Capital City Grange

Celebrate! 5th Saturday House Party on Jan. 30!

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Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help), January 16, 2021

SPECIAL EDITION!   Celebrate our generous donors with a free, online concert & community gathering!

Thanks so much for the help!

The Grange community has come through in a big way to support the Grange and the Hall in the hard times we have been enduring.  The end-of-year fundraising campaign brought generous contributions to help support the Grange while rentals can’t be allowed.
In celebration, the Friends are sponsoring a free, online
5th Saturday House Party
on
Saturday, January 30th, 7:30 to 9:00!
       Starting at 7:30, you’ll have a chance to connect directly with other folks who are attending, using Zoom breakout rooms!  Tell all your friends to join too!
From 8:00 to 9:00, local musicians will perform; all of them are regulars at the contra dances held at the Grange.

  • Aaron Marcus Montpelier-based piano, keyboard, accordion and banjo player will perform–likely with their piano, Berta, shown in the photo below!
  • Joanne Garton, also a Montpelier resident, plays fiddle–and maybe do some Scottish dancing!  Joanne & Aaron often play together, as The Turning Stile.
  • Jaige Trudell & Adam Broome, Quebec residents, will send pre-recorded performances.   Jaige’s fiddle and Adam’s guitar and jaw-harp are also dance favorites at the Grange, where they perform as Maivish!
No charge for this event!   All you have to do is RSVP to:  fccghvt@gmail.com to get the event link–OR join on the FCCGH YouTube channel that evening!  Please note that the breakout rooms will not be available on the YouTube channel–that will start at 8:00.

        P.S.–the FCCGH is paying these fine musicians, plus Zoom and Sound tech Oliver Scanlon to put on this event!  Much planning and behind the scenes work by Joanne has gone into this event, as well.   We are grateful to everyone for joining us to celebrate generosity and this new year!

If the Jan. 30th date seems later than you expected…
We did originally plan to put on this concert on Jan. 23rd, but decided to delay it until longer after the inauguration of President Joe Biden.   We hope that all will go well on Jan. 20, providing the 59th peaceful transfer of power in American history.

A couple of Christmas notes from the Grange

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Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help), December 26, 2020

Gleaning a new use for the Hall–in these quiet times

As you all know, we are not renting out our Grange Hall, following VT Public Health guidelines.   I am, though, pleased to pass on the arrangement that Merry Shernock, our Hall Rental Agent (and Treasurer) has made with Allison Levin, Executive Director of Community Harvest of Central VT.  We are donating use of the main Hall to CHVC, which will be using it as a place to process gleaned and recovered produce, for donation to disadvantaged community members.   In this way, the organization keeps farm surplus from going to waste, and makes fresh local food available to more of the community.
Merry and Allison have agreed that only 3-5 volunteers will work at the Hall, well spread out and masked.   Since our beautiful maple floor has been completely covered with mats for over 2 months, clean-up will be easy after their work sessions.   Doing the physical work of processing the produce means that they don’t expect to need to turn up the heat, unless it is super-cold.
The Grange is very happy to support this volunteer-driven organization that works hard to build community and reduce food waste.   Especially in these hard times when many VT families are facing food insecurity, their work is vital.  You can learn much more on their website:  www.communityharvestVT.org.  They organize volunteers into crews to harvest vegetables, berries, corn, squash, or whatever farmers can’t use for commercial sale.  Then, they process, sort, clean, organize it and deliver it to local food shelves, senior meal sites and other locations where people who need food can get it.  If you can’t volunteer, you can also make a donation to support their work!

January 2nd Grange meeting:  Virtually together again

Grange members (and all our other Grange friends) will join via Zoom to transact Grange business, discuss the current plans for Grange hall use (almost none), look at our finances (slow but still solvent) and plan for the Berlin Property Tax exemption that will be voted on, March 2nd, 2021!
As usual in odd-numbered months, our Grange meeting will run from 4:30 to 6:00 PM on Saturday, via Zoom:

