REAL ESTATE & CONSTRUCTION
Northeast Credit Union will be relocating its corporate headquarters to 100 Education Way in Dover, NH, expected to be fully operational by early 2025.
The relocation of the existing headquarters at 100 Borthwick Avenue, Portsmouth, NH, is part of the organization’s ongoing growth strategy, and the new 100,000-square-foot Dover location will become the central site for most of the credit union’s 400+ employees. The property was sold by Tidemark and Kane & Co. development team, Maugel DeStefano Architects is leading the interior transformation efforts, and PROCON is the architect and designbuilder for the exterior renovations.
Elle Ferris has joined the Fontaine Family team at their Scarborough location as an associate broker licensed in Maine and New Hampshire with years of experience. She is a member of several local organizations, including the Strafford County Board of Realtors, the Maine Association of Realtors, the Oyster River Girls Lacrosse Boosters and the Community Gardens of Durham. Additionally, Kate Hannan has joined the Fontaine’s Scarborough team. With over four years of experience in the real estate industry, she serves the Seacoast Region of New Hampshire along with Southern Maine.
FOOD & BEVERAGE
Fabrizia Spirits, a New Hampshire-based Limoncello producer, recently announced expanded distribution in additional markets with Southexrn Glazer’s Wine & Spirits (SGWS), the world’s premier beverage distributor, and retail placement in new territories at Whole Foods Market, Total Wine & More and Binny’s Beverage Depot in several new states including Florida, Nevada, Illinois and California bringing their total nationwide distribution to 22 states.
TECHNOLOGY
New Hampshire-based TACLABS, Inc. and Todd Lizotte, the coinventor of Intentional Firearm Microstamping (IFM), recently celebrated California Governor Gavin Newsom’s signing of SB 452 — legislation that mandates microstamping, which provides information to law enforcement agencies by better identifying firearm trafficking routes and sources. The bill requires all semiautomatic pistols sold in California to include IFM technology to ensure that guns sold or transferred within the state by 2028 will transfer unique identifiers on expended cartridges. With over 30 years of research, innovation and commitment to gun safety, TACLABS’ IFM technology has paved the way for more effective firearm traceability.
Simplified Clinical — a provider of clinical trial software to biopharmaceutical and medical device companies, universities and teaching hospitals — has introduced AI-driven text analytics as part of its Clinical Discovery Platform to help enhance data collection and insights. The technology will help biopharma and medical device companies more quickly and accurately develop effective treatments that benefit patients worldwide.
The town of Deerfield recently received a permanent cell service upgrade from Verizon ahead of this year’s Deerfield Fair to include Verizon’s new 5G and 4G LTE and C-Band macro site, which helps provide coverage and improve the experience for Verizon customers. With around 128,000 visitors to the area that weekend, Verizon was able to improve area coverage and reduce dropped calls, with greater performance in large-number crowds.
Innovators behind Allen Datagraph Systems released SnapPress, a new, compact and easy-to-use label printing press for brands looking to make labels in-house. The SnapPress LP-1 uses HP inkjet technology for users to make quality labels, and through partnerships with Xitron and Schilling Inkjet Consulting, SnapPress users can do so more efficiently than larger printing machines.
Right Networks has rebranded as Rightworks, which combines technology, thought leadership and community engagement tools for accounting firms and professionals to build sustainable and profitable businesses via educational resources, a community of peers and applications. Additionally, the Rightworks OneSpace intelligent cloud platform unifies accounting and tax applications, simplifies business operations, delivers security, and is backed by industry expertise and technical support.
Compliance Risk, the only governance-as-a-service solution created by MSPs for MSPs, received a $3.5 million investment from Bellini Capital, and will be rebranding to Compliance Scorecard. Compliance Risk gives MSPs policies and procedures tailored to meet specific regulatory and industry compliance standards. The Bellini Capital investment will help the company expand its product road map to introduce additional risk-management and governance modules for clients.
Twenty-eight robotics teams, comprising more than 500 students and 60 volunteers from across New Hampshire, participated in the sixth annual Governor’s Cup, an off-season robotics competition for the state’s high school FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) teams.
