Tunbridge Quarterly – Town of Tunbridge, Vermont

The TUNBRIDGE Quarterly is mailed four times a year to everyone that owns property and/or resides in Tunbridge and contains news and information from town and school officials and local volunteer efforts. The brainchild of Tunbridge resident Janet Zug, its first edition was published in July 2005 and has been curated by Janet ever since.

The deadlines for TQ entries are on the 15th of December, March, June and September. Contact Janet at 802-889-9602 or [email protected]

THE CURRENT ISSUE

Published April 1, 2025 – Follow this link to view or download the current issue in PDF format.

Click here to see past issues.

Tunbridge Town Clerk
Mariah Cilley, Clerk 889-5521
Bonnie McCrillis, Asst Clerk [email protected]
Hours: Monday and Wednesday, 8-2
Call or Email to set up time outside of these hours

Happy Spring Tunbridge! When this issue is published, I will be finishing up my first week back at work after maternity leave. Our family welcomed our third baby – a boy, Dutch – at the end of December. While I have been out on maternity leave spending time with my littlest and his two big siblings, Bonnie has been holding down the fort and doing a great job! She is taking a much-deserved vacation for three weeks of April traveling all over the east coast, and so I will be maintaining her Monday/Wednesday hours that you have all become accustomed to while I have been on leave. Stay tuned for updated hours in the next few months. AS ALWAYS please call or email the number/address above to set up a time outside of these hours; I am here to serve the good people of Tunbridge whenever it works for you (the perks of living four doors down!)

Dog Licenses are due April 1st. You can either stop in during office hours to register in person, mail in a payment and updated rabies certificate to PO Box 6, or place the items in the drop box outside of the office doors and we can process your license. The cost is $11.00 for spayed/neutered and $15.00 for non-spayed/neutered. If you would like to request a slot on a Selectboard meeting agenda, please email [email protected] or call the number above.

If you would like to reserve the Town Hall for an event, please call Judy Howe at 889-3487. She maintains the reservation book, reservation contracts, and can answer any other questions you may have. For tax questions, please contact our knowledgeable Treasurer, Becky at 889-3571.

As always, please feel free to reach out to myself or Bonnie with any questions, concerns, or to set up a time outside of office hours. Stop in to meet Dutch on your way through town, stay well, and enjoy the sunshine!

Tunbridge Town Website
Geoff Hansen, 802-889-3373, or [email protected]

Tunbridge’s town website is a timely resource for information from the Town Clerk, board meetings (including videos of meetings via Zoom), an Events Calendar listing upcoming meetings and community events, and past issues of the Tunbridge Quarterly. Please let us know if there’s something you would like to see listed or have any questions.

The TUNBRIDGE Quarterly
Janet Zug 889-9602 [email protected]

This is the 80the issue of The TUNBRIDGE Quarterly which marks 20 years since the first one was mailed to all property owners and postal patrons in our town. The idea to publish this newsletter for our town came to me on the way home from a public forum meeting our Planning Commission held on communications. The Tunbridge Broadband Committee was also formed that night, which eventually led to ECFiber. Thank you to our Planning Commission for the inspirations! Since then, Tunbridge volunteers and town officials have been writing entries, every three months, which I compile into the TQ format. My goal is to keep it simple and informative. Spaulding Press does the printing and then the pick up, labeling and sorting for the bulk mailing is all completed here on Dickerman Hill.

Please remember to thank those that send in entries for this newsletter, their names and contact info are in the headings. And, if you would like read updates from a town office/organization or local volunteer effort that isn’t currently represented, please contact them directly and express your interest in reading about what they’re doing. The TQ would be nothing without the folks that are willing to write for it!

Entries are printed as received and only edited for typos. Please accept my apologies for any mistakes I miss or make! Feel free to contact me with any questions, comments or suggestions.

The deadline dates for TQ entries are the 15th of December, March, June and September.

Tunbridge Community Discussion List
Fred Pond – 802-476-5520, [email protected]

Interested in local events, new services, items for sale, news? Perhaps you would like to discuss a local issue with your fellow residents.

The Tunbridge Community Discussion List is provided to encourage discussion on topics specific or relevant to Tunbridge. It is not an ‘official list set up by the Selectboard or town office (although they use the list to announce meetings, other news about the town). Particularly, it is not a large social media entity bound to gather data about users. The non-profit Vital Communities manages several community discussion lists across the Upper Valley. You’ll need an email account to receive daily mailings – sent first thing in the morning (because Tunbridge folk get up early, right?).

