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(04/11/19 10:36am)
MIDDLEBURY - Bundle, a new organization recently installed at 60 Main St., hopes to bring the community together to revitalize the downtown area through pop-up stores, workshops and galleries.
Karen Duguay, Executive Director of the Better Middlebury Partnership (BMP), said that the space could bring an “infusion of energy” into Middlebury. Her hope is that the space will draw people downtown to meet their neighbors, learn new skills and check out the stores and restaurants in order to promote business in town.
The idea was the brainchild of Neighbors, Together, an action group comprised of stakeholders ranging from Middlebury College to Porter Hospital, who hope to mitigate the effects of the downtown construction. The BMP is the fiscal agent behind the new project. Kelly Hickey, a local artisan who created Edie and Glo, a handmade vintage clothing business, has been hired to manage the space.
"I prefer a more urban environment, and so I really wanted to create a feel for the two - a small community feel but with stuff going on downtown," said Hickey. She described Bundle and the space as “an intersection of experience and shopping” that merges urban and small town living.
Events in April include the ReBag workshops, in which community members have the opportunity to make reusable bags in order to cut down on the use of plastic ones. The workshop ran on April 6 and is also scheduled for April 27 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“It's crafts as a form of activism," said Nancy, a community member involved with the organization.
“I just love to sew, and so this is a great way to sew and do things for others at the same time,” added Mary Beth, another participant.
Other future events will include a secondhand clothes pop-up shop, which will coincide with the Middlebury Maple Run on May 5. The market will include vendors from Pittsfield to Burlington, and will include jewelry and health oils as well.
“Local high schoolers don’t often purchase from second hand stores because they don’t like to wear other people’s clothing,” said Hickey, who thinks that bringing in retailers from other areas will mitigate this problem.
Bundle will also be involved in “Spring into the Arts” around Memorial Day, in which Bundle will showcase art from the Patricia A. Hannaford Career Center, Middlebury Union Middle School and Middlebury Union High School. The hope is that local artists will come in and collaborate with students on their work so that each group can learn from each other.
"It's a time when the youth can learn from the community member and the community member can learn from the youth,” Hickney said.
The calendar will also feature swing dance workshops, a fiddle group, collaborations with the farmer’s market and an African basket-weaving workshop led by residents from Shelburne. Both Duguay and Hickey emphasized that the space is meant to be part of a collaboration, not a competition.
The space at 60 Main St. was formerly occupied by Clay’s, a women’s clothing store that closed in June of 2018. Bundle rents the space on the condition that no other retailer wants to rent it, meaning that if a retailer wanted to open a new store, Bundle would move out after a 90-day grace period. "If anyone wants the space permanently we will step back...we can take it to a different space," Duguay explained. Hickey added that 51 Main St. and the space once occupied by the general store Ben Franklin could be additional options for Bundle.
Bundle and the Neighbors, Together organization were created to tackle the impacts of construction work downtown. “Retail is declining nationwide,” said Duguay, claiming that Middlebury’s retail is “facing challenges never seen before.” Next summer is supposed to be the heaviest period of construction, and retailers are “nervous about future,” Duguay said.
When asked about feedback, Hickey said, “people love the space, love the idea, but hate the parking,” but also added that the lack of parking is part of the idea of Bundle. The hope is that visitors, especially from hotels and Airbnbs on the outskirts of town, will be drawn in by events at Bundle, have to park outside of town and then be forced to walk through downtown, interacting with stores, restaurants and the movie theatre.
Hickey and Duguay wish to include college students as much as possible in the process. “We want college students to feel an ownership of the downtown space,” said Duguay, “and we need to encourage people to value community over cost and convenience.”
“We just need to bundle everyone together,” finished Hickey.
If any college student is interested for working for Better Middlebury Partnership or has any other ideas about how to mitigate the effects of Downtown Construction, contact Karen Duguay at karen@bettermiddleburypartnership.org.
If any student is interested in hosting a workshop or pop-up at Bundle or wants to know more about events, contact Kelly Hickey at sydzea@yahoo.com.
(03/07/19 11:34am)
Every Thursday night across Vermont, volunteers deliver hundreds of meals to hospice patients and their caregivers with Dinners with Love, a Brandon-based non-profit organization.
