RSSArchive for January, 2021

Henry Homeyer: starting at the seeds, now we're here

Henry Homeyer: starting at the seeds, now we’re here

By Henry Homeyer ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC I hate to be the one to give you bad news, but some seed companies are already running out of seeds. Don’t panic: there are, in fact, plenty of seeds out there. And if one company doesn’t have your favorite tomato or zinnia variety, chances are that some […]

Weekly Covid Update: Rates continue to decline while hospitalizations rise

Weekly Covid Update: Rates continue to decline while hospitalizations rise State says Springfield Hospital's Moderna doses OK to use

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Vermont’s Covid-19 weekly new case total, death toll and positivity rate have continued to decline for the fourth week in a row, according to the state Department of Health. New case weekly numbers dropped below the 1,000 mark to 899 reported this week. The total number of cases now stands at […]

Weston Select Board sets May 25 Town Meeting

Weston Select Board sets May 25 Town Meeting Details remain unsettled amid concern over loss of tradition

By Cherise Madigan ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Weston Select Board, expressing concerns about permanently losing Town Meeting Day, has decided to reschedule its Town Meeting this year tp Tuesday, May 25, although the details on where it will be held and how votes will be conducted won’t be revisited until the board’s March 23 […]

Moderna: Springfield's 860 doses OK to use

Moderna: Springfield’s 860 doses OK to use Covid-19 vaccines reported as 'discarded' were not

  By Shawn Cunningham and Cynthia Prairie © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Vaccine manufacturer Moderna and federal officials have determined that the 860 doses of Covid-19 vaccine that were thought to be affected by a temperature change during storage are not spoiled. Although it has been widely reported that those doses were discarded, they continue […]

Springfield Hospital's Friday Covid vaccine clinic to be held as scheduled

Springfield Hospital’s Friday Covid vaccine clinic to be held as scheduled

By Cynthia Prairie ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Springfield Hospital’s Covid-19 vaccination clinic for “Priority Group 1A,” made up of health care workers and front line staff, set for Friday, Jan. 29, will take place as scheduled, spokeswoman Anna Smith said on Thursday. “We have a new supply of vaccine arriving for this clinic,” Smith said […]

Chester Planning Commission agenda for Feb. 1

Chester Planning Commission agenda for Feb. 1

The Chester Planning Commission will meet from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 1 via Zoom.  To access the meeting via Zoom: https://zoom.us/join Meeting ID: ​810 2925 6359 or  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81029256359 Below is its agenda. 1. Review minutes from the Dec. 21, 2020 and Jan. 18, 2021 meetings. 2. Citizens Comments 3. Discuss and adopt proposed rules […]

Health Dept.: Review of Springfield Hospital situation continues

Health Dept.: Review of Springfield Hospital situation continues Doses have not been thrown away

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Vermont Health Department contacted the Chester Telegraph this afternoon with this statement concerning the 860 doses of Moderna Covid-19 vaccine that may have been affected by a slight temperature change in its refrigerators. The vaccines have not been thrown away, as has been reported by many news organizations.  To read […]

Temperature questions shut down vaccine clinic at Springfield Hospital

Temperature questions shut down vaccine clinic at Springfield Hospital Differing monitor readings throw doubt on efficacy of 860 doses

By Cynthia Prairie ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Kathleen Bell was standing “right at the door” of Springfield Hospital at 9 a.m. Wednesday waiting to enter to get her second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, when a hospital worker came out to announce that they clinic was now closed and those scheduled would be contacted for […]

Chester board approves $3.3 million budget

Chester board approves $3.3 million budget

By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Select Board approved the town’s $3.343 million budget at its Wednesday,  Jan. 20 meeting and decided to use the general fund surplus of $335,295 to pay upfront for the match for the grant to do the Depot Street sidewalk project rather than borrowing the $200,000 […]

Chester board OKs annual warning, drops cannabis discussion

Chester board OKs annual warning, drops cannabis discussion Town budget, paving bonds, dump truck and police cruiser among items to be voted

