|
The Fletcher Community Newsletter |
| The Resource for Town, School, and Community News and Events - September 2003 |
Mars Approaches Earth
By Pam and Mike Farmer
The Red Planet is has been a spectacular sight during July and August! Earth caught up with Mars in an encounter that culminated on August 27 in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. Mars came to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and is still the brightest, except for the moon, in the night sky. It attained a magnitude of -2.9 and edappear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification, Mars looked as large as the full moon to the naked eye.
The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287, but you still have time to spot it today. Near the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. - pretty convenient for seeing something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, step outside this evening to see Mars. Share this with your children and grandchildren as no one alive today will ever see this again.
Beginning September 15, you're invited to join the Fletcher Community Playgroup on the first and third Tuesdays of each month 9:15-11:00 a.m. in the Fletcher Elementary School Gym. Beginning October 7, Perky will be available to provide storytime activities as part of Playgroup. Parents who would like to get involved or to attend Playgroup can call Chris Irish at 849-9352.
BMC Chicken Pie Supper - September 18
Don't miss the Binghamville Methodist Church hot dish supper on Thursday, September
18. Seating begins at 5:00 p.m. and continues until all are served. Take out
plates are available if you don't have time to socialize. The menu includes
chicken pie, squash, masked potato and gravy, coleslaw, rolls, and pies.
Join FUMHA for a party at the meeting house on Friday, August 30 at 8 p.m.
Come listen to the "Hillbillies from Outer Space." Snacks will be
provided. Tickets are $10.00. BYOB.
Spend a Dollar, Support the
Meeting House
By Linda Young
When you drive by the old Fletcher Union Meeting House, what do you see? Often, I see members of the Northeast coop unloading groceries on to the ramp, the shine of the sun against the window pane, or a field reflected there. Lately, I see a building that holds a town together, a structure that says community, friendship, and goodwill. In part, this is because I am learning more about the history of the building, which was built in the early 1870s, serving first as a church to four groups: Unitarians, Baptists, Methodists, and Congregationalists. The image of four distinct groups worshipping under one roof is an inspiring testament to our forefathers' and mothers' determination to work and live together and is a strong image on which to hang the legacy of a building--or of a town for that matter.
Last night, I spent a couple of hours at the Meeting House because I recently joined the board. As I sat at a table downstairs watching the pictures of past Grange members and leaders peer out at me from the walls, and as the twilight entered the large paned windows, I learned that anyone can become a lifelong member of the Union Meeting House. According to the bylaws as now written, $1 and attendance at a meeting will procure you a membership and make you a part-owner of the historic building. What could be more democratic or inspiring? Of course, that fee is also pretty darn nominal and may be raised to a whopping $5 or $10 in the coming months. Still, when you think of what $10 buys these days, a share in a historic, community building isn't half bad.
The truth is, all of us should join. The Union House is our gathering place, our town green. It has always been a place where people have come together in the interest of their community, town, and neighbors. If we take care of it, one day our daughters' daughter may be watching the twilight come down through the windows or seeing herself reflected in the corn fields just beyond it. The meeting house reminds me of what I love about America, of the true spirit of democracy. Perhaps Walt Whitman sums up my feelings about the Meeting House best when he writes, "I speak the pass-word primeval, I give the sign of democracy, By God! I will accept nothing which all cannot have their counterpart of on the same terms." The beauty of the meeting house is that we all can have an equal say—an equal share—and for the price of a lottery ticket. What could be as rewarding?
The author of an occasional column, Linda Hyatt Young, is a writer and teacher
who lives in Fletcher. To join the Fletcher Union Meeting House Association,
please drop by the Association's monthly meeting. The next association meeting
is being held on Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. in the Meeting House.
FUMHA Hosts Rummage Sale & Dance in Lieu of Fall Festival
This year the Fletcher Union Meeting House Association will hold a rummage sale and dance on October 4 in lieu of the traditional festival. Be sure to check newsletters and the new sign board outside the meeting house for more information in the coming weeks.
Firefly Production Sponsors Theater Classes at FUMH
Firefly Productions is a theater troupe based out of Cambridge Vermont. Last year, the troupe traveled to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Edinburgh Scotland for the ninth year in a row. There, they received international acclaim for their original production of Vermont playwright Keefe Healy's Fish Dancing. The play received two four star reviews and was called "a dreamy, powerful piece of theater that will move you as sure as the tides move the ocean" by Kirsty Knaggs of The Scotsman (Scotland's National Newspaper).
Firefly will be sponsoring a theater class at the Fletcher Union Meeting House
this fall. Four different age group classes will be available as a six week
session each Tuesday night from September 23 to October 28.
4-5 p.m. 1st-2nd grade theater class taught be Mary Mitchell
5-6 p.m. 3rd-4th grade theater class taught by Mary Mitchell
6-7 p.m. Middle-High School improv and acting class taught by Keefe Healy, Jordan
Gullikson, & Suzanne Mackay
7-8 p.m. Adult improv and acting class taught by Keefe Healy, Jordan Gullikson,
& Suzanne Mackay
The cost is $10 a class or $45 for the six week session. Hope to see you there!
Town Office News
By Elaine Sweet and Gloria Brunette
I love this warm weather, but I can't say the same for Gloria! My garden is doing great….including the weeds!
Just a reminder that TAXES are due in full on or before September 30th. We DO accept postmarks. We will be sending you revised tax bills at the end of the year, the amount has not changed, but…I was informed that the State will want a "SPAN #" and the total parcel acres, which is on the new bill and not the old. You will need this new bill to file with your Vermont Income Tax Return. If you want the new bill before I mail them, you could stop by the office, say hello, and pick it up if you'd like! If you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call.
