By Eric Francis, Standard Correspondent
WINDSOR – A head-on crash in the late morning of June 29 on Route 5 just above the Windsor Country Club sent two Hartland residents to area hospitals and shut down the highway for over an hour.
The impact between a black wagon and a white utility pickup truck belonging to the Dead River fuel company occurred around 11 a.m. near the entrance to Taylor Road which is opposite Blanchard’s Construction.
On Tuesday, Windsor Police Sgt. Jonathan Adams said
this week that while he has not yet had a chance to interview both drivers, his preliminary investigation at the scene indicates that the black car driven by Sherrill Rafferty, 72, crossed the center line into the southbound lane where it struck the truck driven by John Postans, 53.
Rafferty was transported by Windsor Ambulance to the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center for treatment of a compound fracture to her leg while another Windsor Ambulance took Postans to Mount Ascutney Hospital to check him over for possible neck injuries, Adams said.
Both vehicles were destroyed by the collision.
This article first appeared in the July 6, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
Brown Bag Concert, Presents InterPlay Jazz
The first of the 2017 Brown Bag Concert series was held on Thursday, June 29, inside the Woodstock Town Hall Theater due to the rain.
4th of July Events in Woodstock, 2017
The annual independence Day celebration was held at the Woodstock Union High School grounds with activities and fireworks.
West Windsor 4th of July, 2017
On Tuesday, July 4 the town of West Windsor hosted its annual 4th of July Parade. The route was moved from Route 44 to the Brownsville-Hartland Road and the start time moved up one hour to noon. No one seemed to mind the changes.
Tom Rush Benefit Concert at Suicide Six
Suicide Six hosted a benefit concert for the Woodstock Ski Runners organization. Singer Tom Rush headlined the even with Jay Nash and also performing.
Woodstock Rec Center’s Golf Tournament
The annual golf tournament fundraiser for the Woodstock Rec Center was held on Friday, July 7th at the Woodstock Country Club.
Hartland 4th of July Parade
The annual 4th of July parade and activities were held on Tuesday the 4th in Hartland.
East Barnard Fun Day, 2017
The annual event, held in East Barnard included a parade and an afternoon filled with activities.
Coolidge Foundation, 4th of July
July 4th at the Calvin Coolidge Historic in Plymouth, is celebrated with the birthday of Calvin Coolidge and a presidential wreath ceremony.
KILLINGTON – Criminal charges surrounding the July 2015 death of a driver from Connecticut who struck a Scottish Highlander bull after it got loose and began to wandering along a darkened Route 4 were resolved this past week in Rutland District Court with a plea agreement.
Longtime Killington farmer Craig Mosher, who also runs Mosher Excavating from his property which stretches between Route 4 and the Ottauquechee River, pleaded guilty June 28 to a misdemeanor count of reckless endangerment which the state had amended down from the felony involuntary manslaughter charge that was originally filed.
Jon Bellis, 62, of Woodbridge, Connecticut, was driving along Route 4 south of the Killington Skyeship gondolas parking lot in July 2015 when he drove straight into one of a pair of bulls.
Bellis was pronounced dead at the scene while his wife, who was in the passanger seat, sustained a wrist injury.
The bull weighed the better part of a ton,and the impact sent the
Bellis’ crushed Subaru Crosstrek rolling westward down a grassy slope where it came to rest against a tree just past the Val Roc Motel.
The tragedy caught the attention of farmers across the region who felt that Mosher was being unfairly held liable for the actions of an animal that he didn’t realize was off his property, but prosecutors argued that it had happened more than once in the weeks beforehand and noted that, minutes before the couple came along, Mosher had been awakened by a milk truck driver who warned him that he’d nearly hit the giant animal on the road in front of the nearby Val Roc Motel.
Investigators said that Mosher briefly checked for the animal before discounting the veracity of the milk driver’s report and returning to bed.
Under the terms of the plea deal, Mosher was given an entirely suspended 6-to-12 month sentence and placed on probation. He was also ordered to pay a $500 fine along with court surcharges and to perform community service. A special condition of Mosher’s probation requires him to allow officials to inspect his property and verify that the fences surrounding it have been upgraded.
This article first appeared in the June 6, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
The Woodstock Aqueduct Company has just purchased the solar array located on Route 12 North as part of a fiveyear lease-to-buy arrangement, according to AllEarth Renewables (AER) Vice President Eric Wegner.
The buyout option indicates that the trackers can be purchased for 30 percent of the installed cost, he noted.
“Our new 10-year-loan and maintenance agreement are equivalent to the PPA payments with the benefit of ‘free’ power after the 10-year loan term for the life of the trackers (25+ years),” said Wegner. “Not only will this investment allow the company to reallocate the cost of electricity to rebuilding aging infrastructure, but just as importantly, it helps contribute to a future environment of cleaner air and safe drinking water.”
AER of Vermont installed the solar tracker “orchard” in March of 2012. At that time, the Woodstock Aqueduct Company (WAC) signed a Power Purchase Agreement with them to pay for the electricity generated by the trackers at the same rate they were paying CVPS with the solar incentive, Wegner said.
Established in 1886 by his great grandfather, F.N. Billings, the WAC is currently being presided over by Jireh S. Billings (President), Wegner (VP), and Franklin S. Billings III (Secretary).
With the new buyout, WAC customers will continue to benefit because of the company’s ability to produce its own power, Jireh Billings related.
“Today, we work on net metering which gives us a credit to apply to our electric bill,” Billings said. “In the future, as battery storage technology improves and comes down in price, I foresee a day when future generations will be able to keep the water flowing even during events like Tropical Storm Irene.”
Now in its sixth year, the solar field is stillthe largest in town producing up to 95,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year, creating the power to bring water to localhomes and businesses and adding fire protection to community needs, Wegner
said.
The field of trackers sits back from the road and follows the sun like a flower throughout the day, Wegner explained.
“At night, they rest in a horizontal position, waking up in the morning and pivoting on their vertical axis from west to east in order to shed any snow accumulation in the winter in a broad arc,” said Wegner. “The anemometer on each unit measures wind velocity and return the solar arrays to their horizontal rest position when winds exceed 30 mph, preventing any wind damage.”