To sign up and learn more about posting guidelines, visit:
https://lists.vitalcommunities.org/lists/info/tunbridge

Tunbridge Selectboard
John O’Brien, Clerk
889-3474; [email protected]
Gary Mullen, Chair
889-3323, barn or 889-3242, house; [email protected]
Mike McPhetres, Vice Chair
802-272-6108, cell or 802-728-3390, shop; [email protected]
Mariah Cilley, Administrative Assistant
802-889-5521 or [email protected]

The April TQ that follows March’s Town Meeting is a good opportunity to debrief on our annual gathering and ongoing experiment in direct democracy. This year’s Town Meeting was uneventful, yet remarkably efficient. The General Fund and Highway budgets passed without kerfuffle. There was not a single contested race for any of the elected positions. The line for the buffet-style lunch moved so smoothly there was little evidence of “cutting.” The only hiccup was the audio system—something of a tradition— microphones worked sporadically, and feedback screeches momentarily interrupted all exchange of gossip; Tunbridgians adapted, using their outdoor voices for public speaking, and Moderator Izzy Provoncha gracefully repeated questions from the floor. Even “Other Business,” was truncated when a motion to adjourn was proposed from the floor…and was approved.

There were, though, two moments during Town Meeting that demand further scrutiny. Tunbridge contracts with the Windsor County Sheriff’s Department to provide a law enforcement presence in town. This agree-ment—as well as a significant increase in policing dollars—was approved at last year’s Town Meeting. The Selectboard has been very satisfied with Windsor County Sheriff’s coverage and accessibility, helped in no small part by having Deputy Jackson Howe living in town. The problem was that the Selectboard dropped the ball on communicating our approval to the people of Tunbridge. Without a Sheriff’s report in the Town Report, and without a deputy—or the sheriff—at the meeting to answer questions, there was a general inquiry, “What do they do?” A motion was made to strike the line item funding for law enforcement. Fortunately, an amendment to level-fund law enforcement was moved, seconded and passed. This means, given the imminent rise in the cost per hour for police coverage, starting July 1st, Tunbridge will receive less hours of coverage for the same amount of money. In the meantime, the Selectboard has written itself a memo: “Next year, have Sheriff Palmer write a report summing up Tunbridge’s coverage for the year, and have Deputy Howe on hand at Town Meeting to speak to coverage, challenges and successes, and to answer questions.”

The other issue that came up was whether or not Tunbridge should have a constable (we can actually have two). The First and Second Constable positions have been vacant for years and we learned, statutorily, Tunbridge is not obligated to have constables. We decided to put the issue on the Warning. An article proposing the elimination of the constable positions was moved, but, after discussion, voted down by the residents. Following Town Meeting, coincidentally, two volunteers have come forward, independent of one another, asking to be appointed constables! We are doing due diligence on the job description, and will let Tunbridge know if and when we are back in the constabulary business.

If we rate Mud Season on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the worst, how would you score this year’s? We’re going with about a 5, meaning the roads were, at times, and not unexpectedly, awful. However, our Road Crew did an expert job of reacting to the hot spots, dumping loads of hard pack in stretches of quagmire just when we thought, “I made it today, but I’ll never get through there tomorrow.” Also, Road Crew Chief Rodney Hoyt’s experiment on the Rec Road, is paying dividends: Last Fall, Rodney added higher quality hard-pack to the busy road. Do you notice a difference this Spring? Collectively, our memories of going to the dump and fishtailing all the way on a gooey paste, are happily fading. “You get what you pay for” is true for gravel, too.

Projects coming soon: The engineering studies for fixing the slides on the Strafford Road are wrapping up; during this construction season, we predict a whole lotta excavators and dump trucks moving a whole lotta stone and dirt around on our major Class 2 road. Meanwhile, look for an expansion of our municipal solar installation down at the Town Garage and a tightening up of the Town Offices and Town Hall for much-improved energy efficiency. These MERP grant-funded projects have some redundancy with the ARPA funds we set aside for similar projects. Down the road, this may free up some monies for other town projects, but, at the moment, it seems to make good sense to keep the former ARPA funds as a backup for cost overruns on the efficiency projects.

Happy 20th Birthday TQ! Next year, when the TQ turns 21—the drinking age—we should have a champagne toast to honor the best darn town quarterly in Vermont and its resilient editor, Janet Zug.

Tunbridge Board of Listers
Dan ‘rudi’ Ruddell, Darlene Miller, Deb Mullen 802-889-3571
([email protected]) Office hours: Tuesday & Friday 9am-3pm

Sales have continued to come in well above our current town assessments, and our Common Level of Appraisal (CLA) has thus continued to drop. Under previous statutes, a town was mandated to do a town-wide reappraisal if the CLA dropped below 85% or exceeded 115%, or the COD (Coefficient of Dispersion) exceeded 20%. The 2024 Statewide Equalization Study (based on statistical analysis of the previous 3 years of sales) put Tunbridge’s CLA at 65.08% and our COD at 21.04%.