Join Zoom Meeting

http://www.zoom.us/j/91894580413

Meeting ID 918 9458 0413

(no passcode needed)
To join by phone for audio:  646 558 8656

One of the discussions we will certainly have regards our need to campaign for renewal of the Grange’s 5-year exemption from Town of Berlin property taxes which was voted in March 2016.   This will expire!…unless we can get a renewal voted in.   We have contacted the Town and confirmed that there will be no in-person Town Meeting in 2021; all Town Articles will be voted on by Australian Ballot.  This means that we need to publicize the advantages that the existence of the Grange Hall brings to Berlin, and the minimal cost to the Town and its citizens.  We’ve started drafting a report for inclusion in the Town Report, to support our request.
Since 2016, (at least up until rentals largely ended in March of 2020) we have provided free rentals to Berlin Town residents and Berlin organizations–about 100!  These have been much appreciated by the organizers and attendees.  Uses have included family celebrations–birthday parties, memorial services, wedding rehearsals, baby showers, retirement parties–plus Town government meetings, potluck dinners, church meetings, Farm Bureau meetings, and Weston Mobile Home Park Resident Owned Co-op meetings.  The Grange Hall offers a community gathering place that Berlin would not otherwise have–and our volunteer organization provides it.
A small group of us have been brainstorming ways to spread the word about this upcoming vote and the Grange Hall, and to advocate for support from Berlin voters.   At the meeting, we will present a variety of specific tasks that our members and supporters can pitch in on to help this campaign.   We need YOU!–and any friends and family you have in Berlin–to help us!  Join us on Jan. 2 to learn more, and keep reading the Grange Notes!

End of the Year fundraising campaign by the
Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall…

…quite a bit of a mouthful, no doubt, but we are very grateful to have them as part of the Grange “family”.   Every year for the past several, their end-of-year campaign has raised money for Grange improvements, including the “new” dance floor installed in 2012, the basement fire exit improvements in 2014, the new lower level bathrooms in 2015.  Earlier this year, we completed the major insulation, waterproofing and renovation of the lower level, all funded by donations to the Friends and grants they have received.
This year, the fundraising is centered on getting the Grange through the current Coronavirus shut-down in rental income.   The letters that went out from the Friends to their mailing list of donors have been very generously answered–so far, over $5,700 in donations!  We are hoping for more–but this should get us through until sufficient progress is made in vaccinations to allow groups to start to congregate, dances to begin again, and other events to rebuild.   We hope to not have to deplete our savings account, and be ready to accommodate rental groups in our beautiful Hall and even-more-beautiful lower level!
If the Friends don’t have you on the mailing list for the appeal, please send an email to me, or direct to fccghvt@gmail.com and we’ll be happy to send one out!  Or–you can make a donation online, anytime, at:  http://capitalcitygrange.org/donate/.  Either way, you’ll get a reply to document the tax-deductible contribution you have made, and big thanks!   Any size of donation is very welcome.  We want to be here to welcome everyone back once it is safe!
This fundraiser has built on the success of the online concert with Pete’s Posse, which the Contra Dance Umbrella sponsored in September.  That raised about $5,300!   Since the Friends have far surpassed their goal of $4,000 more, they will sponsor another online concert, on January 23, 2021, featuring The Turning Stile–the duo of Joanne Garton and Aaron Marcus, joined by talented guest artists!
We can get through this together, pooling our resources to keep the Grange and the Hall going as the vital community resources which they have been for so many years.

Marj Power obituary–remembering our friend

The following obituary appeared recently in the Times-Argus, submitted by Marj’s children, who wanted to share the story of Marj’s life and accomplishments with the public, as well as her friends in the Grange community:

MONTPELIER – Marjorie J. Power (née Fisher), 78, died July 26, 2020, at McClure Miller Respite House in Colchester, of Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

She was born November 20, 1941 in Philadelphia, the only child of Fred and Mary Fisher. During her childhood, her cousins served as surrogate siblings, especially during summers which were spent together on Lake Fairlee, Vt. She attended Philadelphia High School for Girls, 1959, and studied economics and history at McGill University in Montreal, B.A. 1963, and then at the University of London.

In England, Marj married Michael Power, and they settled in Wallasey, near Liverpool, having two children, Ben and Pinky. While she lived in England, she taught school, stayed home with her children, and attended law school. She was also active in folk singing, peace, justice, and nuclear disarmament protest, and sewing and machine knitting.

After divorce, she returned to Vermont with her children. There, she attended Vermont Law School, J.D. 1984, and was an attorney for the State of Vermont for over 20 years, working for the Public Service Board and the Division of Rate Setting.

