The Summer Preview 2024
Can’t-Miss Summer Events in Vermont; New Rules for Wake Boats; Three to Six Hours in Greensboro; At Frankie’s in Burlington, Hen of the Wood Alums Throw a Party; Vermont Author Glenn Stout Hits the Big Screen
Obituary: William G. Bonnie, 1940-2024
Former teacher and insurance broker enjoyed fine wine, classical music, good food and travel
Obituary: Mary Frances Chapman, 1960-2024
Middlebury woman was a strong advocate for those struggling with issues such as poverty and housing insecurity
Running to Raise Money for Opioid Recovery, Salisbury’s Chip Piper Completes 10 Marathons in 10 Days
Salisbury’s Chip Piper completed 10 marathons in 10 consecutive days on Saturday — and raised more than $13,000 for local nonprofits that help people recovering from substance use. Piper, 55, was the subject of a May 8 cover story in Seven Days. The profile detailed how grief over the loss of his stepson, Michael, to a…
Obituary: Marc Lawrence Jacobs, 1953-2024
Former co-owner of Charlie-O’s World Famous in Montpelier had a passion for salvaging old buildings
Obituary: Barry N. Stone, 1935-2024
Community leader and member of the Vermont Sports Hall of Fame embraced a lifelong connection to his alma mater, UVM, and dedicated himself to serving many local, state and national organizations
Obituary: Valere Roger Dion, 1935-2024
Navy veteran and passionate fiddler served the Burlington Fire Department for 30 years
Obituary: Virginia Giroux, 1931-2024
Devout church member and volunteer loved to travel, adored the color purple and always had an angel brooch on her shoulder
Obituary: David Welker Leitner, MD, 1948-2024
UVM surgeon was a skilled clinician and exemplary teacher who was dedicated to every aspect of his life
Obituary: C. Deem Schoenfeld, 1928-2024
Longtime physician at Rutland Hospital loved travel, golf, family gatherings and supporting independent bookstores
Obituary: Dr. Michelle Leigh Perron, 1968-2024
Pediatrician embodied how to live a life grounded in caring, compassion and love
Obituary: Marion Elizabeth (Provost) Blanchette, 1929-2024
South Burlington woman worked for 35 years for the Catholic Diocese of Vermont
Obituary: Mary E. (Fuller) Fitzgerald, 1929-2024
Burlington woman was a shining example of the difference one person can make in a family, a community and the world
Obituary: Eleanor Lynn Zinke, 1942-2024
Vergennes woman’s greatest pride was in her children and one of her greatest strengths was her capacity to help others
Obituary: Richard T. Mazza, 1939-2024
Lifelong Colchester resident and owner of Dick Mazza’s General Store served 41 years in the Vermont legislature with integrity and collegiality
Obituary: Olive Elizabeth Sedon, 2002-2024
Animal lover and natural athlete had a special compassion for people at the margins of life and people who suffered
Plex Arts Fest Brings Delight and Chaos to the Old North End
This Saturday night, May 25, Old North Enders in Burlington can see something lighting up the horizon. No, not the aurora borealis but an event that promises its own kind of spectacle: the Plex Arts Fest. Some 120 indie artists will present art, film, video, installation, music, performance and interdisciplinary works from about 5 p.m.…
Vermont Author Glenn Stout Hits the Big Screen With Disney’s ‘Young Woman and the Sea’
To write about Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle, who became the first woman to swim across the English Channel, in 1926, at the age of 20, Glenn Stout wanted to understand how it felt to be alone in the middle of a large body of water. “You want to occupy that headspace,” the Vermont author, editor and…
Indie Drama ‘I Saw the TV Glow’ Is a Mesmerizing Suburban Nightmare
The pandemic wasn’t good for indie film. With cinemas closed, many festival favorites jumped straight to streaming and languished in obscurity there. Among them was Jane Schoenbrun’s We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, which premiered at the all-virtual 2021 Sundance Film Festival. Schoenbrun’s follow-up, the equally creepy and hypnotic I Saw the TV Glow,…
Three to Six Hours in Greensboro, a Tranquil Haven
Greensboro, the southernmost town in Orleans County, lies just inside the boundaries of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. Long before that royal moniker was attached to the state’s three northeastern counties, a glacier lumbered through here and carved out Caspian Lake, a jewel in a bucolic setting that made Greensboro a magic kingdom. Ninety minutes — and…
