From the Desk of Paul Dragon, 12/22/25
At CVOEO, we believe in collaboration and transparency. That’s why every week Executive Director Paul Dragon shares a roundup of updates and initiatives to keep everyone, from our 300+ team members to the broader community we serve, informed and connected. Here’s what’s new this week!
Weekly Update:
Our Brave Little State episode
This episode was aired earlier this month with open-ended reporting at Champlain Place and the Community Resource Center (CRC). The Vermont Public Radio and VT Digger teams used a question they heard from a guest at the CRC as the starting point for an investigation into “halfway houses” in Vermont – their history, and current debates around homelessness and transitional housing. Thank you to the Community Resource Center and Champlain Place Teams for hosting Our Brave Little State.
Listen here: https://www.vermontpublic.org/podcast/brave-little-state/2025-12-04/transitional-housing-in-vermont-in-transition
Grateful for the Weatherization Team and the Emergency Heating Replacement and Repair Program
The CVOEO Weatherization team weatherizes people’s homes, saving them money each month and improving the health and safety of the home. The team also provides critical heating replacement and repair. When our staff member, Ian, completed a post boiler install inspection last month and sat with the client to go through the paperwork, she braced herself and asked how much it was going to cost. When she was told that there was no charge, she was speechless and then started crying in surprise and gratitude. Everyone deserves to be warm and safe in their homes!
Foundations Family Shelter Open House
All staff are invited to join us for the opening of the Foundations Family Shelter at its new location. The shelter will have an increase in capacity from seven families up to eight or ten depending on family size. The property is a restored Victorian home that was boarded up in deep despair, and will now be an asset to the Burlington Community. Thanks so much to our Weatherization Team for their work on weatherizing this shelter! And thanks, of course, to our Foundations Family Shelter staff who will be moving families over to the new location.
CVOEO Bridges Recovery Shelter
This 12-bed recovery shelter is the first of its kind in Chittenden County and for CVOEO (read the story below). The name Bridges comes from the former name of the Howard Program – ACT ONE – Bridges – which served our community so well as a detox center. The name Bridges is also prominent in CVOEO’s Tag Line, which is “Bridging Gaps, Building Futures.” The Bridges Shelter will open in February 2026.
Read more: Burlington secures funding for first-of-its-kind recovery shelter
Head Start, CVOEO, and the Language We Use
Please see the article below featuring our Head Start Director, Sandra, on concerns raised by the federal government regarding language in our Head Start application. At Champlain Valley Head Start, we use language that is consistent with language found in the federal Office of Head Start materials.
CVOEO’s South End Market Fundraising Update
CVOEO is over halfway in its fundraising goal for the new market at 255 South Champlain Street. The Feeding Champlain Valley team will locate this new market on Battery Street in our main administrative office. The market will be open mid-2026. The Food Shelf in the North End of Burlington will continue as a food shelf and general market and continue to cater particularly to people who are experiencing homelessness in conjunction with the Community Resource Center team.
Burlington Food Shelf and Community Resource Center Renovation Update
The new completion date for the renovations, which includes a second floor, expanded community resource center space, and upgraded parking lot and grounds, is early February 2026!
Feeding Champlain Valley Updates
- Feeding Champlain Culinary Team: In November, the culinary team prepared 7,032 meals in total, including 4,100 meals for Community Resource Center guests.
- Thanks to Danielle at Northwest Family Foods for supporting the Samaritan House with prepared meals on the cold nights when the Samaritan House Lobby was open for people living outside.
- Here is Alicia and Emmet with Senator Hardy at the Addison Food Hub.
