Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) September 12, 2023

We had fun going over the top!

I hope that many of the recipients of these Grange Notes were able to join us at the “Montpelier Contra Dance” Challenge Fundraiser Finale event on Saturday, Sept. 2.    There were around 156 people at the dance, and we got generous contributions from a lot of you to get us past our goal of raising $2500 to match $2500 already pledged by “Challengers”.
Besides the excitement of collecting donations, we also decorated the Hall with many strings of holiday lights (see the photo below), and (at the break in the dance) provided ice cream and fruit popsicles, plus home-made treats from cheddar cheese to gingerbread, to gluten-free brownies for everyone–all of them popular!   Donation buckets by the snacks got filled, and people also bought quite a few of the beautiful houseplants which were grown by Rob Nichols–his last year of taking on the large task of propagating, potting, re-potting, delivering and selling them.   He’s donated all the “profits” from the plants to the fundraiser for years!  And many people stopped by the Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall table on the porch, to donate the change from their admission, or drop off a check or send money via Venmo or Paypal in support of the fundraiser.    It all added up!   By the end of the break we had gone over our target, ending up with about $5,300 in total!

Genticorum plays for a crowd of happy dancers

Caller Will Mentor took this picture from behind the band during the dance on Sept. 2.   Band members Yann Falquet, Pascal Gemme and Nicholas Williams (L to R) kept the dancers’ feet moving all evening.  It was fun to decorate the Hall for this special event, too!

Helping our town’s residents after the flood

This year, we decided that only 50% of the money raised will go into the bank account for the Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall Inc., our planning and fundraising partner organization.   Your generous contributions will help us to finance future improvements.
But this year, we also really wanted to help people who lived in mobile home parks in the Town of Berlin, where the Hall is located.   The Berlin Mobile Home Park and the River Run Manor Park were both located right next to the Stevens Branch of the Winooski River, and both were hard hit by the July flooding.
We consulted with residents of these parks, especially with the help of Corinne Cooper, one of the people whose home was destroyed in the Berlin Mobile Home Park.  Corinne works for UVM Extension’s Berlin office, and is also quite familiar with the Grange, a connection that made it easy to work with her.  She’s been a regular at our Community Potluck dinners in the past.   She has been helping other families with the recovery process after the floods, since she has knowledge and contacts with VT agencies, legislators, etc. She’s also a former Assistant Town Clerk for Berlin.
Corinne has given us a list of 41 families who owned or rented space in those two mobile home parks. We have ordered 41 Visa Gift Cards to give to these families–it’s not nearly enough to help them recover completely from this major disaster, but we hope it will help them to afford some things to make their lives better.  We believe that they can best decide what they need, and the gift cards give them access to the wide range of things they might need, from groceries to gas to winter boots and school supplies for kids.  We’re pleased we can help, even in small ways.

Grange meetings:  starting up again on Saturday 

• Financial report:   our Grange Calendar has been looking quite full–check it out!  We think that this has been helping our bank balances as we head toward the winter months.  Treasurer Merry Shernock will give us the figures.
• Hall report:  we still have a few loose ends to finish up from our big project–and the new paint and trim show us where we need to take care of some old paint that doesn’t look as good.
• Rental report:  Merry is also our Rental Agent for the Hall.  She’s done a lot of work with families and organizations to help them find the best ways to use our Hall–and she’s encouraged them to get involved as members to help us keep it in good shape, too!  She’ll report on the response.
• State Grange annual session:  every year, Grange members from around the state convene.  This year, for the first time, it will be in Middlebury.   We’ll talk about resolutions that our delegates (who wants to join me for this convention?) will have to vote on.  And we’ll be discussing the possible hosting of the 2024 Annual Session at our own Grange Hall!
• Website management changes:  since all of you reading this have been paying equally close attention to previous editions, you’ll remember that I have reported on several “rough spots” installing updates to our website recently.   I’ve been frantically trying to learn the very basics of being a “webmaster”, in the absence of any volunteers who are able and willing to monitor our site.   Recently, I’ve chosen hire a website maintenance company–come to the meeting to learn more.   I still need some help, brothers and sisters!
• Planning for the Fall programs:  Grange Lecturer Carl Etnier will discuss what his plans are for public programs for the October and December meetings.   And we’ll discuss how to get more people to come.
• Bring your own ideas about how to improve our Grange and our Community Service mission!  We are always open to suggestions, especially from people who want to put in some time and energy to make them happen.   That’s how we’ve taken on sponsoring Kids Trade & Play and Dance, Sing and Jump Around, now well-established at our Hall.   What else can happen at our Hall and in our community that the Grange can help with?