For the First Time, Vermont City Marathon Will Offer a Cash Prize to Nonbinary Runners
In 2022, Kae Ravichandran was the first of 117 runners to cross the finish line at the Green Mountain Marathon in South Hero. She won by a wide margin, more than 13 minutes ahead of the second-place runner. But Ravichandran, who lives in Burlington, didn’t receive a prize for finishing first. The reason? She had…
Vermont Film & Folklore Festival Launches in Manchester
The Vermont Film & Folklore Festival, a new, four-day event celebrating the art of storytelling, begins on Thursday, May 23, in Manchester. Its lineup of 45 award-winning movies includes documentaries, shorts, and new and classic narrative features made in Vermont and around the world. The inaugural event is the brainchild of two film industry veterans…
Q&A: Five Generations of the Aubin Family Have Been Driving a Ford Model A Named Lizzie
The Aubins have lived in Lyndonville for seven generations, and their 1931 Ford Model A has been driven by their family for five. In the 1940s, Alphonse Aubin bought the car and named her Lizzie. Alphonse was a postal carrier in Lyndonville for two decades and used Lizzie to deliver the mail. Over the years,…
Now Playing in Theaters: May 22-28
new in theaters BABES: A single woman (Ilana Glazer) dealing with an unexpected pregnancy seeks help from her best friend (Michelle Buteau) in this comedy from Pamela Adlon. (104 min, R. Roxy) EVIL DOES NOT EXIST: A widower (Hitoshi Omika) and his daughter are dismayed when a glamping development threatens their small town in this…
Free Will Astrology (5/22/24)
GEMINI (May 21-Jun. 20): When I first got my job writing a horoscope column, I wasn’t looking for it. It found me. My bike had been stolen, and I was looking for a new one in the classified ads of Good Times, the local Santa Cruz newspaper. There I serendipitously spied a “Help Wanted” ad.…
Making a Splash: Jump Into the Summer Preview
The morning Seven Days published its annual Summer Preview last year, Vermont was walloped by a freak frost that wreaked havoc on fruit trees and crops — and frustrated gardeners who got cute and planted before Memorial Day. This year, the weather gods have been kinder, and the issue hits streets with summer in full…
Should I Be Worried My Wife Is Obsessed With True Crime?
Dear Reverend, My wife is obsessed with everything true crime. It started with some documentaries during the pandemic, but now she’s listening to podcasts, reading books and joining online groups. She has even mentioned wanting to go to a CrimeCon convention. It’s like she’s becoming a murder expert. I have no interest in the stuff…
On the Beat: POP Montreal Announces Lineup; New Music From Robber Robber, Miles of Fire and Ryan Sweezey
Summer is here, and so are the fests! As you’ll have noticed in this very issue, all sorts of events are coming to Vermont during our brief window of sunshine and warmth, from Grace Potter’s returning Grand Point North to the Maple Roots Festival to the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival. This week also features…
Soundbites: Merging Chopin and Busta Rhymes with BLKBOK
At the tender age of 4, Charles Wilson III began a lifelong relationship with music. His mother wanted to instill a sense of discipline in him and his sister, so she started them both on piano lessons. “I come from a long line of entertainers and artists on my mother’s side, so she knew I…
Can’t-Miss Summer Events in Vermont
Fourteen weeks separate Memorial Day and Labor Day, the unofficial start and end of summer, respectively. That sounds like a lot of time, but don’t be fooled: Summer will go by in a flash. It always does. Best, then, to take full advantage and pack your days with everything that makes summer in Vermont great:…
Ben Roque, ‘Mad Andalusia’
(Self-released, CD, digital) Ben Roque admits to an insatiable desire to roam. And by learning to harness his own curiosity and risk tolerance, he’s evolving as a musician, author and visual artist. On Mad Andalusia, the fifth album he’s recorded and released on his own, the Vermont native presents an alluring collection of original songs…
Letters to the Editor (5/22/24)
‘It Is Different Now’ Last week’s cover story [“Growing Pains,” May 15] captured what we farmers have been going through the past few years, day after day. Wow. For a brief time, based on a couple of back-to-back sunny growing seasons, I had the delusion that maybe Vermont could slide through the climate catastrophe that…
WiseAcres, ‘Anchor’