Dinners with Love has a simple model that can be easily replicated. Patients and their families order food from local restaurants through the organization. Then, on Thursday nights, volunteers are given necessary directions and instructions to pick up and deliver the meals. Some locations also operate through hospice workers, and they often offer additional care and comfort for families.
Most volunteers spend up to an hour with the recipients, talking and laughing with them. “I like to tell jokes, liven things up a little bit,” said Frank Finnerty, a volunteer and member of the Board of Directors. “It’s kind of fun— bringing people meals and talking to them, finding out about their lives and being part of their last days.”
“I just love doing something nice for people in this world,” echoed Susie Leonard, a longtime volunteer.
Dinners with Love was founded by Sheri Sullivan in 2009. Sullivan, former owner of Sheri’s Diner and Plan-It Sheri Catering in Brandon, began her hospice career in 2002 doing what she loved — cooking for families and eventually their patients. As she completed her training and sat with patients in the last moments of their lives, she began brainstorming a model of bringing meals from restaurants to patients in hospice care and their families. Her friends were so enthusiastic about the idea that they helped her come up with the means to begin Dinners with Love almost immediately. After reaching out to restaurants in Brandon such as Café Provence and Cattails Restaurant, Dinners with Love was launched shortly after. The project became a 501(c) organization in 2010.
The organization emphasizes that meals offer an opportunity to spend time surrounded by loved ones in the last moments of one’s life. For families, it offers a respite from worrying about preparing meals, and it allows for patients to return to their “foodie,” restaurant-attending days. For some couples in the program, it acts as a date night; recipients dress in their best clothes, lay out tablecloths and light candles.
“It means something different for everyone,” Executive Director Sarah Audet explained, “in the same way that the end of life means something different for everyone.”
Audet has worked as the Executive Director for Dinners with Love since 2017 and manages the intricacies of running the nonprofit. When a close family member passed away in the spring of 2017, Audet remembers family members gathering after work for the week preceding his death and sharing meals together.
“(I realized) how important it is to bring families together and how important it is to have the support of the community as well,” Audet said. It was this period in her life that drew her to Dinners with Love. “Any time I have an opportunity to connect directly with the families in our program,” Audet added, “that’s when I know I’m exactly where I need to be.”
Others also spoke of the importance of food as a way of connecting with family and friends. “You remember a dish you have at a restaurant because of that moment,” said Dave Laferriere-Hall, chef and owner of Coriander on Washington Street in Middlebury. The restaurant’s Creative Director and Co-owner Jennifer Sabourin agreed.
“I knew right away that I wanted to do Dinners with Love,” she said, citing memories of large family dinners at holidays that brought everyone together.
Caroline Costello, of Costello’s Market in Marbleworks, also talked of large family dinners on trips back to Italy. Coriander and Costello’s have opened their entire menus to Dinners with Love.
Those involved in Dinners with Love spoke of the generosity of the Middlebury community and other towns in Vermont. “I always knew that Middlebury was a very special place,” Audet said, referring to the volunteers, hospice workers and restaurants involved in the program. Sabourin echoed the sentiment, saying Coriander is “going to keep on doing what we’re doing because we love it, serving great food to a community that we’re so fond of.”
The organization involved even more of the Middlebury community through their Dinners with Extra Love initiative, currently in its second year. Inspired by cards that are sent with packages to soldiers, this initiative allows for members of the community to write anonymous Valentine’s Day cards to patients and their families.
Audet emphasized the “poetic connection” that Valentine’s Day offers in terms of love and companionship and talked of the joy that it brought to patients and families.
She also spoke of plans to further expand the program. In five years, Audet believes Dinners with Love will be able to serve every hospice center in Vermont; in ten, she hopes to establish a program in “every state in the union,” emphasizing that the program is easy to replicate. “I just want to be serving everyone right now,” she said, admitting that expansion is the most challenging aspect of her job.
Audet, a graduate of Middlebury College, also offered insight for students who may want to work for nonprofits in the future. She believes that a liberal arts education offers the best preparation for nonprofits, since it allows students to explore a variety of interests and determine what they’re passionate about. Nonprofits allow for employees to use skills such as effective leadership, communication and problem solving, offering daily chances to be strategic. Audet also explained that there are two ways for college students to volunteer: either as a meal delivery driver or by being involved in restaurant outreach.
When Audet was asked how working with the organization has changed her, she paused. “It gives me a greater appreciation for living life more in the present,” she said, pointing out that it taught her to cherish times with friends and family. “There’s no way to put a finer point on how short life can be than to spend time in the hospice realm.”