It’s Community Potluck time!

Yes, we’ll be back to monthly potluck dinners following Grange meetings (in odd-numbered months like this one) and the Grange Community Program (in even-numbered months).    Start thinking about what delectable dish you want to bring, to provide extra excitement for the potluck–or what brand of chips’n’salsa you want to grab from the store on your way over.
We’ll be holding our potlucks in the Lower Level, now accessible for ALL thanks to the wheelchair/platform lift!   We have all the dishes we’ll need in our cabinets, plus we have lots of serving utensils, so just bring your food to share, and your appetite, and join us for a tasty and social meal!

Thanks for the help at the State Grange Center

We provided an enjoyable introduction to social dancing for the VT State Grange members who stayed for the evening meal and entertainment after the VSG’s “Fall Festival” on Saturday, Sept. 9.   Our Grange is known for having a lot of fun dancing happening, so were asked to provide the entertainment, for the first time since before the pandemic.
Calling for the dance was provided by Liz Benjamin, who is also the caller for the kids & family dance series sponsored by and held at our Grange in the winter months:  Dance, Sing and Jump Around.   She called simple dances, suited to the inexperienced folks who were there.   Music was provided by fiddler Susan Reid, a fixture in the Montpelier music scene who also grew up in Randolph and Brookfield, where the State Grange center is located.  She invited Doug Lapoint (fiddle and mandolin) and Mike Fiorillo (guitar), and they played great dance music for several round and line dances, plus a waltz.   Merry Shernock and I were there to provide more experienced partners, along with Doug & Mike’s spouses.   It was a small dance, but enjoyable!
Thanks so much to the people who helped make this happen–it means a lot to the State Grange, which has been a major supporter for our Grange over the years.
P.S.:  I set up our Champlain Valley Fair display with other Granges’ exhibits for the Fall Festival, and we earned a First place blue ribbon this time–a step up from the Second place red ribbon we got at the fair.    I’ll be bringing the Grange Hall model made by Alison Forrest to our Hall, for all to see.

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) September 1, 2023

Having fun going over the top!

Our annual Challenge Fundraiser started on Aug. 5 at our outdoor barbecue, and we’re hoping to conclude it on Saturday, Sept. 1.   We call it the “Challenge” because 10 very generous donors have put up $2,500 in donations, and have challenged the Grange and contra-dance communities to match that total–or surpass it.   As of when I’m writing this, we have over $1,300 donated toward the match, so with your help we can make it!
This fundraiser is sponsored by the Montpelier Contra Dance organizing committee, and to make the finale even more fun, the Hall will be decorated with (at least) festive lights, and the committee is providing ice cream at the break in the dance (about 9:30)–plus we are welcoming “potluck treats” to be consumed at the break as well!   Feel free to bring sweet or savory items to share with the rest of the dancers, it will all be appreciated.
NO extra cost for coming to the dance!    The usual “choose your price” choices will all be available–$5 for kids or low-income folks, $12 for regular admission for adults, and $20 (or other) for “Dance Supporters”.   The admission money pays for the performers, plus rent to the Grange Hall.  Contributions are made separately.  How to contribute to the fundraiser, you ask?  We make it easy!   At the dance, there will be a donation table on the “old entrance” porch, plus there will be donation jars with the treats.  Or:  you can contribute via Paypal at any time, by clicking the Donate button on the Support the Hall/donate tab on the Grange website (read about our many projects, and scroll down to the button).  Checks:  make them out to “Friends of the Capital City Grange Hall” or just “FCCGH”, and bring them to the dance, or mail them to:  FCCGH, PO Box 192, Northfield Falls VT  05664.   All checks and Paypal donations will receive an acknowledgement from the Friends–and are tax deductible to the full extent possible, since the FCCGH is a 501(c)(3) charity!
If you want to contribute from your “Donor-Advised Fund”, please email or talk to FCCGH Chair Patty Giavara.  She can help you make donations from your IRA, too, or even help you plan a bequest from your will!

