Day in the life
Back to school
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Students in Champlain Valley School District commence fall classes
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September 3, 2026
Nonprofit to acquire newspaper company
Weekly news coverage for Charlotte and Hinesburg
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A Colorado-based nonprofit organization founded five years ago with the mission to acquire newspapers and avoid creating “news deserts” will purchase the five weekly publications under the Vermont Community Newspaper Group banner. The Citizen is one of those papers. The National Trust for Local News announced the acquisition this week as part of its expansion to a fourth state — the Trust owns papers in Colorado, Georgia and Maine — calling it a “community-first” decision by the Vermont publications’ owners. The deal, “for a nominal fee,” will close later this month, according to a press release. The Vermont Community Newspaper Group’s weekly titles are the Stowe Reporter; News & Citizen of Lamoille County; The Other Paper of South Burlington; Shelburne News; and The Citizen of Charlotte and Hinesburg. Citing increased financial stresses on their business, VTCNG majority owner Bob Miller and minority owners Judy Kearns and Biddle Duke decided earlier See NONPROFIT on page 7
PHOTO BY SOPHIA BALINEK
A small blue table reflects the blue sky over sunflowers at Adam’s Berry Farm in Charlotte.
Hinesburg Town Forest wins award for management BRIANA BRADY STAFF WRITER
Every year, the Vermont Woodlands Association highlights one landowner in the state for forest management and presents its Tree Farmer of the Year award. This year, the group is honoring not just one person or family, but the entire town of Hinesburg. “We had a lot of a lot of nominees to choose from this year. It was really hard. It was a difficult decision,” Kathy Beland, who runs the tree farm program for the asso-
ciation said. “But we felt Hinesburg was definitely deserving of it.” The term “tree farmer” dates to the 1940s. According to the Forest History Society, at the time, a Washington timber company dedicated 120,000 acres of land to establish the first tree farm as a way to test fire prevention strategies and reforestation as part of logging. Since then, the tree farm program, run nationally by American Forest Foundation, has grown to encompass 40 different state tree farm programs. The ethos is in the
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name, according to Beland. “For me, it’s always been ‘tree farm’ because it always kind of implied these were the people who, even if their hands weren’t in the dirt, they were thinking about their hands as in the dirt,” she said. “They were the ones that were making things happen on their land.” The Hinesburg Town Forest Committee has been working on its management plan See FOREST on page 15
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Clemmons farm looks to upgrade event spaces performance space. Johnson said it has taken about five years to upgrade the other Charlotte is home to one of buildings and five more until the the 18 Vermont farms owned big barn is complete. She said the farm has faced by a Black family. The approximately 140-acre farm is home to multiple challenges in upgradsix buildings where Jackson and ing its spaces because of the many requireLydia Clemmons ments needed lived, worked and “That’s the legacy to conserve and farmed in since preserve spaces. 1962. we’re trying to The farm needs The Clemmultiple permits mons Family maintain.” from the town, Farm wants to state and federal preserve and upgrade one of — Kay Johnson government. “ W e ’ r e the property’s really eager to get the rest of what final buildings, the big barn. The farm, located on Green- we need in place so that we can bush Road, was originally owned actually get somebody there to do by the Clemmons from 1962- the work,” Johnson said. Many of the grants the farm 2023. The six buildings including the main house, the blacksmith applied for expire at the end of the shop, the granary and barn house, year, so time is a crucial part of the shed and the big barn and are success. The nonprofit’s goal is to all used to celebrate community, preserve the buildings and histohistory and culture. “It’s 62 years of them being ry, empower artists and build a a part of the community and also multi-cultural community. It has sharing their culture with the succeeded in getting the farm community,” Kay Johnson, trea- listed on the National Register of surer of the farm’s board of direc- Historic Places, with assistance tors, said of Jackson and Lydia. and guidance from the National “That’s the legacy we’re trying to Park Service. The farm hosts tours by maintain.” The Clemmons Family Farm appointment and hosts a variety of organization bought the farm free events open to the public, like from the couple in 2023 and has culinary, art, music and culturbeen upgrading and preserving the al events celebrating the African land since. The nonprofit wants American diaspora and history. “The majority — 95% of the to upgrade the big barn space’s lower level into artist studios and people who attend our events, galleries and the upper level into a from our evaluations — we know MARI HUGLIN STAFF WRITER
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are white people from (Charlotte and) surrounding communities, so it’s really creating a community space, a multicultural community space,” Johnson said. She said the space will also benefit area artists and patrons
of the arts as a moderate-sized performance art area between Burlington and Middlebury. During previous selectboard meetings, Charlotte granted the farm multiple permits and permissions to continue its
nonprofit work. The board permitted the farm to update their underground water systems, utility lines and slight changes to the road to make entrances to the barn ADA accessible.