The fact that the arrays track the sun allows them to create up to 40 percent more electricity than fixed panels.
“Made and maintained by AER, these solar arrays provide us with the opportunity for a clean, selfsustaining, energy future,” said Wegner.
Supplying Woodstock with water from outlying streams began about the year 1878, according to town records. It wasn’t until January 1879 at a village meeting where O.P. Chandler, Justin F. Mackenzie, and Charles Chapman were appointed to a committee that research began to find a supply of water. On Jan. 5, 1880, the committee reported their findings and estimated that such a project would cost $17,000. In 1880, an act was passed by the Legislature incorporating the Woodstock Aqueduct Company.
The company was incorporated in the summer of 1886 with a capital stock of $36,000 in shares of $50 each. In 1887, work began on the reservoir that was built about two and a half miles west of the village on Thomas Brook, at an elevation of 260 feet above the Town Hall. The capacity of the reservoir was 2.5 million gallons. A dam was constructed with a stone and cement core. Water started to flow into homes and businesses in late November 1887.
“It’s amazing for me to run the company in the same building that another great grandfather, F.H. Gillingham, founded his business in the same year the Woodstock Aqueduct Company started,” said Billings. “We’re so proud to help move Vermont toward sustainable power production.”
Send us photos of your pets enjoying the summer in Vermont this year. Identify where the photo is taken, your name and the town where you’re from. Two photos can be submitted each week per photographer.
We’ll pick weekly winners, starting with the July 20th edition, deadlines for submission is Friday, July 14 at 5pm and the following 5 Fridays. Winners will receive a free subscription to the print or the eEdition of the The Vermont Standard as well as become eligible to win the grand prize.
You Decide…
The grand prize winning photo will be chosen from the 4 weeks of winners. Those weekly winners will be listed on TheVermontStandard.com as of Wednesday, August 15 and visitors to the website can choose who should be the grand prize winner! The voting will close on Monday, August 21 at noon. The grand prize will be announced on Thursday, August 24 in the print edition and online.
The grand prize winner will receive dinner for two at Richardson’s Tavern and an overnight stay at the Woodstock Inn & Resort.
To enter the photo contest, send your high-resolution photos to editor@thevermontstandard.com.
Deadline for each week is Friday at 5 p.m. Please call if you have any questions. 802-457-1313.
Deadline for Week 1 of the contest is Friday, July 14 at 5 p.m.
Deadline for Week 2 of the contest is Friday, July 21 at 5 p.m.
Deadline for Week 3 of the contest is Friday, July 28 at 5 p.m.
Deadline for Week 4 of the contest is Friday, August 4 at 5 p.m.
Deadline for Week 5 (Final) of the contest is Friday, August 11 at 5 p.m.
By Virginia Dean, Standard Correspondent
HARTLAND – Solar Technologies Manager Don McCormick of Norwich Solar Technologies presented Select Board members with a request for support for a preferred site status Monday evening.
“We look ahead at sites that we could possibly purchase, and we have found a property on the corner of U.S. Route 4 and Route 12,” said McCormick. “We would like to put a 500 kw/ac ground-mounted solar array on the southwest corner of the junction between the two roads.”
The overall site is bounded on the north by Route 4. The existing band of trees between the road and the intended solar site would be left intact, McCormick noted.
“In all, the project will occupy approximately 3.5 acres with approximately 4.3 acres of clearing,” McCormick said. “We’re seeking the town’s support and then to send that off to Two Rivers Ottauquechee Regional Commission and, from there, the public service board to grant us a site status after submitting the certificate of public good.”
McCormick explained to board members that Vermont has a set goal for solar energy including sites, and ultimately Hartland will be expected — as a pro-rated portion — to participate in renewable energy milestones.
“The public service board has now requested towns to adopt in their town plan a standard for site status and ideally identify places that would be appropriate,” said McCormick. “This would include good guidelines as well.”
Most towns have not had the chance to incorporate these into their plans, however, McCormick related.
“A town could still consider a site or sites,” said McCormick. “So we have sought several sites around the state and have found eight or so and this is one that is very appropriate because it cannot be seen, even in the winter. It is well screened except to the abutter who nonetheless has agreed with the project and has given us permission for it.”
McCormick indicated that the board would only be weighing in as far as the town of Hartland is concerned. There are state permits and procedures that still need to be approved. A certificate of public good has to be given the state nod.
“There are state rules independent of a town’s authority that make an area a preferred site,” said McCormick. McCormick said his company wants to see solar where it is physically appropriate.
“We hope we and you would be on the same page for this property,” said McCormick. We’re asking that the town support the project for the preferred site status.”
The board gave its nod and will designate its decision in a letter to that effect. Members will sign once the document has been amended to specify “preferred site status” rather than the project itself.
McCormick indicated that his company has “high confidence” that the project will eventually come to fruition. “I don’t think there is any doubt on this one,” said McCormick.
In other business, Board Chair Gordon Richardson made a formal introduction of the new Town Manager David Ormiston.
“We are confident that Dave will serve the town well,” said Richardson. “We welcome him.”
The recent torrential rains last weekend caused serious road damage, according to Board Chair Gordon Richardson. Road Foreman and Fire Department Lieutenant Bill Barrows related that cleanup work has needed to be done on culverts and ditches as a result. Barrows indicated that his crew was out from 6 p.m.-3 a.m. on Sunday as a result of the storm.
Richardson wondered if there is town policy concerning driveway culverts.
“Do homeowners have some responsibility to keep them open?” Richardson asked. “At least they could keep an eye on them. Sometimes all it takes is a shovel or something to poke at them which makes a world of difference.”
Board member Matt Peeler indicated that he did not think that many owners participate in that maintenance.
The Board and Town Manager thanked Barrows for his work.
The next Select Board meeting is slated for Monday, July 10, at 5:30 p.m. The 21 Route 12 Committee will meet shortly after at 6:30 p.m. at the Lowrey House.
This article first appeared in the July 6, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
This is a conceptual design by architect Chris Miller of a proposed bandstand on Woodstock’s Village Green. (Photo Provided)
By Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
In the 1800s there was a bandstand on the Green in Woodstock, and some would like to see one again, while others are opposed to a plan that would bring that old tradition back to life.
