the bridge, april 21, 2016 — food & farming

8/18/2019 The Bridge, April 21, 2016 — Food & Farming

1/24

W hen one thinks of vineyards and wineries, it is often within a settingakin to California’s Sonoma and

Napa valleys or the rolling Italian villagelandscapes. An image of Vermont’s greenmountains would more likely evoke mapletapping, rather than harvesting grapes for wine.

Sure Northern California produces some ofthe best merlots and pinots on the market,but what about marquettes, le crescents andfrontenacs? Not familiar with these varietals?hey are among the limited number of grapesthat can tolerate Vermont’s gelid winters. Freshracks Farm Vineyard & Winery on Route12 in Berlin has three vineyards, soon to befour, growing such grapes on 14 acres of theirproperty.

Fresh racks owner and winemaker, ChristinaCastegren, bought the land in Berlin in 2002 with the goal of crafting wine from grapesgrown on-site. his was to be the first wineryand vineyard to open in the capital region. Armed with a background in plant and soil

science earned at the University of Vermont, sheset to work planting 17 varieties of grapes. Overthe following five years, through an immenseamount of trial and error, she learned what

successfully grew and produced well. Ultimately,it was the ‘cold-hardy’ varieties, hybrids createdby the University of Minnesota, that matchedbest with the local environment as they can withstand extremely cold temperatures, ripenin a shorter season and are resistant to disease.Keep in mind that grape vines remain above

ground all year long. At Fresh racks, the vinesare kept untouched during the coldest months,pruned as the temperatures become warmerand harvested early fall. he grapes they groware St. Croix, Frontenac Gris, Adalmiina andthe earlier mentioned Marquette, La Crescentand Frontenac. Some or all of these grapesare also grown at the 30-plus vineyards nowfound throughout Vermont. But there can bea noticeable difference in flavor, vineyard tovineyard. For instance, Marquette grapes grownin the Lake Champlain region could produce a wine that’s more spicy and less fruity or viceversa than wines made from the same variety ofgrapes grown in southern Vermont due to thelake effect or lack of snow cover for the vine.

Castegren isn’t forcing merlot grapes or anyother more familiar varieties because they arenot conducive to this climate. Her success inachieving flavorful wines is simply “use whatyou can grow.” he distinct difference betweenthe grapes grown here and those grown in a warmer climate is that here, the level of acidityis higher. Acidity affects the wine's tart, sourand crisp notes, and is crucial to manage andbalance in order to produce good wine. Freshracks does this extremely well. I am not a wineconnoisseur by any means. But I know I love wine, especially bold reds. I’m not particularly afan of white wines or rosés, but when it comesto these lighter-colored wines made in Vermont,I am. he Vermont Rosé, made with St. Croix

grapes, is crisp yet bold and earthy rather thansweet and perfumey, which is how most rosésaffect my palate.

Not surprisingly, since this is Vermont, Freshracks also taps maple from their own trees.However, this maple isn’t necessarily for yourmorning pancakes. Fresh racks produces a

maple wine that is sweet yet complex andconsidered a dessert wine. Other suggested usesare as a topping for ice cream and as a flavorenhancer when caramelizing onions.

A bit more than 40 barrels produce an averageof 2,500 cases a year. hese are distributedthroughout Vermont and the bottles can bepurchased at their Berlin location. hey don’tpush fermentation or the aging process to meeta set quota. hey only bottle and release the wines once it reaches the quality for which theystrive, so their production numbers may varyfrom year to year.

Fresh racks is fully operated on-site and iscompletely hands-on — a tiny tasting lab is setup amongst the barrels that hold the fermenting

grapes and the full-time staff of six are allprepared to jump into different roles withoutquestion in order to ensure a successful harvest. Assistant winemaker, Hannah Swanson may befound pruning the vines if she’s not checkingthe barrels or hosting tastings for visitors. Freshracks defines themselves as “a labor of lovethat stems from a love of labor.” his could

T h e B r i d g e

P . O .

B o x 1 1 4 3

M o n t p e l i e r , V T 0 5 6 0 1

P R S R T S T D

C A R - R

T S O R T

U . S .

P o s t a g e

P A I D

M o n t p e l i e r , V T

P e r m i t N O .

1 2 3

From the Front Lines of the Addiction Crisis — Page 4

Continued on Page 11

A PRIL 21 – M AY 4, 2016

IN THIS ISSUE:

Pg. 9 The Future of

Farming

Pg. 10 GMO Labeling

Pg. 12 The Birth of

Positive Pie

Pg. 23 Living withMultiple Sclerosis

www.montpelierbridge.com

Fresh Tracks Farm Vineyard & Winery:‘A Labor of Love That Stems From aLove of Labor’ story and photos by Marichel Vaught

The Law Office of Amy K. Butler,Esquire, PLLC

Bankruptcy • Family Law Esta te P lanning

64 Main St., Ste. 26, Montpelier 802-371-0077

[email protected]

Fresh racks' proprietor and

winemakerChristinaCastegren

One of three vineyards at Fresh racks Farm in Berlin.

Photo courtesy of Fresh racks Farm.


2/24

PAGE 2 • APRIL 21 – MAY 4, 2016 THE BRIDGE

Thank you for supporting The Bridge!


3/24

THE BRIDGE APRI L 21 – MAY 4, 2016 • PAGE 3

Fraser’s Contract Extended Pending Council Vote

MONTPELIER — City Manager William Fraser is likely staying in town ... for now.

“The council and Bill reached an agreement on Friday, April 15 for an extension of his contractfor one year. The contract will be on the council's agenda for ratification at our next meeting

on April 27,” Hollar told The Bridge via email.

Fraser agreed. “I am confirming that we renewed the contract for another year,” Fraser toldTheBridge by phone April 20. An agreement was reach at executive session. The terms are the sameas the previous year’s contract. The city manager’s salary was listed as $104,515.00 in the mostrecent city budget posted online.

Two Proposals In For Rec Center

MONTPELIER — Food Hub? “Maker Space?” Mixed-use commercial? Rec Center? Time will tell.

The City of Montpelier received two proposals to purchase city-owned 55 Barre Street sub-mitted April 15, according to a memorandum issued by City Manager William Fraser and Assistant City Manager Jessie Baker April 20. The proposals were in response to a request forproposal released by the city March 9.

The companies who entered proposals are Morningstar Properties under the signature of Ste-ven Ribolini and Overlake Park LLC signed by Jesse Jacobs.

The memo states that neither proposal fully satisfies the request for proposal criteria, therefore“I have reviewed the responses and recommend that, as neither fully complies with the RFPrequirements, we do not move forward with either proposal at this point,” the memo states.

Morningstar’s proposal is to pay $212,000 and turn the building into “mixed-use” space.Overlake Park’s proposal is to pay $375,000 and use it for three purposes, the first is labelled“confidential,” the second is “Maker Space” and the third is “Food Hub.”

The memo further states that the proposals “present great ideas,” but that “there are not busi-nesses committed to the projects.” And, since both respondents are local property owners who have “exciting economic development concepts,” the city will further explore the ideas.In addition, the city needs to figure out how this would fit into the plan to develop a multi-generational recreation department.

Hel’s Kitchen Closing

MONTPELIER — Hel’s Kitchen, run by Helen Labun, will close April 30. The takeoutrestaurant went into business in August 2015 at the Salt Restaurant building on Barre Street.Labun, who has an agriculture and food systems degree, turned skills honed during “informal

potluck gatherings at her home” into a “complicated study of new flavors,” according to anarticle on Labun by Marichel Vaught last fall. This week’s menu items for April 19 to 22 followa Middle Eastern theme. Takeout items include chicken kofta (meatballs) with tahini-za'atarsauce, phyllo pastries with greens and orange blossom caramels. Website: Helskitchenvt.com.

Opera Fest Gala and Auction Announced

PLAINFIELD — Echo Valley Community Arts will be presenting Operafest VIII on Sat-urday, May 14 at 7 p.m. at The Plainfield Opera Houae in Plainfield, Vermont. Spring hasarrived! This gala event will be a chance to dress up, listen to glorious voices, eat delicious food,take chances with a raffle or vie for an item in a silent auction! Featured singers include: John Andrew Fernandez, Lillian Broderick, Annalise Shelmandine, Kevin Ginter, Meghan McCor-mack, Marek Pyka and Brian Vandenberge with Eliza Thomas accompanist. Proceeds will gotoward Echo Valley Community Arts's fall production of Mozart's "Cosi fan Tutte" which willrun October 14 to 16 and 21 to 23 at The Plainfield Opera House. For more information onthe opera go to echovalleycommunityarts.com.

Kiwanis Honors Scholars

BARRE — Kiwanis Club of Barre's 35th annual Honors for Scholars Banquet. HonoringSpaulding High School seniors who are members of the Pro Merito Society. Pro Merito Societymembers are required to have an accumulative average of 3.0 or greater for seven semesters.Forty-one members of the Spaulding High School Class of 2016 are members of the Pro MeritoSociety.

The banquet was held at the Canadian Club in Barre Town on Monday, April 11. Guest speak-ers were Keith Paxman and Rich McSheffrey, Class of 1992 Spaulding H.S. graduates andco-owners of the Cornerstone Restaurant Group.

HEARD ONTHE STREET

Name______________________________________________________

Address_____________________________________________________ City____________________________________ State_____Zip__________

Email_________________________________

*Contributions of $50 or more are eligible to receive a one-year subscription.Please mark the box if you have contributed $50 or more and would like TheBridge delivered to you. ❑YES, Send me every issue of The Bridge for one year!

