Williston Observer

Ortiz bringing her message of charity to Williston

April 28, 2011

By Adam White

Observer staff

Charity is a beautiful thing to Nydelis Ortiz.

The 2010 Miss Vermont pageant winner will serve as guest speaker at the Williston Federated Church on May 1, prior to taking part in the COTS (the Committee on Temporary Shelter) Walk in Burlington later that day. Ortiz and her family received assistance from the COTS program upon moving to the United States from Puerto Rico when she was 6-years-old.

“I know that I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for the help of COTS and its supporters, and I am honored to be a part of something that changes so many lives for the better,” Ortiz said.

Ortiz, 21, is currently employed at the Dept. of Homeland Security in Williston, after fulfilling an internship there while studying at Castleton State College. Her mother, Doris Rivera, also works for Homeland Security, albeit in a different department.

“We have separate duties so we don’t have very many opportunities to interact, but we do carpool together almost every day,” Ortiz said.

Rivera didn’t have the easiest of roads to travel when she came to Vermont with her daughter and son 15 years ago. She suffered a stroke shortly after the relocation, and was unable to work at a time when her family’s living situation hadn’t yet fully stabilized. That’s when COTS stepped in and provided a helping hand.

“We were a part of the Families in Transition program offered by COTS and through this program and others offered by the organization, my mother was able to find a part-time job despite her disabilities caused by her stroke,” Ortiz said. “COTS was also able to help place us in an affordable housing program where we lived in an apartment better suited for a family of three.”

That success story of a family overcoming adversity is what led Federated Church pastor Joan O’Gorman to reach out to Ortiz, in hopes that the Essex resident would serve as guest speaker on May 1.

“I thought it was a compelling story,” O’Gorman said. “Our church supports COTS and a lot of the walkers who will be taking part on May 1, so it was a good match. We also have some links to Hispanic culture … [including] a regular trip to Nicaragua, for a school rebuilding project.”

Ortiz is collecting donations online for her effort in the COTS Walk, the latest link in a chain of charity work that was first forged when she participated in a food drive in middle school.

“Ever since then I was always inspired to give back,” she said.

That charitable spirit was one factor in Ortiz being named Miss Vermont in 2010. She plans on competing in this year’s Miss Vermont pageant on July 25 at South Burlington High School, in hopes of moving on and bringing the Green Mountain State its first-ever Miss America crown.

Along the way, Ortiz is likely to inspire more young women to contribute to their communities – and be more than just another pretty face.

“Nydelis was like a big sister to me last year, and we are very close friends now,” said Shelby Gregoire of Barre, who was named Miss Teen Vermont in 2010. “Nydelis is everything I ever could have hoped for in a sister; she is caring, understanding, compassionate, and thrives on helping others. She is the type of person who leaves people smiling, and inspires me to do the same.”

April 28, 2011

By Greg Duggan

Observer correspondent

By the time Dylan Peters could walk, he could run. And running opened a whole new level of existence, one where the child learned to climb, to jump, to constantly stay in motion. Dylan’s father, Jim Peters, remembers hearing thuds when his son was 9 months old and leaping out of his crib. His mother, Sue Peters, said baby gates could barely contain the boy.

The adventurous nature never left Peters in his 18 years. Described by one friend as an “adrenaline junkie,” Peters took up skateboarding and became a talented snowboarder, winning local and national events with his massive, spinning, inverted jumps.

That life of constant motion — “He did not sit still,” Jim Peters said of his son — ended abruptly this month.

Peters, a student at Champlain Valley Union High School and Burlington Technical Center, died April 7 following a car accident on Oak Hill Road. The Williston Police Department’s preliminary investigation identified the cause of the accident as “excessive speed along with loss of control of the vehicle,” according to a press release.

When hundreds gathered for a memorial service at the Bolton Valley base lodge on April 13, friends, coaches, teachers and family members shared stories about Peters’ short, rich life. Snowboarding had garnered Peters the most recognition in the broader community, but the teen’s reach extended far beyond the snowboarding world. Friendly and easy-going, Peters built strong friendships in CVU, Burlington Tech, the art community and multiple snowboarding clubs. When Peters died, those communities lost a close friend, and his family — parents Jim and Sue, younger brother Dustin and younger sister Danielle — lost a son and brother.

The many talents of Dylan Peters

Peters had many interests. As his mother said, “He was passionate about whatever he did, whatever he wanted to do.”