Dance Details

If you’ve never been to one of the excellent “Montpelier Contra Dance” events which have been happening at our Hall for about 40 years, this will be a great one to come to.    Calling will be Will Mentor, a long-time favorite, and the live music will be by Genticorum, an all-star band from Canada, which is known for its high-energy playing, infused with the traditional music of Quebec.
An instruction/refresher session for all will start at about 7:40; plan to come around 7:30 to change or clean your shoes (to protect our beautiful dance floor!).  You don’t need to bring a partner; people change partners for every dance.  We’re known for welcoming new dancers and integrating them into our fun-loving crowd.
We provide excellent ventilation with a large modern exhaust fan and 14 open windows.   We do not require masks, but welcome those who want to wear them–and we’ll have some to give away to dancers.   Admission is “choose your price” as noted above–no extra for this festive event!  Bring a water bottle and hydrate often is our recommendation–along with light, comfortable clothing.

Where The Money Goes

For years, the Challenge Fundraiser has supported improvements to our beloved Grange Hall.   The FCCGH has used donations from supporters to match grant funding, which has helped us accomplish major projects to make our Hall more accessible, cheaper to maintain, and more welcoming for all sorts of organizations and families.  Since March 2022, with donations and grants, we’ve invested over $73,000 to improve the Hall!   We need to refill our bank accounts so that we can plan more work for the future.  But–only 50% of the money raised will go to this purpose.
This year, our needs are not the only ones on our minds.   Everyone knows that the immense amount of rain that has fallen this summer, and the many floods that have resulted have taken a major toll on communities and families around Vermont.  While some VT cities have gotten a lot of publicity, some of the greatest impacts have hit people who lived in mobile home parks–including the Berlin Mobile Home Park and the River Run Manor Park–both in the town we call home, Berlin.
We’ve consulted with residents of these parks, and our plan is to convert the 50% of the amount raised into $50 Visa gift cards, which will be distributed to people whose homes have been condemned–some of the hardest hit folks, in other words.   This will allow them to choose where they most need to spend this money.
Please give generously to support the Grange Hall, and the people who have lost so much to the floods.

Beautiful plants for sale, too!

As he has done for years, stalwart supporter Rob Nichols has carefully grown and tended healthy and attractive indoor plants, which he is selling for the benefit of our fundraiser.   He’ll have a selection available at the “finale dance”, plus there are more for sale at Farmhouse Flowers, in Moretown on Rt. 100B.
Rob has decided that he can’t handle growing and selling these plants.  He’s planning that this year will be the last, so get your beautiful plants by Rob before they are gone!  We really appreciate all the work Rob has done for the Grange, the Hall and the contra dance–for decades! 

 Champlain Valley Fair! 

On Friday, 8/25 Alison Forrest and I assembled our 2023 exhibit, which is part of the VT State Grange’s exhibit at the CVF–which is still going on through Sunday 9/3.   I’m including some pictures below, showing the red ribbon we won for 2nd place in the Grange exhibits!
Our Grange also staffed the VSG exhibit this last Tuesday, 8/29.   Merry Shernock, I, Patty Giavara and Alison covered the two shifts, talking to people who are interested in the exhibits, giving them some idea of what a Grange is all about, and trying to get them interested in the VSG quilt raffle, the craft project (selecting fabric for “comfort pillows” to be sewn and stuffed by Grangers), and exemplifying the friendly welcome which the Grange offers to everyone who wants to take part.
During slow times, we were also able to listen in to the cooking demo taking place in the same large room–Ethiopian/Eritrean cuisine!    A friendly cook showed us how to prepare and cook Curried Chicken, Spiced Lentils and Spinach with Tomato, Jalapeno, Ginger and Garlic.   Wonderful aromas ensued, and we got to eat samples too!
We’ll need help again next year, to fabricate a new design for our exhibit, and to staff the VSG area–please talk to any of us if you’d like to take part–and get free parking and admission to the Fair for the day!

