Special Music at Tyson Church This Sunday

Posted on 01/19/2016 by Plymouth Press Contributing Writer

Join us at Tyson Congregational Church on Sunday, 1/24 at 10:30 AM, when well-known local musician, Erik Johansson, will join us with his harp for special music.  All are welcome to attend.

Parking is kindly allowed at the Echo Lake Inn.

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Parents’ Night Out Babysitting, Snowshoeing, and Wednesday Pub Talks — Margo’s Plymouth Report

Posted on 01/19/2016 by The Plymouth Press

owl in flight1/17/16

Just took a short trek up Patch Brook Road.  Nice going and not too cold.  A good workout for a 1st day of snowshoeing this season!  There is some ice underfoot, so caution is still needed.   The road conditions in Plymouth were a bit tricky this past Saturday, causing 2 rollovers and keeping the Plymouth Fire Department busy.  I don’t believe that anyone was seriously hurt, which is good.  Be careful!

I understand that Jim Cooke (fondly known around here for his delightful impersonation of Calvin Coolidge) is interested in selling some of his many books about Cal and that era.  For those history buffs out there, you may reach Jim at 617-939-7328 or www.crankyyankees.net

I am sure there must be more January birthdays, but the only one I know is Cindy Vosburgh on 1/20.  Best wishes!  Somewhat in line with birthdays, Joan Day has managed to keep a half-tame bunny from starving or becoming a meal for the local predators, but low and behold, the furry little creature seems about ready to give birth.  Well, that is what bunnies do…..

I am told that the talk by Lisa Kaiman of Jersey Girls Dairy and Store was quite informative and the samples were delicious.  Since I babysit through dinner most Wednesdays, I am afraid I will be missing the Five Corners Pub and Brewhouse Pub Talks series.  This week the speaker will be Chris Moonen of Plymouth Artisan Cheese.

You may have seen in the paper that Killington is offering a babysitting service, so couples can have some time to themselves and know that their youngsters are safe and entertained.  So, I was not surprised to read that Lauren Skaskiw will be offering babysitting at our Schoolhouse Community Building in Plymouth (where she offered summer child care) starting 1/23 from 4:00 – 9:00 PM.  The fee is $30 per child, 3 yrs and above. $40 per child under 3 yrs of age.  Contact her at 802-855-7566 for more details or to reserve a spot.

Cheryl Bishop read the story of the Wise Men for the children in church today, then helped them with a special craft.  The youngsters also decided to use the money they collected for the Heifer Project to buy a goat to help a family in a 3rd world country, although when initially discussed, the animals of choice were a leopard, then a whale!

Lastly, I wanted to share a poem written by Elaine Pauley that I hope you will enjoy:

snow
gently falling
weak sun striving
thru thick gray clouds
rabbit tracks in the snow
imprint of owl’s wing tells the story.

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It’s a Quiet January — Margo’s Plymouth Report

Posted on 01/12/2016 by The Plymouth Press

1/10/16

Well, the weather certainly has been strange this winter and the most I guess we can say is that it has been changeable!  I was so glad it was fairly warm on Sunday, so most folks made it to church without mishap despite the rain.

Lots of parties going on in Tyson these days – good food, good friends and good fun.  Sunday evening while we were enjoying a wonderful array of appetizers, the rumble of thunder caught our attention, then the flashes of lightening brightened up the room!

We had an animated discussion of The Race to Paris at the Reading Group last week.  The next book is The Light Between Oceans, which will be discussed on 2/11.

I really don’t have much news about what is going on in Plymouth.  Haven’t made it to the 5 Corners Brew Pub yet, but hope to do so soon.  So, let me know what is happening in town that would be of interest to folks!

On a sad note, we have lost 2 local folks recently.  Town Clerk, Sandie Small’s husband, Charles, passed away a week or so ago and I received a call from Linda Rossi that Gail Carbonaro passed away on 1/9.  Charles had been in Cedar Hill Nursing Home and Gail had been living with her sister for the past several months.  Both will be missed.  Condolesences to their families and friends.

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Winter Has Arrived … Time for Camp! — Margo’s Plymouth Report

Posted on 01/05/2016 by tbascom

Reprinted by permission of The Vermont Standard.

Brrr!

Brrr! 

12/30/31

Well, snow has arrived, but can’t say I am thrilled with this “wintry mix”!  Been using my boot gripers just to get from the house to the garage.  May we all be prudent in these kinds of conditions and make 2016 a safe year!  That goes for traveling the roads, too.  So many people here for vacation, despite the so-so snow. Stores are crowded, but so are the roads.

