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June meeting reports, Summer projects going forward, new “Tones” in our Hall!

June 27, 2016 by Tova

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

June Grange meeting (last until September) sets Berlin Hall use policies, buys “quick-books” for the CCG, and makes donations–and welcomes a new member!
Our meeting on June 4th was a busy one, full of discussions and activity.   We were able to induct one of the new members we expected, Katherine Blakely, with musical accompaniment by pianist Matt Nunnelly, who also played for some typically exuberant sing-alongs.
One of our main items of business was policy-making:  how do we regulate the free rentals we have offered to residents and organizations from Berlin, in return for the 5-year exemption from property taxes they voted for us on March 1st?  Rental Agent Merry Shernock has been conferring with our insurance agent, and proposed the following policy package, which we adopted as CCG policy:   Free rentals will be standard for Berlin residents as long as they meet the following criteria:
  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)
The policies are designed to reflect the realities of running our Hall, including the insurance costs for liability protection.  Our good relationship with Noyle W. Johnson Agency has given us a better understanding of what can be expected to be covered by the standard policy we buy, and what events need separate insurance coverage.
Another motion passed was also proposed by Merry, to purchase a QuickBooks Online Plus bookkeeping package.  This will  be used by new volunteer Justin Sargent to start electronic bookkeeping for the Grange; we passed this one, too.
Our third official act was approving a set of donations to traditional Grange causes:  supporting the Grange Center in Brookfield (used as a camp for Junior Grange and other events–and also available for rent by anyone), the Grange Educational Aid fund (which provides scholarships to Grange members and others), State Grange Home Ec projects (our Secretary Charles Martin is co-leader)–paying for prizes for Grange contests,  We also made donations to the Heifer Project and the Kelly Farm, an historic farm in Minnesota, whose original owner was one of the original founders of the National Grange.
We had a visit from VT State Grange Secretary Nancy Perkins, who served as Steward for our meeting, and took part in our singing as well!   We appreciate her coming as a representative of the State Grange, which has supported our projects.  She also had positive comments about our continued ability to bring in new members, and to take on the improvements to our Hall.
Joe-Blakely
Joe makes it look better!
As I told you in the last “Grange Notes”, member Joe Blakely has been working on spot-scraping, and now priming and painting the peeling spots on the Grange Hall’s east, south and west sides.  All of these have relatively small areas where the paint is peeling.  Joe is using his training in lead-paint removal, along with his work-buddy Miguel Perez to scrape the loose paint areas.  He is also following up with a coat of a very “sticky” primer designed for hard to bond areas, and a coat of white paint.  See below for an appeal for more help with the painting part–the easiest and best-looking part after Joe & Miguel take care of the tough work.
Joe gave us a report on his work at the meeting in June as well.
Women’s clothing exchange for all!
A social event for women.  Clean out your closets and bring a dish to share!   Meet new friends and take home something new to wear!

This is a special event organized by Erin Berry, who  brings us “KIDS TRADE & PLAY” every month.

PLEASE RSVP (birthsinnerlight@yahoo.com) to help her plan.

Grange-Storage

Adding “Tones” to the Hall, we welcome the quartet-singers!
We have a new group meeting every Monday evening at the Hall–the Barre-Tones.   This long-running organization was founded in 1969, whose goal is to empower all women through education, friendship and a cappella singing in the barbershop style.  They are part of an international organization, Harmony Inc., with members around the world.   Find out more at the Barre-Tones website:  https://barretonesvt.com/
You will see the risers, sheet music files and other accessories stored in the alcove next to the stage.
BTW:  We have moved storage of the CDU’s fans to the Dance closet, and the step-ladders are under the stage, next to the floor-covers cart.
Projects still available
  • Exterior Painting:  As noted above,  Joe & Miguel are doing the hard part–scraping and priming the peeling places.    We’d love to have a couple of volunteers to put a couple of coats of “Navajo White” over those spots so they blend in and last a while.
  • Fire Exit roof:    We’d like to get an extended roof built over the  concrete landing outside the new fire exit–to keep the snow sliding off the roof from blocking the door opening.  The Fire Marshal would like it too–and so would I, so I don’t have to stop by after snowstorms to shovel it clear.
  • Dead Tree removal:  there is a dead stump leaning over the driveway–it would be great to get it taken down–before it becomes a barrier by falling down.   Wood is free for the worker(s) taking it down!
  • Articles for the Notes:   I’ve been sending these out for a long time–and would love to feature writing by Grange members, renters, and friends (a set of overlapping categories).

What would YOU like to see happening at the Grange?  What are we doing wrong, or right?

Filed Under: Grange Notes

Sox in a Box

June 26, 2016 by Tova

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!”

Filed Under: Grange Notes

June meeting: more members! more projects!

June 4, 2016 by Tova

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, June 3, 2016

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

060416-1   060416-4   060416-3  060416-2

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!

