Photo: Sen. Alison Clarkson in the Cedar Creek Room at the State House in Montpelier, Friday, February 23, urging fellow legislators to BACK THE FRAP by supporting the Flood Recovery Assistance Program (FRAP) provisions in the Flood Omnibus Bill that is being proposed in the wake of the catastrophic flooding of 2023. Courtesy of Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility
This year marks a couple of impressive milestones for Senator Alison Clarkson (D-Windsor). Last Thursday in a state house fête hosted by her family and legislative colleagues past and present, the New York native cut cake and blew out candles to celebrate her 70th birthday. And this year also marks her 20th year serving in the Vermont legislature.
I’ve heard Clarkson say before that she came ‘kicking and screaming’ to Vermont when her husband Oliver desired a midlife career change that prompted a move from Manhattan. She admitted again that she wasn’t wild about uprooting her life and moving to a town of 3,000 people.
But you don’t serve for two decades in the Vermont legislature if you don’t love this state. When I asked her what her favorite spot in Vermont is, it was hard to narrow down the options. Spoiler alert: she finally settled on Mount Peg in her hometown of Woodstock. Notably, Clarkson shared a sentiment that really stood out to me.
“It’s hard not to fall in love with Vermont.
We are all charged to bloom where we’re planted.”
We all are blooming where we’ve been planted. Where we’ve been planted can change, yet we adapt and our petals return.
This last week was the 55th Earth Day. We held a press conference and rally with partner organizations and many legislators, just before hundreds gathered to demand the release of Mohsen Mahdawi, a Windsor County resident who had been detained by ICE agents earlier this month. Later that day, legal, migrant farm workers were detained by agents from a Berkshire farm.
These hostile activities, a result of charges from the federal government, are a reminder of attempts to prevent these Vermonters from having the freedom of blooming where they’ve been planted.
As always, thanks for listening,
Justin Marsh, Political Director
Vermont Conservation Voters
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