(Self-released, digital) Music writers might be thinning out more quickly than glaciers, but we do occasionally still congregate. Not so long ago at a music festival, a contemporary from another market asked me, “What’s going on with the jam bands these days?” I replied with a polite version of How the fuck should I know?…
For Wake Boat Opponents, New Vermont Rules Mean New Battles
Vermonters seeking to limit the use of powerful wake boats on the state’s lakes and ponds made it partway to their goal this year. A new rule limits where the motorized craft can be used for surfing, and it’s the most restrictive in the country. The Department of Environmental Conservation’s rule, which went into effect…
From the Publisher: ‘Bonjour,’ Summer
Technically, summer begins on the June solstice, still a month away. Try telling that to the vacationers who’ve already set up camp at Burlington’s North Beach — the place filled up overnight when it opened on May 15 — and the grass growing in my backyard. As I write these words, next to an open…
Youth Conservation Crews Head Out to Repair Damage From 2023 Floods
The crew had been building a set of stairs on a beach access trail in Groton State Forest for nearly two weeks. A 32-foot section of the pathway next to a small stream had washed away during last July’s flooding, and the six team members were installing wooden steps on the slope to restore the…
Lyndon Hopes a New Bike Route Will Help the Town Tap Into the Popularity of Kingdom Trails
For years, out-of-state visitors have stocked up on groceries and gas in Lyndon before moving on to spend their time and money in neighboring East Burke, a recreation hub in the Northeast Kingdom. Now, community boosters are working with the Kingdom Trails bicycle network to steer some of those visitors back, hoping a greater infusion…
Once Off-Limits, Burlington’s Rock Point Is Gradually Welcoming the Public
For all its stunning scenery, Burlington’s Rock Point seldom draws a crowd of visitors. It’s not advertising the fact that the public can glimpse the peninsula’s rare plants or hike the trails that wind around shoreline cliffs on Lake Champlain. The parking lot is intentionally small, forcing people to come early or trek in by…
A Seamstress Has Turned Her Burlington Porch Into a Revolving Art Show
A Burlington woman has turned the enclosed porch of her South End home into a revolving art gallery. Beth Kellc’s latest exhibit is an array of Barbie-size garments hanging on two miniature clotheslines: cuffed denim overalls, a sleeveless jumpsuit in a bright floral print, flannel pajamas, a linen apron and a flouncy summer dress like…
At Frankie’s in Burlington, Hen of the Wood Alums Throw a Party
There’s a celebratory energy bubbling in the Burlington food scene right now. After a tough few years, this spring and summer will usher in a wave of new restaurants, bringing the town Roman-style pizza, biscuits, Middle Eastern-inspired vegetarian fare, an oyster bar and small plates in a former car rental spot. Among the most anticipated…
Hardwick’s Caja Taqueria Spices It Up With Hot Sauce and Axe Throwing
For the past several years, chef-owner Bryan Palilonis has filled a niche in Hardwick for Mexican cuisine, first through his Caja Madera food truck and then his Caja Taqueria restaurant. He has now upped the ante by adding an unusual recreation opportunity. Palilonis, 46, opened Caja Taqueria last year in the former auto shop where…
The Tropic Brewing Opens in Waterbury
Just in time for summer, a beachy new brewery has joined Waterbury’s beer scene. On Friday, May 17, the Tropic Brewing opened its taproom at 40 Foundry Street for full pours, bar snacks and 12-ounce to-go cans of its sessionable lower-alcohol beers. Brothers Matt and Zack Gordon brainstormed the biz while on a trip to…
The Magnificent 7: Must See, Must Do, May 22-28
Page to Stage Friday 24-Sunday 26 The Parish Players present Deaf Republic, a one-weekend-only staged reading of Ilya Kaminsky’s acclaimed poem cycle of the same name, at Thetford’s Eclipse Grange Theatre. Featuring puppetry and set work by Ria Blaas and a cast packed with local talent, the production tells the allegorical story of a town…
Café Mamajuana’s Maria Lara-Bregatta Competes on Food Network’s ‘Ciao House’
Café Mamajuana chef-owner Maria Lara-Bregatta is one of 12 chefs competing on Season 2 of Food Network’s “Ciao House,” which premieres on Sunday, May 19, at 8 p.m. The culinary competition show — hosted and judged by Alex Guarnaschelli and Gabe Bertaccini — gathers the chefs in a villa in Puglia, Italy, where they “live…
