You are invited to participate in a discussion about the lives of migrant workers in Vermont. The talk, led by author and UVM Anthropology Professor Teresa Mares, will be held at the Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society headquarters on Charles Avenue in Middlebury on Thursday, Oct. 17, 6:30-8 p.m. Mares’s new book, “Life on the Other Border: Farmworkers and Food Justice in Vermont,” explores the vulnerability and food insecurity experienced by migrant farm workers, and analyzes the inequities, fear and invisibility experienced by those who sustain the state’s dairy industry. The book also speaks to the workers’ humanity and resilience, and their efforts to remain connected to the foods that provide a link to their families and familiar tables south of the border. Parking at the church is limited — please park in the Middlebury Union High School lot across the street.
Gov. Phil Scott last week announced the appointments of 27 Vermonters to state boards and commissions. Among the appointees are Michael Leyden of Bristol to the Governor’s Emergency Preparedness Advisory Council, and Candice Price of Addison to the Vermont Developmental Disabilities Council. Boards and commissions serve an important role in state government, giving Vermonters many opportunities to serve their state and communities. The governor’s office is soliciting applications to fill vacancies and upcoming term expirations. Those interested in serving on a board or commission can apply on the governor’s website: governor.vermont.gov/boards-commissions.
Quarry Hill School will hold a benefit bake at American Flatbread in Middlebury on Oct. 16, 5-9 p.m. This annual event brings Quarry Hill families together to reminisce, reconnect and raise funds for the school, which has been operating since 1972. American Flatbread in the Marble Works will donate $3 from sales of each large flatbread, $2 from each small flatbread, and 10 percent from sales of Vermont craft beers during this event. For more information, please call 388-7297 or 388-3330, or visit quarryhillschool.org or the Quarry Hill School Facebook page.
Helping Overcome Poverty’s Effects (HOPE) would like to borrow some food mills to process gleaned apples for applesauce to freeze for its food shelf. The organization will need them for up to two weeks. Mills that can process apples and separate skin and seed would be most ideal. Those interested can contact Lily Bradburn, HOPE’s local food access coordinator, at [email protected] or 388-3608.
The Ferrisburgh Conservation Commission, town road foreman and town tree warden will host a training session on Tuesday, Oct. 15, 6-8:30 p.m. at the Ferrisburgh Town Center, for volunteers willing to participate in the community’s upcoming roadside ash tree inventory. Following training, volunteers will break into small teams assigned to specific town roads. This fall, on its own schedule, each team will inventory its assigned roads using smartphones or a limited number of iPads loaned by the state. The goal is to identify all ash trees along town roads, so they can be evaluated by the town road crew for the degree of hazard they might pose when the Emerald Ash Borer arrives. For more information contact Craig Heindel at 425-3620, or Joe Nelson, leader of the town’s ash tree inventory effort, at [email protected].