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(03/10/11 5:01am)
On March 4–6, Green Works, also called the Vermont Nursery and Landscape Association (VNLA), put on its 15th annual Vermont Flower Show at the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction, Vt. Hundreds of Green Works volunteers contributed more than 2,000 hours of work for the show, which sought to “educate, entertain and inspire” individuals. Green Works is a non-profit, statewide organization and is comprised of garden centers, greenhouses, landscapers, landscape designers and nurseries, among others. The goal of the group is to “advocate for positive change” and to “serve Vermont’s green industry professionals.”
The theme for this year’s garden show was “Sweet Dreams.” According to Green Works it was made to represent a “fantastical garden journey that relaxes the mind, body and spirit and brings us back to childhood memories of fantasy and imagination.” The show featured more than 80 gardening and food vendors, a flower competition, a medieval themed garden and seminars. Vendors included florists, landscapers, “foodies”, jewelry-makers and greenhouse designers. Some, like Mark Moss of East End Foodies, had never sold at the flower show before. Nonetheless, Moss was delighted to offer customers a taste of his artisan balsamic vinegars, which he dubs “a taste of heaven.”
Other vendors, such as Paul Green of Stowe Tree Experts, had previously attended the flower show. Green, whose business works to maintain healthy trees, said that the flower show “directly and indirectly helps business by getting the company name out there.”
“Some people we meet at the show turn into long time customers,” said Green.
In addition to the vendors, another main attraction at the show was the live, medieval themed garden, planted by Green Works volunteers who were helped by the University of Vermont Master Gardeners. The garden used 400 square feet of sod, 140 cubic yards of mulch, 305 trees and shrubs, 11,746-forced spring bulbs and seven yards of compost. In addition to story-reading “fairies” scattered throughout the garden, the plot housed a Buddhist Shrine, a hobbit house, a medieval castle, a rainforest, a bridge, a flower mountain and a walk-in bird’s nest. Lou Nop, a featured artist at the show, crafted this nest and the bridge. Nop owns Nop’s Metalworks in Middlebury. He also recently completed the new marquee situated outside the Middlebury Town Hall Theater.
The National Garden Club Standard Flower Show, a floral arranging contest, also took place at the festival. The contest had two divisions; one was for design and the other was for horticulture. Within each division there were different classes, and there were four floral arrangements per class. Garden Club members judged each. The design division included categories, like “daydreams,” “gardening gummy bears” and “chocolate sundaes.” Contestants were required to make arrangements that somehow expressed the theme of their category.
“The horticulture division is more educational,” said Jane Murphy of the Burlington Garden Club. “Contestants make arrangements in a way that best represents the genus and species.”
The Vermont Flower Show also offered over 15 educational seminars. Topics included: “Best Practices in Dry Stone Work,” “20 Ways to Be a Green Gardener,” “Growing Grapes in Home Gardens,” “Yes, You Can Paint Flowers,” “Tree Pruning Basics” and “Canning 101.” There were also several cooking demonstrations by Vermont chefs. Classes in local cooking, as well as Italian cuisine, were available.
The Vermont Chamber of Commerce has repeatedly named the Vermont Flower Show one of the state’s Top 10 Winter Events, and it proved to be successful for yet another year.
(03/10/11 4:52am)
As of last February, the Library and Information Services (LIS) instituted a printing system aimed at reducing the number of pages printed by setting a quota for students. Now a year later, the results provided by the system have shown that the number of pages printed, both single and double sided, has dropped by 75 percent.
Mike Roy, dean of LIS, said that the printing quota was originally set to become more environmentally aware and to cut budget costs, while still being sensitive to students’ needs.
“We would find at the printing stations reams and reams of print jobs left. We had tons of wasted printing,” Roy said. “Now if you walk by any of the public printers, there are no longer piles of paper lying around.”
The LIS student advising committee originally wanted to cover 80 percent of student printing costs, estimating that for first-years, sophomores and juniors that would be 500 pages, and for seniors, 800 pages. Using a new system feature, LIS found that there were 201,535 pages printed from 22,857 print jobs.
During this fall, only 232 students, or 10 percent of the total student population, went over the allotted quota. The total spending was $4,457.50, which averages to $19.21 per student. Divided between all students, the total pocket expense averages to be less than $2.00 per student.
The money spent by students is being used to continue the system, not serve as profit for the College.
“The idea is that any of the money we take in, we will just plow back into the cost of the printing program,” said Roy. “We are hoping that printing can be more budget neutral.”
Roy estimates that four to five million pages of paper have been saved since last year equating to 1,005.2 kg of CO2 and 33,117.4 bulb hours saved.
Despite the environmental benefits, the added cost for some students is a source of frustration.
“The quota is not the issue,” said Oona Zeigler ’13. “I take a lot of literature classes, and it’s just a problem when some of my professors expect us to print all of the material to annotate and interact with the texts.”
Associate Professor of Political Philosophy Kateri Carmola has changed the structure of her course readings to suit the new print quota system. Because she feels having physical copies of readings is absolutely essential for learning, she prints readings out for her students at her own expense instead of requiring students to print themselves.
“To me it seems like at an educational institution, one of the most important things I think we should spend money on are the tools of learning,” Carmola said in a phone interview. She does not want students to feel they had to choose between spending the money or having a physical copy of the reading.
“I also thought it would just make me think more clearly about what I actually assigned,” she added. “I think there’s usually too much stuff assigned,” specifically with regard to articles. Books and anthologies, she explained, are generally more useful for reading than a variety of articles. The differing opinions that articles bring can be supplied in lecture, while the value of the original material remains in the texts themselves.
As for the resource problem, Carmola believes the benefits of printing greatly outweighs whatever ecological effects there are, especially given the fact that the College uses 100 percent recycled paper and there still remains a backlog of materials waiting to be recycled. “I’m all for creating a market for recycled paper,” she said.
While some struggle with the printing limit, outreach to faculty was made to determine the total cost of each course, which includes both books and materials that need to be printed. Overall, the estimate has proved to be accurate, making printing more budget-neutral for the College.
“The reality is that most schools already do this and those that do not are getting very close because it is not affordable to have this as a free utility,” said Roy. “Now that we have our foot in the door, I do not see any reason to undo [the system].”
Additional reporting by Adam Schaffer
(03/03/11 5:02am)
The town of Middlebury’s third annual Winter Carnival and Chili Festival will take place on Mar. 12, less than a month after the College’s own Winter Carnival. According to Joe Colangelo, assistant town manager, no conscious effort was made to ensure that the Chili Festival did not coincide with the College’s Winter Carnival festivities. Rather, the date was set primarily so it would not be the same weekend as Burlington’s popular Mardis Gras. The two events were held on the same weekend in February last year, and Colangelo speculates that this year’s Chili Festival will draw even larger crowds.
“We figured we could capture some of the restaurants and Chittenden County folks,” said Colangelo, who is co-chair of the Chili Festival committee and also on the board of directors of Better Middlebury Partnership, the local group that is organizing the event.
In addition, those on the committee wanted to use the Chili Festival as an opportunity to spice up the somewhat dreary month of March in Middlebury, setting the date for “a larger event … during a dead period.”
Last year, the event brought 2,200 people together to enjoy a variety of chili. Given that Route 7 is more accessible because of the newly completed Cross Street Bridge, the town will be able to block off downtown Middlebury, and Main St. will be open to pedestrians only. Colangelo thinks that this change, along with a bit of cooperation from the weather, could bring in another 1,000 attendees. Since it started in 2009, the Chili Festival has been named one of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce’s top 10 winter activities.
Holmes Jacobs, co-owner of Two Brothers Tavern in town, has played an important role in attracting restaurants from all across the state to the Chili Festival. This year, there will be over 50 vendors from places as far as Rutland, Burlington and Montpelier, offering approximately 80 different kinds of chili.
Though the event is scheduled to run from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., a beer tent will be open for those of age until 6:30 p.m. For a younger crowd, there will be a face painting station. The police and fire departments of Middlebury will also have some of their equipment and trucks on display. Two DJ booths will be set up at each end of Main St., and a cappella groups will perform as well.
“The whole point is to really show people how fun downtown Middlebury can be,” said Colangelo. “If you’re mixing DJs, chili and beer, what could be better?”
Admission is $3 for adults and $2 for children. A family of four, Colangelo said, can have a great day for just $10.
“You go home stuffed, and you might need a Tums or two,” he said.
(03/03/11 5:00am)
2011 Vermont flower show
March 4 and 5, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m., March 6, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Make the trip to Essex Junction, Vt., for the ultimate breath of fresh, fragrant air: the 2011 Vermont flower show, “Sweet Dreams.” The three day flower extravaganza, medieval-themed, features a castle, seminars and workshops on gardening, hands-on children’s activities, a flower competition and food from over 80 vendors! Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and $3 for children. Admission is free for children under 3. A weekend pass is $30. You won’t want to miss this beautiful show!
Exhibit opening in Brandon
March 4, 5 p.m. – 7 p.m.
The Brandon Artists’ Guild will present a new exhibit, “Manipulations,” celebrating the work of Lowell Showdon Klock, known for the way he manipulates slow-setting emulsion of Polaroid photos. The Artists’ Guild, located at 7 Center St. in Brandon, will display the exhibit through April 30. For more information call (802) 247-4956.
Vermont comedian show
March 4, 8 p.m.
Need some relief from mid-semester stress? Laugh your worries away at the Town Hall Theater’s show, 6 VT Comics. The group has been delighting audiences at comedy clubs all over the state. Its members include Carmen Lagala, finalist in the 2011 Higher Ground Comedy Battle. The THT will have a cash bar and snacks. For tickets to the show ($10), call the theater at (802) 382-9222, visit http://www.townhalltheater.org or stop by the box office, open Monday through Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.
Sheldon Museum exhibit opening
March 5, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Be a part of history as the Henry Sheldon Museum holds its opening reception for its new exhibit, “Town Treasures: Addison County before the Civil War.” Displays from historical societies all over the region will paint a picture of the county on the eve of the war. The exhibit will run through April 1; during this time the museum is free for all Addison County residents. Call (802) 388-2117 for more information.