Finnerty also expressed the reality about working with hospice patients. “It’s nothing like you think it is. It’s just people. They’re sick, but they’re carrying on their life like they always have,” Finnerty said. “They’re just people, just at a different stage than other people.”
However, Audet celebrates life every day with her work. “Hospice care is as much about living as it is about dying,” she said with a smile, “and knowing that someone is well supported at the end of their life ameliorates that sadness.”
(01/17/19 10:59am)
MIDDLEBURY - The Middlebury Farmers’ Market (MFM), currently located at the Middlebury Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7823 at 530 Exchange St., hopes to continue to attract shoppers despite road work and location changes.
The market resided at the Marble Works Shopping Complex for 10 years before moving to its current home in 2017 due to concerns about the preservation of newly greenscaped areas next to Otter Creek. While the farmers’ market is not actively looking for a new location, Hannah Sessions, owner of Blue Ridge Farms and an MFM board member, believes that this location could provide optimal conditions for the market. She told The Campus that Marble Works “is a wonderful location for a market, as it met all of our requirements and was walkable to downtown and the college.”
And yet, Sessions acknowledged that the Exchange Street location has been suitable because of its parking spaces, access to bathrooms and convenience for vendors and shoppers. A new sidewalk for the lot is to be completed in 2019, and the farmers’ market is looking into coordinating a shuttle to the location. The use of an indoor space in the same area allows the farmers’ market to open on most Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. from December to April.
[pullquote speaker="HANNAH SESSIONS" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]The thing about farmers’ markets that I feel passionate about is that they truly are small-business incubators.[/pullquote]
Despite the use of an indoor market, vendor participation has been declining, mainly due to competition from cooperatives and the Community-Supported Agriculture system in Vermont. This could prompt a move in the future. In the meantime, the farmers’ market in Middlebury has several plans to try to combat this decline, including keeping table fees affordable and working on successful promotion of the market. Sessions also explained that they are considering amending their “brick-and-mortar rule,” which discourages businesses with retail locations from selling at the market. There is also a discount rate for businesses who sell at every market, and using shorter hours than other markets allows for vendors to have the afternoon free.
“It was fun all summer to hear the various languages from the Language Schools,” Sessions explained, “and in the fall we saw a lot of students and families filter through.”
She also noted that in the Marble Works location, the tents were easily visible from the Main Street Bridge and were accessible from the Frog Hollow Mill area. Using a grant from the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont, the farmers’ market conducted a survey and found that many vendors who commented on location preferred a spot downtown.
Several locations may be considered in the future, including Triangle Park, College Park (across from Shafer’s), and the area outside of Twilight Hall. When asked about College Park, Vice President for Communications Bill Burger said that the college was open to talks about using the space, but claimed that “the park presents certain challenges as a location” and that “the community should find a location that best meets the needs of the market, the vendors and the community members who shop there.”
Sessions listed criteria for a potential location that must be taken into account, including “flat, ample space for our vendors (each needing a 10’ x 10’ space, a few larger vendors 10’ x 20’)” and “flat and walkable space for our customers (15’ minimum walking aisle).” Other considerations include space for parking, electricity access for a band and for vendors, and the ability for certain vendors to work out of their vehicles. Several proposed locations may struggle to meet these requirements. The town of Middlebury is working on a renovation of Triangle Park that may include features making it more conducive to the farmers’ market.
Sessions emphasized the importance of a farmers’ market to the town of Middlebury. Currently, MFM has over 50 vendors and meets on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the summer in addition to their winter market. Products include vegetables, meats, flowers and dairy products, in addition to jewelry, artwork and other crafts.
“The thing about farmers’ markets that I feel passionate about is that they truly are small-business incubators,” Sessions said. Farmers’ markets provide valuable business experiences, jump-starting initial revenue streams. This retail and cash flow makes it easier for fledgling businesses to apply for loans, allowing local businesses to grow.
Middlebury student Hannah Gellert ’21 echoed Sessions’ statement, claiming that “farmers’ markets are great for supporting local communities” and are “an integral part of bolstering local food production.” When asked if Gellert would attend the market more often if it was in a downtown location, she said, “Yes, one hundred percent. It is the main reason why I don’t visit it every time.”
