Rep. Carolyn Branagan returns to State House after chemo, with a message for all women over 40
by Guy Page
On the first day of the 2023-24 Vermont Legislature, the Vermont Daily Chronicle caught up with four new lawmakers: two senators, two House members. Two have served previously.
Rep. Carolyn Branagan (R-Georgia) spent much of the day explaining her scarf to old friends from her years here as a House member and senator. She learned she had breast cancer in August, the same month she won the Republican nomination to the House seat she won in November. She is urging all women over 40 to get a breast exam.
It’s great being back in the building, she said. “It just feels so welcoming and wonderful to come in the door and have so many people say hello to me.”
Rep. Gina Galfetti is a first-time, first-term lawmaker representing Barre Town, a two-seat district she occupies with Francis “Topper” McFaun. The self-employed house painter was waiting for her parents when the Chronicle ran into her. On her first day, she’s learning some of the basics: like “where the cafeteria is.”
That’s not as trivial as it sounds. The State House cafeteria is the informal meeting place for lawmakers, lobbyists, and their constituents.
Sen. Nader Hashim (Windham) has served in the Legislature before. Hashim was a House member from Westminster and a Vermont State Trooper. He left the VSP to attend law school. He’s studying for the bar exam and working with a Brattleboro legal firm.
Williams is an ardent gun rights and private property advocate and retired U.S. Army officer.
For contact and other information on all lawmakers, go to the Vermont Legislature website.
