Welcome to The Plymouth Press Online

Reprinted with permission from The Vermont Standard

12/8/19

Writing this on Sunday, it looks like a winter wonderland! Although I was away this weekend, I understand that all of the activities up at the Notch on Saturday were well attended. Tyson Ladies Aid served up a wonderful lunch and other delicious goodies. They appreciated the attentive help of Andy Crossman in getting the Wilder House all ready for them. Many patrons were return customers and the group is already talking about doing it again next year!

The Coolidge Holiday Open House is a well-known and highly anticipated event for which the weather cooperated nicely. I was late to the cookie exchange at the Historical Society on Sunday, but it looked like a nice array of good treats. It was so nice to meet Liam Harootunian!  I did make it back for the Memory Tree lighting, as noted in the picture. Names were read for those submitted in loving memory, plus donations were received in honor of folks, too.

“They” are calling for a warming trend, but I hope it won’t impact attendance at Teresa Ennis’ cupcake decorating workshop on Tues, 12/10 at 4 PM at the Community Center. I know that several of us are counting on her expertise! If you have not signed up & would like to attend, please make sure to contact me ASAP, so she can prepare.

This week is also the Reading Club meeting on Thursday, 12/12 at 6:30 to discuss Marley by local author Jon Clinch. This book is definitely a different kind of Christmas story!

Just to let you know, that the free Winter Family Fun Day will take place at Bethany Birches Camp on Saturday, 12/14 from 10 AM- 4 PM. Plan to attend and see what will be happening at BBC this winter. Respond via Facebook Event, call (802-672-5220) or email (camp@bethanybirches.org). Dress warmly and come last minute, if necessary.

Please note that there will not be a Community Luncheon in December since the Holiday season is so busy. Please let me know if you would like to help plan the January one!

There will be a Memory Tree Lighting Ceremony on Sunday December 8th, 2019 at 4pm at The Plymouth Community Center. (35 School Drive)

In conjunction with the Memory Tree Lighting the Plymouth Historical Society will be hosting an Open House and cookie exchange from 2 to 4pm. If you want to participate in the cookie exchange please bring 2 dozen cookies, 1 dozen to exchange and 1 dozen to share at the Open House. Beverages will be provided. Questions? Please contact midgetucker@gmail.com.

The Plymouth Schoolhouse Childcare will also be open for children to play in the classroom and for families to visit the program.

AND…

On Tuesday, December 10th at 4pm Teresa Ennis will be hosting a Cake Decorating Class at the Plymouth Community Center. The cost for the class is $15 per person. This covers the pre-baked cupcakes you will learn how to fill & decorate, and you will go home with a flyer of information as well as delicious treats to eat! 🧁

The Town of Plymouth is looking for a Health Officer. This is a volunteer position and you would be responsible for investigating possible health hazards in our Town, as well as enforcing health laws, along with other possible items.

If you are interested in helping Plymouth, please let the Town Clerk know at your earliest convenience.

Plymouth has a small population, so there is usually little activity in this regard, but you may be called upon periodically to provide assistance as a Health Officer.

Please let us know if you are interested.

Sandie, Plymouth Town Clerk

clerk@plymouthvt.org

Reprinted with permission from The Vermont Standard

12/1/19

Please note that there will be several happenings in Plymouth this coming weekend. The “Coolidge Holiday Open House” will be held on Saturday, 12/7 from 10 AM – 4 PM. It will be wonderful to see the Coolidge Birthplace decorated as it would have looked in 1872, the year he was born. As usual, this free event will have something of interest for the entire family.

Willem Lange, well-known VPR commentator will present “Favor Johnson” about the mysterious Christmas Eve fruit cake delivery, a Vermont classic, but he will share other stories as well at his 11:00 AM presentation. Be sure to attend and sample Vintage Pies author, Anne Collins’ goodies at 1:00. Steve Morse will be providing music and consider joining the caroling at the church at 1:45.

Depending upon the snow conditions, there will be either wagon or sleigh rides; chocolate demonstrations where for $3 you can make your own chocolate snowman; hands-on activities for the young at heart and an opportunity to make a paper lanterns at the Education Center. For those who are interested, you can create paper ornaments and quilled snowflakes and even do your own wreath or purchase one!

