Be Smart, Be Safe in Weathersfield Vermont Dec. 14 edition

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 Let Nature Nurture

Try to get outside for 30 minutes of fresh air each day, rain or shine. It's good for both physical and mental health.

You are NOT Alone, Please Reach Out!
Dial 2-1-1


Or Text VT to 741741 to access a 24-hour Crisis Text Line. We're all stressed out and are wondering about the future. Don't go it alone. 

Upper Valley COVID Relief

Mental Health Support for members of the Upper Valley impacted by Covid

15+ NH/VT psychotherapists are volunteering to provide free 30-minute telehealth or phone support appointments to people impacted by Covid in the Upper Valley!

Sign up for up to six 30 minute support sessions by going to the website below. 
Book an appointment: www.UVCovidRelief.org

Support is available to *any member* of our Upper Valley community impacted
by Covid, including but not limited to:
- Retail and grocery workers
- Teachers and educational staff
- First responders
- All hospital employees
- Nursing home/home health aides
- Postal, UPS and FedEx workers
- Correctional officers
- Stay at home parents
- Elders in isolation
Any questions, email UVCovidRelief@gmail.com

Don't go it alone

Other Services

This is a stressful time for everyone. 
Health Care and Rehabilitation Services 24-hour crisis hotline 1-800-622-4235

HCRS Warm Line for people struggling with COVID-19 related stress and anxiety 1-800-917-1622

Headrest local crisis line 603-448-4400 and Suicide Hotline 1-800-273-8255


Also check out Upper Valley Strong
Be Smart, Stay Safe friends and neighbors.
Remember to call or check in on your elderly neighbors, bring them some cheer from a proper physical distance.

Things to Do In and Around Weathersfield
(Safely and/or Online)

Caravanserai
16th Annual Raqs Salaam Dance Theater Showcase

Streaming Online
Dec 19 - 20, Dec 26 - 27 
Jan 2 - 3, Jan 9 - 10
(Each tickets allows viewing Saturday noon through Sunday midnight
final purchase by 8 pm Sunday)
This virtual 2-hour showcase is a studio fundraiser celebrating the dance and cultures of North Africa, the Middle East, Asia and beyond. It's family-friendly and is both educational and entertaining featuring Raqs Sharki (Belly Dance), as well as many folkloric/regional dance styles-Russian Romany dance with skirts, Algerian Kabyle dance, Indian Bhangra, dance with veils, with fire and more! New England's Middle Eastern Band, Zaatar, will also be joining us, offering accompaniment with melodies from Lebanon, Egypt and Turkey.

The online video was filmed in over a dozen different locations and represents a triumph of creativity, resilience and the human spirit.

Your weekend ticket also includes a 10% off take-away at Tuckerbox restaurant (one of our filming locations!) in White River Junction, Vermont. (You must present a full-priced ticket purchased for the weekend that you order Turkish food in order to receive 10% off.)

Relax as you "travel home" with us, and enjoy the fun, entertainment and celebration of our 16th year of shows!

Valley Improv: Zoom Games Workshop
Tuesday December 15th
7 - 7:45pm


Want to spice up your Zoom happy hours? 
Come to this free, interactive workshop by Valley Improv and learn some new improv games that you can play with friends, family, frenemies, and framily over the internet!

They'll teach some games and then play them. You'll also get a digital handout with descriptions of the games so you don't have to take notes.

Registration required so we can send you the Zoom link 24 hours ahead of time. So please fill out the brief form below to register.

Share the Facebook event: https://fb.me/e/f96Gv1Mv7
Questions? Fill out our contact form: https://valleyimprov.com/#stayintouch


Winter Holiday Events

Dec. 14-15
Celebrate the holidays with music!


Upper Valley Music Center is celebrating the holidays online this year. 
Holiday Music Festival events are free and open to everyone. For the full detailed event schedule, click here.


