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Chuck Goldberg of Kent Affordable Housing leads a gathering at which Kent’s nonprofits spoke about the missions of their groups.
Ruth Epstein
KENT — Volunteerism is the engine that makes towns run.
Without the civic organizations whose missions cover a wide swath of objectives, communities would not be as rich and welcoming as they are.
This was apparent Thursday, May 1, as the Kent Chamber of Commerce gathered representatives from the town’s nonprofits to talk about the services and activities they offer. The discussion was led by Charles Goldberg, who said the purpose of the meeting was to let everyone know what each group was doing and encourage cooperation.
“There are wonderful outcomes when people get together to make things happen,” he said.
Goldberg was there as part of Kent Affordable Housing, which is now focused on a project to erect 13 rental units on a 1.59-acre parcel that was ceded to the group by the town. The land sits adjacent to Kent Commons and the design will consist of one building with an elevator.
Members of the Kent Garden Club described how they work to beautify the town by putting plantings around the Civil War monument and the welcoming signs at the four entrances to the village, among other initiatives. When president Nancy Schaefer said the club was established in 1933, that led to a friendly competition as to which organization was the longest standing.
Sarah Marshall, executive director of the Kent Memorial Library, spoke about the renovation and expansion project for which the groundbreaking is expected this fall. The plan is to annex the old firehouse next door, where an 80-person community room will be placed upstairs, as well as two small meeting rooms. The aim of the Kent Community Nursery School, located in the parish house of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, is to bring play and nature back to early childhood, said Anna deRham, co-director.
The Kent Art Association, which hosted the event, has monthly shows featuring a host of mediums. It was established in 1923 by nine well-known artists. The gallery on South Main Street was once part of the old Kent Inn and was moved to its current site in 1976. High Watch Recovery Center was founded in 1935, serving those with alcohol and drug addiction.
“We got this,” exclaimed K.C. Compton, who serves as parish secretary at St. Andrew’s, referring to being the oldest organization in the room. It is celebrating its 200th anniversary this year. “We really want to become a community hub, where everyone is welcome,” she said.
The Kent Lions Club is 48 years old, said President Karren Garrity. She said it basically helps fund such causes as the environment, cancer and eyesight. “We hold events to raise money so we can give it away,” she said. Connie Manes, executive director of the Kent Land Trust said that group doesn’t just protect nature, but seeks to engage people. It owns or has conserved 12,000 acres.
The Kent Chamber of Commerce runs a community calendar to let residents know where and when events are happening, which helps to prevent conflicts. Its not just about promoting businesses, but bringing people and nonprofits together to make Kent a destination point, said its members.
While the Kent Historical Society is not 200 years old, said curator Marge Smith, it is the repository of 250 years of documents and information. The Kent Quilters use their talent to create quilts that help raise funds for nonprofits.
Others who were in attendance were representatives of the Eric Sloane Museum, Trades Up, whose goal is to get youngsters to use hand tools, Kent Curiosity Lab, an enrichment program for Kent Center School students, and Kent Dispatch, an online community newspaper.
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SALISBURY — At its April 28 meeting, the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Commission approved a modification to a permit it issued last year for an application to redevelop the Wake Robin Inn.
It was the first public presentation of applicant ARADEV LLC’s amended proposal since withdrawing its initial application to the Planning and Zoning Commission in December 2024.
“Generally, it’s a pullback in the intensity of development,” said Mark Arigoni, a Landscape Architect with SLR Consulting who has represented the applicant, ARADEV LLC, since its first submission. Arigoni said the new plans were meant to respond to calls from the public and P&Z to scale down and lighten the impacts of the project after an extended public hearing late last year.
The major changes include reducing the number of newly-built cottages from twelve to four. The event barn, which was a highly contentious aspect of the initial proposal, moved from its previous position as a standalone structure to instead being a part of the expansion of the existing Inn building. The spa building was adjusted so it sits closer to the main structure and further from the wetland.
After presenting the updated plan, the Commission levied several questions towards the applicant regarding the new project. Commissioner John Landon noted that the new cottages look larger than those initially proposed. Stephen Cohen, of ARADEV, confirmed that they are approximately 2,000 square feet, compared to the previous buildings which topped out at around 1,100 square feet.
After several other questions regarding storm water management, a state-listed species relocation, and alterations to the cottage parking and access schemas, the IWWC concluded its examination. Chair Vivian Garfein clarified that the IWWC was reviewing an alteration, not a new application.
“We are not reissuing a permit,” she said, “We are asked to approve a minor modification that we have already approved.”
The Commission voted unanimously to approve the modification. ARADEV was to reappear in the town Zoom room on Monday, May 5 to present its modified application to P&Z.
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Peter Vermilyea’s oral history project at Housatonic Valley Regional High School gives students a hands-on historical perspective.