More doctors are offering memberships for health care BRIANA BRADY STAFF WRITER
Over the more than two decades nurse practitioner Holly Whitcomb has been providing primary care, things have changed — and it’s not just the switch to electronic records. “We used to just sit with patients and learn who they are and what they needed and what their goals were, and it was really personal,” Whitcomb said. After 24 years providing care in Hinesburg, Whitcomb is opening a new practice on Timber Lane in South Burlington. Her practice, Horizon Primary Care, will offer concierge medicine, an increasingly popular model that mixes a membership fee paid by patients with insurance billing. Whitcomb said that, with this model, she wants to get back to taking her time with patients and personalizing their care — actually having the time to pick up the phone and answer a patient’s health questions. She’s not the only one making the switch. According to a Harvard study published less than a year ago, the number of practices using concierge medicine and direct primary care, which bypasses insurance entirely in favor of a membership fee, grew by 83% nationally between 2019 and 2023. Susan Ridzon, the executive director of Health First, a statewide association of private practices, said that, while practices and providers using membership models still only make up a small portion of the organization’s members — about 7% — it’s been growing. “To be clear, this is a response to a payment system that doesn’t cover the work that practices are doing,” Ridzon said. For many providers making the switch to a membership
system, she said, it’s a way to keep a private practice financially sustainable. The way insurance reimburses a practice not only depends on the kind of insurance, care or procedure involved, Ridzon said, but can also vary depending on the biller. Big systems like the University of Vermont have negotiating power with insurance companies. For smaller private practices, she said, they’re more often having to take what they’re offered. With Medicare, she said, there are also different fee schedules for hospital system care — hospitals get a higher rate. “It’s really kind of obscene sometimes the differences for the exact same service,” she said. On top of that, Ridzon said, a lot of the work that goes into good primary care doesn’t get billed to insurance. Services like answering patient questions over a portal or the phone, or coordinating care with different specialists, all things Whitcomb said she wanted more time and capacity to do. Membership fees can vary across different offices and models. Concierge, which offers the membership alongside insurance billing, is often the more affordable option for patients — a look at local providers shows prices often hovering around $2,000 annually, sometimes, as in Horizon’s model, with scaled pricing depending on age or family size. Other local practices have found ways to make direct primary care work for patients as well. Beth Schiller, the nurse practitioner who owns Champlain Medical, an urgent care center in South Burlington, only offers direct primary care through a special relationship with some local employers. Schiller said that she’s been working with ECI for years as Champlain Medical handles
care for their workplace injuries as well as the necessary physical exams for some employees. While the company offers insurance outside her services, she said, employees are offered — and incentivized — to take Champlain Medical up on direct primary care paid for by ECI. “If the individual came to us for one primary care visit a year, which included, you know, some basic lab work, and we do EKGs and hearing tests for them,” Schiller said. “Then they have access to our facility for the rest of the year — for whatever, urgent care, primary care, essentially any of their other needs.” The relationship, she said, has made primary care visits accessible and easy to get for a group of people who might not otherwise have it. Recently, she said, doing an EKG on one patient led to a referral to a cardiologist, a stress test and a triple bypass procedure. The number of primary care doctors in the state is falling — according to a report from the Department of Health there were 40 fewer PCPs in 2024 than 2022 and almost a third of Vermont’s primary care physicians are over 60. While this doesn’t necessarily account for nurse practitioners such as Whitcomb and Schiller, Ridzon said that membership models may help sustain more doctors in the state for longer. “They’re finding a way to make it happen rather than retiring. Because a lot of them are so burnt out that they exit the field or retire,” Ridzon said. Whitcomb is looking forward to opening her practice. She’s already begun coordinating care for some patients. “I’m not doing this to make a gazillion dollars. I’m doing this to genuinely try to take better care of my patients in the way that I think they should be cared for,” she said.
The Citizen • September 3, 2026 • Page 3
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Selectboard supports adult center employee’s promotion ranging from around $29,000 to $57,000. “We’re just bursting at the The Charlotte Selectboard on seams. Lot’s going on,” Morrison Monday expressed support for said. “It’s all pretty exciting and making the part-time assistant we want to continue doing what director of the Adult Community we’re doing.” Morrison said the center has Center a full-time role. Currently, assistant director increased its revenue, programming and popuThyleen Tenney’s larity over the position clocks in last year. He said at 19 hours, but “It’s all pretty it has been diffithat will increase exciting and we want cult to recruit to 40 hours with volunteers insurance beneto continue doing to help with fits if the selectthe increased board continues what we’re doing.” support need. its support during At a previbudget meetings this fall. — Lane Morrison ous selectboard meeting, the Lane Morrison, one of the center’s board center’s director, Lori York, in members, presented to the presenting the benefits of a fullselectboard the possible salary time staffer, said the center’s staff and insurance increases associ- has “reached capacity” and it is ated with the proposal. He also not sustainable to keep up with announced the organization her goals as director to rebuild changed its name from the Char- participation, expand programlotte Senior Center to the Char- ming and grow community. Around 14,500 people particlotte Adult Community Center. Tenney’s current salary is ipated in programs last year. In $25,816 a year with no insurance. 2022, the center brought in around The proposed full-time salary $34,000 in revenue. Last year, ranges from $49,400 to $52,000 that sum was around $67,000. York added the center has a year. The final increase to the nearly 100 active volunteers and center’s budget depends on which many partnerships with organizainsurance package the center tions that use the center. The assistant director would and selectboard agree on, with an increase in the annual budget help train these volunteers and MARI HUGLIN STAFF WRITER
help with other day-to-day work like assisting with programming, administration, communication and organization. Selectboard chair Natalie Kanner agreed with Morrison and said finding volunteers for municipal positions has been challenging, but it is necessary. “This is what happens when people aren’t able to volunteer in working boards is in order to continue to provide the same level of service. We have to staff it with a paid employee,” Kanner said. Selectboard member JD Herlihy said he was concerned with the other budgets the board will be forced to balance during budget season. “I’m generally in support of it,” Herlihy said. “I think we never know until we have the full budget.” Board member Lee Krohn said he wanted to look at the entire town budget and the center’s budget before agreeing to give Tenney the promotion, but was “not prepared to shoot this down at this time.” Board member Troy Krahl agreed about wanting to see the full picture before agreeing to a specific salary, but was open to the idea. “It’s $57,000, so that can probably be found, but I would like it to be found before we just say ‘Oh yeah, go for it’,” Krahl said.
