Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) September 29, 2022

Saturday:  our first Program of the fall–Feel Good Action

We will have a brief and informal Grange meeting from 4:30 to 5:00 (see below), followed by a Zoom visit and discussion with Andy Forrest of “Feel Good Action”, about their work encouraging younger folks to take part in voting, elections and issues.
Andy will describe how the organization works with micro-influencers on social media to “Turn Viewers into Voters”.  In 2020, they worked to encourage young voters in particular, and they are continuing that work now.  It’s work people in any state can be part of, because social media crosses state lines.  Here’s a link to the Feel Good Action website, and to their Facebook page.
Andy Forrest, who is based in Seattle will appear via Zoom on the big screen in the Grange Hall, and also in your home if you can’t make it to the program in person.   Here is the info:

Passcode: 989050

If Andy’s surname sounds familiar, it’s because he’s the brother of our Grange’s Chaplain, Alison Forrest!  We know he is a community-minded person who fits in with the Grange, because he helped to dig the trench to bring electrical power to the Grange sign, when that was new in 2014!

Short Grange meeting

• Resolutions for the State Grange annual session on Oct. 14-16.  Copies are available on the  Grange website:  2022 Resolutions.    I have gotten feedback from a few people already after the Sept. 17 meeting.   I’m eager to hear from others, please check them out and either discuss with us at the meeting, or send opinions to:  swartztim15@gmail.com.
• Our bank accounts are currently with the VT State Employees Credit Union (VSECU), which is proposing a merger with the New England Federal Credit Union (NEFCU).  Treasurer Merry Shernock will be seeking opinions on how we should vote on the merger.
• Heating season has started!   This will be our first full season with the pellet furnace which we installed last spring, with major help from a low-interest loan from the VT State Grange, and a very generous large donation from an anonymous member of the Grange community.  As usual, we only make progress with involvement by a large group of supporters and fellow workers.

Community Potluck dinner follows the meeting!

As always, a Grange meeting in our Hall is always followed by a potluck dinner at 6:00 PM, where we welcome anyone who shows up, and share whatever we’ve all brought.  Dishes vary widely, ranging from chips ‘n’ dip to casseroles to roasted meats to South Asian dals to potato salad, to breads, to brownies and pies, cookies, rolls, cider, or whatever else shows up!    If you’re coming to the contra dance that starts at 8:00, you might find other familiar faces!
We hold the potlucks in the lower level, with windows open and the Room Air Filter Boxes running to keep the air circulating and filtered–we know that masks won’t be worn while eating–though we support anyone who wants to wear one at the Grange Hall.  Hope you will join us!

A few more pictures from the successful fundraiser!

As I said above, the Grange only succeeds with the help of lots of people taking part.   Below are some more pictures from the Sept. 3rd finale of the Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall and Montpelier Contra Dance annual “Challenge Fundraiser”.  These were taken by long-time dancer and Grange supporter Jonathan Blake!  That’s him on the ladder in the bottom photo.
Many thanks to all the people who donated to the cause, including those who purchased the beautiful houseplants grown by Rob Nichols for the fundraiser!

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) September 13, 2022

Meeting the Challenge!   The dance community comes through again

As it  has every year since it started, the Montpelier Contra Dance Challenge Fundraiser succeeded in gathering contributions from the dance community, a total of $2,000 to match the “challenge” amount pre-pledged by about 10 other generous dancers.   This means that the Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall have a total of $4,000 more,to help pay for major improvements to the Hall!
Many thanks to all the donors, in amounts large and small, to the Montpelier Contra Dance committee for organizing the events and finding the “challengers”, to the people who made cupcakes, cookies and other goodies for the outdoor “dessert potluck” at the break, and to FCCGH Chair Patty Giavara, who bought ice cream sandwiches and popsicles for the potluck!  All of these items were enjoyed.
We also say a special thank-you to Rob Nichols, who grew beautiful house-plants to sell at Farmhouse Flowers and at the celebration dance.   He raised several hundred dollars for the fundraiser!
We also thank Pete’s Posse, and Nils Fredland, for speaking out to urge dancers to contribute, donating some of their pay for the night’s music and calling to the cause, and for being long-time supporters of the Grange and the Friends.
As you can see, this fundraising success was a real team effort.   The Grange and the Hall are important part of the lives of so many people, and they are clearly appreciated by a large number of people, who were willing to reach into their wallets and give to help out.
For more information on the Friends, the projects they have planned, fundraised for and project-managed along with the Grange, go to the “Support the Hall” tab on the Grange website, and check out any of the pages on that tab.  And–if you weren’t able to donate before, you can still do so there!   The FCCGH is a 501(c)(3) charity non-profit, so you might get a tax deduction too!

