Interim admin named

WILTON – Paul C. Branscombe of Louden has been named Interim Town Administrator. The Select Board made the announcement and introduced Branscombe at their regular meeting on Monday, following a short non-public session.

He was among the finalists for the position during the last search last year which resulted in the hiring of Scott Butcher who recently resigned.

Branscombe has been in municipal government for ten years, serving as administrator in the towns of Ashland and Gilmanton. He is in the insurance business.

He expected to be in his office on Friday and his hours will be determined next week.

A search committee was named to select a new administrator: Harry Dailey, Jane Farrell, Jerry Coffey, Sarah Spittel, and Steve Desrosiers. Selectboard Chairman Kellie-Sue Boissonnault will serve as non-voting chairman of the committee

The search committee is advisory only. Final selection will be made by the Select Board.

Production set for May 12

HANCOCK – The first Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” will showcase the talents of Music On Norway Pond’s Junior Minstrels (aka Junior Mints) on May 12 at 4 p.m. Interestingly, Webber was only 17 and Rice 20 years old when they wrote Joseph.

This season, the Mints comprise 21 youngsters from grade two through eight from Antrim, Dublin, Hancock, Harrisville, Keene, Lyndeborough, Milford, Peterborough, Temple, and Wilton. Led by MONP Artistic Director Jody Hill Simpson, past Junior Mints members have also performed at Tanglewood with the Boston Pops-and their annual spring musical is always a hit here in the Monadnock Region. In 2017 Simpson was honored with the prestigious Alfred Nash Patterson Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing individuals who have made exceptional contributions to choral music in New England.

First presented as a 20-minute pop cantata in London in 1968, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” didn’t really catch on until after the Webber/Rice blockbuster hit, “Jesus Christ Superstar.” The 1970s saw numerous expanded stage productions, as well as recordings, and this musical has been happily revived ever since.

As the son of Isaac and the grandson of Abraham, Joseph was one of three patriarchs in Judaism and a forefather of the Jewish people. In Christianity, Jacob is seen as a prefiguration of Christ, and his sons as anticipations of the Twelve Apostles.

In the MONP production, Joseph (as Jacob’s favored son with a gift for interpreting dreams) is played by Jaimini Viles of Harrisville. His brothers resented him for being so beloved by their father, and they betrayed him, creating the musical’s plot. With continuous music and song in many different styles, including an appearance by Elvis as the Pharoah, portrayed by Daniel McCall of Peterborough.

With its family-friendly story and catchy music, Joseph promises to be yet another Jr. Mints hit. And this musical also makes the perfect Mother’s Day weekend event on Saturday, May 12 at 4pm in the Hancock Meeting House.

Suggested admission: $20 per family; MONP productions last approximately one hour without intermission.

Bank receives honor

MANCHESTER – St. Mary’s Bank recently received two Diamond Awards for outstanding marketing and business development achievements in the credit union industry.

The nation’s first credit union won the Complete Campaign category for its summer 2017 Go Mobile campaign that promoted the adoption of the institution’s easy and convenient Mobile Banking platform. St. Mary’s Bank also won the Financial Education category for its September 2017 Shredtember focus that encouraged behaviors that reduce the risk of identity theft and account fraud.

The 2018 Diamond Awards, presented by the Credit Union National Association’s (CUNA) Marketing & Business Development Council, honored credit unions’ marketing strengths across 35 categories ranging from advertising to community events and beyond.

“These credit unions represent the best and brightest in marketing and business development,” states Amber Scott, Chair of the Diamond Awards Committee and Vice President of Marketing and Communications at 1st MidAmerica Credit Union in East Alton, Illinois. “Their inventive, passionate, and exciting initiatives inspire us to take chances, be bold, and try new and untested approaches.”

Award winners were recognized at the Marketing & Business Development Council’s 25th annual conference held March 11-14 in San Francisco. For more information on the Diamond Awards or to view the complete list of winners, go to www.cunacouncils.org/awards.

St. Mary’s Bank has locations in Manchester, Hudson, Londonderry, Milford, and Nashua, with mortgage centers in Concord, Nashua, and Portsmouth. For more information, call 1-888-786-2791 or visit www.stmarysbank.com.