Ever invested in her community, Marj served on the Montpelier City Council from 1993 to 1997 and was elected a Justice of the Peace in 2016. Politically passionate, she ran for local and state office on the Vermont Progressive Party ticket and was known to spend hours at the Legislature knitting as she kept her eye on proceedings. In particular, she was an outspoken advocate for single payer healthcare, most recently with Vermont Health Care for All, having lived happily under such a system in the U.K. She was a vigorous, long-standing member of many organizations: the Older Women’s League; the Barre Historical Society, with whom she helped save and run the Socialist Labor Party Hall; the Capital City Grange, for contra dancing, community building, and as Grange Lecturer; Everybody Wins, where she shared her love of reading with elementary school students; the Council of Vermont Elders; and the Onion River Exchange.

Her hobbies included her treasured contra dancing—she danced around the country with the goal of dancing in all fifty states; technology, computers, and gadgetry of all kinds, giving regular tech advice to her children on what she called “mother’s help line”; weightlifting at the Montpelier Senior Center, a program she called “strong women live forever”; and needlework, especially knitting, for which she won prizes at State and New England levels and clothed babies as far away as Germany. In later years, she didn’t hesitate to drive the 1500 miles to Kansas to visit her grandchildren. She always laughed about strangers who treated her like a little old lady, then were shocked by her strength and stamina.

She is survived by her son, Benjamin Power, of New York, N.Y., and daughter, Rebecca Power, of Baldwin City, Ks., beloved cousins, and her grandchildren, Isla and Simon Ellis.

A private service will be held for family at Post Mills Cemetery and a public memorial service at the Old Labor Hall in Barre, Vt. when gatherings are allowed. Memorial contributions may be made to the Barre Historical Society for The Old Labor Hall, PO‌ Box 496, Barre,‌ VT 05641 or to the Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall to support the contra dance community, PO Box 192, Northfield Falls, VT 05664. We invite you to share your memories of Marj by visiting https://www.facebook.com/groups/marjoriepower.

December meeting report:

