AMHERST – The Greater Merrimack/Souhegan Valley Chamber of Commerce is putting their finishing touches on the annual business awards dinner, to be held at Hampshire Hills Athletic Club on Aug. 16.

Chamber president Liz Calabria said nominees are suggested by members or employees of the businesses who have sent in a written nod. They are then voted on by the Chamber committee for the top three spots in five categories. The guest speaker will be Mark Hagopian from Manchester.

“He owned a large transportation company based out of Milford for many years,” she said. “And he was the first COVID patient in New Hampshire. As the first patient, no one then knew what to do for him. His story is full of hope and resiliency. It’s very inspiring. He was the first one who had to experience the ‘no visitors’ policy. He almost died several times. He was in a coma.”

Hagopian came to the chamber’s attention via board member Karen Keating, who is on the business awards committee.

“We were talking about possible keynote speakers,” Calabria said. “This was a while ago. Last year, we had Gov. Sununu and what follows that? First, we came up with our theme, ‘Hope: Forging Stronger Connections.’ Rather than saying something about coming out of COVID, which everybody is sort of sick of hearing that, we’re moving forward – we’re forging stronger connections. And it hit Karen that maybe Mark might be a great option.”

Hagopian created a foundation through the Eliot Hospital, where they raise funds for families of COVID patients. He has spoken several times on behalf of the hospital.

“His story can relate very powerfully to businesses and their challenging recovery from the last year,” Calabria said.

Calabria added that it was difficult to strategize through COVID and many businesses have had to reinvent themselves or make major adjustments in order to stay afloat.

“Now, after trying to stay alive, they’re trying to find unique ways to survive with the lack of the workforce,” she explained. “It’s a big issue. The chamber collaboratives and the Business & Industry Association of New Hampshire is hosting a workforce summit in October. That can’t come soon enough.”

The chamber held its retreat last month, strategizing on how to move forward, perhaps through a job fair or networking event. Calabria acknowledged that the service and food industry has been hit the hardest.

“Someone posted something about Walmart in Amherst over the weekend,” she shared. “There was one register open and one of the self-checkout sections open because they don’t have enough people to monitor that and work the store. And the line to check out was ridiculous.”

Calabria said she was recently contacted by Monica Gallant of the Souhegan Valley Boys & Girls club and Gallant said some of the reason for the workforce not returning to work in specific fields, such as the service industry, is due, again, to the opioid crisis in the state.

“They’re finding a relationship there,” Calabria said. “Plus, I have been talking to Juliette Newcombe at Harbor Care in Nashua. She’s working on a study called, ‘Supportive Employment.’ What they’re doing is mentoring and supporting people who have been out of the workforce for whatever reason and trying to get those people reemployed.”

Calabria said the chamber and HH will work together to try to help pair people with businesses in the GMSBCC.

“Hopefully, that will start fitting together,” she said. “Because how do you get people who don’t want to work, back to work? It is all over the place.”

Businesses are coping in their own ways. Some have adjusted their hours, shortening them, changing the days that they’re open or close, among other measures.

“Some business folks have decided to stay home and not go back to work because they’re home-schooling their kids,” Calabria noted. “I don’t think that’s the majority, but there is a little of that. And then there is the stress and the anxiety that some people are experiencing at the notion of returning to the workforce. There is a resurgence supposedly happening. People are nervous.”