Kicking off the fall, with the Grange September meeting this Saturday!

• Discussing the Berlin Selectboard’s decision to keep charging us the Education property tax this year, and how we can survive that stress.
• Looking over the Resolutions proposed for the October State Grange session, and deciding who will go there to represent us.  To get a PDF of the Resolutions, click on over to:  https://capitalcitygrange.org/2022-vt-state-grange-resolutions/
• Going over finances as we head into winter with our still-new wood-pellet furnace–including repaying the loan from the VT State Grange which helped us purchase it.
• Looking over plans for the platform/wheelchair lift project, and how they will fit in our schedule for the winter.

Community Potluck dinner follows the meeting!

Gardening at the Grange:  another way to help!

Our Talented Grange Community

Are you interested in history, and learning about what has actually gone on in Central Vermont in years past?    We are happy to recommend a talk by local genealogist, historian and author Maudean Neill.   Maudean is also a member of the Montpelier Church of Christ, which has met every Sunday at the Grange Hall for decades.  Maudean wrote the book whose cover is pictured below after finding a photo of Klansmen gathering in Montpelier in 1927.  She will be speaking about her research, her book and the history she uncovered at the Montpelier Senior Activities Center, at 58 Barre St., on Wednesday , Sept. 28, at 1:30 PM, sponsored by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.

And from the same hard-working family, thanks are due again to Lewis Neill!

A week or so ago, Merry Shernock (Treasurer and Rental Agent) came to the Grange Hall, and found Lewis Neill, who is Maudean’s husband, using a pickax to make a water-bar and trench across the driveway on the Rt. 12 side of the Grange Hall.   This will help reduce the water that flows onto the top of the driveway.   Lewis is, I’m pretty sure, 91 years old.
Lewis has been doing maintenance work inside and outside the Grange Hall for decades.   In 2007, he single-handedly dug out the rusted out culvert under the top end of the driveway and replaced it with a new one, plus a silt-catcher.   Of course, he was only about 76 then.
Kudos to Lewis for his dedication.   And if we needed any other illustration of how much we need younger folks to pitch in, I couldn’t make up a better example!   As a mere 71-year-old, I know I don’t match up with him in this area. 

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) August 21, 2022

Meeting at 3:00
Concert at 4:00
Potluck at 5:30
Who could ask for anything more?

We are hoping for a good turnout for this FREE concert, and the associated festivities!   We know the price is right, and we know both the concert and the potluck will be tasteful…
All the information about the concert is on the Grange website calendar here, including the musical pieces on the program; we’ve gotten the piano tuned so we’ll be at our best.
We hope you will join us at 3:00 PM for the Grange meeting as well as coming to the concert.  This will be an informal gathering, but we will get an update on the finances and status of the Grange, the property tax bill we did not expect to get from Berlin, the Champlain Valley Fair exhibit, and our need for a new Grange Secretary.   We’ll be meeting in the lower level, while David Feurzeig and his helpers set up in the Main Hall.
The potluck will be in the lower level as well, using the Grange’s selection of vintage china, melamine, flatware and more–we avoid disposables!   Make your favorite dish to bring, or pick up something on the way–ice cream?   Chips ‘n’ salsa?   Surprise us!  We’ll all have a rich variety of choices.

