Vermont
Vermont faith communities relax Covid rules in time for spring services
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/VTD-Covid-church-4-scaled.jpeg)
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/VTD-Covid-church-4-610x458.jpeg)
Two years after transferring to on-line pandemic choices, most Vermont religious communities are returning to in-person gatherings this Easter, Passover and Ramadan.
“Please bear in mind that we can’t declare an ‘All Clear,’” stated a latest assertion from the Covid Response Workforce of the state Episcopal Diocese, which nonetheless is becoming a member of different Christians, Jews and Muslims in returning to their buildings whereas retaining web ties.
Gov. Phil Scott, initially prohibiting giant gatherings initially of the pandemic, has since lifted assembly and masks suggestions, although municipalities might proceed to retain native mandates by way of April 30.
The Vermont Roman Catholic Diocese, the state’s largest spiritual denomination with roughly 110,000 members in 68 parishes, was the primary within the state to renew in-person providers with masks and bodily distancing required. Nonetheless, when Bishop Christopher Coyne presides over Easter Mass on Sunday, he’ll accomplish that underneath just lately relaxed church protocols making masks elective for everybody.
“That is topic to vary within the occasion the Covid state of affairs worsens,” the brand new guidelines famous.
The Vermont Convention of the United Church of Christ, the state’s second-largest denomination with 14,000 members in 135 places, and the Inexperienced Mountain District of the United Methodist Church, the third-largest denomination with 8,200 members in 115 congregations, promoted on-line providers final Easter. This spring, they’ve eradicated Covid warning hyperlinks on their web sites.
The Episcopal Church in Vermont, the fourth-largest denomination with 5,700 members in 47 congregations, is ready to carry its first in-person vacation providers since 2019.
“Whereas now we have reached a stage the place dangers are lowered for a lot of, they don’t seem to be lowered for all, and Covid-19 continues to be current,” the Episcopal diocese’s Covid Response Workforce wrote in a name for continued on-line choices. “Moreover, our state of affairs in Vermont as an entire can change sooner or later, and we might once more must institute public well being security measures.”
American Baptist Church buildings of Vermont, the fifth-largest denomination with about 6,000 members in some 75 congregations, is an affiliation of autonomous parishes that make particular person quite than regional plans. Most shall be again of their buildings this Easter, native listings present.
Christians will not be the one spiritual neighborhood observing a serious vacation this month. Vermont Jews are marking Passover from Friday by way of April 23 by retelling the Exodus story of how the Israelites noticed a lethal plague miraculously “cross over” them some three millennia in the past, serving to result in their emancipation.
The conduit group Jewish Communities of Vermont, representing a Inexperienced Mountain State inhabitants estimated as excessive as 25,000, is providing schedules of each in-person and on-line applications.
Muslims on the Islamic Society of Vermont are marking the holy month of Ramadan by performing good deeds and praying and fasting from daybreak to sundown — all with assist from in-person and on-line choices posted on the society’s Fb web page.
Most Buddhist sanghas are working with related hybrid fashions. The Vermont Zen Middle of Shelburne, for instance, will rejoice the Buddha’s birthday in individual and on-line — though not till Could 29.
“Based on custom, the Buddha was born on April 8,” the middle said on its web site. “Nonetheless, for purely sensible causes we rejoice this occasion when the climate is hotter and we could be outdoor.”
3,000 books in 30 days
Our journalism is made attainable by member donations. VTDigger is partnering with the Youngsters’s Literacy Basis (CLiF) throughout our Spring Member Drive to ship 3,000 new books to Vermont youth liable to rising up with low literacy expertise. Make your donation and ship a guide at the moment!
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/np-logo.png)
Vermont
Climate Matters: Big victories for greener energy in Vermont – Addison Independent
![Climate Matters: Big victories for greener energy in Vermont – Addison Independent](https://addisonindymediaoffload.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/21090415/Climate-matters-Greg-Dennis--736x1024.jpg)
GREG DENNIS
The Legislature last week achieved several milestones on the way to reducing climate pollution — even in the face of Gov. Phil Scott’s best efforts to keep Vermont stuck in the age of fossil fuels.
A greener Renewable Energy Standard — long a goal of 350Vermont and others — passed despite Gov. Scott’s veto. So did a set of improvements to Act 250 that will open some towns and cities to much needed residential development while better protecting the biodiversity of sensitive areas.
In the process, Scott’s anti-environmental vetoes have placed him even to the right of some of his natural allies. More on that below. First, a little background.
It used to be that veto overrides were as rare in Vermont as snowstorms in July. But in Montpelier these past two years, it’s been snowing all summer. Gov. Scott has been lobbing veto snowballs at the General Assembly, and legislators have responded with an avalanche of overrides.
Scott, a Republican in an overwhelmingly Democratic state, has had six vetoes overridden during each of the past two legislative sessions.
This year, the governor even went after the birds and the bees. He vetoed (and was overridden on) a bill banning neonicotinoid pesticides that contribute to the decline of vital pollinators. He declined to sign two bills that became law: VPIRG’s “make big oil pay” bill, and a bill to protect wetlands and floodplains from the more extreme weather of our deteriorating climate.
Now back to Scott’s rightward shift as the climate crisis worsens.
His vetoes of Act 250 changes and the Renewable Energy Standard (RES) came even though traditionally conservative power blocs supported the bills.
