‘Better Than Just Words’

[Re “Colchester Cornucopia,” July 8]: I am a 76-year-old native Vermonter and remember my parents bringing us to the vegetable stands run by the Lomartire and Brigante families. My grandparents always talked about them, too. I was in my late fifties and shopped at Dean Brigante’s exclusively because I saw him working hard all the time. After a diving accident, I started shopping at Paul Mazza’s because I could not walk. Kaity Mazza is my special helper at the location on River Road in Essex, and the produce is the best. I have high regard for those who work hard physically and have the mental toughness to keep a business going.

Thank you for the wonderful cartoon article. So much better than just words.

Nix ‘Modern World’

Congratulations on leaving out “This Modern World” from your Cartoon Issue [July 8]. Let’s hope the omission is permanent, as over the past several months it has not been funny. The Orange Clown is real and not humorous!

Props for Safe Recovery

[“Vermont CARES Will Take Over Needle-Exchange Program in Burlington,” June 25] said very little about the Howard Center Safe Recovery program itself, except to repeat the narrative that it “faced complaints from neighbors about drawing people with substance-use disorder to its Clarke Street office for years.” This follows several cranky letters to the editor, including one that asked, “Where are the voices of the residents affected by the center?” [Feedback, March 12, 2025].

Safe Recovery’s office has now shuttered. As a neighborhood resident and parent who lives near the program office, I’d like to offer my gratitude for Safe Recovery and what it provided for the neighborhood.

The staff at Safe Recovery spent years offering lifesaving harm-reduction services as well as access to treatment, education, safe and sterile supplies, counseling, peer support, vaccinations, and legal support. They offered these services without undue barriers or coercive agreements, undoubtedly reducing the number of overdose deaths in Burlington. The presence of these services and the level of care, compassion and good humor shown by the staff made the neighborhood safer for all of us.

Thank you to Safe Recovery for the countless lives you’ve quietly saved while the press debates whether human survival is worth as much as the quarterly financials of a Church Street storefront. Thank you for keeping needles off my kids’ playgrounds, for keeping my neighbors alive, and for providing a place where you consistently reminded people that they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.

‘Refreshing’ Review

Having perused the often hyperbolic carping about the Supergirl film, I found it refreshing indeed to read Margot Harrison’s discerning observations about the DC Studios movie [Movie Review,” July 1].

Milly Alcock deserves kudos aplenty for her interpretation of the title character as a funky but deceptively empathetic figure (especially in contrast to the recent depiction in a TV series and even more so in opposition to that of her cousin Superman in his recent reinvention as a muscle-bound Boy Scout).

Given the paltry box-office performance of the stand-alone Supergirl, the plucky Australian actress may not get to reprise her role in full, but perhaps she might have another shot at it in a cameo during the forthcoming cinema epic Man of Tomorrow: She could be shown modifying her suit into something more representative of her unselfconscious, down-to-earth persona.

Pro Turf

[Re “School Board Backs CVU Artificial Turf Field Project,” July 1, online]: Champlain Valley Union High School is the pinnacle of high school sports in Vermont, but its facilities have never matched that reputation. I transferred to CVU for its athletics and was underwhelmed from day one. We held lacrosse practice in the parking lot. Our soccer team played playoff “home” games at South Burlington because our field was too wet. It was never a field we could rely on.

I went on to play Division I soccer at the University of Vermont, and I can tell you that the current field doesn’t prepare CVU athletes for the next level, either. Nearly every college program in the Northeast plays on turf. It’s not just about staying dry. Turf gives you a level, predictable surface, and athletes who spend half the season on rutted, waterlogged grass are learning a different game than the one they’ll play in college.

Last week the school board voted 8-3 to move forward with the Community Field Project, a field funded entirely by private donations at no new cost to taxpayers. Opponents have raised environmental questions, which the district commissioned a study to address, and the project still faces town review. That process should play out. But this debate has gone on for two decades. Meanwhile, athletes have been practicing in parking lots the whole time. I hope this one finally crosses the finish line.

CVU athletes give championship-level effort, and the community deserves a field to match.

Why Not Recycle Tires?