The CLA helps equalize sales values across towns for purposes of leveling education taxes. Due to the statewide prevalence of high value sales, 2025 education tax rates will be adjusted by a statewide calculation of the CLA, buffering the tax rate impacts of our low CLA (the base education rate is usually divided by the town CLA, so that a CLA of less than 100% increases the effective education rate. For more information, see:
https://tax.vermont.gov/property-owners/understanding-property-taxes/educa-tion-tax-rates).

In January 2025 the listers issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to help conduct our first town-wide reappraisal since 2010, statutorily triggered by our 21.04% COD. (The VT Legislature got rid of the CLA trigger for mandated reappraisal in 2023). The COD is a measure of equity within the town. A COD of less than 10% is considered indicative of a high degree of equity within town.

Current responses indicate our town-wide reappraisal is likely to start in 2028 and be completed for the 2030 Grand List. You will hear more about this in the months ahead.

Congratulations to Darlene Miller, re-elected as a Lister at the March 2025 Town Meeting.

April 1 is the “assess as is” date in our annual cycle, and we are focusing on quarterly rotational reviews in the southwest quadrant of town for 2025. We are primarily updating outdoor pictures and making phone calls rather than visiting interiors, and greatly appreciate notice if there are significant changes to your property (whether in the SW quadrant or elsewhere). If there are changes to a property in any part of town, we may make Changes of Appraisal up until early June but need to estimate the state of completion as of April 1.

HOMESTEAD DECLARATIONS AND HOMESTEAD PROPERTY TAX ADJUSTMENT CLAIMS ARE DUE APRIL 15, 2025, even if you anticipate filing an extension for income taxes (adjustments can be made later and still be considered timely if you file by April 15). Late fees and penalties apply after April 15, and no HS declarations are accepted after Oct. 15, 2025.

If you are eligible, the Homestead Property Tax Adjustment is a credit against taxes, filed at the same time as the Homestead Declaration. Further information can be found at: https://tax.vermont.gov/property/tax-credit

Friends of the Tunbridge World’s Fair
Deb Mullen – 889-9406 [email protected]

First, The Friends would like to give a round of applause to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the TQ! Thank you, Janet, for all you do, and have done, to promote local groups and to bring information to Tunbridge residents!

The Friends of the Tunbridge World’s Fair was created as a way for more folks to participate in the Fair experience and to support the very best of what the Fair stands for: agricultural education and heritage, rural communities and Vermont history. Our goal is to preserve the past while preparing for the needs of the future. We raise money to support projects that enhance the Fair, whether it is improving exhibition spaces, expanding public access, or funding programming.

The Friends are a 501c3 non-profit and your donations are tax deductible (and very much appreciated!). If you feel you have skills or ideas that would add to the quality of the Fair experience, we’d like to hear from you! We are always looking for new members, and have two openings on our board of directors. Meetings are 2nd Wednesday of the month, May-October. If you are interested, please contact Deb Mullen (contact info above) for more information.

Better Bones
Kay Jorgensen – 889-5528, [email protected]

Better Bones balance and weight-bearing exercise program is offered at the Town Hall on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 5 p.m. It is aimed at increasing bone density at an age when bone mass is lost and osteoporosis is a concern. Anyone can drop in for a session. A doctor’s permission is requested for those who continue with the program.

Tunbridge Library
Mariah Lawrence – Library Director
802-889-9404/[email protected]/tunbridgelibrary.org
Tues 10-5, Wed 3-6, Thurs 10-5, Fri 3-6, Sat 9-1
Staff ~ Maureen Moriarty, Theresa FitzGerald, Russell Lewczuk-Jensen

The Tunbridge Public Library is a community space that fosters the spirit of exploration and lifelong learning, promotes the sharing and appreciation of stories, and supports a diverse and thriving rural community.

Vermont’s own Jason Chin, Caldecott Winner and author of many amazing children’s books, will be at Tunbridge Central School on April 8th at 10 am. All elementary students will be in attendance. Homeschoolers and community members are also invited! This amazing event is funded through a Children’s Literacy Grant. The grant was a collaboration of Tunbridge School Librarian Jess Anderson, First Branch Reading Specialist Caitlyn Macglaflin and yours truly, Mariah Lawrence! Through these funds we were able to host a literacy night at the school and our library, a storytelling experience and add an entire section of decodable books (texts to assist emerging readers) to each of our libraries. Thank you, CLiF!

The library hosts a monthly knitting group, “knitting wellness”. This group welcomes crafters of all abilities. I have personally seen one patron in particular go from “never knitted in my life” to “just made a beautiful Puffin-themed sweater.” She claims she was able to do it solely through the support of fellow crafters she met during Knitting Wellness. They meet on the first Tuesday of every month at 5 pm.