Pocket Song Singers
Tuesday, December 15
10:00 am to 11:00 am EST


‘Tis the Session
Tuesday, December 15
7:00 pm to 8:00 pm EST

Past Events May be Viewed on YouTube: Videos


Revels North 

The Christmas Revels:
All Shall Be Well Again


"The Christmas Revels," a beloved holiday tradition for the whole family since 1975, is back, and like you’ve never seen it before. This holiday season, Revels North has produced a short animated film called "The Christmas Revels: All Shall Be Well Again." 

You can rent our film on Vimeo On Demand for $2.99, or purchase it for $9.99. Click here and watch it today!

Also, you can view "The Christmas Revels: All Shall Be Well Again" for free on CATV - Community Access Television, where it will be broadcast fifteen times through the end of the year, beginning Thanksgiving Day at 2:00pm. 

These broadcasts will be followed by a showing of the 2019 production of "The Christmas Revels: An English Celebration of the Winter Solstice," our first at Lebanon Opera House. For more information, please visit https://www.revelsnorth.org.

Finally, the film is available to purchase as a DVD. 

May "The Christmas Revels" bring joy, hope, and light to your holidays. Welcome Yule!
"The Christmas Revels: All Shall Be Well Again" is underwritten by Mascoma Bank.





Vermont Gov. Phil Scott announced #vtlightstheway holiday lights around the state. During Friday's COVID-19 update.

"In celebration of the coming holidays, I think it’s time to lift our spirits so I’m asking everyone to help Vermont Light the Way, not only in combating this crisis but to literally brighten our communities by decorating homes and businesses with holiday decorations and lights. Let’s get creative and show the world that Vermonters are here for each other, that we care about one another and that even through these dark and difficult times, Vermont Lights the Way.

Let’s make our streets and side roads special, lit up with decorations and lights all across the state. Some communities are already doing this and there may be others who are way ahead of us and I thank them"
Post your photos and tag them #vtlightstheway


Brownsville Community Church 2020 Holiday Happenings

The church is located at 66 Brownsville Hartland Rd, Brownsville
Outdoor Christmas Eve Service 
Thursday, Dec. 24 7 p.m. 
On Thursday, Dec. 24, there will be a Christmas Eve Service outside at Brownsville Community Church. The 7 p.m. service will include special music from guest, Ben Fuller, and more. 

The service will also be live-streamed on the church’s FaceBook page atwww.facebook.com/brownsvillecommunitychurch/. 

More info. please email  bcchurchvt@gmail.com or visit the Brownsville Community Church at www.brownsvilleumc-vt.org and www.facebook.com/brownsvillecommunitychurch/ 

Rev. Christian Huebner, Pastor says All are Welcome.




Within Reach Yoga Under the Trees

Slow Flow, Rest + Restore Saturdays, 9-10 am 

Weathersfield resident, Lisa Gleeson, Within Reach Yoga, is hosting online yoga classes on Saturdays via Google Meet.

Email lisa@withinreachyoga.com to register or with any questions.
COST: $12 drop-in or one punch for those who have purchased punch passes ($60).

To stay in the loop for classes and locations, for questions, to register, or to subscribe to our newsletter, please email lisa@withinreachyoga.com. Follow her on facebook for class updates.

A Taste of Open Door Wellness



When: Wednesday, December 16, 6-7pm
Price: FREE and Open to All
 Register here

What is Open Door Integrative Wellness? It's a question that we hear often and it's an answer that continuously evolves for each of us as practitioners, teachers, and as individual members of the Open Door team.

Join the Open Door team on Zoom for one hour on December 16 from 6-7pm to learn more about the many different offerings that we provide and for a chance to win a 5 class card (good for any ongoing classes offered through Open Door).

The discussion will be facilitated and led by Kate Gamble, Open Door's owner and founder. She will be joined by members of the acupuncture, massage, nutrition, athletic medicine, mental health, and physical therapy and somatics teams.



