Windham County Action Network (WeCAN)

“It’s not how much we do, but how much love we put into the doing. It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put into the giving.”
Mother Theresa

     Happy Kwanzaa! Happy Holidays! Happy Solstice, WeCAN Friends! We hope you and yours are weathering December well and are enjoying the scents, sounds, and activism of the season. We hope you are enjoying some much deserved rest and relaxation, too; you thoroughly deserve it! 
     There are a few new additions to this week's email, so please take a moment and scroll on through to the end to see what's coming up this week, in January 2022, and beyond. With Covid numbers rising steadily, we would like to remind you to wear masks when gathering at events and to get your Covid 19 vaccine booster if you haven't already. You can find a clinic or pharmacy HERE. 
     NOTE: Due to the holiday next weekend, we will be crafting the next Weekly Email Update on WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22nd, 2021 (providing we have new entries) and will not take any submissions beyond 10pm that night. A reminder will be sent out this week. We apologize for any inconvenience. 

     Thank you again for your continued support and readership, We wish you all Happy Holidays! 

In solidarity, 

Joanna and Sam

______

ACTION OF THE WEEK

Make Calls to Stop Partisan Gerrymandering in New Hampshire with Lean Left New Hampshire
Sign up to join the Fair Maps Coalition to call Granite State voters and connect them directly with their state representatives whom we need to vote NO on the proposed gerrymandered congressional map. Be sure to share the link with friends if you sign up.
Phone Bank Dates:
Monday, December 20th, 2021 from 5:30pm-8pm.
Training starts at 5:30pm and is followed by calls.
Click here to SIGN UP.
Contact Lean Left’s New Hampshire organizer Rebecca Davison for more information or support

______

HAPPENING THIS WEEK:
MONDAY, DECEMBER 20th, 2021-SUNDAY, DECEMBER 26th, 2021

Vermont Food Bank’s Veggie Van Go Upcoming Schedule
The First and Third Mondays of Every Month in the parking lot across the street from the main entrance to Brattleboro Union High School (131 Fairground Road, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 10am-11am. 
Veggie Van Go is a program through the Vermont Foodbank that gives out free produce and local food for people to take home.
December 20th, 2021
January 3rd, 2022

Important information:

• Drive through model- please stay in your vehicles
• If you are walking there: see a Vermont Foodbank associate but please make sure to stay 6 feet back.
• There are no income requirements, registration or paperwork to participate
• You do not need to be present to get food: you may ask someone to pick up on your family's behalf.

______

Coffee with Coffey Hours
Tuesday, December 21st, 2021, Online. 6:30pm-7:30pm.
Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87653733300?pwd=c0pDdk9EcHJKUnUzQjY0cm0wbEw3Zz09
Communication with my constituents is a high priority for me, especially as we prepare for the 2022 session. I want you to know what I'm working on and I want to hear from you. I encourage folks to join me at one of my monthly coffee hours. I will be holding coffee hours on third Tuesday of the month.
If you would to receive my newsletters or have questions about the legislation we passed in 2021 or to talk about your priorities for 2022 please email me at: [email protected] 
Your feedback is critical to my legislative work, so please do not hesitate to reach out anytime. 
Take good care,
Sara Coffey
State Representative, Windham-1

______

Marlboro Community Food Share
hosted by the Marlboro Community Center
Thursday, December 23rd, 2021, at the Marlboro Community Center (524 South Road, Marlboro, VT, 05344). 5pm-6pm. 
NOTE: DUE TO THE HOLIDAY ON 12/25, PLEASE CONTACT MARLBORO COMMUNITY FOOD SHARE DIRECTLY TO CONFIRM DATES AND TIMES. THANK YOU.
Every Thursday from 4:30pm-5:30pm the Marlboro Community Center invites you to fill a grocery bag with non-perishables and fresh local produce. No registration or eligibility required. This weekly opportunity is available for anyone who could use an extra bag of groceries or knows someone who does.
Food will be set up in the entry-way to the Marlboro Community Center. For proper social distancing, please enter one person at a time. Bring a grocery bag or use ours. Masks are required. Deliveries will be made through Marlboro Cares for those needing assistance. Please call Marlboro Cares at 802-258-3030 in advance to arrange a delivery.
To donate food:
Leave non-perishable food in the donation box at the Marlboro Post Office. It will be collected on a weekly-basis. (Please note that this box previously supplied the Deerfield Valley Food Pantry, which is now distributing food exclusively from VT Food Pantry) 
Gardeners and farmers are welcome to donate produce. Wear masks and wash hands when harvesting and handling food. Fresh produce can be dropped off at the Community Center on Thursday between 1pm and 4pm. (Any leftover produce will be taken to FoodWorks the following morning)

