Growing better gardens
Valley News Correspondent NORWICH — Anne Fayen’s most recent project is a hedge of tropical plants arranged in the atrium of the Montshire Museum of Science. “I’ve always been wary of these kinds of potted houseplants,” Fayen said. “They remind me of going to the dentist.” But this carefully considered display is nothing like the wilting decor of a waiting room. Fayen has worked professionally with plants for more than 40 years, and...
Pres. Biden’s support might boost right-to-repair efforts in N.H.
Monitor staffNew Hampshire’s right-to-repair community is looking with interest at President Biden’s push for new rules that would let farmers repair equipment they have bought, although it’s far from clear what effect this might have here. “This is welcome news for farmers and consumers. … Manufacturers are making it harder every day for consumers to fix their products, and this results in a lot of gear being tossed in the scrap...
How the outdoor economy impacts the Upper Valley’s economy
Executive Director, Upper Valley Business AllianceThroughout the pandemic, we have been hearing of how people are rediscovering the outdoors. It was a safe space to escape our homes when we needed to socially distance and the outdoors provided a respite from looking at four walls day in and out.Although the sudden surge outside came with issues in obtaining sporting equipment and overcrowded trails, many businesses and organizations...
Creating aquatic environments
Valley News Correspondent STRAFFORD — The first pond Tim Matson owned was on a piece of land he shared with a former girlfriend in Strafford. When they split up and he bought 50 acres across town in 1978, he missed the pond at his old digs. “I had gotten familiar with how groovy ponds are,” Matson said. So he decided to design one himself. Matson is still there to this day: It’s the pond his kids would ultimately learn to skate on.For...
Working with the trees
Valley News Correspondent HANOVER — About 70 feet up an 80-foot white pine on a private parcel overlooking the Connecticut River, Nate Moore skillfully handles a small chainsaw and carefully cuts a notch near the top of the tree.Moore had already removed all the limbs as he worked his way from the bottom up and was now tackling the main trunk of the tree, removing sections from the top down.Watching from a distance, Travis Vickerson,...
Building for future generations
Valley News Correspondent WOODSTOCK — There are thousands of miles of public trails for hiking and other outdoor pursuits throughout the United States on federal, state and municipally-owned land. From the flat, short and easy stroll through a meadow or marshland to the more challenging steep trails to mountain summits, there are trails for people of every ability level. But, as the National Park Service’s website declares, “trails...
HR Pro: As competition for skilled workers heats up, manufacturers improve health benefits
Star Tribune (Minneapolis)Over the past five years, the high-tech manufacturer Protolabs has doubled its sales and nearly quadrupled its head count. With 2,700 employees today, it expects to add 650 this year.In the tight labor market of recent years, finding and keeping people has been a challenge. So the company, known for making complex prototypes on deadline, took a step that is becoming increasingly common — getting more generous...
The Exit Interview: Dr. Judith Hills
Dr. Judith Hills recalls that when she graduated from high school, not many women went on to become doctors. Still, she’d always been interested in medicine, and after her husband became a veterinarian, she decided she had what it took to become a physician. When her youngest child started first grade, Hills started medical school at Dartmouth College. She worked briefly at the Ottauquechee Health Center, when hospice was getting...
Made in the Upper Valley: The art of taxidermy brings visions of luxury and learning to life
Whether it’s a carcass found in the woods, a coyote struck by a car, or the annual hunters’ take of deer, moose, bear and turkeys, death isn’t necessarily the last stop for animals in the Upper Valley. Many are restored to a semblance of their previous lives by professional taxidermists in New Hampshire and Vermont.“We memorialize these beautiful animals,” said John Matyka, owner of Jacobs Brook Taxidermy in Orford, “and in the...
Cover story: In the business of death, one of our most timeless industries confronts a changing world
When Lee Webster’s mother died, her body was laid out at home. Family members came and went for the weekend, before loading her body into Webster’s van. They played her mother’s favorite music while driving the corpse to a crematorium in St. Johnsbury. The next day family members picked up the remains, and Webster’s mother was buried in the family plot in East Montpelier Center.“It was simple,” said Webster, president of New Hampshire...
