfieldresistancefair@gmail.com
Bee Keeping. With Jeffrey Hamelman of
Vermont Beekeepers Association. 10 am–noon.
At the North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm St.,
Montpelier. Free.
Barre Repair Café. Bring a broken household
item to be fixed for free to this fun community
event. Noon–4 pm. Universalist Church, 19
Church St., Barre. repaircafevt@gmail.com.
cvswmd.org. In case of bad weather, event will be
held Jan. 27.
Fundraising Dinner at Twin Valley Senior
Center. Fill your plate with just one dish or try
multiple scoops of the many dishes offered. There
will be many choices of main courses and sides.
Along with many different homemade pies for
dessert along with coffee and tea. 4–7 pm. Twin
Valley Senior Center, Rt. 2, East Montpelier.
$10. Large groups, please RSVP. 223-3322.
twinvalleyseniors@myfairpoint.net
SUNDAY, JAN. 21
Woody Guthrie: Dustbowl Balladeer.
Presentation by Mark Greenberg. Explore
Guthrie’s life and legacy through readings from
his prolific prose writings, recorded and live
examples of his music, and slides of Guthrie’s
own art and of photographs documenting his
complex life and times. 2 pm. Jewish Community
of Greater Stowe, 1189 Cape Cod Rd., Stowe.
Free. 253-1800.
MONDAY, JAN. 22
Robin’s Nest Nature Playgroup. Outdoor
playgroup for parents, caregivers, and children
ages 0-5. Spontaneous play, exploration,
discovery, song, nature-inspired art, and oral
storytelling. 10am–noon. North Branch Nature
Center, 713 Elm St., Montpelier. Donations
welcome. northbranchnaturecenter.org
Performing Arts
THEATER, DANCE,
STORYTELLING, COMEDY
Jan. 26: Bueno Comedy Showcase. A wide range of talented standup comics, from here and away,
working longer sets. 8:30 p.m. Espresso Bueno, 248 N. Main St., Barre. Free/by donation. 479-0896.
events@espressobueno.com. espressobueno.com.
Jan. 27: Kamikaze Improv Comedy Benefit for Girls/Boyz First Mentoring. Come laugh your face
off at this family-friendly funny fundraiser. 5:30–7 pm. The Zen Barn, 179 Guptil Rd., Waterbury
Center. $10; $25 per family. Cash at door. 224-6500. girlsboyzfirst.org
Jan. 27: The State Ballet Theatre of Russia: Sleeping Beauty. Considered one of Tchaikovsky’s
greatest jewels, Sleeping Beauty includes the traditional Marius Petipa choreography gloriously
brought to life by the company’s 50 dancers. 7 pm. Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center, 122
Hourglass Dr., Stowe. $65–75. Sprucepeakarts.org
Jan. 27: The Tell Off. Winningest raconteurs of Extempo vie for audience votes and cash prizes in the
seventh annual storytelling tournament of champions. 8–10 pm. Canadian Club, 414 E. Montpelier
Rd., Barre. $10. 479-9090. storytelling@extempovt.com. extempovt.com
Feb. 2: WORST. SONG. EVER. Sign up in advance to take the stage and cover your least favorite pop
music (from any era). Audience voting, bad trophies, and a fun-raiser! 8–10 pm. Old Labor Hall, 46
Granite St., Barre. Free. 331-0013. info@wooo.tv. wooo.tv
Book groups on Living and Dying Well. Senior Activity Center , 58 Barre St., Montpelier.
Discussions will help people to connect and learn learn.uvm.edu/osher
from each other. The two books are “A Year to Yours, Mine, Ours-Money with your Honey.
Live: How to Live This Year as If It Were Your Free Financial Workshop: Communicating
Last” by Stephen Levine or “Life After Death: with your partner about money (come with or
The Burden of Proof” by Deepak Chopra. 6:30
pm. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St.,
without your partner!) 6–7:30 pm. Community
Action, 20 Gable Pl., Barre. 477-5215. lscharf@
Montpelier. Pre-registration required. 223-2518 capstonevt.org
or 223-3338.
Kick the Sugar Habit! Get inspired to improve
Play Reading- Neil Simon's "Come Blow Your your health and kick sugar out of your regular
Horn." Scripts will be provided and parts will day to day with Barb Alpert, MEd, Certified
be chosen at random. Anyone who chooses Health Coach, Clinical Herbalist, and Massage
to listen rather than read is most welcome.
6:30 pm. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main
Therapist. 6–7:30 pm. Hunger Mountain Co-op
community room, Montpelier. $3 members; $5
St., Montpelier. SaddleShoes2@gmail.com. non-members. RSVP: info@hungermountain.
Postponed from earlier date. coop
The Waterbury Historical Society:"The
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 24 Meaning of Maple." With Dr. Michael Lange,
professor of anthropology and folklore at
Author Katherine Paterson: Writing "My
Brigadista Year." A discussion of how and why Champlain College, specializing in cultural
this historical novel, about a young girl’s coming identity. 7 pm. Steele Community Room, 28 N.
of age while volunteering in Castro’s Cuban Main St., Waterbury. Free.
national literary program, was written. An Osher
Lifelong Learning Program. 1:30 pm. Montpelier
PAG E 16 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE
Visual Arts
EXHIBITS
Through Jan. 26: The Book of Changes:
Symbolic Landscapes of the I Ching. 64 works
by Elizabeth Nelson inspired by the 64 hexagrams
of the I Ching. Highland Center for the Arts,
2875 Hardwick St. Greensboro. 533-9075.
highlandartsvt.org.
Through Jan. 30: Art in the Adult Library:
Street Scapes of Vermont. Watercolors by Nitya
Brighenti. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St.,
Montpelier. 223-3338.
Through Jan. 31: Margaret Sparrow, Still Time.
Easel paintings and works on paper. These works
have never before been exhibited in Vermont. The
Gallery at Central Vermont Medical Center, 130
Fisher Rd., Berlin. For more info: 279-6403 or
moetown52@comcast.net.
Jan. 22–Feb. 9: Hal Mayforth, Avenues. Work by
award-winning cartoonist. Reception/artist’s talk:
Jan. 25, 3–5 pm. Julian Scott Memorial Gallery
in the Dibden Center for the Arts at Johnson State
College. jsc.edu/Dibden. 635-1469.
Through Feb. 12: Merry Schmidt. Watercolor
paintings. Merry will donate 15% of sale proceeds
to MSAC. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58
Barre St., Montpelier. 223-2518.
Tell them you saw
it in The Bridge!
Calendar of Events
Through Feb. 17: Kathy Stark, Mostly White.
Series of paintings. Axel’s Gallery, 5 Stowe St.,
Waterbury. 244-7801.
Through Feb. 21: Allison Clayton. The 23
photographs in this exhibit include quiet shots
of the natural world and capture scenes from
throughout Vermont and New England. Gifford
Gallery, 44. S. Main St., Randolph. 728-7000.
Through Feb. 23: Susan Abbott, Warm Places.
T.W. Wood Art Gallery, 46 Barre St., Montpelier.
twwoodgallery.org
Through Feb 23: Axel Stohlberg, Abstraction
Around Me/f 7 Photography Group, Seven Ways
of Seeing. Opening reception: Artist talk: Feb.
2, 5:30–7 pm followed by Q&A with f 7 group.
T.W. Wood Art Gallery, 46 Barre St., Montpelier.
twwoodgallery.org
Through Feb. 24: SHOW 23 @ the Front. The
Front celebrates the opening of the collective
gallery’s latest show, Show 23 by contemporary
Vermont artists, including guest artist Jeanne
Thurston. Reception: Feb. 2, 4–8 pm. 6 Barre St.,
Montpelier. thefrontvt.com.
Through Feb. 25: Justin Kenney, The Parley
of the Curve. Kenney’s imagery represents
architecture of society in opposition with nature.
The Gallery at River Arts, 74 Pleasant St.,
Morrisville. 888-1261. riverartsvt.org
Feb. 2–Feb.28: Kimberley Forney, Colorful
Expressions. Forney finds inspiration among the
THURSDAY, JAN. 25
Cross-country Ski Stowe with Green Mountain
Club. Moderate to difficult. 6 miles. Barnes
Camp over Smugglers’ Notch on the highway to
Jeffersonville. Metal edged skis are not required,
but helpful if the snow is hard packed. Contact
Steve or Heather Bailey, 622-4516 or stevecbailey@
gmail.com for meeting time and place.
Ch-Ch-Changes. Bypass the New Year’s
resolutions, but find new ways to make changes
in yourself/life. By understanding the basis of
conversational and deeper hypnosis (trance), you
will learn steps for changing habits or personal
beliefs that no longer serve you. 5:30–7 pm.
Hunger Mountain Co-op community room,
Montpelier. $8 members; $10 non-members.
RSVP: info@hungermountain.coop
FRIDAY, JAN. 26
Art Class. See event description under Jan. 19.
Naturalist Journeys Series: Climate: seasonal
changes of Vermont flora. With Josh Halman,
Forest Health Specialist with Vermont Dept.
of Forests, Parks and Recreation. This talk will
present findings from over 25 years of monitoring
forest trees and plant life in the state. 7 pm. North
Branch Nature Center Maxham Room, 713 Elm
St., Montpelier. By donation.
SUNDAY, JAN. 28
Snowshoe Woodstock with Green Mountain
Club. Moderate. 8 miles. Appalachian Trail. Rte.
12 to Winturi Shelter. Round-trip excursion will
be either a hike or snowshoe depending on the trail
conditions. Reaching the destination will depend
on timing and trail conditions. Contact Michael
Chernick, 249-0520 or chernick5@comcast.net for
meeting time and place.
Advanced Cancer Support Group. Individuals
and families living with incurable or advanced
cancer are invited to meet to talk openly about
landscape, within music, animals, people, and her
daily experiences. Reception: Feb. 2, 4–8pm. The
Cheshire Cat, 28 Elm St., Montpelier. 223-1981.
cheshirecatclothing.com
Through Feb. 28: Nitya Brighenti, Light and
Shadows. Paintings. ArtWalk reception, Feb. 2,
4:30–8 pm. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main
St., Montpelier. 223-3338Through Feb. 28: Jaquith
Invitational Group Art Show. Reception: Jan. 26,
6–8pm. Jaquith Public Library, 122 School St. RM
2, Marshfield. 426-3581.
Through March 2: Post-Apocalyptic Woodcuts
by Peter Schumann of Bread and Puppet
Theater. Opening reception: Feb. 3, 2–5 pm.
White River Gallery @ BALE, 35 S. Windsor St.,
S. Royalton. 498-8438.
Through March 30: Linda Mirabile, Avian
Inspired. Images of birds are painted on birch
panel or watercolor paper with acrylics. Pavilion
Office Building, 109 State St., 5th fl. Montpelier.
Photo ID is required for admission.
Through March 30: Claire Van Vliet, Sky and
Earth. Pulp paintings created from 1995 to 2011.
ArtWalk, Feb. 2, 4–7 pm. Vermont Supreme
Court Gallery, 111 State St., Montpelier.
Jan. 19–April 14: Grace DeGennaro/Anne Lilly,
Ordinary Time. Paintings and kinetic sculpture.
Opening reception: Jan. 19, 5–7 pm. Artist talk
with Anne Lilly, 5:30 pm. Helen Day Art Center,
90 Pond St., Stowe. 253-8358. helenday.com
concerns and interests. 4–6 pm. Montpelier Senior
Activity Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier. Contact
Theresa at the CVMC Cancer Center with
questions: 225-5449.
MONDAY, JAN. 29
LGBTQ Film & Discussion Series. Join us as we
watch and discuss a variety of films addressing
LGBTQ themes. 6 pm. Kellogg-Hubbard Library,
135 Main St., Montpelier. 223-3338.
Eric Rickstad Mystery Night. Join New York
Times bestsellng author at George’s Mystery Book
Club for a reading and discussion on his newest
novel, “The Names of Dead Girls,” the terrifying
sequel to the smash sensation “The Silent Girls.”
Q&A, book signing, and refreshments. 6:30 pm.
Bear Pond Books, 77 Main St., Montpelier. 229-
0774. bearpondbooks.com
TUESDAY, JAN. 30
Baron Wormser Book Launch: "Tom
o'Vietnam." The former poet laureate of Maine
presents his debut novel with a reading, talk,
Q&A, book signing, and refreshments. 7 pm. Bear
Pond Books, 77 Main St., Montpelier. 229-0774.
bearpondbooks.com
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 31
Journalist Garrett Graff: The Mueller
Investigation and 2018 Politics. Mueller
biographer Graff will discuss the unfolding
investigation of Russia’s role in the last election and
its impact on current national politics. An Osher
Lifelong Learning Program. 1:30 pm. Montpelier
Senior Activity Center , 58 Barre St., Montpelier.
learn.uvm.edu/osher
Yours, Mine, Ours-Money with your Honey. See
event description under Jan. 24.
Pop-in for Pop-ups with Ellen Bressler. Make
cards for Valentine’s Day or any other occasion.
Start with a flat piece of paper and bring it
to life with a few folds and cuts. 6:30–8 pm.
Through April 14: Philip Herbison, The Infinite
Shapes of Water. Large abstract photographs of
water. Opening reception/artist talk: Feb. 9, 5:30
pm. Helen day Art Center East Gallery, 90 Pond
St., Stowe. 253-8358. helenday.com
Through April 15: Robert Chapla, Herding in All
the Usual Places … And Then Some. Urban and
rural herding differences are on display in this show
of 18 oil and acrylic paintings. Presented by Studio
Place Arts. Morse Block Deli, 260 N. Main St.,
Barre. robertchapla.com.
Through Sept. 30: James Peterson,
Dreamcatcher. Large-scale interactive installation
that was inspired by the magical ice caves of
Kamchatka in Siberia. The grounds of Spruce Peak
Performing Arts Center, 122 Hourglass Dr., Stowe.
helenday.com
Ongoing: Michael Jermyn, New American
Impressionism. Photographs. Positive Pie, N.
Main St., Barre.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Feb. 2: ArtWalk. Art Exhibits in over 20
Montpelier businesses with work by Vermont
artists. Refreshments available at many locations.
Start anywhere and take in as many exhibits
as you like! 4–8 pm. Downtown Montpelier.
montpelieralive.org
Jaquith Public Library, School St., Marshfield.
jaquithpubliclibrary.org. 426-3581.
Full Moon Snowshoe Hikes. Under a full moon
and surrounded by sparkling snow, let’s snowshoe
by lunar light! Night activities will illuminate
how wildlife survives the long nights of winter.
Snowshoes and hot chocolate provided. 7–8:30
pm. North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm St.,
Montpelier. $5 members; $10 non-members.
northbranchnaturecenter.org. 229-6206.
THURSDAY, FEB. 1
Mid Winter Blues? Registered herbalist & owner
of Earth Rhythm Herbal, Shona MacDougall
will discuss herbs to help relieve anxiety. She will
go over herbs to have in your toolbox that can
help you cope with stress and tension. 6–7:30
pm. Hunger Mountain Co-op community room,
Montpelier. Free. RSVP: info@hungermountain.
coop
FRIDAY, FEB. 2
Art Class. See event description under Jan. 19.
Bethel First Friday Flicks — Free Family Movie.
Bring a blanket or beanbag if you want to get
comfy (regular chairs available too). Popcorn and
drinks for sale. 6:30–8:30 pm. Bethel Town Hall,
134 S. Main St., Bethel. bri-vt.org/events
Naturalist Journeys Series: Great White Sharks
in our Backyard. Spend an evening with Shark
Biologist, Lindsay L. Graff, as she discusses the re-
emerging population of Great White Sharks that
are returning to our New England waters. 7 pm.
North Branch Nature Center Maxham Room, 713
Elm St., Montpelier. By donation.
SATURDAY, FEB. 3
Green Mountain Club Snowshoe Stowe
Pinnacle. Moderate. 3.6 miles. Beautiful views of
Mansfield and the Green Mountains. Hike will be
followed by optional lunch in Waterbury or Stowe.
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 17

