All Entries in the "Community and Arts Life" Category
Chester Chatter: Wash day, the longest day
By Ruthie Douglas ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Homemakers of the 1950s were apt to keep a routine for their household chores. Monday meant wash day. The wringer washing machine was kept in the unheated back room, so come Saturday night Dad wheeled the machine into the house to warm up. As we kids got ready […]
Henry Homeyer: tomatoes, your garden’s royal family
By Henry Homeyer ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC If I could only bring the seeds of one plant with me when exiled to a distant island, I would bring tomato seeds. Tomatoes are the center of much of my cuisine from soups and stews to sandwiches and salads. They are tasty raw or cooked, are healthy […]
New bench in Chester memorializes Suzy Forlie
© 2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Visitors to the Hearse House and the Public Tomb across from Chester’s Green will notice the addition of a granite bench with the inscription “In Memory of Suzy Henry Forlie.” Forlie, who died on April 16, 2020, was a member of Chester Townscape and was instrumental in the repair and […]
Left in Andover: Tackling adversity and bridging differences
By Susan Leader ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Teaching is my job,” wrote Scott Nearing from Forest Farm, his remote Winhall homestead, in 1944. “I have been sure of that ever since I gave my first sociology courses at Temple University, Philadelphia, back in 1903. Teaching has three essential aspects: 1) to arouse interest, 2) to […]
Chester Chatter: The tale of toad and frog
By Ruthie Douglas ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC In the late 1960s, the government gave money to lots of small Vermont towns to be used for summer programs for children. Just down the road from my house was the town of Bartonsville. It was in a different county from my farmhouse but my daughters still were […]
Henry Homeyer: Perennials that love moisture
By Henry Homeyer ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC I am lucky. Even though my property is relatively small – just over 2 acres – I have all the possible growing conditions a plant could want: wet, dry, sunny and shady. And I’m willing to try almost anything that will survive 20 or 25 below in winter. […]
Kinhaven faculty gives concert on Weston Green
Nearly 100 Weston residents and neighbors were on hand this past Saturday for the return of live music to the Weston Village Green presented by the faculty of the Kinhaven Music School. The program included selections from Bach, Paganini, O’Connor, Dvorak, Mendelssohn and Perrault. Artists included Deborah Buck on violin, who is also Kinhaven co-executive […]
70th Grace Cottage Fair Auction through Monday
The 70th Grace Cottage Hospital Fair Day will go on, with some of the traditional elements intact. The first fair was held on Aug. 5, 1950, organized by the Grace Cottage Hospital Auxiliary, with a healthy mix of fun, fellowship, and fundraising that has been vital to sustaining the hospital’s patient care. An auction, T-shirts […]
Whiting Library reopens Aug. 3 by appointment
The Whiting Library, 117 Main St, in Chester, will be reopening the library building to the public by appointment only beginning Monday, Aug. 3. Patrons will be required to call in advance at 875-2277 to schedule a 25-minute appointment slot. Appointments will be available at 11 and 11:30 a.m. and noon and 12:30 p.m. Monday, […]
Left in Andover: A step back to go forward in women’s health care
By Susan Leader ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Brattleboro Hospital was the place to deliver when I had my two babies in the mid-1980s. It had been early to adopt woman-centric policies, offering my women friends and me wide latitude in our birth plans. But Springfield was a shorter drive from my home in Andover. I […]
Chester Chatter: Ah, those trips to the dump
By Ruthie Douglas ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Yippee! Yippee! School was out and summer vacation had begun for me and my sister. My Uncle Kenny had a butcher shop and small grocery in front of our house. The shop was closed on Mondays and my sister and I would hang out with him. We really […]
Henry Homeyer: beyond the perennials, unique ways to make your garden your own
By Henry Homeyer ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC My garden is the place I go in times of sadness, worry or stress. It makes me feel better. I took a few moments one morning recently to really look at what was in my garden to see what made it so special. I saw that in addition […]
Chester quilter among winners at Billings exhibit
Linda Diak of Chester has been chosen as one of several winners of the Juror’s Choice Awards during the 34th Annual Quilt Exhibition of the Billings Farm & Museum, 69 Old River Road in Woodstock. She and other winners were announced during the exhibit’s opening reception on Friday, July 17. The Quilt Exhibition, which runs […]
Beautification group keeps Derry blooming
Londonderry’s Beautification Commission and Friends of Main Street overcame all obstacles from Covid-19 to ensure barrels and bridge boxes were planted and distributed throughout town. The planters are filled with colorful, thriving flowers to brighten the community, providing a great lift to residents and visitors during this most challenging time. Covid-19 guidelines restricted the annual […]
Left in Andover: Home in the hills of Vermont
By Susan Leader ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Due to the pandemic, scores of non-resident property owners have worked remotely from area ski and vacation homes. Many will choose to remain as full-time residents. And even more will continue to find their way here as air travel becomes increasingly problematic. I believe future leaders of our […]
Chester Chatter: Air conditioning ushered in changes
By Ruthie Douglas ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Growing up I did not know anyone who had air conditioning in their homes. This was the 1950s. No one had air conditioning in their car, either. We had one big fan that we moved around from room to room, whereever we were. Often we sat on our […]
Henry Homeyer: A Midsummer Night’s Flowers, Shakespeare’s lesser known work
By Henry Homeyer ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC It is mid-summer now, and my garden is full of gorgeous flowers, some finishing up their display, others just beginning. Here are some I love and what I do to make them happy. The first flowers I see when I walk out my front door are poppies. Annual […]
Left in Andover: The gift in the rituals of death
By Susan Leader ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC Four women, members of the local chevra kadisha burial society, arrive to perform the ancient rite of tahara, or washing the body of the deceased, upon my mother. As I cross the dimly lit funeral home lobby on my way out to grab a soy latte, they reach […]
Chester Chatter: A softball league of our own
By Ruthie Douglas ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Green Mountain Softball League is celebrating 41 years of playing on its field off Route 103 in Chester. It all started in Londonderry with an idea from a few young boys. Alan Benson of Weston helped get everything started. Neil MacKenzie of Chester donated funds to help. […]
Henry Homeyer: your humor may be dry, but your garden shouldn’t be
By Henry Homeyer ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC June, for most of us, was a very dry time. When weeds and established perennials started to droop, I knew it was time to water, and I did. But watering done well takes time. And watering done poorly wastes a lot of water, or doesn’t do the job. […]
