AROUND TOWN
Mystery Jack O’Lantern
RUTLAND — It’s that time of year again! The Rutland Recreation & Parks Department is gearing up for all things Halloween. That means it’s time for the Mystery Jack O’Lantern Contest. Who is this year’s honoree? Read the riddle below and visit rutlandrec.com/jackolantern to submit your guess. Submissions will be closing on Thursday, Oct. 26.
Here’s this year’s riddle:
October brings us Halloween
With Jack O’Lantern’s scary scream
To call us all to guess their name
Yet another Parade year game
It’s a real person, it’s not a dream
This human being loves Halloween
The one who wrote a Halloween story
Published by the Herald in all its glory
A story of how to be safe on Halloween night
So, you get a treat instead of a fright
They live in the City and work there too
And own many an amazing shoe
Helping the Police and Planning meetings
They also host outdoor movie evenings
Drive a car with eyelashes so cute
They mentor a youth that plays the flute
A concierge with CEDRR
Life couldn’t be sweeter
Inviting folks to Rutland to live
Is a gift they give
Director of Grants at City Hall for many years
But one night, on Halloween, they conjure up fears
For twenty years they have scared those who dare
Visit their home or just come to stare
Trick or Treaters pass through the door
Scream and laugh and beg for more
Who hides behind the pumpkin mask?
A guess on Oct. 26th you should cast
Visitor guidelines
RUTLAND — In advance of the cold and flu season, Rutland Regional Medical Center is updating their visitor guidelines to help curb the spread of infectious diseases.
Some of the nuances to the visitor guidelines include clarification around the number of visitors who can visit an individual patient or go to a particular unit. This may also include a restriction to the amount of time a patient may have a visitor. Examples include the Emergency Department which may restrict the number of people who can be with a patient; Intensive Care Unit where visitors may only be allowed to visit at certain times for certain patients; Surgical Care Unit where patient volume could restrict the number of allowed visitors. Decisions on visitation times and allowances are made on a patient-by-patient basis and/or by the nurse leader on each unit based on the unit’s overall patient volume and acuity.
People with cold or flu-like symptoms and/or symptoms such as fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, sore throat, muscle pain, new loss of taste or smell, runny or stuffy nose, headache or diarrhea should not visit patients at the hospital.
Healthy individuals are invited to visit patients during the usual visitation hours. If the patient has an infectious disease, such as the flu, COVID, RSV or other illness that calls for airborne precautions, the visitor will be asked to use proper infection prevention measures during the visit; these include wearing a surgical mask, handwashing and sanitizing before and after entering the patient’s room, and leaving the hospital directly after the visit.
For more information, visit www.RRMC.org.
AROUND VT
Blood donations
BURLINGTON — The American Red Cross continues to experience a national blood shortage. Unfortunately, hospital demand continues to outpace donations. An additional 10,000 blood and platelet donations are needed each week over the next month to meet patient needs. Schedule an appointment to give by downloading the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org, or calling 1-800-733-2767. Upcoming blood donation opportunities:
Arlington — 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 20, High School, 529 East Arlington Road.
Bellows Falls — 12:30 to 5 p.m. Oct. 19, United Church. 8 School St.
Bennington — 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 8, First Baptist Church, 601 Main St.
Bomoseen — 12 to 4:30 p.m. Oct. 19, Castleton American Legion, 378 Route 4a West.
Brattleboro — 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 28, Winston Prouty Center-Thomas Hall, 209 Austine Drive; 12 to 5 p.m. Nov. 7, Eagles, 54 Chickering Drive, Unit 1.
Killington — 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Oct. 25, Grand Resort Hotel, 228 East Mountain Road.
Manchester — 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 1, First Congregational Church, 3624 Main St.
Middlebury — 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 18, Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society, 2 Duane Court; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 7, American Legion, 49 Wilson Road.
Pittsford — 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 8, St. Alphonsus Liguori Church, 2918 Route 7.
Putney — 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 1, Landmark College, 19 River Road South.
Vergennes — 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Oct. 24, Victory Baptist Church, 862 Route 7.
Rutland — 11:30 a.m. — 5 p.m. Oct. 17, Grace Congregational Church, 8 Court St.
West Rutland — 12:30 p.m. — 5:30 p.m. Oct. 23, Town Hall, 35 Marble St.
White River Junction — 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 20, Upper Valley Aquatic Center, 100 Arboretum Lane; 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Oct. 25, Riverbank Church, 259 Holiday Drive.
Windsor — 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 17, Elks, 156 Main St.
Generator safety
According to Portable Generator Manufacturers’ Association, the only safe place to use a portable generator is outside and far from any occupied dwelling. This requires planning for the distance and having the right amount of extension cords to bring power to a dwelling space. Most fire deaths are not caused by burns, but by smoke inhalation and the resulting buildup in the bloodstream of carbon monoxide (CO), a byproduct of portable generators.
In addition to the risk of CO exposure, when positioned near or in personal dwellings, fuel leaks can also cause fires. Unfortunately, consumers are facing a new threat in this regard. PGMA strongly opposes proposed rulemaking on emissions-related safety standards put forth by the Consumer Product Safety Commission; such measures would create unintended fire hazards by forcing portable generators’ exhaust temperatures over 1,000°F — extreme temperatures that would prompt house fires and threaten owners’ safety.
YOUTH NEWS
Make-A-Wish book
SHELBURNE — Make-A-Wish America, Vermonter Jamie Heath and Make-A-Wish Vermont will provide Heath’s autobiographical children’s book, “Wishes are Medicine! How Make-A-Wish Gave me Hope and Helped me Heal” and the accompanying “Wishes are Medicine! Wish Discovery Workbook,” free of charge to Make-A-Wish chapters nationwide as part of the organization’s mission to provide life-changing wishes to children facing critical illnesses. Heath now works for Make-A-Wish Vermont using her publications to help children determine their wishes. The distribution of her book and workbook is sponsored by Instrumart of Burlington.
COLLEGE NEWS
Community College of Vermont summer 2023 academic honors includes:
President’s list — Meghann Patten, of Pittsford.
Dean’s list — Kaylee Lathrop, of Middlebury; Hunter Cameron, of Rutland; Savannah Drummond, of Wells.
Honors list — Tyler Parker, of Brandon; Kyesha Forrest, of Florence; Logan Hayes, of Goshen; Crystal Anderson, of Mendon; Anna Cross, of North Chittenden; Jonathan Robinson, Piper Russell, both of Pawlet; Jordan Lemieux, of Pittsford; Kaylah Bossard, Xavier Wallace, both of Poultney; Kristian Alger, of Proctor; Katheleen Chaney, Bronson Chubb, Richard Fales, all of Rutland; Livia Bernhardt, of Salisbury; Tierra Nichols, of West Rutland.
Do you have an item you would like to see in Community News? A milestone? A public announcement? A short news release about something entertaining going on in your town? Simply email the information to us at news@rutlandherald.com. Be sure to put For Community News in the subject line. (Note: We do reserve the right to edit for length.)