The afterschool program at the library this spring has been an absolute success. Kids have learned to cook, paint, speak Spanish, play Rooted Rolls (a table top imagination game), and create amazing buildings with LEGOs. Want to volunteer, offer a service, scoop snacks or sweep popcorn in our next round of programming? Email us at [email protected]. We had 48 kids sign up this spring and
12 adults/teens to wrangle them. The ratio was awesome and made the program run smoothly. It takes a village to raise a child and we have a lovely one!

Russell has increased attendance for the already popular Imagination Fridays by enhancing the program with a grant from MagiKids and offering Magic: The Gathering drafts. These programs aim to build confidence, utilize imagination, grow friendships, and gain sustained focus. Each Friday afternoon, kids are invited to either take the bus or get dropped off for Rooted Rolls, followed by Magic: The Gathering!

Mark your calendar for April 6th at 2 pm when Pam Steiner will come to discuss her book and her work as a mental health clinician. Pam specialized in trauma work, where she practiced as part of a team resolving conflict, bringing two sets of people – Israeli Jews and Palestinians, and Armenians and Turks – together for dialogue about their decades-long destructive relations. This will be a talk about how collective trauma impacts everyone’s lives, followed by a Q&A session.

The first Monday of every month is homeschool day at the library. Join other homeschoolers for a fun outdoor experience followed by a picnic lunch! 10 am-1 pm.

In partnership with Orange County Parent Child Center, the library hosts Bumblebee Playgroup, a gathering of babies, children, and their caregivers, every Thursday from 10-11:30 am. Come sing, play, read and eat snacks together! All are welcome.

The library just wrapped up their Libraries Transforming Communities Grant awarded through The American Library Association to create a welcoming and accessible space for people who are neurodivergent. Through this funding the library created three quiet spaces, offered a variety of mindfulness programming, enhanced their collection, and hosted a set of educational series on ADHD. The programs offered guided us to the creation of a Neurodivergent support group. Dates and times are listed on our website. On April 15th from 10-5 pm, the library will host an open house of the new spaces with snacks, maps, and tours available!

On April 22nd from 5-7 pm, Polly Giantonio will offer “The Caregiver’s Circle,” a writing workshop for caregivers of all types. Please sign up for this wonderful workshop by April 15th to reserve your spot.

This summer’s reading program, Color Our World, aims to embrace the transformative power of art. Art has the unique ability to uplift, connect us, and inspire empathy by allowing us to view the world through different perspectives. Our program embraces the beauty of art in all its forms, offering a vibrant tapestry of experiences for everyone. We plan to incorporate a variety of activities, including art shows, lectures, and hands-on art projects, for all age groups—from school-aged children to adults. Participants will have the opportunity to engage with both local artists and talent from afar, making this a truly enriching and colorful summer.

Tunbridge Volunteer Fire Department
Jamie Bradford – 802-889-3478

The Fire Department’s Annual Meeting was held on March 6, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. At this event a potluck dinner was held and began at 6:00 p.m. followed by the meeting at 7:00 p.m. Any and all community members are welcome and encouraged to attend. This event is warned on Facebook as the event date approaches to notify any interested parties. At the meeting Simon Bradford was reelected as our Fire Chief. Jamie Bradford was reelected as the Clerk and Amy Young was reelected as Auditor. John Fragnella, and Robert Dunkel were elected to the board of trustees. The trustees serve as members for a two year period. Robert Dunkle was elected to serve as the trustee president.

The Fire Department received an anonymous donation to purchase a gear washer. This machine helps to reduce the cancer-causing chemicals omitted in fires and transferred to gear while fighting fires.

Please remember when we leap forward or fall back, changing the clocks is a great reminder to change the batteries in the smoke detectors.

Please remember to visit us at the Memorial Day Chicken BBQ to get your delicious meal or to just say hi! Reservation details will be posted on the department’s Facebook page, Tunbridge Volunteer Fire Department.

The Tunbridge Volunteer Fire Department is always welcoming new members. If you are interested, please stop by the Department Thursday nights after 7:00 pm or reach out to us at [email protected]

Tunbridge Historical Society
Maureen Moriarty (401) 662-5341

Significant progress has been made on our current project, the restoration and repair of the windows in the North Tunbridge Church. Some may have noticed that the windows were removed on a cold January day and plastic was installed to cover the openings. At the time of this publication, we are just $250 short of our total fundraising goal for the window restoration, so if anyone still wishes to donate, you can send a check to PO Box 300 Tunbridge VT 05077. Donors will be listed on a memorial plaque. Any excess funds will go towards future projects which include the grading of the land around the church and the installation of a handicap accessible ramp. The windows are expected to be reinstalled in late spring.