Friends of The Bridge will be periodically acknowledged in future issues of

The Bridge. ❑I wish to remain anonymous

Send this form and your check to:The Bridge, P.O. Box 1143, Montpelier, VT 05601

Thank

You!

All community contributions, whatever

suits your budget, will be welcomed.

❑$25 ❑$50* ❑$100 ❑$150

❑$200 ❑$250 ❑Other $________

Support he Bridge Become a Community Contributor!

Advertise in the

NEXT ISSUE:

Mother's Day,Spring Sales,

Farmers'

MarketsIn Circulation

May 5 to May 18

ALL AD MATERIALSAND AD SPACERESERVATIONS

DUE FRIDAY, APRIL 29.

For more information aboutadvertising deadlines, ratesand the design of your ad call223-5112 ext. 11 or email ourad salesrepresentatives at

[email protected] [email protected]

Nature Watch by Nona Estrin

$ 2 5 fo r a m essag e u p t o 15 words s et in a

floral g raphic. F or $10 mor e,add a phot o o f

Mom!

Call to orderyours today-

223-5112, ext 12.Greetings will be

printed in theMay 5 issue. Deadline for

order is April 29.

Wish Mom or someonevery special

A Happy Mother's Day in The Bridge!

A t last, the green in our morning eggsand on our dinner plates is gatheredmere yards from where we eat it!

Wild, cooked leek greens are in everythingnow, our go-to for so many meals. heir deep woodland domain is on the slope next to theyard. It's a different world there, and even afew hurried minutes before a meal, can re-setyour frame of mind. We visit various beds,and pull them or cut them off, rather thandig. hat way this ancient resource has con-tinued to thrive and expand over the 35 years we've lived here. Got to go now. Omelette’son the menu!Watercolor by Nona Estrin

Edibles Emerge In Our Woodland Domain


4/24


On the Front Lines of the Addiction Crisis by Phil Dodd

By now, we all know there is a serious drug addiction crisis in Vermont and across thenation. We heard Gov. Peter Shumlin’s 2014 description of an addiction epidemic inVermont, and many of us know or have heard of someone locally who has become ad-

dicted to opioid painkillers, heroin or fentanyl, a drug that can be laced in with heroin or usedon its own. Addiction is disrupting the lives of addicts, their families and society as a whole,

and leading to death for too many. According to the Department of Health, in 2015 there were 34 people in Vermont who died in an accidental or undetermined manner from usingheroin, 32 who died from using prescription opioids and 29 who died from taking fentanyl.

These drugs are behind many of our news headlines these days, whether it is a string ofburglaries or the huge increase in the number of infants and toddlers being taken away fromtheir parents because the parents are addicted. Every day, it seems, there is a news story aboutsomeone busted on the highway for transporting drugs from out of state, or a murder trial in-volving drugs or an overdose, or a new plan to deal with the addiction issue, like Montpelier’snew policy of encouraging addicts to turn themselves in to the police without facing legalconsequences or several new federal anti-drug initiatives announced recently by PresidentBarack Obama.

Progress is being made in the battle against addiction, including an increase in the arrests ofmajor dealers and a reduction in the time it takes for an addict in Vermont to get into treat-ment. But the issue persists. At The Bridge, we decided to invite comment from some localindividuals who are trying to deal with the addiction crisis in their work or in their lives. What follows are reports from five people on the front lines of the crisis who were generous

enough to take the time to answer two questions: (1) What is the scope of the addiction crisistoday? (2) What can be done to improve the situation?

Kevin Griffin, Washington County Judge

Kevin Griffin is the presiding judge in both the Washington County Criminal Division and the Juvenile Court Division, part of the Family Court. He was appointed to the judiciary in January 2013. Prior to becoming a judge, Griffin worked in private law practice in White River Junction, primarily doing criminal defense and family law.

The scope of the addiction problem in the courts is great and it has put a tremendous amountof pressure on court resources. In the Criminal Division, it is rare to have a case that is notlinked to the issue of drugs or alcohol. In the juvenile docket of the Family Division, we areconsistently seeing the consequences of addiction, where one or both parents are struggling with addiction issues that have brought them to the attention of the Department of Childrenand Families. The number of cases involving children in need of care and supervision hasrisen dramatically over the past several years. The overwhelming majority of the abuse andneglect cases which result in children being removed from the home are directly attributable

to the opiate problem. While we have a major problem with opiates in Washington County, we are not alone.Every county in the state has been hit hard by the opiate epidemic. Fortunately, WashingtonCounty has a lot of great resources to support people struggling with addiction if they wanthelp. The challenge is getting them in the door to access the resources.

The reasons underlying our addiction crisis are complicated and often depend on the in-dividual. There has been extensive publicity surrounding the over prescription of opioidmedication. For sure, in some cases this has led to an easy transition to heroin use when theopioid medication is no longer available. Heroin is cheaper and available everywhere. But thepill mills leading to heroin abuse are not the major reasons for society’s addiction problem. Addiction is a health crisis that we are still trying to understand. Addiction can be partiallyrooted in socio-economic issues, some of it may have a genetic link, and we now know thatpeople with significant trauma histories are particularly susceptible to opioid abuse. In fact,some researchers argue that addiction can best be understood as learned behaviors developedover a significant period of time to avoid negative experiences. Since not every person who ispoor or who has experienced trauma in their lives become addicted, identifying those at risk

and getting them help early in the process is the big challenge.

Charging people struggling with addictions with criminal offenses and simply ordering themto stop using with the threat of incarceration usually does not work. There is a growing con-sensus that society is better served by approaching the addiction problem as a public healthcrisis desperately in need of more creative treatment options. But more resources are needed. We have drug treatment courts in Washington, Rutland and Chittenden Counties, and we

have a DUI treatment court in Windsor County. There are no treatment courts in the re-maining counties. An increase in resources could expand the availability of treatment courtsstatewide. Sadly, we just don’t have the resources to do that right now.

Deborah Hopkins, Outpatient Clinic Director

Deborah Hopkins is the operations director at Central Vermont Substance Abuse Services, anoutpatient clinic in Berlin that provides everything from outpatient programs to individual coun-seling.

Today we are seeing an increase in the use of “harder” drugs, such as heroin and cocaine, andseeing younger and younger people with life-threatening addictions. I don’t believe we seequite as much intravenous use as other areas, but the majority of people we serve inhale theirdrugs and so they may not be as obvious as the greater community would expect.

Many of these young people have never developed a lifestyle that doesn’t include drug use.This shifts the role of therapist from just providing therapy and includes providing crucialfollow-up care and education to the people they see.

Also, more of the people we are serving are involved with or known to the police and criminal justice system. Many people we serve say they can’t believe what they have done, but theyneeded to do it in order to feed their addiction. We are also seeing the influence of peoplecoming from other areas and engaging people in the drug trade to help feed their addictions.This makes the dynamic of getting clean more challenging. We also must not forget thereare still many people we serve who continue to struggle with a lcohol addiction, and this hasnot gone away.

To make progress, we must not lose the momentum of what has been created over the lastseveral years in seeing this issue as the disease it is, and not optional behavior. There have beeninfrastructures put in place that help the service agencies and community resources cometogether and combat this issue. For example, Central Vermont Medical Center EmergencyServices has a group working to share resources and cross-educate organizations so we canserve people more efficiently and cost effectively.

Also in our region we have created a program cal led Project Safe Catch, which a llows thepolice to offer assistance to anyone who wants treatment for addiction issues. If financialresources, such as emergency response teams or responders, are reduced, these k inds of initia-

tives will fall away as demand to make up that manpower is shifted to basic coverage. We have really helped integrate the role of medication-assisted treatment, using methadoneand suboxone, through a new dosing clinic in Central Vermont. We now need to take awaydisincentives, or better yet, incentivize private doctors and personal care providers to treattheir own patients with medication while partnering with community substance abuse pro-viders, and to provide counseling as they would for any other disease a patient might have.

Raina Lowell, Mother and Recovering Addict

Raina Lowell, a mother of two and a recovering addict, was the owner of the now closed Paseo shoestore in Montpelier when back pain led her to get a prescription for Vicodin. She quickly becameaddicted to the painkillers. Her business and marriage failed, and — like many people who becomeaddicted to prescription opiates — she eventually progressed to IV heroin use. After multiple failedattempts at rehabilitation, she spent a year at the Brattleboro Retreat and has now been sober for five years. Lowell works as a community outreach coordinator for Burlington Labs and is a publicspeaker and advocate for those who suffer from substance abuse disorder.

With the ever-growing availability and accessibility of pharmaceutical narcotics, we’ve found

Cody Chevrolet Congratulates The Bridge

On Over 20 Years of Business!


5/24


ourselves in a whole new ball game from when I was growing up. It used to be that if you wanted to use drugs you had to go to a “drug dealer” or you had to know someone (whoknew someone, who knew someone) who could get something — you had to really WANTit. Typically, you knew exactly what you were doing.

It just isn’t like that anymore. Nowadays you can find narcotics right in your own home. Orget them from your doctor, or a friend, or your grandmother. Nowadays people are doingdrugs equally as potent and addictive as cocaine or heroin and they don’t even know it! Itcomes as no surprise to me that we’re facing a nationwide epidemic (often referred to as “themodern day black plague”). I fell prey to this disease and was completely unprepared for theconsequences of what that meant … because I had NO idea what I had gotten myself into.