Brown bag lunch
March 8, noon
Gill Coates, president of the Monkton Museum and Historical Society, will be giving a talk, “Joseph Hoag: His Life and Vision,” at the Henry Sheldon Museum. Pack up a brown bag lunch and learn about the life of Hoag, a Quaker Minister who moved to Monkton in 1791. The talk is part of the museum’s exhibit about Addison County on the eve of the Civil War. The fee is $2; beverages and dessert will be served. For more information call (802) 388-2117.
Two Brothers’ trivia
March 9, 7 p.m.
Push yourself to your intellectual limits at Two Brothers Tavern’s trivia night. The event is back by popular demand on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month and consists of two rounds of 15 questions. Each player puts in $2 to a pot that, along with a free flatbread, is awarded to the winning team. Runners up receive $20 in Middlebury Money. The event is open to those 18 and older.
(02/24/11 5:40am)
Every February, Middlebury gets as New England as it can possibly get — we eat sugar on snow while watching ski races, build ice sculptures, and can watch our peers compete in snowshoe races. But the carnival is never exactly the same year to year, and it’s changed a lot over the years. This year, the event hearkened back to carnivals of winters past, but do most of us really know what that means?
The 1920’s marked the beginning of Middlebury’s Winter Carnival tradition. Although the first modern Winter Carnival did not occur until 1934, the early 1920s saw winter sporting events held around town and on campus. Students partook in obstacle races, snowshoe races along Storrs Avenue, cross-country and alpine ski races around campus and ski jumping competitions. This interest in winter sports marked a new era for Middlebury; David Stameshkin wrote in his Middlebury history, The Strength of the Hills, 1996, that, “before World War I, Middlebury students apparently did not, at least in any organized way, take advantage of the snow that blanketed the Champlain Valley and Green Mountains for months each winter.”
This change was prompted almost entirely by the Middlebury Outing Club, which formed in 1917. These outdoor enthusiasts recognized the need for more Middlebury sports competitions, even encouraging young men to attend Dartmouth College’s administration-run Winter Carnival in order to “bring Middlebury to the front of New England,” according to a Jan. 24, 1917 article in The Campus. Men competed in dashes, cross-country skiing, and obstacle races.
The college inaugurated the event as “Winter Holiday” in 1920, and it proved a great success. The students were so smitten with the idea of a winter celebration that The Campus predicted optimistically, “Next year, with a little more work and more enthusiasm, we might turn the snow and cold of the winter months into advantage for the whole college.”
A small percentage of Middlebury students continued to compete enthusiastically in sporting events around New England. In 1922, The Campus reported that Middlebury men had proven themselves, “the foremost collegiate snowshoers in the country” after a race at McGill. Finally having picked up some athletic steam, Middlebury christened the Winter Holiday “Winter Carnival” that same year.
Even though ski carnivals were increasingly common in New England, no one was sure that Middlebury’s event would catch on. The Campus appeared especially concerned that Winter Carnival become a tradition, arguing that, “If the Winter Carnival is established as an annual fixture in Middlebury’s program of college activities, it will aid in developing spirit and, we hope, will speedily place the Outing Club’s teams on par with those of our New England and Canadian neighbors.”
The Middlebury student body, however, remained fairly disinterested. There was very little student interest in sports besides hockey, and from 1924-1934, the Winter Carnival remained relatively small.
A piqued interest in skiing was what ultimately sparked lasting Winter Carnival enthusiasm. The ski program was lackluster through the 1920’s; the ski coach hired in 1926, for example, evidently had no experience in skiing. However, the 1932 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid drew students’ attention, and interest in skiing took off. As W.C. Heinz commented in a column in The Campus in 1936: “Yes sir. Middlebury, it seems, has truly taken the time off to keep abreast of the time and go ski-crazy. An hour after the snow stops falling, Chapel Hill and all surrounding slopes are a maze of crisscross tracks and odd patterns… So it goes — Middlebury eats, breathes, walks, talks and lives skiing.”
The Mountain Club took the reigns on organizing the first recognizable Winter Carnival in 1934, which they modeled after Dartmouth’s successful established one. The Carnival included as one of its most popular events a 27-meter ski jump on Chipman Hill.
Skiing helped launch the first Winter Carnival, and the Winter Carnival’s success likewise helped promulgate interest in skiing; the ski team enjoyed its first paid coach in 1937 (presumably one that knew about the sport), and even hired a coach from Europe. In 1939, Middlebury won its first Carnival.
Although the Carnival remained relatively sedate — though ever popular— through the 40s, 50s and 60s, “the 70s and 80s was a pretty wild scene,” said Dean of Cook Commons and Assistant Professor of American Studies Karl Lindholm ’67. With only one Public Safety officer on campus, “students ran the campus,” Lindholm remembers. Middlebury’s Winter Carnival was an event attracting students from all over New England. Although it did not compare in size to Dartmouth’s Winter Carnival, which attracted national attention and even a visit from F. Scott Fitzgerald, Lindholm, who also served as Dean of Students from 1976-91, remembers having to send out notes to other schools asking them to discourage their students from coming. The event was getting too big and too rowdy.
Although the raucousness of the Carnival varied through the years, one consistent characteristic of the event was that it was always sure to see many new faces on campus; in addition to visiting friends, students were required to invite a date. Often, these dates came from other schools.
Friends and dates were attracted to the event because of the wide array of organized events, school-sponsored and otherwise. One of the most popular school-sponsored events was the Klondike Rush, a Sunday event held after the Winter Ball that featured a band, games, dancing, and a bar. The event historically attracted some big name live music performers; The Shirelles, The Kingsmen (whose hit song was “Louie Louie”), The Simon sisters (before Carly Simon hit it big), the legendary Dizzy Gillespie and even B.B. King all made appearances.
This year, Middlebury College Activities Board (MCAB) revived the Klondike Rush tradition as part of its effort to create a 2011 Winter Carnival that hearkened back to the olden days. MCAB Traditions Chair Liz Gay ’11 said that she came up with the idea of recreating the once-popular event after looking through old programs in the library archives, where the Klondike Rush always seemed to be advertised.
“We knew we couldn’t do it as a Sunday event on that large of a scale, so we modified it and wanted to bring it back and do something new,” Gay said.
This year, the Klondike Rush included a live student band and Two Brothers Tavern catering in Pearsons lounge, with students playing parlor games and roasting marshmallows. Although MCAB was unsure of how successful the event would be, they were happily surprised: there was a consistently long bar line, the lounge was full, and the event brought more students into the Winter Carnival fold.
“It was really nice because Orange Crush seems to be kind of a lot of underclassmen and the Klondike Rush was a lot of upperclassmen so it was a nice way to balance that,” Gay said. “Everyone I talked to really seemed to enjoy it.”
Although some of the other traditions MCAB brought back as part of its tribute to Winter Carnivals past may not continue next year, MCAB will probably work to, “reinstate [the Klondike Rush] as a tradition,” said Gay.
The Winter Carnival king and queen, another tradition revived this year, was a favorite tradition through most of Winter Carnival’s history. However, like the ball, this tradition lost steam in the late 1960s. Lindholm, who was on the court in ’66 and ’67, felt that, “That was about when [the tradition] was petering out, to be honest. We were beginning to develop the skepticism of the late 60s and 70s, and it seemed a little bogus to us. I have a feeling that the Winter Carnival king and queen was more of a concept of the 50s.”
The Winter Ball also fizzled in the 1960s alongside the king and queen concept. Much of the ball’s struggle to survive in the past may have been related to the fact that eleven fraternities on campus would throw their own parties; throwing a formal ball “wouldn’t have worked,” Lindholm said, with the amount of other social options on campus. Now, perhaps, without fraternities to throw reliable parties, the popularity of the event has increased; it is now one of the most anticipated items on today’s Winter Carnival program, representing one of Middlebury’s largest ticketed events and selling about 1,500 tickets each year.
Throughout the 40s, 50s and 60s, “almost literally, all the men were in frats,” Lindholm said. However, with the outlawing of fraternities in 1991, the MCAB had to create other social opportunities for students.
“[The changes were] a function of the new fragmented infrastructure,” Lindholm said. “Student activities tried to find a much more varied social calendar, even at Winter Carnival.”
The revival of the Ball was a product of this effort, and in order to keep the ball popular, MCAB has continued to innovate. One more recent idea has been to, “get more interesting music for the ball, trying to incorporate a concert sort of aspect to it to draw people who might not just want to go to a dance but might want to go to a concert,” Gay said.
Another product of MCAB’s expanded role in Winter Carnival planning has been Orange Crush. Seven years ago, Middlebury booked Orange Crush for its Thursday night slot, and they have since become such a fixture that the event has sold out every year.
“We were actually talking to Orange Crush this year and they said, ‘You wouldn’t believe how many Middlebury weddings we perform at,’’ said Gay. “It’s their biggest performance of the year.”
An event in which Middlebury student interest appears to be waning, however, is ski racing. Student interest in skiing has been historically strong; Lindholm remembers that since, “ski racing was huge,” a line of 10 full buses would drop students off at the Snow Bowl each day of Winter Carnival. However, attendance at ski races is undeniably lower than it has been in the past, and Lindholm sees this fact as a natural progression as Middlebury students have become more diverse.
“I think what’s happened at Middlebury is heterogeneity,” Lindholm said. “It’s hard to find a single galvanizing event at the college socially. There are people who contend that Middlebury is not nearly diverse enough and that may be right, but it’s a relative term. It’s a heck of a lot more diverse than it was 20 years ago.”
Other changes may have been due to evolving attitudes during the Vietnam era, during which, “students wanted to get rid of the hundred years of conventions,” Lindholm said. “People argued during Vietnam, everything that was had to go. I think Winter Carnival was probably affected by that great disillusionment among students.”
Ultimately, although different events have come in and out of fashion and Winter Carnival has morphed throughout the years, Lindholm finds the changes understandable.
“It doesn’t seem to me a central social galvanizing event that it once was, but that’s okay,” he said. “It’s what it was in many ways, but it’s inevitably different.”
As far as being a single unifying event, Gay has found that MCAB has had some success in motivating participation the last few years.
“It’s about] really motivating people to go to the ski races and inspiring that kind of spirit on campus and that’s something hard to do,” Gay said. “But I think we’re getting there … people seem to be pleased with the events so far.
Like Lindholm, Gay recognizes the importance of a unifying event for the student body and the changes Winter Carnival has undergone through the years. She sees the theme this year, however, as one way to draw attention to the value of traditions.
