Forest service offering Christmas tree permits

U.S. Forest Service officials in Vermont are welcoming the public to select and cut a Christmas tree on the Green Mountain National Forest with the purchase of a $5 permit.

The virtual program will feature holiday favorites played on Henry L. Sheldon’s historic Chickering piano.

Hung in doorways to spread holiday cheer, mistletoe is rich in mythology and tradition.

VERGENNES  — After Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine singled out a Vergennes church as the source of 80 recent COVID-19 cases, the pastor of Victory Baptist Church on Route 7 says that his parishioners were following federal safety guidelines du … (read more)

MONTPELIER — Gov. Phil Scott announced at the beginning of his weekly Tuesday press briefing the easing of some COVID-19 restrictions in Vermont. He announced three central changes: •  “A small, short-term modification in our gathering policy.” Scott said … (read more)

This Christmas, look for silver linings. Nine months into this pandemic, for instance, we have fine-tuned the art of looking at bleakness and coming up with ways to smile. We’ve turned panic of the unknown into a calm resignation of semi-isolation. We are … (read more)

I started my holiday vacation — by which I mean “not working” as opposed to “traveling” — a week ago. I’ve already lost track of what day it is, a sensation I don’t usually feel until the no-man’s-land between Christmas and New Year’s. Then again, this en … (read more)

MIDDLEBURY — Christmas came early to a few Veterans’ and service organizations as well as to local civic clubs due to the generosity of Middlebury American Legion Post 27. At their last regular meeting in October the membership unanimously voted to help v … (read more)

When it comes to Christmas, my husband Mark always wins. He’s just a more thoughtful gift giver than I am. I hate that. I wanted Christmas 2019 to be different. I decided I would paint Mark a scene taken from a photo of our backyard: the old horse barn, a … (read more)

Editor’s note: An editorial about the credibility of Santa Claus appeared more than 100 years ago in The New York Sun. It was written by Francis Pharcellus Church, an assistant to the paper’s editor. A true Christmas classic, it has outlived its writer, t … (read more)

MIDDLEBURY — In what has become an annual tradition, a group of local volunteers will host a free dinner for area residents on Christmas Day, Wednesday, Dec. 25. The dinner will be held at 4 p.m. in the dining area of the Middlebury Commons, across from t … (read more)

ADDISON COUNTY — This past Saturday, the annual line began to form outside of the Champlain Valley Christian Reformed Church in Vergennes. What for? Why the cookie sale of course. This was the 25th year that the Champlain Valley Christian School put on th … (read more)

STARKSBORO — The annual Starksboro Village Meeting House Christmas Candlelight service this year will be held on Sunday, Dec. 22, at 7:30 p.m. The program of lessons and carols will be led by the Rev. John Burbank. All are welcome. If you enjoy singing ho … (read more)