The COOL Factor

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On Wednesday, July 5th, the Williamstown COOL (CO2 Lowering) Committee and Images Cinema are co-sponsoring a Community Conversation in connection with "An Inconvenient Truth," the global warming documentary starring Al Gore. The discussion will take place at Images from 6:05 - 7:00 p.m and will be hosted by Betsy Kolbert, author of Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change; Nancy Nylen, Associate Director of the Center for Ecological Technology (CET); and other members of the COOL Committee. "We are finding that many people who see the film are concerned and want to take immediate positive action," Nylen said. "We are also finding that they want to talk about what they've seen and heard-because it has such far-reaching implications at home and across the globe. The 'Community Conversation' is an opportunity to learn from each other about positive actions that we can take on the local level and beyond." On Wednesday, July 12 at 6:30 at the Milne Public Library, the COOL committee is sponsoring a workshop to help people save energy in their homes. The Town of Williamstown received a grant to purchase "Kill-a-watt" meters that individuals can check out of the library. Mike Tillou will lead the workshop, teaching people how to use the meters to learn how much their appliances and electronic devices are using energy-even when they're turned off-and what to do about it. CO2 emissions attributed to burning fossil fuels for electricity, transportation and other energy use are the major cause of climate change. Williamstown is a member of Cities for Climate Protection. The town has pledged to reduce its emissions by 10 percent by 2010. "An Inconvenient Truth" is playing at Images through Thursday, July 6th. For more information, contact Wendy Penner at wendypenner@hotmail.com or Sandra Thomas at sandra@imagescinema.org .
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Companion Corner: Lucy at Second Chance Animal Shelter

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

ARLINGTON, Vt. — There is an excited and energetic pup looking for her new family.

iBerkshire's Companion Corner is a weekly series spotlighting an animal in our local shelters that is ready to find a home.

Lucy is an 18-month-old heeler/terrier mix with energy to spare. She has been at the Second Chance Animal Shelter for about a month.

Lead canine care technician Alaura Lasher introduced us to her.

"She is a very energetic girl. She loves to play, and as you can see, she came to us from animal control," she said. 

Lucy was not in a great situation before coming to the shelter and they are still trying to learn more about her.

"They had seized her from a pretty neglectful situation. She was actually technically abandoned. She just came to us this last month, so she's still showing us all of her energy she has," Lasher said.

Lucy is able to go home with a dog-savvy cat and older children as she can be a bit jumpy with her bounds of energy.

"The perfect home for her is one that is able to give her a ton of attention and a ton of time playing, she loves her time outside," said Lasher. "She can run forever and not get tired. She can possibly live with another dog who is used to more of a pushy play style. She can be a little pushy when she plays, just because she's so hyper."

Since she is young, she is still learning and training with the staff and might need more with someone who takes her home.

"To the best of our knowledge, she's just a healthy young girl, because she's only a year and a half old, she still got a little bit of learning and training that she could use."

But Lucy is always happy to see anyone and immediately wants to play and say hi. Her endless energy makes her a great companion to play outside with and then hang out after a long day of fun.

"She's just a super sweet girl again. She'll need some help with the training, but as long as you've got time to burn out her energy, she'll make a great family dog," she said.

If you think Lucy might be the girl for you, reach out to Second Chance Animal Shelter and learn more about her on their website.

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