“I think it’s just sort of that it is an aim to really unify the student body and because there really aren’t a lot of events like that at Middlebury,” she said. “We’re obviously a really old school and a really established school, but our traditions aren’t really that deep-rooted; students don’t know a lot about our traditions and a lot have kind of fizzled. This [revival of traditions] was an effort to sort of remind everyone of an older Middlebury, which is just sort of a nice idea.”
For fun facts about past winter carnivals click here.
(02/24/11 5:05am)
Anne Hoover, recipient of Spirit in Nature’s 2011 Eco-Spirit Award, leads a life comparable to the busiest of Midd Kids. Though Hoover admits she has slowed down in recent years, her involvement and leadership in a myriad of causes is undeniable. Hoover, who lives in Middlebury, is currently a volunteer for the Green Mountain National Forest and a board member of the Watershed Center, a nonprofit organization that works to educate people about conservation practices and which is situated on land that used to house the town of Vergennes’ water supply. She helped to develop the Trail Around Middlebury (TAM), as well. After Sept. 11, 2001, she organized the peace vigil on the corner of Middlebury’s town green that continues to takes place every Saturday morning. In characteristic modesty, Hoover barely admits to her leadership role and active involvement.
“A little bit I got it going,” she said.
Her activism also extends back to her days working for the New England Coalition on Nuclear Pollution, when she fought Vermont Yankee, a nuclear power plant located in Vernon, Vt. In the 1970s, Hoover worked with a group started by Ralph Nader in Connecticut to defeat a proposed pump storage site. More recently, she worked in Middlebury to successfully prevent International Paper, a paper company in Ticonderoga, NY, from burning tire fuel in order to cut costs. The company was restricted from doing so after years of hearings exposed the severe air and water pollution due to their practices.
Hoover’s deep love for the environment stems from a simple truth.
“It’s our home,” she said.
The Eco-Spirit award is given annually to a community member who shows a strong commitment to environmental initiatives and upholds the values of Spirit in Nature (SpIN), a non-profit organization that brings people of all faiths together to appreciate the Earth. Founded in 1998 by Paul Bortz, a since-retired Unitarian minister who wanted to create a group in which people of all faiths could unite and care for the earth, SpIN leases 80 acres of land in Ripton, Vt. from the College. Ten paths, each representing a different faith ranging from Christianity to Judaism to Muslim to Quaker, run through the wilderness; trees are marked with quotations from different religions. The network of trails is open to all people, and Carol Spooner, president of SpIN, urges students from the College to make the short trip to Ripton to enjoy the beauty of the site.
Spooner, who leads the group’s annual meetings and works with board members on a variety of fronts, said that the Eco-Spirit award honors an individual who show “awareness of both nature and spiritual connection to nature.”
“For many people … it [the Eco-Spirit award] is more a way of acknowledging achievements over a number of years,” said John Elder, College Professor Emeritus and 2002 Eco-Spirit award recipient.
Elder presented Hoover with her award at SpIN’s annual meeting, which was held the Isley Public Library on Feb. 20.
In his speech, Elder noted Hoover’s “high spirits, humor and enthusiasm,” as well as passion for travel, which has taken her to many unique environments.
Though her love for New England is unwavering, Hoover’s two favorite destinations (thus far) are New Zealand and Iceland. She loves New Zealand especially for its commitment to the environment.
“It’s beautiful and it’s very environmentally conscious,” said Hoover. “The people are wonderful. Everything about it is … paradise.”
Hoover traveled to New Zealand with a birding group; she recalled that when the guide led others off the beaten track to go birding, “I’d just absorb.”
“Whether it’s canoeing or snowshoeing, she’s led a very adventurous life,” said Elder.
A native of New York City, Hoover attended Wellesley College in Massachusetts, where she took a course about ecology that inspired many of her environmental efforts. After graduating with a degree in Psychology, Hoover went to secretarial school in New York City. Here, she worked hard to bring her skills up to speed, as she admittedly hates New York in the summer. Hoover began work as a secretary at the Rockefeller Foundation before coming to Middlebury a few years later and working at the Breadloaf School of English for over a decade. She has also worked in various administrative positions for the College. Hoover retired in 1992.
“Compared to John [Elder] and Bill McKibben [2001 EcoSpirit award recipient] … I’m not in that league,” said Hoover.
Yet among those in attendance at SpIN’s annual meeting, Hoover had a broad group of supporters and admirers. In addition to family members, including her nephew and niece, many of Hoover’s friends came to see her receive the award.
Elder, who has known Hoover for many years and kept up with her environmental interests, describes her as “a person who puts herself out there and expresses in her actions what she believes.”
After receiving the award, Hoover expressed her gratitude to the group and read the Mary Oliver poem, “Song of the Builders.” She noted that she learned of the poem in a class taught by Elder, which she audited.
“Many people in this area are huge admirers of Anne,” said Elder. “What she represents is a life of authenticity, bravery and joy in what she does.”
(02/24/11 5:04am)
On Jan. 7, 2010, Vermont Yankee, a nuclear power plant located in Vernon, Vt., discovered tritium leaking from one of its groundwater monitoring wells. More than a year later, some, like Governor Peter Shumlin, hope the plant will shut down, as they believe it poses a risk to the state. Opposition remains fierce, however; a group led by Patricia O’Donnell, who represented Windham County, where the plant is located, as a member of the Vermont legislature for 12 years, maintains that Vermont Yankee is a vital necessity. O’Donnell’s group works to inform Vermonters about the realities of the situation.
Rachel Pagano ’11 and Dunja Jovici ’13, presidents of College Republicans, coordinated with O’Donnell, who has already appeared on four access television programs and spoken at seven different forums across the state, to organize her visit to the College on Feb. 17.
“My goal is to make people know the truth,” said O’Donnell. “People need to make decisions based on fact and not fiction.”
After the initial detection of tritium, a form of radioactive hydrogen, Vermont Yankee began investigations on Jan. 11, 2010 before finding on Feb. 14, 2010 that two steam pipes in the advanced off-gas pipe tunnel were corroded. The pipes’ failing joints caused the leakage, and mud and cluttered waste that remained in the pipe also prevented movement of materials, like tritium, which then flowed out.
George Crowley, a member of O’Donnell’s coalition, is an employee at Vermont Yankee. He oversees industrial waste management, but calls himself the “chemistry computer geek” of the lot. The plant’s most recent reading of tritium was 1,200 picocuries. To put this figure into perspective and highlight how little tritium was actually found at the plant, Crowley said that an average banana has 2,100 picocuries. Luminescent exit signs often found in public settings may contain 15 curies, which is equivalent to 150 quadrillion picocuries.
Though the plant’s May 14, 2010 reading showed decreasing amounts of tritium, studies proved that the radioactive chemical was traveling west to east through the soil from Vermont Yankee into the Connecticut River. On May 29, 2010 another leak was detected, and in June the Vermont Department of Health began its own independent investigation, which is ongoing.
“All we are asking is to keep an open mind,” said O’Donnell.
The Vermont Department of Health’s published investigation from Feb. 14, 2011 stated that yet another leak was discovered between wells GZ-24S and GZ-6, but Vermont Yankee said the January 2010 tritium incident was worse than the recent leak. The study also found that the plant’s five underground pipes can only hold 1,000 gallons of water, so very little tritium leaked into the groundwater monitoring wells, while in 2010 about 75,000 gallons of groundwater were suspected of contamination. In addition, the groundwater moves through the soil at a rate of 20 to 30 feet per year, so it will take a considerable amount of time for the contamination to affect individuals. Nonetheless, all pipes will be retested with a hydrostatic pressure test, as the Health Department’s investigation found 11 of the 31 groundwater monitoring wells to test positively for tritium. The Nuclear Regulator Commission (NRC) has scheduled a review of the power plant in mid-April.
Vermont Yankee’s mission statement asserts that the power plant attempts to take full safety measures at all times: “We take pride in operating safely, it is the most important job we do. Vermont Yankee has a strong safety culture and a proven 38 year record of safe operations.”
Sheldon Shippie, a member of the plant’s operations crew who monitors the plant’s activity from a control room and operates the valves and pumps, went to school for 18 months before he was certified to work at Vermont Yankee.
“It’s an engineering degree in three months,” he said. “That is by far the easiest part, too. It ramps up from there.”
Every sixth week, Shippie is required to complete both a written and a simulator exam. He is trained for emergency situations and “off-normal” circumstances. If an individual fails the test, he or she is taken out of the plant and must go through 30 to 40 hours of remediation and retake the test.
“It is stressful, but it works,” said Shippie. “Safety is ingrained in how we do business.”
Lynn Dewald, who works in the plant’s non-radioactive department, addressing topics like drinking water, air pollution and sewage, shies away from using coal or gas energy, as they produce more environmental outputs than does nuclear energy.
Pagano agrees.
“Our dependence on oil is expensive, polluting and makes us dependent upon very fragile parts of the world,” she said. “I think nuclear power is one of the ways that America can combat all these problems in the future.”
Vermont Yankee also employs two full-time inspectors, equating to 7,000 additional hours of inspection per year. Larry Cummings, a Vermont Yankee management employee, said having the inspectors present at the plant parallels the experience of “driving with a state trooper.” He believes their presence makes the nuclear power industry the safest.
Of the 104 power plants in the U.S., Vermont Yankee consistently ranks in the top 10 percent for safety. It was also named number one in reliability for several months. However, after the plant was shut down for 570 days due to a pin-hole steam leak, it lost reliability and now is in the top 25 percent.
“We couldn’t quantify how bad the [pin-hole] leak was, but we found out we shouldn’t have shut down,” said Shippie. “It could have been fixed online, but we weren’t 100 percent sure. We had to take the safe route.”
A 2009 comprehensive reliability audit stated, “Vermont Yankee is operated reliably and can be a reliable station beyond its current operating license.” This report, however, was issued before the tritium leak.
O’Donnell also points to the economic losses that will result if the plant closes. Six hundred and fifty Vermonters will lose high-paying jobs. Another 650 area jobs will be lost, in addition to $100 million in economic benefits. Other companies like IMB in Chittenden, Vt. that employs 6,000 and General Electric in Rutland, Vt. have threatened to follow suit and close if Vermont Yankee is shut down. Vermont would also lose 80 percent of its state power generation capacity, thus disturbing the balanced New England Grid, an energy system between Vermont, New York, New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
“There is predicted instability in Southern Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts, and possible brown-outs of electricity,” said Cummings.
