Green Mountain Meandering Missives

Photo: Person living unhoused outdoors resting on a bench in Montpelier, the capital city of Vermont (photo shared with the direct consent of the person pictured; image credit: Morgan W. Brown). (*since edited for the purposes of clarification and readability*) An Open Letter to Governor Scott  Regarding Homelessness Dear Governor Scott, State of Vermont It boggles the mind how your administration can be so deliberately indifferent and uncaring when it comes to those who are being or already have been evicted from the Vermont Hotel/Motel Program without those persons having anywhere else safe and secure to go inside, day or night. The rationale used by your administration for not allowing everyone to stay in the program who are currently eligible as well as clearly in need and most vulnerable does not wash, nor does it pass the straight face test, either. The fact is that it actually costs much more in terms of fiscal (read: funding), human, medical and other social related matters...

Archived Video: Vermont Interfaith Action: 2024 Vermont Gubernatorial Conversation with Candidates: Check out the Vermont Interfaith Action Website to learn more about their organization as well as their tireless efforts and work on behalf of citizens and communities across the state. List of candidates running for the office of Governor of Vermont in the 2024 general election (via Ballotpedia), here .

  P hoto: Person living unhoused outdoors resting on a bench in Montpelier, the capital city of Vermont (photo shared with the direct consent of the person pictured; image credit: Morgan W. Brown). Thoughts on Political Leadership: Safeguarding The Bottom Line Screenshot, via Google Search (term: safeguarding meaning). Screenshot, via Merriam Webster Dictionary (term: bottom line; click onto image to view enlargement). When it comes to governing and providing sorely needed political leadership, particularly during times of financial troubles as well as when there is a serious humanitarian and social crisis, at least to my way of thinking as a layperson, the main concerns as well as top priorities of an elected politician or otherwise a candidate seeking political office should not merely be about the administration and management of government, but rather be toward providing proper leadership, particularly and most importantly when balancing competing as well as diverse interests a...

Archived Video: Press Conference - End Homelessness Vermont: Loss of Emergency Shelter for Hundreds of Vermont Households (via ORCA Media, via YouTube; Length: 47:08 minutes/seconds):   Related Press Release : Media Advisory: Press Conference on Loss of Emergency Shelter for Hundreds of Vermont Households Contacts:   Frank Knaack [...] Brenda Siegel , [...] , 410 227 3173 Lawmakers, Housing, Homelessness, Disability Organizations Raise Alarm about Loss of Emergency Shelter for Hundreds of Vermont Households  Montpelier, VT – On Wednesday, September 25 lawmakers and representatives from Vermont housing and homelessness organizations will discuss how the implementation night and hotel caps within the General Assistance Emergency Housing Program have and will continue to result in the loss of emergency shelter for hundreds of Vermont’s most vulnerable households. Organizations will also make specific policy recommendations to mitigate this crisis. What: Press Conference...

Updated 4x (view updates below, updated press coverage & informational resources; + another VPO blog post link; + ACLU Letter; last updated on 9/20/2024 at 5:30 AM): Archived Video: Municipal Leaders Call for Immediate Action To Address the Homelessness Crisis (held on 9/18/2024 at 10:00 AM; length: 45:33 minutes/seconds; via ORCA Media): Related Press Release: For Immediate Release Tuesday, September 17, 2024 Municipal Leaders Call on the State to Take Immediate Action to Address Homelessness Crisis  WHERE/WHEN: Wednesday, September 18 th , 10:00am, City Council Chambers, Montpelier City Hall, 39 Main Street, Montpelier, VT 05602 Contact: William Fraser, Montpelier City Manager 39 Main Street Montpelier, Vermont 802-223-9502 WFraser@montpelier-vt.org MONTPELIER, VT—Municipal leaders from across Vermont to call on all three branches of State government to take charge of the growing homelessness crisis and assume their legal responsibilities for the un-housed.  “We stand ...