Three teams were honored with the Governor’s Award: Chop Shop, Merrimack High School; The Crusaders, Manchester Memorial High School; and The Resistance, Kingswood Regional High School. Other awards were given to teams at Prospect Mountain High School, Hollis-Brookline High School, Souhegan High School, Manchester Central High School, Newfound Regional High School and Concord High School. Additionally, eight high school seniors were awarded $2,000 individual scholarships to attend any USNH or CCSNH institution.
LAW
Thirty-seven attorneys of McLane Middleton were selected for the 2023 edition of New England Super Lawyers and/or Massachusetts Super Lawyers: a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
The New Hampshire-based lawyers are: Michael A. Delaney, Steven J. Dutton, Bruce W. Felmly, Joseph A. Foster, Wilbur A. Glahn III, Scott H. Harris, Ralph F. Holmes, Linda S. Johnson, Daniel J. Norris, Margaret “Peg” O’Brien, Jennifer L. Parent, Mark C. Rouvalis, Cameron C. Shilling, Mark A. Wright, William V.A. Zorn, Barry Needleman, Gregory H. Smith, and Patrick C. Closson.
Former NH Assistant Attorney General Lawrence Gagnon has a new role as revenue counsel for the NH Department of Revenue Administration (NHDRA). Previously, Gagnon worked for two years within the Civil Litigation Unit at the New Hampshire Department of Justice, managing defense lawsuits for a number of state agencies, including cases involving education funding, administrative appeals, personnel disputes, civil rights, property rights, personal injury and contracts. In this role, he also managed debt recovery efforts and litigation on behalf of the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services.
The law firm of McLane Middleton was recently recognized in the 2024 Benchmark Litigation rankings as “Highly Recommended” in New Hampshire for dispute resolution. Additionally, firm attorneys Bruce W. Felmly, Wilbur A. Glahn III, Scott H. Harris, Jennifer L. Parent, and Mark C. Rouvalis were all recognized individually as “local litigation stars.” Parent was further recognized as one of the “2024 Top 250 Women in Litigation” list. Alexandra S. Cote was also recognized on the “40 and Under List,” and Alexandra and Steven J. Dutton were both recognized in the “Future Star(s)” list.
NONPROFITS
Point32Health Foundation has awarded $750,000 in grants to 19 nonprofit emergency food response organizations and those working to advance food justice efforts in Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Nonprofits in New Hampshire who received funds were the NH Food Bank ($75,000), Community Kitchen in Keene ($25,000), and Willing Hands in the Upper Valley ($25,000), to support operations including staff salaries, volunteer management, food purchase and distribution costs.
The Foundation for Healthy Communities received a $1 million grant (given over the course of five years) from the Endowment for Health to create an innovation fund, so its HealthForce NH initiative can find solutions to the health care workforce shortage. More information will be announced in 2024 at healthforcenh.org.
David Wenger, senior vice president in global commercial banking at Bank of America, and Nick Gray, founder and managing principal of Gray Property Group, have been appointed to Catholic Charities NH’s board of trustees. Wenger has been a member of the Catholic Charities NH Audit and Investment Committees since 2016 and recently completed his term as chair of the Trinity High School Advisory Board. Gray scaled his company’s property management portfolio to nearly 250 units, and holds both M.S. and B.S. degrees in mechanical engineering from Stanford and Cornell, respectively. Additionally, Gray serves as a 1st Lieutenant in the NH Air National Guard’s 157th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. The organization also reappointed Russ Ouellette (vice chair), Susan Huard (deputy vice chair), E.J. Powers (secretary) and Pat Ford (treasurer) to their roles on the Executive Committee.
The Newburyport Bank Charitable Foundation has donated $2,500 to Lamprey Health Care of Newmarket in support of their Roaring 20’s Speakeasy Fun-Raising Gala, which was held on Oct. 19. All proceeds raised supported Ann’s Fund, which is used to provide patient support services to ensure they are able to receive and get care, have safe accommodations, receive food, and are given health education by certified staff.