Champlain Valley Fair–preview the “rough draft” of our display

I’ve been working my way through the many pictures I’ve accumulated, showing the many uses of the Grange for community groups and community service.  We’ll be setting up the computer and monitor (the latter donated by generous Grange member Charles Mayhood) to show the ones I’ve selected in a slideshow–if any of you have great pictures you’d like me to include, send them my way!
Alison Forrest has volunteered to bake another bread-sculpture version of the Grange sheaf-of-wheat emblem, and I’m starting to decorate the tri-fold display board with more info about the Grange.  If anyone can help improve it, we’re ready for more help.
All of this will be set up in the VT State Grange exhibit at the Champlain Valley Fair in Essex Junction on Friday, Aug. 26th, and will be up until September 4th, the Sunday of Labor Day weekend.   Stop by if you get a chance to go to the Fair!   We can always use more folks to staff the VSG exhibit–and get free Fair parking and admission in return for a 5-hour shift.

The “Challenge Fundraiser” is underway–with plants!

Anyone who’s been around the Grange for a while knows that we need the support of the community of Hall users, as well as active, involved Grange members.    The Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall is our “fundraising arm”, as well as providing project management and grant-writing help.  Working with the Montpelier Contra Dance, the FCCGH challenges the dance community that loves the Hall, plus everyone else, to match $2,000 in contributions pledged by a group of especially generous donors during the month of August.  The fundraising efforts will climax at the Montpelier Contra Dance on Sept. 3rd–Saturday of Labor Day weekend–which will be extra festive, and feature a “dessert potluck”–outside this year.
Each year, also Rob Nichols–a dedicated contra dancer and Hall supporter–makes his hand-raised, beautiful house-plants available in return for donations.    He’ll bring a small selection to the Hall to inspire contra-dancers to donate at dances on August 20th and the big finale on Sept. 3–but his plants will also be available at Farmhouse Flowers, in Moretown on Rt. 100B.   We appreciate Farmhouse Flowers helping the Grange in this way–proceeds from the plant sales go to this fundraiser!   For directions and more info about them, click the link!
To donate online to this fundraiser, simply click this  Donate link, which will take you to the Grange website page and a simple Paypal donation button.   There are also descriptions of the major projects the Friends have helped us accomplish–and our “wish list” for future ones.  Your donations will not be wasted!  The Grange, the Friends and the Montpelier Contra Dance committee are all-volunteer, working together to maintain and improve this community Hall for everyone’s benefit.

Mark your calendars:   Pete’s Posse will play their farewell event at the Grange!

Vermont music-lovers, including many contra dancers have enjoyed the music of Pete’s Posse for many years.   We are sorry to announce that the Posse will soon be no more–but very honored that they are willing to play their last gig for the Montpelier Contra Dance on Saturday, Sept. 3rd.
The Posse, shown below playing when the Contra Dance had a musical “float” in the July 3rd Montpelier Parade (with a troupe of intrepid dancers following), consists of Oliver Scanlon, Pete Sutherland and Tristan Henderson.  Pete and Oliver continue to perform together, but since Tristan has moved to Canada, the Trio has–unfortunately for music lovers–come to an end.
But!   Don’t miss their Reunion Concert on Friday evening, Sept. 2 at Farmhouse Flowers (see above), and on Saturday evening their Contra Dance Reunion for the Montpelier Contra Dance with Nils Fredland calling!   This will be the celebratory final event for the Challenge Fundraiser, when we hope to go “over the top” to meet our goal!  It will also be the Farewell event for the Posse, long-time supporters of the Grange and the Montpelier Contra Dance.

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) August 10, 2022

Champlain Valley Fair–we’re going to be there again! And we need some help!

