The Buzz Online

In the Spotlight: 

The Merrimack Valley chapter of SCORE recently celebrated 50 years of serving the Southern New Hampshire small business community, and announced the winners of its two business competitions. Aisling Organic Cosmetics of Auburn, NH won the Business Growth Competition and $10,000 prize money for established small businesses in Southern NH. Aisling Organic Cosmetics is a high-performance, beautifully pigmented, 100 percent natural and organic, began, gluten-free, cruelty-free and U.S. made makeup line founded in April 2016 by Krysta Lewis.  Post Cruise Solutions of Windham, NH won second place in the Business Growth Competition. Post Cruise Solutions, which was founded by Wendy Schoneberger in 2016, is an offshoot of Solo to Group Travel, and provides secure and safe post-cruise city adventures for travelers coming into Boston.

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A celebratory luncheon held at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics in Manchester took place on Nov. 9, where AARP New Hampshire honored about 75 volunteers. John Larrabee received the Andrus Award for Community Service, the most prestigious volunteer award. Larrabee is an Eastman resident. Others who were honored at the luncheon were Andrus Award finalists; Drive Safety, Tax- Aide and Advocacy Volunteers of the Year; Retired Educator of the Year; and Community Partner of the Year.

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The YMCA of Greater Nashua recently announced that June Zoia is the new director of human relations. Zoia’s new title covers the Nashua and Merrimack Y facilities as well as its summer day camp facility, YMCA Camp Sargent and resident camp, YMCA Camp Spaulding. “June brings a wealth of experience in human relations and operations management.” Says Mike LaChance, CEO for the YMCA of Greater Nashua. “Her extensive background will certainly strengthen our Y. Additionally, her passion for wellness and certification as a Health and Wellness Coach align well with the Y’s Healthy Living focus.” Prior to joining the Y, Zoia was a human resources business partner at Fidelity Investments in Merrimack.

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The Bank of New Hampshire recently announced that Karin Duchesne has joined their team of retail lenders as a mortgage loan officer, serving the greater Nashua area. Duchesne has more than 20 years of banking experience, including mortgage origination and sales management. “We are thrilled to have Karin join our team. Her strong lending background combined with her commitment to her customers and community make her the perfect fit to represent us full time in the Nashua and Southern New Hampshire market,” says Evelyn Whelton, Senior Vice President - Retail Lending Sales Manager for Bank of New Hampshire. “We look forward to the opportunity to offer our services with the Nashua community.”

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Kim Pecora has been elected as treasurer and has joined the board of the Pope Memorial Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) of Concord-Merrimack County. Pecora is happy about her new juncture. “The Pope Memorial SPCA of Concord-Merrimack County is such a fantastic organization,” said Pecora. “I am very pleased to be given the opportunity to serve and hope that my talents will be of great use to them.”

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Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank (WGSB) recently announced the addition of two people to its commercial banking team. On Nov. 7, James Graham, president and CEO of WGSB announced that Sean Long joined WGSB as vice president and upper valley market manager and Amanda Arcone joined the bank as assistant vice president and commercial banking officer. Long will work from WGSB’s new loan production office in Hanover, scheduled to open in early 2018. Arcone will work from the bank’s Littleton office, taking over Brenda Highland’s job, who will retire at the end of the year.

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GSC IT Solutions recently partnered with Ruckus Wireless. The partnership will allow GSC IT to offer IT solutions that are more seamless and will address a myriad of industry needs.

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The TD Charitable Foundation, the charitable giving arm of TD Bank, recently gave the Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains a $10,000 grant. The grant will allow the organization to increase their outdoor programming’s reach to focus on at-risk and low-income girls, while remaining funds will go toward program supplies and support costs.

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Daniel “Doc” Jenifer, senior facilities worker, recently received the Spaulding Youth Center’s Spaulding Spirit Award for his hard work and dedication. The peer-nominated award is given at each quarterly staff meeting to an employee who exemplifies Spaulding spirit.

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The New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA) and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) recently announced Safety Rest Areas in Colebrook, Lebanon, and Littleton will be operated on a year-round basis. The facilities previously operated seasonally. Safety Rest Areas in Lebanon, Littleton, and Colebrook, located along Interstate 89, Interstate 93, and US Route 3 respectively, serve as entry points to the northern and western regions of New Hampshire.

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