Grange model by Alison, slideshow & background by Tim

This year’s display was based on Alison’s willingness to take on building a scale model of the Grange Hall, which is the primary focus and community service project of our Grange.  Alison took the scaled drawings I have made over the years, pasted them on foamcore panels, and assembled the beautiful and detailed model you see here!   Below, there are photos of some of the details, including the dancers on the real wood floor she fabricated and her lift representation, plus the Lower Level details.
The slideshow on the screen showed photos from 15 years of Hall improvement projects, shown in less than 10 minutes!  The 2014 “new” Hall sign visible in the picture is just one of about 100 pictures.   The tri-fold background includes a (partial) list of the events we host–on a regular or one-time basis.

Dancing at the Grange Center–Sept. 9

If you want to do a little more dancing, you’ll have an opportunity to do some simple dances with VT State Grange members, a week from this Saturday at the VT State Grange Center in Brookfield.   That day is the State Grange Fall Festival, where many vegetables, needlework and other items which Grange members have cultivated and created will be displayed and judged, games will be played–and in the evening, a dinner and a dance!
Calling for the dance (which will be from about 6:30 to 8:00) will be by Liz Benjamin, a long-time dancer, and the caller and co-founder of Dance, Sing & Jump Around.   That event–for kids and their families–is a monthly favorite in the colder months at the Grange Hall.    Music will be provided by Susan Reid and members of the VT Fiddle Orchestra.   We have been able to provide dancing and music as evening entertainment several times before the COVID pandemic, and we’re looking forward to doing it again.   Both the State Grange members who take part, and those of us who’ve gone there to partner with them have found it to be fun, and we hope you will join us!   Please contact me, Tim: swartztim15@gmail.com for more info.

Charles Martin–recovering

What’s Your Answer to This Questions?

Or–what about your friends and neighbors?  All of us who read (or write) email newsletters know that having a good internet connection is an important necessity in this age.   And we also know that getting one is often a real struggle.
The National Grange–the nationwide organization which includes all the Community and State Granges like ours–is urging us to help solve connectivity problems for people in our area, by publicizing an existing program of the Federal government–the “Affordable Connectivity Program“.  People who qualify (based on income and number of people per household) can get a significant discount on monthly charges, plus up to $100 subsidy for devices to connect to the internet.
Capital City Grange would love to find a Grange member or a local citizen who would like to spearhead this effort in our area.  There’s available training, posters and handouts at no cost through the VT State Grange, and even help with grant-writing.  Get in touch, and we’ll be happy to support you!
Anyone who needs some help with internet costs can also go directly to the FCC page for this program, to get more information, application forms, etc.

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) August 18, 2023

Lots of great food, and a large and friendly crowd helped us celebrate our Hall!

We had a great turnout at the first Grange barbecue picnic since 2019–estimated as 80 to 100 people.   People came from the Grange membership, from the contra dance community, from various other organizations that use our Hall, and from surrounding Central VT towns.   It helped that 7 Days made us one of their “Top 7”!  As you’ll see in the photos below (taken by Jonathon Blake), we had a huge spread of potluck dishes, as well as the burgers (beef & bean), dogs & buns, plus ice cream which the Grange supplied.  Salads, breads, cheese, vegetables cooked and raw, dips, pickles, casseroles, and many other dishes appeared with the usual magic of potluck dinners–and were enjoyed.  the Just Food Hub supplied tasty samples from their assortment of fairly traded, organic and small-farmer food products–and donated all the profit from their sales to the Grange!
Besides the socializing, we had entertainment from the Senior Center Jazz Ensemble, which played from the ADA porch, providing a great musical background.   Volunteers helped us with set-up and clean-up, making quick work of putting away the tables and chairs, bussing and washing dishes, etc.