When people ask me, “What can we do?”, I always say the same thing: education, education,education. As soon as our culture comes to view addiction as a disease of the brain, ratherthan a moral fai ling or self-inflicted character defect, we will begin making real headway.

We must begin to educate our communities and we must accept and acknowledge that weare all at risk. We cannot shy away from these conversations. We cannot avoid discussing it with our children. We cannot condemn addicts to live in the shadows, saturated in shameand remorse, as we have always done. We cannot continue to tolerate the inevitable judgmentthat rains down on an addict when they dare to speak out.

Today, I am proud to call myself a recovering addict because I know what it took to get here.But when I was still sick and suffering and I needed help, I couldn’t bring myself to ask for itbecause I felt like I should’ve known better. I thought I was too smart to let something likethis happen. I was ashamed, because everything I was taught about drug addicts … well,that just wasn’t me. Until we begin to view addiction as a non-discriminatory disease; until we begin to treat active addicts and alcoholics as “sick” rather than “disgraceful,” and until we begin educating our youth accordingly, this epidemic will continue to be unstoppable.

Bert Klavens, Youth Counselor

Bert Klavens is the Director of the Healthy Youth Program, a service of the Washington CountyYouth Service Bureau in Montpelier. The program serves youths 12 to 26 with co-occurring sub-stance abuse and mental health issues. Klavens is a licensed addictions counselor who has workedwith youths, adults, and families in central Vermont for over 20 years.

The familiar issue of youth substance abuse and dependency has been changed by the in-creased prevalence of opioid and heroin use in Washington County and throughout Vermont,and it presents new challenges.

For many types of substances the development of chemical dependency proceeds at a fairlyslow pace, but with opioids, one of the most addictive classes of drugs, everything can hap-pen much more quickly. Growing numbers of young people are now presenting with fullymanifested chemical dependency at much younger ages.

The current landscape for opioid and heroin use reflects the increase in prescriptions being written for opiate-based painkillers. These medications continue to be valuable for the treat-

ment and management of pain, but their rising use has also led to increased opioid depen-dency and the diversion of the medications for illegal resale. Heroin, an opiate that satisfiesthe same receptors in the brain as painkillers, is much less expensive to purchase illegally, soaddiction to opiate painkillers has become a common precursor to heroin use and addiction.

Our community is doing good work to address this important issue. Actions you can takeinclude:

• Make sure the young people in your lives have the information they need to guide theirchoices. Substances are a hazard that is made much more dangerous by a lack of information.

Local prevention programs or treatment providers such as The Healthy Youth Programcan provide guidance on effective ways to have these conversations with young people.

• Keep painkillers prescribed to you in a safe place and properly dispose of any lef toverpills. “Raiding the medicine cabinet” has become a much more common way for youngpeople to acquire substances for use.

• Remember that people, young and old, tend to use substances for a very simple reason —to change the way they feel, hoping to feel better. Learning how to deal with challengingemotions is one of the biggest developmental hurdles for young people, so teaching themhealthy ways to do this is an excellent prevention strategy.

• Get professional help if you think there might be a problem. The earl ier people gethelp, the easier it is to improve their condition. The Washington County Youth ServiceBureau’s treatment services are available throughout Washington County in Northfield,Barre, East Montpelier, Montpelier, the Mad River Valley and Williamstown, and we arecontinuing to grow our services.

Stuart Friedman, Counselor

Stuart Friedman is a drug and alcohol counselor in Montpelier. He has been working in mentalhealth and substance abuse in Vermont since 1974, and is a member of the Governor's AdvisoryCouncil on Alcohol and Drug Abuse.

Drug dependence is a chronic illness and shares characteristics with other chronic ill-nesses, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol. A cure is not the goal,but proper management can reduce the long-term health risks.

If drug dependence were treated like these other illnesses, our approach would be different(and better). Hospitals would offer free classes in how to reduce or eliminate use, similar to

smoking cessation classes. People seeking treatment would go to their primary care clini-cian and either get some help or get a referral to a specia list, as happens now with diabetes.Treatment would be offered that met the specific requirements of the indiv idual, and lowlevels of motivation would not be regarded as denial or resistance.

We know from treating other chronic conditions that successful treatment begins not witha command from an expert, nor with threats to one’s freedom and participation in familylife, but an engagement with the client in how they see the problem, what steps they thinkneed to be taken to improve things, and how to integrate any progress in an overall planand what might stand in the way of progress. When a patient recovering from cardiacbypass surgery is told to lose weight, stop smoking, eat a better diet, get exercise and takea medication, they are not dismissed from treatment because they have only taken themedication. Rather, that is used as a platform for further steps and the patient is encour-aged to identify and overcome obstacles.

Current laws make opiate treatment inaccessible to many, often requiring daily visits to aclinic for months on end, decreasing employment opportunities, interfering with familylife and further scapegoating the individual in need of treatment, this after waiting as long

as a year to gain access. Deviations from an imposed treatment plan are regarded as denial.There is a bias toward suspecting the worst of the patient, a bias that is reinforced by in-terfering legislators trying to practice medicine, federal agencies threatening clinicians andprograms with serious sanctions, and a failure to offer comprehensive pain managementservices for those in chronic pain.

It is not a simple task, nor one that yields instant success, but it is one that we can ad-dress if we are wi lling to discard old, ineffective approaches and adopt approaches that areshown to have long-term benefits.

The Bridge publishes every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, except in July whenwe publish only on the 3rd Thursday. Our next issue comes out May 5.

To adverstise in The Bridge , call 223-5112 ext. 11


6/24


National Life Message:

‘Do Good’ by Carla Occaso

MONTPELIER — One of the oldest (and certainly largest) businesses in Montpelier haslearned over time to do what they do best.

“What we really think we do well is ‘do good’,” said Beth Rusnock, president of theNational Life Group Foundation and associate vice president of corporate marketing andcommunity relations. Rusnock was the guest speaker for the Montpelier Rotary Club April 11 at the Capitol Plaza Hotel.

Rusnock said National Life has found that as it concentrates on reaching out to the com-munity and increases ‘giving back’ efforts, it does better financially.

In fact, the company caught the attention of bestselling authors Jackie and Kevin Frei-berg, who, in 2015, published CAUSE! A Business Strategy for Standing Out in a Sea ofSameness. This book centers on how National Life’s focus on mission gives the employeesa sense of cause and belonging that propels them to work harder and achieve more intheir jobs. They just printed a new batch of 15,000 books, according to Rusnock.

“Our ‘cause’ is protecting people and helping communities,” Rusnock said. Corporatemarketing programs, such as the ‘Life Changer of the Year’ award, recognize and rewardpeople (particularly educators) all over the country. The ‘Life Changer of the Year’ awardis given to workers in the education field, but is not restricted to teachers. A custodian inTexas is just one example of a non-teacher winning the award. This awardee was consid-ered a ‘life changer’ because of the extra attention he gave to students who sought adviceand support. “He wasn’t just there to sweep the halls,” Rusnock said, “but to foster thekids. Kids went to him.” Other recipients included school lunch workers and a librarian.The grand prize is $10,000, with $5,000 going to the individual and $5,000 going tothe school.

Before giving her presentation, Rusnock noted to those seated near her that she finds thesense of community in Central Vermont noteworthy, especially how a network of sup-port has been created to help those in need. For example, people in poverty who don’thave enough food. “A community can help its own — which is fabulous. That is whatcommunity is,” she said.

To bring additional good feelings to the fold, the Montpelier office of National Life hasbegun an event called the ‘Do Good’ festival. This year’s festival is scheduled for July16. The event motto is: “Do Good. Be Good. Make Good.” The Bridge plans to coverthis event in more detail at a later date, but what it involves is a big lawn party to raisefunds for the hospital and other good causes. “We invite the public to our back lawn. It isgorgeous — especially when the sun is setting.” Rusnock described how last year a bandof bad weather happened to speed across the state. At a certain point the clouds opened just as the fireworks were set off. Event sponsors include National Life, Montpelier Alive,The Point radio station and Harpoon Brewery.

Another feature of the festival is a “nonprofit village” that a llows nonprofit organizationsto give out information to introduce themselves to the public.

Rotary Club President Ed Rousse introduced Rusnock. Rousse also spoke of the givingprogram set up by the Rotary Club. The Club is holding a fundraising event called MudSeason Charity Raffle on May 6 at Central Vermont Memorial Civic Center. Six hun-dred tickets are being sold for the chance to win a $10,000 grand prize. Tickets include

cocktails and hors d’oeuvres and will benefit the Montpelier Rotary Backpack program, which sends food home with elementary school children for the weekend and for schoolvacations. The Montpelier Senior Activity Center, Just Basics, Central Vermont Homeand Hospice, People’s Health and Wellness, Central Vermont Adult Basic Education andmany others also will benefit. “We formalized the grant process. We can do matchinggrants,” Rousse said. For more information, contact Cody Patno at 249-8777 or [email protected] for more information or to purchase a ticket.

Beth Rusnock, April 11, at TheCapitol Plaza Hotel.

Got a news tip? We want to know!Send it to us at:

[email protected]


7/24


Pot Bill Passes Ways and Meansand Hits Appropriationsby Carla Occaso

The pot bill (S.241) has taken as manytwists and turns as the stems of a

hookah pipe.