The RES, for example, was endorsed by virtually all the state’s utilities, which are normally political allies of the Republican governor. Much of the hard work to improve the RES was accomplished in a working group that included the utilities and was headed by Rep. Amy Sheldon, D-Middlebury, and Addison County Sen. Chris Bray.
Under the new RES, Vermont is committed to achieving nearly 100% renewable electrical energy by 2030. The law also aims to double the amount of clean energy (mostly solar and wind) produced in the state and regionally. It will mean more green jobs and less burning of dirty oil and gas.
On revisions to Act 250, Scott also found himself to the right of political allies. The bill he vetoed drew support not just from environmental groups but also from the development industry and the Vermont Chamber of Commerce. In a statement supporting its passage, the chamber said a portion of the bill was “a top priority for the Vermont business community.”
Perhaps overlooked in all this were two other achievements pushed by 350Vermont and others.
The grassroots group recognized the potential of thermal energy networks to generate cleaner community energy and use it more efficiently. That approach, which avoids the need for burdensome bureaucracy, gained approval this session. So, too, did a study committee to suggest ways to protect lower-income Vermonters from electricity rate hikes.
Vermonters have a lot to celebrate at the end of this biennium. Working as a tighter coalition, advocates pushed the General Assembly to approve substantial climate legislation — and to make those approvals stick during the difficult task of overriding multiple vetoes.
Joan Baez used to sing of “little victories and big defeats.” Too often that’s been the experience for the climate movement even here in the Green Mountain State. This year, though, Vermonters can sing a song of big victories.
Vermont
Girls on the Run Vermont celebrates 25th anniversary – The Charlotte News
![Girls on the Run Vermont celebrates 25th anniversary – The Charlotte News](https://www.charlottenewsvt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Girls-on-Run-Lee-Krohn.png)
Girls on the Run Vermont, a statewide nonprofit organization for girls in third-eighth grade, wrapped up its 25th anniversary season that served 1,683 girls across the state.
Twenty-five years ago, 15 girls at Vernon Elementary School enrolled in the Girls on the Run program. Since then, the program has served 39,000 girls and is thriving.
Girls warm up in their pink attire for a 5K run in Essex in early June.
Program participants, alumnae, coaches, parents, board members and supporters attended two statewide 5K events in June to enjoy the non-competitive, community-based events on June 1 at the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction, and on June 7 in Manchester.
Proceeds from the 5K events benefit Girls on the Run Vermont’s Every Girl Fund. This fund helps to ensure that every girl in Vermont can participate. This year’s 5K events brought together a combined 4,000 attendees, including program participants, family, friends and community members.
One participant at each 5K event was honored and presented with the Girls on the Run Vermont Rick Hashagen Alumni Scholarship Award in the amount of $2,500. Cordelia King from Fairfax was recognized in Essex and Alexandra Gregory of Dummerston was recognized in Manchester. These scholarships are renewable for up to three more years and offer up to $10,000 in total to support their education post high school.
Find out more about Girls on the Run Vermont.
Vermont
He flipped off a trooper and got charged. Now Vermont is on the hook for $175K
![He flipped off a trooper and got charged. Now Vermont is on the hook for $175K](https://www.ksn.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2024/06/AP24178626732037-e1719449683636_8d9d78.jpg?w=1280)
ST. ALBANS, Vt. (AP) — Vermont has agreed to pay $175,000 to settle a lawsuit on behalf of a man who was charged with a crime for giving a state trooper the middle finger in 2018, the state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union said Wednesday.
The lawsuit was filed in 2021 by the ACLU of Vermont on behalf of Gregory Bombard, of St. Albans. It says Bombard’s First Amendment rights were violated after an unnecessary traffic stop and retaliatory arrest in 2018.
Trooper Jay Riggen stopped Bombard’s vehicle in St. Albans on Feb. 9, 2018, because he believed Bombard had shown him the middle finger, according to the lawsuit. Bombard denied that but says he did curse and display the middle finger once the initial stop was concluded.
Bombard was stopped again and arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct, and his car was towed. He was jailed for over an hour and cited to criminal court, according to the ACLU. The charge was eventually dismissed.
Under the settlement signed by the parties this month, the state has agreed to pay Bombard $100,000 and $75,000 to the ACLU of Vermont and the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression for legal fees.
“While our client is pleased with this outcome, this incident should never have happened in the first place,” said Hillary Rich, staff attorney for the ACLU of Vermont, in a statement. “Police need to respect everyone’s First Amendment rights — even for things they consider offensive or insulting.”
The Vermont State Police did not have a comment on the settlement. Vermont did not admit any wrongdoing as part of the deal.
Bombard said in a statement provided by the ACLU that he hopes the Vermont State Police will train its troopers “to avoid silencing criticism or making baseless car stops.”
-
News1 week ago
NYC pastor is sentenced to 9 years for fraud, including taking a single mom's $90,000
-
Movie Reviews1 week ago
Fancy Dance (2024) – Movie Review
-
News1 week ago
Read the Ruling by the Virginia Court of Appeals
-
Crypto1 week ago
Idris Elba Promotes Cryptocurrency in West Africa – BORGEN
-
Politics1 week ago
Trump targets House Freedom Caucus chair in intra-party Republican primary feud
-
News6 days ago
Tracking a Single Day at the National Domestic Violence Hotline
-
Politics7 days ago
Trump classified docs judge to weigh alleged 'unlawful' appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith
-
News6 days ago
Supreme Court upholds law barring domestic abusers from owning guns in major Second Amendment ruling | CNN Politics