Museum opening set

MONT VERNON – After completing a very well received four-part Winter Program Series that included the history of the town’s schools, hotels that were once in town, and Lamson Farm, the Mont Vernon Historical Society is now preparing to open the museum for the season on Spring Gala Day, Saturday, May 19, from 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. (Closed during the 11 a.m. parade down Main Street.) The museum, located on the second floor of the Town Hall, opened twenty-eight years ago in 1990.

This year, the museum’s new exhibits are going to focus on the time period when the Nineteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution was passed. The amendment, passed in 1920, prohibits the states and the federal government from denying citizens the right to vote on the basis of sex. To mark its importance, historical society member Anna Szok will be in this year’s parade dressed as a suffragette.

Other exhibits in the museum include David Dutton and John Nutter clocks dating from the mid-1800s, an 1858 map of Hilllsboro County showing Mont Vernon when it was known as Mount Vernon, and the window and bank of mail boxes from the post office when it was located behind the general store from 1975-95. In addition see Lamson Farm and Grand Hotel memorabilia, and a quilt that was made by the King’s Daughters’ organization featuring a square that is over 150 years old.

There is also a small library in the museum and a selection of historical society books, note cards, sweatshirts, and T-shirts for sale in the museum’s store.

House Plaques

A personalized plaque may be ordered for your home or given as a gift. They are suitable for old homes and new. You choose the wording. There are two shapes and three sizes available with the prices ranging from $40-60. Order forms available at the Mont Vernon General Store, Daland Memorial Library, and Selectmen’s Office in the Town Hall. Payments need to accompany each order. Money raised will be used for ongoing preservation projects.

Pet squad established

AMHERST – Walkin’ Pets by HandicappedPets.com, an online pet product company that produces products for aging, disabled, and injured pets, announces the Walkin’ Pets Care Squad initiative to help disabled and senior dogs and cats in rescues and shelters. The initiative established a 25 percent Care Squad discount on all Walkin’ Pets products for animal rescues and shelters with official nonprofit or government status, making it easier to outfit animals with pet wheelchairs or harnesses they might need. Photos and stories of disabled and senior animals are being shared to increase their chances of finding permanent homes, and to publicize the efforts of the rescues and shelters working to help them.

Rescues typically find foster homes for animals until an adoptive home is found, whereby shelters usually have a facility where the animal is kept until either a permanent home is located, or the animal is euthanized. National estimates put the annual number of shelter dogs at 3.3 million and cats at 3.2 million, making it hard to find enough adoptive homes; of those animals, an estimated 670,000 dogs and 860,00 cats are euthanized. Rescues and shelters generally have an even harder time finding adoptive homes for disabled and senior dogs and cats, who often have special needs of one sort or another.

The Walkin’ Pets Care Squad has a dedicated webpage on the Walkin’ Pets website where it showcases disabled and senior animals waiting to find forever homes, and also features a “Rescue of the Month” and pets who have found their happy endings. Stories are also shared on the Walkin’ Pets blog and social media sites, all in an effort to give the harder to adopt animals a greater chance at finding families to love them. Tucker, aka Bark Kent, a disabled puppy rescued by the Brown Dog Coalition & Rescue in Massachusetts, was one of the first recipients of the Care Squad’s efforts; his story can be found in this blog post: https://www.handicappedpets.com/blog/disabled-rescue-dog-happy-ending/

Rescues and shelters wishing to receive the 25 percent Care Squad discount may contact Walkin’ Pets Veterinary Outreach & Support/Rescue Liaison directly at: (866) 578-2926 or vetresources@walkinpets.com.

Jurkiewicz introduced

WILTON – Roedel Companies recently introduced Jennie Jurkiewicz as director of food and beverage for RGH Hospitality, its hotel management subsidiary.

Jurkiewicz is responsible for helping set the standard for operating procedures, creating financial expectations and elevating the customer experience. She works with all 11 properties in the New Hampshire-based hotelier’s portfolio of properties throughout the Northeast.

Jurkiewicz has 20 years of experience as a food and beverage director. She was most recently Food and Beverage Director for Hilton Boston Logan Airport.