The Senate-initiated bill — pertaining to theregulation and retail sales of legalized marijuana for recreational use — laid out an elabo-rate system to allow state-sanctioned cultiva-tion in strictly monitored areas overseen bya state agency. That version dictated that potcould be sold in restricted quantities to peopleover the age of 21 — first only through exist-ing — state regulated — medical marijuanadispensaries. Montpelier has one of the foursuch dispensaries. Tourists from out of towncould also buy it, but in smaller quantities.

Then, after the program is up and running,sales would extend to tightly administeredlicensed retailers. A whole host of issues re-

lating to health impacts, marketing, adver-tising, paraphrenalia, money, taxes, edibles,oils, home cultivation, youth use, preventioneducation, tourism, drugged driving and lawenforcement came into play. That bill, “as in-troduced and passed by the senate,” wound upbeing 95 pages long and did not allow homecultivation.

Then, the bill crossed over to the Houseof Representatives and landed first in theHouse Judiciary Committee. That commit-tee’s majority opposed legalizing marijuana forrecreational use and performed a “strike all”to the Senate bill. House Judiciary removedlanguage pertaining to the regulation and saleof legalized recreational marijuana and left, in

its wake, a direction to develop and administerprevention programs to youth. The bill alsoaddressed civil and criminal penalties, im-paired driving and appropriating money to theDepartment of Public Safety for forensic labequipment ($124,000.00), forensic lab con-struction costs ($460,000.00) and matchingfunds for additional drug recognition expert

training ($63,500.00).

In addition, the bill called for establishing athree-year Marijuana Advisory Commissionto provide guidance to the general assemblyand make recommendations on the topic byNovember 1, 2017.

Barely passing out of House Judiciary ina 6 to 5 vote, the House Ways and MeansCommittee picked up the bill and tweaked itmore than a bit. Although the original Sen-ate bill outlawed growing pot plants at home— as of course the final Judiciary bill did — Ways and Means’ version allows it. A personunder the Ways and Means committee’s billmay possess an ounce of marijuana or fivegrams of hashish and they may cultivate twomarijuana plants. This bill dictates pot isstill illegal for people under the age of 21 to

possess, smoke or grow. Then, some caveatsfollow about how many plants may be grownper household, to wit, “No more than twomarijuana plants are possessed at a dwellingunit, regardless of how many persons 21 yearsof age or older reside at that dwelling unit …etc.” The only restriction other than that is aperson is allowed to grow it with a permit foran annual fee of $125.00 paid to the VermontDepartment of Health. Permits will be keptsecret “and exempt from public inspectionand copying under the Public Records Act.”

Permit money is earmarked to pay for theSubstance Abuse Youth Prevention and Edu-cation fund. The bill finally goes on to callfor a “Marijuana Advisory Committee” to

further study the situation.But nothing is final until S.241 goes beforethe floor after passing out of the House Appropriations Committee. The bill cameinto possession of the House AppropriationsCommittee the week of April 19 to 22.

Stay tuned.


8/24


Tell them yousaw it in

The Bridge!

Chuck’s Taleby Larry Floersch

Like any other red-blooded Americanman who watches football occasion-ally and maybe a NASCAR race

now and then, I’d like to believe that I can protect my property from

any form of assault. At least I felt that way until Chuck movedin. Chuck was a woodchuck, or groundhog, or whistlepig, or

whatever you want to call him, and when he burrowed inunder the porch, I suddenly began to feel like Bill Murray— not Bill Murray in “Groundhog Day,” but Bill Murrayas assistant greenskeeper Carl Spackler in “Caddyshack.”

At first I tried to discourage Chuck by simply yelling at him, thinking that if he came to real-ize the superior intellect I displayed through my choice of coarse words and insulting epithets,he would leave. Instead he’d just slip back under the porch into his burrow, then pop out later when I wasn’t looking, munch on a few flowers in the garden and sun himself on the porch step.

I became more aggressive and tried poking a stick down into the burrow, figuring that he wouldunderstand he wasn’t welcome and make living arrangements elsewhere. He did not get the hint.

I resisted the water-down-the-burrow treatment because I did not know where it might flowunder the porch, but I did try a spray repellent. he repellent, I think, reminded Chuck ofpatchouli.

Next came smoke bombs. Not the smoke bombs you can buy at the farm and garden storeintended to get rid of woodchucks, skunks, rabbits and every living thing within a five-mileradius. hose, according to the label, should not be used next to buildings because of the riskof nuclear devastation, and Chuck had arranged his burrow right next to the foundation of thehouse under the porch floor. So I tried those little Fourth-of-July smoke bombs you can buy atthe grocery store. I am convinced he laughed at the ineptitude of my efforts as he waited for thered, white and blue smoke to dissipate.

hen I remembered the words of a master gardener who had a segment on the radio many yearsago. his guy had humane and harmless solutions for almost all standard garden pests. But when it came to woodchucks, he said the best thing to do was to just shoot them. I got my oldshotgun out of the closet and removed the dust that was plugging up the barrel. I only had afew old shells of number 6 shot that I had purchased back in 1986. I wasn’t sure number 6 shot

was the right size and I wasn’t sure they would even fire after all those years, so I headed to thesporting goods store for some fresh ammunition.

At the gun shop I displayed my American manliness by looking in the wrong section of the am-

munition department. When the guy behind the counter was free, the conversation went some-thing like this: (Me): “Wow, shotgun shells cost a lot now!” (Him): “hose are for waterfowl.Because they can’t use lead shot for waterfowl anymore, they cost more to make. What are youhunting?” (Me) “A woodchuck. Big bruiser. About the size of a black angus. I need something toput him down with one shot. What do you recommend?” (I figured he would sell me something with shot the size of tennis balls). (Him) “Good ol’ number 6 will do the job,” he said with asmile that had a hint of disdain. By now he had sensed I did not have “NFL Sunday icket” andonly watched NASCAR races occasionally. I left with a box of fresh number 6 shells and thefeeling that my brain was the size of BB (that’s .177 caliber for you enthusiasts).

Now armed and dangerous, I waited for the final showdown. Whenever I’d catch a glimpse ofChuck moving about, I would grab my gun. But Chuck was too smart. He would stay so closeto the house that I could not risk a shot out of fear of damaging the house or of just “winging”him and allowing him to slip back into his burrow to die under the porch.

I decided a trap was in order. o be honest, at this point the thought of relocating Chuck nevercrossed my mind. I figured if I could trap Chuck, I could shoot him on my terms. Sure, it wouldbe outright murder, but he had already murdered a lot of the flower garden. I bought one of

those have-a-heart-type traps at the farm-and-garden store, baited it with some nice lettuce andcarrot tops, placed it in Chuck’s favorite sunning spot on the porch step and waited.

Chuck was too wary to enter the trap. He did, however, try to pull some of the carrot topsthrough the side of the wire grid. After a week of frustration, I removed the trap.

I’d like to say that this all turned out well for Chuck and that he just moved away, found a nice woman woodchuck and raised a family. But the trap in a way had done its job. Bothered thatthe trap had taken over his favorite sunning spot on the top step, Chuck began sunning on thesecond step. One Saturday around High Noon, my wife called out that Chuck was on the step. Igrabbed my gun, and sure enough, he moved down to the second step. hat gave me just enoughof an angle for what I thought was a reasonably clear shot.

In these situations there often are no clear winners and collateral damage. he crocosmia lost anumber of leaves, as did the rudbeckia maxima and the hosta. And did I mention the damageto the metal trellis for the honeysuckle or the chunk missing from the plastic downspout for thegutter? As a distant relative of mine said, “War is Hell.” I buried Chuck with military honors.


9/24


The Future of Farming by John O’Brien

Last hursday, at lunchtime, there was atractor and a very large manure spreader,fully loaded, parked at the unbridge

Elementary School. Gary Mullen, an organicdairy farmer, had timed it just right; he washauling manure from his farm to a field 2.5

miles away, a trip that led him down MonarchHill and up Vermont Route 110. Mid-voyage,he stopped at the school to mentor his nephew,third grader Ellis Bogardus, as part of the read-ing program “Everybody Wins!” Any discus-sion about the future of farming in Vermontcould begin here: Once the possibility of ashitspreader being parked at a school is gone,it’s probable that agriculture is gone too. Where would you see such a scene these days? Notin Connecticut, not in Massachusetts, not inSouth Burlington. Yes in upstate New York orQuebec. Yes in much of Vermont, too.

unbridge is an average Vermont town, histori-cally a farming town. According to Gary Mul-len, in 1960, unbridge had 60 operating dairyfarms. In 1983, the number had dropped to 23.oday, it’s got six. What it didn’t have in 1960,but has now: one big vegetable farm and onebeef-pork-vegetable farm that both do boomingbusiness with farmers’ markets. Also, equinesare ascendant: unbridge now has five horsefarms with indoor riding arenas.

he Internal Revenue Service defines a farmeras someone who makes “at least two-thirds ofhis or her gross income … from farming.” Whatis apparent about agriculture in Vermont is thatthe farmer who makes a living from farming isbecoming a rare breed. What isn’t so obvious,obscured by the shrinking number of dairyfarms, is how rooted the culture of agriculture isin our state. If I drive up the Justin Smith Mor-rill Highway (named after Vermont’s famous

Senator/farmer) from the village of unbridge,headed for Strafford, a survey of my neighbors

will give one an indication of our enduring andevolving relationship with agriculture.