Calling it a “feel-good gift for the town,” Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce President Gary Thulander, who is also the president and general manager of the Woodstock Inn and Resort, noted that the idea originated out of the Chamber’s beautification initiative and also includes plans to replace the failing pole lights around the Green with more historic-looking lights and to provide electricity to the bandstand so it could be utilized.
“It is based on the concept of a bandstand as was on the Green in the 1800s,” Thulander said noting the idea is to “try to make it look like it has been there for the last 100 years.”
This historic photo shows the old Bandstand that was on Woodstock’s Village Green in the 1890s. (Photo Courtesy of Woodstock History Center)However, the 1800s bandstand was a raised iron bandstand rather than the lower round wood gazebo style bandstand that is more typical in New England. It is the latter that the conceptual designs were based on with a variety of options such as stone or wood sides to best blend in with the architecture of the primarily federal-period buildings around the Green.
Thulander noted that last year the beautification committee trimmed all the trees from Woodstock’s Town Hall down Pleasant Street to the East End of the Village. They are also responsible for the flower boxes in the summer and the lights on trees and around the Green in the winter.
Local architect Chris Miller has done several conceptual designs of a 16-foot diameter bandstand that is approximately 16 feet tall. Thulander noted that “the design will be finetuned through the normal process.” He also emphasized, “Our goal is not to go out of the town or village budgets at all.” To that end, they have already raised just under $40,000 for what could be a $180-200,000 project and have filed applications with the Economic Development Commission (which manages the funds from the 1-percent options tax) for two $30,000 matching grants – one in 2017 and one in 2018.
In an effort to get both feedback and support for the plan, Thulander has spoken to the Village Trustees, Town Select Board members, Rotary Club members, and a number of nearby residents at a cocktail party on the subject. “Overwhelmingly it seems like we have a lot of support for it,” he says although he notes that he understands there are some concerns with the design and the idea.
Heidi Lang is opposed to a bandstand (which she called “cutesy”) or any permanent structure on the Green. “It’s going to forever alter the natural beauty of the Green,” she said noting that the planned placement in the middle of the Green would disrupt the “sweeping views”.
“I look at the Green as the rest in a musical score…we need that in the village,” Lang said noting that she is not opposed to events on the Green, just the visual impact of permanent structures.
Resident Susan Copeland also has concerns. She first heard the idea of a bandstand through a notice on the Woodstock Listserv placed by Lang. “There was no public venue at this point (to discuss the issue). They were going around getting support beforehand.”
“I feel that it is such an important issue, it should really be publicly vetted at the beginning, “ Copeland says. “This is the Green. It is not flower boxes.”
Noting all of the positive activity on the Green during the Wednesday Markets on the Green, Copeland said, “I can’t imagine how obtrusive a bandstand would be in the middle of all of this activity.”
Trustee Chair Jeffrey Kahn said at their June meeting that he supported the bandstand noting that it could bring even more positive activity to the Green and would not come at any cost to the Village. “We had a bandstand on the Green historically,” he said.
Gail Dougherty, who lives at 6 The Green, thinks the bandstand could be a “sweet” addition. “I think it seems like maybe a nice idea for people to gather.”
Bob Hager, who recently purchased a home on the Green with his wife Honey, is also in favor of the bandstand. “I think it would be a great natural centerpiece. I like our Green to be used, not an ornament.”
However, his wife disagrees. “I love the expanse of the Green,” she said. She added that the bandstand would “make it look too much like a movie set.”
Ultimately, various boards will have their say on the issue. Select Board Chair Bob Holt called a bandstand on the village Green “an iconic New England (and beyond) tradition….I believe that such a structure can be a wonderful asset to the community, so long as it is tastefully designed and appropriately managed and maintained.” The old bandstand on Woodstock’s Village Green is shown in this historic photo. (Photo Courtesy of Woodstock History Center)
This article first appeared in the July 6, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
Strong thunderstorms are expected to affect Central Windsor Country.
According to the National Weather Service, a thunderstorm located over Reading just after 2 p.m. on Monday, July 17 was reported with winds in excess of 30mph and half inch hail.
The path of the storm is northeast and could impact the local area. Torrential rainfall is also occurring with this storm and may cause localized flooding.
A severe thunderstorm watch is in effect until 8pm tonight for many areas including Windsor County.
Read these stories and more on theeEdition, new edition available Wednesday nights, pick it up a copy on the newsstands Thursdays or subscribe.
Airborne
Paige Bowling on Catori during the Green Mountain Horse Association’s Hunter Jumper events. (Rick Russell Photo)
Top Stories
Residents Push Back on Sunoco Station Plans
by Virginia Dean, Standard Correspondent
Bandstand Grant Request Denied
by Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
Towns Seek FEMA Help After Big July Storm
by Curt Peterson, Standard Correspondent
Nearing 100th, Wesley Frost Recalls Life of Hard Work
by Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
Virtual Reality Experience Comes to Bookstock
by Peter Rousmaniere, Special to the Standard
Woodstock Board OKs Higher Town Tax Rate
by Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
Farmers Race Against Rainy Weather
by Curt Peterson, Standard Correspondent
Ben Kilham, aka ‘Bear Whisperer,’ Visits Barnard
by Curt Peterson, Standard Correspondent
Bethel Bringing 200-foot Mural to Life
Pierre-Michel Arcand, the 100-kilometer winner, of the Vermont 100 Endurance Run/Ride, shows his pride and excitement at the awards ceremony. (Nancy Nutile-McMenemy Photo)
PHOTO GALLERIES – all photo galleries Cemetery Tour, Woodstock History Center 2017
The Woodstock History Center, hosted a tour pf the Cushing Cemetery in Woodstock, costumed interpreters played the parts of noted people in Woodstock’s history. Rick Russell Photos
GMHA Hunter Jumper Events, 2017
Green Mountain Horse Association held its Hunter Jumper weekend of events a its facilities in South Woodstock July 12-16, 2017.
Japanese Arts Festival at ArtisTree
Ten women from the Kamu Studio, which means flower dream, were in Woodstock, Vermont from Kobe, Japan as part of a cultural outreach trip they do each year. ArtisTree hosted a day of events as part of the festival.
St. James Fair, 2017
The St. James Church in Woodstock held it 92nd Fair. The annual fair is a (yard) sale held under a tent in front of the church.