The office will be closed on Monday Sept. 1st for Labor Day. Reminder: The office is open Monday - Thursday, 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. and Monday evenings 6:30-8:30 p.m.; CLOSED on Fridays. Happy Harvesting!
North Country ATV Association,
Inc.
By Claire Willette
The North Country ATV Association, Inc. had a monthly meeting August 15, 2003. The meetings are usually held the first Friday of each month, 7:00pm at the Abbey Restaurant in Sheldon. Landowner, members, or anyone interested may attend.
Our big issue of Landowner Trail Liability Insurance has finally been resolved. Many people at VASA, Club members, and insurance companies were involved in securing the new insurance carrier. Thank you to all of them! Clubs around the State have been on hold with trail riding and maintenance until the insurance issue was resolved. Now we have the "green light" to get back out on the trails and have a safe and fun riding environment.
Once again, we will be out asking for landowner permission to open safe, legal riding trails to ATVs in the area. I am working on a trail system on the Fairfax/ Fairfield end of Fletcher. If there is anyone interested in allowing a trail to be put in on their property, it can be along a corn field, edge of a field or through the woods, you can contact me directly (849-6729) to set up a meeting.
I have found that there is more and more ATV activity around this area and strongly feel that if we can get a legal trail made, many people can benefit and would get ATVs off the roads. It could be a horseback riding trail or walking/hiking trail and it would be maintained by the North Country ATV Club. So please lend us a hand and allow a fun, safe trail system through! Thank you.
The Principal's Corner
By Jeffrey Teitelbaum
The start of another school year is almost here. While the children have been enjoying summer vacation, the staff has been busy attending various classes and workshops, cleaning their classrooms, and planning for the first weeks of the new term. In the school office, we laugh whenever well meaning townspeople query us about what we do all summer. There are state reports to finalize, annual audits to prepare for, a building to maintain, supplies to inventory, schedules to design, and positions to be filled. In fact, sometimes the parking lot is nearly as full of cars as it is when school is in session. All that is missing is the hum of little children going about the business of school. We miss them and can't wait to see their smiling faces and new back-to-school wardrobes.
The first day of school is Wednesday, August 27. Beginning the year with a 3-day week eases the transition from carefree summer schedules to the necessarily regimented school day schedule. We notice that our youngest students are often exhausted by the end of the first week.
The school staff includes some new faces this year, as well as some familiar faces in new roles. Nancy Hurt is our new preschool teacher; Amy Flaherty will teach kindergarten and Reading Recovery. Lorrene Palermo replaces Susan Ojala as one of our fifth and sixth grade teachers; and Joann Osborne leaves special education to become our remedial teacher. We also welcome Melissa Sargent-Minor, our new special educator, and Sam Dussault, our new primary remedial teacher. This school is fortunate to have as dedicated and talented a staff as I've ever seen.
This will be an exciting school year on many levels. We will continue to use a school-wide system (called "The Responsive Classroom") to create a cooperative and inviting culture in our community. We are about to pilot the District's new mathematics curriculum, amend our literacy curriculum, and experiment with Inquiry based science where students learn the scientific process.
We are well aware that our little school, along with every other public school in the state and nation, will be scrutinized as we attempt to comply with the new federal law called "No Child Left Behind." In future columns, we will explore the requirements and ramifications of this law. At this time, I urge all citizens to begin paying close attention to any news broadcasts or editorials about NCLB as it will have a tremendous fiscal and perceptual impact on all of us.
Please remember that we are your community school and therefore will always welcome you to stop by and observe what we do here. If you ever have a question or wish to express an opinion or concern, please call or stop in. While we can guarantee that we won't always agree with you (after all, everyone has their own opinion), we do assure you that we will ALWAYS listen.
So, let's hope for a happy, healthy, and positively challenging year for all of us.
July 7, 2003 (Approved)
July 21, 2003 (Approved)
| 1 |
1 Labor Day holiday |
Town Office and Fletcher Elementary School closed |
| 5 | No. Country ATV Association meeting | 7:00 p.m., Abbey Restaurant, Sheldon |
| 6, 20 | Recycling and trash drop-off | 9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m., Town Garage |
| 6 | Beans n' Banjo Dinner | 5 p.m. until all served, Baptist Building, Rt. 104, Fairfax |
| 7, 14, 21, 28 | Adult Basketball (Over 40) | 9:00 a.m., Elementary School Gym |
| 8, 15, 22, 29 | Adult Basketball (All ages) | 7:00 p.m., Elementary School Gym |
| 10 | FUMHA monthly meeting | 7:00 p.m., Fletcher Union Meeting House |
| 12 | Newsletter articles due | |
| 13 | Big Spike Bluegrass | 7:30-10:00 p.m., Essex Memorial Hall |
| 15 | Playgroup begins | 9:15 a.m.-11:00 a.m., Fletcher Elementary School Gym |
| 15 | Select Board meeting | 7:00 p.m., Town Office |
| 18 | Church Supper | Beginning at 5:00 p.m., Binghamville Methodist Church |
| 23, 30 | Theater Class | Varies (please see article), Fletcher Union Meeting House |
| 27 | CAC Biennial Variety Show | 7:00 p.m., Cambridge Elementary School |
| 30 | Taxes due in full | 9:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Town Clerk's office (postmarks accepted) |