Recently, the Historical Society experienced a technology glitch and lost access to their previous THS Gmail account. Gotta love the 21st century!! A new Gmail account has been set up. Unfortunately, this means that many of our stored email addresses and some recently emailed documents have been lost. We are trying to restore our mailing lists and it would be very helpful if you could email Elaine Howe ([email protected]) with your current email address so you can continue to receive our mailings, notices about meetings and other updates. Everyone is welcome to attend our meetings and events and to join the Historical Society.

Upcoming events:

Tunbridge Historical Society quarterly meeting
April 27, 2 pm, Town Hall
Memorial Day (featured topic is WWII Veterans)
May 6, 10:30 Program at Town Hall, 1:00 Parade followed by Cemetery program
Family Search Fair
May 10, 9:00am-3:00pm at Church of Later Day Saints in Royalton Free lunch
Hutchinson Cemetery Cleanup
August 2, 7:30am-12:00pm, Resetting stones, cleaning, clearing brush etc. Free lunch and snacks All ages welcome please no pets

Fern Strong [email protected]
Maureen Moriarty [email protected]
Izzy Provoncha [email protected]
Elaine Howe [email protected]
Lydia Flanagan [email protected]

First Branch Ambulance
Barbara LaFrancis 889-3378. Judy Tucker – 889-3305

Thank you to all our supporters for another successful response to our annual fundraising letter. We sincerely appreciate you helping FBA to maintain quality service to the communities they serve.

We will soon be having a get-together to celebrate 40 years of service. Watch for it and plan to attend to see old friends, share stories of how we reached this point, thank past and current members, and give yourselves a pat on the back for all your support.

FBA continues our House Call Visits. Please call 685-3112 to inquire about the program or sign up if you or someone you know could benefit from weekly/biweekly visits for nonemergency check-ins.

We continually need people who would like to serve their community by joining our team. If you are one of them, please contact Chase or Liz at 685-3112 for information on how to get started.

Thank you to our responders who continue to go above and beyond to help their community, friends, and neighbors.

If you haven’t already purchased a Red house marker to help us find you if you have an emergency, please consider doing so. They are available for $20.00 by contacting Judy Tucker at 889-3305 [email protected].

FBA wishes everyone a happy, healthy spring season.

Ed Larkin Contra Dancers
Clyde Jenne – [email protected]

The Ed Larkin Contra Dancers host Contra Dancing at the Tunbridge Town Hall on the second Fridays of the month at 7:00 PM and the fourth Sundays at 2:00 PM. EXCEPT: There will be no Sunday dance in May and no Friday dance in June.

All dances taught. Refreshments at intermission. $8 donation at the door. Bring the family. Children under the age of 12 admitted free.

The original dance group was brought together in 1934 by Edwin Larkin to perform in front of the Old Log Cabin during the Tunbridge World’s Fair. Larkin’s dream to continue traditional Vermont Contra Dancing continues 90 years later!

Tunbridge Conservation Commission
Eliza Minnucci [email protected]
Betsy Gaiser and Evan Reiss – Co-Chairs, Cheryl Metcalf – Secretary, Eliza Minnucci – Treasurer, Bryan Kalleberg, Mali’o Kodis, Tess Mix

It is bluebird time once again. Have you seen any of the precocious males scoping out your birdhouses? How about bold barred owls hunting to prepare for their soon-to-hatch young? Woodfrog and spring peeper calls are just around the corner. Woodcock peenting joins the chorus too. What signs of spring are you keyed into?

We were happy to bring four speakers to Tunbridge this winter and hope you were able to come out for these high quality offerings – we heard from Aaron Weed on bird monitoring in National Parks, Emily Ruff from Sage Mountain Botannical Sanctuary spoke on native plants, Adam Kozlowski taught us about bats, and over sixty of us packed the library when we hosted Vermont Book Award nominee Ethan Tapper.

Looking ahead, we have a few events on the horizon. After our record-setting year in 2024, we return to a more straightforward Green-Up Day this year. Saturday, May 3rd, is the day to clear our town roads of roadside trash. This year’s official green bags will be accepted at our transfer station free of charge from April 26th through May 10th. Be sure to get counted by Adam or a Conservation Commission representative – we are reimbursed by the Green Up Vermont non-profit. We’ll be handing out bags at the transfer station on the last Saturday and Wednesday of April, and bags will also be available on the library porch. Let Eliza know which road you plan to clean by getting in touch at the transfer station, on Facebook, or at [email protected].

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of the TQ, a little math…At the rate we picked up litter last year, over the past two decades, you have cleared 3,100 bags of trash or around 37,000 pounds of litter. Of course, we do prefer that folks dispose of their trash in the proper places, but also, look what a community can do for itself when we pitch in together.