By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Select Board at a special meeting on Monday afternoon approved the town’s warning for the March 2 Town Meeting Australian ballot, but decided to postpone putting an article on cannabis sales in front of the voters until board members could discuss it further in a […]

College News

College News

Select students have been named to the fall 2020 Dean’s List at Roger Williams University in Bristol, R.I. Full-time students who complete 12 or more credits per semester and earn a GPA of 3.4 or higher are placed on the Dean’s List that semester. The following Southern Vermont students have earned this achievement: Nora Bright […]

Covid cases vs. 'case rates': How population plays into local numbers

Covid cases vs. ‘case rates’: How population plays into local numbers

By Cherise Madigan ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Cases of Covid-19 are continuing to rise in area towns, with Springfield up by 22 to a total of 108 and Manchester up by 27 to 81 in the span of just one week. By comparison, Vermont statewide has experienced has seen its case count rise by 898 […]

Opinion: State bill would require civics education for high school graduation

Opinion: State bill would require civics education for high school graduation

By Sen. Dick McCormack Windsor District It requires real effort to focus on anything but Covid-19 and the transfer of power, but life and its lesser concerns go on. A tri-partisan group of senators, including local colleagues Sen. Alison Clarkson, Sen. Mark MacDonald and all three Rutland County senators, are co-sponsoring S.17, a bill I’ve […]

Vaccine signups begin today for ages 75 & up

Vaccine signups begin today for ages 75 & up

UPDATE: According to the Vermont Health Department, as of 11:30 a.m. on Monday, 13,290 people 75 and older have scheduled appointments. Out of the approximately 49,000 of those eligible, that’s a little over 27 percent. By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing, LLC Registration for an appointment to receive the first dose of a coronavirus […]

One Londonderry to hold community forums on town future

One Londonderry to hold community forums on town future

  On Wednesday, Feb. 3, all members of the Londonderry community are invited to kick off One Londonderry: a community process to engage all residents in setting direction for a vibrant, prosperous and dynamic future. This process is a practical, pragmatic and facilitated way for residents to actively participate in reviewing challenges and opportunities facing […]

Left in Andover: The unbearable lumpish oatmeal

Left in Andover: The unbearable lumpish oatmeal

By Susan Leader ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC In his poem Oatmeal, Galway Kinnell, Vermont poet laureate from 1989 to 1993, enlivens his solitary morning bowl by inviting “imaginary companions“ to share it with him. The Pulitzer Prize winner’s Rolodex includes some persons of note: “Keats said I was absolutely right to invite him: due to […]

Chester Chatter: A town I never want to leave

Chester Chatter: A town I never want to leave

By Ruthie Douglas ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC In 1957, when I came to live in Chester, I knew that I would never want to leave. It seemed that everyone knew everyone else. Folks liked each other here.  As a farmer’s wife, I was eased into that role slowly. I came to know the hardware store […]

Chester Select Board special meeting agenda for Jan. 25

Chester Select Board special meeting agenda for Jan. 25

The Chester Select Board will hold a special meeting at 3 p.m. on Monday Jan. 25, 2021 via Zoom. To join the meeting by Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82405568601 NOTE the link for this meeting is not the same as the usual select board link. https://zoom.us/join Meeting ID: 819 8884 2129 or  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81988842129 In person attendance is limited, so […]

Henry Homeyer: the importance of eating organic

Henry Homeyer: the importance of eating organic

By Henry Homeyer ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC I have been growing vegetables organically all my life. I use no chemical fertilizers or pesticides. I don’t often think about the reasons I do so, any more than I think about breathing – it’s just something I do. I recently picked up a book written by Maria […]

Weekly Covid Update: Vaccinations to begin for Vermonters 75 and up

Weekly Covid Update: Vaccinations to begin for Vermonters 75 and up Signups begin Monday, shots on Wednesday, with Phase 2

©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC On the morning of Monday, Jan. 25, Phase 2 of the Vermont vaccination plan will begin, allowing Vermonters age 75 and older to begin registering for inoculations. The first vaccines for this group will start on Wednesday. The website and phone number for vaccination registration will be released on Monday morning. […]