Pictured below is the display we put together for last year’s Capital City Grange entry in the VT State Grange display area.  While we won a 3rd Place ribbon in the competition, we’d like to improve our presentation.  Besides the pictures of Grange activities, we’d like to include a slideshow of images, plus even a video to be shown on a display monitor.   Generous Grange member Charles Mayhood has offered to loan us a 29″ monitor, and we can use the laptop I purchased for Grange use to run it.
         What we could really use is someone who has put together this sort of digital display, and could even make a “video tour” of our beautiful Grange Hall.   We have a DVD video version of an 8mm film that was made while the Hall was being built in 1951/52 that could be integrated.   My computer skills are not up to doing all of this!    I can provide lots of pictures (you’ve seen many of them in the Grange Notes of the past), and am happy to work with someone with the computer skills to make this an impressive compilation of images. If we can add captions to the photos, that will really help–and yours truly has no experience in this work.  Please email me at this link:  Tim Swartz if you can help out!
The display needs to be ready for setup by August 26th; the CVF will be open from that afternoon through Sept. 4th.  We also need to help staff the VT Grange display area, to welcome visitors who want to get an idea about what a Grange is, and what they do.   Please email me if you would like to staff a shift during that time–you get free admission and free parking as well!   There are lots of other things to look at and take part in at the fair–learn more at:  champlainvalleyfair.org.

Job Offer

After about 30 years of service as Secretary for the Capital City Grange, our good friend Charles Martin has finally decided to hang up his laptop, and retire from this office.  We thank him for all he has done for us and for the Worcester “North Branch” Grange (where he has been Master for a long time) and for the VT State Grange (where he has served as Home Ec director and trustee for the Grange Building at the Eastern States Exposition, among many other things), and for the Town of Worcester where he and Richard DaCosta have kept the community free meals going for years.   As you can tell, he deserves some time off!
You’ll be glad to know that we are not looking for someone to fill all those pairs of shoes.   We will, though, need someone to fill the office of Secretary for our Grange.   Duties include recording minutes of Grange meetings, maintaining membership records, and sending reports to the State Grange.   Increasingly, this work is being done electronically.  This is an office that we need to fill–it’s not an “optional” one.   We’ll be holding elections for all the offices in the Grange at our September meeting (Saturday, Sept. 17th–save it on your Calendars), so please help us out.   If you are not yet a member, we will welcome you into the Grange with open arms, especially if you are willing to take on this responsibility.
We get a lot of compliments on how the Grange and the Hall have stayed active and engaged, and improving our community service over the years.   This will be a chance for you to contribute–beyond paying membership dues or giving to fundraising drives.   The pay is not great–but the rewards are big, We’ll help you learn what needs to be done.  Please contact me, Tim Swartz via email (click the link), or by phone at 802-225-8921.

Berlin Tax Update

I’m sorry to report that we are dealing with a return to defending the exemption from property tax exemption that Berlin Town voters have supported since 2016.   I won’t recap the whole history, but I will remind readers that on the Town Ballot voted on March 1st of this year, voters approved an Article we submitted, asking for “full exemption from property taxes” for the 2022 tax year.   We asked for this relief in recognition of our mission of (unpaid) community service to the Central Vermont region, and our provision of free use of the Grange Hall for Berlin residents and non-profit organizations.  Voters supported us, saying YES by a 4 to 1 margin.
As you can probably imagine, we were taken aback to receive a bill for property taxes in July.   According to the bill, the Town believes that we are still liable for Education tax payments, that we are only exempt from the Municipal portion of the property tax.   The Selectboard has made this ruling, which we were not notified about until the tax bill arrived.   The $5,710 tax payment would use up a large portion of our “rainy day” savings–the money we save to deal with unexpected expenses (like the demise of our furnace in March), as well as helping with major improvements to the Hall–like the basement renovation completed in 2020, or the platform lift we hope to install this winter, or dealing with the deteriorating paint on our siding–building essentials.
I will be meeting with the Selectboard on Monday, August 15th to discuss this, and to attempt to change their minds about their decision to continue to tax us, despite the voters’ expressed will.   We would very much like to get help from someone with legal knowledge about town governance and taxation–if you are such a person, or know someone, please get in touch with us  ASAP.