As I read [“The Dump Next Door: Vermont Is Littered With Junk-Strewn Properties. Neighbors Seethe as Cleanups Drag on for Years,” July 1], one thing popped out: tires. So many tires. I’ve seen it with my own eyes, as well. We just generate so many used tires. It made me think: Why not have a redemption program, like we do for lead-acid batteries?

A deposit could be added to the price of tires, which would then be used to buy them back and recycle them once they are worn out. To avoid cross-state issues, Vermont mechanics and tire shops would be required to participate, and customers would only get the deposit back when they switched out their tires at one of these shops.

Forget Fireworks. Try Fireflies!

[Re “Less Bang for the Buck: Some Vermont Towns Can’t Afford the Skyrocketing Cost of Fourth of July Fireworks,” June 24]: As communities grapple with the rising cost of fireworks displays, it’s worth remembering that nature offers its own spectacular light show, completely free.

Find a meadow or field with tall grass, head out around 9 p.m., and watch the fireflies put on their nightly performance. Unlike traditional fireworks, these displays come with quiet, allowing friends and families to enjoy conversation while taking in the show. If you still miss the booming soundtrack, you can always play a recording of fireworks while watching fireflies illuminate the darkness with their tiny lanterns.

Look closely, and you’ll discover that not all fireflies flash alike. Each species has its own distinctive flash pattern and timing. Their lights also vary in color, from pale yellow and amber to yellow-green, bright yellow-green, orange and even bright green.

The best part? Nature’s fireworks don’t last for just one evening. You can enjoy them on July 3, 4, 5, 6 and many warm summer nights beyond.

Vermont is home to approximately 15 known species of fireflies. Learn more about them at vtbugeyed.blogspot.com/2026/06/firefly-night-event-farm-upstream-150.html.

As we celebrate our nation’s independence, perhaps we can also celebrate the remarkable natural world around us. Instead of marveling only at displays inspired by the sounds and flashes of war, take time to be awed by one of summer’s gentlest wonders.

Observing insects may just become the new birding.

George v. Kranichfeld

Voters are paying close attention to the race for Chittenden County state’s attorney. Incumbent Sarah George is being challenged by a former colleague, Franklin County State’s Attorney Bram Kranichfeld, in what many view as a referendum on law enforcement in the Burlington area. Our July 1 cover story, headlined “Pleading Their Case,” generated a lot of feedback, with more to come next week.

George Is Tough on Crime

The article marking Sarah George as one of the most progressive prosecutors in the country fails to mention that she, by any standard in Vermont, has prosecuted more murders and serious crimes than any prosecutor before. She has chosen to put the resources into serious crimes.

I have had the privilege of working in Sarah’s office as a lawyer, volunteer-training her child protection staff, and have seen how Sarah manages her office. I spent over a year in her office and, in my interactions with her, always came away in awe of her terrific ability to train and support her staff. She is upbeat at times when serious matters with horrible human consequences could put a gloom and doom on any prosecutor’s office.

It is disingenuous to criticize her for not requiring cash bail and not more aggressively pursuing nonviolent crimes. Incarcerating these people would only be for a short period of time and, when they are then released, would leave them less able to address the problems that led them to commit their crime in the first place — and more likely to commit more crimes.

Measuring Bias

After reading the article on the Chittenden County state’s attorney contest, I wondered if there was a bias toward one candidate in the story, so I applied a tool learned in a college election analysis course many years ago.

While subjective, it is simple: Each mention of a candidate is assigned a score of -1 if it seems to cast a candidate unfavorably, 0 if it is neutral and +1 if favorable.

The results of my analysis: Sarah George received 101 mentions; 10 were negative, 51 neutral and 40 positive, resulting in a +30 rating.

Bram Kranichfeld received 57 mentions; 11 were negative, 23 neutral and 23 positive, resulting in a +12 rating.

As George’s performance is the key campaign issue, the gap in mentions would be expected. Readers can draw their own conclusion regarding the difference in +/- ratios.

Kranichfeld Can Do the Job

Sarah George says the biggest myth about her is that she avoids prosecuting cases. Unfortunately, she hasn’t backed up that claim with a single piece of data. The state tracking system can’t measure how often she declines to charge, so instead of pulling her own case files or comparing them against police arrest logs, she told Seven Days her office prosecutes “the vast majority of times,” unverified.

