It's PEACH time at our house and we're not the only ones enjoying them.
Heads up-No Weathersfield Weekly Blog on August 12 and 19 (Weekend event photography assignments, sorry) Back August 26th
Local News
Did you Receive Two Tax Bills from the Town?
If you didn't, you'll get one soon. The first tax statement and bill went out on July 11, 2024 with the incorrect tax year.
It was listed as 2023-2024, instead of 2024-2025 and the payment coupons were listed as 08/21/2024, 11/20/2024, 02/19/2024, and 05/21/2025.
This messed up one was followed up by a second mailing with the correct dates.
By the way, the first tax payment is due on/before Wednesday, August 21, 2024.
Weathersfield Republicans Meet August 7
7:30 p.m. at Martin Memorial Hall in Ascutney
Weathersfield GOP Committee is holding their regular meeting and will be nominating Justices of the Peace candidates. Open to all Republican members and like-minded conservatives who would like to learn more or join their local GOP Committee.
Vermont Primary August 13thVoting at Martin Memorial Hall
Primary Election Guide Use this guide to learn all about the 2024 primary election in Vermont.
VTDigger has launched its 2024 Election Guide ahead of a primary election that doesn’t feature a ton of statewide competition but still includes key races for each of Vermont’s political parties.
Candidate profiles featuring biographical information, responses to survey questions about the issues facing Vermonters and individual financial disclosures
Pages highlighting the different county, statewide and federal races
Plus: reminders of important dates, help finding your polling place, and Senate and House district-lookup tools
Aug. 13 Primary Election Information and Resources from the Secretary of State
Sarah Copeland Hanzas • Secretary of State, Office of the Secretary of State, State of Vermont Election Hi neighbors! I wanted to remind you that the August 13 Primary Election is just a couple weeks away and share a few resources my office has been working on as we head into election season.
The Primary Election will be held on Tuesday, August 13, 2024. You'll be choosing which candidates will represent their party in the November General Election.
The following offices are up for election: U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative, Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Treasurer, Secretary of State, Auditor of Accounts, Attorney General, all State Senate seats, all State Representative seats, and High Bailiffs.
- Registered? You can vote early at your clerk's office, and you can request an absentee ballot, find your polling place, and get a preview of what's on your ballot at the My Voter Page. Simply sign in with your name, date of birth, and either your VT ID or last four numbers of your social security number. https://mvp.vermont.gov/
Finally, here are a few resources I'm excited to share with you! Election Security in Vermont Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2TKdTs0o6I Secure elections are a critical part of the foundation for a healthy democracy. I partnered with town/city clerks from around the state to create an informational video that outlines the ways we ensure that our elections are secure.
There can be a lot of mis/disinformation out there. I've put together a succinct webpage that addresses some of the more common election-related myths.
Upcoming Events
Mark Your Calendars
Sunflower House and Billings Farmstead Gardens are OPEN
The 6th annual Sunflower House at Billings Farm & Museum has opened early due to favorable weather! At its peak in August, it is a breathtaking and magical sight to behold. A colorful palette ranging from orange and red to golden yellow will welcome guests to roam, play, and take lots of photographs. Billed as the largest sunflower house in the United States with a footprint of 20,000 square feet, guests are invited to wander the pathways through the ever-evolving living floral house.
Guests are welcome to wander the pathways and meander through “rooms” and “hallways” created by sunflower stalks and blooms. Zigzagging paths ensure maximum impact of eastward-facing blooms, offering breathtaking pockets or vistas at every turn.
More photos of my visits to the Sunflower House: CLICK HERE
August 3-11, 10 AM-5PM
The 91st Annual Craftsmen’s Fair will take place at the Mount Sunapee Resort in Newbury, NH August 3-11, 2024. Tickets are now on sale. The online ticket price is the lowest price – gate tickets will be available, but at a higher price. No discounts are available.
Online general admission price is $18; cost will be $20 at the gate. The Fair is open daily 10 AM – 5 PM rain or shine. TICKETS
In celebration of Lebanon Opera House's 100th birthday, the wildly popular Nexus Music and Arts Festival -- the centerpiece of LOH on Location programming -- is bigger than ever!
Grammy-nominated singer Joan Osborne (One of Us) headlines on Friday night!
There's an African dance workshop, a fast-paced physical theater show, music for children, and performances by many of the talented young people in our community.
Three stages!
Twenty performances. Endless FREE fun. To learn more about the barrier-free party of the summer, go to LebanonOperaHouse.org/nexus/
Tips and Tricks to Maximize Your Experience: CLICK HERE
Quechee Scottish Games and Festival has been going on for 48 years in various forms. From its humble beginnings, this event has evolved over the years into a wonderful authentic and traditional Highland Games experience.
We hit our favorite Vermont listening venue last Monday to see the band Briscoe from Austin, TX.