Tom and I took Owen and Landon to the Monshire Museum on Wednesday and although the parking lot was nearly full, there was still plenty of room inside at the exhibits.  What a great places with things for various age levels.  A number of  gray-hairs there with little ones, so I suppose many other grandparents were looking for an indoor activity with their young charges.  By the way, they had the big conference room open and were serving a limited selection of food.  We brought our lunches as did most folks, but supplemented with delicious turkey/rice soup!

Winter fun will be happening at Bethany Birches Camp in February, so I am noting the dates so you can register ahead of time and be sure of getting a place.  Lynx (2/13-16) is for grades 4-7.  Polar Bear (2/19-21) covers grades 7-9.  For grades 3-6, plan on attending Bobcat (2/26-28).  To register or to obtain more information, call 802-672-5220 or click here to go to the website.

With sadness, I want to let folks know that Richard Murphy passed away on 12/9.  You may recall seeing Dick riding his bicycle near Hawk in past summers.  He and his wife, Chris, bought their place off Rte 100 in Plymouth over 20 years ago and have enjoyed summers here, while wintering in SC.  Sincere condolences to Chris.

Happy, healthy New Year!

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Okemo – Jackson Gore Ski Trail Plans for Christmas Week

Posted on 12/21/2015 by tbascom

I received this from the Okemo Valley Area Chamber of Commerce last night, who received it on December 19th from Bruce at Okemo, to share with the broader community.

Okemo Logo EuroThe Okemo snowmakers are working hard and the temperatures look like they will be cooperating thru the weekend.  We have a very aggressive plan to be executed. Snowmaking has been strong and many objectives were met.  Below are some highlights and information on where we are, where we are headed and the Crystal ball of the future

 Snowmaking has been going on since Friday afternoon.  The objectives are to work on some of the existing terrain while at the same time heading into new territory.  Our plan is to run as many snow guns as possible with the temperatures that we have.  With Saturday night being the coldest night we fully anticipate having up to 200 guns running across the resort.  Okemo is working hard to have the Jackson Gore base area open by Monday.  We can assure our loyal guests that the entire Okemo team is laser focused to making this happen.

Our snowmaking plan continues to be to make snow on trails that will be for the good of many. What this means is that we will work on trails many people can ski and ride, we will be staying away from expert trails, we won’t be working on terrain park trails, but will put out rails and hits on existing terrain, and we will work to spread out across the mountain.

 Once we get the Jackson Gore area open our anticipated trail count will be around 25. With these trails we will have 8-10 lifts operating during the holiday week.

 Our Terrain park features will be on the upper section of Sapphire.  Okemo is committed to having some aspects of our terrain parks on the side of the Sapphire trail so all our guests can enjoy what they want on the slopes

 There will be a shuttle service between Jackson Gore and the slopes until the Jackson Gore Base area is opened. This shuttle service will be operating through the day to move skiers and riders as needed.  Okemo will also be enhancing our shuttle service through the Christmas Holidays in the Solitude condominiums and Solitude Single Family homes areas.

 Round House – Open for the season on 12/19                  *Sushi station opening 12/27

Coleman Brook Tavern – Open for the season for Lunch and Dinner

Epic – Open for the season                                                *Epic Deli opening 12/19                 *Epic Starbucks  – Opening 12/28

Sugar house – Open 12/26                                                *Smokey Jo’s – Opening 12/19    *Sugar House Tia noodle station – Open 1/04

Siena – Open for dinner 12/18 & 19. Winter Holiday schedule after Christmas

Base Starbucks – Open 12/26

Summit Vermont Pizza & Sky Bar– Open 12/26               *Jump Asian Cuisine Open 12/28

Sitting Bull Vermont Pizza – Open  12/28

The ticketing kiosks located at the base of the Sunburst as well Solitude will be opening after Christmas.  Until that time guests will need to go down to the Jackson Gore base area or the Clocktower base area for their tickets. Guests with Real.Easy cards who have registered them can load tickets on their cards on line and go direct to the lifts.  A great suggestion for those who are not near a ticket location.

The long range forecast if for milder weather to return after the weekend and go through Christmas Eve.  Around Christmas it is looking like some colder weather will be in place for hopefully some snowmaking.

Our plan moving forward with the next cold snap will be to shore up any existing terrain challenges and then heads towards another trail in Solitude, Wardance or lower Chief, and look at some lodging trails such as Sachem or some in the Solitude area.  We also will begin heading toward South Face with Count Down, Sprint, Moments rest on the list.  This will happen when the next long term cold spell arrives.

