The Buzz Online

Pictured from left: Beth Hazen, Brittany Saucier and Amy Harpell-LeMien.

In the Spotlight:  NH Mutual Bancorp (NHMB) in Concord hired Beth Hazen as collections officer for the organization’s sister companies Meredith Village Savings Bank, Merrimack County Savings Bank and Savings Bank of Walpole . Brittany Saucier has been selected to lead Merrimack County Savings Bank’s main office in Concord and Amy Harpell-LeMien was hired as branch and business development manager of the Meredith Village Savings Bank in Meredith.

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GFA Federal Credit Union, with locations in Keene, Peterborough and Rindge, hired Christopher Brunell as VP/commercial lender. He brings 28 years of experience in the financial services industry having previously served as VP/commercial banking officer at a community bank.

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A $820,000 grant from The National Cancer Institute will allow a team of multi-disciplinary investigators to increase clinical trial awareness and participation for rural patients who make up almost half of the area served by Dartmouth’s and Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center. The project entitled, “Creating Access to Targeted Cancer Therapy for Underserved Populations (CATCH-UP)” also seeks to address and reduce disparities in cancer outcomes between rural and non-rural populations.

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Service Credit Union donated $25,000 to help create an open market venue for food, beverages and live entertainment to support struggling Portsmouth businesses. Located in the Bridge Street parking lot, ServiceCU@PopUpNH, operates Thursdays through Sunday, now through October 31.

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Bar Harbor Bank & Trust employees are donating more than $10,000 collected in Q2 from its employee-driven charitable giving program, Casual for a Cause, to 14 non-profits serving Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The non-profits receiving donations were selected by and voted on by the employees.

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Broadview Animal Hospital, in Rochester and Milton, opened a new Seacoast location at in Dover. The new 8,000 sq. foot hospital provides comprehensive veterinary care seven days a week and offers wellness and urgent care services for your dogs, cats, pocket pets, and exotic animals. 

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Franklin Savings Bank recently presented a $2,500 donation to the Grandparents Program.  Managed by ServiceLink, the program assists grandparents with providing basic needs for their grandchildren for whom they have become guardians. Currently, there are 33 children enrolled with a need for some new back to school clothing. The bank made a $2,500 donation to assist with the purchase of new sneakers and hooded sweatshirts.

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Concord Community Music School welcomes one of its own alumnae to the string faculty: cellist Alana Chown. She joins Scott Kiefner and Liz Faiella in the growing number of alums who are recent new Music School faculty in the past five years. She is also a licensed speech pathologist, with specialized experience in working with very young children and older adults.

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Personal protective equipment (PPE) and other election materials are being delivered by the NH National Guard to municipalities across the state for use at polling places in the upcoming 2020 Primary and General Elections. The personal protective equipment being delivered includes masks, face shields, plastic table-top screens, gowns, gloves, hand sanitizer, single-use pens and pencils, and writing mats for voting surfaces. Polling places will be open for those who want to vote in person on Election Day for both the Primary and General Elections. Precautions are being taken to keep voters and poll workers safe.

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The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today announced an $8 million grant award to the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. This is the second grant award to NHDOT after it received approximately $13.7 million under CARES in May. NHDOT will use the grant funds to support the state’s urban transit providers and ensure transit service is restarted along vital corridors, including those connecting to Boston, during the COVID-19 public health emergency.