Lobsters on the Green, 2017The second annual Lobsters on the Green was held in Woodstock. The Woodstock Chamber of Commerce and the Woodstock Rotary Club joined efforts to bring two seatings and hundreds of people a choice of lobster or chicken served right in the Village. Rick Russell Photos
By Curt Peterson, Standard Correspondent
HARTLAND – Maxwell “Bun” Maxham will be 98 years old on Aug. 21. He didn’t walk a mile on the dirt road through his farm on Monday because, he said, “I didn’t feel like it.” When he does feel like it, which is most days, he uses a walker with yellow tennis balls stuck on its back legs.
A year ago doctors told him he would never walk again, other than inside his house. He made up his mind to prove them wrong.
“One day,” he said, “I was about half way back to the house when my son pulled up along side of me and offered me a ride. To tell you the truth, I was glad he did. But it was harder to get up into that truck than it would have been to walk the rest of the way home.”
Bun has an easy laugh and no trouble making fun of himself.
For decades farming in Vermont has been in a state of flux. Between 1940 and 2011 the number of farms dropped from 11,000 to under 1,000, according to U. S. Department of Agriculture. Since then the number has been rising again, and there’s been a growth of acreage in farm use as well.
But there’s no optimism at the Maxham Farm. On July 5 small trucks came and took 134 adult registered Jersey dairy cows to the Hartland Town Garage where they were loaded into three trailers too large to navigate Brothers Road. Most of the animals were destined for Canada. Bun said the buyers paid about $1,200 a piece for them. Where last year there were 60 to 70 acres of tall corn plants surrounding the old barns and silos, the fields are already growing over with weeds and small brush. “No sense growing corn when you don’t have any cows to feed it to,” Bun said. In 1981 Bun turned the farm over to his son Wade who lives in the big, rambling farmhouse with his father. Bun’s wife of 75 years, Charlotte, died a couple of years ago. “I’d work from sunup until about six o’clock every day,” Bun said. “Then I’d come into the house and my wife would have my dinner ready. I looked forward to sitting down and watching a little TV, but I’d be asleep in ten minutes. I said, ‘I’ve had enough of this,’ and decided to try something else. I retired.”
Maxwell “Bun” MaxhamBun said an auctioneer sold off his farm equipment and cows. The machinery didn’t bring as much as he expected, but he got $1,000 each for his 200 Jerseys, which he had bred carefully with registered bloodlines.
After the sale Bun and Charlotte did a little traveling.
“We went to California, but there’s nothing much out there,” he said. “I couldn’t get back here quick enough.”
Wade took over and built up the farm for himself, and now it’s his turn to try something else.
Now the cows are gone, other than a dozen calves that were born during the sale negotiations. Wade plans to convert the cornfields to hay and sell it to horse owners.
Bun says he misses knowing the cows are across the road in the barn. But he understands why Wade sold them.
Milk prices have dropped to an unsustainable level in recent years.
“You have to get $25-$26 a hundredweight for milk just to break even,” Bun said. “It’s now at $19. If you keep milking at that price you’re just going into debt.”
Bun’s got the spirit of a Vermont farmer – a lot of them work well into their 80’s and seem to live forever. When a Meals on Wheels driver asked if he wanted his lunch in the living room, Bun told him, “Put it in the kitchen. If I can’t get myself in there to get it, I don’t deserve it.”
But there’s not much Bun can do now to help Wade make the farm’s numbers work.
And Wade’s 75 himself – in fit condition, but with no son or daughter willing to take over for him.
The road to here has been a long one for the Maxhams.
Bun was just 21 when he married Charlotte Strong, who grew up in North Hartland. He remembers meeting her at a dance. When they got married he wanted to move to a farm and work for its owner.
Bun’s brother had worked for Paul Skelding for two years, but the farmer told Bun’s father his other son wasn’t much of a worker.
“Bun’s the man you want,” his father said, and Bun decided he wanted to move to Skelding’s farm.
“Charlotte said there was no way she was going to live on a farm,” he laughed. “I talked her into giving it a try. In a year you couldn’t drag her off the place.”
They stayed in a smaller house on the property and worked for the rent from 1941 till 1956. Skelding’s wife died, and he was frail with age. He approached Bun with an idea.
“He said, Bun, you’ve just bought yourself a farm.“ Skelding asked him to pay $35,000 for the 240-acre property, which Bun said was pretty run-down and the fields were grown over.
“But it was about half what the place was worth,” Bun said.
“I’d give you the place, Bun. You’ve been like a son to me. But if you give me my price I’ll be able to split it between my two daughters.”
Bun went to the livestock auction in Westminster and told the auctioneer he wanted to buy some cows but he didn’t have any money. The auctioneer took a liking to him and separated out a dozen mixed-breed milkers that Bun could pay for in monthly installments, he said. Twenty-five years later, when Bun retired in 1981, he had turned that sorry little herd into a collection of 200 prize registered Jersey cows.
Bun, who says he has no idea how he got his nickname, says he feels pretty good most days, not as well on others.
“I don’t know if I’ll make a hundred,” he laughed.
This article first appeared in the July 13, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
Staff Report
READING – For the third time this year, Reading voters will be heading to the polls on Tuesday, July 25, to decide whether to join a new regional school district that nearby towns approved in March under the state’s controversial education reform law, Act 46.
The voting will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday at Reading Town Hall.
In March, Reading and Barnard each rejected the original Act 46 merger plan proposed by a local Act 46 Committee. More recently, Reading had a reconsideration vote that narrowly reversed the March decision. However, some residents petitioned the
Reading School Board for another reconsideration vote, and the board voted to do so.
Currently, the Windsor Central Modified Unified Union District includes Woodstock, Pomfret, Bridgewater, Killington and Plymouth – towns which have all voted in favor of forming this new district under Act 46.
Recently, Reading and Barnard submitted an application for a $5,000 “joint exploration grant” from the Agency of Education, to fund the expenses of seeking alternative solutions for both towns under Act 46.
This article first appeared in the July 20, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
The second week of the Vermont Standard Pet Photo Contest is complete! The weekly winner has been chosen among the following submissions. Look inside this week’s paper for the week #2 winner! Just a few of the photos were printed in the paper do to space constraints. Here is all of them from this week.