Live Music
VENUES
Bagitos. 28 Main St., Montpelier. Other shows
T.B.A. bagitos.com.
Every Wed.: Open Mic
Charlie O’s World Famous. 70 Main St.
Montpelier. Free. 223-6820.
Every Tues.: Karaoke with DJ Vociferous, 9
pm–1 am
Jan. 19: Dallas Higgins (indie) 6 pm; Megan
Jean & the KFB (Gypsy folk) 9 pm
Jan. 20: Barbacoa/Tsunamibots/Beware the
Dangers of the Ghost Scorpian (surf) 9 pm
Jan. 25: Kick Em' Jenny/Big Night (Cajun/
swing) 9 pm. Part of Spice on Snow Festival
Jan. 26: Art Herttura (acoustic) 6pm; The Rear
DeFrosters (rockabilly) 9 pm. Part of Spice on
Snow Festival
Jan. 27: Mister Burns/C.Shreve/Boomslang/
Jarv (hip-hop) 9 pm
Positive Pie. 22 State St., Montpelier. 229-0453.
positivepie.com.
Jan. 26: MADMAN3 (electronic) 10 pm. $5.
Whammy Bar. 7 pm; Fri. and Sat., 7:30 pm. 31
County Rd., Calais. Thurs., Free. whammybar1.
com.
Every Wed.: Open Mic
Jan. 19: Brevity Thing
Jan. 20: Kelly Ravin and Halle Toulis (original
alt country)
Jan. 25: VT Bluegrass Pioneers (Dan Lindner,
Eric Lindner, Danny Coane)
Jan. 27: Jenn and John (singer-songwriter)
Calendar of Events
SPECIAL EVENTS
Jan. 20: Jazz at Studio C. Allison Mann,
Colin McCaffrey, and Chris Peterman. 7–8:30
pm. 18 Langdon St, 2nd fl., Montpelier. $15.
Reservations: allisonjoymann@comcast.net.
Jan. 20: BARIKA. Dance away the January chill
with a six-piece indie band that blends stellar
musicianship with West African infused rock,
jazz and funk. 7:30 pm. Spruce Peak Performing
Arts Center, 122 Hourglass Dr., Stowe. $20.
sprucepeakarts.org.
Jan. 21: Capital City Concerts presents French
Connection. This tribute concert to Louis Moyse,
the guiding force behind Capital City Concerts,
features Moyse’s leading protege, Vermonter and
Grammy-nominated flutist Karen Kevra,with her
longtime collaborator Washington, DC pianist
Jeffrey Chappell, performing works of Blavet,
Poulenc, Ravel, and other French composers. At
intermission a menu/ballot of the ten works from
Louis Moyse’s celebrated collection Flute Music
by French Composers will be distributed. Based
on written descriptions of each piece audience
members will cast their ballots to determine the
second half of the program. 3 pm. Unitarian
Church, 130 Main St., Montpelier. $15–25.
Capitalcityconcerts.org. Tickets may also be
purchased (cash or check only) in person at Bear
Pond Books
Jan. 25–28: Spice on Snow Winter Music
Festival. A four-day, city-wide celebration!
Montpelier will be filled with the sounds of
Spicy-hot Cajun and Oldtime Stringband music,
culture and cuisine from Louisiana, Southern
Appalachia, and Canada. Various locations
in downtown Montpelier. Tickets $20–110.
summit-school.org. 793-3016.
Jan. 25 and 27: Cajun Band Chaque Fois Plays
at Spice on Snow Festival! Hear them in a
Cajun round robin with David Greely and Blake
Miller. 3:45–5 pm. American Legion Hall, 21
Main St., Montpelier. $5. summit-school.org.
793-3016.
Jan. 25: Americana Duo Mayfly Plays at Spice
on Snow Winter Music Festival! Cajun and
Old-Time music and dancing galore. Bring your
family and friends to warm up a cold, snowy
day listening to sweet harmonies and fiddle
tunes! 4:30 pm Unitarian Church, 130 Main St.,
Montpelier. By donation. summit-school.org.
793-3016.
Jan. 25: Rock City! in Concert. Rock City is
Barre’s one and only Rock & Soul chorus with
35+ singers and one rocking band! The group
will present an evening of songs made famous
from films from the fifties through the aughts, in
four-part harmony. 7:30 pm. Barre Elks Lodge,
10 Jefferson St., Barre. $10. Benefits the People’s
Health and Wellness Clinic.
Jan. 26: Jazzyaoke. Come sing the standards
backed by a live six-piece jazz band; all lyrics
provided. 6:30 pm. Grange Hall Cultural Center,
317 Howard Ave., Waterbury Center. $5. 244-
4168. info@wooo.tv. wooo.tv
Jan. 28: Pete’s Posse. Three generations of
musicians who have come together to create
their own electrifying sound they call “multi-
generational roots music.” 4 pm. Plainfield Town
Hall Opera House, Rt. 2, Plainfield. $15; seniors
$10; students/special rate $5. catamountarts.org.
plainfieldoperahousevt.org.
Jan. 31: Farmers Night Concert: Eleva
Chamber Players. Central Vermont’s only
professional string chamber orchestra. The
program will include works by Mozart, John
Rutter, Michael Close and some tantalizing
tangoes. 7:30 pm. Vermont State House,
Montpelier. Free. elevachamberplayers.org.
Feb. 2: Benefit Concert for Open Hands Café.
Pam Bockes, Leeds Brewer, David Kaynor, and
Susan Reid play Swedish, Quebecoise, English
dance, Irish and American tunes as well as their
own compositions. 7 pm. Christ Episcopal
Church, 64 State St., Montpelier. $10 suggested
donation. Benefit the new Open Hand Cafe also
located in the Parish Hall of Christ Church.
Feb. 2: WORST. SONG. EVER. Sign up in advance
to take the stage and cover your least favorite
pop music (from any era). Audience voting, bad
trophies, and a fun-raiser! 8–10 pm. Old Labor
Hall, 46 Granite St., Barre. 331-0013. info@
wooo.tv. wooo.tv
Feb. 3: A Starline BBQ. Join us for an evening of
BBQ, live music and dancing with The Starline
Rhythm Boys. Featuring an amazing southern
bbq buffet by Cabot School chef, Brock Miller of
Backroad BBQ. All proceeds help support Cabot
School’s The Limes, and their upcoming tour
this June. 6 pm. Cabot School, 25 Common Rd.,
Cabot. facebook.com/vermontlimes/
Feb. 3: Jazz Concert. Allison Mann, Ira
Friedman (keyboard), and Anthony Santor (bass).
7 pm. 18 Langdon St., Montpelier. $15. Limited
space.
Feb. 3: Le Vent du Nord. Quebec’s premier
exporter of exquisite traditional music and
showmanship. 7:30 pm. Barre Opera House, 6
N. Main St., Barre. $18–32. barreoperahouse.org.
476-8188.