Deb uttle and Sean angney own the Joe andFred uttle farm. Sean investigated the pos-sibility of using some of the open land for solararrays, but for now the fields are hayed by edand Linda Hoyt. ed and Linda milk a herd ofmostly Ayrshires. hey’re organic. As the lastdairy farmers on the hill, they hay most of thefields on all the former dairy farms. Next door we find homas and Becky Hoyt. homas works on the road crew (he’s Michelangelo with a grader) and Becky is the treasurer for thetown. hey raise beef and hogs, homas makeshay for himself and other farmers, Becky trainshorses and teaches riding. he Hoyts also makemaple syrup. his year: 2,900 taps, 920 gallonsof syrup.

Bill Chester, ninetysomething, a widower, stilldriving, retired from a family business in Mil- waukee, owns the former Camp William James,a Civilian Conservation Corps camp that was

an experimental farm in the 1940s. Bill’s farmis conserved. Bill has horses, llamas and goats.Next to Chester’s is Danforth’s sugarhouse. Billand Marie Danforth and Bill’s son, Ken, makemaple syrup. his year: approximately 6,500taps, 3,000 gallons of syrup.

Up Moody Road you’ll find Jim and LindsaySweeney. Jim is a farrier, Lindsay ran the formerBraley’s Feed Store in South Royalton. heyhave Norwegian Fjord ponies and chickens.Up Baptist Hill Road, if you follow the bray-ing, live Sheila Metcalf and Francis Miller andtheir donkeys and histrionic miniature horse,Studley. Dr. Mike Sporn, eightysomething, a widower, still drives, still works at Dartmouth-Hitchcock, lives across Morrill Highway. Mikeonce had bison on his farm, but now it is hayedand grazed by the Larocques. Bucky and SoniaLarocque raise Red Devon cattle and unis

sheep. Bucky, a lineman for Green MountainPower, also sugars. his year: 3,100 taps, 1,700gallons of maple syrup.

Across from Larocque’s is the former KermitGlines farm, now owned by Jim and Carrie Juergens. At the foot of the driveway, there’salways a cooler with a sign, “Eggs for sale.” Jim’srelative, Steve homas, sells eggs on the honorsystem. Someone stole the money and eggs oneday, but mostly the exchange works. Jim andCary have Oreo cattle — I’m not sure if they’reDutch Belted or Belted Galloway.

If we shoot to the top of the hill, where you’llfind one of the best views in all of Vermont,you can’t miss Solheimar Farm, populated withIcelandic horses and Icelandic chickens, ownedby Sigrun Brynjarsdottir.

I see I’ve missed one place. urning back to-

wards unbridge, we end our tour at Jenarombly and Shane Young’s. hey raise pigs, work draft horses and Shane recently completeda new sugarhouse that’s a work of art. Inside thesugarhouse, you’ll find Loren’s Maple Museum.Loren Young, age 9, is the Museum Director.

Loren has amassed a collection of maple sugar-ing paraphernalia and equipage that would bethe envy of the Smithsonian. Admission is free.By appointment or chance.

his casual census represents one hill in onetown — and I didn’t even mention everyoneon the hill or catalog every garden. Farming,as the Internal Revenue Service defines it, maybe dying in Vermont, but it might be easier touproot Japanese knotweed than eradicate ourconnection to agriculture.

John O’Brien and his wife, Emily Howe, raiseRomney sheep and board Icelandic horses.


10/24


Food Industry Scramblesto Adopt Vermont's GMOLabeling by Carl Etnier

W ith a little over two months until Vermont's genetically modif ied organism label-

ing law takes effect on July 1, corporations in the food business are scramblingto comply. It's not just billion-dollar food conglomerates that must change their

labels, but also little general stores that make and package egg salad and other food.

People familiar with the grocery business expect the new labels to be on the shelves gener-ally as scheduled, but they al so expect some hiccups. And it seems the law in l ittle Vermont will affect how food is l abeled in the res t of the country, or at least the northeast. WhatVermonters and others will do with the new information — how it will affect their buyingchoices — is a multi-billion dollar experiment.

In 2014, Vermont passed the nation's first law mandating labeling of broad classes of foodthat contains or may contain genetically modified organisms. he law has (so far) survivedboth a federal court challenge and attempts in congress to pre-empt it.

Some foods are exempt, most notably food sold to be eaten immediately (say, restaurantmeals or hot soup at a deli) and food that is entirely an animal product (meat, milk, honey,etc.).

In recent months, an increasing number of large national food conglomerates have an-

nounced they are readying their Vermont-compliant labels. Jim Harrison, director of theVermont Retail & Grocers Association, pointed to Kellogg's, General Mills, Mars andConAgra. "here's a lot of activity going on in the food trade," he said in an interview.

It's not just the big players that a re required to change their labeling. While l arge food com-panies are responsible for labels on most packaged food, Vermont grocers a re responsible forlabeling raw agricultural products (like sweet corn sold by the ear) or processed bulk food(like granola sold by the pound). When grocery stores make food in-house for retail sale,like bread loaves at an in-store bakery, the store is also responsible for the labels.

Harrison said, "Many retailers are not fully informed of what their responsibilities are."He said his organization is holding a seminar at the end of April to educate members on what the law requires of them. He added, "here are many smaller, regional companies notnecessarily located in Vermont that are just learning about the law. We're getting calls andemails on a daily basis."

Managers at the Montpelier Shaw's and the Berlin Price Chopper referred all press inquiriesto corporate headquarters. Neither company's spokesperson responded before deadline foran interview about progress towards compliance; Shaw's spokesperson eresa Edington

emailed a statement that said, "We offer a large selection of United States Department Agriculture certified organic products, which by USDA standards do not allow the use ofgenetically modified organism ingredients. In addition, we will continue to work diligentlyto ensure that our 19 Shaw’s stores located in the State of Vermont are compliant with thegenetically modified organism law that takes effect on July 1, 2016."

Hunger Mountain Coop in Montpelier has worked for years to pass on to customers whatthey know about genetic engineering in the food the store sells, according to general man-ager Kari Bradley. "here has been an effort to label the products certified as non-GMO. We from time to time will go around the store and update shelf labels , and even put themso they are sticking out from the shelf three dimensionally to bring attention to the factthese are cert ified non-GMO products." He described it as a voluntary process using a thirdparty to certify the product.

Still, Bradley acknowledged the store has some work to do in the areas where it will beresponsible for the labels. "Our produce department happens to be almost entirely certi-fied organic, so there's not really an issue there. We've identified that our bakery is reallyminimal. So we're focused on our bulk department. And where there are products contain-

ing non-organic corn, soy, canola, and the like, we have to do the work of contacting themanufacturer, asking them to verify with an affidavit — or not — whether their productcontains genetic engineering. If they don't know or don't respond, we're going to have to puton a 'may contain genetic engineering' labe l."

Bradley said the store will not, initially, discontinue any product it sells that turns out tocontain genetically modified organisms. However, he continued, "I think over time there will likely, in some cases, be a slowing of sales , or we may get negative feedback about cer-tain products. hen we'll have to make decisions about whether we're going to continuestocking the products."

Bradley minimized the co-op's cost of investigating the origins of ingredients in its bulkproducts, saying it will take "several hours" of staff members' time. "I don't feel like it's oner-ous on our behalf. I feel like the manufacturers bear the main liability here."

For the Vermont Retail & Grocers Association, Harrison has previously spoken against Ver-mont's labeling law, arguing that it is difficult and expensive for manufacturers to changelabels for a single state. Now, however, when asked about the cost to grocers of complying with the law, he describes it as a moot point. "hat's the policy of the state, enacted by the

legislature. We have a very strong responsibility as the food industry to get that informationtogether, regardless of what it costs."

With the law about to take effect, Harrison thinks it will end up not just affecting the singlestate of Vermont, for the same reasons h is organization initially opposed the law. "It's reallydifficult, if not impossible, to label differently for different states. Many companies willlabel their products country-wide, or at least throughout the region."

Harrison is not confident that the industry will be able to completely make the change by July 1, but he emphasizes its efforts to do so. "We ask customers to bear with us as we learnto comply," he said. "Hopefully we'll be okay for July 1."

Disclosure: Carl Etnier is a member-owner of Hunger Mountain Coop and a member of itsboard. he co-op is a member of Vermont Retail & Grocers Association. Etnier is also the hostof “Relocalizing Vermont” on WGDR Goddard Community Radio.


11/24

THE BRIDGE APR IL 21 – MAY 4, 2016 • PAGE 11

Fresh Tracks Farm Vineyard & Winery: A Labor ofLove That Stems From a Love of Labor Continued from Page 1

not be any truer. he passion for what they do and the pride they have for what they craft isundeniable while listening to Castegren talk about Fresh racks’ beginnings and plans for thefuture, and seeing Swanson’s excitement in detailing the wine-creation process. he operation isso personal and meaningful to them that Swanson said she literally touches every bottle that isready to go out to the public. Fresh racks is a family, where each member is enthusiastic aboutgrowing food. Within the acreage is a private farm with a vegetable garden, berry bushes andegg-laying chickens that each staff member tends to and is able to harvest from for personal use.

In 2009, Fresh racks opened their tasting room to allow visitors to sample wines and purchaseproducts. It has the capacity to hold small celebrations where Fresh racks hosts special eventsfrom time to time. Starting May 6, the Friday Night Fires music series will start up again duringthe evenings on the grounds of the winery during which guests can enjoy wine and a picnic while listening to local musicians amidst a serene setting. Watch out for the return of their Yogaand Wine Nights, which is exactly that — join in on a yoga class and reward yourself afterwards with a glass of wine. Castegren said that another popular event involves painting while sipping wine and that should be starting soon also.