It will cost $80 million to restructure the grid, which means Vermonters will pay more taxes, as well as face a 30 percent increase in their electricity bills.
“Vermont Yankee is good for Vermont, good for the consumer and good for the environment, but none of this would matter without safe operations,” said O’Donnell. “Without Vermont Yankee, our green footprint is gone.”
Shumlin is currently negotiating an energy partnership with Canada, but Crowley questions why Vermonters should send money to another country to support their workers and taxpayers.
“None of us are happy to have had this [the leak] happen,” said Dewald. “It was unfortunate, but handled expertly.”
The Vermont Department of Health and the NRC will continue investigating the leak and will make decisions about the plant’s future in the spring.
(02/24/11 5:02am)
Orange Crush
by Deirdre Sackett, Arts Editor
On Thursday, Feb. 17, the McCullough Social Space was filled with bright neon leggings, copious amounts of spandex and vibrant glowsticks as Orange Crush kicked off the first night of the College’s 88th Annual Winter Carnival. The ’80s cover band is a traditional Winter Carnival event, and is known to draw a large and enthusiastic crowd. Like in previous years, the venue was sold out by the time the doors opened.
After enjoying the night’s previous events, students arrived in McCullough in their best 80s regalia — colorful high-tops, neon tights and huge plastic sunglasses, among other stereotypical and overt fashions of the decade. Whether it was the earlier bonfire and fireworks, the sheer ridiculousness of their outfits or the unexpectedly warm evening weather, student energy was high throughout the performance. Even though a majority of those in attendance were not even born in the 1980s, their appreciation and love of the decade’s music was evident.
Backed by guitarist Jeremy Simonich, bassist Rich Yirga and drummer Tom Kielbania, Jr., lead vocalist Scott Lawson belted out ’80s classics such as Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean,” Ah-Ha’s “Take On Me,” The B-52’s “Love Shack” and Men Without Hats’ “Safety Dance.” The night was filled with only the best of the 1980s — except for the performance’s intermission, during which modern music was played over the speakers. It was interesting to notice that students who were once happily dancing away to Madonna and Talking Heads suddenly seemed to lose interest when typical party favorites like Lady Gaga or the Black Eyed Peas came on. However, the audience’s energy quickly returned as soon as Lawson took to the stage once more to finish off the night with the likes of U2, Queen and The Ramones.
Even though they are known on campus as a staple of Winter Carnival, Orange Crush is nationally renowned as well. They have toured a majority of the central and southern United States, and have even opened for big names such as Reel Big Fish, OK Go! and Guster. Founded in 1996, Orange Crush initially started off as a R.E.M. tribute band, but soon discovered that interest in R.E.M. was waning. In 2000, the band decided to change its theme to a general 1980s cover band.
Once again, Orange Crush provided a refreshing and lighthearted start to the Winter Carnival festivities. Most importantly, though, the venue fostered the sense of community and togetherness associated with the Carnival: seeing students coming together to celebrate one of the College’s longest-standing traditions was an even more amazing sight than the vibrant sea of glowsticks and neon pulsating on the dance floor.
John Mulaney
by Santiago Azpurua-Borras, Staff Writer
If there is something the College pulls off well to entertain its students, it is the quality of comedians brought to entertain our usually exhausted minds. Comedians Shang Wang and John Mulaney are no exception to this.
The second night of the Winter Carnival was a hilarious one as students packed into the McCullough Social Space for the sold-out event on Feb. 18. The night began with comedian Shang Wang who shared his exploits of getting older, his love life and his home life in Chinatown, NY. After warming up the audience quite nicely, Wang then handed the show over to the main act, John Mulaney.
Mulaney, a writer for Saturday Night Live, has appeared on television shows such as Conan, Jimmy Kimmel and VH1’s Best Week Ever. He has a very comical voice that projects well, and he really knows how to lay down emotion and dramatization in his delivery. He was not afraid to get dirty in certain moments of his set, and while this is not my favorite kind of humor, it definitely mixed things up in a positive manner.
His jokes’ subjects included topics such as unfortunate visits to the doctor’s office, college party shenanigans and his terrifying friend Adam who has a knack for stealing family portraits from strangers’ homes because “It’s the one thing that can’t be replaced.”
Mulaney is a great performer, with a seemingly endless supply of wit. I would be more than okay if the school ever decided to bring him back, although I must also agree that variety is the spice of life.
Much to the delight of the audience, Mulaney also poked fun at both the College and its students. He would often ask the crowd, “What is there to do for fun on campus on a Friday night?” Every single time, he got the same collective answer — silence, followed by what I can only describe as desperate laughter.
Ice Show
by Amanda Pertierra, Arts Editor
Skaters galore took to the rink Feb. 19 and Feb. 20 for the Winter Carnival Ice Show, a collaborative effort between the College’s figure skaters and the Figure Skating Club for children of faculty and staff.
This year’s theme, “Skate, Rattle and Roll,” took its inspiration from an old trunk of records one of the organizers discovered in grandma’s attic, and featured such a diverse array of throwbacks as the Charleston, Gene Kelly’s “Good Morning,” Dick Tracy’s theme, Elvis Presley’s “Jailhouse Rock,” the Beatles’ “Here Comes the Sun,” excerpts from the E.T. soundtrack and Madonna’s “Material Girl.”
By the program’s end, audience members felt they had toured this century’s musical highlights, ending with Lady Gaga’s “Telephone.” Announcer Dave Sears assured us it was a classic in the making.
Surprises included a live performance of the Bobolinks’ “Fireflies” accompanied by the whirling, twirling know-how of some of the College’s best skaters. Solos were performed by Hilary McReynolds ’11, Todd Langstaff ’13, Kendall Wyckoff ’14.5, Hilary Crew ’13, Shannon Fiedler ’14 and Kelly Slentz ’11.
Guest skaters Gretchen Donlan and Andrew Speroff broke up the program with two highly contrasting pieces showcasing their pairs abilities. Donlan and Speroff made their Senior Pairs debut at this year’s U.S. Figure Skating Championship, and are hoping to participate in the 2014 Olympics.
Still, brush with celebrity aside, the tribute to the Beatles “I Want to Hold Your Hand” could not fail to warm hearts, as parents and children took to the ice together. The piece stands out as a reminder of the collaboration between parents, coaches and students — of the College and the town both — that make this program possible each year.
(02/17/11 5:20am)
Affiliate artist Pete Sutherland performed at the Mahaney Center for the Arts this past Friday night, entertaining the audience with a rousing concert of both original and classic folk music. Joined by a slew of friends and family, including his wife Karen, the multitalented instrumentalist, singer and composer put on a splendid show featuring the best of traditional folk. The repertoire featured ballads, instrumentals and rousing fiddle pieces, including Sutherland’s original pieces; his compositions spoke of topics close to home and heart, such as the Otter Creek or hiking in the hills. Another original piece described the anecdotes of a local elderly woman via song.
Sutherland was frequently joined onstage by his musical guests, including fellow affiliate artist Tim Cummings on vocals, bagpipe and whistles, Will Patton ’70 on bass and mandolin, a “Singing Crew” and a “Fiddling Flash Mob” featuring Vermont fiddlers and Anika James ’11.
As an avid fan of Celtic music, I was particularly struck by the soaring and wonderfully melancholy sounds of Cummings’ whistles and bagpipes, and when combined with Sutherland’s weeping violin, the two created a duet that was both incredibly mournful and inspiring. However, the true highlight of the show for most of the audience was the final number, which featured the Fiddling Flash Mob performing a fast-paced piece. The sight of all the violins’ bows moving in swift unison was really something awesome to see, and it was clear from the smiles on the performers’ faces that they were absorbed by their art, feeding off the awesome energy generated by the rousing music.
“Remember, no dancing,” Sutherland would cheekily remind the audience between pieces from time to time, though that did not stop some audience members from getting up and dancing during the last piece, or clapping along to some of the faster, upbeat songs.
Sutherland is certainly no stranger to folk music. For nearly four decades, he has performed in bands such as the Arm and Hammer String Band, the Woodshed All-stars and Rhythm in Shoes, as well as in the contemporary folk trio Metamora. Locally, he served as artistic director for the Champlain Valley Folk Festival, the Fort Ticonderoga Folk Festival and the Vergennes Opera House, was a charter member of Burlington’s Social Band and has produced more than 80 studio albums. Sutherland also occasionally fiddles for his contradance jam-band, the Clayfoot Strutters. He holds many honors in folk music, including “numerous cheap fiddle contest ribbons” and the 1991 Ralph Nading Hill Award, as well as being a finalist for the Vermont State Historical Society’s 2009 Hathaway Prize. His original music has been covered by other folk artists, and was featured on two pieces of NPR’s All Things Considered. Recently, Sutherland wrote for the score of the film The Summer of Walter Hacks.
Sutherland intended this concert to be a kick-off event for a new scholarship fund for the Northeast Heritage Music Camp, an annual week-long gathering of folk musicians for classes, workshops, dances and concerts. Sutherland hopes that by creating the scholarship and raising awareness for the camp’s mission at his concerts, he can broaden the access for even more talented young musicians to attend and develop a love of folk music that will last a lifetime.
For more information on Pete Sutherland and his projects, visit these sites:
Epact Music
Northeast Heritage Music Camp
(02/17/11 5:06am)
With their NESCAC seeding and seniors’ pride on the line on Saturday, the Middlebury College Women’s basketball team came through with a big win over Trinity, which ended a four-game NESCAC losing streak and gave them confidence heading into the NESCAC tournament, which begins on Saturday. The win over the Bantams followed a loss to second-ranked Amherst at home the previous evening.
Middlebury, whose NESCAC misfortunes had been well-documented going into their game against Amherst, played a very respectable first half against the heavily favored Lady Jeffs on Friday. Deliberately slowing the pace of their offense to offset the high-powered attack of Amherst, who averages 80 points per game, the Panthers managed only 16 first-half points, but still only trailed by nine at the break due to their ability to hold possession and their efforts on the defensive end of the floor. Middlebury did turn the ball over 14 times in the first half, which led to 12 of Amherst’s 25 first-half points.