VFO for VFG

On July 9th, the VT State Grange celebrated its 150th anniversary at the VSG Grange Center in Brookfield. The VT Fiddle Orchestra played on the porch of the “Winter Building” there, in fact there were so many of them that they spilled onto the grass! Susan Reid (in the photo below, visible in the green wrap in the front center) led them in a wonderful variety of tunes, garnering applause and appreciation from the VT State Grange members who attended.
Following the music, a number of speakers, including the National Grange President, the VT State Grange Master and past State Masters from other New England states spoke about the history of the VT Grange. Later, many participants took part in the contests–throwing a rolling pin and a cast-iron frying pan (both thrown by all players), and admired a collection of Grange memorabilia, followed (of course) by a tasty dinner. It was a lot cooler that day than many since!

The “Challenge Fundraiser” is on–and that means Rob’s plant sales are too!

• Matching funds for a platform lift, to allow people with mobility difficulties, or using wheelchairs to have full access to the stage and lower levels of the Grange–we are waiting for news on our grant application for this project!
• Making Fire Marshal-required Hall improvements, like fire doors between the Main Hall and the Old Entrance foyer.
• Dealing with the deteriorating paint on our siding–we’re exploring alternatives to help the outside look better.
• Installing fresh-air ventilation for the Hall, to keep the air cleaner and to reduce CO2 buildup inside.

To celebrate the Challenge Fundraiser, Pete’s Posse will play their farewell event at the Grange!

Vermont music-lovers, including many contra dancers have enjoyed the music of Pete’s Posse for many years.   We are sorry to announce that the Posse will soon be no more–but very honored that they are willing to play their last gig for the Montpelier Contra Dance on Saturday, Sept. 3rd.
The Posse, shown below playing when the Contra Dance had a musical “float” in the July 3rd Montpelier Parade (with a troupe of intrepid dancers following), consists of Oliver Scanlon, Pete Sutherland and Tristan Henderson.  Pete and Oliver continue to perform together, but since Tristan has moved to Canada, the Trio has–unfortunately for music lovers–come to an end.
But!   Don’t miss their Reunion Concert on Friday evening, Sept. 2 at Farmhouse Flowers (see above), and on Saturday evening their Contra Dance Reunion for the Montpelier Contra Dance with Nils Fredland calling!   This will be the celebratory final event for the Challenge Fundraiser, when we hope to go “over the top” to meet our goal!  It will also be the Farewell event for the Posse, long-time supporters of the Grange and the Montpelier Contra Dance.

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) June 26, 2022

Sum-Sum-Summertime Grange

Given the July 4th weekend, and the difficulties of getting people to attend summertime meetings, we are not going to have a formal meeting in July.   Our August meeting will precede a very special attraction, though–a piano performance on Sunday, August 21st!  See below for more info on that.
We will be holding the usual monthly “Kids Trade and Play” clothing swap on July 9th–but organizer Erin Barry has announced that there will not be one in August, as she and the rest of the hard-working volunteers will get a little time off.   We hosted over 100 parents and kids at the June 11th KT&P!
This summer will also see a performance by the VT Fiddle Orchestra, which uses the Grange for rehearsals during the cooler months, at the VT State Grange 150th anniversary celebrations–more info on that below, as well.
Also this summer, the Quarry Project will be performed, after many rehearsals at the Grange, starting in 2019, with time off for COVID.  See below for info on those performances, and ways that you can be involved as a volunteer, too!
There will continue to be classes, meetings, rehearsals and much more happening at our Grange Hall, of course–check the Events Calendar on the website for specifics:  www.capitalcitygrange.org/events.

Celebrate 150 years of Grange in Vermont!

