Devin Wilder knows a thing or two about hearing loss: The 22-year-old, who graduated with a BA in studio art and English from Saint Michael’s College in May, was born unable to hear in her right ear. She had a bone-anchored hearing aid implanted when she was 13, but side effects dissuaded her from using the device.

That’s not the only reason Wilder, a current maker-in-residence at Burlington’s Generator, has used her two-month stint there to develop an interactive installation she calls “Seeing Sound.” In a freak accident at Red Rocks Park last summer, Wilder lost hearing in her left ear, too. “It was a 10-foot jump and a flip, and I landed wrong,” she says. “I came up out of the water and it was just quiet.”

Wilder had her eardrum “patched up” at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston, close to her native Beverly, Mass. Afterward, she could hear out of her left ear again. She’s still deaf in the right, but the doctors told her she didn’t have to be; they “introduced me to the new hearing aids, and the technology was unbelievable. I could hear,” Wilder says.

“But when they sit you down to try it on, they give you a disclaimer: Insurance companies don’t give you any support,” she continues. “It’s five grand out of pocket.”

For their debut temporary exhibition last weekend, Overnight Projects welcomed New York-based artists and couple Andrew Brehm and Jennifer Lauren Smith to its current location at 339 Pine in Burlington's South End. Brehm and Smith opened "Triangle, Circle, Square" on Friday evening, and followed up with a lecture Saturday afternoon.

Typically, 17-year-old Ali Barritt would spend her Saturday night doing homework and listening to podcasts. But last week, Ali, along with a couple of her friends from South Burlington High School, attended a community dinner at the Islamic Society of Vermont in Colchester. A family friend had told Ali about the ISVT's monthly dinner, and the high school junior thought it provided a good opportunity for her to learn more about Islamic culture, as well as to "show support for the Muslim community after Donald Trump."

Ali remembered that her grandmother's helper, a Muslim woman, had dietary restrictions. So, when she made flyers to publicize the event at her school, Ali also included information on markets that sell halal meat. Hours before the dinner, she went to the Community Halal Store in the Old North End in Burlington to buy 1.5 pounds of chicken so she could make crêpes.

Jennifer Morrison, chief of the Colchester Police Department, and members of the public from Montpelier, East Montpelier, Calais, Plainfield and Marshfield were also among those who attended last week's dinner. "Some of us felt shy about entering, but the warmth and open arms with which we were welcomed put an immediate end to our hesitancy," said Debra Stoleroff.

Morrison said it was a "tremendous honor" to be invited, and that it also "helps us, from a safety perspective, to let them know that we're approachable, for them to know who to reach out to." 

While there have been incidents of anti-Muslim backlash across the country following the terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., Morrison said that the ISVT hasn't experienced any hate crime or any reportable incident. Nevertheless, the police chief is keen to foster closer working relations with the mosque. "I believe the police being integrated into the community is going to be so much more effective than waiting until something happens," Morrison said.

"Our mosque is open at all times for people to come and ask questions," said Nicole Kennedy-Bchini from Burlington. It isn't uncommon for non-Muslims to join the community dinners, which are usually held on the last Saturday of the month. Having conversations over food and making friendships over dinner, she added, is an age-old tradition in many faiths. Besides, "Good food is good food. It doesn't matter what your religion is," Kennedy-Bchini noted.


Ali raved about the variety of food — from Indian to Somali to Turkish — at the end of the night. "I am certain that I will return," she said.

She added that she's going to return during Ramadan because that's when she can expect to taste food from different ethnic groups each week. "It's one thing to learn about the religion in social studies, hear about Ramadan and other Muslim holidays on the news, and even be friends with Muslims, but it's completely different to be submerged in the community."

Team Vermont wooed judges at the Budweiser International Snow Sculpture Championships with their rendition of "Rhonda and Her Recycling Robo-Octopus." The team, consisting of Michael Nedell, Adrian Tans, Brooke Monte and Dave Rothstein, beat out competitors from 15 other countries in the five-day event in Breckenridge, Colo. 

Team Vermont has competed in the international competition five times, but this is the first time they've placed in the top three. When Nedell, founder of Localvore Today, was interviewed before heading off to Breckenridge last week, he said he thought Rhonda was the right mix of form and message for the judges. Meaning the 14-year-old maker with her scrappy ocean-cleaning robot not only looked good but also conveyed a positive message. 

This just in: Local business mogul Alan Newman has purchased a stake in the South Burlington nightclub Higher Ground.

Newman, who has cofounded several notable Burlington businesses, including Gardener's Supply Co., Seventh Generation and Magic Hat Brewing Co., confirmed in a phone call with Seven Days late last week that he has bought out Higher Ground cofounder Kevin Statesir. Statesir opened the nightclub in its original Winooski location with cofounders Alex Crothers, Rob Hintze and Matt Sutte in 1998. For the past five years, Newman has run Alchemy & Science, a specialty beer company that operates as an independent subsidiary of the Boston Beer Company.

"For 30 years I had been a member of the Burlington business community," said Newman. "But for the last five years, I had excluded myself from that community. So what's going on in my head is that I need something to keep me entertained, I could use a way to make a little money and, boy, it would be great if that was something back in Burlington again."