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 3 more–Katherine Blakely, Miguel Angel Perez and Oliver Scotch.   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, Miguel and Oliver 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.
Berlin “Rental” policy will be discussed–Merry has a proposed set of guidelines for the “free rentals” we have promised for Berlin residents and organizations; we’ll be voting on adopting these so she has clear policies on insurance requirements, deposits, alcohol policies, and more.
Making transitions:   We have had the good fortune of the very experienced Les Skinner as Grange Treasurer, since he stepped down from his long-time post at Master in 2006.   Les, now 88 years old, is finally ready to hand over the office to a new face.   Merry has found a bookkeeper who is willing to help with the finances of the CCG, Justin Sargent.   Plans are afoot to begin electronic bookkeeping–come to the meeting to learn more.   Les has been struggling with some heart problems recently–please come to wish him well, too!
Our new Musician, Matt Nunnelly will be playing for the meeting for the first time, including the marches which accompany the Obligation ceremony.   Come and sing along with us as usual, a regular part of every meeting.
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 thanks for our Open House hosts
I sent out a lot of photos of our May 7th open house in the last “Note” which I sent out; I missed a couple of people I should have thanked:
Linda Vincent staffed the “Wholeshare” table, with information about the buyers’ club we  host.  This organization has been delivering fresh foods from Black River Produce and Meats, plus packaged foods and household supplies from “Honest Green Pantry”.    Please note that the founding organizer, Rob Fish is seeking a successor–he has bought a house in Burlington, so coming here to supervise distribution of the orders is not so easy as when he lived in Montpelier!   This is an opportunity to continue to build a community benefit organization.   There is training available, and the organizer gets a commission based on sales–so the more orders you encourage, the more you can make.   Contact Rob to learn more:  Rob.Fish@wholeshare.com 
John Harris talked to open-house attendees about his research on the Grange Hall acoustics–see above for more info
Patty Giavara and I staffed a Friends of the Grange Hall/CCG table–familiar faces to many of you!
Linda from Friends of the Winooski River staffed a table showing the work of this volunteer organization, which is putting on their “Onion River Race and Ramble” this coming Sunday–rain or shine!   Merry and I plan to “ramble” with our kayaks, hope others will join us–check out https://www.winooskiriver.org/race-overview.php for more info.
Many thanks to all the “presenters” and performers!
New email addresses for the Grange!
Alert readers may have noticed that we have a new email address for our “rental agent”, Merry:  https://rentals@capitalcitygrange.org as seen in the “header” for these Grange Notes.   We have finally made the transition to  addresses based at our website, and using office titles in the email address.   So now you can write to me (or my successor) at:  https://grangenotes@capitalcitygrange.org about what I’ve left out, or what I have put in that I shouldn’t!  This edition of the Notes should be coming to you from that address as well–which should help avoid some of these going into “Spam” folders.   Thanks to Tova Cohen for helping  us get these set up.   Let me know if the Notes are getting through!  –Tim

Filed Under: Grange Notes

Open House features “a Taste of the Grange”, working on Hall painting, more new members coming in June

May 17, 2016 by Tova

Grange Notes by Grange Master Tim Swartz, May 15, 2016
16-05-07 Open House #01--DIY weddings table  16-05-07 Open House #02--4H Allison Smith talks with Lewis Neill

16-05-07 Open House #03--Merry, Ada & blurs  16-05-07 Open House #04--NE Music Heritage campers play1

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

Top left:  DIY weddings showed simple ways that our Hall and our basic furniture of tables and chairs can be dressed up to make an attractive setting for wedding and other celebrations.   Many thanks to Berlin interior designer Christine Murphy, who is also a wedding designer.
Top Right:  Allison Smith of VT Ag Extension set up an info table for the 4H chapter she is setting up at the CCG–replacing one which used to meet at the Waterbury Center Grange before it closed.  Allison is speaking with Lewis Neill of the Montpelier Church of Christ.  The Church has met at our Hall every Sunday for decades; Lewis and Maudean Neill also had a table at our Open House.

Bottom left:  Merry Shernock, who organized the  Open House along with Alison Forrest, is orbited by some of the kids who came along–besides visiting the Kids’ Trade ‘N’ Play exhibit downstairs, there was some time to run around before the performances started.
Carl Etnier was an able Master of Ceremonies, sharing information from the history of the National Grange, as well as Capital City’s story, and talking about the long history of many of our renters with the Grange Hall, several of whom performed some samples from their activities at the Hall.
Bottom right:  Musician campers from the Northeast Heritage Music Camp played traditional tunes among the many learned at their week-long event held in June, in Starksboro.   NHMC holds its “Winter Gathering” in the CCG Hall!
See more photos of performances (and dinner) at the end of this message!
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!)

16-05-07 Open House #05--Stuart Paton--Taiko drummer  16-05-07 Open House #06--Taiko drumming class by Stuart Paton  16-05-07 Open House #07--Upscale barbershop quartet sings

16-05-07 Open House #08--W. African dance class demo  16-05-07 Open House #09--Merry leads the sing-along

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!
16-05-07 Open House #10--potluck dinner--sharing food and stories  16-05-07 Open House #11--Jody washes dishes and Bob cleans up  16-05-07 Open House #12--Elizabeth cleans up

Filed Under: Grange Notes

Check out all the things that happen at the Grange–and bring your friends!