There is 3 more weeks left… click for details on how you can be a part of the contest. Don’t forget to check back here between August 15-21 to vote for the grand prize winner!
Westly Frost enjoys his guests and a piece of cake at his 100th birthday party. (Rick Russell Photo)
By Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
For Wesley Frost, turned 100 on July 25, the secret to longevity seems to be hard work.
“Good, hard work never hurt nobody,” Frost says. “I was still working until I came here,” he adds referring to his move last September from the Bridgewater Corners home he built himself in 1957 to the Mertens House in Woodstock.
While at 99 that work was a bit different (mainly dowsing work) from the rest of his career, Frost has worked in a variety of fields. “You name it and I’ve done it,” he says.
Wesley Frost is shown in his U.S. Army uniform. Photo ProvidedBorn in St. Albans, Maine, Frost left home with a pair of horses at age 16 to do logging work in New Hampshire. Before that, he and his brother helped run the family farm after their father passed away from a heart attack.
“For my education, I had to learn it myself,” Frost says since he had to leave school to work.
Logging work brought him into Vermont where he met his future wife, Florence Earle, when his truck could not make it under a bridge in Hartland. Mr. Earle came out and gave him permission to back up and go around on his property instead. Apparently, Florence had spotted him during this exchange and decided to check him out (their granddaughter, Jen Dean, says that her grandmother used to say that she knew she was going to marry Frost the moment she saw him).
“I looked up and saw her coming out through the window,” Frost says of the woman he would marry on May 2, 1942. The couple had four children that they raised in Plymouth and Bridgewater Corners.
Frost has logged off and on all of his life, however, he added a number of other jobs in his 80+ years of work. He worked for 10 years for the State of Vermont building roads, drove a truck for five years, spent 25 years working for Goodyear in their rubber plant in Windsor, farmed (he had cows and grew corn), and was a caretaker on the Richardson Farm on Cox District Road in Woodstock for 25 years.
He also spent a few years in the army and was sent to Japan near the end of World War II and into the occupation period. It took 45 days to arrive in Japan via ship. “Everybody was seasick,” he recalls. “An old sailor had told me if you are on a ship eat canned peaches.” This remedy allowed him to keep working when everyone else was sick.
“He got a stripe for that,” his son, Steve Frost, says. Wesley Frost is shown working at Goodyear in Windsor.It was during his employment at Goodyear that he traded some land in Plymouth for land on Hale Hollow Road in Bridgewater Corners and built a three-bedroom house by himself in five months. “I never lost a day of work at Goodyear and built the house,” he says.
There was a lot of evening and weekend work to get that done and it was a bit of a race as the days got shorter and colder in October (he started the work in May). The family was living in an un-insulated cottage on the property while Frost built the house. His wife changed the baby (Steve) in the car since it was warmer than the cottage.
“It was a hard life but we made it,” Frost says.
Steve Frost remembers that when Goodyear went on strike, his father kept working, just at a different place. “He would go to the Woodstock Inn or Quechee Lakes and do that the whole time they were on strike,” he recalls.
Wesley Frost, dowsing. (Photo Provided)The thing that Frost is probably most known for is his dowsing skills.
“My father used to put in wells for people. That’s when they used to dig them by hand,” Frost says. His father passed on the dowsing technique to him.
Pointing to the dowsing rod in front of him he says, “It goes down and tells you how much your gonna get (in gallons per minute) and how deep to go…I talk to that the same as I talk to you. If you don’t, it doesn’t work.”
Frost has lost track of the number of wells and springs he has helped put in over the years but his dowsing work is not limited to finding water; he can also find gold. In order to find gold, he says he cuts a notch in the end of the dowsing rod and inserts a nickel. The nickel then guides the rod to find gold.
“A lady in Wilder had a wedding ring that came down generations that she lost. She called me and I went over and found it right where it went down the rinse,” Frost says. He recalls another time when he was called to find a gold and diamond earring that had been lost in a car accident. He found that as well.
Frost’s life has not been all work. He and his wife enjoyed dancing and going to Florida for some winters (although even there he drove a fruit truck part-time in the mornings) and now he enjoys taking part in the activities at the Mertens House.
A birthday celebration was held at Merten’s House for Wesley Frost’s 100 Years. Rick Russell Photos
A portion of these photos will appear in the July 27, 2017 print edition of the Vermont Standard. Click here if you are having trouble viewing the collection of photo galleries, click on an image below to view in a larger format and to see more photos. To see more photo galleries Click Here This article first appeared in the July 20, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
A 54-year-old Weathersfield man has died in a motorcycle crash on Stoughton Pond Road in Weathersfield, according to Vermont State Police.
Police said Dale Porter was wearing his helmet during the accident, which was reported to police at about 2:38 a.m. Thursday after someone saw the motorcycle in the roadway. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The motorcycle appeared to have traveled off the roadway, striking a culvert and ejecting the driver, police said.
Mimi Baird photographs the masks in the new exhibit, “Faces of Mental Illness” displayed at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH. (Eric Francis Photo)
By Eric Francis, Standard Correspondent
LEBANON, NH – When the sprawling Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center first opened in the 1990s, some said its broad multi-level hallways reminded them of a shopping center, but these days the interior increasingly has the look and feel of an art museum.
In addition to DHMC’s permanent collection of murals and paintings, there are now eight gallery spaces located throughout the complex displaying any array of works by regional artists that change with each season with a two-year waiting list for participation.
Last week, nearly four dozen supporters of the visual arts gathered in the Norris Cotton Cancer Center section of the DHMC campus to take in the latest selection of works, which this time also includes a series called “Faces of Mental Illness” that includes masks created by patients in the hospital’s psychiatry wing.
Inspired by an article in National Geographic magazine about soldiers coping with post-traumatic stress disorders who made masks in an effort to express their feelings, members of DHMC’s Creative Arts Team joined with mental health therapists in the Psychiatry Department and nearly a dozen patients there to help them make their own masks which are now on display in the hospital’s main entrance rotunda.
