To The Editor:
It is with great sadness and disappointment that I report another instance of vandalism in The Valley. The entire StoryWalk installed on the West Greenway Path was stolen. The set included approximately 30 laminated storybook pages and stakes, as well as a small notebook into which children and adults could write their thoughts and impressions of the story.
While the monetary value of these items is relatively low, this is, I am afraid, only the latest bout of vandalism StoryWalk has experienced on the West Greenway. Over the past two years, multiple pages were stolen from other stories on the West Greenway. This is, however, the first time that an entire story has vanished from the path.
What makes the StoryWalk theft even sadder is that StoryWalk was installed for the benefit of everyone (particularly children) in the community, at no cost to the community. Had the pages not been stolen, they would have been loaned out to other communities around Vermont for use on other trails.
Although it saddens us to allow these vandals to get the better of us, we have no choice but to cancel the last StoryWalk, which was to be installed on Thursday, August 8.
If you have any information about the missing StoryWalk story, please contact the Mad River Path Association at
Thank you to all who were able to enjoy StoryWalk in the Mad River Valley in 2013.
William E. Flender, director
Mad River Path Association