We will use snowshoes or microspikes depending upon conditions. Contact
Steve or Heather Bailey, 622-4516 or stevecbailey@gmail.com for meeting
time and place.
Jaquith Library Open House and Book Sale. Music, refreshments, and
kid friendly activities. Donations for book sale may be dropped off one week
in advance. 9 am–1 pm. Jaquith Public Library, School St., Marshfield.
jaquithpubliclibrary.org. 426-3581
Capital City Winter Farmers Market. Eat local all winter long. Shop from
over 20 farms and producers. Our producer-only market means everything is
grown or handmade in Central Vermont. 10 am–2 pm. City Center, 89 Main
St., Montpelier. montpelierfarmersmarket.com.
Orchard Valley Waldorf School Winter Faire. A day of activities promoting
peace, love, and joyful embrace of community. Storytelling, puppet shows,
candle dipping, origami, Valentine's cards and more. 10 am–2 pm. OVWS,
East Montpelier Campus, 2290 VT Rt. 14N, E. Montpelier. No admission
charge; fees for activities. ovws.org. 456-7400
Sock Hop. Benefits Legion Auxiliary Unit 59’s scholarship and veterans
programs. Music from the fifties to seventies. Wear clothes from the era!
Burgers, hot dogs, fries, shakes, and goodies for sale. 6 pm. 16 Stowe St.,
Waterbury. $10. 244-8089.

