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A mix of clouds and sun early followed by cloudy skies this afternoon. High near 65F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph..
Cloudy this evening with showers after midnight. Low 47F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Updated: May 23, 2026 @ 8:09 am
Cornerstone Caregiving recently held a ribbon cutting at its Rutland location. Pictured from left: CEDRR Member Services Manager Chrispin White, Rutland City Mayor Tom Donahue, Cornerstone Caregiving Rutland Operating Director Alyssa Sabotka, Cornerstone Caregiving Rutland Assistant Operating Director Meghan Johnson, State Rep. Mary Howard, State Rep. Christopher Howland, and CEDRR Executive Director Sarah Furman.
Party City recently held a ribbon cutting at its location inside Staples in Rutland Town. Pictured from left: CEDRR Events Manager Dominique Winter, Staples Rutland Assistant Store Manager Brandon Levesque, Staples Rutland General Manager Renee Axelson, and CEDRR Member Services Manager Chrispin White.
HFCU grant recipients include Bennington Theater, Create Together in Ludlow, Smokey House in Danby, Mentor Connector in Rutland, and Neighborhood Connections in Londonderry, N.H.
Ludlow Rotary Club President Kevin Barnes, left, with arborist Jack Jacob at a recent meeting.
Billings Farm & Museum Farm Manager Phil Ranney with Agri-Mark Vice President of Membership Jordan Clark in the cow barn at Billings Farm.
Duguay
Duguay
Cornerstone Caregiving recently held a ribbon cutting at its Rutland location. Pictured from left: CEDRR Member Services Manager Chrispin White, Rutland City Mayor Tom Donahue, Cornerstone Caregiving Rutland Operating Director Alyssa Sabotka, Cornerstone Caregiving Rutland Assistant Operating Director Meghan Johnson, State Rep. Mary Howard, State Rep. Christopher Howland, and CEDRR Executive Director Sarah Furman.
Party City recently held a ribbon cutting at its location inside Staples in Rutland Town. Pictured from left: CEDRR Events Manager Dominique Winter, Staples Rutland Assistant Store Manager Brandon Levesque, Staples Rutland General Manager Renee Axelson, and CEDRR Member Services Manager Chrispin White.
HFCU grant recipients include Bennington Theater, Create Together in Ludlow, Smokey House in Danby, Mentor Connector in Rutland, and Neighborhood Connections in Londonderry, N.H.
Ludlow Rotary Club President Kevin Barnes, left, with arborist Jack Jacob at a recent meeting.
Billings Farm & Museum Farm Manager Phil Ranney with Agri-Mark Vice President of Membership Jordan Clark in the cow barn at Billings Farm.
AROUND VT
LUDLOW — Jack Jacob, of Wise Oak Tree Service, is an arborist and lawn maintenance expert from South Londonderry who spoke to Ludlow Rotary Club about the loss of many tree species, such as ash, American chestnut, elm, and a beech bark disease attacking local beech trees.
A major issue facing the Northeast is the emerald ash borer, a native of Southeast Asia where there are natural controls, attacking ash trees. The damage is concentrated in New England and the Midwest because of weather conditions and large populations of ash trees. Ash tree removal is the best option for larger stands because chemical treatment is too expensive for broad application at $400 to $500 per tree.
The LRC meets Tuesdays for lunch in Ludlow and is always looking to welcome new members.
RUTLAND — The Bank of Bennington announced the addition of Tim Duguay as business development officer, serving the Rutland area. With nearly two decades of experience working within the local community, he will focus on building relationships with local businesses.
The Bank of Bennington has branches in Bennington, Arlington, Manchester and Rutland.
Applebee’s Vermont locations in Berlin, Burlington and Rutland, operated by Flynn Group, are raising funds for Special Olympics chapters now through June 21.
Guests can purchase Special Olympics pin-up cards in $1 or $5 increments; 100% of proceeds will directly benefit Special Olympics chapters in states where the donations are made. Guests who contribute $5 will receive a $5 off $25 voucher for use during a future visit.
WOODSTOCK — Billings Farm & Museum announced its Jersey herd earned second place for highest milk quality among more than 350 Agri-Mark member farms in 2025. The recognition highlights the farm’s animal care, farming practices, and producing high-quality milk.
The milk from Billings Farm’s herd of grass- and grain-fed Jersey cows is used in Agri-Mark cooperative products from Cabot Creamery, Norwich Creamery, and Billings Farm’s line of cheddar cheeses produced locally by Grafton Village Cheese and Vermont Farmstead Cheese Co. in South Woodstock.