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CRIME & COURTS Hinesburg Police Blotter: Aug. 24-28
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ALD MCDON onsible for a EY MCD COREY the group respons to switch to a on District WRITER STTAFF W dent-led petition of government School in form Valley lain Va town manager has LIBERTY DARR $105 million Selectboard he selectboard The Champ approved the budget, and — a move the The Charlotte STTAFF WRITER ously osed. The board pposed. oppo oppose Monday after it unanim yearr,, sending tax increase, to as una has issued an apology public comment strenuously polll vote against the school ing next a straw spendin COREY MCDONALD Three Charlotte Selecctboard attempted to limit 18 percent g Day. Day at a public took at a meetingg in August. rough ng a roughly idea for STTAFFaWRITER candidates and one for the library own Meetin from certain residentsregarding Town T To gi ive an apology allengi week voters for a very challen “I’d like to give " #"! " ! ! " to hearing last v s in oard vice Day ballot item board the public safety plan able housing, governance m models, our student of Town Meeting manager form With school can do for environment,” 11 released to the selectboard, HinesCharlotte’s future and otherr issues switch to a town ic 127 in r said. POLOGY on page omic APOL See " ! econom # ! ! n Metzle ture passed Act dist s " with more than two dozen n resigovernment. ! Meg Megha ol district chairr Legisla school restarting talks to merge their #"! "! dents during Tu Tuesday night’s hour Since the den County departments into a single municilong community forum. Ch co 22, Chitten ingg counts. 2022, pality covering both towns. Incumbent Frank Te Tennney is ing pupil-weightina roughly ro Even before the plan was the running uncontested for a threedecreas budget marks from anks to ngg fro thanks 5 released, Richmond had reached year term on the selectboard d alongin spendin The FY202 increase " " " " ! " side incumbent Louise MccCarren mi 10 million $10 a meeting. ti Selectboard S l tb d Chair Ch i d Natalie N li K h arre both and Kanner, who b h Merrily Lovell in December said vying for the two-year seat. McCa afffectto, MAZUR ce premiumss bu ere responding that she, departments selectboard were member rren was present for most of the DWIGHT busiand in health insuran s, towns, PHO BY PHOTO wns, and volu of calls volume its second their managMaggie Gordon, town # " " " " as well as COREY MCDONALD increase school district state. d team earned and compared nts, points, er To Todd Odit anddata police Chief remaining last few question ns. the March, other ount Mansfiel STTAFF WRITER the departing many throughout ed last Ma oved Anthony Cambridge metwidth withof Champlain Valley/M Matthew Bijur, who waas also approv g than that to the bandwid d nesses alike budget, safety stra- " ! in spendin fff . ck. 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They the two police CVU’s Violet Wenscchhof competes on beam during a gymnastic competition against Burr & Burtoon and Burlington. More on page 13. of incidents that See FORUM on page 10 See SAFETY PLAN on page 12 LIBERTY DARR STTAFF WRITER
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Selected incidents: Aug. 24 at 8:23 a.m., an officer responded to a medical emergency on Hawk Lane. Aug. 24 at 9:33 a.m., police helped someone with a civil issue. Aug. 24 at 2:24 p.m., an officer assisted a driver on Pond Road with a disabled vehicle. Aug. 24 at 6:35 p.m., police conducted a welfare check on Route 116.
Aug. 24 at 6:53 p.m., someone turned found property over to police, who later returned to its owner. Aug. 25 at 3:19 p.m., police helped someone with fingerprinting for a job. Aug. 25 at 7:15 p.m., an officer served someone court paperwork. Aug. 25 at 9:17 p.m., an officer assisted state police with a crash in Huntington. Aug. 26 at 8:30 a.m., someone turned found property into the police, who later returned to its owner. Aug. 26 at 1:53 p.m., police helped someone with fingerprinting for a job. Aug. 26 at 3:03 p.m., officers responded to a business on Route 116 for reported underage consumption of alcohol. Aug. 26 at 5:21 p.m., police investigated a motor vehicle complaint on Mechanicsville Road. Aug. 27 at 3:30 p.m., police helped someone with fingerprinting for a job. Aug. 27 at 4:33 p.m., police investigated a motor vehicle complaint on Silver Street. Aug. 27 at 5:18 p.m., an officer
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Total reported incidents: 70 Arrests: 2 Traffic stops: 36 Agency assist: 4 Fingerprints: 4 Special overtime: 4 Directed patrol: 4 Motor vehicle complaint: 2 Citizen assist: 2 Found property: 2 Crash: 1 Animal problem: 1 Wanted person: 1 Suspicious person/ circumstance: 1 Background investigation: 1 Juvenile problem: 1 Alarm: 1 Welfare/suicide check: 1 Traffic hazard: 1 Custodial dispute: 1
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responded to a juvenile issue on Jourdan Street. Aug. 27 at 7:35 p.m., police located a wanted individual at a residence on Richmond Road and made an arrest on an instate warrant. Aug. 28 at 8:05 a.m., a loose dog was turned into the police, who later returned it to its owner. Aug. 28 at 2:22 p.m., police helped someone with fingerprinting for a job. Aug. 28 at 3:30 p.m., police investigate reported property damage on Ballard’s Corner Road. Aug. 28 at 3:39 p.m., police investigated an alarm activation at CVU. Aug. 28 at 4:24 p.m., officers responded to a single-car crash on Pond Road and cited the driver for driving under the influence. Aug. 28 at 6:03 p.m., an officer served someone court paperwork. Note: Charges filed by police are subject to review by the Chittenden County State’s Attorney Office and can be amended or dropped.