In the second half, Middlebury pulled within eight points after a Stephany Surrette ’12 layup cut the lead to 31-23 with just over 15 minutes left, but did not get closer, as Amherst was able to pull away over the final 10 minutes of the game en route to an eventual 63-43 win.
Poor shooting plagued both teams throughout the night, but especially the Panthers, who only managed 33 percent from the floor. Tracy Borsinger ’13 led the Panthers in scoring with 18 on the night.
“We fought hard the entire game and never made them feel comfortable,” said Brittany Perfetti ’12 of the loss to Amherst. “Being able to compete against them proves that we are still a threat in the NESCAC and are a very competitive NESCAC team.”
Playing on Senior night the following Saturday, the Panthers seemed determined to deliver a win for the home Pepin Arena crowd, and win they did over the Trinity College Bantams by a final score of 66-47. Sparked by an early 12-2 run, Middlebury and Trinity dueled throughout the first half, with the Bantams cutting the lead to as little as one point with less than two minutes left, but the Panthers were able to add a few more points for an eventual halftime lead of 26-21.
In the second half, Middlebury took advantage of eight points from Maddie Moreau ’12 as they continued to build their lead over the Bantams. Additionally, the Panthers made every single three-point basket they attempted after the break. Oftentimes leading by over 20 points in the closing minutes of the game, Middlebury would go on to win by a final tally of 19, earning the seventh seed in the NESCAC tournament in the process.
Senior Co-captain Lauren Sanchez ’11 shone on senior night, leading the Panthers with 16 points despite only attempting three field goals- she contributed 13 points from the charity stripe on 16 attempts, and continued to build on her own record of all-time free throws made for Middlebury women’s basketball. Moreau scored 15 against the Bantams, and Perfetti added 13 points of her own.
“The Trinity game had a lot of sentimental value for us,” said Perfetti. “We wanted to make Lauren and [Co-captain and senior] Allie Needham ’11 proud of all the hard work and dedication they’ve shown to this team.”
Up next for Middlebury is a NESCAC quarterfinal game against second-seeded Colby College. The Panthers endured one of their more lopsided losses against the Mules on February 4rth, falling 81-60, but will look to even the odds this go-around in the hopes of advancing deep into the NESCAC tournament.
“We’re really going to review the game tape from the last time we played Colby in preparing for them this week,” said Sanchez. “If we can improve in areas where we made mistakes and capitalize on their weaknesses, it should be a great game.”
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(02/10/11 5:57pm)
For the past 88 years, February has played host to one of the College’s most beloved traditions, Winter Carnival. This year, Winter Carnival will take place the weekend of Feb. 18.
Each year, Winter Carnival is planned and run by the Traditions Committee, a sub-committee of the Middlebury College Activities Board (MCAB). The committee, led by Liz Gay ’10, devotes much of its time and budget to this campus-wide event.
This year’s event, a throw-back to the days of old at the College, has a vintage theme.
“This year's Winter Carnival was inspired by the vintage Winter Carnival posters from the 1930s hanging around McCullough,” said Gay. “We wanted to return to the original, classic traditions of Middlebury Winter Carnival and plan exciting and fun events, while also bringing back a bit of forgotten school history.”
Not only will there be an old-school vibe at this year’s events, but MCAB is also bringing back some other traditions of the past.
“We're bringing back the Winter Carnival King and Queen, which is a sort of outdated tradition, but we thought it would just be something silly for the entire campus to get involved in,” Gay said.
Maria Perille, president of MCAB agrees.
“Having King and Queen of Winter Carnival is a fun way to recognize peers and it has largely been met with enthusiasm.”
Another tradition that students will be able to attend is The Klondike Rush. It was once one of the main highlights of Winter Carnivals. Reaching the height of its popularity in the 1950’s and 60’s, The Klondike Rush was held in the gymnasium, now McCullough Student Center. Students would gather for an evening of dancing, music and award ceremonies.
According to Zachary Bartlett, a member of the MCAB Traditions Committee, “it was a big event and really gave the weekend a festive and party-like atmosphere.”
While the event will be different this year, the original inspiration will definitely still be present.
“We'll have it take place that Friday [Jan. 18] from 7-9 p.m. in Pearsons Lounge, where we'll have card games, a student band, a fire going, cabin food and drinks,” said Bartlett. “Definitely a very Vermonty, flannel, traditional atmosphere. It will be an awesome way to chill out and start off the weekend before going to the comedian later that night. ”
“While we are bringing back these older traditions, we still like to keep this event fresh and exciting,” Gay added.
One of these traditional events is Orange Crush on Thursday [Jan. 17] night, a dance with an 80’s themed band. Following the Klondike Rush will be comedian John Mulaney. A graduate of Georgetown University, Mulaney is currently a featured actor and writer for Saturday Night Live and has been on VH1’s Best Week Ever.
The Winter Carnival Ball will be center stage on Saturday night, featuring the two DJs known together as Flosstradamus.
“The DJ duo are a pretty cool act, and have performed at some of the big music festivals like Coachella and Lollapalooza and so we think they'll really get the energy up at the ball,” said Gay.
Since the origin of Winter Carnival is as a support and celebration of the College’s ski team, MCAB will be arranging for extra shuttles between Middlebury and the Snow Bowl to watch the races.
"Students should take advantage of [the weekend’s events], whether they are second semester seniors or new Febs, and get involved in the whole tradition, either by carving a snow sculpture on McCullough lawn or cheering on the ski team or dancing until two at the Ball,” Gay said.
Students can see the schedule events and purchase tickets from the box office in McCullough and online.
(02/10/11 5:07am)
Even though the Middlebury men’s basketball team’s record-breaking run came to an end at the hands of rival Williams over February break, the Panthers remained hard at work, improving their record to 18-1 (6-1 in conference play) while continuing to be a dominant offensive and defensive force in the NESCAC.
While the Ephs did hand Middlebury their first loss of the season, it was not before the team extended its historic run to 16-0 with victories over Connecticut College and Southern Vermont.
First, Middlebury defended its streak at home against Conn. College in a dominant fashion, defeating the Camels 80-52 while extending its streak to 15-0. Center Andrew Locke ’11 led the Panthers with a career best 18 rebounds while adding 19 points, including 10 of Middlebury’s first 13 in the second half, and seven blocked shots.
The Panthers held a 12-point advantage at the end of the first half, one that they would only expand upon by the end of regulation. Ryan Wholey added 17 points for Middlebury while shooting 7 of 8 from the field. The Panthers again showed a tenacity on the defense side of the ball, holding the Camels to just 33 percent field goal shooting.
Next, Middlebury rolled past Southern Vermont, 81-63, in what would prove to be their final victory of the record-breaking run, improving to 16-0. The Panthers combined incredible shooting, making 55 percent of their attempts, and the defensive dominance that has come to characterize the team to control the Mountaineers despite an impressive 33-point effort from Southern Vermont’s Lance Spratling.
Already leading 46-24 at halftime, the Panthers opened the second period with a 9-0 run giving the team enough of a cushion to hold off a late 17-3 run by the Mountaineers. Ten different Panthers scored points in the game with Jake Wolfin ’13 and Locke leading the pack, scoring 16 and 13 respectively.
Just two days after extending their streak to 16-0, the fourth-ranked Panthers, playing without leading scorer and rebounder Ryan Sharry, saw their streak come to an end, dropping to 16-1 on the season while losing to the fifth-ranked Ephs 69-64 in an incredibly hard-fought game by both teams. Trailing by nine at half-time, the Panthers opened up the second period on a 10-0 run gaining a 40-39 advantage. From then on, the game was an all out battle with the score tied on 11 separate occasions.
Trailing 68-64 late in regulation, Joey Kizel ’14 had the ball stripped from him on a play that looked like it was going out of bounds. However, with just four seconds left on the game, Williams’ Harlan Dodson slid across the floor, gaining control of the ball and successfully calling a timeout just inches from the out of bounds line.
The Eph’s Troy Whittington would go on to hit one of two free throws, giving William’s the 69-64 advantage the team would end with. Four players, led by James Klemm’s 17, scored in double figures for the Ephs, who shot over 55 percent from the floor. Kizel led the Panthers with 16 points while Wolfin added 13.
However, Middlebury’s first loss did little to discourage the team as just a week later the Panthers blew past NESCAC rivals Colby and Bowdoin in consecutive games, defeating the teams 73-52 and 74-59 respectively, improving to 18-1 on the season and 6-1 in NESCAC play.
Ryan Sharry had a double-double against Colby in his first game back from injury, scoring 12 points while grabbing 12 rebounds while four players, led by Jake Wolfin’s 14, scored in double figures against Bowdoin.
With three regular season games left, and only one loss on the season to date, the Panthers will undoubtedly enter the postseason with high expectations for success in the NESCAC tournament and a hopeful bid in the NCAA tournament. After demolishing last season’s record-setting 10-game winning streak, this year’s team can only hope to outdo last year’s once more by advancing further into NCAA play than its predecessor did.
Middlebury next plays Amherst and Trinity at Pepin Gymnasium while beginning to prepare for the upcoming postseason.
(02/10/11 5:03am)
John Graham dreamed of building an organization that provided a variety of basic services to those in need, and he did indeed make his vision a reality. The John Graham Shelter Home located in Vergennes, Vt. and the non-profit group HOPE (Helping Overcome Poverty’s Effects), which is based in Middlebury, were the results of Graham’s work. Jeanne Montross, executive director of HOPE, works closely with her board of directors, whose members include Special Collections Librarian and College Archivist Bob Buckeye, Donor Relations Events Manager Andrea Solomon and Professor of Anthropology David Stoll.
Montross, a native of Salisbury, Vt., has been HOPE’s director for 10 years. Born and raised in New Jersey, she graduated from the University of Vermont (UVM) after majoring in psychology. She then worked in counseling at UVM and North Country Community College, and was part of a court diversion program in Middlebury. When HOPE moved to its new location, 282 Boardman St. at the John V. Craven Community Services Center, in 1999, Montross jumped on board and was quickly crowned director.
“Jeanne is a real go-getter and a huge asset to HOPE,” said Solomon, who serves as the chair of fundraising committees and organized the “Model Citizen” Fashion Show last November, which raised approximately $3,000 for HOPE. “She is a tremendous advocate for anyone in need and dives in at the ground level.”
