Grange Notes for April 16, 2016 by Tim Swartz
We’re showing off our Grange and all that happens here on MAY 7th so we want to clean up first!
April 30th: Clean up the Hall!
Every year, the Hall needs a clean-up party, to get rid of the dust and dirt that accumulates from a year’s worth of activities. Join me, Merry and other volunteers from 2:30 to 5:00 on Saturday–to clean windows, screens, venetian blinds, and more. We have a cleaning service that cleans our bathrooms and kitchen every 2 weeks, but the upstairs Hall and the other rooms always seem to need some TLC.
We will bring a couple of vacuums, rags, window-cleaning supplies, and gloves–please bring more supplies if you can, and join us! Please let me know if you can come.
If you’d like to stay for the dance in the evening, we can offer a shower and a couple of beds for napping in Northfield Falls, too!
Besides being an important help for the Grange, work parties like this are a chance to get to know other Grange members and friends, in a different way than meetings, dances or classes–only the best folks show up to work!
We will bring a couple of vacuums, rags, window-cleaning supplies, and gloves–please bring more supplies if you can, and join us! Please let me know if you can come.
If you’d like to stay for the dance in the evening, we can offer a shower and a couple of beds for napping in Northfield Falls, too!
Besides being an important help for the Grange, work parties like this are a chance to get to know other Grange members and friends, in a different way than meetings, dances or classes–only the best folks show up to work!
Here are some pictures from last year’s clean-up to inspire you!
The sun was “in the Hall” on April 2nd
Our “Solar Fair” didn’t actually have that much sunshine coming in the windows…but it brought people from the Grange and the wider Central VT community together with 3 solar contractors (Suncommon, Real Goods Solar and Catamount Solar), plus a rep from VSECU’s “VGreen” low-interest loan program. While I can’t say we were crowded, we had a steady stream of seriously interested people who got to interview a range of solar and money-saving options. Vendors were pleased, too–and wanted to know when we will hold another! Many thanks to Jody Pettersen and Merry Shernock, who put this event together. And don’t forget to admire the floor covers purchased by the Friends, which allow us to welcome everyone without worrying about dirty shoes damaging our still new (2012) dance floor!
April Grange meeting welcomes new members
We officially brought into our membership 3 new folks at our meeting after the Solar Fair. Liz Benjamin, Erin Barry and Joe Blakely have signed up in the last few months, and are all actively participating already. Our “Obligation Ceremony” was an opportunity for us to welcome them to the Grange, and to begin hearing about Grange traditions. We were joined by Errol Briggs, former VT State Grange Master, who observed our meeting, and brought his considerable knowledge of the Grange. He gave a much better explanation of the roots and meaning of the “Grange Salutation” which we use at our meetings, which expresses our ideals of Faith, Hope, Charity and Fidelity.
Brother Errol is visible in the bottom right photo above, which shows him with Merry, who has completed her second album of Grange pictures and the story of our Grange. This one focuses on the last couple of years, getting the grant to rebuild the bathrooms and the fire exits, and gaining tax exemption from Berlin. The book also features a photo of Friends Chair Patty Giavara paying back the interest free loan which the State Grange gave us to cover construction costs until the grant was approved–we couldn’t have done it without them!
The meeting also featured our usual discussions of current legislative events, plus reports on Grange contests, agricultural matters, health concerns, and Hall improvements. Here are some of the highlights:
Northern Grain Growers’ Conference: Alison Forrest and Bill Chidsey attended this event recently, and reported on the keynote speech by Bill McKibben, plus workshops on soil health, grits-tasting (8 varieties!), seed banks (growing varieties which can thrive in VT), and bread-baking using wild yeast and sourdough starter.
State Grange contests: Marj Power reported on “Lecturers’ Contests” that this year will feature various artistic categories, ranging from writing skits to photography in various categories, to book reports, to essay and creative writing, and many more. These, plus contests for produce, home economics and many more are listed in the State Grange “Program Book”, available on-line at: https://www.vtstategrange.org/
Health Concerns: Phyllis Skinner brought her usual batch of interesting information about the “state of the nation” in health–for example, research that only 2.7% of Americans follow health guidelines on exercise and healthy eating.
Brother Errol is visible in the bottom right photo above, which shows him with Merry, who has completed her second album of Grange pictures and the story of our Grange. This one focuses on the last couple of years, getting the grant to rebuild the bathrooms and the fire exits, and gaining tax exemption from Berlin. The book also features a photo of Friends Chair Patty Giavara paying back the interest free loan which the State Grange gave us to cover construction costs until the grant was approved–we couldn’t have done it without them!