Snowboarding dominated his winter. Warmer months gave way to music and skateboarding. Art became a year-round endeavor.

“He crammed a lot into 18 years. It was not a boring 18 years,” Jim Peters said.

Snowboarding took Peters from the slopes and terrain parks at Bolton, Stowe and Waterville Valley to the mountains of the western United States. Former Bolton Valley Snowboard Team coach Zach Hoag described Dylan’s progression as one of “happy persistence.”

“Dylan’s personality was quiet, happy, and confident,” Hoag wrote in an e-mail to the Observer. “And I think that led him to be a very dedicated snowboarder — he knew he could succeed, he enjoyed every minute of his riding, and he encouraged his friends instead of competing with them.”

Peters began winning competitions in his early teens. Sponsorships followed. In 2010, Peters captured first place in the junior men’s slopestyle competition at the USA Snowboarding Association national championship.

Sue Peters said her son wanted to move up in the snowboarding world, and then combine his boarding and artistic talents into a business focused on action sports. An honor roll student, Peters had yet to commit to college, though his parents believe he would have chosen to attend Westminster College. The liberal arts school in Utah had offered Peters a $100,000 scholarship, and encourages students to supplement academics with skiing and boarding in the nearby mountains. Peters’ parents said he was planning a course of study that combined communication, art and entrepreneurship.

“He was always talking about wanting to be an entrepreneur,” said Colleen Murphy, Peters’ Design and Illustration teacher at Burlington Technical Center.

Murphy called Peters a talented artist, best at graphic design, and noted that not all artists enter the field to make money. Not many artists have a strong business sense, Murphy said, but Peters “had a head for that. He always used to say he’d be famous, and we would laugh, you know.”

‘Dylan defies stereotypes’

“Dylan defies stereotypes,” Adam Bunting, a CVU teacher and Peters’ house director and advisor, wrote in a letter of recommendation.

For all Peters’ talents and interests, those who knew him say they will remember his humble, easygoing personality that allowed him to connect with a diverse set of people. Speaking at Peters’ April 13 memorial service, Bunting said, “Dylan transcended social groups and societal expectations. He thought for himself, and in Dylan’s world, a snowboarder could earn a 4.0, craft gangsta rhymes and treat his peers with respect and dignity.”

Peters dressed in baggy clothes — often wearing purple, his favorite color — pants sagging low, at times held up by a belt buckle containing a certain four-letter curse word starting with ‘F.’

“He was kind of a hip-hoppy kind of kid who snowboards and skateboards,” Peters’ friend Gabe Cohn told the Observer.

Despite the image, Peters floated easily between sets of friends. As Cohn said, “I’m three years younger … and he hangs out with me all the time. He doesn’t care.”

“Dylan was able to find value in and connect with just about anybody,” Bunting wrote in an e-mail to the Observer. “Dylan’s activities were just as diverse as his choice of friends. Slapping a label on Dylan just doesn’t work.”

Friends speaking at the memorial service shared tales about mischievous escapades. Cohn recalled sneaking away from home during a sleepover with Peters, eventually ending up at a swimming hole in the Huntington River at 4 a.m.

Ivan DeLean, another close friend of Peters — “he’s like my twin brother,” DeLean said — reminisced about Peters crafting a homemade hang glider to jump off a slope at a local sandpit.

“Having so many friends was a testament to how caring he was, how fun he was to be around,” Sue Peters said.

The playful, outgoing personality stands out as people remember Peters.

“It’s not the specific moments that linger,” Bunting wrote in an e-mail to the Observer. “It is his spirit that was so well represented by his huge playful grin. I am hard pressed to remember a moment when he wasn’t smiling.”

Jim Peters said the family looked through old photos to display at the memorial, ultimately choosing 200 or 250. In only one was Dylan not smiling, Jim Peters said, because in that picture Dylan’s then-baby sister had just thrown up on his chest.
“His brother and sister looked up to him,” Sue Peters said. “He set the energy for the household.”

Remembering Dylan

Though Peters will no longer touch people daily with his charisma, his family wants to ensure that memories of the teen never fade. Even in death, Peters was able to bring life. Five of his vital organs were donated to four people. His corneas, bone and tissue also became donations.

“Dylan’s last great act was that he saved four people,” Jim Peters said.

“And gave sight to another and helped countless others with (skin and tissue) repairs,” Sue Peters added.

