

Obituary: Jane Coyle McKay, 1923-2023
Seventh-generation Vermonter’s happiest moments were when she was surrounded by her family
Obituary: Diane Circe, 1931-2023
Matriarch taught the importance of loving, helping and taking care of family
Obituary: Jennifer Ann Kramer, 1954-2023
Montpelier woman helped conserve thousands of forested acres that are now permanently available to all Vermonters
Obituary: David Willson Fenn, 1933-2023
Sixteen-year Meals on Wheels volunteer was known for his big smile, humor and service to his community
Obituary: Glen Alan Wright, 1949-2023
Advocate and leader with a commitment to Vermont’s well-being left an indelible mark on the University of Vermont Medical Center
Obituary: Marianne Luckett Shaw Blanchard, 1928-2023
‘Island girl’ broke the mold of the 1950s mother, giving her daughters extraordinary adventures and larger-than-life memories
Vermont Lawmakers May Have to Meet Growing Problems With a Shrinking Budget in 2024
When Vermont lawmakers return to the Statehouse next month, they’ll face a growing list of intractable problems — rising crime, more frequent floods and an acute housing shortage — with less cash to tackle them. Federal pandemic dollars have dried up, leading to an anticipated 5.5 percent drop in the state general fund — the…
Records Show UVM Professors Questioned Decision to Nix Palestinian Writer’s Appearance
On October 21, just two weeks after the attacks on Israel by Hamas, the University of Vermont canceled a long-scheduled lecture by a prominent Palestinian poet and journalist, citing vague concerns about safety. Emails obtained by Seven Days through the open records law, as well as subsequent reporting, reveal there were no threats related to…
From the Publisher: Book Yearning
One of the occupational hazards — and a painful irony — of my job at Seven Days is that I don’t have time to read … books. I spend almost every waking hour working on this newspaper, except the ones I devote to daily exercise and the occasional social gathering. At the end of the…
Now Playing in Theaters: December 20-26
new in theaters Releasing 12/22 ANYONE BUT YOU: A fancy wedding gives two exes (Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell) an incentive to fake-date in this rom-com from Will Gluck (Easy A). (103 min, R. Essex, Majestic) AQUAMAN AND THE LOST KINGDOM: The DC superhero (Jason Momoa) fends off threats while planning his wedding in the…
Story Time: Southern Vermont Arts Center Highlights Two Children’s Book Illustrators
Children’s book illustrators belong to a special cadre of artists: Their pictures make stories come alive, giving shape to lifelong memories. But little listeners and readers might not realize those magical images are works of art, or think about the people who created them, until years later. In concurrent exhibitions, the Southern Vermont Arts Center…
Hancock’s Whiskey Tit Press Publishes Books No One Else Will
Whiskey Tit may sound more like the name of a dive bar than a serious publishing company — but don’t mistake the risqué label for a lack of literary gravitas. Based on owner Miette Gillette’s pig and goat farm in Hancock, the one-woman publishing company gives a home to books that mainstream publishers have rejected…
The Good Words: Turning the Page in the Reading Issue
Curling up with a good book in the dead of winter is one of life’s coziest small pleasures. That’s one reason Seven Days has traditionally run its Winter Reading Issue in late December. This year, we’ve rebranded it slightly as, simply, the Reading Issue, expanding our gaze to reading material that isn’t tied to the…
Soundbites: Ryan Power’s Sense of Wonder
Ryan Power first popped up in the Burlington music scene as a relatively straightforward singer-songwriter, opting for folk and breezy jazz with his 2002 self-titled debut album. He wasted little time in pushing further and further from shore, incorporating jazz, experimental, progressive rock and even shades of yacht rock in his ensuing releases — including…
Vermont-opoly Allows Players to Stake Their Claims to State Landmarks
The phrase “buy local” has a whole new meaning, thanks to a new Monopoly-like board game. Vermont-opoly allows players to purchase local companies Cabot Creamery ($90), Jay Peak Resort ($170) and Smugglers’ Notch ($190), as well as natural areas — which, arguably, should not be privately held. Lake Champlain sells for $290, the Green Mountain…
State of VermontSuperior Court Environmental DivisionDocket No. 23-ENV -00140In re. Hillview Heights LLC PreliminarySubdivision Approval
Notice of Appeal Now Come Neighbors Bradley Holt and Jason Pelletier of 1931 Hillview Road and David Kauck of 2212 Hillview Road (“Appellants”), by and through their counsel, MSK Attorneys, and hereby appeals, pursuant to 24 V.S.A. §4471 and 10 V.S.A. Ch. 220 to the Vermont Superior Court, Environmental Division, the Town of Richmond’s Development…
On the Beat: New Singles From Sarah King and Juicebox, and Philip David Stern Says Bah, Humbug
Ripton-based singer-songwriter Sarah King is gearing up to release her first full-length LP, When It All Goes Down, in 2024. Made with the help of a Creation Grant from the Vermont Arts Council, King recorded the album with producer David Baron (Noah Kahan, the Lumineers) in Nashville. The 2021 New England Music Awards Songwriter of…
Chronic Absenteeism in Schools Has Soared. Getting Students Back Takes Teamwork.