Vermont College of Fine Arts Visual Art Winter 2018 Residency Events
Exhibitions: Lectures, Presentations & Discussions:
Jan. 29-Feb. 1: Graduating Student Exhibition, Jan. 25: Lecture - Artist-in-Residence Tariku Send your event listing to
9 am-7 pm daily.* Opening Reception: Jan. 28, Shiferaw, One of These Black Boys, 7:30 pm.
7:30 pm. College Hall Gallery, 36 College Street, College Hall Chapel, 36 College Street, calendar@montpelierbridge.com.
Montpelier. Montpelier. vcfa.edu/visual-art
Deadline for print in the next
Jan. 29-Feb. 1: New & Returning Student Jan. 30: Presentation - Visiting Artist Alteronce
Exhibition, 9 am-7 pm daily.* Opening Gumby, 7:30 pm, College Hall Chapel, 36 issue is January 25
Reception: Jan. 26, 7 pm. Alumni Hall, 45 College Street, Montpelier.
College Street, Montpelier. Jan. 31: Presentation - Visiting Artist Rachel
Jan. 28-Feb. 1: Artist-in-Residence Exhibition, Steinberg, 9 am, College Hall Chapel, 36 College
9 am-7 pm daily. Opening Reception: Jan. 27, Street, Montpelier.
8:30 pm. College Hall Gallery Vault, 36 College Jan. 31: Roundtable Discussion - Tariku
Street, Montpelier. Shiferaw, Alteronce Gumby & Rachel Steinberg,
*Note: Galleries may be closed for critiques and 1 pm, College Hall Chapel, 36 College Street,
reviews as determined by the program. Montpelier.
More information, including artist bios, can be found at http://vcfa.edu/visual-art.

