We live on a long, long dirt road. Cars go slow as the road can be a mess. Today I stopped as one of the neighbors drove by. We talked.

He is young, always lived here. One of the smartest people I know. Built his own house, runs an excavating business. Can fix anything. Our road is changing a bit – retirees moving in – like my wife and I. He commented – “Well, they don’t cost us anything.” I think he was referring to kids for the school system. But what I picked up on was the us/them orientation. “We” have lived here forever and “you/they” are the newcomers. Whenever I meet someone in Vermont they usually like to clarify that kind of distinction, “I have lived here for 90 years but I am not really a true Vermonter.” That kind of thing. You have to be born here to belong.

I do not mind being a “them.” But…

Be mindful – maybe we come see each other as part of us.

Jon Heydenreich is pastor at Brattleboro’s Trinity Lutheran Church.

VERGENNES, Vt. (WCAX) – Vergennes Mayor Chris Bearor says state officials have officially chosen the city as its location to place a long-planned juvenile justice facility.

We told you in April that a 14-bed facility was in the works to be built on state-owned land near Comfort Hill in Vergennes.

The mayor says state agencies plan to begin a public education and community engagement process in early June.

“It was a very good meeting, it was very informative and I’m hoping that people engage with this and have an open mind to it and see where it goes,” said Mayor Bearor.

This will not be the city’s first time hosting a youth facility. The Weeks School operated as a youth detention center for over a century before closing in 1979. Since then, the campus has housed the Northland Job Corps, a federally-funded vocational training program.

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MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – The Vermont Senate has given preliminary approval to a bill allowing for the creation of so-called safe injection sites.

The rate of fatal overdoses has skyrocketed in recent years driven by fentanyl and xylazine.

The Senate voted 21-8 to create a pilot program where people could have their drugs tested and then consume them under medical supervision.

In an at-times emotional debate on the Senate floor, state lawmakers called them another tool in the toolbox to fight the toll of addiction.

“It really is another thing we can do in Vermont to save lives,” said Sen. Ruth Hardy, D-Addison County.

“I don’t think Vermont’s toolbox is ready for this tool. Different tools require different supports, safety procedures, different mechanisms to make sure everybody knows how to use the tool and make sure it’s used safely,” said Sen. Tom Chittenden, D-Chittenden County.

Some lawmakers have concerns about young people accessing the sites or federal authorities cracking down on them since they are still illegal.

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott has said he has moral and logistical concerns about the bill and has said he will veto it.

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