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March 26, 2017 by swheeler

Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor Has Family Ties to Coventry, VT

With a raging debate going on about nominating  Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court, the following is an article I wrote in 2005 about a Supreme Court justice with a genetic link to VT’s Northeast Kingdom – Sandra Day O’Connor. Thelma Wilcox, who is featured in this article, has since passed away.

Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s Link to Coventry

by Scott Wheeler

Thelma Wilcox, town clerk of Coventry between 1974 and 1994, will never forget the visitor who walked into her office one day.

“I was doing some work when somebody walked in,” she recalled on Friday, July 1, 2005. “I looked up and there was Sandra Day O’Connor. She didn’t introduce herself. I just knew who she was.”

The Supreme Court justice was visiting the area to research some of her family’s history in Coventry.

Wilcox, who is 87, said her contact with O’Connor remained very professional, with little chatting between them, but she said she was impressed with the graciousness of the judge.

When O’Connor announced on July 1, 2005 that she is retiring from the U.S. Supreme Court [she retired January 31, 2006], the news took some court watchers by surprise. In recent months there had been speculation that the 75-year-old judge was contemplating stepping down, but most people who follow the court thought ailing Chief Justice William H. Rehnquistwould retire first. O’Connor’s announcement served to increase the speculation about Rehnquist.

President George W. Bush has nominated John Roberts to replace O’Connor. Roberts’ appointment to the bench isn’t a done deal. Confirmation hearings scheduled for late August or early September are sure to spark lively debate.

Much has been written about the fact that Judge Rehnquist is a part-time resident of Greensboro (who has  passed away since this article was written), but little has been written about O’Connor’s connection to the region. Her ancestral roots are in Coventry. Day Cemetery on Pine Hill Road in that community is named after her ancestors, and she has a number of distant relatives still living in the region.

In 2002 O’Connor and her brother H. Alan Day published a book called Lazy B about their lives growing up on the family ranch in Texas. In the book they mention their family’s connection to Vermont and how their grandfather H.C. Day risked everything by abandoning the stability of his boyhood community for the adventures and risks of the Wild West. The following is an excerpt from the book:

H.C. Day, our grandfather, was a New Englander—shrewd, conservative, careful with his money, intelligent, not afraid to tackle new ventures. He was named for Henry Clay, whose Whig politics were popular in New England before the Civil War. H.C. Day worked on the family farm in Coventry, Vermont, until 1865, when he turned twenty-one. Then, a free man, he opened a general merchandise store on the Canadian border, some ten miles north of Coventry. He made a nest egg and moved west to Wichita, Kansas, a central hub in the westward expansion. There he opened a building-supply business, furnishing materials for the rapid expansion of that city after Congress abruptly appropriated lands claimed by several Indian tribes. He acquired a cattle ranch outside of Wichita, as well as various other properties….

 Sandra Day O’Connor was born in El Paso, Texas, on March 26, 1930, to Harry A. and Ada Mae (Wilkey) Day. President Ronald Reagan appointed her to the high court in 1981, making her the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Filed Under: Blog

March 21, 2017 by swheeler

Recognizing a Community Leader on World Down Syndrome Day

Today (March 21) is World Down Syndrome Day, a special Day for Olivia Brosseau of Glover. Although born with Down Syndrome, she hasn’t let it hold her back. In addition to being an anti-bulling advocate, the graduate of Lake Region Union High School is a student at the Community College of Vermont, and she is the Vermont ambassador for the National Down Syndrome Society. She is a true community leader. The following are words that Olivia shares in honor of World Down Syndrome Day.
 
“Down syndrome is not a disease or something you can catch , it’s not a flu or stomach bug , it’s genetic , it’s chromosomal , something you have to be born with , so stop judging us for something we are born with , stop using the r word , stop giving us weird looks , we’re normal just like you , we might talk different , we might look different , but our hearts are the same , our dreams are the same , our lives are the same , we fall in love , we have relationships , we will be able get married , we will have jobs , we will be able to have kids , we will be able to have a house together , that’s the next step we all want , and soon will have. We are lovable , we are kind , we are gentle , we are caring , we are smart , we are able , we are important to everyday life , to society , to our families , to our friends , they are blessed to have us and vice versa. Let’s rise up , let’s use our voice , let’s stand up together hand in hand , and say give us our rights , we are important here , when we do this together , we can be unstoppable.”
 
To learn more about Olivia and her works, click on the following link to watch a segment of the Northeast Kingdom Voice in which she shares her story: HERE
 
Thank you, Olivia, for your great words, and thank you for just being you. You are an inspiration to many people.

Filed Under: Blog

March 20, 2017 by swheeler

Biking and Skiing at Kingdom Trails

 

PHOTO BY HERB SWANSON, OCT 23, 2011: EAST BURKE, VERMONT:Cyclists circle around Burke Mountain and Umpire mountains (approx. 18 – 20 miles) on a combination of fire roads, double track and single track.

 

Kingdom Trails has helped transform the community of East Burke into a four-season recreational destination, attracting mountain bikers and Nordic skiers from near and far.

One of our regular contributors, Amy Ash Nixon, is writing a history article about Kingdom Trails. The article will appear in the May issue of the Northland Journal. These are some photos of Kingdom Trails in action made courtesy of its executive director, Tim Tierney.

If you’d like to advertise in this issue of the Journal, please email northlandjournal@gmail.com .The deadline is March 25. To subscribe click HERE

Also to visit the Kingdom Trails website click HERE

 

 

 

PHOTO BY HERB SWANSON, SEPTEMBER 2011:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tim Tierney is the executive director of Kingdom Trails.

 

PHOTO BY HERB SWANSON- On the Kingdom Trails in Lyndonville, Vermont January 14, 2015
PHOTO BY HERB SWANSON- On the Kingdom Trails in Lyndonville, Vermont January 14, 2015

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Blog

March 16, 2017 by swheeler

Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom in the UK’s Daily Mail

Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom was a recent focus of an article by the UK’s Daily Mail. It includes interviews with several local people on both sides of the Vermont/Quebec border.  To read the article click HERE
 
 

Filed Under: Blog

March 13, 2017 by swheeler

Hurricane of 1938 Topic of Discussion this Sunday

 

Newport, VT, following the hurricane

The Hurricane of 1938 wreaked havoc on parts of New England, including here in the Northeast Kingdom. There are still people alive today who remember this weather event.

On Sunday, March 19, the Derby Historical Society is hosting a talk about the hurricane. The guest speaker is Steven Long, the author of “Thirty-Eight: The Hurricane that Transformed New England”. Long’s presentation, which will take place in the community room at the Community Church of Derby (Formerly the United Church of Derby), will begin at 2 p.m. Come and learn about the hurricane, and maybe you have your own memories you’d like to share.

People with questions about the event can contact Bill Gardyne at (802) 766-5324, Allen Yale at (802) 766-5159, or Scott Wheeler at (802) 334-5920.

Filed Under: Blog

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