You may not know that the VT State Grange is holding it’s sesquicentennial this year–it was founded in 1872–well before our own Capital City Grange was chartered in 1914.   In a couple of weeks, the State Grange is holding a celebration, at the Vermont Grange Center in Brookfield–and everyone is invited–on the afternoon of July 9th!
The celebration will include music by the VT Fiddle Orchestra, which has rehearsed at our Grange Hall for a number of years, from 12:45 to 1:45.  They will be performing on the porch of the Winter Building, shown in the photo above; there will be a tent to provide shade to the audience.
In other buildings at the Grange Center (which is also a summer camp facility that anyone can rent), there will be historical displays, plus a chance to meet and greet VT and other Grangers.   Starting at 2:00 there will be introductions of and remarks by “Distinguished Guests”–who are rumored to include National Grange President Betsy Huber.  There will also be “Historical Presentations”, so we’ll have a chance to learn about the past history of the Grange in Vermont.
The evening will feature a banquet, followed by activities including s’mores and music by a bonfire (weather permitting of course).   I’m sorry to report that the deadline to register for the banquet (at a cost of $12) closed on Saturday 6/25–I’ve been slow getting this Grange Notes together–but you can see if you can be fitted in by emailing:  vtgrange150@outlook.com.   I was able to get my check off just in time, and would be happy to have other CCG folks join me for the afternoon and/or the dinner!   No registration needed for the free afternoon festivities.   The Grange Center is located at 308 West St., Brookfield VT 05036.

Not your average theater project!

The Quarry Project is the brainchild of Director and Choreographer Hannah Dennison, who has long stretched the boundaries of dance.  It is, of course, much more than a one-person project, utilizing the talents of videographers, photographers, a composer and band director, and an infrastructure designer as well as an ensemble of dancers/actors, among others.
This project will be performed starting on August 5th, on the flooded Wells Lamson Quarry in Websterville, VT.   Performers and audience members will be on floating rafts, as I understand.    Much more information is available on the Quarry Project 2022 website.
As I mentioned above, there are many opportunities for volunteers to help put on this remarkable event.  You can sign up to do everything from assisting at dress rehearsals in July, to helping with audience management and other tasks in August, to disassembling the “theater” following the performances.    If you are like many people who come to the Grange Hall and want to get involved, you will be interested to be part of what goes on behind the scenes.   Go to the website and click on the “Performance/Volunteers” tab for more info.

Play Every Town–in Berlin, at the Grange, Aug. 21!

If you are a piano player, and want to work against climate change, what do you do about touring?   If you are David Feuerzeig, a professor of music at UVM, who has performed around the world, from Dresden in Germany to Bangkok in Thailand, you give up flying, and pledge to only take gigs to which you can drive your electric vehicle (solar-powered charging), or take public transit.   And then you decide that the best way to spread good music around, and spread the word about your alternative path is to play a concert (free and open to the public), in every town in Vermont.   All 251 of them.  He expects it will take him until the end of 2026…
Our Grange Chaplain, Alison  Forrest  heard about this plan, and immediately recognized that this fits really well with Grange values, and with our wonderful space for music and other performances.   We reached out to David and his team, and we now have a date for the “Berlin” performance which is on his list:  Sunday, August 21st, at 4:00 PM.  It’s on the Grange Calendar too, hope you can put it on yours as well!
We have already notified the Town of Berlin that we are hosting this concert, and will be spreading the word around Central Vermont, as well as through Grange Notes reminders, please tell your friends!  More info at the Play Every Town website, of course.

Since you’re coming to the Grange Hall for the concert, please join us for a short Grange meeting beforehand!  We will meet in the lower level, starting at 3:00, to go over what’s happening at the Grange, without bothering David as he gets ready upstairs.  We’ll adjourn in time to be upstairs to greet guests for the concert.

And since you will want to enthuse about the concert with your friends, please join us for a Community Potluck afterward!   Surely you are not surprised that the Grange will take this opportunity to share everyone’s great food, following the performance!   Before the performance, you can stash your cold dishes in the refrigerator, plug in your crock-pot if that works to keep food simmering, or pop down discretely to warm something up in the oven.   Or bring a bag of chips and some dip, or some ice cream, or cookies, or whatever else you want to share!   It’s a great opportunity to meet some new folks (and some old friends).