Michael T. Jermyn Wins

Tammie Award for Album,
“Aristocratic Peasants Unite”
W
e don’t often toot our own horn at The Bridge, but we wish to extend a hearty
congratulations to our photographer Michael T. Jermyn, who won the The Times
Argus’ “Tammie Award” for best singer-songwriter album of the year.
Jermyn discusses what inspired the album:
I had this auntie who lived in New York’s Greenwich Village. She was a whiskey-guzzling, jazz
singing bohemian, and one of the original “village characters.” She and I were very close, and
when she would come up to Vermont to visit my family, we would always end up singing and
having a blast.
When she died I felt I had to memorialize her in a song, so I wrote this song called ''Rosalita,”
with “aristocratic peasant” in one of the verses. That kind of morphed through the years into
a complete, serious album (Aristocratic Peasants Unite), which I finally finished last year in a
studio in Randolph. I think she would have liked it.
One of the songs on the album, ''Such a Long and Winding Road'' (She and I would sing Beatles
songs together on my porch in the summer), which my daughter Lucy sings with me, came about
in an amazingly vivid dream. “John Lennon was singing “Imagine” to me. We were hanging out
alongside a lazy river under a massive willow tree like two old chums. When I woke up, I grabbed
my bedside pencil and started writing down whatever I could remember as fast as I could."
Most folks in town know it because I sing it every Tuesday night at Sweet Melissa's in Montpelier.
When I hear the crowd singing the lyrics along with me, it totally makes my whole day.”
Join in the sing-along at Jermyn’s next show at Sweet Melissa's on Wednesday Jan 31 at 8 pm
PAG E 18 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE
Weekly
ARTS & CRAFTS
Beaders’ Group. All levels of beading experience
welcome. Free instruction available. Come with
a project for creativity and community. Sat., 11
am–2 pm The Bead Hive, Plainfield. 454-1615.
Tuesday Night Knitters. Every week except
for the first Tuesday of each month. All levels
encouraged! A small but dedicated group
of knitters invite you to share your projects,
questions and enthusiasm for the fiber arts! At
the Cutler Memorial Library, 151 High Street
(US Route 2), Plainfield. 454-8504, www.
cutlerlibrary.org.
Crafters Group. Bring your own projects, or
work together on projects to sell to benefit the
Senior Activity Center. We can all learn from
each other! Every Wed., noon–2 pm. Montpelier
Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier.
223-2518.
Photography Club. Every Thurs., noon–1 pm.
Led by professional photographer Linda Hogan.
Great chance to get and give some feedback
on your work and see what others are doing.
Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St.,
Montpelier. 223-2518.
Drop-in River Arts Elder Art Group. Work on
art, share techniques and get creative with others.
Bring your own art supplies. For elders 60+. Every
Fri., 10 am–noon. River Arts Center, 74 Pleasant
St., Morrisville. Free. 888-1261. riverartsvt.org.
BICYCLING
Open Shop Nights. Volunteer-run community
bike shop: bike donations and repairs. Wed., 4–6
pm; other nights. Freeride Montpelier, 89 Barre
St., Montpelier. 552-3521. freeridemontpelier.org.
BOOKS & WORDS
Lunch in a Foreign Language. Bring lunch and
practice your language skills with neighbors.
Noon–1 pm Mon., American Sign Language;
Tues., Italian; Wed., Spanish; Thurs., French.
Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St.,
Montpelier. 223-3338.
Club de Français Intermédiaire. Lecture
(reading). Conversation. Grammaire. Every Mon.,
12;45–2 pm. Montpelier Senior Activity Center,
58 Barre St., Montpelier. 223-2518.
Italian Group. A fun-loving group meets to
converse in Italian. Every Tues., 1:15–2:45
pm. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre
St., Montpelier. 223-2518.    youth, ages 13 – 22. 2nd and 4th Fridays of the
Ongoing Reading Group. Improve your reading
and share some good books. Books chosen by
group. Thurs., 9–10 am. Central Vermont Adult
Basic Education, Montpelier Learning Center,
100 State St. 223-3403.
Chapters in History: Exploring Several
American Presidencies. Saturdays at 2 pm.
Jaquith Public Library, School St., Marshfield.
For info: 802-426-3581 or visit our website:
jaquithpubliclibrary.org
BUSINESS, FINANCE,
COMPUTERS, EDUCATION
One-on-One Technology Help Sessions. Free
assistance to patrons needing help with their
computers and other personal electronic devices.
30 min. one-on-one sessions every Tues., 10 am–
noon. Waterbury Public Library, 28 N. Main St.,
Waterbury. Free. Registration required: 244-7036.
FOOD & DRINK
Community Meals in Montpelier. All welcome.
Free.
Mon.: Unitarian Church, 130 Main St., 11
am–12:30 pm
Tues.: Bethany Church, 115 Main St., 11:30
am–1 pm
Wed.: Christ Church, 64 State St., 11 am–
12:30 pm
Thurs.: Trinity Church, 137 Main St., 11:30
am–1 pm
Fri.: St. Augustine Church, 18 Barre St., 11
am–12:30 pm
Sun.: Last Sunday only, Bethany Church, 115
Main St. (hosted by Beth Jacob Synagogue),
4:30–5:30 pm
Send your event listing to calendar@montpelierbridge.com. Deadline for print in the next issue is Jan. 25
Calendar of Events
Lunches for Seniors. Mon., Wed., Fri., Noon.
Twin Valley Senior Center, 4583 U.S. Rt. 2, E.
Montpelier. $4 suggested donation. 223-3322.
twinvalleyseniors.org.
Feast Together or Feast To Go. All proceeds
benefit the Feast Senior Meal program. Tues. and
Fri., noon–1 p.m. Live music every Tues., 10:30–
11:45 am. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58
Barre St., Montpelier. Seniors 60+ free with $5
suggested donation; under 60 $7. Reservations:
262-6288 or FEAST@montpelier-vt.org.
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Bone Building Exercises. Open to all ages.
Every Mon., Wed. and Fri. 7:30 am and 9:15 am.
Twin Valley Senior Center, 4583 U.S. Rte. 2, E.
Montpelier. Free. 223-3322. twinvalleyseniors.
org.
Tai Chi for Seniors. Led by trained volunteers.
Advanced class: every Mon. and Fri., 1–2 p.m.
Beginners class: Tues. and Thurs. 10–11 am.
Twin Valley Senior Center, 4583 U.S. Rte. 2, E.
Montpelier. Free. 223-3322. twinvalleyseniors.
org.
Living Strong Group. Volunteer-led group.
Sing while exercising. Open to all seniors. Every
Mon., 2:30–3:30 p.m. and every Fri., 2–3 pm.
Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St.,
Montpelier. Free. Register: 223-2518. msac@
montpelier-vt.org.
Type 2 Diabetes Self-Management Program.
Education and support to help adults at high risk
of developing type 2 diabetes adopt healthier
eating and exercise habits that can lead to weight
loss and reduced risk. Every Tues., 10:30–11:30
am. Kingwood Health Center Conference Room
(lower level), 1422 Rt. 66, Randolph. Free.
Register: 728-7714.
Tai Chi for Falls Prevention. With Diane Des
Bois. Beginners and mixed levels welcome. 2:15
pm. Barre Area Senior Center, 131 S., Main St.,
#4, Barre. Free. Register: 479-9512.
Tai Chi Classes for All Ages. Every Tues. and
Thurs., 10–11 am. Twin Valley Senior Center,
Rte. 2, Blueberry Commons, E. Montpelier. Free.
223-3322. twinvalleyseniors@myfairpoint.net
HIV Testing. Vermont CARES offers fast oral
testing. Wed., 2–5 pm. 29 State St., Ste. 14 (above
Rite Aid), Montpelier. Free and anonymous. 371-
6224. vtcares.org.
KIDS & TEENS
The Basement Teen Center. Safe drop-in space
to hang out, make music, play pool, ping-pong
and board games and eat free food. All activities
are free. Mon.–Thurs., 2–6 pm., Fridays 3-10 pm.
Basement Teen Center, 39 Main St., Montpelier.
BasementTeenCenter.org
Story Time and Playgroup. With Sylvia Smith
for story time and Cassie Bickford for playgroup.
For ages birth–6 and their grown-ups. We follow
the Twinfield Union School calendar and do not
hold the program the days Twinfield is closed.
Wed., 10–11:30 am. Jaquith Public Library,
122 School St., Marshfield. Free. 426-3581.
jaquithpubliclibrary.org.
Lego Club. Use our large Lego collection to create
and play. All ages. Thurs., 3–4:30 pm. Kellogg-
Hubbard Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier. Free.
223-3338. kellogghubbard.org.
Dads & Kids Playgroup. Playtime and free dinner.
Every Thurs., 5–7 pm. For dads and their children