News You Can Use

COVID-19 in Our Communities



Friends and Neighbors, please be safe.
What you can do:
  • Wear A Mask (this is not a political affiliation designation, it's a public health-your health safety measure)
  • Stay 6 feet Away-assume everyone has been exposed but if you stay six feet away for under 15 minutes, you should be OK
  • Avoid Crowds-the more people, the more potentially infected people you will encounter
  • Wash Your Hands A LOT-remember your mom telling you this, it's a big DUH! Also try to avoid touching your face.
  • Stay Home if You Are Sick-even if you only feel a little "off"
  • Keep an EXPOSURE JOURNAL-when you leave your home "pod" keep track of where you go and who you saw and if you want to be proactive-how long were you with them.

Town COVID-19 Response

The Town of Weathersfield has created a Volunteer Network to help during these times of COVID-19. 
If you are at risk for being exposed to COVID-19 or are currently in quarantine or isolation due to a positive COVID-19 test, please click the link below and fill out the form. These forms are being monitored by Susanne Terrill who will connect you with a volunteer quickly. 

CLICK HERE FOR ASSISTANCE

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the form please contact them and they will walk you through it.
Phone: (802) 674 - 2626
Email: weathersfield@weathersfield.org 

National Data

Track the Vaccine Doses
Want to track the COVID-19 dose distribution?
Benjamin Renton, a senior at Middlebury College who has been tracking data during the pandemic, has launched a new dashboard using local news reports and press releases to track how many vaccine doses each state is being allocated. 
The feds have cut way back on their initial promises and have no readily available public data effort like it on their own,  Renton updates his dashboard regularly as new information becomes available. Click Here to Track





Northeast Region Data





Vermont Data

The Numbers

VT reported 88 cases Friday, 116 on Saturday, and 119 yesterday, bringing its official total to 5,753, with 2,147 of those active (up 49 over the weekend). 

There were 6 new deaths, overall at 95 with 22 people with confirmed cases (no change) hospitalized. 

Windsor County gained 16 cases over the weekend (87 over the past 14 days) to stand at 295 for the pandemic.  
In weekly town-by-town numbers released Friday, Springfield gained 11 cases over the week before, Hartford added 8, Randolph gained 6, Windsor added 4 and Bethel at least 4 (moving from the 1-5 category to 9 since March). 



The Governor’s actions, visit https://governor.vermont.gov/covid19response.

The state’s modeling, visit https://dfr.vermont.gov/about-us/covid-19/modeling.
(The travel maps will be updated on Tuesdays)

December 8, 2020 Slideshow


The State of Vermont has suspended its leisure travel map and implemented a mandatory quarantine for anyone returning or traveling to Vermont.

COVID-19 health information, guidance and case data, visit www.healthvermont.gov/covid19.

Health Department Dashboard with current case map


Cases by Town Map






K-12 Dashboard


TRAVELING To/From VERMONT

The State of Vermont has suspended its leisure travel map and implemented a mandatory quarantine for anyone returning or traveling to Vermont.

Vermont and Non-Vermont Residents-Leisure Travel

Due to rising COVID-19 case counts across the Northeast, effective on November 10, 2020, the State of Vermont has suspended its leisure travel map and implemented a mandatory quarantine for anyone returning or traveling to Vermont.

The State of Vermont has suspended its leisure travel map and implemented a mandatory quarantine for anyone returning or traveling to Vermont.

Anyone returning or traveling to Vermont must follow Vermont’s mandatory quarantine policy. Vermonters returning from an out-of-state trip must complete either a 14-day quarantine or a 7-day quarantine followed by a negative test.

Vermonters must remember to follow any travel restrictions and quarantine requirements for the states they plan to visit.

