Health

From the Office of Senator Bernie Sanders:

Each year, I travel around our state and visit with high school students to discuss the important issues facing our nation and hear about the issues that are on their minds. Time after time, I am impressed by them — they are thoughtful, paying attention and have a lot of great ideas.

But the reality is that, as much as I’d like to, I simply cannot visit every school every year. So, Tuesday, February 10 at 7 p.m., I am going to be hosting a virtual student town hall, open to all Vermont high school students.

To make this a great event, I am going to need your help.

First, if you are reading this and you are in high school, please know that I want to hear directly from you. Tell me about the challenges you and your fellow students are facing and how we can begin to address them together. Further, I want to know what questions you have for me that we can discuss during this virtual town hall. I will be reviewing your questions and selecting a group of you to ask your questions live on the call. 

For more information visit: https://www.sanders.senate.gov

From Local Motion:

Local Motion hosts a screening and panel discussion about the PBS Rail Trail documentary on the evening of Wednesday, January 21st at Main Street Landing in Burlington.

Panelists include:

• Former Governor Howard Dean
• Rick Sharp - attorney, local entrepenuer and bike path advocate
• Dr. Tom Hudspeth - retired, University of Vermont
• John Dunleavy - retired, Chief Council from Vermont Agency of Transportation
• Moderator: Christina Erickson - Executive Director, Local Motion

About the documentary:

Edward Norton narrates the story of one of the most unlikely social movements in American history: the struggle to convert thousands of miles of abandoned railroads into trails for cycling and walking. Facing fierce opposition and legal challenges from private property owners, leaders fought to reclaim these corridors for the public, creating a national network of scenic, car-free paths.

For more information visit: https://www.localmotion.org | https://www.vermontpublic.org

From the Vermont Democrats:

Democratic leaders will announce the Vermont Voting Rights Act, legislation to safeguard the voting rights of all Vermonters amid growing threats to the federal Voting Rights Act. Vermont’s Voting Rights Act will prohibit racial gerrymandering, expand language assistance and disability access. Vermont’s VRA will strengthen voter education and protections against voter intimidation and misinformation to ensure Vermont’s democracy remains fair, accessible, and accountable.

Speakers include:

• Senate Majority Leader Kesha Ram Hinsdale
• Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas
• Winooski Mayor Thomas Renner
• Senator Joe Major (D-Windsor County)
• Laura Cushman (Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Vermont)
• Justin Marsh (Political Director, Vermont Conservation Voters)
• Quinn Houston (Democracy Associate, VPIRG)
• Johnna Ferguson (Board Member of League of Women Voters of Vermont)

For more information visit: https://www.vtdemocrats.org/

From the New England Donor Services:

On Friday, December 19th at 10:00 AM ET, New England Donor Services (NEDS), Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, State Senator Tanya Vyhovsky, State Representative Barbara Rachelson and other local representatives will join with local donor families and recipients at Burlington City Hall to honor the incredible gift of organ donation during the holiday season.

Among the event speakers will be Milton, VT resident Lara Govendo Grell, who required a life-saving double lung transplant after cystic fibrosis left her own lungs severely damaged. Thanks to the gift of life given to her by an anonymous deceased donor in 2017, Lara was given a new lease on life. Andrew Collier, Commissioner of the VT Department of Motor Vehicles and Julie Arel, Deputy Commissioner of the VT Department of Health will join Lara in discussing the vital importance of organ donation awareness.

The event comes as NEDS has achieved a record number of life-saving deceased donor organ donations and transplants in its New England service area for four consecutive years. In 2024, 648 deceased donors donated organs resulting in 1,570 life-saving transplants. This record level of clinical activity places NEDS among the nation’s top three organ procurement organizations by donor volume. Since 2020, NEDS has increased the annual number of organ donors by 80%.

WHO: The event will include:

• Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak
• Lara Govendo Grell, Double Lung Recipient & NEDS Volunteer
• State Representative Barbara Rachelson
• Andrew Collier, Commissioner of the VT Department of Motor Vehicles
• Julie Arel, Deputy Commissioner of the VT Department of Health
• Matt Boger, Sr. Director of Government Relations, New England Donor Services
• Judge Goeffrey Crawford, Donor Family
• Local organ donation recipients and donor families

New England Donor Services is a leading nonprofit organization that coordinates organ and tissue donation in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, the eastern counties of Vermont and Bermuda. Co-founded in 1968 by Nobel Laureate Dr. Joseph Murray, who performed the world’s first successful organ transplant, today NEDS works with thousands of donors and donor families who have generously made the decision to give the gift of life. The organization’s highly skilled staff medically screen referrals for potential donations from more than 200 hospitals across the region and lead all donor authorization discussions with families. NEDS also allocates organs according to the national transplant waiting list and coordinates their transport to ensure the right organs get to the right patients at the right time. Learn more at https://neds.org/ or follow us on LinkedIn or on X at @NEDonorServices.

For more information, visit: https://neds.org/