December 5th, an “even-numbered month” featured a brief, Zoom Grange Meeting and then a program from 5 to 6 PM.   Carl Etnier, Lecturer and Zoom-master, did his best to make sure everyone was heard.
The meeting reviewed the Treasurer’s report, and discussed the few Hall uses before the end of November shut-down of get-togethers at our Hall and elsewhere.  We had some discussion of planning for the vote on extension of our Berlin tax exemption, as well.
An in-house Program:  Grange lecturer Carl Etnier provided his own program this month, giving an overview of “COVID and Central VT–how it has affected us, and how have we responded?”  Carl is the host of his own radio program on WGDR (91.1 FM in Plainfield) and WGDH (91.7 in Hardwick).  He is also a journalist for the Montpelier Bridge.  He  has had a “privileged perch” to watch the response of local, state and federal governments to deal with the Coronavirus pandemic, plus the efforts of local organizations, communities and individuals.
Carl had run a local news program on the radio station, and revived it to report on COVID in March of 2020, as the only programmer in-studio.  He  has since relocated his studio to his own house.   The news program was supported by Corporation for Public Broadcasting funding until the end of May, with daily reports and a full hour once a week.
Carl reported on the initial “scramble to communicate” by the VT Public Health Dept. and the rest of the state government.   This evolved into a regular and very well-regarded press conference which is broadcast on VPR, every Tuesday and Friday.  The “Dashboard” on the vermont.gov website, plus daily Facebook Live events by Senator Tim Ashe, and 2-3 times/week FB Live events hosted by Lieut. Gov. David Zuckerman provided additional points of view on the pandemic and efforts to resist it.
Among many changes in regular life, the Legislature allowed Town Selectboards to hold remote meetings, and held remote hearings and proceedings itself.  While this has been awkward for many, it has also allowed some new input from people who could participate by Zoom but who could not necessarily have made it to the State House in normal times.
Carl mentioned several examples of people and organizations that re-purposed themselves in response to pandemic needs:  Erin Aguayo, who has worked with the “Days for Girls” organization making washable menstrual products for girls and women across the world, switched her local volunteer group to making face-masks.  Also, a rabies vaccine clinic in  Hardwick relocated to being mostly outdoors during the summer months, to keep providing services safely.  Farmers’ Markets, originally banned to reduce gatherings were able to switch to online pre-order and pickup systems, before adjusting to be able to provide safe, spread-out in-person markets by about mid-May.  Many local businesses greatly increased online purchases–including Morse Farm–“as busy as Christmas!”–reported by co-owner Burr Morse.  Musicians started providing online concerts, with payment by donation or online ticketing.
Other public services were modified too–local buses kept running with no-cost rides, limited capacity, and riders entering at the front and leaving through a rear door.
Some people were able to return to small-scale “normal” operation for a while this summer, before resurgence in the fall. Carl cited musician and music producer Colin McCaffrey, who recorded enough musicians in summertime to give him plenty to work on processing the recordings in the winter, when he can’t have people in the studio.
Many towns have created “Mutual Aid” organizations, volunteers who coordinate social services and the work of a wider network of people.   One example is the Groton VT Social Services Committee, another is the Northfield VT Mutual Aid committee.  The latter has, among other things, set up a mask-making group, which produced well over 3,000 masks and gave them away to community members during the spring and summer months.
Carl reported also on the “solution” found to the problems of homelessness in Vermont.   State government has put many homeless people into hotel and motel rooms, vacant due to COVID.   This provides public health protection by reducing crowded homeless shelters, and letting individuals and families socially distance themselves.   But it is clear that this is not a long-term solution–when travel starts up again, the hotel/motel rooms will no longer be available.
Grange member and Chaplain Alison Forrest, head of the Huntington Elementary Food service reported on that town’s effort to expand provision of food beyond the school.   This has included feeding all kids 18 and younger, in school or not, including 1 & 2 year-olds, at no cost, and extending community food provisions through the summer months.  Federal funding through the COVID relief funds supported this through the end of the year (editors’ note:  as I write this on Christmas day, we still don’t know if funding will be extended!).   Alison and her crew figured out how to send out “Meal Kits” instead of individually packed portions, greatly reducing packaging and waste–this required a change in regulations, negotiated through VT-wide discussions.  Her school kitchen was providing 500 meals a week during the summer, and about 1,000 per week when school is in session.
Overall, this program and discussion showed how many ways we have changed organizations and their operations to meet our needs–and the impact this has had on so many of us.  We know that even with all the ingenuity and volunteer spirit Vermonters have shown, that many more people now face food and economic insecurity, with no clear end in sight.  We all hope that vaccination will eventually allow resumption of a more predictable and secure way of living, but until then we will need to follow the limitations of activity and requirements for wearing masks and keeping separate that the medical professionals advise.

Grange and VT in the time of COVID–Zoom in!

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Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help), December 1, 2020

No surprise:  the 2nd wave of COVID  is hitting the Grange, as it is everywhere

We all get lots of news about the Coronavirus pandemic, so I expect the news that the Grange is not allowing in-person events at our Hall will not be a shock.  Following the decision by the VT Dept. of Public Health to ban all meetings of people from different households, which is based on information about the patterns of spread of the virus, we have closed the Grange Hall.
Just as when we closed the Hall in mid-March, our long-term renters (the few who were still meeting) have been very understanding about the public health needs which led to this.
The last Grange Notes I sent out reported on the State Grange session, held on Oct. 18th–we were very lucky that it was scheduled then, as it would be completely impossible now.   There is no record of any cases resulting from the meeting–the State Grange kept contact-tracing info on all attendees.
So:  what happens next?   The next Grange meeting, this Saturday, Dec. 5th at 4:30 will be solely by Zoom, as we did in the spring (see the info below).  We will continue to monitor the changing health situation in Vermont, and in the rest of the country, and to follow VT guidelines to reduce risks as much as possible.
As everyone probably knows, since March we have greatly reduced income due to the Coronavirus restrictions.  We are humbled by the number of and value of donations which Grange community members have given to us to help us survive this unprecedented crisis.  See below for info on the current fundraising drive by the Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall!

