Author Archive for Cynthia Prairie
Cynthia Prairie has been a newspaper editor more than 40 years. Cynthia has worked at such publications as the Raleigh Times, the Baltimore News American, the Buffalo Courier Express, the Chicago Sun-Times and the Patuxent Publishing chain of community newspapers in Maryland, and has won numerous state awards for her reporting. As an editor, she has overseen her staffs to win many awards for indepth coverage. She and her family moved to Chester, Vermont in 2004.
Challenges in journalism hit small rural communities: Prairie, Williams on GNAT’s ‘Press Pass’
On Thursday, Dec. 16, Cynthia Prairie, editor and publisher of The Chester Telegraph, sat down with Terry Williams, president and chief operating office of The Keene (N.H.) Sentinel and GNAT-TV news director Andrew McKeever for a discussion on the current state and challenges of journalism for McKeever’s Press Pass program. We thought our readers would […]
Christmas season kicks off with a weekend of events
By Cynthia Prairie © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Good cheer and humor fill the season with warmth no matter how chilly it gets and how much snow falls. Londonderry residents helped kick the Christmas holiday into high gear on Friday night with a parade of lighted farm equipment ushering in Santa and the town’s annual […]
Sign up now for Dec. 10 Chester-Andover Senior Christmas dinner
Sign up now to reserve your spot or meal for the 46th annual Chester-Andover Senior Christmas Dinner, which will take place at noon on Saturday, Dec. 10 in the cafeteria at Green Mountain Union High School, 716 VT-103, Chester. As in years past, this full turkey dinner with all the fixings will be accompanied by […]
Chase beats Ryan in new Vermont House district
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Democrat Heather Chase has won the seat in the Vermont House of Representatives for the newly carved out Windsor-Windham District of Athens, Chester, Grafton and Windham. Chase handily beat Ryan 1,308 to 803, winning in comfortable margins in each town. Those town by town breakdowns were: 819 to […]
Competitive Chase-Ryan race yields local view of campaign financing
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC For the first time in many years, voters from this part of Southern Central Vermont are viewing a rare bird: a competitive “spending race” for the Vermont House of Representatives — in this case the new Windsor-Windham District that encompasses Athens, Chester, Grafton and Windham. The race to […]
Ryan-Chase forum sheds more light on State House candidates
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Like most candidate forums, the meetup in Grafton between Republican Eva Ryan and Democrat Heather Chase, candidates for the newly configured Windsor-Windham District of Athens, Chester, Grafton and Windham in the state House of Representatives, was a polite affair. No challenges, objections or name calling. The questions were […]
The gorilla in our midst? Thanks to state work, the granite 'Gassetts Gorilla' is born
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC New Hampshire lost its iconic Old Man in the Mountain to gravity in 2003, but four years ago, Vermont apparently gained the Gassetts Gorilla. The Gassetts Gorilla is more accessible than the Old Man was. The Old Man towered above us, looked away from us and seemed pleased […]
Forum for Windsor-Windham District House candidates set for Oct. 20 in Grafton
A forum between Republican Eva Ryan and Democrat Heather Chase, who are running to represent the Windsor-Windham District in the Vermont House of Representatives, will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20 at the Grafton School, 58 School St. in Grafton, and via Zoom. The new Vermont House Windsor-Windham District encompasses […]
Editorial: Regulate unhosted short-term rentals
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Telegraph spent months looking into the housing crisis in the central tier of southern Vermont, trying to understand where it stands now and, if necessary, what can be done about it. Today’s article, Hollowed Community?, which you can read here, pinpoints several factors into the causes […]
Hollowed Community? Residents ring alarm over growth of unhosted short-term rentals
By Cara Philbin and Cynthia Prairie © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Housing in the rural central tier of southern Vermont always has been dependent upon single-family homes. While Chester – with a population of 3,005 – has two purpose-built, townhouse-style apartment complexes, they are rare in most villages. Instead, residents in this east-west corridor have […]
State House candidates Ryan, Chase touch on variety of issues during Windham forum
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC More than 40 people turned out on a stormy Tuesday night — in person and on Zoom — to hear the first candidate forum for a seat in the Vermont State House from the new Windsor-Windham District of Athens, Chester, Grafton and Windham. Democrat Heather Chase and Republican […]
Guide to the 2022 Chester Festival on the Green
© 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The 47th Chester Festival on the Green remains a weekend filled with music, great arts and crafts, good food and friends set in the charming Vermont town of Chester. This year’s event will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17 and Sunday, Sept. 18 on […]
Andover bridge reconstruction to close road
Aug. 22 to Nov. 4
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Construction crews are expected to begin assembling on site this week to begin the process of taking down and replacing Andover Bridge No. 9, over Trout Brook, just southeast of the switchback on the Weston-Andover Road. The road is expected to be closed starting on Monday, Aug. 22, […]
‘Chester Inn’ chargers donated to Fullerton, Historical Society Former owners' son presents engraved plates
Photos and text by Cynthia Prairie © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Warren Mackensen and his wife Patricia visited Chester on Tuesday from their home in Hampton, N.H., to lunch with old friends and serve two plates, but ones not bearing food. The historic copper plates were part of a set of 60 chargers that Mackensen’s […]
Public records search of Merrill files turns up no complaints related to alleged behavior
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Following a Public Records Act request by The Chester Telegraph for access to all documents — including personnel files — related to any complaint or concern filed against former Green Mountain teacher Norm Merrill, the Two Rivers Supervisory Union has replied that a hand search of paper files […]
Morrow pulls out of Windsor Senate race Remaining contenders are from northern part of county
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Just one week after formally announcing his run for the Vermont Senate to represent the Windsor District, Chris Morrow of Weston, former owner of Northshire Books in Manchester, has pulled out of the race. Because of Windsor County’s population — the 4th largest in Vermont with 57,753 residents […]
A day filled with parade, pizza and pride
©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC A perfect spring Saturday, June 4, drew out smiling folks carrying rainbow flags and wearing rainbow clothing to the Chester Green to show support for LBGTQ rights and celebrate Pride Month with a parade and children’s storybook readings at the Pizza Stone. Restaurant owner Darlene Doane and her enthusiastic staff, with […]
Five more Whiting Library Trustees resign Management of library in question without enough Trustees
UPDATE: 4:55 p.m. Wednesday, June 1: Hance says that town attorney Jim Carroll believes that there is no reason for the library to be shut down and that there is authority in statute to ensure any bills and paychecks get paid. By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Five more Trustees of the Whiting Library […]
The Right Stuffed: Smitty’s honored by Everyone Eats
Photos and Text by Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Click on any photo to launch the gallery. Chris Meyer of Chester Helping Hands and Trish Paradis of the Springfield Family Center last week presented Garrison Smith, owner of Smitty’s Chester Market, and in-house chef Bonny Hudson with plaques honoring their work on behalf of […]
Weston Library hosts Drag Queen Story Hour to much enjoyment
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Weston’s Wilder Memorial Library had no qualms about holding a Drag Queen Story Hour on Saturday, attracting around 50 kids and adults, including several Wilder board members. The drag queens — Katniss Everqueer and Emoji Nightmare — arrived around 1:30, batting wickedly long eyelashes, their makeup contoured […]