Non-alcoholic products are also available in their shop — Castegren hand-makes maple candyand their grapes are used to make jams and vinegars as well.

You can visit Fresh racks Farm Vineyard & Winery Fridays–Sundays, 1–5 p.m. For moreinformation about the winery and to see a list of their wines go to freshtracksfarm.com.

WinemakerHannah Swansonin Fresh racks'onsite wine lab.

Te Marquette vines on April 13 Wine display in the tasting room.


12/24


A s a boy growing up in Little Falls, New York, CarloRovetto remembers food — fresh food — at the cen-ter of family life. alking about his mother’s cooking,

he said, “We grew up in a culture where food was made fromscratch and fresh. My mom had four or five spices. It wasbasic.”

At a very young age, Rovetto’s “Uncle John” started making

pizza out of a bakery. his was just as pizza was rolling into America, just at the start of the pizza craze.

Uncle John decided to open his pizzeria in Mohawk, New York and Rovetto’s older brothers started working for him.Shortly thereafter his older brothers opened their own piz-zeria in Little Falls.

“I grew up in it,” said Rovetto, about the pizza business. “I would sleep on a sack of flour. I would sweep the f loors. I would help out.” Soon enough Rovetto was making and de-livering pizza and spinning pizza dough in the air.

In the 1990s, Rovetto and his future wife, Melissa, bothavid snowboarders, loaded up an old Chevy and headed outto Colorado where the mountains were higher and steeper, where snow was plentiful and where snowboarding was said tobe phenomenal. hey lived in Durango, Colorado for about ayear. But Rovetto’s family ties were strong and he wanted tomove back east . Vermont had mountains and snowboarding.“We loved Vermont. We loved snowboarding.”

Rovetto thought about opening a pizza shop in Vermont.“We started looking, looking, looking,” he said. Burlington was too expensive. He tried Waterbury. “We had a buildingthere that didn’t quite work out.” At the time he was commut-ing from Little Falls to Vermont.

“I ended up finding an apartment in Plainfield at a place thelocals called Heartbreak Hotel, a seven-or-eight unit apart-ment building.

wenty thousand dollars — that’s the money that Rovettohad to put into his first pizza shop. He had looked at Burling-ton, tried Waterbury. Now he had an apartment in Plainf ieldand he liked what he saw there. he crowds at the River RunRestaurant suggested there were people around who liked

good food. During the summer, a group of adults and kids would sit out on a low stone wall in front of a white churchand enjoy their coffee. Plainfield Village had a local scene.

But there was something else that drew Rovetto to Plainfield— something about the river going through the town, the waterfall there. “It was beautiful,” said Rovetto.

So he made contact with im Roberts of im’s ConvenienceStore out on Route 2 who owned the big brick block in thecenter of Plainfield Village. “He told me what the rent was —$400.” Amazingly affordable. Roberts also took a close lookat Rovetto’s plans for the business, plans he had developed when he was trying to get a building in Waterbury. “I was

really prepared,” said Rovetto. “He (Roberts) saw my plansand said, ‘his kid is for real’.”

Next, Rovetto met with Plainfield officials to get his res-taurant permit. he meeting lasted all of 10 minutes andRovetto left — thinking — “his is the town we want to bein. I just felt so welcome there.”

Rovetto opened Positive Pie in Plainfield in 1999. hen,in 2005, he opened a second Positive Pie on State Street inMontpelier. he State Street location is at once a restaurantand a bar out front — and out back a place to quickly order aslice to eat on the spot or to order a pizza to take out. hat’s what happens during the day. But at night, things change.Out front it’s still a dining experience with a bar. But as theevening progresses the restaurant becomes a night spot withentertainment — bands, stand-up acts, dancing.

oday, Rovetto owns and manages three locations: PositivePie in Plainfield, Positive Pie in Montpelier and the formerBlack Door restaurant and bar (now La Puerta Negra) inMontpelier. he other Positive Pie restaurants — in Barreand Hardwick — are operated by RBI Restaurant Group.More about that later.

Starting and running these businesses hasn’t always been apiece of cake. “We’ve struggled. I’ve struggled. he first threeor four winters were tough with very little revenue and losingdollars every week. It takes tenacity not to give up, to figureit out,” he said.

But things have smoothed out. Now, Rovetto is also in-volved with his brothers and a cousin in a larger enterprise.It all began with a Christmas dinner three or four years ago.Said Carlo, “We all own our own individual stores. But atChristmas dinner we said to each other, ‘Why don’t we worktogether?” hat led to the forming the RBI Restaurant Group— a group of brothers including Carlo, Ed, Eduardo, Iggyand Giovanni — who own and manage 11 separate pizza-based eating places in Vermont and in the Saratoga and La keGeorge regions of New York State.

he RBI group decided to go forward with the Positive Piename. We love the word ‘positive’ and ‘pie’ of course.”

Last year, Rovetto realized a long-held dream. He was ableto free himself from his day-to-day responsibilities for therestaurants and spend seven months on a family visit to Sicily with his wife, Melissa, his son Paolo, 14, and his daughterSolena, 9.

As a boy, Carlo had visited Sicily. “I wanted to make sure thatmy kids had this experience with this culture,” he said.

He didn’t want his children to lose track of their Sicilianroots. He wanted them to know their cousins. He wantedthem to know how to speak Italian. He wanted his childrento see all this history, to see the churches, the medieval clocktowers, the 2,000-year-old temples. He wanted them to see

a culture where everyone — stonecutters, farmers, barbers,bread makers take pride in their work. “hey master whatthey do. I wanted them to see that,” he said.

ry as he could, Rovetto couldn’t seem to break loose forthe family visit to Sicily. “It took me 14 years to leave therestaurant business he had started. “We wanted to go fiveyears ago,” Rovetto said. “We were never ready.” hen he

thought, “We’re never going to be able to do this. We’llalways be busy.” So hard was it to pull away that Rovettofinally believed or made himself believe that taking theseven-month trip to Sicily was more important even thanhis businesses. “I had to put my foot down and say, ‘We’regoing to go’.”

When he le ft, it was hardest on the people he left behind.But in Benjamin Draper, he had a director of operations hecould trust. And the net effect was that his leaving actuallyempowered those who were left behind to run the business.It made them stronger.

During Rovetto’s interview with he Bridge, he sat upstairsat Puerto Negra in front of his laptop computer and hebecame almost lyrical as he brought up photographs on thescreen from his visit to Sicily — photographs that showedpictures of daily life in his fami ly’s village of San Giuseppe

Jata, not far f rom Palermo.

In San Giuseppe Jato, at 7 a.m., comes the sound of a ven-dor loudly announcing himself in the narrow street. hebread vendor beeps his horn twice and cries out: “Pane.”Or the vegetable vendor, or dress vendor, or fruit vendor.“In the morning, it’s buzzing from the vendor’s yelling tothe women who are raining down complaints about theirhusbands from the upstairs balconies.”

And the food: peaches, olives, fre sh fish, ricot ta cheese that’sstill warm, bread that’s still hot. Women from an upstairsbalcony sending down money in a basket and hoisting up aloaf or two of bread.

Rovetto wanted his children to see all that, wanted his chil-dren to join the fa mily in harvesting olives. Wanted them tosee other kids helping the family without being told to do it.“It’s just in the culture,” Rovetto said. “If there’s a meal tocook, the kids get up and do it. Someone says, ‘It’s time toclean the house.’ hey start cleaning the house.”

Looking back on the years since he started Positive Pie inPlainfield, Rovetto said, “I’ve been in the community forabout 18 years — I, my wife and my kids. We’ve workedhard to grow our business. We follow the trends. We try notto get stuck in any one place.

“he basic (pizza) recipe is a solid recipe,” he said. “here’sa magic in that recipe that’s hard to explain. We tried otherproducts, this and that. We replaced the cheese. It didn’thave that magic. So we went back to the old recipe. he wayeverything mixes — it’s really good.

A Pie Is Born:How Carlo Rovetto Created Positive Pie by Nat Frothingham

Photos courtesy of Carlo Rovetto.Carlo Rovetto, right, with cousin Filippo Labaro.


13/24


Local Harvest: A Month by Month Guide by Garrett Heaney

Back in the fall, I wrote an article about apple season in Vermont and readers were right-fully impressed with our little state’s ability to produce such a diverse crop — somethingin the neighborhood of 70 varieties of apple pass through Hunger Mountain Coop

alone every year. Now that winter has passed, and we’ve eaten up most of the apples, we can allrejoice in the sun as new crops begin to spring from the earth. It’s a very exciting time of year.

Five years ago in May, I returned home to Vermont after an extended sojourn in Florida, anddid so via the volunteer program World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, or as it was

called at the time, Willing Workers On Organic Farms. It was my first experience with farm-ing, and I found myself living and working on land atop Danby Mountain (Rutland county, just off Route 7 about 10 miles north of Manchester), surrounded by 1,000 acres of conserva-tion land, waterfalls, sugar maples, 40-year-old blueberry bushes, organic vegetable gardens,hoop houses and a greenhouse for seeding. And six grass-fed cows and six happy pigs. And thetwo dogs the farm was named after — It was called wo Dogs Farm, but if you’re familiar withthe area, it is the land that has been owned and operated by the educational program SmokeyHouse Center for decades.