The organization’s mission is to reduce the effects of poverty in Addison County by providing basic services to residents, including food aid, shelter and budget counseling. Montross also said HOPE seeks to educate individuals. Instead of simply giving families instant meals to prepare, for example, the organization urges people to select a recipe from the many HOPE provides and bring home fresh produce to cook wholesome, healthy dinners.
“We also want to beef up our gleaning program,” said Montross, who has worked with Corrine Almquist ’09 and Jessie Ebersole ’12 on this project. In 2009, the gleaning program donated 8,000 pounds of food to HOPE.
“Corinne brought truckloads of pumpkins to us this fall, which volunteers brought home and mashed up. People then came to the food bank and took the mashed pumpkins, as well as spices, and make pumpkin pies for the holidays.”
HOPE receives very little government funding; money comes from grants or is donated by local residents, businesses and other organizations, like United Ways. Since it is not a government program, the organization works to provide a variety of services, regardless of whether it has a specific program. For instance, if someone needs a new well pump, HOPE will determine if the project is viable and, if deemed necessary, will attempt to find the funding to install the pump.
“We try not to say ‘no’ to anything, but we need to use the community money carefully,” said Montross.
The John V. Craven Community Services Center also is home to the Vermont Adult Learning Center, which offers computer classes, as well as daycare services. The Addison County Transit Resources (ACTR) shuttles drive to and from the center throughout the day, so individuals have easy access to the facilities.
“I believe that we are part of a community and need to be responsible for one another,” said Buckeye, who has been chair of the board of directors for the last 11 years. “There are those who have had unexpected difficulties and setbacks. There are those who have had little chance from the beginning. We do not ignore them, walk over them on the street as it were.”
It is clear that HOPE’s services help many. Over 500 people come to HOPE’s food shelf each month. Families are allowed to bring home enough food for three meals for three days for each member of their household. In 2009, the food bank dished out enough for 43,000 meals to impoverished individuals. People must fill out an application that analyzes both their income and their expenses to determine if they qualify to receive food from the emergency food shelf. Local community members, as well as nearby supermarkets, like Hannaford’s, donate much of the food. Montross was proud of the College’s December food drive, too.
The executive director has looked into buying food wholesale, but fears it is too expensive, as she must buy a minimum of $5,000 worth of goods. In the past, volunteers would pack bags and bring them to needy families, but HOPE determined this was an inefficient system, so people now come to select their own food, all of which is carefully weighed by HOPE.
The organization has a walk-in freezer and cooler to keep food fresh. All goods must be organized and packaged in the food warehouse. Student help is needed in the fall especially when the produce from the gleaning program is delivered. The food shelf accepts donated food year round, and juices, canned fruits, vegetables, soup and dairy products are particlarly needed.
“It feels like HOPE really reaches to people that need help,” said Solomon, who often volunteers with her three children at the food shelf, as she wants them to see they can make a difference by giving back locally. “There is a strong pull towards helping people in our community and to make a big difference right here. It is not AIDS research, but that does not necessarily feed local needs.”
Stoll, who got involved with the organization because Buckeye mentioned that HOPE wanted to start working with local Mexican dairy farmers, could not agree more. A fluent Spanish speaker, Stoll was the perfect choice to join the board to help with this particular project. Happily though, Stoll said he has done little with this specific program because most of these farmers are currently employed.
“Who is going to take care of people who are sick and destitute?” said Stoll. “HOPE is interesting because it straddles the boundary between public and private.”
The organization also partners with its thrift store, RetroWorks, which is an important source of revenue for the non-profit. Last year, the shop earned $230,248. Everything from clothing to 90-cent cups to woven placemats is donated and sold. Montross is especially excited fabout the upcoming vinyl record sale at RetroWorks, which will be held later this spring.
Extra clothes that are not sold are sent to a warehouse in Canada, where, along with leftover shoes, stuffed animals and purses, they are either sold to thrift stores or sent to developing countries.
“That way everything is kept out of the landfill,” said Montross.
RetroWorks, which is open to the public, welcomes customers Monday through Saturday, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Donations are always welcome. Neat Repeats, a store in Middlebury, partners with HOPE and donates much of its inventory to the store. Call (802) 388-3608 (ext. 24) for more information.
Plans are currently underway for fundraisers, similar to the fashion show held in November, to raise money for HOPE. Montross also hopes to start winter-ready automobile programs in which individuals donate snow tires and anti-freeze to those who cannot afford these items. Additionally, she wants to organize home repairs. In the past, mission groups have helped with such projects, but Montross said they proved to be too large a strain on resources and was difficult to staff. Instead, she seeks to train local volunteers to make the visits.
Montross also aims to expand HOPE’s reach across Addison County and to lend aid to towns over the mountain, like Hancock, Starksboro and Grandville.
In addition to its food services, HOPE collaborates with other organizations, like the Counseling Services of Addison County and the Addison County Community Trust, on housing projects. Since 1985, HOPE has built 200 homes in Addison County. The Hill House, located on Route 7, was refurbished in 2008 and is now a safe haven for those who were homeless. People can stay at the house for up to two years. While HOPE officially owns the facility, the Counseling Services staff and run the building.
Visit http://www.hope-vt.org or call HOPE at (802) 388-3608 to learn about ways to volunteer. Solomon also said students should talk to Tiffany Sargent, the Director of the ACE Office, if they want to get involved with HOPE.
“I measure myself against how the disadvantaged measure me,” said Buckeye. “There are people who need assistance. We provide it as best we can.”
Last year, 47 families received help from HOPE and were able to pay for their rent and mortgage, while another 80 families were offered money for utilizes. In addition, 256 gasoline vouchers were issued, enabling people to get to work, to school or to a doctor’s appointment.
In HOPE’s pamphlet, Montross says, “HOPE does not operate alone — it is part of a caring community in which many people take seriously the responsibility of caring for others …We do the front line work, but you are behind us, making it all possible. Thank you.”
HOPE's Homepage
(02/10/11 5:01am)
Have you ever snow shoed up Monastery Mountain, cross-country skied across Bingo Brooke or walked the Robert Frost Interpretive Trail? If not then you have plenty more adventures ahead of you in the Green Mountain National Forest (GMNF). A guide to the forest reveals much about its unique history and the connection between the College and the forest’s trails.
At the heart of GMNF’s history is Joseph Battell. Many may associate him with the infamous freshman residence hall or the now-condominium-filled Battell Hill, but few realize how this 19th century Middlebury College trustee actually left his mark on the town and the College.
In 1915, Battell died, leaving thousands of acres of untouched forest land to the College with instructions to maintain the forest as it was, and to avoid clearing, logging, construction and other destructive practices whenever possible. Just fifteen years later, the College sold the land to the forest service, ignoring all of Battell’s wishes. As the land decayed, the frequency of floods, fires and uncontrolled logging began to increase, and it seemed that his message had been forgotten.
Around this time, GMNF was created with the mission of protecting, maintaining and enhancing forest ecosystems. For almost 80 years it has worked to protect land all over Vermont. The small portion in the Middlebury area, known as the Joseph Battell Wilderness, encompasses 12,333 acres of protected land, including five mountains above 3,000 feet, the headwaters of Bingo Brooke and several picnic areas. The forest is a critical habitat for black bears and boasts the longest trail-less ridge in the GMNF.
A mile from the College’s campus on Route 7 South sits the GMNF ranger station. Inside, a park ranger is on hand to assist hikers, hunters, campers and wood gatherers. The duties of a park ranger are varied; he provides information, issues permits and monitors forest activities in Middlebury and surrounding towns.
So whether you’re looking for an intense hike, or a casual picnic lunch by the water, put your excuses aside, get out and explore the forest.
Robert Frost Interpretive Trail
This flat trail is ideal for cross-country skiing or snowshoeing in the winter. Trekkers can read Robert Frost’s poems from their postings in the woods and fields as they revisit some of the sites that inspired his writing. In the dry season, the boardwalk section of the trail is accessible to wheelchairs, offering enjoyment for people of all ages.
Distance: 1.2-mile loop
Mount Horrid and The Great Cliff
Once you get past the name, this hike is one of the best rewards for the least effort, and it’s right in Middlebury! Closed Mar. to July for peregrine falcon nesting, the cliff offers sweeping views of Brandon Gap and surrounding areas.
Distance: 1.2 miles
Abbey Pond
This great year-round hike is accessible from VT 116 in East Middlebury. The easy walking trail winds through untouched forest, includes three stream crossings and ends at Abbey Pond, an undiscovered wetland full of nesting great blue herons and other wildlife.
Distance: 4 miles
Worth Mountain and Monastery Gap
This hike, located at the intersection of VT 125 East and the Long Trail (also accessible by Addison County Transit Resources shuttle), begins with a traverse of the Middlebury College Snow Bowl on the Long Trail South. Leave the lifts behind as you plunge into the national forest and proposed wilderness area. Enjoy sweeping views to the south.
Beyond Worth Mountain Summit, the trail ends, and the adventure really begins. Hikers can bushwhack due east to Monastery Gap through thick conifers, then proceed down the slope and into stream territory. Turn north at the headwaters of Robbins Branch and Bingo Brook tributaries, then return to VT 125, and civilization.
Distance: 6.2 miles, 2.2 miles off trail.
Monastery Mountain and Grindstone Brook
Another hike off of VT 125, Monastery Mountain has a roomy parking lot just past the intersection of Texas Falls Rd. Be sure keep your eyes open for the legendary Monastery moose. This challenging loop ventures off the trail and into wilderness area, so be ready to use your compass!
Distance: 5.8 miles (round trip), 5.5 miles (loop)
(01/13/11 5:07am)
As the new year rolls on, the Middlebury College men’s basketball team continues to rack up victories, setting a school record with an 11-0 start to the season after crushing Lyndon State 87-50 on Sunday.
“We are excited about the record start to the season,” said head coach Jeff Brown. “We have competed extremely well on defense and offensively we are a very balanced team.”
The Panthers got off to a 6-0 start to the season before the end of the semester put their success on pause. Picking up 2011 right where they left off, the Panthers beat Rensselaer 77-60 in their first game back on Jan. 2 to improve to 7-0. Middlebury, ranked fifth at the time, secured the victory with stingy defense that saw Rennsselaer shoot less than 30 percent from the field. On offense, the Panthers had great ball movement and racked up 22 assists on the night, 12 of which came from standout sophomore guard Jake Wolfin ’13. Ryan Sharry ’12 continued his team-leading performances with a game-high 18 points and 13 rebounds, while Nolan Thompson ’13 nailed three of his six three-point attempts.
