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.
Editorial: Targeting cultural and economic growth
By Cynthia Prairie Two weeks ago, I wrote about the desire of many area residents and interested parties to see a concerted push for economic vitality in the town of Chester, whether it is for a fairgrounds and kiosk, an observatory or a new business. We’ve read it many times in The Telegraph Polls, […]
Chester Police Log for Jan. 21-April 26, 2014
Editor’s Note: The Chester Telegraph Police Log is a sampling of incidents directly from Chester Police reports. We do not identify individual victims of crimes nor those who have been arrested. Tuesday, Jan. 21, 12:15 p.m. Police assisted the Fire Department in a call for a chimney fire on Popple Dungeon Road that started when […]
GM Honor Society inducts 10 new members
The Flamstead Chapter of the National Honor Society inducted 10 new members in a ceremony and celebration on Thursday, April 24 at Green Mountain Union High School in Chester. The 93-year-old National Honor Society, with chapters in all 50 states, honors students who have “demonstrated excellence in the areas of Scholarship, Leadership, Service and Character,” […]
Editorial: Chester, start your economic engine
When The Chester Telegraph started producing its Telegraph Polls shortly after its own launch back in January of 2012, we thought it would be a great way to continue conversations and register opinions that until then were only rarely conducted in public. The results have been heartening and enlightening. I bring the Telegraph Poll up […]
Construction of Chester town solar farm expected to begin by fall
By Cynthia Prairie Construction of a 500-kilowatt solar farm on Chester town land should begin by this fall, according Luke Shullenberger of Green Lantern Capital of Waterbury, the developer of the project, with completion in eight to 10 weeks from start. The project, slated for a 5-acre Jeffrey Well parcel at Route 103 North and […]
Ladd Scholarship fund-raising pulls in more than $17,000
By Cynthia Prairie M ore than 100 people turned out Saturday night at the Fullerton Inn to celebrate the legacy of learning created by the late Andy and Heidi Ladd and to raise money for scholarships for graduates of Green Mountain Union High School who are seeking a college degree. The total raised […]
Donors rock the Heath Gordon Scholarship fundraiser
By Cynthia Prairie Sam Gordon is a happy man. On Friday evening, as the Chester American Legion began buzzing with activity, Gordon said he hoped the Heath Gordon Scholarship Fundraiser that was just kicking off would raise $2,000 to add to the college fund that he and a group of friends set up to […]
$6,400 raised during crowded event for Brian Waldo
More than 300 well-wishers attended Saturday night’s fund-raiser for Chester resident Brian Waldo, who has been hospitalized for several months with health issues related to spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spine that he developed over the last several years. According to Pat Budnick, as of Monday morning, $6,400 had been raised with […]
April 5 Ladd Scholarship fund-raiser a time for reflection and the future
On the cover: The Ladd family, clockwise from rear left, son Gabe, parents Heidi and Andy, and daughters Georgia, Lily, Abbie and Marguerite. Laughter and a sense of fun. The desire for world experience. A love of learning. An allegiance to community. Five children who embody those values. A scholarship to offer students a […]
School budget issues pass; two write-ins take school posts; incumbents re-elected in Chester
By Cynthia Prairie With 402 Chester residents voting on Tuesday, all the school budget items passed and every incumbent seeking re-election was returned to office. The River Valley Technical Center budget issue was approved 307 yes to 92 no. With votes of both Chester and Andover co-mingled, the Chester-Andover Elementary School budget passed 307 […]
Chester voters OK all articles: Whiting Library issue creates a ruckus
By Cynthia Prairie Chester Town Meeting was quickly thrown a curveball on Monday night when Select Board chair John DeBenedetti sought to amend an article to give the Select Board authority over how and if money for repair and rehabilitation of the Whiting Library is spent, stunning members of Whiting’s board of trustees and […]
Andover voters to address alternative energy use, 4% hike in budget
By Cynthia Prairie Andover’s Town Meeting will begin at 10:15 a.m. Saturday, March 1 at Andover Town Hall, 953 Weston Andover Road. Besides electing 12 town officers during a floor vote, Andover voters will also consider exempting from municipal taxes those net metered solar energy systems that are regulated by the state Public Service […]
Londonderry to vote on eliminating auditors, lengthening terms of town clerk, treasurer
By Cynthia Prairie Among items under consideration for Londonderry voters during Town Meeting next week is Article 4 to eliminate the post of auditor, which has three three-year slots, two of which are up for election, and Article 3 to lengthen the terms of town clerk and treasurer, which are currently one-year terms, to […]
$385,000 in capital expenditures face vote at Chester Town Meeting
This article was originally published on Jan. 29, 2014. We republish it as a service to our Chester readers who will be voting at Town Meeting and on Election Day. By Cynthia Prairie Chester town voters will be addressing expenditure requests for 14 articles during Town Meeting, 10 of those requests from petition drives […]
Environmental Court OK’s Dollar General with conditions
By Cynthia Prairie Concluding that pertinent segments of Chester’s Town Plan are “aspirational” and not mandatory and that, even though the project will have an adverse impact, it will not be an undue impact, Environmental Court Judge Thomas Walsh has ruled that a 9,100-square-foot Dollar General can be built on Main Street in Chester. […]
Sunday morning fire destroys home on Trebo Road
UPDATE: How you can help, below the story. A single-family home on Trebo Road, about a half a mile from Route 103 North, was destroyed Sunday morning in a fire that also injured two residents and apparently collapsed portions of the building “fairly quickly,” Chester Fire Chief Matt Wilson said in an interview on […]
Bulkies and basketball: Fund-raisers fuel Lindsey Sturtevant fund
By Cynthia Prairie ON THE COVER: The bulkie team at Lisai’s prepares sandwiches for last Thursday’s fund-raiser for Lindsey Sturtevant and her family. Almost $6,000 was raised Thursday during two fund-raising events for Lindsey Sturtevant, the Chester 12-year-old who is preparing for a second bone marrow transplant after her first one — six years ago […]
For Lindsey’s sake: Community surrounds family as a little girl readies for a marrow transplant
By Cynthia Prairie Sue Willis picks out a few of the glass beads from the wooden box marked T.K. T*, gently rubbing them in the palm of her hand. With each touch, it seems, appears a memory of what her 12-year-old daughter has been through as well as a foreshadow of what she will […]
Chester’s final fiscal articles set; no formal challenges to incumbents, seven contests vacant
By Cynthia Prairie Chester town voters will be addressing expenditure requests for 14 articles during Town Meeting, 10 of those requests from petition drives mounted by organizations. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. Monday, March 3 in Town Hall, 556 Elm St. in Chester. As for the elections on Tuesday, March 4, the roster will […]
Deadlines loom for fiscal, candidate petitions in Chester
By Cynthia Prairie With Chester town vote petition deadlines looming — 5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 23 for fiscal articles and 5 p.m. Monday, Jan. 27 for elective offices — surprisingly few petitions had been submitted as of Tuesday, Jan. 21, said Julie Hance, assistant town clerk. By last Tuesday, three of an expected 11 […]