ages birth–5. Family Center of Washington
County, 383 Sherwood Dr., Montpelier. fcwcvt.org
Drop-in Kinder Arts Program. Innovative
exploratory arts program with artist/instructor
Kelly Holt. Age 3–5. Fri., 10:30 am–noon. River
Arts Center, 74 Pleasant St., Morrisville. 888-1261.
RiverArtsVT.org.
Teen Fridays. Find out about the latest teen
books, use the gym, make art, play games and if
you need to, do your homework. Fri., 3–5 p.m.
Jaquith Public Library, 122 School St., Marshfield.
426-3581.
Mad River Valley Youth Group. Sun., 7–9 pm.
Meets at various area churches. Call 497-4516 for
location and information.
MUSIC & DANCE
Barre-Tones Women’s Chorus. Open rehearsal.
Sex Addicts Anonymous. Mon., 6:30 pm.
Find your voice with 50 other women. Mon., 7 pm.
Bethany Church, 115 Main St., Montpelier. 552-
Capital City Grange, Rt. 12, Berlin. BarretonesVT.
3483.
com. 552-3489.
Overeaters Anonymous. Twelve-step program
Dance or Play with the Swinging Over 60 Band.
for physically, emotionally and spiritually
Danceable tunes from the 1930s to the 1960s.
overcoming overeating. Sat., 8:30–9:30 am. at
Recruiting musicians. Tues., 10:30–11:45 am.
Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St.,
Montpelier. 223-2518.
Monteverdi Young Singers Chorus Rehearsal.
New chorus members welcome. Wed., 4–5 pm.
Montpelier. Call 229-9000 for location and more
information.
Ukelele Group. All levels welcome. Thurs., 6–8
pm. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre
St. 223-2518.
Barre Rock City Chorus. We sing songs from the
'60s to '80s and beyond. All songs are taught by
rote using word sheets, so ability to read music is
not required. All ages welcome; children under
13 should come with a parent. Every Thurs.,
6:30–8:30 pm. Church of the Good Shepherd, 39
Washington St., Barre.
Gamelan Rehearsals. Sun., 7–9 pm. Pratt Center,
Goddard College. Free. 426-3498. steven.light@
jsc.edu. light.kathy@gmail.com.
OUTDOORS
Walks with Joan. Easy to moderate walks around
Montpelier for healthy exercise and conversation.
Every Tues., 10–11 am. Montpelier Senior Activity
Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier. 223-2518. 
Trash Tramps. Walk around Montpelier
collecting trash to help beautify our City. Bring
gloves, other supplies provided. Every Tues., 2–3
pm. Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre
St., Montpelier. 223-2518.
RECYCLING
Additional Recycling. The Additional Recyclables
Collection Center accepts scores of hard-to-recycle
items. Mon., Wed., Fri., noon–6 p.m.; Third Sat.,
9 a.m.–1 p.m. ARCC, 540 North Main St., Barre.
$5 per carload. 229-9383 x106. For list of accepted
items, go to cvswmd.org/arcc.
RESOURCES
Onion River Exchange Tool Library. More
than 100 tools both power and manual. Onion
River Exchange is located at 46 Barre Street in
Montpelier. Hours are Wed. and Thurs., 10 am–2
pm. For more info. or to donate tools: 661-8959 or
info@orexchange.com.
SOLIDARITY/IDENTITY
Rainbow Umbrella of Central VT. Adult
LGBTQ group, meets the third Tuesday evening
of the month at 5:45 pm. for a casual dinner
at a local restaurant. The gathering place is 58
Barre St. in Montpelier. Info: RUCVTAdmin@
PrideCenterVT.org
Friday Night Group. Social gathering of LGBTQ
month, 6:30 – 8:00 pm. Free pizza and soft drinks.
Supervised by LGBT adults trained by Outright
Vermont. Unitarian Church, Montpelier. For more
info, email Nancy: SaddleShoes2@gmail.com
Bowling. Rainbow Umbrella of Central Vermont,
an adult LGBTQ group, bowls at Twin City
Lanes on Sunday afternoons twice a month.
For dates and times, write to RUCVTAdmin@
PrideCenterVT.org
SUPPORT
Turning Point Center. Safe, supportive place
for individuals and their families in or seeking
recovery. Daily, 10 am–5 pm. 489 North Main
St., Barre. 479-7373.
Sun.: Alchoholics Anonymous, 8:30 am.
Tues.: Making Recovery Easier workshops,
6–7:30 pm.
Wed.: Wit’s End Parent Support Group, 6 pm.
Thurs.: Narcotics Anonymous, 6:30 pm.
Al-Anon. Help for friends and families of
Alcoholics.
Sun.: Trinity Church, 137 Main St.,
Montpelier (back door) 6:15–7:30 pm.
Tues.: Bethany Church, 115 Main St.,
Montpelier (basement) noon–1 pm.
Wed.: Bethany Church,115 Main St.,
Montpelier (basement) 7–8 pm.
Thurs.: Bethany Church, 115 Main St.,
Montpelier (basement) noon–1 pm
Sat.: Turning Point, N. Main St., Barre, 5 pm.
(child friendly meeting)
Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, 39
Washington St., Barre. 249-3970.
Mooditude Support Group. A professional and
peer-led support group, not a therapy group.
For people with depression, bipolar disorder,
seasonal affective disorder, dysthymia etc.). Every
Wed., 4–5 pm. Bethany Church,115 Main St.,
Montpelier. (downstairs at end of hallway). Free.
223-4111 or 522-0775.
Weight Loss Support Group. Get help and
support on your weight loss journey every Wed.,
6–7 pm. Giffords Conference Center, 44 S. Main
St., Randolph. Free. No registration required.
Open to all regardless of where you are in your
weight loss.
Wit’s End. Support group for parents, siblings,
children, spouses and/or relationship partners of
someone suffering with addiction — whether it
is to alcohol, opiates, cocaine, heroin, marijuana
or something else. Every Wed., 6–8 pm. Turning
Point Center, 489 N. Main St., Barre. Louise:
279-6378.
National Alliance on Mental Illness VT Peer
Support Group. For anyone with any type of
mental health condition looking for confidential
peer-led support among others living with mental
health issues. Every 2nd Thurs., 4–5:30 pm in
the Boardroom (basement level near cafeteria)
at Central VT Medical Center on Fisher Rd in
Berlin. Questions: Call Nick Martin at 876-7949
ext. 102 or info@namivt.org.
SPIRITUALITY
Christian Science Reading Room. You're invited
to visit the Reading Room and see what we
have for your spiritual growth. You can borrow,
purchase or simply enjoy material in a quiet study
room. Hours: Wed.–Sat., 11 am–2 pm; Wed.,
5–7:15 p.m. 145 State St., Montpelier. 223-2477.
A Course in Miracles. A study in spiritual
transformation. Group meets each Tues., 7–8 pm
Christ Episcopal Church, 64 State St., Montpelier.
279-1495.
Christian Counseling. Tues. and Thurs. Daniel
Dr., Barre. Reasonable cost. By appt. only: 479-
0302.
Prayer Meeting. Ecumenical and charismatic
prayer meeting. Every 1st and 3rd Thurs., 6:30–8
pm. 8 Daniel Dr., Barre. 479-0302
Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. For those
interested in learning about the Catholic faith, or
current Catholics who want to learn more. Wed.,
7 pm. St. Monica Church, 79 Summer St., Barre.
Register: 479-3253.
Deepening Our Jewish Roots. Fun, engaging text
study and discussion on Jewish spirituality. Sun.,
4:45–6:15 pm. Yearning for Learning Center,
Montpelier. 223-0583. info@yearning4learning.
org.
SPORTS & GAMES
Roller Derby Open Recruitment and
Recreational Practice. Central Vermont’s
Wrecking Doll Society invites quad skaters age
18 and up. No experience necessary. Equipment
provided: first come, first served. Sat., 5–6:30 pm.
Montpelier Recreation Center, Barre St. First skate
free. centralvermontrollerderby.com.
YOGA & MEDITATION
Christian Meditation Group. People of all faiths
welcome. Mon., noon–1 pm. Christ Church,
Montpelier. 223-6043.
Zen Meditation. With Zen Affiliate of Vermont.
Wed., 6:30–7:30 pm. 174 River St., Montpelier.
Free. Call for orientation: 229-0164.
Montpelier Shambhala Meditation. Group
meditation practice. Sun., 10 am–noon; Wed., 6–7
pm; learn to meditate — free instruction the 1st
Wed. of the month. New location: 5 State Street,
2nd floor, Montpelier. info@montpeliershambhala.
org, www.montpelier.shambhala.org
Sunday Sangha: Community Ashtanga Yoga.
Sunday, 7:15–8:15 pm Mantra and Pranayama.
Saturday, 10–11:30 am. Funk N Flow Yoga.
Grateful Yoga, 15 State St., 3F, Montpelier. By
donation
ROOTS. Join Martha Holden and friends and
get support and practical experience through
discussion and guided meditation for accessing
wisdom, strength and community, that we
may better engage in our lives and our world.
First Fri., 1:30-3:30 pm; last Thurs., 6–7:30
pm. through March. Kellogg-Hubbard Library,
Hayes Room, 135 Main St., Montpelier. Free.
roots@sparkofhumanity.net
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 19