  Iknow these challenges have not been easy on anyone, but a large part of the battle is remaining positive and optimistic.  Negativity is contagious, but optimism will change attitudes and bring about a vision that things will be better.  Our guests believe in Okemo.

Bruce Schmidt
Vice-President & General Manager
Okemo Mountain Resort (twitter.com/okemogm, www.okemo.com)

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Unseasonable Weather! — Plymouth Report from Margo

Posted on 12/15/2015 by The Plymouth Press

Reprinted by permission of The Vermont Standard

Pic is Brian Hayes on bench on top, standing Landon Perrino, sitting in back Owen Bishop, side is Crystal Hayes, sitting in front Owen Marks, & Owen Perrino. Gingerbread church by Rose Frye.

Pic is Brian Hayes on bench on top, standing Landon Perrino, sitting in back Owen Bishop, side is Crystal Hayes, sitting in front Owen Marks, & Owen Perrino. Gingerbread church by Rose Frye.

12/13/15

I don’t know what to make of these balmy temperatures.  I can’t imagine the ski areas are pleased with this turn of events, especially when CA received quite a snowfall!  I don’t think there is any doubt that the white stuff will come, however…..

So many activities going on that it is impossible to get to all of them.  Taking a break from the Santa domination of Christmas, the youngsters at our Children’s Sunday talked about Jesus’ place in the holiday mix.  They also gleefully dismantled and ate the lovely gingerbread church so beautifully crafted for us by Rose Frye.  Don’t forget the Community Candlelight Service at 7:00 PM on Sunday, 12/20!

Although it was a sparse crowd at the Memory Tree Lighting on Sunday, it was amazing how many names were on the list to be remembered – treasured folks missing from our midst.  By the time we chatted and had refreshments in the Community Center, the tree and luminaria really looked quite lovely.

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Wits End?

Posted on 12/14/2015 by Plymouth Press Contributing Writer

Are you at your wits end dealing with a loved one’s addiction problem?

Come to a free, open and confidential discussion with other people like you. Share what works and what doesn’t with a Licensed Drug and Alcohol Counselor present.

2nd & 4th Tuesdays of every month at 6pm at Fletcher Memorial Library, Ludlow.

Sponsored by the Okemo Community Challenge Grant and Black River Area Community Coalition (BRACC).

For more info please call BRACC at 802-228-7878

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Memorial Tree Lighting, Candlelight Service and More! Margo’s Plymouth Report

Posted on 12/09/2015 by The Plymouth Press

Reprinted with permission of The Vermont Standard

Ladies Aid at Wilder House 2015 (2)12/6/15

Tyson Ladies Aid broke with tradition and gathered at the Inn at Water’s Edge for the Christmas party this year. Tina provided a wonderful lunch, served with flair by Bruce.  Gifts for the Windsor Youth Services homes, special tissue boxes for the Gill Home and more hats, gloves, and mittens were brought by the members. A good time was had by all!

The Inn at Water’s Edge (228-8143) is back offering Thursday (Italian night) and Friday night dinner specials.  Dinner is available other nights with advance reservations, too. The Echo Lake Inn (228-6802) is serving on weekends, but will be open during the week after the 19th.

Quite a crowd gathered at the President Coolidge Historic Site on Saturday for the various events. Of course, the sleigh ride became a wagon ride, but folks didn’t seem to mind the mild weather. When I was leaving, however, I noticed that the horses appeared to be tired of taking the same route repeatedly, but Fred was finally able to move them in the right direction!

The soup, chili, and pies were a big hit at the Wilder House. There were many of us fromLadies Aid at Wilder House 2015 (1) Tyson Ladies Aid serving and chatting with customers. It was a jovial crew to say the least and at the end, several husbands came over to assist with clean up. Funds raised go for a number of different projects, one of which is the scholarship program serving seniors from WUHS and Black River.

Don’t forget that the lighting of the Memory Tree will take place on Sunday, 12/13 at 4:00 PM at the former Town Office/Historical Society building. Weather permitting, luminaria will light the way to the new Historical Society site at the Schoolhouse Community Building, where the Plymouth Historical Society museum will be open and light refreshments will be served from 4:00 to 6:00.  Visitors are welcome to explore the museum and Historical Society members will be available to answer questions.

Another community event will be taking place at Tyson Church on Sunday, 12/20 at 7:00 PM – the Community Candlelight Service.  The chorus from Black River High School will be providing some special music, but we will also be singing a number of Christmas carols.  As usual there will be a social time downstairs afterward with lots of goodies.  If you have a special recipe and would like to bring some cookies, feel free to do so!  All are welcome.