Also in May, we expect to hold a bird walk and Merlin bird identification app training. Keep an eye out for the announcement.

Inspired by our bat talk in March, our own Bryan Kalleberg is researching a good bat house design. We’ll let you know when we are ready to offer kits as a fundraiser.

We were delighted to have some new faces join us at our March meeting and encourage you to come see what we are working on, too. The Tunbridge Conservation Commission meets on the first Thursday of the month at 6 pm at the Tunbridge Public Library. For further information, contact us at [email protected]. Information about our commission can also be found at http://tunbridgevt.org/conservation-commission/

Central Vermont Intelligence-Based Policing
Robert S. Childs 802-889-3241

CVIBP is pleased to report that patrols and tips are making a huge difference in the amount of crime in Tunbridge. Crime in our community has dropped significantly over the past year.

Last quarter I asked if those in our community were interested in resuming in person meetings and if someone would be interested in facilitating those meetings. Only one respondent thought that maybe a meeting would be nice. All others, we have been in communication with, felt that by utilizing the Facebook page pertinent information was being distributed (2320 members and growing). On another note, many felt that the ability to report their concerns directly to CVIBP helped to assure their privacy. “See something, Say something”

All information received by CVIBP is kept confidential and forwarded to the proper authorities. As there have been two incidents involving illegal immigrant activity locally, I remind everybody that information needs to be reported to a federal agency. Vermont law officers are forbidden to enforce immigration laws or to communicate with federal agencies unless there is a felony crime. Keep those tips coming; they keep Tunbridge a safer place.

Tunbridge Recreation Committee
Kathy Galluzzo – 802-565-0695 [email protected]

The Tunbridge Recreation has a busy spring coming up. Baseball and softball are starting for the kids. Our adult leagues and tournaments will also be gearing up. Anytime you see the cook shack open please stop and say hello or grab a bite to eat. We have many choices.

Sunday breakfasts are a huge hit. They are typically the third Sunday of every month, and the crowd keeps growing. Thanks to all of our helpers who make it happen. April will be special as it is Easter Sunday. We plan to have the Easter Bunny make an appearance and provide some treats for all the kids.

May will also be busy. On Memorial Day, we will have free Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, a bounce house, and, of course, cow-pie Bingo. Green up day will also feature Bob & Ed bucks. If you help green up, you will receive some Bob & Ed bucks to use at the cook shack on Green Up Day or anytime during the summer when the cook shack is open.

We hope to do some work on the playground area this year and hope to expand it.

Tunbridge Community Food Shelf
Open Fridays, 4-5 p.m.
802-693-5878 (please leave a message)

The Tunbridge Food Shelf wants to congratulate the TQ on its 20 years of service to our town and for all the good work it has done sharing vital information. As a town organization, we are grateful for your efforts. Wow, 20 years!

However, in this issue of the Quarterly, our four-member Food Shelf committee is experiencing anxiety and apprehension about the state of our food security. As of this writing, our program and other food-related programs are facing cuts in funding that may affect our service to the community.

The recent elimination of funds by the USDA cuts school monies that support free lunch and breakfast, which will affect what our schools and child care centers have available for good, nutritious food. These additional cuts will affect “food access projects” that support purchasing food from our local farms (Farm to School program), which will potentially be felt in our community. Most concerning is the elimination of funds that supply some of the foods that are available. Other proposed USDA cuts involve the SNAP program and our Vermont and local food bank in particular, thus affecting many of our neighbors.

Our Tunbridge Community Food Shelf purchases cases of food from the Vermont Food Bank at a reduced rate, and these groceries are delivered nearly every month. The cuts will reduce the overall funds and products available. Already, meat has been in short supply or nonexistent, as has the supply of other items we previously were able to purchase.

Our community has recently begun to experience job loss through recent cuts, which puts more families in a situation of greater financial need. We worry about additional layoffs. If programs are eliminated, we will have greater demand for food and less availability. We intend to continue to serve our community’s food needs as long as we are able.

We have a wonderful, supportive, and generous community. As reported in previous TQs, the Church of Latter-day Saints donated an incredible amount of staple food items last summer. The Recreation Association has also helped stock our shelves with bountiful donations following softball tournaments. Other local organizations have also donated. A special thank you goes to all who have donated throughout the year.

The Food Shelf is located in the Parish House and is open every Friday afternoon from 4:00 to 5:00. We encourage people to stop by to supplement their food needs. Additionally, each week during the school year, our volunteers pack 8-10 backpacks in coordination with the local school. These backpacks supply food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner each week and feed an average of 45 people.