From their website: "Bandmates Truett Heintzelman and Philip Lupton built their grassroots following the old-school way: by carving out a sound that nodded to the golden era of folk, rock, and pop music, then getting onstage and building a genuine relationship with their audience."
"Heintzelman and Lupton first met as teenagers at a summer camp on the outskirts of Kerrville, Texas. "I walked into camp as a 14 year-old redheaded kid who didn't know anybody at all, so I just kept my eyes on the ground," Lupton remembers. "A couple feet away from me was another person wearing the exact same pair of Chacos as me, and when we both looked up, it felt like we were looking in the mirror." Lupton and Heintzelman didn't just look alike; they were both drawn to similar music, too, from golden-era folk duos like Simon & Garfunkel to 21st century torchbearers like the Avett Brothers. They hit it off immediately, and at a talent show later that week, the two campers performed John Prine's "Paradise," laying the brickwork for the collaborative sound they'd eventually make as Briscoe."
They were really good and their harmonies-top notch. Check them out if you can.
I'm not a SWIFTY (Taylor Swift fans) but I get it because I'm a TRAMP (Bruce Springsteen fan); I know all the words to the songs he sings and his dance moves-I can copy most of them but I don't scream at the top of my lungs for him so I guess that's one difference. I was a little too young to scream for the Beatles but I know my older cousin screamed for them A LOT. But I've never heard fans screaming like what happened on Friday night at Lebanon Opera House (LOH).
The sold-out show "Let's Sing Taylor" at LOH had me putting in my ear plugs not for the loud music but for the LOUD audience.
The audience was mostly young girls with their parent(s) and they arrived in packs. It was total GIRL POWER all night long.
And let me tell you, I was exhausted at the end of the show (like WAY MORE exhausted than after a weekend festival of music-like say NEXUS-which is coming up this coming weekend August 9-11!)
The energy level on stage and in the audience was off the charts for a full 90 minutes (with no intermission!)
I'll admit, I couldn't name one TS song if you paid me but the girls in the "house" knew every song, sang every lyric. Some parents did too.
Big crowd pleasers were: "Fearless", "We Are Never Get Back Together", "Twenty-Two", and "Shake It Off"
As tribute bands go, they were very good. Matthew Fernandez is a solid guitar slinger; Leo Freire was excellent on drums; Jason Wexler played a mean keyboard and Emily Victoria (Uprooted) nailed Taylor's onstage presence.
One more thing-can someone explain the bracelet thing. Parents were buying friendship bracelets at $5 a pop or 5 for $20 and the girls were giving them to "Taylor" and she was giving bracelets back. Plus there were a bunch of the bracelets on the stage, free for the taking? I don't get it. I guess I'm old.
Now, Burlington’s very own women’s Rugby Sevens star Ilona Maher is an Olympic medalist — the state’s first at the summer games since fellow Burlingtonian Laura Graves brought home the bronze medal in the team dressage competition at the 2016 Olympics.
The USA’s women’s Rugby Sevens team overcame Australia in dramatic fashion in the bronze medal final on Tuesday afternoon, scoring in the final seconds of regulation time to steal a 14-12 victory at the Stade de France in Paris. It is the first time the U.S. has medalled in rugby since 1924 games, also held in Paris, when the men’s team won gold.
Vermont in top 10 states with most federal disaster declarations, new study says
Washington County tied for second most disaster-prone county in the United States. by Juan Vega de Soto
Do natural calamities strike Vermont more often than other states?
Many Vermonters might say yes, recalling the storm just a few weeks ago, or casting their memory back to last summer’s floods, or to Tropical Storm Irene, among others.
A new report from a nonprofit research group indicates that they have good reason to believe that. It places Vermont in seventh place — tied with Kentucky and South Dakota — for most federal disaster declarations in the country due to extreme weather.
The report, from disaster prevention-focused group Rebuild by Design, looked at the number of major disaster declarations issued for each state due to natural catastrophes from 2011 to 2023. Such declarations free up federal funds for disaster recovery, and are usually requested by the state’s governor, assessed by Federal Emergency Management Agency officials, and then granted by the U.S. president.
FEMA’s database lists 20 major disaster declarations for Vermont during the study’s timeframe, the vast majority from severe storms leading to floods. That means that despite Vermont’s modest size — it ranks 45th in land area for states — only Arkansas, Iowa, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and California were issued more federal disaster declarations.
Mid Vermont Christian allowed to participate in non-athletic co-ed competitions
By Mike Donoghue, Vermont Standard Senior Correspondent
The Mid Vermont Christian School has reached a temporary agreement with the Vermont Principals’ Association to allow students at the private independent school to participate in non-athletic events sponsored by the statewide group.