“Jennie is the right person to keep RGH Hospitality growing,” says Glenn A. Hardman, President of RGH Hospitality. “She has the experience we need, the attention to detail we look for and the passion for this industry that we demand.”

With the recent addition of three event spaces (The Event Center in Nashua, Falls Event Center in Manchester and Hotel Saranac in Saranac Lake, N.Y.) and expanded offerings throughout its portfolio, Roedel Companies saw a need for streamlined food and beverage management. RGH Hospitality now has an Executive Chef and a Director of Food and Beverage supporting properties at the company level.

“We want to ensure the best customer experience at each of our properties,” Hardman says.

Jurkiewicz is a former catechist in her church and remains active in the community as a volunteer in Youth Ministry and a volunteer for charities that support pancreatic cancer awareness.

Chareth receives honor

For the third consecutive year, Edward Jones financial advisor Marc Chareth of Milford has been named to Barron’s magazine’s annual list of “America’s Top 1,200 Financial Advisors, State by State.”

Chareth, who has served area investors for the past 26 years, ranked No. 6 in the state of New Hampshire.

He said, “Being named to the Barron’s list is a great honor. The relationships between my clients and me are built on respect, collaboration and trust, and I am grateful for them. I especially enjoy helping clients identify needs and goals, and then build tailored strategies to achieve them. There’s nothing more important to me than what’s important to my clients.”

His office is located at 1 Elm Street in Milford. He and his branch team – Senior Branch Office Administrator Joanne Miller and Branch Office Administrator Lisa Madsen – can be reached at 603-673-3957.

Barron’s magazine’s “America’s Top 1,200 Financial Advisors, State by State” ranking appeared in the March 12 edition. Barron’s Top 1,200 criteria is based on assets under management, revenue produced for the firm, regulatory record, quality of practice, philanthropic work and more. The rating is not indicative of the financial advisor’s future performance. Neither Edward Jones nor any of its financial advisors pay a fee to Barron’s in exchange for the rating. Barron’s is a registered trademark of Dow Jones & Co., L.P.

Edward Jones, a Fortune 500 company headquartered in St. Louis, provides financial services in the United States and, through its affiliate, in Canada. Every aspect of the firm’s business, from the investment its financial advisors offer to the location of its branch offices, caters to individual investors. The firm’s 16,000-plus financial advisors serve more than 7 million clients and care for $1 trillion in assets under management. Edward Jones ranked No. 5 on FORTUNE magazine’s 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2018. Visit the firm’s website at www.edwardjones.com and its recruiting website at www.careers.edwardjones.com. Member SIPC.

Geography bee

On Jan. 18, 27 5th-8th graders at the Amherst Middle School competed in the school-wide Geography Bee for a chance to represent our school in the New Hampshire Statewide Geography Bee. After many grueling rounds, two 5th grade finalists emerged; Josh Spillane and Asher Griffin. Josh and Asher then competed in the Championship Round and Asher Griffin emerged as the finalist and champion for the Amherst Middle School. Asher Griffin then took a qualifying exam and his scores qualified him to move on to the N.H. Statewide Geography Bee which was held April 6 at Keene State College!

Geography Bee participants were:

Grade 8: 1. Nick Vaccarro, 2. Miles Lim, 3. Nate Shepard, 4. Dylan Dufour.

Grade 8: 1. Ryan Humphrey, 2. Luke Romano, 3. Catherine Hinse, 4. Sarah Tupper.

Grade 7: 1. Corie McNamara, 2. Ethan Charbonneau, 3. Daniel Damiano, 4. Andrew Coleman.

Grade 7: 1. Ben Roy, 2. PJ Cloutier/Kennedy, 3. Josh Pisinski, 4. Keegan O’Keefe.

Grade 6: 1. Marina Tower, 2. Sam Bartle.

Grade 6: 1. Maxine Marnielli, 2. Genny Koch. Alternate: Jessie Belvins.

Grade 6: 1. Nick Weedon, 2. Sophia Swanson.

Grade 5: 1. Swayer Moran, 2. Brynn Biscovich, Alternate: Glenn (Jake) Dodge.

Grade 5: 1. Joshua Spillane, 2. Jaiden Bosquet, Alternate: Maeve McNamara

Grade 5: 1. Asher Griffin, 2. Natalie Heimarck.