Teen lifeguard recognized for lifesaving at Pinnacle swimming pool Select Board continues look at town services

By Shawn Cunningham
© 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC

The average Select Board meeting is a series of requests to be heard, problems to work out and questions to answer. But once in a while there’s a lighter, more celebratory moment like the one in Chester last Wednesday. That’s when recreation Director Matt McCarthy presented 16-year-old lifeguard Jacob Studin with a certificate recognizing him for saving a child from drowning at Chester’s town pool.

According to McCarthy, on Sunday Aug. 9 he received a text from Lifeguard Manager Morgan Studin that her brother Jacob had jumped into the pool to save a child who was drowning.  A short time later, he heard from the child’s mother who was impressed with the quick action by Studin.

McCarthy told The Telegraph that the 5- year-old had jumped into the pool near the slide where it transitions from a depth of 4 feet to 5. Studin said the girl was jumping up and down, then went under. That’s when he jumped into the pool and pulled her out.

“These are not the kind of calls or texts you want to receive,” said McCarthy, “But it is the kind of ending you can be grateful for.” The Studin family was in attendance as McCarthy presented the certificate to Jacob.

Public works and funding

As part of Town Manager Julie Hance’s effort to explain the services the town provides to for the taxpayers who are paying for them the heads of the towns departments have been explaining what they do at several meetings this summer. The board will begin crafting a budget for next year and will be looking to the public to help set priorities.  Last Wednesday, Highway Director Kirby Putnam walked the board through the operation of his department including road and bridge maintenance, snow plowing and equipment maintenance for longer usable lifespans.

Several board members asked how deep snow has to be before snowplows are sent out. Putnam explained that there are 10 plowing routes in Chester, with the shortest taking three hours to complete and the longest more than six hours. Plowing normally begins when the snow is around 3 inches deep but, depending on the storm, it could be deeper than that by the time a plow gets to the end of its route.

Board chair Lee Gustafson asked it it wasn’t “jumping the gun at 3 inches.” Putnam replied that letting a lot of snow accumulate slows the plowing. Drivers also consider the public safety aspect, he said, adding that they try to not let the snow get higher than 6 inches so EMS can get through.

Board member Arne Jonynas said that those living on dirt roads need to take extra care, making sure their vehicle can handle the snow and that it has snow tires.

Among the issues that the department is facing are impending retirements and the difficulty of finding qualified workers. On other issues, Putnam highlighted that his staff is seeking ways to improve sidewalk maintenance and that also need to clean up ditches, which the state required to be lined with stone, but are now silted over.

In addition to Putnam’s presentation, Hance noted that paving the portion of Depot Street that was torn up for the sewer work is scheduled to take place the first week of September.

Traffic ordinance, Birthing center, Scarecrow weekend

The board also looked at the town’s updated traffic ordinance, which it will consider in a public hearing on Wednesday, Sept. 16. The ordinance can be found here and a red-lined version with changes from the existing ordinance can be found here.

The board received a letter from the town manager of Brattleboro asking that the Town of Chester pass a resolution supporting the birthing center at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, which may be closed in the future. The resolution asked that the board recognize the importance of the center to the region, encourage BMH to do everything possible to keep the center open and ask state and federal representatives to support rural health care including the birthing center. Springfield Hospital closed its maternity services in 2019.

The board adopted the resolution unanimously.

The board also granted a request from a group of community members who are staging a scarecrow-creating event in early October. Businesses and individuals are invited to participate in making scarecrows for display on the Green. The scarecrows will be judged and winners will be announced.

They requested that Common Street be closed from 2 to 5 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 3 and Saturday, Oct. 4 for setup and from 2 to 8 p.m. on Halloween, Saturday, Oct. 31 for the small scarecrow festival, when the winner will be announced.