December 5th meeting & program:  back to virtual

As described above, we have closed the Hall to all get-togethers, so we are giving up on the “hybrid” meetings we’ve used for the past few months.
As usual in even-numbered months, we will have a brief Grange meeting from 4:30 to 5:00 PM on Saturday, via Zoom.
And from 5:00 to 6:00 PM, we’ll have a Grange program, presented by our Lecturer, Carl Etnier.   This month,Carl is stepping forward to report on “How Central Vermont Confronted–and was Confronted by–the Pandemic”.     Here’s Carl’s description:

WGDR radio host and local journalist Carl Etnier has interviewed a wide cross section of central Vermonters during the pandemic, from homeless people housed in hotels by the state to doctors to small business owners to a health care worker who contracted Covid-19 on the job. He’ll reflect on how the pandemic has struck central Vermont, how people here have responded, and what that says about resilience for future disruptive events.
Carl has hosted the “Relocalizing Vermont” radio show on WGDR for quite a few years.  This gives him a unique perspective on the attitudes and concerns of Central VT.   For more info on the weekly show, check out http://www.wgdr.org/relocalizingvermont/, and listen in on Thursday mornings, 9:00 to 10:30!

Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall…

…is a bit of a mouthful, no doubt, but we’re happy to have them!   At our November meeting, FCCGH’s Chair, Patty Giavara told us about the beginning of the Annual Appeal which the Friends have sent out for the last 5 years or so.   This year, the thrust of the appeal is to keep the Grange going by providing funds to meet the financial costs which keep our Hall going.  “Friends” board member Joanne Garton has written a wonderful letter describing the future we all look forward to, when our Hall can return to being “a hub for the local community, when the noises, aromas, warmth and energy will return with gusto.”
Every year, the FCCGH sends an appeal letter to people who have contributed before, and anyone else we can think of who might be able to donate to this non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization.   As you can probably tell, donations you make are tax-deductible, to the maximum provided by law!
If the Friends don’t have you on the mailing list for the appeal, please send an email to me, or direct to fccghvt@gmail.com and we’ll be happy to send one out!  Or–you can make a donation online, anytime, at:  http://capitalcitygrange.org/donate/.  Either way, you’ll get a reply to document the tax-deductible contribution you have made, and big thanks!   Any size of donation is very welcome.  We want to be here to welcome everyone back once it is safe!
This fundraiser will build on the success of the online concert with Pete’s Posse, which the Contra Dance Umbrella sponsored in September.  That raised about $5,300!   If the Friends can meet their goal of $4,000 more, they will sponsor another online concert, on January 23, 2021, featuring The Turning Stile–the duo of Joanne Garton and Aaron Marcus, joined by talented guest artists!
We can get through this together, pooling our resources to keep the Grange and the Hall going as the vital community resources which they have been for so many years.

November meeting report:

        Suddenly, November 7th feels like the “good old days”…we were able to meet in person (a small group) and via Zoom (with Zoom participants projected on the big screen in the Hall).   Carl Etnier, Lecturer and Zoom-master, did his best to make sure everyone was heard.
We had a good discussion of the then-current status of the Grange Hall rentals, best ways to manage costs during the coming winter, and our current financial status.  We have been doing OK for the past several months, with greatly reduced rentals.   The lower costs of summer and early autumn have helped us–but the calendar tells us that won’t last forever.  We have arranged with our snow-plowing/sanding contractor (SR-Services of Montpelier) to plow only the driveway and a small area around the Hall, to provide access for emergency vehicles–of course we hope that is not needed, but it’s prudent to prepare for worst case scenarios.
We gratefully acknowledged the unexpected generous payment which the VT State Grange made for use of the Hall for the State Session in October.  We were quite willing to donate the use, especially since the VT State Grange has helped us by providing no-interest construction loans for large projects, but the VSG chose to send us $500 as a donation!  We will use it wisely!
We also passed a couple of motions:  one to authorize loaning of Grange items like plastic plates, folding tables, etc. to non-profit, non-partisan local organizations, when deemed appropriate.   The other is to allow our volunteer Grange Rental Agent, Merry Shernock to pay a limited amount for occasional cleaning services, while we are not paying for regular cleanings.
We also had a good discussion of how we can request the extension of the 5-year exemption from property taxes by the Town of Berlin.   Our current exemption was voted on at the Town Meeting in March, 2016, and needs to be renewed in 2021, to help us survive.   The exemption removed the burden of (then) about $7,000 we paid annually in property tax.   During this time, we have been able to invest in many improvements in our Grange Hall, as well as keeping solvent in our annual budgeting, while providing low rental rates for the great range of cultural, personal and community events which uses our Hall.  We have also provided more than the 2 “Free Rentals” per month,for Berlin residents and organizations, which we promised when we asked for the exemption.  Berlin is still figuring out what “Town Meeting 2021” will look like, given that pandemic-based safety precautions will certainly be in place.  We will keep in touch as information becomes more clear.
We enjoyed having input from a guest:  Linda Sanderson of the Milton VT Grange joined us(via Zoom) at the invitation of Merry.   She told us about the arrangement their Grange has used:  their Hall is leased to the Town of Milton for $1.00 per year.   The Town covers the expenses, and subleases the Hall for a variety of uses.  The Grange is allowed free use for meetings and fundraising events.   To see pictures and more info, see the Milton Town website page.  It is always interesting to see how other organizations manage similar problems.   Milton’s Grange has the same problems of low numbers of active Grange members that we and many other Granges experience.   Linda has been active in the State Grange for many years, as well as her local Milton Grange, and has served in several VT State Grange offices.