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The Citizen • September 3, 2026 • Page 5
OPINION A nonprofit future for our newspapers Guest Perspective Bob Miller, Biddle Duke, Judy Kearns Newspapers like this are the lifeblood of the communities we serve. They mark births and marriages, deaths and departures, challenges and successes, transgressions and triumphs. Most importantly, they help us to understand where we live so we may best chart our future. But, as anyone who is paying attention knows, newspapers themselves are struggling to remain viable businesses. Our newspapers are no exception. Establishing a sustainable future for the Vermont Community Newspaper Group’s five community newspapers — the Stowe Reporter, the News & Citizen (Lamoille County), the Shelburne News, The Other Paper (South Burlington) and The Citizen (Charlotte and Hinesburg) — has been our preeminent priority for several years. The years since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic have been hugely challenging financially, but we now have a plan, thanks to the nonprofit National Trust for Local News (see story, page 1). These businesses, which were being challenged before Covid, would have certainly been forced to close during the pandemic if not for the government’s Paycheck Protection Program and the Employee Retention Credit program. They enabled us to stay in business, just as they did for many businesses in the communities we serve. Emerging from Covid, however, the stresses on our businesses have only increased. Declines in print advertising and inflation
(in particular, ever-increasing costs of the U.S. Postal Service upon which we depend for timely delivery to most of our readers) have combined to cripple revenue growth and virtually wipe out profitability. None of this likely is news to you, dear reader. Newspapers across America have been under economic threat for more than a decade; many have been forced to contract or close. Nearly 3,500 local print newspapers have disappeared across the United States over the past two decades, with close to 1,000 shutting down during the last decade alone. This ongoing decline has left hundreds of places as “news deserts” with no reliable local journalists or journalism — in other words, no one and no place to call and count on with the information, ideas and questions that enliven and connect life in the communities and regions they serve. For the past decade, the Vermont Community Newspaper Group’s owners — the majority owner Bob Miller, and minority owners Judy Kearns and Biddle Duke — have been committed to these five newspapers and their communities. The way forward is to become fully nonprofit. This does not mean the papers are backing away from their advertising or circulation revenue streams. They need them, both because they sustain the newspapers and because advertising itself is essential information and eye-catching content in our print and online publications. But the businesses need to supplement those revenue streams with philanthropy, by tapping into national funding that exists to support local news ecosystems and by tapping into supporters
in our communities who value and will support the service we provide. The nonprofit model allows the newspapers to tap into philanthropy, not only so they can survive but so they can continue to invest in expanding their coverage and broadening their use of social media and other technologies to thrive in a climate where local news is so important and increasingly difficult to find. It is essential to acknowledge some history here. This important transition occurs thanks to the vision and hard work of the remarkable people who established and have run these long-running newspapers, and those who keep them running today. Our oldest newspaper, the News & Citizen, has been serving Lamoille County for around 145 years. The others came in the second half of the 20th century, starting with the Stowe Reporter in 1958; Shelburne News in 1967; The Other Paper in 1977; and The Citizen in 2006. All were started, yes, as businesses, but the underlying impetus was always community service. It is thanks to civic-minded leaders like Roz Graham and Alice Winn in Shelburne, Trow Elliman in Stowe, and Brad Limoge (and the Limoge family that owned and ran the News & Citizen for more than seven decades) that we are here today. Along, of course, with the current team of editor Tommy Gardner, general manager Katerina Werth, and director of sales Bryan Meszkat. Ultimately, however, readers and advertisers, this is your newspaper. Its existence and continued service to our communities has thrived and will continue to thrive thanks to you. Onward!
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Catching up with housing laws in the Legislature that impact Hinesburg town Guest Perspective Matt Francis The Vermont Legislature’s biennium adjourned in May, and it once again passed legislation aimed at the housing crisis. Though the housing shortage is a nationwide issue, Hinesburg residents and Vermonters are acutely impacted. While most acknowledge a lot more needs to be done,
the Legislature passed Act 125, making a few important updates to Vermont’s land use law. Since the passage of Act 181 in 2024, Vermont municipalities have been developing land use maps that delineate and prioritize development in village centers, identified as “Tier 1” zones. However, the state’s Land Use Review Board has final say and shrunk some of these areas by 10-30%. Under the new Act
125, some of these changes were reversed, allowing larger swaths of land to be included in Tier 1, and making it easier to expand these zones. These maps, including Hinesburg’s planned zones, are viewable on the state’s website. The most covered aspect of Act 125 was the repeal of the See FRANCIS on page 6
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Page 6 • September 3, 2026 • The Citizen
FRANCIS
continued from page 5 so-called “Road Rule” from Act actions taken this past legislative 181. The rule subjected any new session included providing more driveways longer than 800 feet to funding for accessory dwelling automatically be subject to Act units via the popular Vermont 250. The intention was to protect Housing Improvement Program, forests from being fragmented. extending the homebuyer assisHowever, such a rigid law made tance program and expanding it significantly the Downtown more difficult and and Village Tax The tax-increment costly to build Credit program. in rural areas. Additionalfinancing program Rural landowners ly, this year, and pro-housing Vermont is incentivizes groups advocated seeing tracstrongly against tion with the towns to invest in it, and the LegisCommunity lature reversed and Housing infrastructure. course. This Infrastructure repeal won’t have Program. Passed much of an effect on Hinesburg, last year, the tax-increment but may alleviate added building financing program incentivizes costs in neighboring communities. towns to invest in infrastructure in Lastly, Act 125 calls for the village centers to expand housing creation and study of a “model opportunities. code” for towns across Vermont Let’s Build Homes, an organito follow. The “ROOT Zones” zation led by former Burlington concept would identify and Mayor Miro Weinberger, advoimplement efficiencies in the cates for many of these pro-housdevelopment review process, ing policies at the state and ideally cutting down on the costly municipal level. Future advocacy and unpredictable nature of targets include wetland reform permitting. Hinesburg has several and a continued focus on fixing ongoing major developments that permitting and financing for houshave already passed review, and it ing projects. will be interesting to see how our review process measures up to the Matt Francis is a member of “model code” moving forward. Hinesburg’s Affordable Housing Other affordable housing Committee.