(11/29/18 10:57am)
Seven women have filed a class action lawsuit alleging that Dartmouth College allowed sexual misconduct by three former professors to continue for over a decade. The $70 million lawsuit, filed in the state on New Hampshire on Nov. 15, involved actions by professors Todd Heatherton, William Kelley and Paul Whalen in Dartmouth’s Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. The plaintiffs argue that professors perpetrated a culture that resembled a “21st Century Animal House.”
Professors are accused of inviting students to late-night hot tub parties at private residences, holding lab meetings at bars and encouraging an atmosphere of heavy drinking. These actions were accompanied by numerous allegations of sexual advances by the three professors towards graduate students who depended upon the professors’ academic support.
[pullquote speaker="ROGER DAI '20" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]I don’t know if the administration buried the accusations, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they did. And that’s deeply troubling.[/pullquote]
According to The Washington Post, Kristina Rapuano, one of the plaintiffs, claims that Whalen sent her a text message one night telling her to come back to his office. Once she arrived, he allegedly turned off the lights and began touching her.
Plaintiffs argue that this was an open secret in the college, in the town of Hanover, and at conferences, and that these three professors had an established reputation as predators. Dartmouth officials released a statement saying they “applaud the courage” displayed by the women who came forward, but asserting that the college disagrees “with the characterizations of Dartmouth’s actions in the complaint”
Middlebury’s current sexual assault policy claims that the college “will take reasonable, prompt and appropriate action” in the event of sexual misconduct. This sexual misconduct is defined as “sexual assault, domestic and dating violence and misconduct, stalking and related retaliation.” Discipline for employees, based on the severity of the actions, includes “discipline for employees such as written reprimands, salary freezes (faculty) or termination of employment.” A criminal investigation may be opened at the complainant’s discretion.
Dartmouth claims adherence to a similar policy, and writes that they are “committed to the safety and wellbeing of every member of our community.” However, the alleged disregard of sexual assault claims on Dartmouth’s campus would speak otherwise.
“I don’t know if the administration buried the accusations, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they did. And that’s deeply troubling,” said Roger Dai ’20, a Middlebury student currently spending a year at Dartmouth.
At the annual Cognitive Neuroscience Society conference in March 2015, Rapuano claims that Kelley raped her after a night of drinking, the New York Times reported. The morning after, Kelley told Rapuano that they had had sex two times, after which Rapuano began panicking. Rapuano has no recollection of leaving the bar.
Rapuano, among others, attempted to gain distance from Kelley by engaging in a fellowship overseas. She says that Kelley started punishing her academically for refusing his advances. Annemarie Brown also claims that Kelley reacted in the same way regarding her advising. Andrea Courtney similarly recounts that Whalen abandoned advising her after she tried to distance herself from him.
The first complaint against one of the three professors, Heatherton, was filed in 2002. The lawsuit alleges that the college has continued to ignore complaints for almost sixteen years.
A months-long Title IX investigation began in 2017 after several complaints were lodged against the professors. Dartmouth allegedly told women who launched complaints to continue to work for the professors for the next four months, warning the women that academic retaliation may result from refusing the professors. In that time, graduate student Vassiki Chaahan, a plaintiff, was sexually assaulted.
In October 2018, a criminal investigation was opened by the New Hampshire Attorney General and is still ongoing.
As the Title IX investigation progressed, Dartmouth instigated the rarely-used process required to fire tenured professors. Before this was put into effect, however, Whalen and Kelley resigned, and Heatherton retired. The three professors are now banned from Dartmouth’s campus and any Dartmouth-sponsored events, and cannot be rehired by the university.
Heatherton’s attorney has denied involvement in the scandal, claiming that the plaintiffs were not his students and were only involved with the other two professors. Heatherton did not participate in any of the parties and did not drink with underage students, he claims, and Heatherton’s lab meetings did not involve alcohol.
The New York Times reported that Sasha Brietzke, one of the plaintiffs, claims that Heatherton pulled her onto his lap at a conference in March 2017 during a karaoke night and asked her about her plans for the night. Brietzke immediately left the establishment in shock.
Heatherton publicly apologized for touching a graduate student while intoxicated in 2017, claiming that the act was not sexual. He also maintains that any hiring for labs was done by a female assistant, focusing on skills and experience instead of appearance.