This is also your chance from 1-4 PM to get the special Holiday postal cancellation with the latest John Lutz design. The Coolidge Homestead tours will be taking place from 12:30 to 2:00. Please be aware that this is also the last chance to see the 2019 temporary exhibit, Presidential Menagerie: The Coolidges and Their Pets.

Stop at the Cheese Factory and sample their specialty cheeses and find interesting gift ideas. The Museum Store will also be open with more gift selections. And last, but not least, come to the Wilder House for an amazing selection of pastries and soups created by members of Tyson Ladies Aid. Not only are they great cooks, they have so much fun serving patrons and socializing with them. The funds that are raised are poured right back into the community through scholarships, the Tyson Library and to meet many other local needs.

Now, you will not be finished with the weekend events because on Sunday, 12/8 the Plymouth Historical Society will be hosting an Open House and cookie exchange from 2 to 4 PM at the Community Center (former school building). Bring a dozen cookies to share & another dozen to swap for those others have made. Beverages will be served. Contact Midge for additional information at midgetucker@gmail.com.

And yes, the Plymouth Schoolhouse Childcare room will be open so youngsters can play in it and families can learn more about the programs being offered there. I would imagine that you will also have an opportunity to meet one of our newest residents, Liam Richard Harootunian, too!

However, you will still not be finished with the festivities yet because the lighting of the Plymouth Memory Tree will take place at 4:00 PM. Join folks as loved ones are remembered and learn how the donations help to serve the community. Plymouth is a happening place!

The Holiday offerings in town continue with the cake decorating class by Teresa Ennis at the Plymouth Community Center on Tuesday 12/10 at 4 PM. Teresa did a delightful presentation at one of our Community Luncheons, so I imagine this will be a wonderful learning experience as she shares her expertise and her humor with participants.

This is a hands-on class with the $15 fee covering the cost of materials and the instruction. There will be delicious pre-baked cupcakes that you will be taught how to fill and decorate, then you will be able to take them home! In order to help make sure there will be enough ingredients on hand, you can email me if you plan to attend, although it is not a prerequisite that sign up ahead of time.

Teresa Ennis will be hosting a Cake Decorating Class at the Plymouth Community Center, Tuesday December 10 at 4 PM. The cost for the class is $15 per person. This covers the pre-baked cupcakes you will learn how to fill & decorate, and you will go home with a flyer of information and your delicious creations! Come get creative!

35 School Drive, Plymouth

Reprinted with permission by the Vermont Standard

11/23/19

Changeable weather has been our forecast of late and it has been true. Beautiful, bright sunny days with crystal clear skies some days, then rain, snow, sleet on others. Perhaps it makes us more appreciative of the good ones! Today (Saturday) was a perfect day for a brisk walk under clear skies.

I didn’t have time to count myself, but I was told there were 38 participants at the Community Luncheon. It was wild and wonderful – numerous helping hands, great amounts of scrumptious food, and lots of laughs. It was the first time for several folks to attend and some even contributed to the meal. We had a time of sharing things for which we are grateful and many blessings were noted. I am so thankful to be part of this amazing community where people can cheerfully come together and celebrate their zeal for living!

I have sometimes complained that this is the grey season, yet one day I wrote a rebuttal to myself, which I would like to share with you. Happy Thanksgiving!

Colors of Life

I am learning that things are not simply black or white

Nor is there merely blurring from day into night

Sparkles pierce the darkness in the sky so vast

Beckoning us to the future, letting go of the past

For who wants vision to be just shades of grey

Or not to see the vibrancy of the break of day

Perhaps we can choose the colors that we see

Instead note the forest, not merely see one tree

At the end of the night when dawn appears

The darkness then lifts to banish our fears

May we also remember that near the end of day

Colors will again appear in wondrous array

So why do we choose to let our vision be

Murky & limited when there is much to see

Hope comes in many shades as we go on our way

Changing and shifting like the light of day

Reprinted with permission of the Vermont Standard

11/17/19

This is Sunday evening and we spent the weekend in Boston – a fun place, but oh, the traffic. Although places may be located conveniently closer, the congestion makes the time to get there just as long as our drives here in VT!