WINDSOR — Mount Ascutney Hospital and Health Center, a member of Dartmouth Health, has been named to Becker’s Hospital Review’s 2026 “100 critical access hospitals to know” list. Becker’s noted the hospitals included on the list are “expanding access to specialty care, reducing the burden of patient travel and bringing meaningful improvements to community health.” Hospitals do not pay for inclusion on the list.
In addition to this recognition from Becker’s, the hospital was also named a “Best-In-State Hospital” by Newsweek in 2024.
RUTLAND — Heritage Family Credit Union celebrated its 70 years on May 14 when nearly 200 guests gathered at Paramount Theatre in Rutland.
Beginning in 1956, when 57 GE employees came together in Ludlow to form Ludlow-Rutland General Electric Employees’ Credit Union, what started with $800 in deposits in its first month has become an $800 million credit union with more than 50,000 members and 11 locations in three states.
During the anniversary celebration, HFCU inaugurated the Dick & Avis Addison Award for Volunteerism in honor of its first recipients for their many years of service to the credit union in Bennington. Other highlights included a commemorative video showing Heritage Family’s evolution, an after-party catered by Roots the Restaurant, and a presentation of a $5,000 grant to five nonprofits from the Heritage Family Cares 4 You Foundation.
The Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation is accepting applications for the Crane Mat Cost-Share Program, a new initiative funded by the U.S. Forest Service that offers low-cost crane mats to logging contractors.
Crane mats, sometimes referred to as swamp mats or timber mats, provide a stable surface for easier use of heavy logging equipment and protect soil and water quality when harvesting in wet or sensitive areas. Eligible logging contractors earning 51% or more of their annual income from timber harvesting can apply for up to 60 hardwood crane mats, each measuring 16 feet long, 4 feet wide, and 8 inches thick, for $45 per mat, 10% of the total cost.
Crane mats will be available by July 1. Participants are required to sign a cost-share agreement with the State of Vermont and obtain a Unique Entity Identifier free of charge through SAM.gov. Applications are due May 30 and can be accessed at fpr.vermont.gov/forests/watershed-forestry/water-quality-assistance-program/crane-mats or by emailing silas.rainville@vermont.gov.
STOWE — Stowe Living, an interior design firm, announced Elvira Tripp is joining its interior design team. Her addition allows the firm to increase its capacity for design services, from full-scale home renovations to interior refreshes. With this expansion, Stowe Living has officially announced it is now accepting new clients for the upcoming season.
— Commencement
Nearly 3,700 Class of 2026 members, family and friends, of the University of Vermont’s eight colleges and schools celebrated the 225th Commencement Ceremony Saturday, May 16, on the University Green in Burlington.
Speakers included UVM Board of Trustees President Cynthia Barnhart; outgoing Student Government Association Vice President Merrick Modun; special guest speaker Ben Ogden, a recent Olympic medalist and UVM alumnus from the Class of 2022; and UVM President Marlene Tromp.
The UVM Graduate College Commencement Ceremony was held Saturday evening at Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction; and the Larner College of Medicine Class of 2026 on Sunday, May 17, at Ira Allen Chapel.
The university named two new recipients of the University Distinguished Professor Award: Professor Paul Bierman of the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources and Professor Alan Steinweiss, Professor of History and the Raul Hilberg Distinguished Professor of Holocaust Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences.
— Board of Trustees’ Annual Spring Meeting
The University of Vermont Board of Trustees’ annual spring meeting was held May 15 at the Dudley H. Davis Center.
Highlights included a trio of new initiatives aimed at STEM education, academic resources, and on-campus support to bolster student retention. President Marlene Tromp discussed the anticipated enrollment decline for fall 2026, citing changing perceptions of the value of higher education, increased competition from other top institutions, and the arrival of the long-anticipated demographic cliff. The board received a project update on the multipurpose center from Tromp and Athletic Director Jeff Schulmann, reviewing the completed elements of the project’s first phases and progress to identify funding to complete the project. The Board approved the FY27 general fund operating expense budget of $457,328,289.
BELMONT — Seven Mount Holly artists will participate in the Spring Vermont Craft Council Open Studio Weekend from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, May 23 and 24, at the Mount Holly Community Association Community Room, located beneath the library, 26 Maple Hill Road in Belmont.
Participating artists Susan Presson, Della Thompson, Madeleine Fay, Chad Farrar, Carl Mitchell, Linda McGrath and Zhena Dickinson Hadar will rotate attendance, discuss their creative processes with visitors, and in some cases demonstrate their work live.
The Vermont Craft Council’s Open Studio Weekend is held twice a year. Free Vermont Studio Tour booklets containing maps and directions are available from participating artists, galleries, and art centers, or may be downloaded from vermontcrafts.com. Open Studio Weekend is supported by the Vermont Arts Council and Point Radio.