It was at this farm where I first fully appreciated the arrival of new vegetables, week after week,as we harvested for our 35 community shared agriculture shares and three weekly farmersmarkets. As spring led into summer, seeds and seedlings that we’d put in the ground began tomature at their own rates, and, thanks to proper greenhouse management and an experiencedfarm manager, we were able to predict with very good accuracy, what would be ready when.

his article is an attempt to give you a wide angle lens of Vermont’s growing season, and giveyou a calendar of sorts that will indicate what produce you can expect to see showing up atour local farmers markets and co-ops. If you know me, or you read the aforementioned apple

season article (Cover Sept. 17–30, 2015 issue), you know I work at Hunger Mountain Coophere in town, and, more specifically, in the produce department. I mention this only to revealto the reader that I have a unique insider’s perspective of the buying schedules we maintain with our local farms and farmers.

Like many regions, farming in Vermont has its own rhythm. Sure, some of the big guys outthere like Pete’s Greens in Craftsbury can grow pretty much anything, anytime, thanks tolarge, temperature controlled greenhouses, but when they, like most farmers, grow primarilyoutside, you have to work with the few-months window you’re given, and you have to manageyour space according to the individual maturation schedules of the fruits and vegetables thatyou’re seeding. And there are a lot of choices ... High Mowing Seed company of Wolcott (soonmoving to Hyde Park), started with just 28 seed varieties in 1996 and now has over 600, whenyou include fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers.

So, now that the sun is out and things are starting to green up, what should we be lookingforward to in the weeks and months to come?

I spoke with Annie Coughlin, a produce buyer and colleague, and she was very helpful in de-tailing which farms we would be sourcing which vegetables from, and when. A cross reference

with vendors from the Capital City Farmers' Market which will be kicking off here in May andrun through October (in the parking lot between Julio’s and Christ Church on State Street)confirmed that the following is a pretty good indicator of specific vegetables’ harvest debuts.

Here we are in mid-April — and this is the season we start seeing some of our local greensstart rolling in. We see some local chard, kale, mustard greens and mizuna. Herbwise we canexpect to see local cilantro very soon.

In May — things really start popping and we see more greens, along with some brassicas andherbs. We’ll have local cucumbers (slicer and European varieties), radishes, Napa cabbage,mesclun, spinach, arugula, braising greens, dandelion, cress, lettuce (red leaf, green leaf andromaine), parsley (flat/Italian and curly), dill, basil, oregano, mint, lemon balm and the much

anticipated rhubarb!In June — some of the bigger vegetables have begun to mature and make their way onto theshelves and into the markets: Eggplant (traditional and Japanese varieties), broccoli, kohlrabi,OMAOES! (cluster, cherry and heirloom varieties). Our leeks and scallions are ready and we also get some beet greens and collards. By mid-June we get our first green beans, wax beansand the always coveted (and easier to spot during harvest) purple string beans! Also … thebeginning of the short-lived strawberry season!

In July — things are really in full swing at most Vermont farms and we get to taste our bellpeppers (if you’ve never grown peppers, you might be surprised to learn that green peppersare simply red, yellow, orange or purple peppers that haven’t grown all the way to maturity,and hence aren’t quite as sweet), hot peppers (jalapeño, poblano, cayenne, ornamental), snappeas, snow peas and shell peas, summer squashes and zucchinis, cabbages (red, green, savoyand arrowhead varieties), cauliflower, celery, beets, onions, potatoes (red, gold, russet, purpleand various fingerling varieties), valentine radishes, rutabaga, fennel, turnip and thyme! Anddon’t forget the blueberries!

In August — farmers start to dig up their carrots (if they hadn’t already in July), daikon andshallots. Radicchio has also had its full three months to mature and sweet corn is in full swing!he early winter squashes also become available and the raspberries are ripe for the picking!

In September — we see celeriac, brussels sprouts and rainbow roots.

In no way is this list complete or exact — while there are trends in the vegetable farming busi-ness, it is also dependent on things like weather, rainfall, irrigation practices, weeding prac-tices, fertilization, pest and greenhouse management, along with a thousand other elementsthat are either within or outside a farmer’s control. What I hope this article will do is get youexcited and help you to appreciate the season that is upon us, to start thinking about thefood that is growing all around you — and for many of you, right in your own backyard!


14/24


The Capital City is ALIVE DuringMontpelier Mayfest Weekend by Ashley Witzenberger

he first weekend in May hasgrown into quite the time to be inMontpelier. Each year, this weekend

is host to several fun events in the capital

city, many taking place outside, giving folksa chance to enjoy lovely spring weather withfriends, family and neighbors. While you a redowntown, stop in our specialty shops, andif the weather is nice, there will be outdoorseating at many of the amazing restaurants.

his year, on May 6 and 7, Montpelier willonce again be bustling with multiple eventstaking place all over the city. Friday, May 6,Spring Art Walk kicks-off the festivities from4 to 6 p.m. ake a stroll through downtownMontpelier venues as stores turn into artgalleries for the evening. he theme is mapleand art walkers wi ll enjoy locally made mapletreats in many venues. Look for Art Walkguide books in stores the week of May 2.

Also on Friday, May 6, you will have achance to support the good work of theMontpelier Rotary with the Mud SeasonCharity Raffle at 7 p.m. at the Central

Vermont Civic Center. You will want to fuel up a busy day onSaturday, May 7 at one of two breakfastshappening in town including the All-You-Can-Eat Breakfast hosted by the KiwanisClub at the Boutwell Masonic Center, 7 to11 a.m. ickets are available at the door withany Kiwanian, $7/adults and children under12/$4. he money enables the organizationto continue funding for important programsand community service for children.

Do you have a sweet tooth? You can supportthe Orchard Valley Waldorf School's 10th Annual Sweet 'N Savory Pie Breakfa sthappening at 8:30 a.m. at the rinity United

Methodist where you will find mouth- watering treats and something for everyone.

Start digging out those old bikes you neverride, clean ’em up, and bring ‘em down toOnion River Sports for the annual BikeSwap on Saturday, May 7 from 9 a.m.to noon. Find great bikes for the wholefamily at bargain prices. he Onion RiverSports staff will be on hand to help youchoose the perfect new-to-you bike fromthe HUNDREDS of bicycles in the OnionRiver Sports parking lot. Plan to show upearly — the best bikes go first, and the lineusually starts sometime between 6:30 and7:30 a.m.

Ride your new bike over to the opening dayof the Capital City Farmers’ Market whereyou'll find a full marketplace of artisana l goatand cow cheeses, grass-fed beef, free-rangechicken, maple syrup, flowers, vegetable andflower starts and crafts, plus much more.

Cyclists can drop off their bicycle, or stroller,at the first ever Bike Valet on State Streetby the farmers’ market. Volunteers fromthe Montpelier Bike Advisory Committee will take care of your bicycle while youenjoy events, shopping, the market or lunch. When you are done, return to the Bike Valet with your claim ticket and pick up yourbicycle, it’s that simple! Leave your car athome.

While you are on State Street, stop byMontpelier Alive’s Green Up Day table andgrab trash bags, gloves and a coupon sheetgood for many goodies around town onGreen Up Day. Green Up Volunteers willbe assigned an area for clean up in the cityand trash can be picked up any time overthe weekend. Leave your trash bags curbside

within city limits and the wonderful crewfrom the department of public works willpick up bags on Monday morning.

You won’t want to miss two new eventsthis year. One is Yoga on State Street. Have

you ever wanted todo yoga on State

Street? his is your chance to join a free,family-friendly event celebrating healthand wellness in the community and raisingmoney for Prevent Child Abuse Vermont.

he event takes place from 10 to 11:30a.m. with a raffle at noon all on State Streetbetween Main and Elm.

Also new this year is the Capital City ClassicUltimate ournament. On Saturday, May7 and Sunday May 8 from 9 a.m. to 4p.m. at Montpelier High School, you canenjoy watching ultimate Frisbee teams fromaround New England as they gather tocompete for the tournament title. Openteams will play on Saturday and girls teamson Sunday and a concession stand andbouncy house will be open on site.

End your Saturday by celebrating hreePenny aproom’s 7th anniversary atMontbeerlier, featuring live music, a beergarden, and rare and special cask beer from

3 to 7 p.m.Looking for some more culture? Head overto Lost Nation heater to enjoy “Hairspray,”the big, bold, Broadway musical about onegirl’s passionate dream to dance. Set inBaltimore in 1962, this show is piled high with laughter, romance and deliriouslytuneful, soulful songs. “Hairspray” runs April 21 to May 8, hursdays throughSundays.

Please be aware that both State Street,between Elm and Main, as well as LangdonStreet will be c losed the morning of Saturday,May 7 to host events. Have no fear; there will be plenty of parking behind City Halland Bear Pond Books, in the parking lotbehind Positive Pie, along Main and East

State Streets and the lower part of StateStreet and behind Christ Church. here isalso parking in the Department of Laborparking lot on weekends. All downtownparking will reopen at 1 p.m.

he author is the executive director of Montpelier Al ive.


15/24


THURSDAY, APRIL 21ROTC Centennial Symposium: Preparing theNext Generation Leaders in a Complex World.