______

Guilford Cares FoodPantry
Thursday, December 23rd, 2021 at the Guilford Fairgrounds (163 Fairground Rd, Guilford, VT 05301). 5pm-6pm. (Hours change to 3pm-4pm after January 1st, 2022. 
NOTE: DUE TO THE HOLIDAY ON 12/25, PLEASE CONTACT GUILFORD CARES DIRECTLY TO CONFIRM DATES AND TIMES. THANK YOU. If you have questions, concerns or would like to donate groceries or monetary gifts please contact Pat Haine 802-257-0626. For additional questions or more information call 802 579 1350 or email [email protected]. 
Guilford Cares Food Pantry has moved! The Pantry has moved to the First Aid building at the Guilford Fairgrounds. We will be fully stocked with all our usual grocery items.
The Fairgrounds are on Fairground Road, just off Weatherhead Hollow Road. From Guilford Center Road turn onto Weatherhead Hollow Road. Travel 1.7 miles down the road. The Fairgrounds are on the left and there will be a sign directing you up the hill for about .2 miles. The red building is on the left with a sign out in front. Please remain in your car; we’ll greet you,  and give you a shopping list as we have been doing for the past year.
If the Pantry will be closed for any unexpected reason, the closure will be announced on WKVT, WTSA, and Front Porch Forum.
If you cannot come to the Pantry due to illness or high risk, you can call also call Pat to arrange for food delivery by a volunteer.
We know that supplemental food can make such a big difference in one's budget. That is why we are stocking our shelves for our neighbors. All are welcome to come and take home fresh produce, staples, meat, dairy.
Guilford Cares welcomes anyone in need of supplemental food for themselves or their families.

______

UPCOMING EVENTS

Critical Mass Bicycle Ride
hosted by 350 VT and 350 Brattleboro
Saturday, January 1st, 2021 at Piny Park (corner of Main Street and High Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 1pm-2pm.
Questions? Email [email protected]. Masks and physical distancing recommended. Kids and families welcome.
Join us to pedal in the New Year! May 2022 be the year of mass mobilization for climate justice!
Critical Mass rides have a unique way of energizing folks around bike mobility, transportation solutions, and amplifying our collective ability and power to begin reclaiming our streets and communities. We need this, and we need YOU!
Schedule: 
1pm: Meet at Pliny Park, get organized, decorate bikes, make and hold signs....
1:30pm: Begin Critical Mass ride. This will be a high-visibility downtown route.
2pm: End ride back at Pliny Park.

______

Lucy Terry Price: Witness, Voice, and Poetics within the American Tradition
presented by Vermont Humanities
Wednesday, February 2nd, 2022, Online. 7pm.
Register for this talk at www.vermonthumanities.org/stjohnsbury
Beginning with Vermonter Lucy Terry Prince, the first known African American poet in the US, poet Shanta Lee Gander explores creative lineage within poetics. Surveying the work of Phillis Wheatley, Laurence Dunbar, Rita Dove, and slam poet Dominique Christina, Gander considers the poetic arc from the past to the modern moment. 

______

The Poetics of Girlhood and Womanhood in America
presented by Vermont Humanities
Wednesday, April 6th, 2022, at Brooks Memorial Library (54 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 7pm.
Poets and writers Diana Whitney and Shanta Lee Gander join Christal Brown, associate professor of Dance at Middlebury College, in a conversation that explores how girlhood and womanhood in America are manifested across the boundaries of poetry, dance, and lived experience.

______

ONGOING EVENTS

Recovery Families
hosted by Turning Point
Fridays at Turning Point of Windham County Recovery Center (39 Elm Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301). 10am-11am. 
Young children welcome!
Join other caregivers for connection and support of your own recovery journey or that of someone you love. 

______

COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RESOURCES

The Expanded GA Motel Housing Began A Few Days Early! That means that if you are unhoused with no where to go and meet income eligibility of below 185% of the poverty line, and have less than $2250 in savings, you now qualify for motel housing through March 1st.

Even if you were denied before and recently.
Even if you took the $2500 buy out.
Even if you were kicked out in July or since.
Even if you were told you don't qualify.

Eligibility has been expanded for the GA Motel Program! Even if you were denied before you likely qualify! Today through weekend call 211 if you are unhoused & have no where to go.
Beginning Monday call Economic Services during business hours 8am-4:30pm and 211 after business hours.