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The Citizen • September 3, 2026 • Page 7
NONPROFIT
continued from page 1 this year to establish nonprofit ownership by the end of 2026. “Establishing a sustainable future for our community newspapers has been our priority for several years,” the owners said in a statement. “By selling these publications to the National Trust, not only can they survive but there will be investment in expanding coverage to thrive in a climate where local news is so important and increasingly difficult to find.” The Trust’s top brass has been bullish on the newspapers’ potential and emphasized there will be no layoffs at the newspapers — its 15 full-time and two parttime employees will be retained, and the office will remain at its current location on Mountain Road in Stowe. The Trust’s management team has reiterated that everything will remain status quo for readers and subscribers — editorial leadership will stay the same, and advertising will remain a key component of the newspapers’ business model. However, the nonprofit designation will open a new world of potential revenue for the newspapers. And the Trust has stated its commitment to “providing the capital, expertise and infrastructure needed to unlock the publications’ growth potential.” “These publications have a solid foundation from which a stronger future can be built,” National Trust CEO Tom Wiley said. “They are vital local news sources for northern Vermont, led by an experienced team that has trusted relationships with readers, advertisers and a wide range of community partners.” Bill Stille will immediately begin working with the Vermont team as a transition and transformation adviser provided by the National Trust. Stille previously held leadership roles at The Detroit News, The Columbus Dispatch and The Buffalo News. His work will include identifying opportunities to strengthen partnerships and collaborate with statewide stakeholders, according to the press release.
Fast rise, stabilize The National Trust for Local News was founded in 2021 and grew quickly. The Poynter Institute, a nonprofit journalism organization that covers media happenings around the country, suggested last year that the Trust had gotten out ahead of its skis as it amassed 64 local newspapers in three states and grew into a $50 million media business. In the first half of 2025, it sold more than 20 of its Colorado newspapers to a for-profit media company and closed two others. The Trust’s Maine subsidiary cut print production and laid people off, according to Poynter. However, those moves were initiated before Wiley started as CEO, following the abrupt departure of co-founder Elizabeth Hansen Shapiro. Poynter reported last year that Wiley said “he’s focused on stabilizing the nonprofit and its current newspapers
before turning to acquiring more publications.” That more purposeful approach may be reflected in the Trust’s recent acquisitions. The Vermont Community Newspaper Group is just one of three over the past year — its Georgia subsidiary in July acquired the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer and The Macon Telegraph from the McClatchy Media Company. It is unclear what the Trust’s venture into Vermont signals for the rest of the Green Mountain State’s media landscape.
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Local angle The Stowe Reporter purchased the News & Citizen in 2015 and, after purchasing the three Chittenden County titles, changed the parent company name to the Vermont Community Newspaper Group in 2019. The pandemic was an era of turbulence for the papers. Its sixth title, the Waterbury Record, was almost immediately shuttered in 2020, just weeks after Vermont declared a state of emergency. Two months later, the company laid off roughly a third of its newsroom and its production department, amid a precipitous drop in advertising revenue — local businesses were also bleeding money during the pandemic. The papers stabilized and continued publication, but they continued to, as a collective, lose money or barely break even. The one bright spot in advertisement revenue has been the Stowe Guide magazine, in some years carrying the rest of the titles on its twice-yearly, glossy, 250-page back. After publisher and editor Greg Popa retired at the end of 2024, the company formed a five-person management team to help guide operational decisions. The team’s first major move was to drastically change the delivery model for some of the weeklies, largely eschewing the U.S. Postal Service and relying on a beefed-up rack delivery system. After a year under the management team model, majority owner Miller hinted at, and then gradually insisted on, exploring the nonprofit route. The three owners address the changes, and reiterate the newspapers’ continuing mission, in an opinion piece this week (see page 5). “Newspapers like this are the lifeblood of the communities we serve. They mark births and marriages, deaths and departures, challenges and successes, transgressions and triumphs,” they write. “Most importantly, they help us to understand where we live so we may best chart our future.” Disclosure: Tommy Gardner is editor of the Vermont Community Newspaper Group and a member of its management team. He knew about talks with the National Trust for Local News, but was not part of the process.
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COMMUNITY Community Notes Walk, Saturday, Sept. 26, 8-9 a.m. Birders of all experience levels are invited to join a monthly monitoring walk through the museum’s trails, forest and meadow to record local bird species.
September Age Well luncheon St. Catherine of Siena and Age Well will offer a luncheon Tuesday, Sept. 8, for anyone 60 or older at St. Catherine of Siena Parish Hall, 72 Church St., Shelburne. Check-in is at 11:30 a.m., with lunch served at noon. The suggested donation is $7. The menu includes baked chicken breast with Hawaiian pineapple sauce, black beans and rice, corn with peppers, an apple and milk. Registration is required by Sept. 3. Contact Pam Niarchos at 802-662-5283 or pniarchos@ agewellvt.org. Tickets also are available at the Age Well office, 875 Roosevelt Highway, Suite 210, Colchester.
Vermont students take stage for Constitution Day
Robert Cray Band brings the blues to Barre The Robert Cray Band, led by the five-time Grammy winner and Blues Hall of Fame member, opens the Barre Opera House season, Saturday, Sept. 19, 7 p.m. Dave Keller will open the show. Tickets are $32-$65, plus fees. Information and tickets are available at barreoperahouse.org or by calling 802-476-8188.
