Briefs: Trunk or Treat for Halloween; GMUHS kids get Academy grant; Opera Theatre receives grant

Children’s Halloween set with bonfire, Trunk or Treat

The Annual Chester Halloween Bonfire and Trunk or Treat will begin with costumed children gathering at Chester Andover Elementary School, at 72 Main St., at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 27.
Sandwiched between an escort of the Chester Vermont Police Department and the Chester Fire Department, the costumed kids will then march down Main Street, past the shops on the Green, then down Cobleigh Street to Cobleigh Field. At the field, Chester-Andover Elementary School parents will be selling baked goods, hot chocolate, soups and stews from the Rotary trailer to benefit programs of the CAES Parent-Teacher Group.
Wood carver Barre Pinske has donated all the materials for the bonfire, including a decoration for the very top. Everyone is invited to decorate his car in a festive Halloween theme, then park around the bonfire to hand out treats to the children.
Judges will be roaming the field to pick out the 10 best costumes. Gift certificates will be handed out to five boys and five girls. And, the best-costumed cars will also have a chance to win cash prizes: $25 for 3rd Place; $50 for 2nd Place and $75 for 1st Place. You just need to show up to participate. For more information, contact Chris at 875-6900.

Academy grant helps GMUHS open school store

Five Green Mountain students have been awarded a $2,500 Chester Academy Grant to help make possible the opening of the Green Mountain Market, the official school store at GMUHS.

From left, Molly Verespy and Julia Howard at the cash register.

The grant was awarded in February to Julia Howard, Tuckerman Wunderle, Molly Verespy, Autumn Jackson and Madeline Harper, as well as faculty adviser Ashley Carafiello.

The Academy Grants were established to provide for creative, memorable, positive educational opportunities that will benefit a wide number of GMUHS students, as proposed, organized and led
by students themselves. The grant program was also designed to provide practical experience to the students in writing grant applications and implementing their proposals.

Since 1984 the board has overseen the John Butler Scholarships, contributing over $700,000 toward the college expenses of Green Mountain graduates. The Chester Academy is entering its 200th year of encouraging the academic excellence of area students, and is encouraging students to apply. For more information contact Academy trustee Tom Charlton 886-3317.

Opera Theatre of Weston receives $2,500 grant

Opera Theatre of Weston recently received a $2,500 grant from the Vermont Community Foundation’s Small and Inspiring grants program. The grant will help support OTW’s outreach program, Storybook Opera: Tropical Storm Irene Project.
Approximately 2,700 children from schools throughout Southern Vermont will participate in this fall education program before attending OTW’s production of Benjamin Britten’s Noye’s Fludde (Noah’s Flood) in January. These include communities that were severely flooded in August 2011 – Cavendish, Jamaica, Rochester – whose students will share individual memories of Tropical Storm Irene by creating their own narrative arc. OTW choreographer Ashley Hensel-Browning will help students create poetry, prose and dance, enhancing their appreciation of Noah’s journey as well as chart their own.
Storybook Opera Project features the implementation of a comprehensive study guide and educational tour to southern Vermont schools. Students will listen to musical highlights of the opera and compare its libretto with the original story and make connections between the opera, their own lives and the larger world.
Through its Small and Inspiring grants program, the Vermont Community Foundation hopes to help foster the spark that keeps Vermonters healthy and happy by finding and supporting projects in every town in Vermont where a small grant can make a big difference. Visit www.vermontcf.org for more information.
Opera Theatre of Weston, a professional company of OPERA America, is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. For more information please contact OTW at www.operatheatreofweston.com (802) 824-3821 or e-mail otw@sover.net.