Rocque Long
BE SEEN! Painting
BE HEARD!
• Insured
• 30+ years professional
experience
Design & Build
Advertise in Custom Energy-Efficient Homes
• local references.
802-223-0389
The Bridge: Additions • Timber Frames
Weatherization • Remodeling
Rick: 249-8666 Kitchens • Bathrooms • Flooring Do What You Do Best.

Michael: 223-5112 Tiling • Cabinetry • Fine Woodwork

ext. 11
rick@montpelierbridge.com Bookkeeping · Payroll · Consulting
michael@montpelierbridge.com

802.262.6013 evenkeelvt.com

RecyclE
This Paper!

• New Construction
• Renovations
• Woodworking
• General Contracting

223-3447
clarconstruction.com
PAG E 2 0 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE
Editorial Brushing Away Biases
T
he Montpelier Public Schools (MPS) Leadership Team is participating in a series of
trainings with CQ Strategies—a consultancy dedicated to helping organizations
become more culturally competent—called “We All Belong,” in a sustained effort to
grow our own cultural competency.
One of the goals in the MPS Action Plan is "To implement an articulated multi-tiered system
of support to provide equitable learning opportunities for students in safe and inclusive
learning environments." A substantial part of that commitment is working to address our own
shortcomings and actively grow as leaders in MPS for this work.
During a discussion at a recent training, one of the participants asked our facilitators if there is
a way to ever fully overcome unconscious bias. The facilitator paused before answering, and the
answer was stunning in its simplicity. "Well, do you brush and floss everyday? While doing that
is never going to fully prevent dental decay and larger problems in your mouth, we still know
that is just good dental hygiene."
We all do something everyday that is not guaranteed to make a difference but is considered
just good practice.
I have unconscious biases, simply by growing up and breathing in the ethos in the United States
of America. We all have unconscious biases that impact us as we go about living in the world.
Anyone who says otherwise is simply not being fully honest. Once we have admitted that we
have biases, we must take the next step to ensure that we are working to keep them in check
and do what we can to minimize their impact on our day-to-day relationships.
Opinion Psychiatrists and Their Guild Seek to Block
Access to Mental Health
“P sychiatrists in Windsor County are like unicorns, they only exist in our imagination!”
proclaimed a mental health provider in that region.
The number of psychiatrists is declining across the country, making recruitment of new
psychiatrists to Vermont both difficult and expensive. Why then, does the Vermont Psychiatric
Association, in partnership with their guild organization, The Vermont Medical Society, want
to block access to better and more integrated mental healthcare that costs less than recruiting
psychiatrists from out of state.
Telehealth—with the use of telephones and other communications sytems—may offer a
helpful answer here. Please note that there’s a growing number of prescribing psychologists,
with doctoral degrees in psychology and master’s degrees in clinical psychopharmacology,
who are authorized to prescribe medications (when deemed helpful) alongside psychotherapy,
prescribing in all branches of the military and in five states (New Mexico, Louisiana, Illinois,
Idaho, and Iowa.)
Legislation sits in House Health Care and Senate Health and Welfare committees to authorize
and bring this workforce here to Vermont. If it’s good enough for our men and women in
uniform and our sister states, why would anyone want to block it here in Vermont?
Organized medicine has always fought against other providers entering the health care
workforce. The groundbreaking Pew Health Professions Commission, Task Force on Health
Care Workforce Regulation Report (1996), concluded that “[the] ostensible goals of professional
regulation to establish standards that protect consumers from incompetent practitioners is
eclipsed by the tacit goal of protecting the profession’s economic prerogatives. This dichotomy
of goals has created serious shortcomings that include limited public accountability, support
for practice monopolies that limit access to care, and lack of national uniformity.”
The Commission further stated “the practical reality is that medicine is the only profession
possessing state practice acts that covers all of health care services. With this exclusivity…
medicine has no incentive to delete anything. Accordingly, medicine can (and frequently
does) see every request for regulatory change from any other profession as a challenge requiring
confrontation. Organized medicine has no institutional incentive to compromise…”
Here we are again with the psychiatric establishment with its incredible influence for better
or worse, backed by the establishment guild, fighting against progress and the evolution
of healthcare. For the past 75 years, organized medicine has reflexively and automatically
by Dr. Brian Ricca, Montpelier Superintendent of Schools
For those of us in education, the expectations are much higher. We must be vigilant not only for
the biases in our own life; we must also be just as vigilant for evidence of biases in our students,
in our schools, and in our community. As educators, our responsibilities include educating the
whole child, not just the head but the heart as well.
We must ensure that our students are practicing habits that will prevent further development
of biases, as they move in relationships not only during the school day but during the rest of
their lives as well. We state in MPS that one of our goals is to have our students be in "safe
and inclusive learning environments." We have a responsibility to our students as well as to our
fellow human beings to be aware of our unconscious biases.
At the 2017 Rowland Foundation Annual Conference in late October, Professor Ruha
Benjamin inspired and challenged us around issues of race in the state of Vermont. A tweet from
MHS Principal Mike McRaith summed up her message insightfully: “A big takeaway for me is
to help the overserved understand their privilege and develop empathy so they can be whole.”
There are real issues of equity and privilege in our state. They extend beyond that of just
race and include class, gender, gender identity, and ability to name just a few. Anyone who
feels marginalized in 2017, who is not in a position of privilege, is working harder and harder
everyday to overcome the injustice and then engage in the process of learning.
I am not whole, because I am overserved and I have privilege. I promise to brush and floss
everyday to try to keep my unconscious biases in check but will need help with my blind spots.
Will you help me? I promise to help you with yours, so that we can honor all our students to
make schools truly safe and inclusive for all of them.
by Dr. Rick Barnett
opposed threats to their monopoly over prescriptive authority, warning of dire consequences
to patients. First it was dentists, osteopaths, and podiatrists followed by optometrists, nurse
practitioners, naturopaths, and now psychologists.
Psychiatrists and medical associations claim prescribing psychologists have serious deficits in
appropriate training for prescriptive authority and thus are a threat to society. That’s a hard
argument to keep making, and the same one they’ve used against psychologists for a long time.
From the 1950s through the 1970s, psychiatrists argued that it was not safe to permit
psychologists to practice outpatient psychotherapy without medical referral or supervision.
Despite the enormous need for better mental health care for the elderly, the American
Psychiatric Association desperately, but unsuccessfully, fought to defeat measures to allow the
elderly direct access to psychological care under the Medicare program. (OBRA, 1989)
David Satcher, MD, PhD, former United States Surgeon General (1998-2002), stated “If we
can demonstrate that psychologists have the training to prescribe, then they should be allowed
to prescribe.” There hasn’t been a single incident of harm done by a prescribing psychologist
in over 20 years. Psychiatrists know that the extensive education and clinical training across
settings and populations meets or exceeds standards of safety, efficacy, and competence. The
only thing to do is embrace change rather than fight against it, especially under false claims.
The need is there, the workforce is there and growing. Physicians aren’t the gatekeepers of
medications. Look at the opioid crisis. Look at prescribing patterns for psychotropics. We
need balance and collaboration.
Thankfully, patients and providers on the front lines of healthcare support prescriptive
authority for psychologists because they know it leads to better prescribing practices, because
there’s less of an emphasis on a “medication-only” approach, and it offers better quality and
delivers better outcomes. As esteemed psychiatrist Daniel Carlat, MD, writes in his blog, “the
prescribing psychologist is the best thing that can happen to psychiatry.”
Rick Bennett is a clinical psychologist and addiction specialist based in Stowe.
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 21

The Morse Dream Lives on— Charlotte and Grace Dostie ski the trails at
the Morse Farm. Photo by Linda Dostie