The meeting also featured our usual discussions of current legislative events, plus reports on Grange contests, agricultural matters, health concerns, and Hall improvements. Here are some of the highlights:
Northern Grain Growers’ Conference: Alison Forrest and Bill Chidsey attended this event recently, and reported on the keynote speech by Bill McKibben, plus workshops on soil health, grits-tasting (8 varieties!), seed banks (growing varieties which can thrive in VT), and bread-baking using wild yeast and sourdough starter.
State Grange contests: Marj Power reported on “Lecturers’ Contests” that this year will feature various artistic categories, ranging from writing skits to photography in various categories, to book reports, to essay and creative writing, and many more. These, plus contests for produce, home economics and many more are listed in the State Grange “Program Book”, available on-line at: https://www.vtstategrange.org/
Health Concerns: Phyllis Skinner brought her usual batch of interesting information about the “state of the nation” in health–for example, research that only 2.7% of Americans follow health guidelines on exercise and healthy eating.
Open House on May 7th–a “Taste of the Grange” for all our neighbors!
Our plan for an open house was suggested originally by one of our Berlin allies, Selectboard member Jeremy Hansen, as a way to celebrate our gaining the exemption from Berlin property taxes–and to emphasize our interest in working more with our Berlin neighbors as well as the whole “Capitol region”.
So here is the plan thus far:
3:00: Open House begins–we will have “info tables” from various users, including “Kids Trade ‘N’ Play”, Wholeshare, Montpelier Contra Dance Exchange, possible acoustical improvements for the Hall, and “DIY Weddings”, to show the possibilities for use of our venue for economical, fun weddings, receptions, etc. There will be some pizza to sample, made by Farmers’ Market vendor whose wedding happened at the Hall recently!
Starting at 3:30: Our “talent show” will begin. MC for the event will be Carl Etnier, a long-time contra-dancer, and also a radio host on WGDR. Performers either confirmed or still being confirmed include:
African Drumming with Jesse Rosenfield
Afro-Caribbean dancing
Morris Dancing
Scottish Dancing
Kids activities
Sing-a-long
If you are part of a Grange activity, and would like to be part of the show, or
We’ll finish up with a potluck dinner, anchored by:
Homemade Mac ‘n’ Cheese
Baked Beans
A huge salad
Plus of course the delicious dishes brought by all of the readers who we hope will join us!
Our goal will be to welcome people who have never been here before–or maybe have not been back for years. We hope that many of the current happy users of the Hall will join us to welcome them!
So here is the plan thus far:
3:00: Open House begins–we will have “info tables” from various users, including “Kids Trade ‘N’ Play”, Wholeshare, Montpelier Contra Dance Exchange, possible acoustical improvements for the Hall, and “DIY Weddings”, to show the possibilities for use of our venue for economical, fun weddings, receptions, etc. There will be some pizza to sample, made by Farmers’ Market vendor whose wedding happened at the Hall recently!
Starting at 3:30: Our “talent show” will begin. MC for the event will be Carl Etnier, a long-time contra-dancer, and also a radio host on WGDR. Performers either confirmed or still being confirmed include:
African Drumming with Jesse Rosenfield
Afro-Caribbean dancing
Morris Dancing
Scottish Dancing
Kids activities
Sing-a-long
If you are part of a Grange activity, and would like to be part of the show, or
We’ll finish up with a potluck dinner, anchored by:
Homemade Mac ‘n’ Cheese
Baked Beans
A huge salad
Plus of course the delicious dishes brought by all of the readers who we hope will join us!
Our goal will be to welcome people who have never been here before–or maybe have not been back for years. We hope that many of the current happy users of the Hall will join us to welcome them!
Kayak as a Grange activity?
Perhaps because the weather has (again) turned to sunny spring, we’d like to know if others want to join Merry and me in the Friends of the Winooski River “Onion River Race and Ramble” on June 5th. Check out the web-page link for more info: https://www.winooskiriver.org/
People can choose to “race” or “ramble”, get shuttle service back to the start to pick up your vehicle, and get a “Light lunch at the Richmond Grange”! Let me know if you want to join us–good exercise in a beautiful environment!
People can choose to “race” or “ramble”, get shuttle service back to the start to pick up your vehicle, and get a “Light lunch at the Richmond Grange”! Let me know if you want to join us–good exercise in a beautiful environment!