We arrived home in time to attend the special reception given in honor of Plymouth resident, Gwen Groff. She has been the beloved pastor at Bethany Mennonite Church in Bridgewater for 20 years. During this time she has touched many lives and there were numerous expressions of appreciation. The celebration combined good food, gratitude, genuine love and God’s blessings.

More good food will be in evidence thanks to the many people who are contributing to the November Community Luncheon that will be held on Thursday, 11/21 at 11:30 in the Community Room at Tyson Church. Hopefully the predicted inclement weather of the first part of the week will be long gone. Come join the fun!

Please mark you calendar for this enlightening event. The VT Department of Financial Regulation will be giving a FREE Outreach presentation on how to protect your personal information and not get scammed. It will take place on 1/7 at 10:00 am at the Plymouth Community Center. I attended one of their workshops previously and there is considerable good information, so plan to be there.

There will be a Memory Tree Lighting Ceremony on Sunday December 8th, 2019 at 4pm at The Plymouth Community Center. (35 School Drive)

In conjunction with the Memory Tree Lighting the Plymouth Historical Society will be hosting an Open House and cookie exchange from 2 to 4pm. If you want to participate in the cookie exchange please bring 2 dozen cookies, 1 dozen to exchange and 1 dozen to share at the Open House. Beverages will be provided. Questions? Please contact midgetucker@gmail.com.

The Plymouth Schoolhouse Childcare will also be open for children to play in the classroom and families to visit the program.

Come celebrate the start of the Holiday season with your neighbors!

Reprinted with permission of the Vt Standard

11/10/19

Moving right along into November. Is it my imagination or is it slipping away quickly? Our first snow has fallen, although not a major event. It has melted from our deck, but a white fringe lingers close to the house where it slid from the metal roof. It looks like later tonight (Sunday), there might be more coming and who know what Monday and Tuesday will bring!

We had an interesting discussion at Book Club about Samantha Silva’s Mr. Dickens and His Carol. Mixed reviews and a bit of frustration with the character of Mr Dickens, although it seemed to pick up toward the end. Sticking with this theme. Marley by local Plymouth author, Jon Clinch, has been chosen for our next book. It has only recently been released, so there seems to be a waiting list at the library. We will be discussing it on 12/12.

Here is promo quote: “Marley was dead, to begin with,” Charles Dickens tells us at the beginning of A Christmas Carol. But in Jon Clinch’s ingenious novel, Jacob Marley, business partner to Ebenezer Scrooge, is very much alive: a rapacious and cunning boy who grows up to be a forger, a scoundrel, and the man who will be both the making and the undoing of Scrooge. Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

Lauren is back manning the Plymouth Press site again. She and Matt are thoroughly enthralled with their new bundle of joy and appreciate getting some rest when he is sleeping peacefully. I had noted that Mina was thrilled to have her grandson, Liam, so close by, but Lauren wanted me to mention how wonderful it is for her parents, Sue & Greg Skaskiw of Bridgewater to have a grandchild on the east coast!

Well, plans are coming together for the Community Luncheon on 11/21 thanks to so many volunteers. It seems like numerous new folks are wanting to attend and they are offering their culinary skills to make this pre-thanksgiving luncheon a luscious feast. I am thinking that I will need to purchase another turkey breast – a 4^th! That is not a problem, but I hope someone is good at carving…

Speaking of new folks, here is the latest list of property transfers:

1) 3572 Route 100 $337,000 Gregory & Barbara Wanamaker to

Michael and Karen Rutledge

2) Pine Hill Road – 237.81 Acres Land $161,325 Arthur Grace

to Montgomery Timber Co, LLC

3) 207 Reading Pond Rd. $316,000 John and Linda Olivieri to

   Gary and Cheryl Mendrala

4) Kingdom & Dix Hill Road – 95.69 Acres Land $260,000 Gilmore

    LLC to Hillbaum LLC

5) 84 Merlin Way $276,000 Arthur and Fatimah Deffaa to Michael

and Elizabeth Neville