From State Grange Session to tax questions

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Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help), October 29, 2020

Every year, the VT State Grange holds a meeting…

…which usually lasts 2+ days, and is held at the Capitol Plaza hotel.   Like everything else this year. the 2020 event was different!  Our Grange Hall hosted a one-day version of the meeting, with layout and procedures changed to provide maximum safety for all concerned.
Attendance was only about 50 people, all attendees wore masks pretty much all the time, seating was spaced for 6 foot “social distance”, and delegates and State officers were careful to sanitize and wash hands, table-tops and the coffee-maker’s handle.   The exhaust fans over the stage ran the whole time, with windows opened at the top at the other end of the Hall to allow fresh air to come in.  I was very pleased with the positive attitude which the State Grange approached us, and the way we worked through best practices when doing the planning.  State Grange officers worked with me on Friday to unroll the floor mats, and to set up chairs and officers’ “stations”.  Former State Master Errol Briggs had a 6′ stick to make sure spacing was good–and didn’t have to use it on anyone!   The attendance was well below the VT State guidelines which allow up to 50% of the Fire Marshal occupancy limit.   For our upstairs Hall, that is normally 129 people with chairs and tables, so 50% would be about 65.
The business of the State Session was taken care of pretty much as usual–but in an expedited manner.   Committees were designated to deal with proposed Resolutions, and most “met” virtually before the session to examine and make recommendations about adopting them.   Results about all the resolutions are posted on our website:  http://capitalcitygrange.org/2020-vt-state-grange-resolutions-results/
We also elected officers, as is done every 2 years.   Instead of Grange delegates parading in lines up and down the Hall to publicly place voting slips in baskets on a central table, the Stewards walked around and picked up ballots from everyone.  By doing this, we avoided unnecessary exposure to each other.   This is a good example of how we worked to reduce risk for all of us.
The afternoon session (after a break for everyone to eat their own “brown-bag” lunches brought from home) included a Memorial service to honor 27 VSG members who died during the past year–including Marj Power and Les Skinner from our Grange–see the nearby photo showing the VSG Chaplain Jenny Nelson lighting candles as part of the service.
Other work done included approval of the annual budget, approval of committee reports for the last year, and other “housekeeping” which every organization needs to do.   We were all pleased to fit this into “only” about 7 hours of meeting, instead of spread over the usual 2+ days.   While we will all be happy to meet without masks and “social distance” when we can, it felt good to pull this off.
I can also report that VSG members who had not seen our Hall were impressed!  Many have visited before for committee meetings we have hosted–most of those had not seen our renovated lower level, and they all admired those changes!   We have appreciated the help which the State Grange has given us, by providing no-interest construction loans for this and other projects.   The VSG also gave us a 15-year mortgage loan for our 2008 new entrance and new bathroom (on the main floor) project! We were also pleased to receive a significant donation from the State Grange for use of the Hall, which we can certainly use this year.  We appreciate all the help we get from the VSG!

