Mountain Times - Vol. 49, No. 53 - Dec. 30, 2020 - Jan 2, 2021

The Mountain Times • Dec. 30, 2020 - Jan. 5, 2021 OPINION • 19
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RNeSU: Covid cases in schools addressed
from page 12
ing an infectious period. As a result, there were no identified
close contacts who need to quarantine.
Regarding the decision to go all-remote learning for
the week following the holiday break, Jan. 4-8, Collins
said she heard enough from families and staff to make
the decision.
“They’re just sob stories,” she said. “The last
Christmas of a parent, things like that. I acknowledge
that there are a lot of different family situations out
there. I recognize that it’s just going to be much more
difficult at Christmas and if we had a case, it would
pop up the week of Jan. 4-8, so it made sense that
would be a remote learning week in order to return
on Jan. 11 and be stable. I wanted to make that decision
as early as I could, and I absolutely understand
how difficult it is.”
Collins added that the Vermont Department of
Health has been very responsive and helpful with
contract tracing the positive cases and other support
measures.
“I’ve had several conversations with the Department
of Health regarding who was a close contact or who
needed to answer more questions and talked through
the level of risk,” she said. “They’ve been very responsive
and individuals who have questions about their
own contacts should contact the Department of Health
directly.”
Lastly, Collins would like to remind all families and
staff members that if they plan to travel and/or mix
households over Christmas, to plan on quarantining
from Dec. 28-Jan. 11.
For more information or to ask questions regarding
Covid protocols, quarantine, school cases and safety
precautions, call the Vermont Department of Health at
800-464-4343 or at 802-863-7200.
Obit: Debra Poplawski-Wilson loved the outdoors, skiing, kayaking, hiking and gardening
from page 4
ful wedding, anniversary and birthday creations.
Debra Poplawski-Wilson loved the outdoors and
was a lifelong skier that raced in her early years and
taught at the Killington Ski School.
After her cancer diagnosis and closing of the bakery,
she strived to ski 100 days a season at Killington,
a goal that she accomplished three times in the last
five years. She was at 84 days when Covid ended her
season in March. She was also an avid kayaker, hiker,
nature lover and had a “green thumb” for all of her
indoor and outdoor gardens.
Poplawski-Wilson was also a loving, caring and
devoted mother to her two children, Tamra Kaye and
Madison (Madi) Claire Jaurigue. Madison was born
with hydrocephalus. Madi’s care required constant
attention, multiple surgeries, three shunts and
numerous other items required for a special needs
child. Unfortunately, Madi predeceased her on March
12, 2012.
Tamra completed college and now resides in Texas.
In 2015, Debra Poplawski met George Wilson
through and on-line dating service and they were
immediately drawn to each other. Their abilities as
expert skiers, outdoors junkies, kayakers, hikers,
etc. drew them together and on Oct. 1, 2016 they
were married in Killington. Nine months later, they
received the devastating news that her recent seizure
was due to brain cancer. From that day forward, Deb
and George attempted to do anything and everything
she wanted. George repeatedly told Deb to “live life on
your terms.”
She was also an active member of causes that were
dear to her, including:
• She was the creator and founder of the Madifund.
A program that brings top neurosurgeons
and other health care professionals from around
the country to speak at UVM lectureship. This
was established in honor and memory of her
dear Madison.
• She was active in the Vermont readiness group
with the National Guard and one of few civilians
to be honored by them.
• Rutland Family support network
• One of the creators of the “woodchip” parkway
to divert traffic flow on Route 4 during Tropical
Storm Irene
• Parent to parent peer recognition
• National Hydrocephalus Foundation
• Fundraised for Madi’s room at the new Andrea
Mead Lawrence Lodge – Home to Vermont Adaptive
Ski & Sport center at Pico mountain
• Mary Kaye Cosmetics
Debra Poplawski-Wilson leaves her loving husband
George Wilson of West Wardsboro, her father Eugene
Poplawski of Mendon, her mother, Barbara Poplawski
who predeceased her in August 2019, and her daughter
Tamra Jaurigue of Texas. Her sisters Donna Poplawski-
Kreie of Texas, Denise Wall of Massachusetts, Deonne
Myrick of Randolph, Karen Terry of Islip, New York, and
her brother, E.J. Poplawski of Salt Lake City, Utah, she
also left her close friends affectionately known as the
Divas from the Sarana, New York area, numerous family
of the heart from around the world and all of her friends
and neighbors.
A memorial service to recognize and remember
Debra Poplawski-Wilson's life will be held at a later
date. Memorial gifts in her memory may be made to the
Hydrocephalus Association hydroassoc.org.
To send personal condolences to the family, please
visit sheafuneralhomes.com.
Submitted
On Dec. 24, 1968, Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders became among the first to circle the moon. He took this now-famous photo juxtaposing earth and the moon's cold, cratered surface.
Earth rising: What will the future hold for one and only habitat? Only we can choose. The past holds examples of hope but also tales of caution
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from page 17
self-sufficiency and growing one’s own food
has been a response to widespread food
insecurity brought on by economic disruptions
from the coronavirus pandemic.)
History does not repeat itself, but
the core issues with which humankind
struggles, and the ways in which we tend
to respond, do not fundamentally change
over time. Environmentalists celebrated
in 1972 when—following a decade of litigation
and activism inspired by the 1962
publication of Rachel Carson’s “Silent
Spring”—the U.S Environmental Protection
Agency finally banned the use of
DDT. As a result of these regulations and
decades of hard work by wildlife biologists
working to restore wildlife populations,
numerous species of birds that
were teetering on the brink of endangerment
and extinction were brought back
from the precipice, including the bald
eagle and osprey.
Did we learn from DDT? Consider the
current widespread use of neonicotinoid
pesticides, which were developed to
replace carcinogenic organophosphates
like malathion and diazinon. “Neonics”
have now become the DDT of the 21st
Century, polluting the environment and
causing catastrophic declines in the
populations of honeybees, bumblebees,
solitary bees and other insect pollinators
that play essential roles in the functioning
of healthy ecosystems and in the pollination
of most fruits and vegetables. The
European Commission has banned most
neonics, but the U.S. EPA refuses to do so.
Neonics are just one example of how,
when it comes to the environment, we often
make the same mistakes through time.
The issues we face today—ranging from air
and water pollution (including discarded
plastic) to deforestation, food waste, climate
change and loss of biodiversity—have
been with us in one form or another for
decades, and often for centuries.
The critical question at the dawn of 2021
is: What can we do—individually and collectively—
to ensure that Earth, as we know
it, keeps rising? We don’t need resolutions
at the turn of the year, we need resolve to
make commitments and take action. Only
then may future generations look back at
the history we are now creating and truly be
able to say the only reason we’re here today
is because back in 2021—when faced with
a global pandemic in the midst of climate
change—humankind found the will, the
wisdom and the way to stand up and do
something about it.