The Buzz Online

This Week's The Buzz Online Spotlight

Granite State College in Concord named 10 NH business leaders to its President's Advisory Council, which will offer feedback about academic programs and monitor the needs of state businesses. Named to the council were: Jason Alexander, founder and CEO of Alexander Technology Group; George Bald, commissioner of the NH State Department of Resources and Economic Development; Kenneth R. Clark, Major General of the NH National Guard; Jac Cuddy of the Mt. Washington Valley Economic Council; Tiffany Eddy, news anchor at WMUR; Ty Gagne, CEO of Primex; Fred Kocher, entrepreneur and TV host at WMUR; Christopher Pope, director of NH Homeland Security and Emergency Management; Tom Raffio, president and CEO of Northeast Delta Dental; and Russ Thibeault, owner of Applied Economic Research.

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Boston Globe technology journalist Scott Kirsner will deliver the keynote address at the NH High Tech Council's 2012 Entrepreneur of the Year Awards Dinner. The award recognizes entrepreneurs for their contributions towards the advancement of technology in the state and for their outstanding leadership. The 24th annual dinner will be held May 7 at 5:30 pm at the Radisson Hotel in downtown Manchester.

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The NH Community Development Finance Authority approved Community Development Block Grant Awards totaling $340,000 to fund microenterprise efforts at three economic development incubators: the Enterprise Center in Plymouth, the Hannah Grimes Center in Keene, and the Women's Rural Entrepreneurial Network in Bethlehem. The grants will help fund training programs, technical assistance, and loan pools at the centers.

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Sugar River Bank in Newport promoted Heidi Patten to vice president of human resources. Patten has been with the bank since 1986 and most recently served as assistant VP/human resources. The bank also promoted Elizabeth D'Orazio to mortgage origination officer. D'Orazio has been with the bank for five years and most recently served as a mortgage originator.

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North Branch Construction, Inc. of Concord received the 2012 Plan NH Merit Award for its renovation of the Newbury Center Historic Meeting House in Newbury. North Branch was recognized for its commitment during the project to Plan NH's mission to promote sustainable planning, design, and development in NH.

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The senior living community Ledgewood Bay in Milford named Brittany McClintick community liaison. McClintick most recently served as hospitality ambassador at Langdon Place in Nashua, a division of Sunbridge Healthcare.

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Enterprise Bank donated $25,000 to the Regional Economic Development Center (REDC) of Southern NH's Business Training Center Tax Credit program. The donation will allow REDC to develop a business training center in southern NH that will serve as a one-stop resource center for entrepreneurs, businesses, lenders, and community leaders seeking economic assistance. Enterprise Bank has branches throughout southern NH and northern Mass.

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St. Mary's Bank in Manchester donated $2,725 to The CareGivers, Inc., a Bedford-based nonprofit dedicated to helping elderly individuals maintain their independence through volunteerism and food distribution. The funds will be used to purchase a tracking software program for The Caring Cupboard, a mobile food pantry program that delivers free groceries to low-income individuals.

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Timothy B. Dining, president and CEO of Greenerd Press & Machine Company, Inc. in Nashua, was elected co-chairman of the Association for Manufacturing Technology. The board of directors for the association represents 600 American manufacturers and distributors across the country.

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TRB Development Group, Inc. in Hooksett received CHIEF Buildings' 2011 Freight Terminal Award for pre-engineered metal buildings. The company's winning project was the 45,968 square foot FedEx Ground Sorting Distribution Center in West Lebanon that it completed in June of 2011.

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Evolution Rock + Fitness broke ground on their new facility in Concord. Flynn Construction Corp. of Nashua began construction on the new 13,100 square foot facility, which will house more than 14,500 square feet of climbing space. The facility is expected to be completed in the fall.

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Catholic Medical Center in Manchester received the Gold Healthy Hospital Award by Stryker Sustainable Solutions for saving $366,190 in 2011 by reprocessing and preventing 13,393 pounds of medical waste from going into landfills.

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The Rite Aid Foundation awarded a $5,000 grant to Families First Health and Support Center in Portsmouth. This is the third grant that the foundation has made to Families First, and will go towards helping the center offset the cost of providing subsidized health services to uninsured patients in the Seacoast region.

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Granite State Credit Union in Manchester awarded its first annual Robert E. Mercer Award to Jody Ducharme. The award honors employees who have demonstrated outstanding volunteerism with a NH charitable organization and was given to Ducharme for her seven-year involvement with the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

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