True or False: Male and female athletes can compete in the same sport on a completely equal basis?
If you answered ‘false,’ you’ll have to take time to drop by the Carter Community Building Association’s (CCBA) Witherell Recreation Center gym in downtown Lebanon and take in an action-packed game of floor hockey.

Yes, floor hockey! Harken back to those days in grade school gym class when the instructor brought out two nets, placed them on opposite ends of the gymnasium floor, and handed you a hockey stick. Suddenly you were introduced to an indoor version of the rugged game of ice hockey without knowing how to skate.… Read More

About four years ago, Barbara Hirai, chair of the Lebanon Energy Advisory Committee (LEAC), walked the streets of Lebanon counting streetlights. The existing maps of the network of lights weren’t matching, and she was looking to get an accurate record. Determined, she set out to map every streetlight in Lebanon and make sure that each one was where it should be. What she found surprised her.

“Some lights just weren’t there anymore,” she told me during a LEAC meeting one October evening. What had happened was that, while the city maintained streetlights, removing or moving some when needed, the official count of the streetlights wasn’t updated.… Read More

Living in the north as we do, where winters are long and, shall we say, a tad frosty, a body needs a compelling reason to get outside and recreate. When the temperature dips into the low 20s for days on end, Storrs Hill Ski Area in Lebanon becomes a winter sports lover’s paradise.

Occupying a place of honor in the middle of the city since the early 1930s, Storrs Hill is one of a handful of small ski areas in the East run almost entirely by volunteers.

“You could sum it up as only one paid employee, that’s our hill manager, from November through April.… Read More

Never underestimate the power and determination of a dedicated group of senior citizens.

A shining example, a group of residents at the Quail Hollow Senior Living Community in West Lebanon raised money to send Quail Hollow military veterans on a trip to Washington, D.C., to view firsthand the war memorials that a grateful nation bestowed upon them.

A committee of Quail Hollow residents was formed, and U.S. Army Veteran Stanley Kenison took over the role of chairperson, quickly discovering that he had inherited a daunting task.

“Fellow Quail Hollow resident Philip Diana first came up with the concept, and I kind of took over in midstream,” Kenison explained.… Read More

Across from the Lebanon’s Colburn Park, nestled in the neighborhoods just where things begin to still and the road seems to take on an air of privacy, there is a small sign addressed “WISE” in front of a gray building with lavender trim and a ramp winding up the side. This is the Women’s Information Service (WISE), and this is where Lebanon fights domestic and sexual violence.

What began as a grassroots organization offering support and employment training to new mothers quickly transformed into one of the most determined organizations to end violence against women, children, and men after a shocking number of women reported accounts of domestic and sexual violence.… Read More

Before the car, there was the bicycle. As a mode of transportation, the bicycle is one of the most widely used vehicles in the world. According to industry analysts, bicycles outnumber cars by a two to one margin.

So it stands to reason that as the City of Lebanon advances the idea of the Mascoma River Greenway, a bicycle and pedestrian trail connection between Lebanon and West Lebanon, people are excited. So excited, in fact, that of the $2.2 million needed to deck four bridges, install signage, and pave the four-mile pathway, an amazing $1.6 million has been raised in just two years from private donations, City investments, grants, and sponsorships.… Read More

When you give someone a great big smile, do you think about what your smile looks like first? If you don’t, then you are very fortunate. Feeling good about your smile is a special gift. It probably means that your teeth have been well cared for during your lifetime. Sadly, there are many people who are not so fortunate. It is hard to believe that nearly 50 percent of three-year-old children in the U.S. already have tooth decay.

Here in the Upper Valley, there are people who are passionate about helping children to get a good start on a healthy smile.… Read More

Like many Lebanon residents, the summer Lebanon Farmers’ Market holds a lot of personal meaning for me. For years it meant that, on Thursdays when he came home from work, my dad would bring pies. The “Pie Lady” (as we called her) sold pies at her tent in Colburn Park. They were intricate, beautiful things; often the buttery crust was molded and layered in the shape of leaves. When the Pie Lady moved her operation to Norwich, it was a tragedy in our household, a testament to how the farmers’ market and what it offered had ingrained itself in the weekly rhythm of our lives.… Read More

Ed. Note: Jeanie McIntyre is President of Upper Valley Land Trust and was a friend of Lebanon resident Laurel Letter, who died earlier this year. This article is adapted from the original published in March at uvlt.org.

Laurel Letter was not a conservation leader. At least that’s what she would have said. She would say that she did not have expertise or confidence, she would ask for advice about next steps. She would offer to assist, to gather information. She would make it easier for others to lead – actually, she made it impossible for others not to lead. That’s how Laurel Letter made things happen.… Read More

Our daily transportation decisions have major impacts on our personal health and the wellness of our communities. Places that design streets to encourage walking and biking inevitably get people active and out of their cars. A robust transit system encourages good public health because it gets people walking to bus stops. Buses also help us breathe easier. They produce 95 percent less carbon monoxide, 92 percent fewer volatile organic compounds, and 45 percent less carbon dioxide than private automobiles, according to the American Public Health Association.

Thankfully, Lebanon residents have many options to use public transportation or take a safe walking or biking trip.… Read More