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by Indi Rose Sugar maples are called “Goldilocks” trees for good reason. Preferring temperatures to be just right, the trees produce more sap over freezing nights and on days that are just warm enough. But warmer winters and midseason thaws are disrupting that balance. Producers are being forced to adapt to protect both their trees and their livelihoods. Maple syrup is a wild crop, which is rare for a major agricultural product. Having a successful season hinges on the health of an entire forest ecosystem. When that ecosystem shifts, so does the harvest.

Vermont Business Magazine Special Olympics Vermont and the Hermitage Club are looking forward to an exciting 2026 Winter Games, coming up on March 9th & 10th. Over 150 athletes will head to Wilmington to compete in alpine skiing, cross country skiing, snowboarding, and snowshoeing. The Hermitage Club first hosted this marquee event for Special Olympics Vermont in 2024, opening their doors to welcome athletes, coaches and their families for competition, meals and the ever-popular dance!

Vermont Business Magazine The American Red Cross urges donors to help the national blood supply recover from a severe blood shortage and empower their health by making an appointment to give blood or platelets in March. As a thank-you for helping save lives, successful donations will receive free A1C testing, commonly used to screen for prediabetes and diabetes, in March (one result per calendar year). New Red Cross data reveals 1 in 5 blood donors have elevated A1C levels — a sign that prediabetes and diabetes are prevalent among adults in generally good health. The findings are based on the first year of free A1C screening offered by the Red Cross, which provided results to more than 920,000 blood donors nationwide over three testing periods in 2025. 

Vermont Business Magazine The River Valley Workforce Investment Board is hosting the 2026 River Valley Employment Fair on Thursday, April 23rd, at the Riverside Middle School in Springfield, VT from 3–6 pm. This event is a great opportunity for employers to find potential employees and network with other organizations. Businesses of any size from Vermont and New Hampshire are welcome to participate.

Vermont Business Magazine The Red Bench Speaker Series continues on Thursday, March 12, with a special presentation, Snurfing to Snowboarding with Paul Graves. While snurfing may have originated in Michigan, Vermont played a pivotal role in its transformation from a backyard experiment into the global sport of snowboarding. From the late 1970s through the 1980s, a passionate community of riders, organizers, and entrepreneurs helped drive this evolution; often pushing boundaries and challenging ski area norms along the way. Featured speaker Paul Graves was at the center of it all. In 1982 he organized the National Snow Surfing Championships at Saskadena Six (then known as Suicide Six), opened Vermont’s first snowboard shop, and became one of the sport’s earliest rider representatives in professional snowboarding.

Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) today released the following statement after the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran. "President Trump, along with his right-wing extremist Israeli ally Benjamin Netanyahu, has begun an illegal, premeditated and unconstitutional war. Tragically, Trump is gambling with American lives and treasure to fulfill Netanyahu's decades-long ambition of dragging the United States into armed conflict with Iran. "The U.S. Constitution is clear. It is the Congress that declares war, not a president acting unilaterally. The Senate must reconvene immediately and vote on a pending War Powers Resolution, which I will strongly support.

Vermont State Police On Monday, Feb. 23, 2026, the Vermont State Police Drug Task Force and the Brattleboro Police Department arrested Justin Nation, 33, of East Hartford, Connecticut, and Mark Kriskov, 63, of Brattleboro.  The arrests stemmed from a months-long drug investigation conducted by detectives with the Vermont Drug Task Force into the distribution of fentanyl and cocaine from 32 Fairground Rd. in Brattleboro. The VDTF investigation involved the use of confidential informants who purchased cocaine from Kriskov on four occasions and from Nation on one occasion. Two separate searches of an apartment at 32 Fairground Rd. yielded 885 bags of suspected fentanyl, weighing about 22 grams; 111 grams of crack cocaine; a firearm; and evidence of manufacturing cocaine base. 

The Vermont State Police has continued to investigate a wrong-way multi-vehicle crash that occurred Dec. 17, 2025, on Interstate 89 in Bolton and resulted in the death of one motorist. State police determined that the wrong-way driver, 45-year-old Timothy Wooster of Jericho, had been traveling north in the southbound lanes for about 1.5 miles before colliding head-on with a southbound vehicle driven by 21-year-old Hailey Westcot of Northfield, who died at the scene. As a result of VSP’s investigation, on Friday, Feb. 27, 2026, troopers issued Wooster a citation which included a charge for second-degree murder.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont) and colleagues have introduced the E-Access Act of 2026, bicameral legislation to promote energy efficiency and help consumers save money by improving access to their energy consumption data. “Energy usage data is an important tool that families and businesses can use to improve their efficiency and lower their utility bills. But it’s too difficult for many Americans to access that data,” said Senator Welch. “We’re working to make it easier for consumers to make informed choices that will help lower their energy bills and speed our transition to an energy-efficient economy.”

Vermont League Of Cities & Towns With Town Meeting Day and the legislature’s annual crossover break just a few days away, in this Weekly Legislative Report we prepare you to meet with your local lawmakers and advocate effectively for the most urgent issues for local government. Make the Most of Town Meeting Week Next week’s legislative recess means lawmakers will be back in their home districts to meet with constituents. Our advocacy team has worked hard over the last several months to push for VLCT’s top priorities. We need your help talking to legislators about these top concerns.

Vermont Business Magazine On Tuesday, March 3, 2026, Community National Bank’s President and CEO Christopher Caldwell and Executive Vice President and CFO Louise Bonvechio will ring the Nasdaq closing bell at Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square, New York City, surrounded by several directors and members of the bank’s leadership team. This moment will mark an important milestone in the bank’s history and highlights its continued commitment to serving its communities with strength, integrity, and long‑term focus.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Vermont Conservation Voters (VCV) released the Vermont Congressional delegation’s scores for the League of Conservation Voters’ 2025 National Environmental Scorecard, which highlights our state’s leaders’ work to protect our environment and democracy. Since 1970, LCV’s Scorecard has been the primary tool for evaluating the environmental records of members of Congress. The 2025 Scorecard highlights Vermont’s leaders' work to protect our environment despite an unprecedented year with a record number of attacks on our environment and democracy. Our delegation fought against Republicans in Congress who repeatedly chose loyalty to the Trump administration and Big Polluters over making life more affordable, safer, and healthier for their own constituents.