Current News

Vermont Business Magazine A cloud-based accounting company in Burlington was recently named the 2019 Vermont Minority-Owned Business of the Year. Reconciled, founded and owned by Michael Ly, provides bookkeeping, accounting & CFO services to small businesses throughout the U.S.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies (VCET) announced today that Code for BTV, the local chapter (or Brigade) of Code for America, is its newest member and partner. VCET will provide infrastructure and support to help further the organization’s mission of solving the challenges among local civic and non-profit organizations with relatively simple tech solutions, all by leveraging the power of volunteerism, community and coding know-how.

Vermont Business Magazine The Berlin Development Review Board has approved zoning applications for 98 units of senior housing—the first project of its kind in Berlin, designed to include both independent and assisted living, as well as memory care, all under one roof.

by John McClaughry Last week the House passed a bill that raised taxes on the wrong people to support a worthy cause for, in large measure, the wrong reasons. Back in the 1970s Vermont’s community action agencies, created to wage the war against poverty, hit upon the idea of weatherizing drafty homes of low income families. This didn’t defeat poverty, but it improved living conditions. It produced, hopefully, energy savings, that the weatherized families could spend on other things. It also allowed the community action agencies to offer low-skill jobs and thus incomes to mostly marginally employed young men with time on their hands.

In 1990 federal anti-poverty funds for weatherization were declining, and Governor Madeleine Kunin wanted to find some new money to keep the program alive. The result was an act that laid a gross receipts tax on all heating fuel.

Vermont Business Magazine US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) and Senate co-sponsors will announce the introduction of the Medicare for All Act of 2019 at an event Wednesday in Washington.

Vermont Business Magazine By day, Ram Verma is the director of technology services for the Vermont State Treasurer’s Office. Regularly, by night, Ram sits vigil with central Vermonters nearing the end of life. He does this work as a trained volunteer for Central Vermont Home Health & Hospice (CVHHH). Every year, CVHHH relies on the support of about 125 volunteers. Some people help with administrative tasks or by making patient survey phone calls in CVHHH’s Berlin office. Others prefer to get involved in fundraising and events. About 30 of CVHHH’s volunteers, including Ram, choose to go through an extensive training so that they may work directly with patients and families enrolled in hospice.

Vermont Business Magazine United Way of Bennington and Rutland Counties and Southwestern Vermont Council on Aging (SVCOA) has announced that participants of the 2019 “Peanut Butter & Jam Slam” collected a total of 4,757 jars of peanut butter and jelly to benefit local food shelves.

“This was truly a heartwarming event with a tremendous outpouring of support from so many local organizations to help families in need in our area,” said Caprice Hover, executive director with United Way of Bennington and Rutland Counties. “We are so appreciative of everyone in the community for their generosity, and thankful to BROC and Vermont Farmers Food Center for serving as food drop-off sites.”

The event, in its first year in Rutland County and third year in Bennington County, challenged local businesses, schools, churches, non-profits and other organizations to collect as many jars of peanut butter and jelly as possible between March 18 and April.

Vermont Business Magazine The Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC) Orthopedics Department has begun offering ultrasound-guided intra articular joint injections in the office setting. Ultrasound imaging allows improved placement of pain relieving injections. The procedure, which had previously been available only at the hospital, can now also be administered in the SVMC Orthopedics office at 332 Dewey Street in Bennington.

“Our aim is to provide the most advanced treatments to our patients as conveniently as possible,” said Ivette Guttmann, MD, a Sports Medicine specialist at SVMC Orthopedics and the one who administers the procedure. “We’re happy that we can help those with joint pain get the care they need in our familiar and comfortable office environment.”

Vermont Business Magazine Pinwheel gardens, like the one at Community Health Centers of the Rutland Region (CHCRR), are popping up around Vermont as a symbol of Child Abuse Prevention Month. Vermont Governor Phil Scott has officially proclaimed April Child Abuse Prevention month in Vermont.

Dinners with Love will host its fourth annual Comfort Food for a Cause on Sunday, April 28, 4:00-7:00 p.m. at the Middlebury Inn in Middlebury, Vermont. The evening will include live music by The Green Brothers Band, a four-course meal, and a silent auction featuring more than 30 items and experiences donated by area businesses. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Dinners with Love program, which brings meals, donated by local restaurants, to hospice patients and their families throughout the state.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and Vermont-NEA President Don Tinney today announced the winners of a statewide public service announcement (PSA) contest focused on promoting school safety and informing kids that when they see something, they should say something. The winning PSA comes from Hazen Union High School, with team leader Tivy Parchment and team members Xavier Hart Marion, Brianna Hislop, Robert Lowenthal, Raymonda Lowenthal, Jay LeCours and Elliot Kimball.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Coffee Company was recently awarded $20,000 in training funds from the Vermont Department of Economic Development’s Vermont Training Program.  Vermont Coffee Company collaborated with Addison County Economic Development Corporation (ACEDC), to navigate the process and complete the application.  The funding will primarily support vendor-led offsite/onsite employee training.  

As a small business, Vermont Coffee Company’s management team indicates that access to training funds is crucial to their growth and development.  Elaborating that this grant will allow their small company to both broaden existing employee’s skills through professional development, certification & cross-training as well as onboard new hires.