Nurse practitioner Meredith F. Welsh has joined Gifford Health Care, serving on the primary care team. She comes to Gifford from White River Family Practice in White River Junction, where she served as a family nurse practitioner.
People in the news
Attorney Emily Samet has joined the captive insurance practice at the northern New England law firm Downs Rachlin Martin. Before coming to DRM, Samet worked for several small law firms in southern Vermont, building legal experience in residential real estate transactions as well as estate planning and administration, family law, and probate practices.
Martin Hahn, former executive director of the Vermont Coalition to End Homelessness, has been named director of Common Good Vermont, a statewide program of United Way of Northwest Vermont dedicated to uniting and strengthening Vermont’s nonprofit sector. He succeeds CGVT’s long-time leader, Morgan Webster.
Dr. Jordan Adair, head of the exotics department at Burlington Emergency and Veterinary Specialists, has earned certification as a diplomate — an expert in his field of specialization — from the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners. Adair becomes the only exotic pet specialist in Vermont.
Polly Raine, interim operations manager at the Park-McCullough House Association since June, has been promoted to museum director of the organization. The 35-room Park-McCullough Historic Governor's Mansion, set on 200 acres of grounds in North Bennington, is one of New England's finest, most significant and best-preserved Victorian mansions.
Glen Torres of Waterbury, Andy Holt of Burlington, Jay Schulz of Reno, Nevada, and Ben Hamilton of North Chittenden have been named 2023 Volunteers of the Year by Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, a nationally recognized organization that empowers people of all abilities through inclusive sports and recreational programming.
Hal Cohen, executive director of Vermont Adult Learning since June 2018, has announced his intention to retire at the end of December. While the organization's board of directors conducts a search for Cohen's successor, Associate Director David Justice and Program Director Joseph Przyperhart will serve as interim executive co-directors.
Michaela Merrill, interim superintendent of the Department of Corrections' Southern State Correctional Facility, has officially assumed the role of SSCF superintendent. She succeeds Mike Lyon, who retired in August.
Mike Rainville, president of Maple Landmark Woodcraft in Middlebury, has been reelected to a one-year term as chair of the Vermont Manufacturing Extension Center Advisory Board. Rainville, a graduate of Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York, has led Maple Landmark, a seller of eco-friendly, educational wooden toys, games and gifts, since 1979.
Nicole Benton, project manager at ReArch Co. in South Burlington, has been elected president of the newly launched Vermont chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction, a national organization that provides professional-development, education, networking and leadership-training opportunities for women in the construction industry.
David E. Peterson has been named special counsel in the trusts and estates group at the Burlington law firm Gravel & Shea, effective Jan. 1. Prior to joining G&S, Peterson spent 15 years with boutique trusts and estates firms in Massachusetts and Vermont.
Havah Armstrong Walther, former executive director of the nonprofit Start Change in White River Junction, has been named executive director of the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce. In her new role, Walther will play a pivotal role in the administration of the chamber, the Quechee Gorge Visitor Center and the Quechee Hot Air Balloon Festival.