 We had a brief interruption…

Please send a card and best wishes to
Charles Martin, Secretary Emeritus

Model of the grange hall

Familiar grange doors

You’ve seen the familiar doors in the Grange Hall for many years, between the Main Hall and the Original Entrance Foyer.  They were replaced by new, fire-rated doors as part of our Lift and Foyer project last winter.  Many thanks to Albert Sabatini, who found a taker for them, and also the replaced bathroom door.   The recipient says they fit perfectly in his shed, and we appreciate the space opened up by getting them out of the Lower Level.
We still have a few items it would be great to find a good home for:  an accordion-style door and track, and some office cubicle dividers.   Please contact me if you think you can help us re-home them!

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, Grange President (with everyone’s help) August 4, 2023

The weather looks promising, and we’re eager to celebrate our beautiful Hall with a picnic

It’s been a busy few years since our last Grange Picnic–it was back in 2019.   In the interim, we’ve survived a pandemic, but we’ve been busy too, improving the Grange Hall.   We’ll have a slide-show with pictures of all we’ve done, but main event will be sharing food.
We’ll have a couple of grills going–one gas, one charcoal, and we’ll provide the protein:   beef hamburgers, hot dogs, black bean burgers plus buns & condiments.   Plus ice cream and cones!   We encourage everyone to bring a side dish to share, too–any thing from chips to salads to cookies, or anything in between.   We’ll be setting up folding-leg tables by the ADA ramp access, and bringing out folding chairs–but feel free to bring your own as well!
We want this to be a chance to socialize and meet other Grange community members–we’ve invited the many renting organizations, as well as Grange members, Berlin Selectboard and Town administrators, State reps & senators–and you!
Here’s the current schedule for tomorrow’s get-together:
5:00:  Set-up:  volunteers will be setting up at least one gas grille and a charcoal grille, setting up tables, putting out plates/glasses/silverware.   Want to help out?   Please send an email to me!
5:30:  Cooking begins, so that we’ll be ready for:
6:00:  Time to eat:  We’ll have the main meal ready to eat–which means we will have cooks producing items from the grilles, and y’all will have brought salads, dips, chips, breads, soups, dals and any other side-dishes to share.
7:00:  Time to start cleaning up:  we will be bringing dishes downstairs to start washing up, putting away cooking supplies, etc.   We have a couple of volunteers signed up already, want to join them?   Please send an email to me!

Photos below are from the 2019 picnic!

2023 Challenge Fundraiser
for the Grange Hall and Berlin Flood Relief

Champlain Valley Fair:  Grange exhibit!

For the last several years, a few of us have put together an exhibit about our Community Grange, for display in the the VT State Grange exhibit area at the CVF in Essex–which they modestly call the Best 10 Days of Summer.  This year, Alison Forrest has rashly volunteered to put together a scale model of our Grange Hall.   It’s based on scale drawings that I have done over the years, and it’s designed to show off the Hall that is the centerpiece of our community service mission.
We also send a few volunteers to staff the State Grange exhibit–and it’s a wonderful opportunity to learn more about the Grange community in Vermont!   There will be exhibits from 6 or 8 other Community Granges, and more about the State Grange organization.  If you’d like to join us, we are “on duty” for 2 shifts on Tuesday, Aug. 29th:  10:00 AM to 3:00 PM, and 3:00 PM to 8:00 PM.   And you’ll get a voucher for free parking and free admission to the Fair!
And there is so much going on at the Fair:  horses, rabbits, cattle, sheep, midway rides, cooking demonstrations (in the same building as the Grange exhibit!), crafts gallery, racing pigs, a model railroad…and I’m just scratching the surface.   Check it all out at:  ChamplainValleyFair.org.   Please email me for more details about signing up as a volunteer–the time is limited!

On July 29th, we saw a sign in the sky…we must be doing something right!