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December Celebrations — Margo’s Plymouth Report

Posted on 11/30/2015 by The Plymouth Press

Reprinted by permission of The Vermont Standard

Brrr!

Brrr!

11/20/15

Well, you can’t be in 2 places at once, so Tom and I enjoyed a delicious lunch with the VT Standard family at the Public House in Quechee on 11/19!   As a result, I missed the Reach Out community turkey luncheon sponsored by Tyson Ladies Aid and Tyson Church.  I understand from Kathy Lynds that there was “an amazing array of delicious food made by at least 14 Ladies Aid and church members.”

Teens from Windsor County Youth served those who were unable to negotiate the buffet table.  Sorry to have missed visiting with everyone.  Kristen Jarvi even brought Bill over for the event.  There will not be a luncheon in December, but plan to attend the 3rd Thursday in January!

The sock, mitten, and hat tree is located in the downstairs community room at the church and will be accepting donations until December 13th, then these items will be given to Black River Valley Good Neighbor for distribution.  Bought or homemade items can be given to Sandie Small at the Plymouth Town Office or left at the Green Mountain Sugar House, if you cannot bring them to the church on a Sunday.

Get ready for the Coolidge Historic Site Holiday Open House on Saturday, 12/5.  Decorations will reflect what was popular during the late 19th century and will include winter exhibits at the Museum and Education Center, Aldrich House, and the 1924 Summer White House office.  The Cheese Factory will be open, as usual with a nice variety of cheeses.  Something enjoyable for everyone – sleigh rides, old-time music, children’s holiday activities, and also craft demonstrations.

Plan to enjoy a snack or lunch at the Wilder House Restaurant from 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM, where Tyson Ladies Aid will have a nice array of food, including homemade pies, hearty soups and chili, plus several hot beverages.  Also, please note the special cancellation at the historic Plymouth post office.

I enjoyed seeing Jay Flaster at Shaws the other day and learned that Julia just had her 1st birthday.  She is a petite and pretty little girl in contrast to my grandson, Landon, who was with me and huge for his age (2½)!  Did you know that you can obtain a Fruit Card at Shaws which entitles youngsters who accompany you to a free apple or banana?

Being away, I missed November birthdays and will probably forget to include some.  Please feel free to let me know if I missed you!  Willow Bascom (11/2), Karen Evans (11/7), and Mary Jane Crockett (11/8).

The season of Advent starts on Sunday, 11/29.  This 4 week period prior to Christmas is important in preparing for the birth of Jesus, the Christ.  Feel free to join us at Tyson Church for our 10:30 AM Sunday morning worship services as we open our hearts to the Light of the World.  We will have our Service of Remembrance on Sunday, 12/6 at 4:00 – a time to acknowledge our feelings of missing loved ones no longer with us to celebrate the Holidays.  We will light candles in remembrance.  Also, mark your calendars for our annual Community Candlelight Service at 7:00 PM on 12/20.

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Margo Marrone’s Plymouth Report

Posted on 11/05/2015 by Plymouth Press Contributing Writer

Republished with permission from The Vermont Standard

11/1/15

A new month & what will it hold! Seems like relatively few people around these days, but we know that will change when ski season starts in earnest. By the way, did folks see that Kevin Lasky’s picture won a prize. Not exactly sure where it was taken, but it is very nice.

We had a lively discussion at the Reading Club meeting the other evening about The Aviator’s Wife. I have always been fond of Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, so this historical novel about her life was very interesting. Taking a break over the holidays – our next book is The Race for Paris by Meg Waite Clayton for 1/7/16.

The Echo Lake Inn (228-8602) restaurant is closed now until 11/25. Dinners will be served starting at 3:00 PM on Thanksgiving. Aside from that week when meals will be served Wed – Sat, the restaurant will be open mainly on weekends until the snow flies. I will include info about the Inn at Water’s Edge next time!

I noticed the letter in last week’s paper regarding bicycling two abreast. Riding on Rte 100 and also driving there often, I was surprised to hear about the statute that allows it. I have been buzzed pretty closely by passing vehicles, even though I usually ride to the right of the side white line. I consider this to be unnecessary and rude.

On the other hand, I have experienced the frustration of having to go into the other lane because cyclists are riding side-by-side and paying no attention to the traffic around them. I don’t believe that riding that way is prudent or safe on a main thoroughfare. Our roads are so charming and biking them is so much fun, but they do get busy at times with folks going about their normal daily affairs. Common sense and courtesy go a long way toward making our roads safe for all who use them. If you want to ride next to each other, best to choose a less traveled back road with good visibility.

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