Current News

Vermont Business Magazine On Monday, January 16, 32 Vermont Housing & Conservation AmeriCorps members will join three Rutland area non-profits to complete community service projects. AmeriCorps members across the nation observe a national day of service— “a day on, not a day off” — in recognition of Martin Luther King, JrDay.

The VHCB AmeriCorps members will be involved in three different projects, serving with The Nature Conservancy, theFood Bank and Dismas House. Volunteers with The Nature Conservancy will join on-going efforts to restore the native forests of the Hubbardton River Clay Plain. A second group will gather at The Vermont Food Bank to package food for Rutland area families. A third group will spend the day organizing and cleaning at the Dismas House of Vermont where former prisoners live together with students as they transition to independent living.

Vermont Business Magazine In a recent GOBankingRates.com national survey, 69 percent of respondents said they have less than $1,000 in savings. Even worse, 34 percent said they haveno savings at all. Such abysmal savings rates suggest many Americans, if not most, live paycheck to paycheck. Hawaii is the state where Americans are most likely to live paycheck to paycheck and Vermont was number eight, whereas residents of Mississippi are least likely, according to the latest GOBankingRates study.

While a majority of the 10 states where Americans are most strapped for cash are the same states featured in last year’s study, the 2017 study found many new states rank as "the best for stretching your paycheck," including Michigan, Oklahoma and Mississippi.

by Mike Smith Meryl Streep is a talented actor. She has been nominated 19 times for an Academy Award, winning three Oscars. She also has been nominated 30 times for a Golden Globe Award, winning eight times. Many, including myself, are fans of Ms Streep. And much of the criticism that she leveled at President-elect Donald Trump at the Golden Globe Awards ceremony last weekend had merit.

Streep was given a Cecil B DeMille Award, which is an honorary Golden Globe Award for her acting achievements. During her acceptance speech she accused Trump of using his “privilege, power and rank” to humiliate a disabled reporter during last year’s campaign. Streep said, “Disrespect invites disrespect. Violence incites violence. When the powerful use their position to bully others, we all lose.”

Vermont Business Magazine An opening reception for a new Scientific Imaging Facility in Saint Edmunds 301 at Saint Michael’s College will be Monday afternoon, January 16 at 1:30 pm. This suite features advanced state-of-the-art technology and is of special direct interest to the College’s biology, neuroscience, chemistry, environmental sciences, and physics students and faculty as Saint Michael’s continues a dramatic expansion in the last decade of mentored undergraduate research.

The suite contains 10 high-end computer work stations for 20 students. Each station operates scientific imaging and evaluation programs that students can use for study and research purposes. The suite also will house the Zeiss Axiolmager, which is a state-of-the-art microscope with digital image processing abilities, differential interference contrast and fluorescent capabilities.

Vermont Business Magazine The 4th Annual Made in Vermont Marketplace will take place April 1st and 2^nd at the Champlain Valley Exposition. The trade show is open to the public. The Made in Vermont Marketplace is an extraordinary opportunity for Vermont companies to showcase their Made in Vermont products to an audience of thousands of prospective customers all in one weekend.

The trade show is dedicated to showcasing the great variety of Vermont made products, from furniture, specialty foods, clothing, wines and so much more! Only Vermont companies that made their products in Vermont will be allowed to exhibit.

Exhibitors come from all corners of Vermont, from Brattleboro and Springfield to Cannan, Peacham and Rutland, to Isle La Motte and many areas in-between, we have Vermont covered all under one roof.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) announced the launch of the Winter Central web portal, a new site to help drivers navigate winter conditions in Vermont. Included in the new portal is Plow Finder, a map that will show the location of all 250 VTrans plow trucks in near real-time. The heart of the Plow Finder map is the data from the Automatic Vehicle Location System installed in each truck and augmented by information from the National Weather Service, New England Compass, VTrans' weather stations and point forecast modeling provided by DarkSky.

Vermont Business MagazineMobius will celebrate National Mentoring Month by hosting youth mentees, volunteer mentors, and mentoring supporters for its annual Mentoring Celebration at the Statehouse on Wednesday, January 18, 2017 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This event, made possible by support from lead event sponsor Redstone Commercial Group and other business supporters, will publicly recognize the adult mentors, youth mentees, and mentoring supporters in attendance, as well as the year-round service of the more than 140 mentoring programs and 2,300 volunteer mentors throughout the state.

Mobius photo of Emily and Autumn.

Vermont Business MagazineVermont wild turkey hunters had successful spring and fall hunting seasons in 2016, according to the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department. An initial review of hunting results revealed 6,798 turkeys were taken by hunters during Vermont's three turkey hunting seasons - the spring youth hunt, the regular May spring season, and the fall turkey hunt.

Vermont Business MagazineGreen Mountain Valley School (GMVS) today announced acomprehensive training partnership with the United States Ski and Snowboard Association(USSA) that designates GMVS as both a USSki Team Development Site, and as a USSki team High Performance Center. The USSki Team designations are the result of an ongoingUSSA initiative to develop a pipeline of elite skiing talent, while formalizing its partnershipprograms with leading academic and training institutions, of which GMVS is one.

Vermont Business Magazine The Norwich University Regimental Band and Drill Team,will represent the state of Vermont and perform in the 58^th Presidential Inauguration, to be held on Friday, Jan. 20, in Washington, DC, for Donald J Trump. As the oldest collegiate band in the country, the Regimental Band carries on a long tradition of excellence musically, academically and militarily. Founded in 1820,the Band'smotto is “Semper Zoo.”

“The Norwich University Regimental Band and Drill Team is proud to represent the university and the state of Vermont,” Assistant Commandant and Director of Bands Todd P. Edwards said.

Vermont Business Magazine Franklin Foods Holdings, which bills itself as the world's fastest growing cream cheese company, announced today that Hochland SE, a privately-held Bavaria, Germany-based cheese company, has acquired Franklin Foods and its sister companies. Franklin Foods was founded and continues to operatein Enosburg Falls. It was previously sold, along with its brands Hahn's and All Season's Kitchen, and is now based in Florida. Franklin has taken advantage of the popularity of "Greek" style dairy products. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. It will continue to operate its Vermont manufacturing plant, which employs about 100.

Vermont Business MagazineAt its 30^thAnnual Membership Meeting held at The Capitol Plaza, the Vermont Business Roundtable elected one new director to his first three-year term:Tom Dunn, Vermont Electric Power Company.Elected to their second three-year term were the following directors:Jill Berry Bowen, Northwestern Medical Center, Geoff Glaspie, Husky Injection Molding, Bill Shouldice IV, Vermont Teddy Bear, and John Wilking, Neville Company.