The family hopes their son’s donations can raise awareness about organ donation.

The Peters family also plans to extend the memory of their son through the Dylan Peters Art of Snowboarding Fund.

“I always want to make good out of bad and fix things,” Sue Peters said. “I can’t fix this.”
Instead, Sue Peters wants to help children who do not have the advantages of her son but still want to pursue art or snowboarding.

Friends, too, have devised their own way of keeping Dylan in their lives. Sue Peters said many of Dylan’s friends have placed a picture of him on the dashboards of their cars.
“He touched a lot of people,” Sue Peters said.

Donations in Dylan Peters’ memory can be made to the Dylan Peters Art of Snowboarding Fund, c/o Sue and Jim Peters, 1102 Ledgewood Drive, Williston, VT 05495.

Athletic fields are first part of Allen Brook School plan

April 28, 2011

By Adam White

Observer staff

Ground will be broken soon on the first building phase of a new park behind Allen Brook School on Talcott Rd. in Williston, after the town accepted a bid and signed a contract with a Richmond construction company last week.
The first part of the park’s plan calls for two multi-use athletic fields, the construction of which will be funded entirely through impact fees under the town’s capital plan, according to Recreation Dept. Director Kevin Finnegan. Finnegan said that future phases would be initiated as town growth generates the revenue to cover its costs.
“Impact fees on new developments are paying for this project,” Finnegan said. “For every new house that is built, there is a dollar figure that goes toward all different services in town, (including) Parks and Rec. As the economy picks up, we should have more money in the kitty to put toward this project.”
According to Public Works Director Bruce Hoar, the winning bid for the first phase came from J. Hutchins Inc., of Richmond. Hoar said the contract stipulates that the project can be started no earlier than May 15. Lindsay Vincelette of J. Hutchins Inc. said that the work is expected to get under way around June 1.
“We plan to coordinate our efforts around school traffic,” Vincelette said. “We’ll start with the necessary erosion control, then move on to the mass excavation for the playing fields.”
The project’s blueprint shows twin fields labeled “soccer/lacrosse,” measuring 330 feet long and 195 feet across. The plan also shows an “extra, all-purpose field” with the same measurements proposed to the north of the first two fields, as well as a softball field, Little League baseball diamond and lighted Babe Ruth baseball diamond, playground, picnic shelter, bathroom/storage/concessions building and “tot lot.”
The existing recreational path near the school will also be reworked, and a “possible future bike path” is included in the plan as well.
Finnegan said that while the entire project is “shovel-ready” in terms of permit and design approval, the timeline for construction of everything beyond the first two fields will depend entirely on funding. He said the Recreation Dept. lobbied unsuccessfully during the town’s budgeting process for the Selectboard to put aside $25,000 per year for the project, as it has for improvements to Rossignol Park at the corner of North Brownell Rd. and Industrial Ave.
“We support the plan and want to see it happen, because the town needs more park space and playing fields,” Selectboard chair Terry Macaig said. “But we didn’t want to raise the tax rate this year, if we could help it.”
Hoar said Rossignol Park would continue to be improved with funding from the capital plan for ongoing improvements.
“Last year we re-did the tennis courts, and we’re looking at rebuilding the basketball courts next,” Hoar said.

April 21, 2011

Courtesy photos by Susan Teare

Liam Reiner, 11, competed in snowboardcross, slalom and giant slalom events at the at the 2011 United States of America Snowboard Association National Championships at Copper Mountain Resort in Colorado earlier this month after qualifying in local competitions.

“I was happy to achieve my goal, because last year I didn’t qualify,” Reiner said. “This year, I was really determined to make it.”

Reiner’s top performance occurred in the slalom, where he placed 24th in his division. A member of the Smuggler’s Notch Snowboard Team, Reiner said that he would like to compete in the Championships again next year, and learned three big lessons from his debut in the sport’s largest amateur contest: “Don’t scrub speed, keep your knees bent and don’t fall,” he said. Reiner will now turn his attention to his favorite spring sport, baseball, in which he plays for the Williston Rangers.

April 21, 2011

Courtesy photos by Melanie Watson and Mike Lizotte

The Williston Fire Department held their annual pancake breakfast at the Williston Fire Station on April 17. Town Manager Rick McGuire said of the breakfast: “(It’s) a nice tradition that started a number of years back and it is a great opportunity in the springtime for people to get together to share some good food and see some of their neighbors.”