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BENNINGTON -- A long list of area children in need of warm winter clothing has been compiled in preparation for the winter months, and the annual Warm the Children campaign is in need of donations to help as many kids on the list as possible. Organizer Lisa Shea said 330 families applied for the $100 winter clothing shopping spree given to selected families who apply. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- Crescent Manor Care Center has had the state's only specialized care unit for Huntington's Disease up and running for several months now. The unit, which opened in April, is the work of the nursing home, the Vermont Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living and the Vermont Health Care Association. Full Story »

PUTNEY -- The Vermont State Police ruled Monday that the fire that destroyed the Putney General Store on Nov. 1 to be intentionally set. "After a lengthy scene examination...the cause of the fire has been determined to be intentional and criminal in nature," according to a press release from the State Police. Full Story »

HOOSICK, N.Y. -- The town's newest elected officials didn't have much to say on the $1.65 million budget they will inherit come Jan. 1, but did say that it wasn't anything they couldn't work with. Republicans have majority Keith Cipperly, Louis Schmigel, and Jeff Wysocki, along with Kevin Allard, a member of the Hoosick Republican Committee, were the only audience Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- Vermont Rep. Peter Welch is hailing as historic the U.S. House's weekend approval of health care reform legislation. "Congress, for the first time, has turned its back on the status quo," Welch said in a conference call with reporters Monday. "It has been an enormous struggle for the House. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- A Dorset man whose criminal activity drew the ire of town officials pleaded guilty Friday to 10 charges in exchange for the state capping its sentencing argument at 20 years to serve. Benjamin Payne, 28, of Benedict Road, pleaded guilty to two counts of identity theft, two counts of petit larceny, two counts of vehicle operation with a suspended license, unlawful mischief, Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- The rapid spread of swine flu has led to temporary changes in the visiting policy at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, including a prohibition of children under 18. Health officials in Vermont, like most states, are reporting widespread flu activity. The visiting policy changes at SVMC are an attempt to protect patients at the hospital from catching the virus, according to Full Story »

RUPERT -- Police said a Dorset man may have been chasing another vehicle when his pickup truck crashed on Route 315 Monday morning, killing himself and injuring his 5-year-old son. Sgt. Michael Marvin, of the Vermont State Police, said Joseph Ferrante, 46, of Dorset, died in the crash that occurred around 9:30 a. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- How do we define "local" food? What foods are local? How can we draw connections between the producers and the consumers of food? All these are among the questions that will be discussed at Bennington County's Farm-to-Plate summit, Saturday, Nov. 14, at St. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- That Carol Conroy, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center's new chief nursing officer, has a passion for nursing becomes immediately apparent during an interview. "I love nursing, I love the difference that we can make for patients, families and communities," she said. "And nursing is unique in its ability to do that in a variety of ways, and we have so many different options Full Story »

STILLWATER, N.Y. -- Hoosick Falls Central School junior Quinn Rasmus rose to the occasion on Saturday and nailed his first ever field goal with only moments remaining in the New York Class-C Sectional Finals. The 39-yard boot put the Panthers up, 17-14, with 2.9 seconds remaining in the Class-C Super Bowl and HFCS held on for victory over Chatham at Stillwater High School. Full Story »

RUTLAND -- The opportunities were bountiful, but neither side could shatter the deadlock through 88 minutes of championship soccer. It wasn't until the closing moments of the first golden-goal overtime period when Arlington Memorial High School freshman Rayleen Sherman made her pressure finally payoff. Full Story »

MANCHESTER -- Playwrights dating back at least to Shakespeare, and probably well before that, used the device of the play within a play to drive a plot forward. In "Hamlet," one of Shakespeare's best known works, it was used to smoke out the villain of the piece. Burr and Burton Academy's theater team is gearing up to present a play that is about another play, only this time the Full Story »

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) -- Pfc. Marquest Smith, on his way to Afghanistan in January, was completing routine paperwork about a bee-sting allergy when the sounds erupted. A loud, popping noise. Moans. The sudden, urgent shout of "Gun!" Smith poked his head over the cubicle's partition and saw an extraordinary sight: An Army officer with two guns, firing into the crowded room. Full Story »

MANCHESTER CENTER -- Join Kelly Moore, 2008 U.N. delegate to Nicaragua, as he presents his new documentary film "Nicaragua - On the Ground" on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. at the Northshire Bookstore. This 29-minute film documents Kelly Moore’s seven-day trip to the mountains of Nicaragua, where he witnessed first-hand the vast poverty of this country and its contrasts in beauty. Full Story »

Chances are thatTracy Greene, Magalis Filson and Dick Frantz are not well known within the Bennington Community. However, they along with 217 of their colleagues, are not only well known to the 160 residents of the Vermont Veterans Home, they are indispensable. On November 11, Americans will pause to celebrate the contribution made by its military veterans. Full Story »

Jane McDay I am constantly surprised at the frequency with which I encounter people who have never heard of the Baha’i Faith. This in spite of regular news clips about the persecutions of the Baha’is in Iran by the Iranian government and the seven members of the faith held in Evin prison since March of 2008 because of their beliefs. Full Story »

STRATTON -- U.S. Olympian Andy Newell is back in the area, conducting some dry-land training in preparation for an upcoming trip to Europe, and ultimately the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver. Shaftsbury's Newell posted on his blog on fasterskier.com that he got in a week of "serious training" in Vermont following a trip to Lake Placid. Full Story »

ESSEX JUNCTION -- The Mount Anthony Union High School varsity football team took a huge step by just getting to Friday’s Division-I quarterfinal game against top-seeded Essex. The Fighting Patriots’ next lesson was in what a championship-caliber team looks like. MAU hung with the Hornets for much of the first half, but ultimately allowed too many big plays in a 46-19 loss. Full Story »

MANCHESTER -- Several people walked away from an H1N1 flu clinic in Manchester Thursday because they didn’t want toreceivethe swine flu vaccine via nasal spray, stateHealth CommissionerDr. Wendy Davis said. "It’sunfortunate, because it’s oursensethat some of the people that turned it down couldhave received it and been immunized," Davis said Friday. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- A committee tasked with finding savings within the state's Judiciary approved a draft report Friday outlining $2.4 million in savings for property taxpayers and the state's general fund. The report calls for some major changes, including reducing the number of Probate courts from 14 to five, and stripping assistant judges of their judicial functions. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- A former Arlington teacher received a nine-month deferred sentence Friday after pleading guilty in Bennington District Court to enabling the consumption of alcohol by minors. Allyson Hoffman, 38, of Sunderland, will also have to complete tasks assigned to her by a reparative board as part of her sentence. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- A Shaftsbury man pleaded guilty Friday to shooting his former brother-in-law to death and to molesting children -- charges that would likely result in him serving 30 years to life in prison. More than a dozen police officers filled Bennington District Court as Michael Christmas, 41, pleaded guilty to second degree murder and three counts of aggravated sexual assault on victims Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- A Bennington woman who was allegedly stabbed in the chest two weeks ago was arraigned Wednesday in Bennington District Court on charges she held a knife to a woman’s throat in a separate incident. Jayde Caslin, 18, of Pleasant Street, pleaded not guilty to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and simple assault. Full Story »

BENNINGTON -- The Shaftsbury School District Board will decide soon exactly how committed it is to looking into a merger with North Bennington. After both school boards met Wednesday, the Shaftsbury board decided that at its Nov. 10 meeting, members will vote whether to invest money into the idea and hire a consultant to study the financial and educational impacts of a merger. Full Story »