Residents of other states must adhere to the quarantine guidelines:
  • Travelers arriving to Vermont in a personal vehicle must complete either a 14-day quarantine or a 7-day quarantine followed by a negative test in their home state and enter Vermont without further quarantine restrictions.
  • Travelers arriving to Vermont who have not completed a pre-arrival quarantine must complete either a 14-day quarantine or a 7-day quarantine followed by a negative test in a Vermont lodging establishment or with friends and family (travelers must stay in their quarantine location for the duration of quarantine other than to travel to and from a test site).
  • Read more about quarantining at the Vermont Department of Health website.
  • All out of state travelers utilizing lodging, camping and short-term rental properties in Vermont must sign and complete a Certificate of Compliance or affirm a compliance statement via a digital check box at the time of reservation and check-in to attest that they meet the quarantine requirement or are an essential/authorized worker.
  • All out of state travelers are strongly encouraged to register with Sara Alert upon arrival to Vermont to get two weeks of daily reminders to check for common symptoms of COVID-19.

What is Essential Travel?

People traveling for essential purposes, including work, do not need to quarantine.
 Essential travel includes: 
  • travel for personal safety
  • medical care
  • care of others 
  • parental shared custody
  • for food, beverage or medicine
  • to attend preK-12 school and college if commuting daily 
  • or to perform work for businesses that are currently allowed to operate 
For more information about which businesses may operate and how they may operate, view the Work Safe Guidance. The current State of Emergency requires employers to use remote work and telework whenever possible to avoid unnecessary work travel. Businesses and employees must only travel for work related trips when absolutely necessary. Individuals engaged in a daily commute to and from their job are expressly exempt from the need to quarantine by Executive Order.

Persons should not travel to, from, or within Vermont if they are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or if they meet the criteria for needing to Isolate or Quarantine.


New Hampshire Data Dashboard

The Numbers

NH reported 1,190 new cases on Friday, 791 on Saturday, and 722 yesterday, reaching 30,956 overall. 

There were 19 deaths over the weekend, bringing the total to 584, and 251 people are hospitalized (up 3). 

The current active caseload stands at 6,560 (up 257). Grafton County is at 188 active cases (up 2), Sullivan has 56 (down 2), and Merrimack has 822 (up 46). In town-by-town numbers, the state says Hanover has 33 active cases (down 11), Lebanon has 31 (up 10), Claremont has 22 (up 4), Newport has 13 (down 7), New London has 10 (up 1), Enfield has 6 (up 1), as do Grantham and Haverhill (up at least 2 each). 


Travel Plans this Winter?
This map shows restrictions and guidelines to all 50 states and some parts of Canada. 
Link: https://gds.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=2ec42826968d4d0980ccca0fbbfe0c7c&mc_cid=01b40a6b30&mc_eid=62773da223

Town of Weathersfield



Open Elected Positions in Town
File before Jan. 25, 2021 at 5 PM

Signatures ARE NOT required, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but each candidate must sign a consent form to be put on the ballot for Town Meeting. March 2, 2021.

Upcoming Town Board and Committee Meetings


Minute posting: (2) Minutes of all public meetings shall be matters of public record, shall be kept by the clerk or secretary of the public body, and shall be available for inspection by any person and for purchase of copies at cost upon request after five calendar days from the date of any meeting. Meeting minutes shall be posted no later than five calendar days from the date of the meeting to a website, if one exists, that the public body maintains or has designated as the official website of the body. Except for draft minutes that have been substituted with updated minutes, posted minutes shall not be removed from the website sooner than one year from the date of the meeting for which the minutes were taken.

Select Board Meets: December 21; January 4, 18.

Select Board Minutes:
December 7 not posted at press time Monday Dec. 14 at 8 AM.


Library Trustees
Minutes of November 19


Weathersfield School


School Dates and Events

Stay up on all the school events visit: School Calendar

In-Person Learning Dates: Dec. 21 and 22
Remote Learning Dates:
Week of Jan 4 (see Supervisory Union update below)

Holiday Recess: December 24, 2020-January 4, 2021
MLK Day Jan. 12-school closed
Winter Recess: February 15-19
Spring Recess: April 12-16
Last Day of School (tentative) June 10

School Board 

Meeting Dates:
Jan. 12
Feb. 9
March 9
April 13
The school board meets from 6:30 PM - 10:00 PM at the Weathersfield School, 135 Schoolhouse Rd, Ascutney, VT.