The agreement came Monday afternoon during a hearing in U.S. District Court in which Mid Vermont Christian was seeking to have a preliminary injunction granted pending its appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York City on other legal issues in the case.
It is the latest step in a complex federal discrimination lawsuit filed by Mid Vermont Christian against several state and local defendants, including the head of the VPA and the Agency of Education.
Under the agreement, Mid Vermont would be allowed to take part in at least five identified VPA-sponsored co-educational competitions and activities for the time being. More non-contact activities could be added.
Even while Federal Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford had helped guide the parties to a mutual understanding, both sides in the contentious lawsuit asked that he reduce the partial agreement into an order.
Mid Vermont will be allowed to participate in a series of co-ed activities, including Vermont State Spelling Bee, the Vermont Geo-Bee, the Vermont Drama Festivals, the Vermont Mathematics and Science Fairs and the Vermont Debate and Forensics League.
The Town of Weathersfield is seeking volunteers to appoint to various available positions. The application can be found at this link.
Alternatively, you can contact Susanne Terrill at weathersfield@weathersfield.org to obtain a copy via email, or stop by the Town Office at 5259 US Route 5, Ascutney, VT 05030 to obtain a paper copy.
The following positions are vacant as of July 22: Board of Listers (2 Vacancies)
Minute posting: 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 requestafter 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.
The Weathersfield Garden Club meets on the 3rd Tuesday of the month at The Weathersfield Proctor Library from 6-8 p.m. New members and guests are always welcome. Any questions? please email weathersfieldgardenclub@gmail.com
Enjoy performances of the highest quality each summer at Blow-Me-Down Farm, a beautiful, outdoor setting on the banks of the Connecticut River in Cornish, NH.
Opera North is an American opera company based in Lebanon, New Hampshire, and is the region’s oldest professional opera company. The company presents an annual summer season of three fully staged and orchestrated productions ranging from classical and contemporary opera to musical theater.
Tues. Mornings August 6, 13, 20, 27 at 9-10am ~REGISTER NOW~
Tues. Evening Candlelit (on hold)
Class Fee: Buy the whole morning or evening session for $48 to guarantee your spot for the month. Or, drop in (space available and registration required) for $15 per class.
Please arrive to class between 5-10 minutes early. Earlier than that, and you may find the door locked while Lisa is prepping our space.
If you've prepaid for a spot but can't make it, please let Lisa know since someone may be on the waitlist.
And if you want to try to switch from the morning to evening class or vice versa, please ask Lisa if there's room so she can try to accommodate you.
Volunteers in Action (ViA), a neighbor helping neighbor organization, is seeking immediate volunteer support for two Meals on Wheels routes in Windsor. Details:
Open shifts available Monday through Friday, help when you have time
Roughly 2-hour commitment (10am – Noon) on volunteer days
Individual training available upon sign-up
Minimal driving, low mileage routes.
There are additional needs in Weathersfield as well, if people are interested.
For more information: Call (802) 674-5971 Email via@mahhc.org Melanie P. Sheehan, MPH Director of Community Health
Tuesdays-Sundays 11:30 a.m. until 8 p.m. (they stop cooking at 7:30 p.m.) 4261 Route 106 in Perkinsville, Downers Four Corners to the locals.
Unicorn Sundae at Villagers Rtes. 131 and 106, Downers Four Corners, in Perkinsville
Food Assistance
Weathersfield Food Shelf in Perkinsville.
The food shelf is open 2:00 pm-4:00 pm on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month.
The Weathersfield Food Shelf is located in the 1879 Perkinsville Schoolhouse at 1862 Route 106 in Perkinsville. The Food Shelf has lots of good food to offer!
Call the Weathersfield Town Office to be refereed to a volunteer, visit the Weathersfield Food Shelf Facebook page and leave a message, email weathersfieldfoodshelf@gmail.com 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.
Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center is now offering walk-in service on weekday afternoons for people ages 2 and older, according to a news release.
The visits are available for urgent, but non-emergency medical needs Monday through Friday from 1 to 5 p.m. Patients can check in at the hospital’s central registration, through the main entrance.
Some of the conditions appropriate for care through walk-in services are minor cuts and burns; urinary tract infections; strains and sprains; minor fractures; rashes; and ear, sinus and eye infections. In addition, X-ray and lab services are available on-site.
A nurse will be on hand to determine if a patient’s condition calls for transfer to the emergency department.
Nancy Nutile-McMenemy is an Upper Valley freelance photographer and writer who loves paddle, hike, attend concerts and local events in and around Weathersfield and the Upper Valley.
Scan this QR Code to see all the latest photos in my Galleries
Quechee Scottish Games and Festival
The Weathersfield Garden Club meets on the 3rd Tuesday of the month at The Weathersfield Proctor Library from 6-8 p.m. New members and guests are always welcome. Any questions? please email weathersfieldgardenclub@gmail.com