November 7th meeting:  planning to renew our property tax exemption

Back in 2016, our Grange worked out an exemption from property taxes from the Town of Berlin, where our Hall is located.   At the Town Meeting that year, we presented our desire to be an even better community resource for the Town.  As part of that, we committed to offering at least 2 “free rentals” of our Hall per month, for Berlin residents and Berlin organizations.  We explained the totally non-profit, volunteer-run nature of the Grange, and described the many non-profit, family and community events we host (in normal times!).   We were very pleased when the Town Meeting agreed to give us a 5-year exemption–but of course that time period will expire next March.
Before the exemption, our taxes ran about $7,000 per year.  Since we got the exemption, we have been able to break even much more easily–and have also been able to invest money in maintaining and improving the Hall.   Some of the projects which the Grange itself was able to afford include replacement of the electric storage-tank water heater with an on-demand one, a long-overdue pumping of the septic tank, driveway repairs and other work.    And we were able to contribute $5,000 to the Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall, which planned, financed and managed the renovation of our lower level which took place this past winter.   I don’t think any of these would have been possible without the exemption!
We have also built ties with the Berlin Town government and many Berlin residents.    Among the many free rentals have been Town Planning committee meetings and hearings held at our Hall, Town potlucks and socials, Berlin Farmers’ potlucks, a Berlin church group having potluck dinners, many private birthday parties, baby showers, Berlin Volunteer fire department dinners and many others as well.  We are especially pleased to have hosted the organizational meetings for the residents of the Weston Mobile Home park just south of us on Rt. 12, who joined together to form a “Resident-Owned-Co-op” to purchase the park following the devastation of Tropical Storm Irene.   The Board of the ROC  has continued to meet at our Hall since that was set up–at no cost since they are Berlin residents!   In total, I counted 103 “Berlin free rentals” on our website Calendar from March of 2016 to March of 2020….when everything pretty much stopped.
Our Grange meeting on Nov. 7th, from 4:30 to 6:00 PM will focus on ways to spread the word to Berlin residents and Town government about how we have served the community, and how much we deserve to have the exemption continued.  Certainly our survival during this period of very low rentals would have been close to impossible if we had to deal with tax payments as well!   It remains to be seen what shape the Berlin Town Meeting will take next March.  If you have friends or relations in Berlin, and can contact them to urge their support, that will really help!   Anyone who wants more information can contact me directly:  swartztim15@gmail.com.
This will be among the issues we’ll discuss; we’ll be happy to welcome you in person at the Grange Hall–or by Zoom!   The Zoom link & meeting ID are posted on the Grange website Calendar:  http://capitalcitygrange.org/event/430-600-grange-meeting-main-hall/2020-11-07/.
We wish we could segue to a potluck dinner following this meeting, but that will not be safe for a good while more, based on the current public health situation.  We will keep you posted on when this changes, as soon as we can!   For now, please join us in obeying VT guidelines, and let’s flatten that curve, again!

Marj’s skirts, etc. move to new homes!

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Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help), October 5, 2020

What does it take to stand up to bad behavior?

         Catherine Sanderson, the presenter for our “even-numbered month Grange Program” on October 3rd was a riveting speaker, reporting on research into why it can be so hard to “speak up”, even when you know you should.   Psychology professor Sanderson (from Amherst College) began by telling us how she got interested–hearing about a tragic incident from her son’s freshman year in college, when another student died after falling and hitting his head, and students tried to make him comfortable, rather than calling 911 for  help.   This event, now over 10 years ago, inspired her to research the reasons for the “psychology of inaction”, and how to move past those limits.
Using her own experiments and those of other psychologists, she has identified several factors that can get in the way of doing the right thing:
  1. Ambiguity:  Not knowing just what you should do–which can also be strongly influenced by the inaction of those around you.
  2. Who is responsible?:  Especially in crowd situations, it’s easier to wait for someone “official” to take the lead, someone who supposedly knows the right thing to do.
  3. Considerable costs:  There can be significant (non-monetary) costs that can hold you back–including safety fears, consequences for your professional status, and rejection by your social group.
       So what can you do to overcome these “reasons” for inaction, when you want to do the right thing?  Catherine listed several strategies to pursue–not just in the moment, but over the long-term, to bolster your resolve and build a support system.  Here are a few of them:
  1. Training and practice:  Various groups put on role-playing training in ways to speak up in difficult situations, like objecting to people telling racially insensitive jokes.  Trying out hard conversations in supportive groups gets us used to speaking up. Here in central VT, SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice is one such group.
  2. Foster empathy:  Learning about the real costs to persecuted groups can make you appreciate how much smaller the risk of speaking up is, compared to the harm that may be allowed to happen.   Catherine cited the famous poem by Pastor Martin Niemoller starting “First they came…” as an object lesson (follow the link to learn more).
  3. Ethical leaders:  When it’s appropriate, bring in people in your community–or in the wider social world–who are leaders of a team, a community, or other social group.   In some cases, they who can influence others who may not listen to you.   Sometimes it takes someone who is already an acknowledged authority to change someone else’s mind.
  4. Find a friend:  fostering a social group that supports one another in the importance of speaking up for social justice, or other causes will help you understand you are not alone.
  5. Change the culture:  This is the ultimate goal–and these changes can happen quickly, even starting with a small group.   Humans are strongly influenced by the attitudes they perceive around them–Catharine used the example of campaigns that say “most of your neighbors vote”, rather than saying “it’s your civic duty to vote”.  The much larger influence of the former approach has been well-researched!
        My notes and summary only give some of the bare bones–the presentation was much richer with anecdotes, descriptions of ingenious research to tease out actual human behaviors, and her personal experiences.   We had a Q&A session at the end, in which we brought up our own experiences and discussed them with Catherine and each other, illustrating many of the principles in more detail.  I strongly urge you to look at her website, SandersonSpeaking to learn more about her, see her TEDX talk, her book about “Turning Bystanders into Moral Rebels” and much more.
       In addition, Prof. Sanderson will be giving a similar talk for the VT Humanities Council on this coming Wednesday, Oct. 7th at 7:00 PM, via Zoom again; you can learn more and register for this free event at the VT Humanities website listing.  Her talk will be called “Merely Bystanders:  the Psychology of Courage and Inaction”, and we recommend you register, watch and listen!
And watch for the next Grange Program, on Dec. 5th–we’ll send out word about the next interesting speaker presented by Grange Lecturer Carl Etnier!