Starting after Memorial Day, we will again open the outdoor food pantry in the creche structure on the Parish House lawn. Food is available to anyone. The food shelf committee will supply foods that have come in from private sources, but due to USDA rules, we are unable to use food bank supplies we have purchased. Donated local vegetables have been especially important in previous years. As people contemplate this summer’s gardens, please consider planting a little extra to share with your community neighbors through the outdoor pantry.

In this time of uncertainty, we want you to know that the Tunbridge Food Shelf is here to support our community’s food needs. Anyone who wishes to donate food prior to the summer is encouraged to drop off items during food shelf hours or leave items at the back door of the Parish House. Financial donations are always welcomed. Mary Fisk, our treasurer, is at PO Box 12 Tunbridge, VT 05077

Tunbridge World’s Fair
Ingrid VanSteamburg – 889-5555 [email protected]

If you stored something over the winter, your item(s) need to be removed from 9am – 12 noon on the last Saturday of April (4/25) and the first Saturday of May (5/3). If you dropped off on the first weekend, you pick up on May 3rd, and if you dropped off on the second weekend, you MUST pick up on April 25. Please think about the fair for storage next fall.

Check out our website soon for updates for the coming season, which starts in May and ends in October. Don’t forget the World’s Fair is September 11 – 14 this year. Call the office if you have any questions about the grounds or the fair. Have a great summer! www.tunbridgeworldsfair.com

Tunbridge Emergency Management & Fire Warden
Brenda Field 802 889-5548

Spring clean-up is here—finally. But this is also the time of year when Vermont has the most debris and grass fires.

The sun is getting more intense and dries that surface fuel of high grass and weeds out fast, even with wet ground underneath. I restrict burn permits in April until the green grass gets tall enough. Call if you have any questions, and leave a clear phone number for me to return your call.

Tunbridge Neighbors Helping Neighbors
Claire Brock – 889-3785 [email protected]
For TNHN services call 889-3437

Tunbridge Neighbors Helping Neighbors coordinates and provides basic services at no charge to town residents through the efforts of volunteers. We are a non-profit organization whose operating costs (primarily phone service) are supported by the generosity of Tunbridgians who allocate funds at Town Meeting, and by donations, which may be sent to TNHN, P.O.Box 22, Tunbridge VT 05077.

A few of the services offered by TNHN are:

Rides to appointments, etc.
Pick up of prescriptions or other store goods
Cooking meals for people who are ill or otherwise unable to cook for a short period of time
Minor repairs or painting, minor home repairs, changing a lock**
Changing a flat tire or jump-starting a car
Simple repairs to household appliances**
Helping to lift or move large objects
Delivery of library books or Food Shelf items
Help with gardening, lawn care, or stacking firewood
Shoveling snow off walkways and steps
Other reasonable requests

**Please note: Cost of materials needed falls on the person requesting help.

Services provided by volunteers in recent months include rides to appointments (doctor, dentist, etc.), bringing trash and recycling to the transfer station, and shoveling off and sanding a ramp.

Anyone needing a service offered by TNHN should call 802-889-3437. We do our best to find a volunteer who is available for the specific request at the specific date and time. We cannot guarantee same-day rides or services. To join our list of volunteers, please contact any of the board members listed below or call 802-889-3437. We respect and value your willingness to help your neighbors.

Current Board Members: Michael O’Donnell- President 802-763-8985; Claire Brock- Vice President 802-889-3785, Pat Howe- Treasurer 802-889-5512; Liz Williams- secretary 617-435-9661, Helen O’Donnell

Friends of First Branch Schools
Tiffany Bates, Eliza Minnucci, Jen Loftus
[email protected]

The Friends of First Branch is an informal group of educators and community members who volunteer and donate to celebrate and support the students and staff at our First Branch Schools.

This winter our club supported the elementary Winter Carnival – and even a Bluebird joined us for hot chocolate around the campfire. In February our community Winter Fest hosted over 140 folks enjoying skating, tubing, and the fourth graders raised $162 for Rudi and Lisa’s rebuilding fund by selling hot chocolate and s’mores kits.

Our High Mowing seed fundraiser netted us over $1,200. Thanks for all the seed orders! This year, cucumbers edged out carrots as the most popular vegetable. Should we all expect jars of pickles left in our cars and on our porches next fall?

Our next big fundraiser is our most lucrative of the year: selling lemonade and cookies at The Ranger, held at the fairgrounds June 7th and 8th. The Party in the Pasture that weekend will have free music and dinner for purchase and is a lovely community event to welcome summer. Join us and support your favorite little lemonade slingers.