(11/15/18 11:00am)
The controversial mural titled “Everyone Loves a Parade” on Church Street Marketplace in Burlington was vandalized for the second time in two weeks on Thursday, Nov. 1. The 124-foot long mural located on the main pedestrian thoroughfare, which focuses on portraying Burlington throughout its history, has been criticized for excluding the histories of the Abenaki and people of color.
The vandalism involved defacing the faces on the left side of the mural with chemical solvent and then spray-painting pink dollar signs onto the mural in what is believed to be an act of political protest. The damaged portion of the mural is currently covered in blue tarp. Jon Murad, chief deputy of operations for the Burlington police department, told The Campus that while the department has “unidentified persons of interest,” they have “not identified any suspects at this time.”
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger immediately condemned the act of vandalism, stating in a press release that the “vandal(s) has disrespected those engaged community members and the democratic rule of law.” Murad echoed the mayor’s statement, saying that “the suspect or suspects also unilaterally set themselves above the community, and arrogated to themselves the decisions that belonged to the community.”
A task force designated to determine a course of action in regards to the mural voted on Oct. 15 to have the mural removed by August 2022. This date allows the city to comply with its agreement with the artist and the businesses that funded its creation. A plaque is to be added explaining that the mural does not represent the entirety of Burlington history. The recent vandalism incident has not impacted the decided date of removal of the mural.
An incident had occurred previously on Oct. 19 in which the word “colonizers” was sprayed above the mural. The spray paint used in this incident was easier to remove than the most recent vandalism as it was located above the main images depicted in the mural. Police have reason to believe that the two incidents are related.
In October of 2017, activist Albert Petrarca spray-painted “Off the Wall” on the plaque accompanying the mural. Petrarca and his Off-the-Wall coalition have been the most vocal advocates of removing the mural, claiming that the recent decision of the task force promotes white supremacy. Albert Petrarca was charged with unlawful mischief in January. He did not respond to a request for comment.
[pullquote speaker="OLIVIA JIN" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]There are ways to protest yet maintain respect of legal authority.[/pullquote]
The mural was designed by Montreal-based artist Pierre Hardy and uses a technique called trompe-l’oeil, in which figures appear three-dimensional and to scale with their surroundings. The mural commemorates the 400th anniversary of the “discovery” of Lake Champlain by Samuel de Champlain. It features a portrayal of Lake Champlain history through important figures and businesses in Burlington, from Bernie Sanders to Sweetwater’s American Bistro to Ethan Allen.
The mural, according to critics, does not accurately include the role of Native Americans, especially the Abenaki tribe, in the history of Lake Champlain and Burlington. In response to a reply-all email from Patrarca to councilors and media, Chief of the Abenaki tribe Don Stevens condemned the protests as “counterproductive.” In May, the Abenaki Alliance and the mayor announced a partnership to promote Abenaki history in lieu of participating in the task force concerning the mural. Such a partnership may potentially result in displays of Abenaki artifacts in Burlington airport and at a summer festival on Church Street.
Olivia Jin ’20, president of Middlebury College’s Amnesty International club, expressed concern for the exclusion of Native Americans from historical narratives.
“The removal of Native Americans from U.S. history is a nationwide problem, and the exclusion of the Abenaki tribe in the portrayal of the Lake Champlain history is problematic,” Jin said. “Native Americans have been, and still are, vulnerable to human rights violence in the U.S., and as a human rights group, we stand by Native Americans and support the movement to change the narrative.”
The controversy surrounding the “Everyone Loves a Parade” mural invokes questions regarding the proper form of action in protest of selective histories and racism, reflecting national discussions concerning the removal of monuments and artwork that people believe promote racism. Burlington serves as an example of a city struggling to reconcile an accurate portrayal of history with artworks already in place.
Responding to questions about appropriate forms of protest, Jin said, “I personally think there are ways to protest yet maintain respect of legal authority.” She acknowledged that “the impacts of these actions are slow to see,” which can lead some to “question the extent to which these methods are effective and choose other forms of protests.”
The authorities in Burlington have made clear that this crime will be taken seriously regardless of its motive. The mural and the actions surrounding it have generated public discussion of diversity, inclusion and protest in the city of Burlington. Weinberger claimed in his press release that “when arrests are made we will seek full prosecution of the perpetrators.” Regardless of the outcome of the case or the motivations of the crime, Murad told The Campus that the police department is “taking the crime very seriously.”