In spring 2021, administrators at Hunt Middle School in Burlington reached out to staff at the Sara Holbrook Community Center for help. A year into the pandemic, students were still learning remotely half of the days. Around 20 middle schoolers weren’t showing up for in-person or online classes at all. Hunt administrators wondered whether Sara…
Judge’s Decision to Release Restraint and Seclusion Forms Could Open Up More Educational Records to the Public
A Vermont judge has ordered a Rutland-area school district to release documents related to its use of restraint and seclusion of students. If upheld, the ruling could have broad implications for the types of school records that are available for public scrutiny. The Slate Valley Unified School District board voted last week to appeal the…
Bradley Cooper’s Leonard Bernstein Biopic ‘Maestro’ Explores the Complex Marriage Behind the Podium
Some viewers may be tempted to dismiss Bradley Cooper’s Maestro as a vanity project. It puts a giant spotlight on the actor-director-cowriter as he plays composer-conductor Leonard Bernstein, himself a larger-than-life celebrity. The film is already nominated for four Golden Globes and a slew of other awards, and it has that grandiose title. But don’t…
The Distant Snowy Mountain: a Short Story
The boy and the girl meet at the edge of the playground, away from the swings and slides, away from the shouting and giggling and screeching of their classmates. They meet where the grass is tall and green and the sky is big and blue and there are secrets everywhere — secret houses, secret patterns,…
State of Vermont Superior Court Probate Division Chittenden Unit Docket No.: 23-PR-03988
In re Estate of Thomas Trainer NOTICE TO CREDITORS To the creditors of: Thomas Trainer, late of South Burlington, Vermont Aileen C. Trainer has been appointed a personal representative of the above-named estate. All creditors having claims against the estate must present their claims in writing within four (4) months of the date of publication…
Page 32: Short Takes on Five Vermont Books
Seven Days writers can’t possibly read, much less review, all the books that arrive in a steady stream by post, email and, in one memorable case, a bouquet of pheasants. So this monthly feature is our way of introducing you to a handful of books by Vermont authors. To do that, we contextualize each book…
What Louise Glück Wanted ‘Was to Be Understood’
From a young age, Louise Glück (April 22, 1943-October 13, 2023 ) aspired to be a great poet — but not in the sense of becoming a household name during her lifetime, which she viewed, with characteristic asperity, as a form of failure. “When I’m told I have a large readership, I think, Oh great,…
Town of Swanton
Request for Proposals (RFP) for Grant Writing Services Overview The Town of Swanton is accepting proposals for grant writing services for the proposed multi-generational community center project. Scope of Work The contracted work is to include grant research and proposals/applications for grants relevant to building and operating a multi-generational community center and also possible future…
Free Will Astrology (12/20/23)
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In my fairy tale about your year ahead, I see you searching for treasure. It’s not a wild and wandering exploration but a diligent, disciplined quest. You are well organized about it, carefully gathering research and asking incisive questions. You ruminate on the possibilities with both your logical and intuitive faculties.…
How Can I Get in Touch With My Inner Santa?
