The Blood in this Town Reveals theDYNAMICS OF RUTLAND

[Who We’ve Interviewed - #5 of 33]

SHARON CROSBY of the U.S. Postal Service

“There’s a lot of people that have the mentality of not wanting change and not wanting to go out of their comfort zone, they’ve kind of set in their ways. I got myself out of my comfort zone a couple years ago. I think people should just open their hearts to other people.” – Sharon Crosby

Rutland’s own Sharon Crosby has been delivering mail with the U.S. Postal Service for the past 24 years. The Blood in this Town first met Sharon at the Gift-of-Life Marathon last December where, adorned in a Santa hat, she cheerfully agreed to an interview while donating blood.

Crosby participated because, as she notes, “I wanted to help somebody else out that might need my blood and as a Christian, I felt it that was deeply important. Rutland will help anybody and everybody out if there is a need.”

Crosby loves her postal route because she knows everyone on it and likes working outside. “All my customers become like family,” she says, and the route which has her walking five miles a day, five days a week, keeps her finger on the pulse of what’s going on in town, good and bad. She sees Rutland’s challenges and its small victories, up close, in the day-to-day lives of her customers. And that’s strengthened her resolve to reach out and lend a hand beyond her own immediate world.

Crosby states, “We have a place in Rutland called the Dismas House and it’s for prisoners who just came out of jail to transition back into society, that’s one of our missions in our church. The residents at Dismas have taught me to be more forgiving of people and of people’s actions because before I’d be like ‘they’ve been in jail, they’ve done this, I don’t want anything to do with them.’ But no one’s perfect and people make mistakes and it has just made me more open to everyone.”



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http://www.bloodinthistown.com

Check out some of our favorite Rutland-related stories from the last few months!

• Could Rutland ever "export" its innovative ways? Yes. Take note of NYC's High Line & "railroad rebirth," as officials & planners across the U.S. consider efforts to convert relics from their own industrial pasts into potential economic engines.
  After High Line’s Success, Other Cities Look Up - NYTimes.com
• Revitalizing old movie houses builds communities & reveals a town's can-do spirit. RUTLAND & the PARAMOUNT, you're doing things right.
  Old Movie Houses Find Audience in the Plains - NYTimes.com
• Eric Hagen, Vermont innovator and Rutland MSJ graduate - father of the pay-what-you-want "Recession Ride" taxi service - your model is taking root (and opening eyes) across the country. Rock on.
  Another Restaurant Tries Pay-What-You-Want - NYTimes.com
• Vermont Public Television to tell stories of New Englanders who've found innovative ways to thrive in the midst of the recession. Seeds of renewal.
  N.E: Coping with economy: Rutland Herald Online
• Building bridges and an outbreak of RUTLAND-like spirit: "A victory of inspiration and persistence over practicality. Six months later it has become something else: a marvel of adaptive-use architecture that has been embraced to a degree even its backers hadn’t expected."
  Our Towns - Hudson River Walkway, an Improbable Treat - NYTimes.com
• Can Rutland's re-birthing of the Paramount Theatre inspire & ignite revival in other struggling U.S. towns? Definitely.
  Our Towns - Rosendale Artists Try to Save Its Movie Theater - NYTimes.com
• Big thumbs up to positive change now percolating in Rutland at the grass roots.
  Volunteer groups get creative: Rutland Herald Online
• Rutland and the Rutland Creative Economy tackle new initiatives.
  Rutland Creative Economy | Rutland, Vermont: Development Workshops scheduled, community involvement.
• Twilight / vampire novels lure young readers to donate blood. Great stuff, Kentucky.
  Edward comes to town 
• Can a community break from its long-gone past to take hold of a new future?
  Brownsville Journal - Fighting to Save Catholic Church Built by Italians - NYTimes.com
• Rutland, VT groups actively working to improve the community. Rutland Creative Economy and ‘Change in the Wind”
  Change in the wind: Rutland Herald Online
• Rutland's we-can-do-it spirit lives large in Point Lookout, NY.
  Our Towns - Generosity Keeps Long Island Market Afloat - NYTimes.com
• New angle opens eyes: Wisdom (even renewal) from watching traffic in the hard-core Bronx.
  On Bronx Stoops, a Highway Hell Entertains - NYTimes.com
• Fresh perspective from the Big Apple: NYC (& Brooklyn Bridge) can still help lead the way in urban transformation.
  Architecture Review - Brooklyn Bridge Park - Brooklyn Bridge Park Opens First Phase of Large Project 
• Rutland moves toward a new future with recent successes in tow. Our doc-in-progress kicked off Rutland Creative Economy forum, and we were very grateful to take part. Go Rutland. Go Red Cross.
  Residents brainstorm for a new economy: Rutland Herald Online
• Great article on Rutland, Vermont, moving ever forward.
  Creative Economy seeking new flow of ideas: Rutland Herald Online
• A man who gave blood, sweat and tears. Let's all get "Fred Forward."
  Pittsburgh Journal - ‘Mister Rogers’ Still Looms Large in Pittsburgh - NYTimes.com

