All Entries in the "Featured" Category
For Lindsey’s sake: Community surrounds family as a little girl readies for a marrow transplant
By Cynthia Prairie Sue Willis picks out a few of the glass beads from the wooden box marked T.K. T*, gently rubbing them in the palm of her hand. With each touch, it seems, appears a memory of what her 12-year-old daughter has been through as well as a foreshadow of what she will […]
Chester’s final fiscal articles set; no formal challenges to incumbents, seven contests vacant
By Cynthia Prairie Chester town voters will be addressing expenditure requests for 14 articles during Town Meeting, 10 of those requests from petition drives mounted by organizations. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. Monday, March 3 in Town Hall, 556 Elm St. in Chester. As for the elections on Tuesday, March 4, the roster will […]
Chester auditors defend their work; Select Board again dips into Economic Development fund
By Shawn Cunningham Chester’s elected local auditors – Jack Cable, Phyllis Jewett and Ted Spaulding – appeared before the Select Board on Wednesday, Jan. 15 to explain what they do and answer questions that were raised by a proposal to eliminate their function to save the town $4,000 per year. According to Vermont state […]
Deadlines loom for fiscal, candidate petitions in Chester
By Cynthia Prairie With Chester town vote petition deadlines looming — 5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 23 for fiscal articles and 5 p.m. Monday, Jan. 27 for elective offices — surprisingly few petitions had been submitted as of Tuesday, Jan. 21, said Julie Hance, assistant town clerk. By last Tuesday, three of an expected 11 […]
$5,000 reward offered in antiques shop fire probe
By Cynthia Prairie The Vermont Arson Tip Award program is offering $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the fire that last Tuesday destroyed the Yankee Ingenuity Antiques shop on Main Street in Chester. Police and fire investigators have labeled the fire, which began shortly […]
Bittners’ antiques shop on Chester Main Street burns down
By Karen Zuppinger Around 12:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan.14, George and Mary Bittner were awakened by the urgent ringing of the doorbell. The Bittners, owners of the Yankee Ingenuity antiques barn, at 389 Main St. in Chester, found a stranger before them alerting them to the fact that their shop was burning down less than […]
Vote Chester 2014: A preliminary look at the March elections
By Cynthia Prairie As of Tuesday, only three people had filed for election for 23 Chester offices that are up for a vote. The three are incumbents seeking to be returned to seats that they currently hold. Select Board member Tom Bock, town clerk Deborah Aldrich, who is also town treasurer, and Lister Deborah […]
Chester Select Board OKs budget 4.75% above 2013; town to vote on March 3
By Shawn Cunningham On a snowy Thursday, Jan. 2, 2014, the Chester Select Board struggled with needs vs. wants as it finalized the 2014 water, sewer and general fund budgets in preparation for Town Meeting Day (held Monday, March 3 with voting on fiscal articles and the budgets. Elections occur on Tuesday, March 4.) […]
Top 10 from 24 months of unique reporting in The Chester Telegraph
By Cynthia Prairie On Jan. 16, 2014, The Chester Telegraph celebrates its second birthday. A few of our faithful readers have asked us to compile a list of the 10 top stories that we covered in 2013. We thought it was a great idea but, since we didn’t do it last year, we decided […]
Town water billing formula to change in 2014
By Cynthia Prairie In an attempt to even out wildly fluctuating revenue coming into the Chester water department, town manager David Pisha is looking to “radically alter the way we will bill for water in the future.” Currently, the 650 or so homes on Chester town water are billed at $2.95 per 1,000 gallons of […]
Chester town solar farm approved on a 3-1 vote
By Shawn Cunningham At its Dec. 18 meeting, the Chester Select Board approved the contract for a solar power farm to be built on town land at Route 103 and Trebo Road. Green Lantern Capital proposed the 5 acre, 500 kilowatt installation back in April of this year, making it the fourth company in the […]
Annual Christmas dinner serves up good food, cheer to more than 100 seniors
Photo gallery is below the article More than 100 senior citizens from Chester and the surrounding towns sat down to a festive and hot Christmas meal on Saturday, Dec. 14 in the Chester Andover Elementary School cafeteria. Tables were set with bright green and red tablecloths, bowls of cranberry sauce, baskets of rolls and gift-basket […]
Prescription drug disposal site opens at Chester Town Hall
By Cynthia Prairie The Chester Police Department is participating in a nationwide effort to collect unused prescription drugs to keep them out of public water systems as well as keeping them out of the hands of children and others who might abuse them. In the long run, the goal is to deter crime. A […]
Residents question use of town funds for re-enactment as Chester Select Board frets over tight budget
By Shawn Cunningham* The Chester Select Board meeting of Wednesday, Dec. 4 was unusual – not for its four and a half hour length – but for the crowd of more than 20 who attended it. Many were there to explain or advocate for funding under the 2014 town budget, including several members of the […]
2nd annual Shop Local Gift Guide Part 2: For them, her, him and those animals over there
By Cynthia Prairie Last week, Part I of our 2nd Annual Shop Local Holiday Gift Guide offered up a load of ideas from housewares, stocking-stuffers and food in all price ranges, and within a short travel distance. This week, we tackle gifts for those sometimes hard-to-buy-for folks — family, friends, loved ones (including pets) […]
A holly, jolly Overture to Christmas
Photos and text by Cynthia Prairie Saturday’s Parade of Packages, part of Chester’s annual Overture to Christmas events, was interrupted when emergency vehicles had to pull out of the procession to respond to a single-car accident in Andover. (There were no injuries reported.) But that didn’t dampen the day as more than 20 kids […]
Friends, family rally to keep artist’s memory alive with GMUHS scholarship
By Cynthia Prairie Friends and family of the late Heath Gordon are establishing a memorial scholarship fund for Green Mountain Union High School seniors who are pursuing higher education in either art or music. Gordon, who grew up in Chester with his older sister Wendy and younger brother Sam, was a musician and artist […]
Weston Playhouse expansion site plan gets OK with conditions
By Cynthia Prairie Site plans for the new cultural arts facility of the Weston Playhouse Theatre Co. have been given the go-ahead by the Weston Planning Commission with seven minor conditions for use and one conclusion of law that could force the playhouse to speed up its capital fund-raising campaign. The decision was sent […]
Time to Shop: It’s the 2nd annual Shop Local holiday gift guide (Part 1)
By Cynthia Prairie For the second year in a row, The Chester Telegraph has traveled around the region to window shop for you, looking for interesting and beautiful gifts to give this holiday season. We’ve tried to cover everyone on your list. This week, in Part 1, we concentrate on housewares, stocking stuffers and […]
Chester takes possession of new fire truck
By Cynthia Prairie The Chester Fire Department took possession on Tuesday Nov. 26, of its new fire truck – a Class A pumper. Crew immediately began switching out accessories from the old truck and testing the equipment at the town garage off Depot Street, with the expectation that it could be ready for work […]