______

In Home Covid 19 Vaccines and Boosters

If you are homebound and not able to leave your home for medical services, you can get your COVID-19 vaccination and booster in your home. Call your local home health agency or 802-863-7240 to schedule an appointment. www.healthvermont.gov/MyVaccine

______

Covid 19 Pop-Up Testing and Vaccinations

Brattleboro
417 Canal St.
Tue, Wed, Thur, Sat 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Testing and vaccinations are available for all. 
If you need testing or a vaccine, there are a variety of options available to you: your primary care provider, pop-up sites and pharmacies. The Test Site Finder below can help you find other testing near you.
HEALTH DEPARTMENT POP-UP TESTING LOCATIONS
Here are the steps to set up a testing appointment at a pop-up testing site:

• Register to get an account
• Receive an email with your patient ID and use that to confirm your account (check your spam folder if you don't see the email)
• Log in with your patient ID
• Set up an appointment

Register for Pop-Up Testing Here

______

The Village Closet
on the Wintson Prouty Campus (60 Austine Drive, Brattleboro, VT, 05301), in Croker Hall.
Open Wednesdays from 4pm-6pm and Saturdays from 10am-12pm, or
by appointment. For more information, please email [email protected].
Your source for free baby, children, and pregnancy clothing/items. Donations of gently used items accepted. We are collecting new and "like new" children's coats and winter gear for our Kids in Coats partnership with United Way of Windham County.  If you have items to donate, please stop by today if you are able!
On Wednesdays, Everyone Eats will be distributing free dinners on campus from 3:30pm-4:30pm.

______

FREE HEALTHY AND NUTRITIOUS FOOD IN WINDHAM COUNTY

Brigid’s Kitchen, St. Michael’s Church, 47 Walnut Street, Brattleboro 802-254-6800 or 802-558-6072 
Grab-and-go lunches and fruit/nuts on Mon, Weds, Thus, and Sat, 11:30am-12:20pm.

Loaves and Fishes, Centre Congregational Church 193 Main Street, Brattleboro (802) 254-4730
Grab-and-go lunches on Tuesdays and Fridays at 12pm.

VT Foodbank and Veggie Van Go will be at Brattleboro Union High School (Fairground Ave, Brattleboro, VT, 05301), in the parking lot, on the 1st and 3rd Monday of the month, from 10am-11am. Drive up, touchless pickup. Walkers welcome, too. Call VT 211 for more information. 

Foodworks, the food shelf program of the Groundworks Collaborative https://groundworksvt.org (802) 490-2412, [email protected] 
Foodworks has open hours for curbside pickup on Mondays 11am-4pm, Wednesdays 1pm-6pm, Fridays 12pm-4pm, last Saturday of each month from 9am-12pm. Deliveries are available onTuesdays across Windham county. Please email [email protected] or call 802-490-2412 with any questions!
Households in need of food are asked to call or email to coordinate delivery. There is an urgent need for volunteers, and Foodworks has set up protocols to keep staff, volunteers, and clients as safe as possible. Please email us at [email protected] if you are able to help.

Guilford Food Pantry 
Every Thursday at the Guilford Fairgrounds. 5pm-6pm.
We know that supplemental food can make such a big difference in one's budget. That is why we are stocking our shelves for our neighbors. All are welcome to come and take home fresh produce, staples, meat, dairy. Guilford Cares welcomes anyone in need of supplemental food for themselves or their families.

Everyone Eats continues, including grab-and-go meals at these times and locations: 

• There is no longer an Everyone Eats distribution at Turning Point on Sundays, as Edible Brattleboro is dormant in the winter.
• The meals at Retreat Farm are stocked in their farm stand for pick up anytime, first come first serve. We are planning to stock on Tuesdays and Thursdays in December.

Folks receiving services through Foodworks, Loaves and Fishes, and the Brattleboro Community Justice Center can obtain free meals through those organizations.
You can also order Everyone Eats! meals directly from participating restaurants using the Localvore App.

______

ADDITIONAL COVID 19 RESOURCES CAN BE FOUND AT THEIR PERMANENT HOME ON OUR WEBSITE, HERE: https://www.wecantogether.net/covid19_resources

______

RESOURCE FOR WeCAN

Rapid Response Text Alert System

When WeCAN began, Song & Solidarity set up a Rapid Response Text Alert System for WeCAN Groups. Directions for signing up are on WeCAN's website, here: https://www.wecantogether.net/rapid_response. We are grateful to Song and Solidarity for providing this service.

______

ONGOING EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING 

Indigo Radio
Sundays at 12pm on Brattleboro Community Radio 107.7FM. To stream live, visit: www.wvew.org 
Indigo Radio, deepening understanding and making connections! IndigoRadio is a group of area educators seeking to learn through engaging with others in our community and throughout the world. We will be talking about educational and social issues both globally and locally and connecting them to our lives and Brattleboro community. Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/indigoradiowvew/. For archive recordings of past shows: https://soundcloud.com/user-654648353. 

______

REMINDER: Submissions for the Weekly Email Update edition on December 27th will be due by WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22nd by 10pm due to the holiday on Saturday, December 25th. A reminder will be issued during that week. Thank you. 

Your Friendly WeCAN Editors,

Joanna and Sam