➤ See also: The Drury Brick Company: Gone from Vermont, but Still Cranking Out Bricks in Bricklyn

November 15, 2025

Note from Editor Walt Brickman: Given the existential importance of bricks to the Realm of Bricklyn, The Bricklyn Eagle is proud to be co-sponsoring, along with over twenty other organizations and businesses, the dedication of a monument to the Drury Brick Company and its workers for their 150 years of fabricating bricks here in Bricklyn.

We are publishing below the remarks made at yesterday’s dedication ceremony by the three speakers:

• Federal Council’s longtime President, Hilma Plater-Zybrick.
• Special guest, Kermit the Frog; and
• Dunk Them Donuts CEO David Tiler Broffman, on behalf of Drury Bricks.

Tomorrow, The Bricklyn Eagle’s newest columnist, historian W.T. Jackson, will take a look back at the history and importance of brickmaking to the Realm of Bricklyn.

Opening Welcome by Federal Council President Hilma Plater-Zybrick

“Good afternoon, friends, neighbors, and fellow brick builders — and that includes you Outlanders!

“Today marks a truly special milestone: 150 years since the very first Drury brick was molded, fired, and laid right here in our own realm. From the stately Bricklyn Courthouse to the brick walls of the buildings lining our downtown streets, those small, but sturdy rectangles have held our realm together — literally!

“Drury Bricks isn’t just about clay and fire, it’s about craftsmanship, family, and the pride of quietly doing an honest day’s work. Generations of Bricklynites have kept that tradition alive.

“And because Bricklyn has always been a realm that celebrates creativity, character, and community spirit, who better to help us kick off this celebration than someone who knows a thing or two about being  humble, and leading a colorful crew of characters. Our guest speaker is also generously donating his speaker’s fee to help the sons and daughters of our brick workers here in Bricklyn afford to go to college.

“So please join me in giving a big Bricklyn welcome to our special guest: Kermit the Frog!”

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Remarks on Dedicating the Monument by Kermit the Frog

What an honor to be in beautiful Bricklyn — yes, that’s true even at your railyard, a place from which I’ve been told millions of tons of bricks have been transported.

“Over the years I’ve had the honor of helping out with some pretty wonderful causes. I’ve been the Chairfrog for UNICEF; I’ve raised money for children living in poverty; and today, I’m happy to be with you supporting the Drury Bricks Scholarship Fund for aspiring students hoping to go to college.

“For more than a century, the men and women of the Drury Brickyard have literally shaped this town — their bricks built your schools, your homes, maybe even your favorite donut shop.

“Today, together with the twenty businesses and organizations sponsoring this dedication, we get to help build something even stronger: opportunity for the next generation.

“Now, I’m no expert in masonry construction, but I do know that frogs are an important part of each brick. Here’s what Mr. Bob Blanchard, a famous Outland historian from nearby Vermont, has said in recognizing the role of frogs:

“Very early bricks were just slabs, flat on the top and the bottom. But as time passed and only the bigger, more sophisticated yards remained, they took to molding their name into their bricks. This was done in a recessed area on each brick called a frog, which was pressed into each brick for a better mortar bond.

📍From Facebook post by historian Bob Blanchard in Burlington Area History group by Bob Blanchard [Feb. 27, 2024].

“So yes, I’m as proud as can be to see the name DRURY pressed into each brick’s frog!

“I also know making bricks takes heart, teamwork, and a willingness to get your hands dirty. And that’s the spirit that’s made Drury Bricks a Bricklyn legend.

“So today as we dedicate this imposing monument, we say thank you to everyone who’s ever mixed the clay, hauled the loads, fired the kilns, installed the bricks, or just loved to look at a well-pointed brick wall.

“You’ve kept this tradition going strong. You’re the foundation, the backbone, the, shall I say, frog legs of this great realm!

“Congratulations, Bricklyn — and here’s to the next 150 years of brick building and to the Drury Bricks Scholarship Fund!”

Closing Remarks by David Plater Broffman,
CEO of Dunk Them Donuts & Its Drury Bricks Subsidiary.

“Thank you all for being here today. I have the honor of representing Drury Bricks, a subsidiary of Dunk Them Donuts. As a kid who grew up loving donuts — what do you expect in my family! — but loving this Realm even more, and recognizing that it has been built brick by brick, Bricklynite by Bricklynite. 

“The Drury Bricks Monument that Kermit the Frog has dedicated is more than just one very big red brick; it’s a reminder of 150 years of Drury workers whose hands have shaped Bricklyn’s history.

“Let’s honor them with a renewed commitment to continue using our bricks to build a future worthy of their brickmaking legacy.

“Thank you, Bricklyn — and please take one of our free brick-shaped, sugar-saturated donuts and a cup of coffee or glass of warm milk at our portable donut stand on your way out. Do not forget to have a great day Bricklyn!” ✥

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We welcome Letters to the Editor. Please email to: bricklynvt@gmail.com

To the Editor: While I’m glad that this dedication event is helping support college scholarships, I found it disappointing that none of the speakers mentioned the key role the Inland Union of Bricklayers & Mason (IUBM) has played in fighting to secure benefits and better working conditions.

Readers of your paper might also recall that the IUBM had to go on strike in 2023 against Mr. David Tiler Broffman and his Dunk Them Donuts family business to achieve overdue pay increases, plus a new childcare time-off benefit (thanks, in large part, to the role the “Gang of Four” mediators played).

I was also surprised that Council President Plater-Zybrick, who usually supports workers’ causes, failed to mention the importance of our Union. We’ll be speaking to her about that. Of course, I don’t blame our guest Mr. Kermit the Frog as he’s not from here, and I even heard he’d been a Union member in the Outland world. — Vincent (“Vinny”) B. Strong, Bricklyn, VT (President of Local #3 of the IUBM serving the Realm of Bricklyn).

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To the Editor: Those brick-shaped donuts from Dunk Them Donuts were DELICIOUS! I tried to stack them like real bricks but, uh… I ate the wall of them. Next year, let’s have even more donut-bricks to honor our history here, and please have the brick’s mortar be sweet, lick-able, vanilla frosting! It’s what Bricklyn founders would’ve wanted. Mmm. — Homer J. Simpson, Bricklyn, VT.

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To the Editor: Veuillez partager cette note avec M. Kermit la grenouille … et avec le monde ! — “Mon très cher Kermie, comme tu me manques ! Je suis fière que tu sois à Bricklyn, mais vraiment tu me manques ma douce petite grenouille verte. J’espère que ces briques sont fabuleuses — bien qu’aucune ne puisse jamais être aussi solide que notre amour ! — Ta petite Miss Piggy.”

Notes from the Editor: We did our best to translate the above note we received that was written in French by Miss Piggy:

To the Editor: Please share this note with Mr. Kermit the Frog … and with the world! — “My dearest Kermie, how much I miss you! I am proud that you are in Bricklyn, but really I miss you my sweet little green frog. I hope those bricks are fabulous — although none can ever be as solid as our love! — Your little Miss Piggy.“‘

We also heard that Miss Piggy is back working for Vogue Paris!

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