The trustees of Cedarcrest Center for Children with Disabilities in Keene elected the following new members to their board: Chris Betts, assistant professor of finance, Franklin Pierce University; Gina Burke, community engagement, Red River; Cindi Coughlin, retired nurse administrator; Donna Dunlop, retired municipal librarian; Natasha McCarthy, APRN, Concord Hospital; and Victoria Prestejohn, human resources manager, NH Judicial Branch.
Hannaford Supermarkets’ annual holiday campaign, Hannaford Helps Fight Hunger, will once again provide nutritious food to individuals and families experiencing food insecurity across New England and New York this month. Now through Dec. 31, Hannaford customers may donate $5 or $10 to local food pantries at the register. All donations will go directly to local food pantries in the store’s community.
UTILITIES
In recognition for its leadership in environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives, Eversource was named the No. 1 utility in 3BL’s annual 100 Best Corporate Citizens ranking for 2023, which evaluates transparency and performance in ESG among the 1,000 largest U.S. public companies. This is the third time in the last five years that the energy company has been included in the rankings, and was the only utility on this year’s list. Eversource ranked No. 63 overall.
FINANCIAL SERVICES
Mark Pelletier, senior data analyst lead for St. Mary’s Bank, has been named the 2023 Young Professional of the Year by the Cooperative Credit Union Association (CCUA). Pelletier was selected from nominees aged 40 and under who show commitment to the principles and cooperative business model of credit unions. For the past two years, Pelletier has also excelled in the role of chairperson for the St. Mary’s Bank Young Professionals Group.
Sara Timberlake has been promoted to branch relationship manager for Bar Harbor Bank’s locations on Heater Road and Hanover Street in Lebanon. She initially joined the bank in 2019 as a customer service representative, and later graduated from the University of Vermont with a master’s in business administration in 2023.
Caroline Hinkley has been hired as a branch manager for Union Bank’s new North Conway branch at 120 North-South Road in the Fairway Plaza. Prior to joining Union Bank, Hinkley worked as a supervisor at Northeast Credit Union and as a customer relations manager at Norway Savings Bank.
The New Hampshire Insurance Department (NHID) has promoted Keith Nyhan to the deputy commissioner of the department. He previously served as director of the consumer services unit since 2007, where he was responsible for safeguarding the interests of Granite Staters and has overseen the recovery of $33 million for residents since October 2011.
Devin Scott has recently completed the WorkReadyNH training program as required for Meredith Village Savings Bank’s Teller Registered Apprenticeship certification. Devin began shadowing as a teller apprentice in MVSB’s Laconia office in the summer, working closely with his mentor and co-workers to gain banking experience.
AUTOMOTIVE
Amanda Grappone Osmer — owner of Grappone Automotive group and general manager/dealer principal for Grappone Mazda — was honored with a 2024 TIME Dealer of the Year award, which recognizes the nation’s most successful auto dealers who demonstrate commitment to community service. Osmer will be one of 49 individuals from across the country to be honored at the 107th annual National Automobile Dealers Association Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 3, 2024.
Family-owned-and-operated automotive dealership group DCD Automotive Holdings, Inc. has expanded its family of dealerships to include Nissan of Keene, now known as the Nucar Nissan of Keene. DCD has grown to more than 1,600 total employees across its 25 locations, generates over $1.85 billion in sales, operates 22 subsidiary automotive brands, and has over 5,000 vehicles in stock.
Brad Kulacz has been promoted to senior vice president, senior retail banking officer at Merrimack County Savings Bank.
Farewell to Bridget McDermott, a BAE Systems powerhouse
Bridget Kelly McDermott, the former product line director at BAE Systems, died on Oct. 14 of this year due to a car accident. She was a successful business leader, athlete and an advocate for women and girls. Bridget grew up in Billerica and earned her J.D. at Suffolk University School of Law. She first worked as a practicing attorney before joining BAE Systems in Nashua, NH, where she diligently grew her career over 15 years. Earlier this year, Bridget was awarded the 2023 Outstanding Women in Business Award from NH Business Review. She is survived by her husband, Mark, and her 9-year-old daughter, Charlotte.
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