Following that strong showing, the Panthers went undefeated on a two-game road stint. First, Middlebury defeated 22nd-ranked Plattsburgh in a close 88-82 contest. Heavily aided by a 12-1 run in the middle of the third quarter, the Panthers were able to hold on in the second half to push their record to 8-0. Tri-captain Ryan Wholey ’11 scored a career-high 24 points to lead his team to the win, while Wolfin added 12 points and 10 assists. The Panthers were able to hold off a terrific effort from Plattsburgh’s Josh Bruno, who scored 24 points while going six for six from behind the arc.
Middlebury’s next victim was Colby-Sawyer, defeating the Chargers in an 80-54 contest that saw the Panthers get their tenacious defense back on track. Tri-captain and center Andrew Locke ’11 dominated on both sides of the floor, leading all scorers with 15 points while adding 10 rebounds and 10 blocks for a triple double. Sharry added 14 points and eight rebounds for the 9-0 Panthers.
Returning to Pepin to face Skidmore last Saturday, the sixth-ranked Panthers continued their hot shooting, making 46 percent of their field goal attempts while going on to win 85-72 to improve their record to 10-0 on the season. Middlebury never gave up the lead after gaining it five minutes into the first half, using a 10-0 run led by Sharry to take control soon after. Sharry and Thompson both scored 17 for the Panthers in a game where four Panthers scored in double figures.
The team’s latest victory, a historic one, came on Sunday against Lyndon State, with an easy 87-50 victory that saw the Panthers open the season 11-0 for the first time in school history. The Panthers used two big scoring streaks to gain a 31-10 lead that they would never relinquish.
Middlebury held Lyndon State to a meager 27 percent shooting from the floor, while Nolan Thompson used his 23 minutes on the floor incredibly efficiently to rack up 22 points, including five three-point field goals. Additionally, Sharry’s second-half slam dunk punctuated the win in convincing fashion, giving fans something to cheer about in an otherwise uninteresting period that saw Middlebury double the Lyndon State score on several occasions. Many Panthers contributed points and saw court time in the game, which showcased the great depth of coach Brown’s stellar team.
With NESCAC playing beginning next week, Middlebury will look to continue their historic winning streak at Tufts on Friday.
(01/13/11 5:04am)
Located at 869 Exchange St., tucked a few hundred yards off of the road, is the Cabot Creamery. Though one could easily drive by without noticing the building, the state-of-the-art factory, which opened in 1995 and operates year round, uses 1.6 million pounds of milk to produce 160,000 pounds of cheese each day. The vast majority of cheese is shipped to Cabot, Vt., home of the well-known cheese company, though the factory also sells some of its product to other brands, including Kraft, the factory’s previous operator, and Sargento. In the late 19th century, Cabot suffered financial difficulties, so farmers from the dairy co-operative, Agri-Mark, voted to buy the Cabot name.
“[Cheese] is probably one of the oldest products that was made in Vermont,” said Bernie Boudreau, the plant manager. “Cabot’s an important piece of it because we make it a sellable product to put it on the shelves.”
Yet for every 100 pounds of milk the plant uses, it can only produce 10 pounds of actual cheese. The other 90 pounds are whey, a clear liquid that is extracted at multiple steps in the cheese making process. In 2001, Cabot built a whey plant, which is as big as the cheese plant, and Boudreau said it is just one of four like it in the entire world. From the whey, which is dehydrated, the plant produces two proteins: lactoferrin (140 pounds/day) and WPC-80 (14,000 pounds/day), which is a protein concentrate found in sports drinks. These powders are sold all over the world, including in China, Argentina and Brazil.
The factory plays an important role on a local scale as well. Boudreau knows all of the approximately 200 farmers who choose to sell their milk to the company.
The plant also employs 110 people, from both Vermont and New York. While most employees specialize in one aspect of production, those who can perform multiple jobs do receive higher wages.
“This plant is probably the top plant in the northeast,” said Boudreau, who has worked for Agri-Mark Cabot for 39 years and and started with a factory job himself. He takes pride in the fact that the factory always produces a quality product, as a sample from all incoming milk is analyzed in the lab before the cheese is made. The plant is also certified to test samples from other factories if they is unsure of their test results.
This time and care is evident in all stages in the cheese making process. The fresh milk from local dairy farmers arrives in trucks each day and is first run through a series of pipes that pasteurize the milk to ensure the liquid has no bacteria. Entering one of six large cheese vats, the milk soon coagulates, turning into a jello-like substance. Agitators in the vats move the milk and it begins separating into curds and whey. From the vats, the cheese curds enter the cheddaring process, moving along a perforated belt for two and a half hours before they are sprayed with salt on another belt. The cheese then enters cheddaring towers that are full of holes, which allows the whey to be extracted from the cheese. Once at the bottom of the towers, the cheese is pressed into 42 pound blocks, 16 of which can fit into large wooden storage boxes. The boxes are then moved to storage rooms, which are kept at cool temperatures. The longer cheese sits after being made, the sharper the flavor. Some blocks are sharp after a few months, though others can sit for as long as three years. One block from each vat is deemed the sample block, and testers from Cabot, Vt. visit the Middlebury factory to test the flavor and determine whether the cheese is ready for packaging.
Perhaps most impressive, the factory never stops operating. Though it is thoroughly washed for three hours every day, it never shuts down.
“We run 365 days a year,” said Boudreau, who is quick to note that the entire cheese-making process is energy-efficient as well.
The plant uses Efficiency Vermont, an energy efficiency utility, to help cut costs where possible. Over the last year, the factory has introduced energy-efficient light bulbs. In addition, the water that is extracted from the whey is used to wash the equipment and to pre-heat incoming milk plate pasteurizers. This re-use is only made possible by a state-of-the-art purification system in which water goes through filtration units, reverse osmosis and UV light. According to Boudreau, the plant’s UV light unit is the only one in the 15 surrounding states; both the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have visited the factory in Middlebury to see how the device works.
Though the plant’s advanced technology makes it an important component of Cabot’s cheese production, the company’s main factory is in Cabot, Vt. There are also stores in Waterbury Center and Quechee, Vt.
“[Cabot] is a rapidly growing company,” said Boudreau. “We make the most money we can for our farm members.”
(01/13/11 5:01am)
The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams were in need of some fast times and a couple of wins coming into their first weekend of competition in 2011, as the teams held 1-3 and 0-4 records respectively. In their meets vs. Maine rivals Colby and Bates last weekend, the teams delivered just that, sweeping their NESCAC competitors and improving their standing in the division.
The men’s team defeated Colby on Saturday with a 219-58 blowout and followed up with another win on Sunday, topping Bates 185-109. The women’s team beat Colby 213-80 and Bates 188-110. The 4-0 weekend cast away any doubt that the team could not meet the lofty expectations set earlier in the season.
“Coming off one of our best training trips ever over winter break, I feel that the team has turned the corner and has now gained its focus as we head towards championship season,” said head coach Peter Solomon. “The effectiveness of our training and the team bonding that occurred in Florida has set the stage for an exciting second half of the season.”
The match-up against Colby had a unique sprint format and featured an event that the team has never competed in before –– the 4 x 100 yard Individual Medley Relay. Andie Tibbetts ’14 led the women’s team with the fastest split in the 100 IM for the season, finishing in 1:02.24. For the men’s team, John Dillon ’11 led the Panthers with a time of 55.19 seconds.
On Saturday, several Panthers had breakthrough swims against Colby. Katherine Loftus ’12 dropped almost five seconds from her 500-yard freestyle and Ethan Litman ’13 dropped six seconds in the same event on the men’s side. Both swimmers won their races, giving the Panthers an early lead that they would keep the rest of the day.
The women showed great depth in the 50-yard breaststroke, an event in which they took the top four places, and again in the 200-yard freestyle when four freshmen finished within a second of each other and the Panthers captured the top five finishes. They would go on to take the top four places in the 400-yard Individual Medley, posting some of the best times in the NESCAC so far this year.
According to Coach Peter Solomon, the best swim of the meet went to Mac Staben ’11 who “dazzled the crowd and his teammates with a surprise win in the 100-yard butterfly.” His time of 53.91 seconds was by far a personal best for Staben.
On Sunday, the Panthers faced a stronger Bates team and were still able to come out on top. The Bates women were neck-and-neck with Middlebury for the first half of the meet, but in the second half the talent and especially the depth of the Panthers proved to be the deciding factor as they posted sweeps of six of 10 events to begin the second half of the meet.
On the women’s side, the Panthers swept the 200-yard butterfly, 100-yard freestyle, 200-yard backstroke, 500-yard freestyle and 200-yard IM. Jen Friedlander ’12 dropped seven seconds from her butterfly time, winning the event. Loftus led the women with six individual wins on the weekend, with Alexandra Edel ’14 and Nora Daly ’13 right behind her with five each.
For the men’s team, Dillon’s time of 51.92 in the 100-yard butterfly is currently the fastest time in the conference. Harry Anixter ’13 had a standout meet, with his times in the 100- and 200-yard backstroke already faster than his times from last year’s NESCAC Championships.
All-American Diver Gemma Collins ’12 led the way with four individual wins over the weekend. Her score of 270.90 for 1-meter on Saturday earned NCAA DIII consideration.
The Panthers dominated in the pool and are looking to build on their success at Hamilton on Saturday.
“It will be important to ride this momentum going forward as training intensifies throughout the rest of January,” said men’s captain Matt Vukich ’11.
(12/02/10 5:07am)
Cori Hundt ’11 is from Warren, NJ.
I think I offended the bicycle gods. Perhaps I was a bicycle thief in a previous life? Or maybe I burned bicycles in political protest? After all, these explanations are the only ones I can find as to why my bike has been vandalized not once, not even twice, but on three separate occasions during my four years here at Middlebury. Three times is three too many. But it was when my bike was vandalized twice in a one-month period this semester that I finally had enough. To quote the communications office’s plate posters, “This time it’s personal.” So, for the first time ever during my years at this college I am writing to the Opinions section of The Campus.
I accepted the fact that I might not see my bike ever again when it was stolen during Thanksgiving break of my sophomore year.