This spring, we’ll be busy with the many ways we contribute to our school community. We’ll be sharpening our seventy or so pairs of skates after a terrific skating season. We send a big thank you to volunteer Kayla Thibault for helping with the extra supervision we need to host skating every day of the week during recess. We are excited to support the eighth-grade class trip fundraising as well as sponsor awards for some of our 2025 graduates. We’ll gather volunteers for field trips and the last day of school festivities. And, we’ll host a robust week of staff appreciation May 5 – May 9 If you have a clever idea for celebrating our staff, let us know!

We are also happy to report that progress is being made on the Rachel Brown Memorial Skate Shack. Thanks to middle school teacher Erik Anderson, we expect middle school students to undertake the timber framing for a lovely place to house our gear. We also plan to support work to level the field so that our rink doesn’t need quite so many (60,000!!) gallons of water piped in each winter.

We look forward to sponsoring more student experiences, celebrating and honoring our staff, building our fundraisers, and welcoming new Friends into our meetings. Please follow us on Facebook at Friends of First Branch School Club or get on our emailing list by sending us a message at [email protected].

The Tunbridge Church
Kay Jorgenson – Church # 802-693-5878, [email protected]

On Easter Sunday, April 20, the church will hold a sunrise service at the top of Strafford Road at 5:45. Tailgate pastries and hot beverages will follow. The traditional Easter service will be at 10 a.m. in the church. All are welcome at both services.

It is with great sadness that we announce that John McClintock, our part-time pastor, will be moving and has submitted his resignation effective in May. The Parish Council will make decisions on filling the position as time goes on. If you or anyone you know has any interest in serving our community in this part-time calling or would like more information, please let us know.

The Tunbridge Church has a long tradition of community service. Residents’ participation and support of these programs are welcomed:

Reaching out to seniors and homebound residents with sit-down meals and home deliveries, Thanksgiving treats bags, and Christmas poinsettias
The Tunbridge Community Food Shelf at the Parish House (across the road from the church) open on Fridays from 4-5 p.m. and anytime at the summer food creche featuring produce from the community garden
Family events, including the Ice Cream Social (July 8) and Halloween Trunk or Treat (Oct. 31)
Monthly Moving Forward potluck lunches for widows on the third Thursday, 11:30 at the Parish House
Special offerings for various causes, most recently local fire victims, Vermont and North Carolina flood victims, and Ukrainian displaced children

The Tunbridge Church also serves the community by:

Providing the church for weddings and funerals and Parish House meeting space for AA, Al-Anon and community groups
Housing medical equipment and supplies for the Town Nurse
Mailing cards of support, cheer, and condolence to residents
Offering lawn space for nonprofit groups on Memorial Day
Supporting families with coordination of funeral and celebration of life receptions
Hosting the Little Free Library and granite bench honoring Annie Laber at the church garden

Sunday worship services are held at 10 a.m. People who enjoy singing are invited to join the monthly choir. Regular church attendance is not required.

Most services are streamed and recorded via Zoom. Go to tunbridgechurch. org for Zoom. To listen by phone, dial (646) 876-9923 – meeting ID: 858 4950 1899, passcode: 526048. Previous services can be found at the Index to Services link. You can also follow the church on Facebook.

To receive the midweek newsletter, write to or call the Church using the contact info in the heading. The church welcomes support of its programs at PO Box 270, Tunbridge VT 05077, or by credit card/PayPal through the “Donate” button at tunbridgechurch.org.

Tunbridge Grange # 384
Rosemary Distel 802-272-2235

The Tunbridge Grange has been having a good time at our Friday Night Bingo in the lower level of the Town Hall. We will continue with Bingo until the last Friday, April 25th (it starts promptly at 6:30 p.m.). Remember that we also sell homemade light refreshments during our halftime break!

April will also bring our annual “Eggstravaganza” Easter Fun Kid’s Event, which will be held on April 19th from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Grange Hall in North Tunbridge. This is a free event, so please come enjoy making fun crafts and meeting the Easter Bunny!

Memorial Day will be here before you know it! The Tunbridge Grange is the host/organizer of the parade. If you want to participate in the parade or wish to help the Grange the day of the parade, please reach out to Tracy Amell. You can email her at [email protected]

The Grange Hall can be rented for events, i.e., birthday parties, anniversary celebrations, etc. Please contact Peggy Willoughby for more details about reserving the space. Her email is [email protected]

The Tunbridge Grange is always in need of new members. Our goal is to be a welcoming and supportive community, strengthen family ties, and provide service to the community.

Chelsea Area Senior Center
Susan Pirie, 685-2290, [email protected]

In addition to offering Meals on Wheels and Curbside pick-up, the Chelsea Area Senior Center is open for indoor dining on Mondays at 12:00 pm. Please call to make a reservation to eat indoors, for curbside pick up, and also for Meals on Wheels.