April 21–23. Norwich University will celebrateROC’s centennial anniversary. For schedule,locations, registration and more information:

http://www.norwich.edu/rotc100/symposium-registration/

PoemCity: Poem in Your Pocket Day. Every yearduring National Poetry Month, the Academy of

American Poets leads the nation in celebratingPoem in Your Pocket Day. With a poem in yourpocket, you have a poem to g ive, trade, leave some-place anonymously, read out loud at your meetingor read to yourself at lunch (among many otherpossibilities). Poem City part icipates by offeringfree poems at the Kellogg-Hubbard Library, the

Welcome Center downtown, Bear Pond Books,and North Branch Cafe. poem-city.org

Brain Injury Support Group. Open to all survi-vors, caregivers and adult family members. TirdTurs., 1:30–2:30 p.m. Unitarian Church, 130Main St., Montpelier. 244-6850.

Diabetes Discussion Group. Focus on self-

management. Open to anyone with diabetesand their families. Tird Turs., 1:30 p.m. TeHealth Center, Plainfield. Free. Don 322-6600 [email protected].

Survivors of Suicide Loss Support. Monthlygroup for people affected by a suicide death. TirdTurs., 6–7:30 p.m. Central Vermont MedicalCenter, conference rm. 1, Fisher Rd., Berlin. 223-0924. [email protected].

Grandparents Raising Their Children’s Chil-dren. Tird Turs., 6–8 p.m. Child care provided.rinity United Methodist Church, 137 Main St.,Montpelier. 476-1480.

River Arts Photo Co-op. Gather, promote andshare your experience and knowledge of photog-raphy with other photography enthusiasts in anatmosphere of camaraderie and fun. Adults/teens.Tird Turs., 6–8 p.m. River Art s Center, 74Pleasant St., Morrisville. $5 suggested donation.

888-1261. riverartsvt.org.

Innovations in the Forest and Food Economy — Our Own Story. Stewardship, Forestry, Cuisineand Land Planning. Shawn Smith Hoffman andMelissa Smith Hoffman, of Earth Asset Partner-ship and Living Future Foundation, describeseveral key projects, the Permaculture FoodLab, Growing a Nutrient Economy, and ForestManagement for Medical-Mycological yields. Aransition own program series. 6 p.m. Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier. 223-3338. kellogghubbard.org

Songwriters’ Meeting. Meeting of the NorthernV/NH chapter of the Nashville Songwriters

Association International. Bring copies of your work. Tird Turs., 6:45 p.m. Catamount Arts, St. Johnsbury. John, 633-2204.

Todd Lecture Series: U.S. Army Chief of Staff

General Mark A. Milley. ROC CentennialSymposium Keynote. Q&A session follows. 7 p.m.Norwich University, Kreitzberg Arena, Northfield.Free. http://tls.norwich.edu/

FRIDAY, APRIL 22Earth Day at the Coop. Face painting, bouncyhouse, seedling planting, story hour. Bike tune-ups, book and clothing swap, cell phone and bat-tery recycling. Demos, workshops, samples, raffles.Hunger Mountain Coop, 623 Stone Cutters Way,Montpelier. 223-8000. hungermountain.coop

ROTC Centennial Symposium: Preparing theNext Generation Leaders in a Complex World.

April 21–23. Norwich University will celebrateROC’s centennial anniversary. For schedule,locations, registration and more information:http://www.norwich.edu/rotc100/symposium-registration/

Poem City: Earth Day — Kids & Poetry. Joinlibrarian Nicole Westborn to write poems, listento great stories and take part in other hands-onactivities in the kids’ tent at the Hunger MountainCoop Earth Day Celebration. 10 a.m.–4 p.m.Hunger Mountain Coop, 623 Stone Cutters Way,Montpelier. poem-city.org

Pork Loin Take-out Dinner. Pork Loin, gravy,mashed potato, corn, salad, roll, applesauce anddessert. Meal pick-up 4–6 p.m. Waterbury CenterCommunity Church, Rt. 100 (next to Cold Hol-low Cider Mill), Waterbury Center. $9. Churchtrustee fundraiser. Reservations: 244-8089.

PoemCity: An Evening with Reuben Jackson.Host of VPR’s Friday Night Jazz Reuben Jackson

will read his poetry accompanied with music byom Morse and Jerome Monachino. Wine and

cheese tastings. 5–7 p.m. Hunger Mountain CoopCafé, 623 Stone Cutters Way, Montpelier. poem-city.org

Friday Night Group. For youth age 13–22 whoare lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer orquestioning. Pizza, soft drinks and conversation.Cofacilitated by two tra ined, adult volunteers fromOutright V. Second and fourth Fri., 6:30– 8 p.m.Unitarian Church, 130 Main St., Montpelier. Free.223-7035. [email protected].

SATURDAY, APRIL 23ROTC Centennial Symposium: Preparing theNext Generation Leaders in a Complex World.

April 21–23. Norwich University will celebrateROC’s centennial anniversar y. For schedule,locations, registration and more information:http://www.norwich.edu/rotc100/symposium-registration/

Animal Masks with Janice Walrafen. Construct wearable 3-D animal masks with posterboard anddecorate them with colorful acrylic paints. 9:30a.m. –noon. Jaquith Public Library, 122 SchoolSt., Marshfield. $4 material s fee. 426-3581 [email protected]. jaquithpubliclibrary.org Join us for All Species Day in Montpelier onMay 1.

Legislative Update Featuring Barre City andTown House Representatives. Walz, Poirier,Laclair, McFaun. 10 a.m.–noon. Aldrich Public

Library, 6 Washington St., Barre. Free. 476-4185.Spring Trunk Sale and Seed Swap. Support yourlocal herbalists, crafters and farmers and get fabu-lous handmade crafts and foods, and bring/takehome seeds for the growing season. Noon–4 p.m.Plainfield Opera House, Rt. 2, Plainfield. https://

www.facebook.com/events/474787552717528/

PoemCity: Generative Poetry Workshop withChloe Viner. Viner will use several prompts tohighlight different lessons a nd spur creativity. She

will guide a discussion on the difference betweenconcrete and abstract writing in poetry andexamine how to create vivid and original imagesthrough metaphor. 1:30 p.m. Kellogg-HubbardLibrary, 135 Main St., Montpelier. poem-city.org

SUNDAY, APRIL 24Spaghetti Lunch & Raffle Drawing. Elevenchances to win. Salad, garlic bread, strawberryshortcake. Eat-in or take-out. 1–3 p.m. win Val-ley Senior Center, Blueberry Commons, 4583 Rt.2, E. Montpelier. By donation. 223-3322. twinval-leyseniors.org

Haiku Workshop. Hosted by the NortheastStoryteller. Tis year's themes are brevity and theVermont, haiku and zen minds. Participants areasked to bring haiku that you are working on andyour own writing materials. Attendants will go onan inspirational wa lk. 1 p.m. West Burke Library,123 Rt. 5A, W. Burke. Free. 751-5432. [email protected]

MONDAY, APRIL 25PoemCity: Poetry on Tap: Beer, Bread andSoup! Enjoy a delicious light supper made withlocal ingredients while listening to local poetsMary Elder Jacobsen, Kerrin McCadden, Emilie

Stigliani, Alison Prine and Kristin Fogdall. Supper6 p.m.; readings 7 p.m. Down Home Kitchen, 100Main St., Montpelier. poem-city.org

Women's Writing Workgroup. Quiet, sup-portive space for women to write who otherwisehave difficulty finding the time or space to doso. Writing prompts provided or bring your ownprojects. Drop in first and third Mon., 6:30–8:30p.m. River Arts Center, 74 Pleasant St., Morris-ville. $5 suggest ed donation. Register: 888-1261 orriverartsvt.org

NAMI Vermont Family Support Group. Supportgroup for families and friends of individuals living

with mental illness. Fourth Mon., 7 p.m. CentralVermont Medical Center, room 3, Berlin. 800-639-6480 or namivt.org.

TUESDAY, APRIL 26Landlord Energy Workshop. Learn about new

programs that offer rebates and/or low-cost financ-ing for energy conservation work in your build-ings. 8:30–10 a.m. VSECU, 3rd fl., 27 S. Main St.,

Waterbury. Register: [email protected]

Moving From Scarcity to Abundance. Join inon the conversation about food security and food

justice in central Vermont. Discuss how the foodpantry and Just Ba sics Inc. helps the community.

Also a permaculture discussion on food growth,food security and just, sustainable communitypractices. 7:15 p.m. rinity Church, 137 Main St.,Montpelier. [email protected]

A Night Of Politics The Vermont Way! JoinKen Dean, native Vermonter, contributor to theHuffington Post, veteran organizer on seven presi-dential campaigns (1972 to 2016), and an electednational delegate to several Democratic NationalConventions, for an hour of political updates andanalysis, followed by Q&A. 6:30–8 p.m. Montpe-lier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St., Montpe-lier. Free. 223-2518

PoemCity: Annual Open Mic Reading. Readers will be chosen by a lottery. Put your name in ahat at the door and they wil l pull out names for20 readers. Please prepare five minutes (or less) ofmaterial. 7 p.m. Bear Pond Books, 77 Main St.,Montpelier poem-city.org

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27Small Farm Action Day at State House. Op-portunity for farmers and customers to educate

lawmakers about the unique challenges that smallfarms face and to urge them to support common-sense, scale-appropriate legislation in these final

weeks of the 2016 session. Advocacy training, ameet & greet with lawmakers and farm samplesover the lunch hour, farmer-to-farmer networking.For more info. farmer stipend applications andregister: ruralvermont.org, 223-7222.

Bereavement/Grief Support Group. Open toanyone who has experienced the death of

the bridge, april 21, 2016 — food & farming

Documents