Christine Orcutt Henderson, left, of the DHMC Creative Arts Team, Woodstock artist Joan Columbus, Mimi Baird of Woodstock and artist Carol Keiser chat while touring the art exhibits at DHMC last week. (Eric Francis Photo)Woodstock’s Mimi Baird, a sponsor of the Creative Arts Program at DHMC and author of “He Wanted the Moon: The Madness and Medical Genius of Dr. Perry Baird, and His Daughter’s Quest to Know Him,” which is being made into an upcoming movie by Brad Pitt, took the time last week to carefully photograph each patient’s mask.
“Chrissy Henderson (of Woodstock, and currently the DHMC program’s creative visual artist) told me about this idea that they had so, considering the book that I’ve written about my father and his mental illness, it was a natural connection for me to fund this particular exhibit and effort,” Baird explained.
“I am so proud of the Creative Arts Program and the patients who had the courage to reveal themselves and produce these masks.” She continued, “This was not easy for these individuals. You can tell that several patients have a long road ahead, while others have gone to the other side of the mountain and found some healing.”
Baird said that she was excited that, not just in artistic circles but in mainline medical journals, there are increasingly “a lot of articles that commend Dartmouth-Hitchcock for their leadership” in pioneering an interface between the arts and the population of not only patients but staff, family members and visitors who find themselves spending time in hospitals.
“That’s the thing,” Baird enthused. “Art in hospitals is an emerging health care arena and to read about the effectiveness of art with any kind of illness, whether it’s in the ICU or Pediatrics… anything…and to see that Dartmouth is referenced as one of the leaders is pretty exciting.”
Cassandra Mason, the grants officer for New Hampshire’s Arts Council was on hand at the DHMC event and said that, like the hospital, the state has been finding that arts-based programming is proving therapeutic in more settings than just senior housing and nursing homes. This mask is on display as part of DHMC’s new art exhibit, “Faces of Mental Illness.” (Eric Francis Photo)
“We’ve recently expanded it to include more hospital settings and more disciplines – the visual, the literary, dance,” Mason explained. “We’re also incorporating some substance abuse. We think that art can be used to not only treat substance abuse disorders but also to help in prevention. We are trying to get that community to see the arts as a tool.”
Marianne Barthel, the arts program coordinator at DHMC, said that the current expansion of the gallery spaces throughout the hospital complex and the use of the resident artists beyond the Cancer Center where they had concentrated their efforts for the past decade, was in large part because of a grant the hospital received last year from the New Hampshire Council on the Arts which is itself funded by the National Endowment for the Arts. “This is a win-win-win because it benefits our patients, visitors and staff,” Barthel said, “We are fortunate to be able to highlight the expansion of our creative arts team into other areas of the hospital beyond Oncology and Palliative Care, where they’ve been doing fantastic meaningful work with patients and families. We really felt that this could be beneficial for many, many types of patients. If you’ve been in a car accident and are sitting here for three months recovering it might be helpful to your mental health (to create artwork with one-on-one expert support) or even with neurology and stroke patients, getting them to use their hand that’s been affected by learning to paint.”
“Last year, after receiving the grant, I described this as throwing the spaghetti on the wall and seeing what stuck and what departments this really went well in and, fortunately for everyone, it stuck everywhere,” Barthel said. “Everyone was really pleased to have these services on their units to offer to their patients and Psychiatric really jumped in and because of the unique nature of their unit, they worked in a group setting with (Creative Visual Artist and painter Christine Orcutt Henderson and Writer-in-Residence Marv Klassen-Landis of Windsor) doing these weekly group meetings, and so that’s how the Mask Project came about. There was an entire show that could demonstrate the impact of having creative arts on a unit, and so it was nice to be able to have an opportunity to showcase the work that patients are doing, and Psychiatry was really an ideal setting.”
This article first appeared in the July 27, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
By Virginia Dean, Standard Correspondent
It was standing room only at Woodstock Town Hall as over 60 residents were on hand to hear about the future plans of the Woodstock Sunoco station as presented at a Village Development Review Board meeting on July 12.
With the recent closing of the station by lessee Kevin Rumrill and the recognition that selling gas itself – even with full-service offerings – is unprofitable, station owner Sandri Energy LLC of Greenfield, Mass., has chosen a companion business to go with the local gas station that it promised to keep.
As meeting attendants learned, Sandri has now entered into a letter of intent with the franchise of Donuts of Rutland – aka Dunkin’ Donuts – and its home company, Midway Oil Corp, in order to make its enterprise more cost effective.
“We are a local business group and, as such, would like to partner with Sandri in order to live the dream,” said Dunkin’ Donuts General Manager David Shelburne to an attentive audience at town hall. “We’re here for your guidance. It’s a big commitment between Sandri and us, and we’ll offer a number of services that can benefit your community and economy.” But most of the crowd Wednesday night disagreed, citing what they deemed the potential unsightly and unsuitable nature of the store in this
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Local resident Michael Malik, who lives just above Sunoco on Stanton Street, for instance, expressed his concern about potential noise and light coming from the store that would be open from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. Gas would be pumped selfserved from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
“We can actually hear conversations that take place at Sunoco,” said Malik. “And deliveries would undoubtedly be made at 4 a.m. if you’re open at 5 a.m., which would wake up a lot of people.”
Resident Barbara Kennedy of Woodstock asked about aromas coming from the new business, and Kelly Linton noted that – similar to Maplefields and Cumberland Farms – tourists would quickly stop to get coffee and baked goods but further bypass such local businesses as The Mountain Creamery or Mon Vert Café.
There would be seating for 10 individuals in the new building with three and a half parking spaces, Shelburne said. There would be three employees at one time. Bakery items would be made on site, and the donuts would be shipped daily from Rutland.
Citizen Nan Bourne was adamant about not having a third convenience store but, rather, to maintain a fullservice station instead.
Longtime resident Virginia Palmer agreed, with ensuing applause from the audience.
“My family has been pleased to use Sunoco as a service, to change our tires or oil,” said Palmer. “We don’t have that now. This is what we need. We need the service. If you could adjust your thinking and supply us with that, I would be very happy.”
Still other attendants were concerned about the color of the building, signage and even the use of Styrofoam cups with the embossed Dunkin’ Donuts logo.
Local resident Joe DiNatale said he was worried about the long-term impact of such a franchise on the community of Woodstock and if the new business would “invite” a future MacDonald’s or Subway.