Kids Trade & Play:  This Saturday!   Sign up for your “shopping” slot!

       October 10th, from 9:30 to 11:30 AM will bring the next “Coronavirus” edition of the very popular kids’ clothing, toys and gear exchange.  As she did in September, organizer Erin Barry and her volunteers will allow 10 people at a time into the basement of the Grange Hall, entering via the “Old Entrance” at the south end, and leaving via the fire exit in the NW corner.  Please go to the online signup for your 1/2 hour “shopping” slot–it’s already starting to fill up!
We will have windows open in the basement, and recommend that shoppers who come wear a sweater or coat–we need to keep fresh air moving to reduce the chances of the virus hanging around.   Please send just one shopper per family if possible, to reduce congestion!
Last month, we were able to serve about 40 people, if people sign up for all the slots we can at least repeat that–we know this is a great part of the support system that families need in these hard times.   The organizers ask for a suggested donation of $3.00 per family, but no one will be turned away!  There are many bins of clothing & shoes for every size from infant to Junior 12 waiting for you to select your favorites.
We will accept clothes donations on Saturday, but Erin says please refrain from bringing toys and gear this month–we are overloaded, and want to focus on the warm clothing that families need for the cold weather.   You can contact Erin, learn about the loyal crew of volunteers who work with her, and the exchange in general on their Facebook page.

Auction closes–memories shared and money raised

       The online auction of Marj Power’s dance skirts, T-shirts and many other items closed last Wednesday, Sept. 30th.   Many thanks to the many people who bid on the items, which raised over $1,500!   After expenses, the total will be split between the Grange and the Old Labor Hall.
Only one skirt and one T-shirt remained un-bid-on at the end, and satisfied customers came and picked up all the items on which they posted winning bids this last Saturday.   If anyone wants the last couple of items (see below), offer a donation, and we’ll see if we can make an arrangement!
Many thanks yet again to the many people who worked to get this together, especially lead auctioneers Elizabeth Templeton and Ruth Ruttenberg, who managed the website postings and the distribution from the Grange Old Entrance porch.   Ruth is completing the accounting and division of the proceeds, deducting website, Paypal and credit card fees.   The funds raised will be a big help for the 2 organizations for which Marj put in so many volunteer hours and her boundless energy over the years.   Equally important is the sharing of our memories of working with, dancing with and being inspired by Marj–and getting Marj’s dance skirts into the hands of people who will make sure her memory will be back on the dance floor as soon as it is safe!

Contact Us

Tim Swartz, President, CCG#469
802-225-8921 (cell)
grangepresident@capitalcitygrange.org

 

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