‘Unplowed Realities’ Mad River Valley Arts in Waitsfield will present “Unplowed Realities,” Sept. 10 through Nov. 19. The exhibition examines the interconnected lives of farms,
PHOTO BY MELANIE LEMAHIEU
The Robert Cray Band is to play the blues at the Barre Opera House Sept. 19.
land, animals and communities as small farmers face growing economic and environmental pressures. Joan O’Neal’s portraits of dairy cows invite reflection on empathy, labor and shared vulnerability, while George Shenk’s work explores the people and practices that sustain small farms. Together, the artists ask viewers to reconsider how we value land, labor, animals and the role of care in sustaining communities.
Birds of Vermont Museum hosts flock of events The Birds of Vermont Museum, 900 Sherman Hollow Rd, Huntington, presents the following September events. • “Wings, Waters, Ways: 2026 Community Art Show,” Wednesdays-Sundays, through October. Explore how artists perceive birds, water and the ways humans interact with the natural landscape. • International Vulture Aware-
ness Day, Saturday, Sept. 5, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Celebrate these ecologically important birds and learn about the threats facing vulture populations around the world. • Counting Butterflies for Conservation: The Second Vermont Butterfly Atlas, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2 p.m. A discussion of Vermont’s butterflies and the Vermont Butterfly Atlas, followed by a field excursion. • September Bird Monitoring
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Vermont students will take center stage during a free Constitution Day celebration marking the culmination of the statewide “America 250: Expressions of Liberty” poetry and art contest, Thursday, Sept. 17, 1-2:30 p.m. at Town Hall Theater, Middlebury. Vermont Poet Laureate Bianca Stone will perform and announce winning student poets. The program will also feature readings from the Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights, music and student performances. Free and open to the public, with refreshments following the program. Information is available at townhalltheater.org.
Support your support professionals Direct Support Professionals, the people they support, families, community partners and policymakers will gather Wednesday, Sept. 9, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on the Vermont State House lawn, for a statewide morning of recognition and celebration. Held during National Direct Support Professional Recognition Week, the event honors professionals who help Vermonters with developmental disabilities live, work and thrive in their communities.
Course shows you how to compost in bear country University of Vermont Extension will offer “From Scraps to Soil,” a six-week course beginning Sept. 11 for Vermonters interested in composting food scraps while minimizing wildlife conflicts. The course combines online learning, Zoom sessions and handson workshops at community composting sites. Participants will learn from compost expert Dr. Wendy Sue Harper and Natasha Duarte of the Composting Association of Vermont. Registration is $50 for Vermont residents, including materials. The registration deadSee COMMUNITY NOTES on page 12
The Citizen • September 3, 2026 • Page 9
HOME & GARDEN A day in the life of one UVM Extension master gardener ELODIE REED CONTRIBUTOR
One Thursday in June, at 9 a.m. on the dot, a landline telephone rang in UVM’s Plant Diagnostic Clinic. Sue Stanne picked up the receiver. “UVM Extension Master Gardener Helpline,” she said. “This is Sue speaking.” On the other end, a caller from Windsor County tried to describe a displaced, overabundant and “weird” vine. Stanne suggested what might help is for the caller to go through the helpline’s online ticket system, and send a photo of the vine in question. “Our online system makes it so much easier to identify problems,” she said. Using the caller-provided photos, the Vermont Invasives website and the Extension Foundation’s “Search Extension” tool that finds science-based resources from Extension organizations across the country, and in consultation with Deb Heleba and Lisa Chouinard from UVM Extension’s Community Horticulture Programs (which includes Master Gardener) — Stanne was able to provide some answers. That vine? It was bittersweet. The caller had some pigweed and yellow rocket growing, too. For all three plants, Stanne shared more information and management tips, including hand-pulling. “Normally we might say something about solarization to smother the plant,” she said. “But this was in her garden, you can’t smother everything else.” Answering the helpline phone from 9
If it’s important to you or your community look for it in
a.m. to noon on Thursdays between April and October, then following up afterward with callers, is part of Stanne’s role in providing science-based gardening education as one of Vermont’s 442 Master Gardener volunteers. Stanne has been a master gardener since taking the certification course in 2003, and she’s personally been gardening “pretty much forever.” During her childhood, her father grew flowers, blueberries and strawberries. “You think you know something about gardening until you take the course,” Stanne said. “Then you realize how much you don’t know, but you learn.” She’s been continually learning for 23 years now. She’s received a Lifetime Achievement Award, given to master gardeners who have volunteered for 1,000 hours. Her projects have included: • Leading the gardens at the former Vermont Respite House in Williston for 13 years. • Managing a plot at the Williston Community Garden, where all the produce was donated to the Williston Community Food Shelf. • Answering any questions fellow gardeners had at the Williston Community Garden. • Tabling at local fairs, farmers markets and the Vermont Flower Show. More recently, in addition to volunteering for the Helpline, Stanne has taken on a new project: a community gardening shed at The Farm at South Village, which is an
COURTESY PHOTO
Sue Stanne is master gardener who gives science-based education on gardens to callers.
“agrihood” development in South Burlington. Along with members of the South Village Stewardship Committee, she’s set up the shed as a hyper-local resource hub. Gardeners can access donated seeds from
Harts, borrow tools, look over a provided planting schedule and get the latest inforSee GARDENER on page 11
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PHOTOS BY TYLER COHEN
Back to school Students across Champlain Valley School District are welcomed back on the first day of school last week.