Weathersfield School Pavilion

After years of planning the school now has a covered pavilion. With the support of the WS School Board, our Kindergarten teachers, Mrs. Robinson and Mrs. Powers, an anonymous donation, and the Hicks Nichols Committee, the school opened the covered pavilion. 

Thanks go out to Nick Zandstra and his team from "Knock On Wood SawWorks" for the time and hard work they put into this project. 

"Hidden" in the concrete are some leaf prints, the year, and a penny for good luck. Nick hopes everyone has fun finding them and that the structure is enjoyed for many years to come. 

Supervisory Union Office

Dec. 4 Update-Winter Break Calendar Change
It is the administration's thinking that the Winter Break will be even more challenging with respect to multi-household gatherings. It will be more than impossible to ask families and staff to stay isolated during these upcoming Holidays. We certainly avoided any school/POD closures using this remote weeks after Thanksgiving. 

Therefore, in consultation with the administrative team, we have decided to modify the calendar for winter break. December 21 and 22 (formerly remote learning days) will now be in-person instruction. December 23 (formerly a remote learning day) will be a Staff Development Day (no school for students) for both faculty and support staff to allow time to prepare for another added remote week after the Winter Break. 

The week of January 4th will now be remote for all students. The state may issue a statewide order for remote instruction after the Winter Break, but we did not want to wait to see what they were going to do. Our families need to plan. We think this plan will support multi-household gatherings and family time around the Holidays. The revised calendar can be seen by clicking here.

Visit Our Local Restaurants

Exit Ate  Eat In or Take-Away
Greg is making homemade bread and potato chips and they now have a variety of salads for your quarantined BBQs: Potato Salad, Tuna Mac, Italian Pasta, and our delicious Cole Slaw.
Be sure to try some of Greg's Raisin Bread! It was delicious!

Inn at Weathersfield-On break beginning November 1, 2020. 
Dine inside or outside Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, call for a reservation 802-263-9217. They also offer a take away menu. 

Springfield Diner-seating inside/outside daily 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Ice cream shop open Thursday-Sunday 1-7 pm. Daily specials.

The Hanover Chamber put together this list of Curbside Restaurants: https://www.hanoverchamber.org/upper-valley-restaurants-delivery-curbside-pi

Check to see if your favorite restaurant is open for outdoor and/or indoor dining. Most are requiring reservations so call ahead for their guidelines and business hours.


Food Assistance

Ascutney Union Church Food Cupboard in Ascutney 5243 Route 5 Saturdays 9-10 a.m. call 802-674-2484.

Weathersfield Food Shelf in Perkinsville. 
CLOSED Christmas-they will however, be OPEN Tuesday Dec. 22 from 2-4 p.m. The 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month from 2-4 p.m. WFS is located in the 1879 Schoolhouse at 1862 Route 106 in Perkinsville. Donations of non-perishable food are always welcomed and may be dropped off at the facility during open hours or placed in the collection box at Martin Memorial Hall. For more information, call 802-263-5584 or email weathersfieldfoodshelf@gmail.com.

Hartland Food Shelf in Hartland. 4 Corners UU Church Fridays 8-10 a.m, Saturdays 10 a.m-2 p.m.

Reading-West Windsor Food Shelf in Reading. Mondays 2-4 p.m. and Thursday 4-6 p.m. Stone School 3456 Tyson Rd, Reading.


Staying At Home, Looking for Recipes

I recently purchased an Instant Pot and have been experimenting with it. 
Click on the link or photo for the recipe.

We'll get through this together. We're all connected.

Be Smart, Be Safe
#StayatHomeSavesLives
#StopTheSpread
#MaskUpVermont

Nancy Nutile-McMenemy is an Upper Valley freelance photographer and writer who loves to attend concerts and local events in and around Weathersfield and the Upper Valley.

If you have anything you think I should post drop me an email: photosbynanci@comcast.com 

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