OCTOBER 30, 2007
BRATTLEBORO, VT — The Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation (BDCC) hosted its Annual Meeting of Trustees on October 23, 2007, at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center. In addition to reports from the president, the executive director, and the treasurer, the meeting featured the election of 11 new members and the election of officers.
New members are Bob Johnson (Omega Optical), Rashed Kanaan (C. E. Bradley Laboratories), Martin Langeveld (Brattleboro Reformer), Ralph Meima (Marlboro College), Jeff Morse (River Valley Credit Union), Drew Richards (The Richards Group ), Randi Solin (Solinglass), Bob Stevens (Stevens & Associates, P.C.), Adam Weinberg (World Learning), Dwight Williams (KeyBank), and Jill Zachary (R.O.V. Technologies).
Peter Van Oot (Downs Rachlin Martin PLLC) was elected president, Hugh Barber (SVE Associates) was elected vice president, and Tammy Richards (Pieciak & Co., P.C.) was elected Assistant Treasurer. John V. P. Meyer (also of Pieciak & Co.) is Treasurer, and Richard Carroll and Stephen Phillips (both of Kristensen, Cummings, Phillips & Carroll, PC) are Clerk and Assistant Clerk, respectively.
Stephan Morse, president and CEO of the Windham Foundation, was presented with the 2007 BDCC Founders Award. Morse, a longtime resident of Newfane, was lauded as “a politician, businessman, and philanthropist” by Mark Richards of The Richards Group, who introduced him and presented the award.
Morse was elected to the Vermont legislature in 1977, and in 1981 became the youngest-ever Speaker of the House. For the past 24 years he has led the Windham Foundation, a nonprofit development and grant-making organization serving Windham County and Vermont. He also leads the Foundation’s four separate business units, Grafton Village Cheese, The Old Tavern at Grafton, the Retreat Farm and Grafton Village Nursery.
BDCC’s Founders Award is bestowed on community members whose actions have helped to make a positive difference in our area, particularly in its business climate. They are known for creating value-added jobs and for promoting the economic vitality of the region.
The annual meeting’s guest speaker was Kevin Dorn, secretary of the Vermont Agency of Commerce & Community Development. With a background in legislative politics and business economics, he is responsible for activities ranging from attracting tourists, to fostering business growth and creating jobs for Vermonters, to preserving historic buildings. He spoke about the aging population of Vermont, the need to draw younger workers to the state to help revitalize the economy, and the core need for affordable housing.
BDCC is a private, nonprofit economic development organization that serves as a catalyst for industrial and commercial growth in Windham County. Its primary objective is to create and retain a flourishing business community that supports vibrant fiscal activity and improves the quality of life for all the county’s residents. Founded in 1954, BDCC owns and manages the Cotton Mill industrial park/incubator and the new business park at the former Book Press building, among other facilities, and is one of 12 Vermont Regional Development Corporations. It also sponsors an annual Business Plan Competition from late October to mid-March, awarding cash prizes to help encourage local entrepreneurship.
For more information about BDCC, call 802-257-7731 or email bdcc@sover.net