The Citizen • September 3, 2026 • Page 11
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continued from page 9 mation packets tacked under the “Current problems in our garden” sign. “I’m starting to warn people about cucumber beetles,” Stanne said during an interview this summer. “And flea beetles are already here.” It’s efforts like this that make Stanne the embodiment of what the Extension Master Gardener Program values in its volunteers. That’s according to Deb Heleba, who leads the Extension Master Gardener and Vermont Master Composter programs. “Not only is she among the kindest humans I’ve met, but she is also committed to sharing her deep gardening knowledge with fellow Vermonters,” Heleba said. “We
are incredibly fortunate to have volunteers of Sue’s caliber representing UVM Extension.” Stanne said being a master gardener gives her something useful to do in her spare time. And in fielding questions about soil test results, how much compost to apply, what to do with flooded gardens and many, many more topics, she said it’s rewarding to learn enough about an issue to be able to provide some answers. “They really feel like they’re stuck on a problem, and they call in, or they put in a ticket, and realize, oh, it’s not as bad as they think,” she said. “They really appreciate being able to get the information. “
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Page 12 • September 3, 2026 • The Citizen
COMMUNITY NOTES continued from page 8
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Jay Peak Resort hosts two mountain running events
Gallery to show off Jay Peak Resort will host its annual Trail ‘Painter of Vermont’
Running Festival Sept. 5-6, followed by its first Cirque Series mountain race Sept. 26. The festival includes seven races, ranging from kids events and 5Ks to an 11-mile, 22-mile and 53.1K ultra. The Cirque Series race covers 7.1 miles and 3,044 feet of vertical gain across ski trails, service roads and alpine terrain. The race is capped at 500 runners. Information and registration details are available at jaypeakresort.com/ events.
J. Kenneth Fine Art and Atelier Frame & Design will present Painter of Vermont 1900-1955, a group exhibition featuring artists inspired by the Vermont landscape. The exhibition runs Sept. 2 through Oct. 3 at J. Kenneth Fine Art, 145 Pine Haven Shores Road, Suite 1160, Shelburne. The exhibition spans more than five decades of Vermont art, from turn-of-the-century paintings through mid-century works of the 1950s.
Story Labs elevates its film offerings
Moth StorySlam returns to Middlebury
On Sunday, Sept. 6, at 6:30 p.m., Spruce Peak Arts will host a free screening presented by Stowe Story Labs featuring the award-winning short film “The Boy with the Dinosaur Head” and the feature “Definitely Gangster.” “The Boy with the Dinosaur Head,” written by Ali Imran Zaidi, was made with a Stowe Story Labs Short Film Production Grant. “Definitely Gangster,” a family-friendly motion-capture feature, was written and directed by Stowe Story Labs alum JLee MacKenzie. A Q&A with MacKenzie will
The Moth’s nationally recognized storytelling series will return to Town Hall Theater in Middlebury Tuesday, Sept. 15, at 7 p.m. The open-mic storytelling competition will feature the theme “Nine to Five,” inviting participants to share five-minute stories about work, from first jobs and career ambitions to side hustles and workplace frustrations. Stories should have a clear beginning, middle and end. The event will be recorded, with selected stories potentially broadcast on The Moth Radio Hour. A storytelling workshop led by Vermont
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COURTESY PHOTO
J. Kenneth Fine Art and Atelier Frame & Design will present “Painter of Vermont” exhibit through Oct. 3.
producer Susanne Schmidt will be held Saturday, Sept. 12, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. Tickets for the StorySlam are $18. Seating is first come, first served.
The hills are alive with food at Trapps The von Trapp Family Lodge & Resort will host a farm-to-table dinner Saturday, Sept. 5, featuring ingredients grown and raised on the property and paired with Höpler wines and von Trapp Brewing beers. The evening begins with a 4 p.m. cocktail reception in the gardens, followed by a multi-course dinner at 5 p.m. Menu highlights include von Trapp Farmstead cheeses, watermelon salad, roasted von Trapp beef tenderloin, garden vegetables and plum galette. The $275 price includes food, beverages, taxes and gratuities. Nonalcoholic options are available. The event is limited to 100 guests. In case of inclement weather, dinner will be held in the event tent.
Pedal for Prevention Gravel Ride The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s second annual Pedal for
Prevention gravel ride will be held Saturday, Sept. 12, at Frost Beer Works in Hinesburg. Riders can choose from 20-, 30- or 45-mile routes on Vermont gravel roads. Registration includes a post-ride beer courtesy of Frost Beer Works and a raffle ticket. The first 50 registrants will receive a free pair of custom event cycling socks. Register at bikereg.com/76400?utm_source=chatgpt. com. Other upcoming AFSP events include the Burlington Out of the Darkness Walk on Oct. 17 at Veterans Memorial Park in South Burlington and Pickle for Prevention on Nov. 21 at Edge Sports & Fitness in South Burlington.
Kelly Brush Ride returns to Middlebury The 21st annual Kelly Brush Ride, powered by Union Mutual, will be held Sept. 12 at Alumni Stadium at Middlebury College, 14 Old Chapel Road. The fundraising event supports programs that help people with spinal cord injuries lead active lives and improves safety for ski racers. Participants can choose supported road routes, a 30-mile gravel route or a remote ride option available through Oct. 24.
