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Merrill pleads not guilty, ordered to remain in custody

Merrill pleads not guilty, ordered to remain in custody

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing, LLC Appearing in prison-issued clothing and a surgical mask from a visiting room at Northwest Correctional Facility in St. Albans, Norman Merrill, 45, of Chester, this afternoon entered a plea of not guilty before federal Judge Kevin Doyle, who was in Burlington via video conference. Doyle then went […]

Weston Library hosts Drag Queen Story Hour to much enjoyment

Weston Library hosts Drag Queen Story Hour to much enjoyment

 By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Weston’s Wilder Memorial Library had no qualms about holding a Drag Queen Story Hour on Saturday, attracting around 50 kids and adults, including several Wilder board members. The drag queens — Katniss Everqueer and Emoji Nightmare — arrived around 1:30, batting wickedly long eyelashes, their makeup contoured […]

GM middle school teacher arrested on federal charges of creating child pornography

GM middle school teacher arrested on federal charges of creating child pornography

By Cynthia Prairie and Shawn Cunningham ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Norm Merrill, a longtime 8th grade teacher  and Middle School coordinator at Green Mountain High School, was taken into custody today, Thursday, May 19, by Chester Police on federal charges of “producing child sexual abuse material.” The U.S.  Attorney for the District of Vermont announced […]

Special meeting of Whiting Library Trustees agenda for May 19

Special meeting of Whiting Library Trustees agenda for May 19

The Trustees of the Whiting Library will hold a special meeting  at 1 p.m. on Thursday May 19 The meeting will be conducted via Zoom. Below is the board’s agenda: Call to orderAdditions to agendaExecutive session to continue discussion of personnel issuesStatus of response to public records requestDiscussion of press release in response to press […]

BENCH PRESS! A Chester man donates seating, local firm donates labor for a charming setting

BENCH PRESS! A Chester man donates seating, local firm donates labor for a charming setting

On Friday, May 13, two new benches were installed in front of the Chester Academy Building on Main Street. The benches were purchased and donated by Chester resident Julian Sottovia in memory of his parents, and provide a relaxing place to enjoy what made Chester so special to the late couple. “My parents loved Chester,” […]

Library director resigns amid questions of board censorship

Library director resigns amid questions of board censorship

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The director of Chester’s Whiting Library tendered her resignation on Thursday, May 12, on the eve of  the Whiting’s board of trustees second executive session to discuss a scheduled library event that at least one member found “too controversial” and wanted cancelled. But board chair Robert Nied […]

Springfield Medical rebrands as North Star Health

Springfield Medical rebrands as North Star Health

Springfield Medical Care Systems, an independent federally qualified health center — FQHC — serving southern Vermont and southwestern New Hampshire, today unveiled a new name and brand identity: North Star Health. Announcing the name change, Bob Flint, chair of North Star Health’s Board of Directors, emphasized “our ownership, Board of Directors and organization have not […]

Chester Planning Commission agenda for May 16, 2022

Chester Planning Commission agenda for May 16, 2022

The Chester Planning Commission will hold its regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday May 16, 2022 in the Town Hall, 556 Elm Street and via Zoom. To join the meeting go to: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81029256359 1. Changes to the Agenda 2. Review & Approve minutes from May 2nd,      2022 meeting 3. Citizen Comments 4. Bylaw Modernization […]

Chester board appoints cannabis commission, talks police assessment

Chester board appoints cannabis commission, talks police assessment

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC At its May 4 meeting, the Chester Select Board formally created a local cannabis control commission, then appointed five of the seven residents who applied to serve on it. That included some who urged voters to reject the opt-in measure for retail sales of cannabis that was […]

From sidewalks to stop lights, Chester residents weigh in on priorities for ARPA funding

From sidewalks to stop lights, Chester residents weigh in on priorities for ARPA funding

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC With $900,000 on the table to fund most anything that could be labelled “government services,” around 20 residents came together – in person and on Zoom – on Monday evening to lend their ideas on how the money should be spent. There are only a few restrictions […]

Springfield man hit by gunfire; police seek information

Springfield man hit by gunfire; police seek information

© 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC UPDATE: Tuesday May 10 – Police have identified the victim in yesterday’s shooting as Todd Amell, 50, who lives on Valley Street in Springfield. He was shot in one of his legs, taken by ambulance to the hospital, treated and released. Investigators are saying that the shooting was not random […]

Andover Select Board agenda for May 9

Andover Select Board agenda for May 9

The Andover Select Board will hold its regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday May 9, 2022 at the Andover Town Office, 753 Weston-Andover Road and via Zoom. To join go to: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8690215007  Passcode: 146374 Below is the board’s agenda: 1. Call Select Board meeting to order. 2. Act on Agenda. 3. Act on Minutes: […]

'Oldest man in Chester' to celebrate 104th on the Green

‘Oldest man in Chester’ to celebrate 104th on the Green

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC When Bernard Mowrey was born, Woodrow Wilson was president of the United States, the end of World War I was still six months away and the flu pandemic, which would kill tens of millions worldwide, was just getting under way. Next week he’ll celebrate his 104th birthday […]

Derry Town Meeting scuttles dam article

Derry Town Meeting scuttles dam article

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC On a sunny but cool and blustery Saturday morning a little over a hundred residents of Londonderry gathered in the parking lot of Town Hall on Middletown Road to hold their Town Meeting, which had been postponed from early March due to Covid worries. Ironically, they were […]

Green Up Day events throughout the region

Green Up Day events throughout the region Andover, Athens, Cavendish, Chester, Grafton, Londonderry Weston & Winhall

By Stacia Spaulding ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Although Green Up Day officially takes place on the first Saturday in May, many area residents have gotten a jumpstart on cleaning up the roadsides in their towns. If you would like to help, there are still plenty of opportunities to take part on Saturday, May 7. This […]

A personal note: Our Ruthie Douglas dies

A personal note: Our Ruthie Douglas dies

We lost our beloved Ruthie Douglas today. She was not only a writer for The Chester Telegraph, she was our friend. She leaves behind many loving family members and friends and uncounted loyal Chester Chatter readers who for 40-plus years looked forward to reading her latest column that recalled life in bygone days and her […]

Omicron variant spurs rise in Covid cases locally, statewide

Omicron variant spurs rise in Covid cases locally, statewide

©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Although Vermont officials, including those with the Health Department, have given less focus in their weekly press conferences to discuss Covid-19 numbers, cases per week have nearly doubled since the end of March,while hospitalization numbers have tripled, driven largely by the Omicron BA.2 variant according to reports from the Center for […]

Chester Select Board agenda for May 4

Chester Select Board agenda for May 4

The Chester Select Board will meet at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 4 at Town Hall, 556 Elm St., and via Zoom. To access via Zoom: https://zoom.us/join Meeting ID:  819 8884 2129 or  ​ https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81988842129 Below is its agenda. 1. Approve Minutes from the April 20, 2022 Selectboard Meeting 2. Citizen Comments/Answers from Previous Meeting 3. Old […]

Chester board begins to set up cannabis panel

Chester board begins to set up cannabis panel

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Select Board took up the task of forming a local cannabis control commission at its Wednesday, April 20 meeting and while everyone agreed that such a commission has little real power, the discussion quickly turned to whether there would be representation of “both sides” on […]

Dam meeting attendees get a Covid scare

Dam meeting attendees get a Covid scare Londonderry Town Meeting moved outdoors in response

By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Approximately 70 people who attended last Wednesday’s information meeting regarding the fate of the Williams Dam in Londonderry  also got an unexpected call over the weekend. That call was to inform them that four of the town government representatives who had been at the meeting had tested […]