Dear Reverend, I love getting gifts for my friends and family when something jumps out at me that’s perfect for them, but I hate feeling obligated to buy Christmas presents. I spend too much time thinking about what to get, and I wind up panic-buying stuff that doesn’t seem particularly meaningful. How can I get…
Letters to the Editor (12/20/23)
Squier ‘Distinguished Himself’ [Re “Ken Squier, a Legend of Vermont and NASCAR, Dies at 88,” November 16, online]: Ken Squier was the lone broadcaster-journalist who personally approached me after a panel discussion on the merits of featuring controversial content. In that conversation, Squier committed himself and WDEV to carrying “Democracy Now!,” the independently produced news…
In ‘The Glass Château,’ Stephen Kiernan Crafts a Tale of National and Personal Renewal in Postwar France
Glass is ubiquitous in our lives — in our homes, cars and electronic devices — though it’s usually something we look through rather than gaze at in its own right. As a building material it can last for centuries, allowing in sunlight while repelling the elements, then shatter instantly if struck with enough force by…
Photographer Carolyn Bates Fills a Trio of Books With Images of Burlington Murals
Burlington residents pass murals daily: the yellow snakeskin-like design on the façade of Old Gold on Cherry Street; the wind-whipped sailing scene on the Lyman Building at Perkins Pier; the Buddha face on Burlington Electric Department’s storage building on Pine Street. These are only a few of the public artworks visible on walls all over…
Three Somali Vermonters Tell Their Stories in ‘Deep North’
Mohammed Abdulaziz hadn’t heard his mother’s most traumatic stories about fleeing Somalia until she began recounting them in a series of interviews for a book. Then in his mid-twenties, he served as her translator. “I was definitely shocked,” he said in an interview last week. His mother, Fardusa A. Abdo, was among hundreds of thousands…
Q&A: Howard Fisher Delivers Meals on Wheels With a Side of Good Cheer
Howard Fisher was a pilot in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, but these days he volunteers — on the ground. The 81-year-old South Burlington resident spends Tuesday mornings dropping off Meals on Wheels — he’s one of more than 800 Age Well volunteers who hand-deliver upwards of 271,000 meals every year to older…
Fimnur, ‘Snowbound’
(Self-released, digital) It was a vibrantly green, beautiful summer day when I moved back to Vermont as an adult, with flowers in bloom and long, sunlit days ahead. My father, a Massachusetts native, had sent me north with a list of tactics for surviving the oncoming brutal Vermont winter: Take up skiing, get a vitamin…
Danny & the Parts, ‘Dancing on the Radio’
(Self-released, digital) Danny & the Parts are an aptly named crew. The band’s rotating cast of supporting musicians revolves around the singing and songwriting of guitarist Danny LeFrancois, a busy player on the Burlington music scene for years now. The group exists squarely in the Americana zone, but some (welcome) curveballs are always in the…
Lucas Farrell of Big Picture Farm on Poetry, Caramel and Beloved Animals
Lucas Farrell’s work takes two main forms: written and caramel. He oscillates between those mediums, following the rhythms of the year on Big Picture Farm in Townshend, which he owns and operates with his wife, artist Louisa Conrad. Poetry and caramels aren’t so different, suggested Farrell, 42, in an email. “They share a process of…
What My Skillet Teaches Me About Transformation
Each evening my skillet proposes something new to toss, and simmer in its flat bottom boat with maximum sizzle. Adaptability is its creed. Call it a frying pan if you must, my skillet is versatile. It instructs just below the boiling point; nothing sticks to it. It sings as the sun sets on cherry tomatoes…
Slice of Morning
I’m waking to a sky dark as chocolate ganache swirled by the great baker, her sparkly spatula, her flourish of icing, between bright coconut- fluff layers of snow days she’s stacked up one by one, yesterday then today, and soon I remember the slice of cake sent home after last night’s party and I’m up…
New Owners for 3 Squares Café in Vergennes
Vergennes breakfast and lunch spot 3 Squares Café is about to have its 17th birthday. In January, it will also have new owners for the first time in its history. Rep. Matt Birong (D-Vergennes) and his wife, Danelle, will sell the brick-and-mortar part of the biz to Scott Collins and Jody Hayes. The Birongs will…
The Archives Arcade Bar Closes Winooski Location
The Archives arcade bar has shuttered its Winooski location after about two years in business, leaving only its Burlington location on College Street. Sunday was the last day of service at the bar at 45 Main Street, where customers could sip craft beers and cocktails alongside games of pinball and Donkey Kong. The Archives opened…
The Magnificent 7: Must See, Must Do, December 20-26
Songs of the Season Thursday 21 Legendary singer-songwriter Judy Collins brings her “Holidays & Hits” show to Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center at Stowe Mountain Resort. Beloved songs from a 50-year career span Collins’ idealist, activist 1960s through her latest release, Spellbound, which revisits the Colorado wilds and Greenwich Village scene of her youth. Back…






