On Thursday evening, June 1, 2023, an enthusiastic crowd gathered on the lawn of Christ Church Guilford to listen to the Brattleboro Union High School Jazz Band wow them with music they had been working on all year. The students and audience expressed deep gratitude to retiring BUHS Band Director, Steve Rice, for his decades of inspired leadership and teaching. Rice was thanked with gift certificates generously donated by the Marina Restaurant in Brattleboro, and guests were treated to lemonade and delicious snacks supplied by the Guilford Country Store. Eric Morse kindly provided access to the restroom in his nearby building.
The concert was hosted by the Christ Church Guilford Society, Inc., and planned by a Summer Events Task Force: Andy Burrows, Don McLean, Jane Sbardella, and Valerie Abrahamsen. Mr. Burrows served as emcee for the evening and gave an overview of the 1817 building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, and work that will soon be undertaken to make essential repairs to the roof. The Society has received a $20,000 matching grant from the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation toward these repairs and is also grateful for financial support from the Episcopal Diocese of Vermont and many individual donors.
The Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of the building and making it available to the wider community for concerts, weddings, funerals, occasional services, and educational and social justice-oriented lectures and other events. Donations are always welcome and greatly appreciated!
Photos: V. Abrahamsen