Frigid Temperatures Be Damned by Burr Morse

M
y father, Harry Morse Sr., the late Jack of all Vermont agri-
tourism projects, is no doubt looking down from his heavenly
perch with a satisfied grin. Yup, his lifetime wish was to add
a ski center to Morse Farm and, voila, here in 2018, skiers are waxed
up and raring to go.
This, added to the mix of folks from all over the world who find our
Vermont farm destination in the other three seasons, completes Harry's
dream. And now with this year's help from Mother Nature, winter,
our most difficult season to fill in many ways, is indeed full! It is with
huge pleasure that this old writer watches skiers gliding along from the
comfort of my living room. But before they can schuss, they populate
our ample parking lot with everything from roof-rack-clad Subarus to
rusty pickups—frigid temperatures be damned—they're here to accept
nature's gracious offering.
Winter recreationists, like the vehicles they drive, are a diverse bunch.
Donning their gear, whether traditional skis, skate skis, or snowshoes,
they head out toward our 25-kilometer hinterlands and in a flash, are on
their way. Our trail system, designed by professional trail designer John
Morton, provides a healthy mix of woods and open land. The woods
offer winding downhills, curvy hairpins, and straightaways for all levels
in all styles. Our open-land trails sweep through ledgy pastures and flat
meadows with never a shortage of “mouths agape” views.
It's all quite perfect, a giant "win-win" for all. In fact, skiers and
snowshoers alike enjoy both fun and very healthy exercise, Morse Farm
enjoys an active winter in every respect, and, best of all, Harry Morse's
dream lives on and on. Yup, he's grinnin' from ear to ear!

Tell them you saw it in The Bridge!

Photo by Michael Jermyn

Ice Skates Twirl Again at the Vermont State House
After much hemming and hawing, the ice rink is back at the Vermont statehouse. This year’s
rink runs 40 X 80 feet and comes with six floodlights to illuminate both the rink and the land
around it. Kudos may be directed to the Put a Rink On It committee, which is affiliated with
Montpelier Alive, and the donations of many, including $5,000 from the National Life Group
to cover initial costs. Further donations are required to meet the $12,500 budget and can be
made via the "Rink at State Street" Facebook page.
PAG E 2 2 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE

Letters
Homeless Awareness
Editor,
It was finally warm enough today to head
up to the State House, my favorite place to
find out what is happening in our great state
of Vermont. It was January 10, Homeless Awareness Day, with many hearings about some
well-needed new innovations in programing around the state, a memorial vigil for those who
died homeless held on the State House steps, a resolution and recognition of homeless service
providers and advocates in the House Gallery and a renewal of the intent to end homelessness
in Washington County by 2030, and all across the state as well.
Although this was also the day that the Senate passed the marijuana bill, many of us were
there to show our support and need for ways to help the growing homelessness populations
in Vermont. New funding to provide cold weather seasonal housing in last years budget,
largely due to the advocacy of several Central Vermonters, including Rep. Mary Hooper, is
now meeting basic needs for homeless folks at the Bethany Church in Montpelier and the
Presbyterian Church in Barre overseen by the Good Samaritan Haven. This would not have
happened without real coalitions of dedicated volunteers, church leaders, and housing staff
working together along with the legislative financial support.
I think this huge deep freeze we all have been experiencing this snowy and frigid January
makes us all aware of how important it is to have a roof over our heads, heat, water, food
and a bed to sleep in. As poverty expands in this time of record stock market numbers for
the affluent, more and more folks are falling through the cracks in a very leaky system. Jobs
are hard to come by for those without computer skills or a basic education. Families are often
pulled apart by the financial woes that are constantly hounding those most vulnerable.
Then, if you add substance abuse, mental illness, and sexual abuse/identity issues, there
are quite a few very good people who just don't fit into some of our most outdated social
norms through no fault of their own. It is not just a question of "pulling themselves up by
their bootstraps," as many business-types would like you to believe. Many need and want
supportive services just to survive and not just a bed to sleep in. With some help, they may
also find a niche in which to work. It was extremely heartening to learn of many experiments
around the state that are actually working cooperatively at the community level to provide
these needed services and are quite successful.
Some of the testimony included the fact that homelessness is often criminalized. Some
municipalities are adding ordinances that call public urination a crime while at the same
time there are no public bathrooms available after 4 pm. Mobile home parks are closing often
without giving any viable options for young families, in a very tight rental market, particularly
in Chittenden County. What are folks expected to do when there are no other options? A
bill, H. 412, was being discussed in the House Housing and General Affairs Committee to
establish a homeless bill of rights and prohibit discrimination against people without homes.
This could be a great way to stop the stigma of homelessness, something no one ever wants
to face!
Although there is much more need, particularly financial resources, to fill in the cracks,
Vermonters are currently meeting these very basic needs in several innovative new ways.
"Housing First" is a national model that Vermont is replicating. We need to come together to
make our state accountable for all of our citizens by working with landlords, hospital discharge
planners, social service, and healthcare providers. With someone who has a personal problem,
find housing first. Then work with that person or family to solve alcohol and drug use
problems when the anxiety of not knowing whether one will have a home or not is no longer
a problem. Find housing first and then work with the person/family to solve alcohol and drug
abuse problems, when the anxiety of not knowing whether one will have a home or not is no
longer a problem. Above all else, love and caring can often solve problems and keep folks out
of the hospital emergency rooms and the criminal justice system, help them pay their rent and
not have another melt down.
But all this will take money and many of our legislators are working on funding. Senator
Sirotkin of Chittenden County stated that he is wanting to revise the issue of charging a $2/
per day occupancy fee on all hotel and motel stays to support housing initiatives. He noted
that this tax is paid primarily by out-of-staters, about 90 percent, while the 10 percent of
Vermonters who stay in hotels can usually afford the fee. He further stated that this is merely
a fairness issue, a way of evening things out for all Vermonters who pay these large fees at out
of state establishments.
We truly must continue to "be our brother's (and sister's) keepers" and remember the old
adage: "There but for the grace of God, go I."
Mary Alice Bisbee , Montpelier

Alternatives to Income Suppression Exist

Editor,
I was disappointed to read ("Is Montpelier Alive?") that Ms. Proffitt, restaurateur, finds that
the biggest obstacle to Montpelier's business community is the worker who, apparently, earns
more than she deserves. While the short-term effects of, say, a $15 minimum wage might pose
real challenges to some balance sheets, let's remember that outrageous, socially destructive
income inequality continues to grow—locally, nationally, and internationally.
As Josh Wronski, Executive Director of the Vermont Progressive Party, puts it, "I propose that
any business whose business plan depends on exploiting workers needs to rethink its viability."
Fortunately, big-picture alternatives to income suppression exist. For example, the creation
of universal health care would be a major relief to business owners (and relieve workers
themselves from the obligation to find or keep a job in order to be healthy), since the provision
of private health insurance is a big part of compensation.
We should also pursue laws and tax structures that enable and encourage wage earners to
become worker-owners (not member-owners) through cooperatives, thereby participating in
the management of their businesses and sharing the profits that they have generated.
Carl G. Martin, Montpelier

What Do You Think?

Read something that you would like to respond to? We welcome your letters and
opinion pieces. Letters must be fewer than 300 words. Opinion pieces should not
exceed 600 words. The Bridge reserves the right to edit and cut pieces.
Send your piece to: editorial@montpelierbridge.com.
Deadline for the next issue is January 26.
T H E B R I D G E J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 • PAG E 2 3

Montpelier Real Estate Transactions

January – June 2017
PAG E 24 • J A N UA RY 18 – J A N UA RY 31, 2 018 THE BRIDGE