Grange Notes by Tim Swartz for July 4, 2016

Join local dancers for a special free dance party, with a potluck dinner beforehand, on Saturday 7/9!

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, June 26, 2016

June 4th meeting sets more rental polices, painting starts, and we consider siding for the North end

1. No previous reservation for the time period requested exists (we don’t want to jeopardize our existing rentals).
2. The rental is for a Berlin resident, or an organization based in Berlin (not just that a single member is a Berlin resident)
3. The event is for less than approximately 50 people (we feel that larger events imply larger costs on the Grange Hall)
4. The event does not include alcohol being served (we have a pre-existing specific policy about required insurance and liability requirements for alcohol-serving events)

Bring a pair of socks to the CCG this summer. Or tell us you will make a big BOX to put them in. Here’s why:

The National Grange Session will be in Washington DC in November. Every year they have Christmas Trees that are usually decorated with hats, mittens and scarves from all over the country. This year, they’re collecting socks. VT Granges have promised to contribute 400 pairs of socks. Any kind of sock, and size of sock. Store bought socks or hand made socks. Red, green, blue, brown, multi colored, toe socks – anything!!! Lets “Sock it to Washington!”

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, June 3, 2016

June 4th meeting, welcoming even more new members, and dressing up the Grange with better paint

Looking for a way to make a difference?
We can help you with that!    The Grange Hall improvements have made a big difference in our utility and comfort for our loyal users, so we are working on some improvements to our appearance, to make us even more attractive.  We know there are people who would rather work on projects than come to Grange meetings–and we are not standing in your way!  Get in touch if you can help with any of these projects:
Interior painting: 
We already have some volunteers who are planning to repaint the main Hall walls inside.   Watch for  better, livelier color soon!
Exterior painting:   as you can see above, scraping has commenced on the west side.   Joe Blakely, trained in safe removal of lead paint, with the assistance of Miguel Perez, who will officially become a Grange member at our June meeting has begun to remove loose paint areas.   Following “Essential Maintenance Practices”, we are going to incrementally deal with peeling and damaged paint, doing a thorough job of scraping, bleaching (to kill mildew), priming and painting locally to improve long-term paint adhesion.  We are not planning to paint the whole exterior–better to concentrate on small areas.
We are also thinking about putting vinyl siding on the North end, which has the worst peeling problems–come to our June meeting to discuss–do you have experience putting up siding?  Would you like to organize doing this part of the project?
Dead tree by the driveway:  as you drive up, take a look at the dead tree-trunk leaning toward you…is there someone with chainsaw who could take this down?
New fire exit–larger roof needed:  when we had a new fire exit built, we didn’t include a new roof.    I often can stop by and shovel that concrete pad–but not always.    A lower, and longer roof would keep the snow that slides from the roof out of the way of the fire door.  We can buy materials, if you can do the job!
Acoustic equipment & research:  we are working with John Harris, an engineer with experience in acoustics, to get some data on the “basic reverberation” of the Hall–as a first step in preparing to make changes.    Our goal is to zero in on the cheapest and most cost-effective ways to improve the clarity of meetings, contra-dance calling, and more–while not “de-improving” the sound of the Hall for singers.
We are looking for help with equipment for measurements:
–an octave equalizer or band pass filter?
–an amp and a speaker
and for researching sound absorption for the painted Homasote wall panels that cover our walls and ceiling.
Can you help us?  Give me a call, and I’ll put you in touch with John!

Grange Notes by Grange Master Tim Swartz, May 15, 2016
  

Here are some photos….
of the action on May 7th, when we offered a “Taste of the Grange”–a really diverse offering:

June 4th Meeting:  welcoming new members, making transitions

As usual, we will hold our last regular Grange meeting for the summer–we skip regular meetings for July and August, while people are busy with Vermont’s all-t0o-brief summer activities.
Before we take a break, we have important business to transact:
More new members:   on top of the 3 new Grange members we welcomed in April, we have 2 more–Katherine Blakely and Miguel Angel Perez.   We would be happy to have other Spanish-speaking attendees to make Miguel welcome.  We’ll be performing the Grange “Obligation” ceremony to bring Katherine and Miguel into our “Order of the Patrons of Husbandry”.
Making plans for painting:   New member Joe Blakely and even newer member Miguel Perez have volunteered to safely scrape loose paint from one wall of the Hall–Joe is trained in removal of lead paint.  We’re looking for a few people to follow with spot-sanding, sealing, priming and painting to get our exterior looking better.   And there is discussion of using vinyl siding on the North end to cover the badly peeling paint there.   Let us know if you can pitch in–and come and talk about the planning, too.
Welcoming Berlin uses for the Hall means setting up a few rules for how we distribute the free use of the Hall which we promised when we asked for exemption from property taxes.   Merry Shernock, our Rental Agent has consulted with various Grangers and our insurance agent, and has come up with a proposed policy–for example, we don’t feel it is appropriate to give free rental to anyone who would use the Grange Hall for commercial purposes.   We will need to discuss and adopt this type of policy as we move forward with rentals for Berlin organizations and families.
Making transitions:   We are looking for a new Treasurer for the Grange, as long-serving former Master Les Skinner has been filling that post since relinquishing the Master’s chair in 2006.  Les has decided that at age 89 he is ready to take a break from Grange office.   So we need someone to “learn the ropes” from Les–please spread the word!
Similarly, we are getting ready for a “changing of the guard” in the important office of Musician.  This position has been filled by Charles Mayhood for several years.  Either at the June meeting, or more officially in the Fall when we hold elections, we expect to welcome Matt Nunnelly–those who attended the Open House were treated to Matt’s piano-playing, as he accompanied the sing-alongs led by Merry.
So please join us, starting at 4:30 on Saturday, June 4th!  We’ll be following the “precepts of our Order”, which call for Grange members and officers to exemplify high standards of discussion, financial responsibility and (as important) enjoying our feeling of community by joining in song and music while we “take care of business”.
(and don’t forget the potluck dinner starting by 6:30–another Grange tradition valued by all of us!)

    

  

More pictures from the Open House!

Top left above:  Stuart Paton demonstrates the Taiko drumming which he teaches on Thursday evenings at the Hall.   He has been playing drums at the Hall for 30 years.  He got his start here playing with the Afro-Caribbean dancers who have been there equally long.
Top middle above:  Stuart teaches a volunteer class of many ages.

Top right above:  Members of the “Upscale Quartet” perform; they are part of the Barretones, our newest regular tenant, who will be rehearsing their award-winning Barbershop Quartet singing on Monday evening, starting in June.
Bottom left above:  Alanna and Tossy dance to music played by Adina on the Balaphone–they are all part of the West African Dance and Drumming class which meets on Tuesday evenings.
Bottom right above:  Merry leads a vigorous sing-a-long of old favorites, ranging from Irving Berlin to Woody Guthrie to “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”.
Left below: A healthy crew of eaters regains their strength–eating potluck dishes, plus potato salad and carrot sticks made by Chef Alison Forrest (visible in the background, as well as playing drums above) from vegetables donated by Pete’s Greens, along with a huge pan of Mac ‘n’ Cheese.   Notice our great floor covers protecting our dance floor!
Middle below:  Jody Pettersen and Bob from Vet’s Place in Northfield are among the clean-up crew.
Right below:  Liz Benjamin finishes the clean-up–she worked with Alison to make the food too!