George’s key endorsement comes from out of state: Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner. Bram Kranichfeld’s comes from home: Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark, whose job is representing Vermont’s interests statewide and who’s chosen the candidate she believes will actually serve them best.

Kranichfeld spent years in the Chittenden County office and has run Franklin County’s office since 2023. He knows what the job requires because he’s doing it.

Chittenden County needs a state’s attorney who adjusts to what’s actually happening on the ground, not one locked into an ideology regardless of the evidence. Our family will be voting for Bram Kranichfeld, and we hope you do, as well.

Don’t Blame Sarah

Thank you for the piece on our choice for state’s attorney. It helped me decide who will get my vote on August 11, Sarah George or Bram Kranichfeld. I also learned a great deal. I learned that Bram’s approach, backed by some who profess to be “ready for a change,” is in reality returning to past costly failures that in the long run did not serve our community. If you are a fiscally responsible person, consider how expensive it is to incarcerate an individual, even for one day.

If you are a compassionate person, consider Sarah’s diversion program and the accountability courts she has implemented. Both are working to increase public safety, reducing repeat offenses through direct social services and freeing her office to attend to violent crimes.

On Sarah’s watch, violent crime is down. I learned that Bram is of the opinion that the practice of setting cash bail punishes poor people, while saying he supports it. What? His defense of the latter refers to defendants skipping trial dates, which oversimplifies the realities of their lives. Sarah knows what people are experiencing, and she brings to court direct support services.

While I agree with our city council president’s statement that “there’s no single person to blame” for the challenges of post-COVID years, I was confused by his next statement doing just that, blaming Sarah. We all need to be a part of the solution. That is why I am voting for Sarah George on August 11.

‘Headlines Matter’

I was disappointed to see the biased subtitle on your cover story: “Bram Kranichfeld says he should be Chittenden County’s next state’s attorney. Reform-minded incumbent Sarah George objects.”

“Aspiring” and “reform-minded” don’t carry equal weight. You identified Bram Kranichfeld as aspiring, while you identified Sarah George as reform-minded. It may be that Kranichfeld is also reform-minded. In a reform-minded place like Vermont, sound-bite headlines matter.

What the Taser?

I am gobsmacked by the reaction of Bram Kranichfeld to the incident of him and his children being threatened by men with Tasers. He did not call the police because “even if they had shown up,” he did not believe Sarah George would prosecute.

Something is seriously wrong with you. These are your children. This is how you protect them and anybody else’s children they may go on to threaten? If you think this is how to illustrate your beliefs about law enforcement and Sarah George’s office, it’s blown back on you big time, buddy.

I’m voting for Sarah George.

Job Description

As someone who worked as a deputy state’s attorney for over 16 years under three very effective state’s attorneys, I have some understanding of the job. It should not be political, which I know sounds odd, given that it’s an elected position. Running an effective campaign is a poor indicator of success. The job is to enforce the laws fairly and impartially, not to decide policy and enforce laws selectively. 

To be good at the job, the office has to try cases — hard cases, not just slam dunks — and learn what it takes to win them. The defense bar in Chittenden County is experienced and skillful. Yes, most cases resolve by plea bargain, but whether these bargains are good or bad is a reflection of the office’s skill and willingness to try a case.

No prosecutor wants to put anyone in jail; it’s always a last resort. But if it’s off the table and everyone is only focused on what is best for the defendant, the system fails. Only the prosecutor represents the people. Whether the office is doing a good job is reflected in whether people involved feel heard. Does the prosecutor’s office invite others to build trust in the system to produce a fair outcome — or undermine it? 

This includes working closely with the police, who investigate and build cases. If they don’t trust the state’s attorney to do their job, the system falls apart. Open communication and respect are vital. Focus on electing an effective prosecutor.

Correction

In “Waitsfield’s 5th Quarter Hot Dogs Are an All-American Home Run,” published July 1, the list of retail stores included one that does not stock 5th Quarter hot dogs: Burlington’s City Market.

This article appears in July 15 • 2026.