Despite protestations, a handful of attendants voiced their support for the impending future business partnership.
Resident Graham Melville and his brother, Alex, for example, noted the convenience of having another coffee shop open early in the morning. And, Lincoln Street homeowner John King touted Midway for its local interest.
“I do business with Midway on the linen side,” said King. “They are valid in that they see local as important. Sandri is working hard to re-do its stores. I think it’s right for them to work with the town.”
Shelburne noted that his franchise is affiliated with the local Rutland Chamber of Commerce, cancer society and local schools.
Nonetheless, Planning Commission Chair Sally Miller reminded those who were in disagreement of the zoning regulations set up by the Village Design Review Board that consists of five volunteers who have knowledge and interest in the design, architecture, landscape architecture, graphic design, and historic preservation/development of the community.
“We have a residential buffer,” said Miller. “When Cumberland Farms and Maplefields went in, for instance, there was a study done to determine what impact each would have on Route 4 traffic. We also have restrictions about signage. This is a big issue. We can’t say no in the sense that it’s a business franchise but we do have regulations that fit into our community. So let’s look carefully at what they’re proposing.”
Although Behn and Shelburne stressed that they would work with the town by following its zoning guidelines and recommendations, Town Planner and Administrative Officer Michael Brands also made note of the existing village zoning regulations that are set up to insure design compatibility with Woodstock’s historic, architectural and tourist resources.
“I suggest that you do a preapproval with the Design Board because we have strict regulations,” Brands said to Behn and Shelburne. “You’ll have to move the potential building forward, for example, and our signage regulations are really strict so would not allow that. Traffic is a serious issue. We would want a study done. Lighting is another issue, and we control that very severely as well.”
VDRB Chair Jane Soule explained that there would need to be another Design Review Board hearing after which the VDRB would meet to review the report of the DRB and all supporting materials. Then, after receiving comments from the applicant and board, the VDRB would issue to the applicant a written decision granting or denying the application for Design Plan Approval.
The applicant, according to village regulations, has the responsibility of presenting the proposal to the VDRB and has the burden of proof to establish that the design meets the zoning criteria. The VDRB must render its decision within 30 days from the close of testimony.
For more information, see the Village Zoning Regulations at www. townofwoodstock.org.
Sandri Energy LLC recently cordoned off the US Route 4 East gas area to begin to upgrade its infrastructure including new tanks and dispensers and high-speed diesel.
The station was most recently leased and run by Kevin Rumrill as Woodstock Sunoco Tire & Auto, aka KDT Enterprises, Inc. It had been a full service station for the last eight years. Rumrill closed its doors last month due to high rent and other operating costs.
This article first appeared in the July 27, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
The third week of the Vermont Standard Pet Photo Contest is complete! The weekly winner has been chosen among the following submissions. Look inside this week’s paper for the week #3 winner! Just a few of the photos were printed in the paper do to space constraints. Here is all of them from this week.
There is 2 more weeks left… click for details on how you can be a part of the contest. Don’t forget to check back here between August 15-21 to vote for the grand prize winner!
Hiroki Ito, 10 from Newark, NJ gets a kiss from his heifer after bring her fresh water during the Farm to City Kids program at Spring Brook Farm in Reading, Vermont. (Nancy Nutile-McMenemy Photo) Top Stories New Owners Take Reins at South Woodstock Store
by Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
Chief: Fraud is Constant Issue
by Eric Francis, Standard Correspondent
West Nile Virus Found in Region
by Eric Francis, Standard Correspondent
New Principal, Teachers Hired in Barnard
by Curt Peterson, Standard Correspondent
Local Veteran to Appear in Ken Burns Film
by Curt Peterson, Standard Correspondent
Two Sisters’ Careers Are Closely Linked
by Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
Group Unveils Finalized East End Park Plans
by Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
Swim Team Moves Up in Districts
by David Miles, Sports Correspondent
PHOTO GALLERIES – all photo galleries 5th Annual Democrats Kickball and Barbecue
On a beautiful Sunday in July, Windsor County and Orange County Democrats gathered to challenged each other to a friendly, yet competitive game of Kickball at North Hartland Lake.
Bookstock, 2017
Three days of events were held at Bookstock, the Green Mountain Festival of Words in Woodstock, Vermont. Vendors, exhibitors, performances, speakers as well as a used book sale and activities were all part of the festivities.
Pentangle, Summerstock 2017
A performance of young artists involved in Pentangle’s Summer Stock Performing Arts Camp was held on Saturday at the Woodstock Town Hall Theater.
Unbound VII, ArtisTree Exhibit
An annual part of the Bookstock Weekend of events held in Woodstock., this exhibit celebrates the written work in the form of art.
Summer Camp at Spring Brook Farm, 2017
Farms for City Kids is a program hosted at Spring Brook Farm on Caper Hill Rd. in Reading. The week long “camp” gives urban children a chance to experience life on a farm.
WUHS Boys Soccer Car Wash
A car wash was held last Saturday in West Woodstock to raise money for the Woodstock Union High School soccer team.
Jeremy Guerin, 36, is facing multiple serious charges after he allegedly injured a Windsor County Sheriff’s Deputy in Bridgewater Corners as she was arresting him Wednesday evening. (Eric Francis Photo)
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION – State troopers rushed into Bridgewater Corners on Wednesday from Rutland, Royalton, Sharon and Woodstock to help a Windsor County Sheriff’s Deputy who allegedly found herself in a frantic fight with a suspect in a lawn near Route 4.
Deputy Kirsten Murphy had to be treated at a hospital Wednesday night following the melee that reportedly took place in front of a small apartment house that sits between the Mill Mall complex and the Bridgewater Fire Station.
Jeremy Guerin, 36, a longtime resident of downtown White River Junction who was listed as “homeless” on his court paperwork, pleaded innocent on Thursday afternoon to two felony counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, one of which was for causing her serious bodily injury and the other was attempting to prevent her from doing her duties.
Guerin also pleaded innocent to accompanying misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct, unlawful mischief, resisting arrest, simple assault, and simple assault on a police officer by physical menace.
At the conclusion of the arraignment Guerin was held for lack of $25,000 bail and transported back to the Springfield jail.