Ruth Epstein
FALLS VILLAGE — Students in Peter Vermilyea’s ECE American history class at Housatonic Valley Regional High School learn history first hand through the annual oral history project.
Many have read about the sinking of the Titanic in books, but one young woman in his class in 1999 was able to talk to a survivor, who was 6-years old at the time. “The only thing she remembered was that her stuffed animal fell into the water,” recalled Vermilyea. Another teen got to speak with astronaut Alan Shepard.
He was part of a Zoom discussion on Tuesday, April 22, moderated by Judith Monachina, founding director of the Housatonic Heritage Oral History Center at Berkshire Community College in Massachusetts.
Most of the interviews in the early years of the program, which began when Vermilyea arrived at the school decades ago, had a bit more of a local flavor. Students, who are juniors, would interview their grandparents or great-grandparents, or those they knew in their communities.
Vermilyea said one of his favorite images was one told to a student by an alumnus, who talked about walking home from high school in the 1940s and stealing warm pies that were cooling on a woman’s windowsill. “Such stories allow the students to connect with the past. They can be hand-in-hand with actual history.”
Vermilyea detailed the origins of the oral history program, noting the first year he used tape recorders and had the students transcribe the interviews, which they didn’t enjoy at all. Yet, when he talked with the teens when they were seniors, when asked what they liked best about the course, they all replied it was doing oral histories. “Once they could reflect upon it, they realized they loved it.”
While many of the interviews brought praise from their teacher, one that was a disappointment stands out. Vermilyea said a student talked about his grandfather’s experiences serving in the Korean War. “It was fascinating and I wanted to know more. Then we found the whole thing was lifted from a Korean War magazine. When asked why he did it, the young man said his grandfather was boring. I don’t know which was worse; the plagiarism or that he didn’t think his grandfather had anything meaningful to say.” Then Vemilyea added, “Everyone has an important story to tell.”
But he emphasized the students are directed not to pry and there are certain subjects that are not approached. They are also instructed to ask open-ended questions to avoid getting “yes” or “no” answers. The one question always asked, which gets terrific responses, is “What advice would you give to your younger self?”
Something that has stuck with him was the note he received from a student revealing his father, who was older, died the year after the young man graduated. He had interviewed his dad for the oral history and wrote to tell Vermilyea that having the transcript of the interview with his father meant so much to him.
In 2016, Vermilyea began teaching the Early College Experience program through the University of Connecticut, which gives students who pass the course six college credits. He decided to switch from the old model of oral histories since it was getting harder to interview people due to geography. So, he embarked on a decades project, realizing Region One is an area steeped in tradition. He brought alumni collectively from various years to meet with and talk to the students about their high school experiences.
The first group consisted of 17 graduates from the 1950s and two from the 1940s. Vermilyea said the interviewees were so excited to be asked and went all out, bringing old yearbooks, artifacts and one even wore her poodle skirt. “To this day, that was the best moment of my teaching career. Those students and graduates fell in love with each other.”
He said when the students were asked what it’s like to be a high school student now, the teens turned the tables and asked the guests what they remembered from their school days. Popular questions were about what song when heard brings them back to their high school days and what foods were popular then.
Vermilyea humorously said when it came time to focus on the ‘90s, he declared that was not really history since he was a student of the era. But last year he broke down and focused on that decade. “Things really changed then. In the early years, we’d send out 60 to 70 letters and maybe get 15 responses. Because of Facebook and texting, last year we reached out to 18 and get 18 back. They were able to do it online, which gave some flexibility.”
Nowadays, with more technological advancements and the aid of AI, the process is somewhat streamlined and the transcriptions are much easier to construct. However, the process involves a lot of work, taking about six months to complete.
This year, the project will return to having students interview those from the 1950s and ’60s. He is very grateful to the Housatonic Valley Regional Alumni Association, which helped gather names for this exercise.
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SALISBURY —After a public hearing Wednesday, April 30, the Board of Finance voted to send the 2025-26 municipal and education budget proposals to town meeting.
The municipal budget proposal for 2025-26 has a bottom line of $9,205,102, an increase of $575,530 or 6.7%.
The budget proposal for Salisbury Central School (SCS) is for $6,897,148, an increase of $361,209 or 5.53%.
The town’s Region One assessment from the proposed Region One budget is $4,781,093, an increase of $373,080 or 8.46%.
Total town education spending is $11,678,241, an increase of $734,289 or 6.71%.
There were no questions for SCS principal Stephanie Magyar or First Selectman Curtis Rand.
Meeting immediately after the hearing, the Board of Finance voted to send the budget proposals to the town budget meeting.
Board of Finance chair Pari Farood said it is likely that there will be no mill rate change if the budget proposals are approved. The Salisbury mill rate is 11.0.
The annual town budget meeting in Salisbury is Wednesday, May 14, 7:30 p.m. It is a hybrid meeting.
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