Author Archive for Cynthia Prairie
Cynthia Prairie has been a newspaper editor more than 40 years. Cynthia has worked at such publications as the Raleigh Times, the Baltimore News American, the Buffalo Courier Express, the Chicago Sun-Times and the Patuxent Publishing chain of community newspapers in Maryland, and has won numerous state awards for her reporting. As an editor, she has overseen her staffs to win many awards for indepth coverage. She and her family moved to Chester, Vermont in 2004.
Citing high fire danger, Chester bans open burns
©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Chester Fire Warden Jeff Holden has issued an open burn ban beginning tonight — Friday, April 22 — within the town of Chester. Open burning includes burning a pile on the ground, using a burn barrel and burning in any open topped container. The ban will be in effect until at […]
Agenda item sent back for rewarning in another contentious Grafton board meeting
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Even before the Grafton Select Board could begin revisiting whether it should formally sanction a committee to address possible financial benefits from a proposed wind project, Board member Ron Pilette stopped the meeting cold. The Monday night meeting, attended by more than 40 residents, many to hear this […]
Have Lab, Will Tinker: Portable lab to bring joys of tinkering to TRSU schools
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Come Sept. 1, Venissa White hopes to be ready to travel around the elementary schools of the Two Rivers Supervisory Union with her portable Tinker Lab, introducing kids to the thrill that discovery, exploration and working with your hands can bring. Tinker Lab is a relatively recent movement […]
Fund-raiser pulls in $5,200 for new CAES playground, fire equipment
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester-Andover Elementary School Parent-Teacher Group raised more than $5,200 on Saturday night during its free community supper and silent auction event held at the school. Of the total, $3,700 becomes the fundraising base for a new playground and $1,500 will go to the Chester Fire Department for […]
Chester Police Log for April: Feb. 5-April 1, 2016
© 2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Editor’s Note: The Chester Telegraph Police Log is a sampling of incidents directly from Chester Police reports. In general, we do not identify individual victims of crimes nor those who have been arrested. Friday, Feb. 5 at 8:09 a.m. Police responded to a two-vehicle accident on Route 10 and Clemons […]
Volunteer who found dead cat last year, veterinarian who saw it Friday dispute ‘bucket of water’ claim
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC A volunteer at Webster’s House and the veterinarian who was on scene Friday are independently disputing a weekend news report that a dead cat found on the site that afternoon was “wrapped in a plastic bag, floating in a bucket of water in back of the building.” And […]
Webster’s House animal shelter to close; State’s Attorney’s office considers cruelty complaint
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Webster’s House animal shelter, the 16-year-old Chester organization that specialized in rescuing cats, has been asked by its longtime landlord to vacate its home at 1758 Route 103 South by July 1, according to shelter manager Mary Donaldson. In preparation for the closing, Webster’s House, formerly known at […]
Ducks line up for Windham Foundation to take over Turner site
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Grafton Select Board Monday night gave its blessing to the Agency of Natural Resources to turn over the historic Daisy Turner property to the Windham Foundation as part of an agreement with Preservation Trust Vermont to restore the remaining cabin and build a kiosk and access road […]
Grafton hires new town administrator
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Londonderry resident Emily Huff has been hired as town administrator for Grafton, replacing Rachel Williams, who is returning to college to finish her bachelor’s and pursue a master’s degree. Huff began work last week, getting her feet wet with Williams’ help. In an interview on Thursday, Huff said […]
Local Jr. Iron Chefs win at competition;
Chester Fall Festival 2016 accepting vendor applications
Green Mountain Union’s high school and middle school teams took home wins at Saturday’s 9th Annual Jr. Iron Chef competition held the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction. This statewide culinary competition challenges teams of middle and high school students to create healthy, local dishes that inspire school meal programs. This year, 17 middle school […]
Come out swinging: CAES parents, kids kick off ambitious plan for new playground
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC A group of parents, school staff and students have come together to begin working on a plan to replace Chester-Andover Elementary School’s well-worn 25-year-old playground known to generations simply as “The Structure.” The effort began several years ago when maintenance on the castle-like Structure began to get overwhelming […]
Grafton board pushes Planning Commission on Town Plan
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC With a sharply critical response directed to the Grafton Planning Commission, Grafton Select Board member Ron Pilette on Monday called on the commission to make specific changes to the Town Plan that was rejected in late December. In a short, 1-1/4-page draft response, which will be sent on […]
Sands fends off write-in candidate, Gibbs beats incumbent to win seats on Grafton Select Board
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC With 320 voters casting ballots, Grafton residents turned out one incumbent and turned aside a write-in candidate who mounted an active campaign against another in Tuesday’s Australian balloting. Cynthia Gibbs, who had served more than 30 years as Town Clerk and Town Treasurer, won her first Select Board […]
Newcomers Cote, Whalen win seats on Chester Select Board; incumbent Jonynas garners most votes
By Cynthia Prairie © 2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC ON THE COVER: From left, Arne Jonynas, Dan Cote and Ben Whalen. The Chester Select Board will welcome two new members when it meets Wednesday night. Chester innkeeper Dan Cote and firefighter and state police dispatcher Ben Whalen will be taking their seats along with Heather Chase, […]
Chester voters shorten two tax exemption articles at Town Meeting
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Two of three articles to exempt organizations from property and education taxes were substantially changed at Monday night’s Chester Town Meeting, when both the Rod & Gun Club and the Green Mountain Softball League were given one-year tax exemptions (rather than five) and asked to return next year […]
Grafton Select Board meeting for March 1, 2016
The Grafton Select Board will hold an organizational meeting on Tuesday, March 1 following the ballot counting. Polls close at 7 p.m. and the meeting is expected to start around 8 p.m. It will be held at Grafton Elementary School, 58 School St. in Grafton. Below is the agenda. 1. Adopt Agenda 2. Elect Chair […]
Grafton voters ask the questions in a lively candidate forum
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC About 40 members of the Grafton public got a chance Monday night to ask questions of the four people seeking two seats on the Grafton Select Board. The candidates forum, overseen by town Moderator David Ross at the Grafton Elementary School, was a lively and at times pointed […]
Grafton Board seeks way to garner wind project opinions from second homeowners
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC A majority of the members of the Grafton Select Board continues to search for a way to gather non-residents’ opinions on the 28-turbine Iberdrola-Meadowsend wind project proposed for the Grafton/Windham town line. Board chair Sam Battaglino has proposed that non-resident property owners in Grafton should have a say […]
Grafton Town Administrator Williams stepping down
By Cynthia Prairie ©2016 Telegraph Publishing LLC Grafton Town Administrator Rachel Williams is leaving her position to complete her bachelor’s degree and pursue a master’s in business management and accounting in St. Albans. Williams, 34, the mother of two elementary school-age children, has been in the post for two years. It’s a job that involves […]
GMUHS, CAES issue annual budget requests, annual reports
© 2016 Telegraph Publishing, LLC The Green Mountain Union High and Chester-Andover Elementary schools have issued their annual reports for 2014-2015. The two reports, of more than 30 pages each, can be accessed online in The Chester Telegraph: GMUHS REPORT and CAES REPORT Each report contains the warnings for upcoming public meetings and votes, minutes […]