Vermont Housing & Conservation Board committed $22,718,076 in state, federal and philanthropic funding needs.
Addison County
Starksboro — Hillside Manor Mobile Home Park (Addison Housing Works), $1,978,125 to support water infrastructure upgrades for drinking water, wastewater, stormwater and roadway improvements at a 29-lot manufactured home community in Starksboro.
Caledonia County
Peacham, Danville, St. Johnsbury — Caledonia Crossing (RuralEdge), $3,000,000 supplemental award will help the project spanning multiple communities to support 43 affordable apartments, including 23 net-new homes.
Chittenden County
Burlington — Ride Your Bike (Jonathon Rose Cos., Ride Your Bike LLC, and Champlain Housing Trust), $6,700,000 to support a 204-unit mixed-income development in Burlington’s South End.
Hinesburg — Riggs Meadow Homeownership (Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity and Champlain Housing Trust), $920,000 to help create eight permanently affordable homeownership homes.
South Burlington — Dorset Commons (Champlain Housing Trust), $5,490,000 for the first phase of rehabilitation at the 105-unit mixed-income community.
Franklin County
Swanton — Farmland Project (Vermont Land Trust), $270,000 to add an Option to Purchase at Agricultural Value for 330 conserved acres in Swanton and strengthen water-quality protections along a tributary of Hungerford Brook.
Grand Isle County
Alburgh — Farm Conservation (Vermont Land Trust), $150,000 to conserve 48.4 acres of productive farmland.
North Hero — Farm Conservation (Vermont Land Trust), $645,000 to conserve 79.2 acres, including productive farmland and 420 feet of Lake Champlain frontage.
Orange County
Randolph — RACDC Portfolio Acquisition (Downstreet Housing and Community Development), $348,459 award to support potential acquisition of the Randolph Area Community Development Corp. portfolio and help preserve permanently affordable homes.
Rutland County
Rutland — Templewood Court (Rutland Housing Authority), $439,325 for electrical infrastructure improvements at the 60-unit affordable housing community serving seniors and people with disabilities.
Washington County
Montpelier — Heaton Street Apartments (Downstreet Housing and Community Development), $1,712,051 will help transform a former office building at 9 Heaton St. into 20 affordable apartments.
Plainfield — Farmland Transfer and Conservation (Vermont Land Trust), $165,000 to conserve 15 acres of farmland, helping a farmer purchase the land to support a growing rural enterprise.
Windsor County
Woodstock — Vondell Cobb Reserve (Vermont Land Trust and Town of Woodstock), $650,000 to conserve 323 acres expanding the town forest and protecting watershed, wildlife habitat and recreation land.
MANCHESTER — Vermont Works for Women is bringing Trailblazers, a free trades training program for women and gender-expansive individuals ages 18 and up, to Manchester. VWW will host a virtual information session at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 3. Applicants should apply by June 8 at www.vtworksforwomen.org/trailblazers.
The seven-week program will run from July 21 to Sept. 3 at Burr & Burton Academy. Participants get hands-on experience in construction, electrical, renewable energy, and other high-demand trades that tend to be male dominated.
MANCHESTER — The fifth annual Women in Leadership Luncheon, hosted by Southwestern Vermont Chamber of Commerce, was held Wednesday, May 13, at Hildene’s Lincoln Hall.
The 2026 luncheon featured a co-keynote presentation from Vermont Women’s Fund Director Emily Bush and Vermont Works for Women Executive Director Rhoni Basden.
An event highlight was the presentation of three awards. The Young Woman in Leadership Award was presented to Mikayla Fisette for her “outstanding leadership, service and positive influence within the Bennington community.” The Woman of the Year Award was presented to Maria Reade in recognition of her “extraordinary leadership, compassion and service through Grateful Hearts Manchester.” The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Sean-Marie Oller for her “longstanding and deeply meaningful contributions to the Bennington community.”
The presenting sponsor was Beacon Bank. Supporting sponsors included Heritage Family Credit Union, Northshire Bookstore, MissionCare, Oliver Automotive Group, Hayden Plumbing & Heating, Zippy Chicks, GMALL, and Union South. In-kind and event partners included The Lily of the Valley Florist, Equinox Audio Visuals, GNAT-TV, Bennington Banner, Manchester Journal, Hildene, and Pangaea Catering.
Do you have a news item for our Business Briefs? Email it to news@rutlandherald or news@timesargus.com. When submitting photographs, please be sure they are larger than 1MB in a jpg format.
Duguay
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