Around Town for Sept. 6

Congratulations to Ceal Moran whose “Genealogy Day Get-Together” was featured in the August 27 Burlington Free Press under “the history space.” Ceal began genealogy get-togethers two years ago to honor her uncle, Father Romeo Trahan S.S.E. She had spent the last 12 years gathering data to assist in completing her sister’s family’s genealogy. She says in the article that she naturally sharpened her detective skills and soon she was “hooked.” She has presented her work in schools, libraries and senior centers, including those in Charlotte, and she always displays information at the Vermont Family Center for Genealogic Studies (VT-FCGS) as well as the Vermont Genealogy Library. Her uncle was one of the Genealogy Library’s founding members.

Congratulations to Nick Landrigan of Charlotte who will be inducted into the Cathedral-Rice Athletic Hall of Fame on October 7. He joins 144 other Rice athletes, former coaches and supporters in the Hall. Nick was cited for his basketball abilities. He holds Rice’s all-time record for assists, many of them to Mike Cioffi, a fellow inductee. Nick was named to all-state second team and to the first team in the Metro Division in 2001. He moved across the Canadian border to attend Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, where he started as a point guard for his four years there. After being named Conference Rookie of the Year as a freshman, he captained the team his junior and senior years. He has since moved back to Chittenden County where he works as a real estate appraiser.

Sympathy is extended to family and friends of Eric D. Mitchell, an attorney in Washington, D.C., whose family has a camp in Charlotte. Eric passed away August 18 at the age of 51. He graduated from Yale University (where he starred on the basketball team) and Georgetown Law Center. He was interred at Grandview Cemetery in Charlotte. The family asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations in Eric’s honor be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society.

Regional Bite

Do we really live in the snarkiest state in the Union?
The September issue of Wired magazine reported on a study of “toxic” comments and where they come from. These comments appeared online over a 16-month time span. Almost 2 million authors wrote them on more than 7,000 forums that use software. Guess what? Vermont led the other states of America in the proportion of crummy comments, with a 12.2 percent incidence. New Hampshire, on the other hand, had the least with 4.7 percent. Oh well, we shouldn’t compare ourselves to them, because they don’t really know what they’re saying. Live free or die? Yah, you bet N.H.