May 6, 2016 by Tova

Grange Notes by Tim Swartz, May 4, 2016

Just a few days from now, the Grange will be filled…with a sampling of the range of activities which our Grange Hall hosts.   We’d like to have as many of you loyal Grange members and friends there to help welcome our guests.   We are reaching out to the people from Berlin and other towns who have never been there–or maybe not for years.  Please spread the word to your friends, acquaintances and co-workers.   I know a lot of the people who get these “Notes” come to the Grange for just one type of event–this is a chance to learn about what happens on the other days of the week, and what is coming up–please join us!

3:00:  Open House begins–we will have “info tables” from various users and committees, including:
  • CCG#469 & FCCGH–featuring a survey seeking input on what the Grange could be doing, showing a movie from 1953 about the building of the Hall by volunteers, selling Grange cookbooks, and talking about all the improvements we have made!
  • Wholeshare–the food-buying club which provides savings for members, and distributes every 2 weeks from the Hall!
  • Acoustics committee–studying possible improvements for the Hall’s sound–for meetings, dances, singing!
  • “DIY Weddings”, showing the possibilities for use of our venue for economical, fun weddings, receptions, etc.  Pictures!  Decorations!
  • 4H–a representative from the UVM Ag Extension, looking for people interested in a 4H branch at our Hall!
  • The Friends of the Winooski River–we are looking for other Grange members and friends to join Merry and me at their “Onion River Race & Ramble on June 5th.
  • Pizza samples, made by a Montpelier Farmers’ Market vendor whose wedding happened at the Hall recently!
  • Kids Trade ‘n’ Play, which normally happens on 2nd Saturdays will have a play area for kids and a display table.
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 confirmed include:
  • Music from the Northeast Heritage Music Camp–traditional tunes–Susan Reid performing with students from the camp!
  • Taiko Drumming–a sample lesson by Stuart Paton!
  • The “UPSCALE” barbershop quartet from the Barretones–now renting rehearsal space on Monday evenings!
  • Sing-along with Merry Shernock, and Matt Nunnaly on piano–old favorites you already know!
  • West African Dance– “Alanna and Tossy will dance to the rhythm “Wala Sedone” which is played by Adina on the balafone.  This is a traditional West African rhythm found in many countries, and we have used both traditional moves and our own choreography in this dance.”
We’ll finish up with a potluck dinner at 5:00, anchored by:
Homemade Mac ‘n’ Cheese
Baked Beans
Carrot sticks–donated by Pete’s Greens
And all the delicious dishes brought by all of the readers who we hope will join us!
Some of our valiant crew at work, spiffing up our Hall for the Open House
cleanup20 cleanup21 cleanup22 cleanup23
Spring cleaning makes a difference
Somehow, we always seem to need to do some cleaning every year….true for most houses, and true for our Grange Hall too.   If your house gets dusty, imagine what happens when a couple of hundred people a week come and get involved in activities from dancing, to drumming, to meetings, to rehearsals and more….it’s enough to stir up a lot of dust!
Without each of the volunteers who joined us on April 30th, the work would not get done–and we are grateful!
Stan Carlson–cleaned out the “dance” closet, and helped me cut down the oak branches that were rubbing against the Hall.
John Mallery–cut up the branches, and the trunk of another tree that happened to have fallen in the parking lot.
Fran Mallery–cleaned the stage, plus scrubbed a lot of dirt from the doors under the stage, and the doors to the “new” foyer.
Todd Taska & Ann Pearce–cleaned and mopped the entire basement floor–and we talked about best ways to paint it, minimizing fumes and improving the durability.
Alison Forrest–cleaned all the light fixtures in the Hall, cut carrot sticks for snacks, plus much more cleaning in the upstairs bathroom!
Merry Shernock–organized and “pruned” the bulletin board, grouping the many community activity posters, local business and teaching cards, etc. And also scrubbed the baseboards in the upstairs bathroom, as well as providing snacks!  And then took home the curtains and quilts to wash and re-hang.
Joe Blakely–cleaned all the Hall windows, and also consulted with me on ways to spot-scrape and paint the peeling paint–we are looking for volunteers to prime and paint after Joe and his friend Miguel (who did a lot of cleaning too!) scrape and remove the old paint–Joe is certified to safely remove lead paint.  More details to come–but get in touch with me if you can help with the “fun part” of painting after Joe does the dirty work.
Without all of these people we would not have made such progress–think how much more we could do with a just a few more volunteers.   There are lots more projects awaiting a bit of your energy.
We’re skipping our usual Grange meeting for May, to make way for the Open House.
Between now and our June meeting, the Executive Committee will make decisions as needed–please join us on June 4th to catch up on Grange developments.

Filed Under: Grange Notes

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Contact Us

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

 

Recent Posts

  • June Grange meeting, and summer plans
  • Spring cleanup–thanks to all the volunteers!
  • Spruce up the Grange Hall and celebrate “burning the mortgage”!

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