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Horoscope September 3, 2026
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The Citizen • September 3, 2026 • Page 15
FOREST
continued from page 1 for years. The group, and the town, focuses both on recreation and forest health. Over the years, the committee developed a relationship with Fellowship of the Wheel — which maintains mountain biking trails in the forest and helped make it a destination for biking enthusiasts — while simultaneously delineating dedicated time and space for deer hunting season. The forest is also a consistent site for programs, such as the conservation committee’s mycology walk this summer, as well as daily hikes. Those recreation endeavors, Town Forest Committee Chair Pat Mainer said, have been in service to not only the community but in step with the management and health of the forest. According to Mainer, while the town has owned the forest for 90 years, it didn’t have an official committee until 2012, around the same time it started developing a dedicated management plan. As part of that management, every year, the committee arranges strategic tree harvesting. Last year, Chittenden County forester Bran-
don Benedict singled out trees on specific acres — about 5% of the total land — that were harvested this past winter. Vermont’s clear-cut farmland was largely and quickly abandoned in the last century; therefore, the state has what biologists call “evenaged” forests. In forests around the state, the trees are about the same age and the same height, creating a dense canopy that can make it more difficult for younger trees and different species to regenerate the forest. Targeted cutting, as well as tactics like inviting hunters to help manage the deer population and prevent over-browsing of young saplings and mast (tree seeds, nuts and fruits), can help the forest develop a more varied network of trees. A more varied set of species and aged trees makes a forest more resilient. “(The Hinesburg Town Forest) is really meeting the standards of the program — focusing on wood, water, wildlife and recreation, and sharing it with others,” Beland said. “Those are the big things when we’re looking at people who are
tree farmers.” Hinesburg’s investment in its forest has grown over the years. According to the Vermont Land Trust, with which the town conserves forest land, it’s one of the oldest and largest in the state. The town started with 100 acres in 1936, but according to a local story, the nexus of Hinesburg’s goes back to the 1950s. At the time, former county forester David Brynn said, the selectboard was considering selling the land. Brynn said the story that got passed down to him is that the county forester at the time, George W. C. Turner, heard about the potential sale and hopped in his car. “He drove over there and met up with the selectboard members, and said, ‘You don’t know what’s coming down the pike. Maybe someday this will be an important piece of land for the town, and it’s not costing you anything. Why don’t you just hold on to it?’ And I think, largely because of his urging, they didn’t sell it,” Brynn said. That night, Brynn said, Turner died in his sleep, making preserving the town forest his dying act.
“He loved that piece of land,” Brynn said. The land grew in the intervening years. In 2022, the town conserved more than 1,000 acres
with the Vermont Land Trust. Now, Hinesburg Town Forest will be entered to in a contest for the regional and national title of Tree Farmer of the year.
Career Opportunities City of Burlington
PARALLEL JUSTICE PROGRAM SPECIALIST This position provides trauma-informed, victim-centered advocacy, case management, resource coordination, referral, and restorative justice services for individuals impacted by crime and harm throughout Chittenden County. The position will also work with non-criminal community referrals, in collaboration with agency staff and community partners. This position exercises a high degree of independence, initiative, and professional judgment and will support program volunteers. While primarily based at the South Burlington CCCJC office, the position will also spend time in the Williston office and the Essex Police Department office. Salary: $65,936.00-$73,486.40 and comprehensive benets
COMMUNICATIONS, VOLUNTEER AND OPERATIONS SPECIALIST This position serves as a key ambassador for the Chittenden County Community Justice Center (CCCJC), helping create a welcoming, organized, and community-centered environment for participants, volunteers, partners, and visitors. This position coordinates volunteer recruitment, engagement, and support; maintains communications and outreach activities; and provides front-office, operational, and administrative support to ensure the efficient day-to-day functioning of the CCCJC. The Specialist also coordinates communications activities, maintains communication platforms, supports volunteer engagement, and assists with community outreach under the direction of CCCJC leadership. Salary: $55,244.80-$61,505.60 and comprehensive benets
4/29/2019
To learn more and to apply: governmentjobs.com/careers/burlingtonvt 3.5 x 2 AD for Shelburne News & The Citizen PHOTO BY SOPHIA BALUNEK
THE CITY OF BURLINGTON IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER AND
ENCOURAGES APPLICANTS WHO CAN CONTRIBUTE TO OUR GROWING DIVERSITY. 24 Consecutive Weeks $18.00/week for both papers $432.00 The Hinesburg Town Forest spans over 1,000 acres and has 18 miles of recreation paths.
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Page 16 • September 3, 2026 • The Citizen
HONORING OUR
VETERANS
On Nov. 5, The Citizen will be honored to publish photos of the men and women who have unselfishly served our country. Page 14 • November 10, 2022 • Shelburne News
HONORING The Veterans Among Us
If you have a veteran who you would like us to honor, please mail or email your photo and the following information by
ROBERT F. WHITEMAN, SR. U.S. Air Force E6 1959-1979
LORENZO P. BUSHWAY, SR. April 28, 1960 Active Duty: Feb. 1953-Feb. 1955
ROBERT S. BORKOWSKI Sergeant (SFC) Medic VT Army National Guard 1982-2005
PVT. HENRI DE MARNE & PVT. CLAUDE DE MARNE Henri de Marne and his brother Claude, Patton’s 3rd army, WW2, 1944 following French resistance before liberation.
PETER PAUL ZUK U.S. Marine Corps 1st Lieutenant Served 1955-57 Japan and Korea
DAVID F. LELAND United States Navy Lieutenant WWII 1944-1955
ROLAND W. WILBUR United States Army T/4, 14th Armored Division WW II 1942-46
PERRY D. MELVIN U.S. Navy, HM 3 3rd Marine Regiment Vietnam War
BRUCE NUNZIATA 1st Infantry Vietnam 1967-68
THOMAS C. GIBSON Royal Air Force Squadron Leader 1947-1952, Malaya
MICHAEL W. LYNCH U.S. Navy, Lt.J.G. Civil Engineer Corp 1967-1975 VT Air Guard 1976-1979
PETER GADUE US Army and VTARNG 1970-2009
SHANNON B. BLAKE U.S. Army, Major 1986-2006 Afghanistan War Veteran
DAVID WINER Corporal, Marine Corps March 1944-July 1946 Peleliu Campaign
WILLIAM A. READ JR. U.S. Navy Commander Gunnery Instructor Patrol Squadron 101 Southwest Pacific
THURSDAY, OCT. 29 Please include: • Name of veteran • Branch of service • Rank • Years of service • Town of residence
EMAIL PHOTOS AND TEXT TO: stephanie@shelburnenews.com OR MAIL TO: The Citizen, P.O. Box 489, Stowe, VT 05672 If you have submitted a photo in a previous year, you do not need to resubmit.