Windsor Area Outing Club May Activities

[From Kris Garnjost via email, with permission]

Just a quick reminder about the walks coming up. Please pass the word around to your friends and family. Everybody deserves a good walk in the woods. Attached is a flier if you have some place to put it up. I have done many places, but unfortunately they don’t always stay up.

Also, all hikes will be rain or shine. If it’s really pouring at the time of the beginning of the hike, we may have to reassess. Some of my best walks have been in the rain. Colors are often more vibrant when it’s damp than they are on a bright sunny day. And you might even get lucky and catch a rainbow if the sun comes out.

Windsor Rotary To Dedicate Memorial Pavilion On Saturday

WINDSOR ROTARY TO DEDICATE SHERM CARTER MEMORIAL PAVILION

WINDSOR — The Windsor Rotary Club will dedicate a large covered pavilion in memory of the late Sherman A. Carter on Saturday, May 17 at 1 p.m. at the Windsor Fairgrounds. The dedication will be the highlight of several events planned to kick off the opening of the Fairgrounds for the spring and summer season. Refreshments will be served following the dedication ceremonies and the public is welcome to attend.

Rotary District Governor Christopher Patterson is scheduled to speak along with Assistant District Governor Phil Hammond and his wife Gloria of the White River Junction Rotary Club and Windsor Recreation Director Harry Ladue. The dedication will mark the construction of the Sherman A. Carter Memorial Pavilion at the fairgrounds, along with new picnic tables, two cast iron and steel cookers set in concrete bases, and newly refurbished stone fireplaces.

Carter, a longtime Rotarian and a Paul Harris Fellow in the club, died last August. His family has also decided to dedicate some of the funds left over that were donated in his memory to expand the playground equipment at the Fairgrounds. Two “double climbers” will be installed at the fairgrounds, according to Rotary Club President Ted Hilles.

Nick Carter, a principal with his father in Carter & Carter Builders, designed the Pavilion which will accommodate picnic tables inside and provide shelter from both the sun and the rain. All the materials for the Pavilion were donated.

“The project was started in phases,” Hilles explained. Phase I was the Rotary District Grant that the club applied for and received to match funds raised by the club for the new picnic tables, the stone fireplace repair and the grills; Phase II was the Pavilion, and Phase III is the additional playground equipment.

“It’s really going to be a spectacular Rotary event on May 17,” he said.

—30—

CUSHING RESIGNS AS WINDSOR POLICE CHIEF

(for Shelly and Margo)

By SHELLY JARVIS and MARGO HOWLAND

Contributing Writers

WINDSOR - In a surprise move to many in Windsor, Police Chief Jim Cushing resigned effective Thursday, on the one-year anniversary of the day that he was hired by the selectboard following a six-month stint as interim chief.

“The chief’s stated primary reasons were frustration over the long hours he felt compelled to cover due to a severe manpower shortage in the department, and inadequate pay,” Interim Town Administrator Mike Farrell said in a statement issued later Thursday morning announcing the departure. School Resource Officer Randy Christensen was put in charge of the day shift. When asked if he was Acting Chief, Christensen declined to characterize it that way, saying only that the department was “regrouping.”

The resignation came to light after an emergency selectboard meeting last Wednesday that was executive session only. It was at this meeting that the resignation was accepted “with regret.” Currently Farrell, the interim town administrator from Municipal Resources, Inc. (MRI), has stated that a new interim police department manager will be hired to fill in until a new Chief can be found. Cushing, 64, has been put on paid administrative leave and Farrell left open the possibility that he would remain with the department, perhaps with the open sergeant’s position that was not filled when he stepped up to the Chief position.

Cushing wasn’t talking to the press last week, but his wife, Diana, told the Windsor Area Observer that it was untrue that he had resigned on less than a day’s notice, as Farrell claimed. The interim town administrator was quoted in the Valley News as saying Cushing sent him an e-mail on Tuesday, which he couldn’t open, and that after talking with Cushing later in the day, learned that the attachment was a letter of resignation. He then talked again with Cushing twice on Wednesday, the paper said.

GOVERNOR SIGNS WINDSOR LEGISLATION

(A Margo Howland article)

Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas, right, signs into law the legislation that amends Windsor’s charter to return the town to a Town Manager form of government, during a ceremony at the American Precision Museum Tuesday afternoon. Looking on, from left, are Interim Town Manager Mike Farrell, Select-board Chairman Bill Harkness, and Rep. Donna Sweaney, D-Windsor, who sponsored the bill. (Margo Howland Photo)

Windsor Town Charter Bill To Be Signed May 13

Windsor’s Town Charter bill has been passed by the House and the Senate and is awaiting the Governor’s signature.  Gov. Douglas will sign the bill on Tuesday, May 13 at 2:30 p.m. at the American Precision Museum.  He will also sign another bill having to do with museums, which is why the signing is at the APM.  This is according to Rep. Donna Sweaney who was at Rotary today.

Fire Fire?

It’s quite notable of late the number of historic buildings in our area that have been burned to the ground or badly damaged. Is there a plan in place for inspections and advanced preparedness to prevent this from happening in Windsor? It might be as simple as an old rag in a corner. Be sure overloaded outlets and dirty areas are cleaned around the home or structure. Keep materials away from power cords in the home. Be sure they are not punched under furniture. Invite the Fire Department for an inspection. I do not believe the Fire Department charges for the inspection service but a quick call would confirm it. Even if it’s a few bucks, it could save thousands. No matter where it is, prevention is much cheaper and safer that anything else.