Murphy told investigators that as she tried to handcuff Guerin shortly before 7 p.m. he “turned toward me and squared off in a fighting stance.”
“I told him ‘Stop! Don’t do it’ (but) Guerin began to struggle…to the point my knee popped and we went to the ground,” Deputy Murphy recalled in an interview Wednesday night with Windsor County Sgt. Phil Call which was filed with the court.
“During this time he hit me, I don’t know how many times. He pulled my hair and had me in a choke hold by putting his arm around my throat and restricted my breathing,” Murphy continued, in the interview with the sergeant. “I was struggling with him, thinking, ‘If he gets me on my back I’m in trouble and I’ve had it.’ People were gathering and traffic was driving by slowing down (on Route 4) and some cars even stopped. Jeremy was kicking and flailing, yelling ‘(expletive) let go of me! You (expletive)!”
Deputy Murphy said that even as men were intervening and trying to convince Guerin to back off, “I was concerned, was he going to attempt to get my gun? I sprayed Guerin with (pepper spray) and managed to get him handcuffed (but he) continued to fight and attempt to kick and yell obscenities.”
In her post-incident interview, shortly before she was transported to the hospital, Deputy Murphy was asked to detail her injuries and said, “My head hurts over my eye, my knee is sore, I’ve got a headache and I’m lame.”
Sgt. Call said Murphy had several visible bruises on her arms and a notable bump over her eyebrow as well as a swollen and discolored knee cap.
Sgt. Call went to the Woodstock Police Department to interview Guerin. He said Guerin at the time “was yelling, swearing and berating all the officers present” and eventually took a breath test which showed a 0.116 percent blood alcohol level.
In her report, Deputy Murphy said the evening’s incidents began when she spotted “Guerin walking down Route 4 in Bridgewater with an open Pabst Blue Ribbon tallboy can of beer in his hand. I told him to dump it as he cannot have an open container in public. He threw it and yelled ‘Why the (expletive) don’t you leave me alone and let me do what I want?’.”
A short time later, Murphy was called to a Mill Road apartment for a reported disturbance and found “Guerin at the top of the stairs pounding on the door window and yelling all kinds of obscenities. The window to the door broke and Guerin continued yelling and swearing at [the occupants] who were inside.”
Murphy said she told Guerin to stop and leave and got out her handcuffs and began attempting to arrest him.
A witness at a nearby residence later gave police a sworn written statement saying, “I was walking in my driveway when I heard very, very loud yelling across the road. I saw the man with no shirt on hitting the female officer several times with a closed fist. She sprayed pepper spray and the man was still going after her like crazy. Her radio was on the ground and I came over to help the officer get a better handle on things by trying to calm him down. (Deputy Murphy) gave me her keys to go get the phone from her cruiser for a call to get back up. I stayed with her until the other officers arrived. Throughout the whole time he tried kicking me and was using very, very foul language but my main goal was to help the female officer out of harm’s way.”
By Michelle Fountain, Standard Correspondent
The grass is mowed, the day lilies are blooming, the river access is open, and plans have been confirmed for the next three phases of development of the East End Park. When complete, the park will feature an amphitheater, a slide down the hill, a vine-covered pergola for shade, picnic tables, benches, and assorted shrubs, flowers, and trees.
The plans for this park have been progressing for some time and were finalized after a meeting this winter to get community input. They will be displayed this Saturday, Aug. 5, at 10 a.m. at the First Annual Sustainable Woodstock Duck Derby.
Numbered rubber ducks will be launched from the Elm Street Bridge in a race down to the park at the east end of the village (ducks can be purchased from the Woodstock Recreation Center, Sustainable Woodstock and various other locations for $5 which benefits park work).
There will be prizes for the fastest ducks that range from a stay at the Woodstock Inn to dinner at 506 On the River, Pilates Classes, Danforth Pewter items and more. In addition to the duck races, there will also be cake and live music.
“This is a public park but it is hidden,” Sustainable Woodstock Director Sally Miller said. “The goal is to get people down there to see what we are going to do.”
“It’s been a slow but very steady process,” Landscape Architect Jack Rossi said of the work at the park. There were major set backs with land loss due to(TropicalStorm) Irene(in 2011) and the plan had to be reconsidered and reconfigured.”
The current park is approximately 2.3 acres and represents one of the few public places from which people can launch a kayak/canoe or otherwise access the Ottauquechee River.
Key this year is that the village’s snow dump has been moved to off of Maxham Meadow way so for the first time, the park will not be under extra snow and salt all winter. Sustainable Woodstock and its East End Action Group were the driving force behind getting the grant and raising the matching funds to build the new snow dump as well as the establishment and development of the park.
East End Action Group member Joby Thompson sees the park as “a wonderful new hub to draw people to the East End” calling it “a real gathering place” as she describes picnics and performances that
can take place in the park as well as the kayaks that can be launched from there.
The first of the three phases to complete the park will be done within the next 18 months. This includes planting (including apple trees on the hill and an edible garden), drainage work, several paths (including one along the river), picnic tables, stone benches and a bike rack at a cost of $75-100,000. A Jack and Dorothy Byrne Foundation grant will help start the work, according to Miller, and fundraising is ongoing to make all of the work possible. Later additions will include a slide along the grade from the parking lot above down to the park, a pergola, an amphitheater that can seat 100-125 people for performances etc. and more. Rossi estimates total costs to be $350 375,000. “We are trying to work with the state and others to get handicapped accessible river access,” Miller says. She notes all of this work as “another step in the process for the East End.” She points out that the Alsup family has renovated their properties and her group has received a grant to study other possibilities for East End revitalization. As a start, Sustainable Woodstock will get a fundraising team together soon to figure out how to raise the funds to finish all phases of the park construction. They will also offer some volunteer opportunities to help with some of the work.
“It’s been a very satisfying community effort and we still have a long way to go,” Rossi says noting the many people who have worked and contributed financially to make this possible.
Go check the current park out and learn of the plans for its future this Saturday at 10 a.m. (below the Village Park and Ride area across from The Laundry Room).
This article first appeared in the August 3, 2017 edition of the Vermont Standard.
The grand prize winner will receive dinner for two at Richardson’s Tavern and an overnight stay at the Woodstock Inn & Resort.