The Blood in this Town reveals the DYNAMICS of RUTLAND

[Who We’ve Interviewed - #4 of 33]

NINA KECK of Vermont Public Radio

"There's a lot of innovation in Vermont and there's a lot of innovation in Rutland that does translate to a national audience." - Nina Keck

Nina Keck has reported for Public Radio’s “Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered” and “Marketplace” for the last 14 years. Most Vermonters are probably familiar with her voice heard daily on Vermont Public Radio (VPR). Yet many Rutlanders know her on a first name basis, as a neighbor, since she’s been living locally for more than a decade.

One of Keck’s favorite stories to cover is Rutland’s Gift-of-Life Marathon, where the town rallies once a year to break blood donation records. That kind of community spirit, she notes, also drives other local initiatives, including Rutland’s local food movement. Keck discovered that Rutlanders really care a lot about good food and about supporting their local food producers.  That commitment to fresh, locally grown food spurred the development of Rutland’s standout, year-round Farmers’ Market, consisting of the highly successful Summer Market, and more recently, the creation of a first-of-kind Winter Market. “Rutland is putting itself on the map as this microcosm foodie network. We've got a great local food movement right here in Rutland and it's exciting,” she states.

Keck has also covered the Rutland Creative Economy from its inception – early town forums to the rise of Friday Night Live and Pine Hill Park -  and she feels that one of the reasons for its success stems from the fact that the Creative Economy is a pure grassroots effort. Keck says, “The power of it is that it's not an elected official, it's not a politician that's making it happen. It's you and your neighbor and your friends and your coworkers. Kind of like the blood drive.” Keck continues, “When it's a personal effort, a community grassroots effort, people are more than likely to take possession of it and put more blood, sweat and tears into it to see it through.”

In Keck’s opinion, these kind of local movements make the Rutland area a compelling place to work, live and cover news. “In Rutland, they're making a name for themselves and I think there are other issues too that translate to national audiences. I find that I just need more hours in the day. There are more stories than I could ever cover.”

Vermont Public Radio

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The Blood in this Town reveals the DYNAMICS of RUTLAND

[Who We’ve Interviewed - #3 of 33]

MICHAEL ROBILLARD, MICHAEL BARRETT & JIM MILES, Rutland City Fire Department

“We have met and beaten every challenge we’ve had so far. We’re not going to lose.” Rutland is a tight-knit community with a strong competitive streak. Whether it’s giving a thousand pints of blood in one day, or pulling together to revive the town’s fortunes, Rutland aims to deliver – you can see it the faces and hear it in the voices of veteran firefighters Mike Robillard, Mike Barrett and Jim Miles. 

All three men work the “A Shift” at the Rutland City Fire Department, each serving the city for close to a quarter of a century.  The history of the RCFD stretches back to 1829, and their "Courage, Commitment, Compassion” motto lives on, every day, under the protective watch of this trio and their fellow firefighters.

We met Mike, Jim and Mike at the Paramount Theatre, each giving blood at the 2009 Gift-of-Live Marathon – then joined them for an interview up the block at the firehouse.

These firefighters, all native Rutlanders, look at donating blood the same way that they look at firefighting.  Michael Barrett reflects, “As a fireman, to me, we’re here for people in need. Giving blood is for people in need.”  Jim Miles said he started donating seven years ago when a family member required blood. Since then he and his family donate together at the Gift-of-Life every year. Michael Robillard, in turn, pulls double duty during the blood drive, as a donor and a behind-the-scenes volunteer.

When asked about Rutland, each man testifies to the city’s galvanizing, generous spirit. Notes Jim Miles, “Rutland’s a huge caring community. When things go bad, everybody comes together no matter what the situation is, whether financially, structurally, family-wise or personal loss. Everyone just comes together.”

Rutland City Fire Department


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