I was pleasantly shocked to receive a phone call seven months later in June from Public Safety saying they had found my bike in the basement of Hepburn. “Did you live in Hepburn?” I was asked. “No, I lived in Hadley and the lock was cut and my bike stolen from the bike rack I could see from the window of my dorm room,” I replied.
Happy to have my bike back, I cut my losses and took it to the Bike Center on Main Street to have it repaired and tuned up when I got back from abroad in January of my junior year. Over a year after my bike was stolen, I finally had it back and in working condition.
Spring of my junior year went by smoothly without any strike from the bicycle gods. Then, in October of this semester, they attacked again. I walked out of my dorm to ride my bike to an early meeting to meet a professor and found it still locked to the bike rack outside of Munroe but flipped over, the gear hanging off and the back tire bent in half.
Amazed how this could happen another time, I later carried (literally carried, it could not be wheeled) my bike across campus to Public Safety to report the vandalism. Then I had to have a generous friend with a car take time out of their busy schedule to drive my broken bike and me to The Bike Center in town to once again to have it repaired.
Finally, about three weeks later my bike was fixed and back in action. I chalked it up to someone’s drunken night and my bad luck with the gods of all things with two wheels. Surely if I left it outside Munroe, nothing more would happen to it. After all, lightning doesn’t strike the same place twice.
Then only two weeks later I walked outside of my dorm and found my bike vandalized for a third time. This instance, the entire bike rack was moved and my bike handle was bent in half and as well as my back bike tire. The paint on the handle was entirely gone and there were marks on the concrete showing where someone had repeatedly smashed it into the ground.
On this occasion I was absolutely livid and incredibly hurt — not because of what it costs to fix but because of the principle of the matter. I can almost understand someone taking a bike that is not his or her own for riding purposes (read almost, not actually), but to have your bike purposefully and senselessly destroyed twice in one month is absolutely ridiculous. What bothers me the most is that I am a fellow student of yours. What if you know me? What if you pass by me in the dining hall every day? What if I caught you? While I honestly cannot envision a bicycle vandal sitting down to read the Opinions section of The Campus over a cup of coffee in the morning, if you do I want you to know that that bike you destroyed has a name and face behind it. My bike is the damaged blue, black and silver Trek 800 still on the bike rack outside of Munroe. My name is at the bottom of this Op-Ed.
It is by no means an especially nice bike or a good bike. But it is a bike I was given for my 14th birthday by my parents. A bike I have used to ride around campus for the past four years. A bike I will be taking home over Winter break because it costs too much to keep repairing when all I do is leave it locked up on a bike rack at Middlebury outside of my dorm.
Yes, an apology would be nice. And yes, paying for the damages would even nicer (it was $85 and change to repair the bike the first time it was damaged after my sophomore year, $58.80 the second time it was damaged earlier this semester and I have not yet had it repaired a third time), I do not expect said bike vandals to come forward, so what I do ask is for everyone to consider the cost of time, money and emotion that committing the crime of bicycle vandalism has on your fellow peers at this institution. It is not entertaining, it is not excusable and it is not okay. Please, please, please think before you act because this time it is personal, bicycle gods be damned.
(12/02/10 5:05am)
From jewelry from Kenya’s Spice Coast to beaded works from India, handmade goods from all over the world made an appearance at the 19th annual craft fair, held at the Middlebury Memorial Baptist Church on Friday, Nov. 19 and Saturday, Nov. 20. All proceeds from the sales benefit Ten Thousand Villages, a nonprofit organization and one of the founding members of the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO). Founded in 1946, Ten Thousand Villages provides a North American market and fair wages to artisans from all over the world. Sales generated pay for food, education, housing and healthcare needs of the producers. For lucky customers in Middlebury, however, the craft fair is a chance to find unique items and support a meaningful cause, as well. Because it is always held the weekend before Thanksgiving, many also get a head start on holiday shopping.
Jen Nuceder, accreditation support coordinator in the Office on Institutional Research at the College, saw the fair as the perfect opportunity to “find some interesting, different gift ideas.” A resident of Salisbury, Vt., Nuceder was particularly intrigued by the handcrafted musical instruments she bought for her children, who participate in a playgroup at the church.
“It is great to be able to have these kinds of opportunities to see crafts from all over the world in our little town,” said Nuceder, who noted that not many other rural areas get as much international influence as Middlebury.
Others craft fair-goers were not only excited that their contributions would benefit people from around the world, but they were also impressed by the quality of the goods.
“What’s most important to me is how it seems like things are made by hand and so the object has a little more soul to it than things that are mass-produced,” said Ripton, Vt. resident Sarah Wesson, who has attended the craft fair in previous years as well.
Wesson also said that many of the items are made from recycled materials. According to the organization’s website (http://www.tenthousandvillages.com), Ten Thousand Villages “encourages artisan partners to use environmentally friendly processes, sustainable natural resources and recycled materials to ensure each product offered has been crafted responsibly.”
The fair organization is fairly simple. Because the church has been holding the sale for nearly two decades, Ten Thousand Villages has the group in its database. Eight weeks before the sale, the organization contacts the church and sends a variety of goods it wishes to sell. Other nonprofits interested in holding a festival sale for the first time contact Ten Thousand Villages to request goods. The church doesn’t pick what items it receives, according to Kathy Jewett, associate in science instruction in chemistry/biochemistry at the College and coordinator of the craft fair for the past 18 years. Goods usually encompass a broad range and include jewelry, musical instruments, woven baskets and decorative home items like candle holders. This year, there were finger puppets, birdhouses, carved wooden boxes and wire children’s toys, as well.
Though the church does not set a sales goal for the fair, Jewett said that to ensure money gets back to the artisans, the church aims to sell 60 percent of the goods it receives. All items left over are returned back to Ten Thousand Villages. Because of the nature of the organization’s business, shipping is a large cost.
“We try to do the best job we can to publicize and get out to the broadest audience, and then the rest just happens,” said Jewett, who promoted the event by contacting local churches and advertising in The Addison Independent. Jewett also noted that Ten Thousand Villages has gotten better at advertising, due to their website improvements.
The fair has been held at many different locations over the years, including Weybridge Elementary School, the Middlebury Inn and the College itself. It is now in the church’s basement, as it is a bigger space and is handicapped-accessible. Though the fair was previously held on Saturday only, three years ago organizers introduced a Friday night sale as well, as many customers wanted extended hours.
Volunteers include church members and even college students.
“Many of our youth grew up around [the fair],” said Laura Sturtevant, a church member who has been volunteering at the event nearly every year since it began. One of Sturtevant’s daughters was also volunteering, as was Sarah King ’12.
For the past three years, King, who is from Texas, has volunteered at the Ten Thousand Village’s store in Houston. In addition to setting up festival sales with nonprofit groups (like the church), Ten Thousand Villages also has retail locations across the country. King said that many of these stores have one or two steady managers, but that a strong volunteer network makes up most of the staff. The store in Houston, for example, has approximately 80 volunteers who work a certain number of hours each month.
“It’s a nice way to involve shoppers,” said King.
For the church, which does not profit off of the event, the fair is simply another way it can help people across the globe.
“The church has a very strong global vision,” said Sturtevant, who commented that volunteers have also worked in Haiti, Romania and inner cities across the U.S. She said that the fair allowed for many church members who can’t travel to contribute to the church’s global mission. As another project, members also volunteer at the annual Crop Walk. Sturtevant said that these local outreaches are easy to do and can have a large, positive effect on others.
“For the impact we have, it is a very doable commitment,” said Sturtevant.
(12/02/10 5:01am)
With a 75-40 victory over Johnson & Wales on Saturday, the Middlebury women’s basketball team improved their record to 4-0, their best start since 2007, and continued to build momentum towards conference play in January. Included in the wins were triumphs over Nazareth and Brockport, which made the Panthers the winners of the Brockport Invitational Tournament held in New York.
“Winning the Brockport Tournament meant a lot to the team,” said co-captain Lauren Sanchez ’11, who was named MVP of the tournament after scoring 47 points in the two games, including 30 in the Panthers’ opening round win over Nazareth. “Taking home that trophy really set the tone for the entire season.”
Brittany Perfetti ’12 was also named to the All-tournament team for her performance in Brockport.
Following their success in New York, the Panthers opened the home part of their schedule with a 92-58 win over in-state rival Norwich at Pepin Gymnasium over Thanksgiving break. The 92 points scored by Middlebury were the most scored by the team since 1998, and a strong defensive performance punctuated a Panther victory in which the victorious ladies never trailed. Maddie Moreau ’12 led the team with 17 points in the game, followed by Sanchez and Perfetti, who added 16 each, and Stephany Surrette ’12, who had 10 points to go along with her eight rebounds.
“We expect to win every game this season,” said Surrette. “We set the bar incredibly high in the off-season, and we can now see it paying off immensely.”
Middlebury followed the victory over Norwich with a 75-40 defeat over Johnson and Wales at home on Saturday night. After a slow start, Middlebury exploded on a 10-0 run halfway through the first period, sparked by five points from guard Katie Logan ’13 and four points from Perfetti, and led 24-12 with seven and a half minutes to play. The Panthers turned that advantage into a 33-23 halftime lead and never looked back, outscoring Johnson & Wales 26-5 over the last 10 minutes of play to complete the blowout victory. Sarah Marcus ’14 led the Panthers with 14 points against the Wildcats, highlighting four Middlebury players who finished in double-figures. Through the first four games of the season Sanchez leads all Panther scorers with 18.8 points per game, and also leads the team in assists. Sanchez is followed by Perfetti, who is averaging 11.3 points per game, and Surrette, who contributes 9.5 points per game and nine rebounds per game.
The Panthers’ hot start this year is in marked contrast to their 1-3 start from last year’s campaign. Additionally, Middlebury is scoring at a much higher clip to start this season than they were at any point last season, averaging nearly 78 points per game as a team, and are blowing out their opposition in a way that they rarely displayed last season.
“We’re not surprised by the 4-0 start, but I don’t think any of us expected to be scoring nearly 80 points a game and beating our opponents by upwards of 30 points sometimes,” said Sanchez, who cites the team’s work ethic and preseason training as the key contributor to the early-season success. “We trained and practiced harder than ever before –– we had 6:45 am team runs and drills that made us both physically and mentally better as a team. It’s great to see so much work and dedication starting to pay off.”
The Panthers will look to continue their hot start on Saturday, when they play at Union College.
