Tuesday, September 12, 2023

Read on for:
Whoopie Pie Festival This Saturday | Volunteers Still Needed | Take Our Business Survey | Cape Air Continues to Provide Service |
What's New in Rutland County | Made at The MINT |
Membership Spotlight | Career Hub | Upcoming Events

Whoopie Pie Festival This Saturday

Saturday, September 16 from 12:00-5:00 p.m. join us in Downtown Rutland on Merchants Row and Center Street for the Second Annual Whoopie Pie Festival!

Sample whoopie pies from over a dozen bakers, watch Dream Maker Bakers assemble a 700-pound whoopie pie, enjoy live entertainment like The Red Trouser Show, eat from food trucks, and much more! Check out our schedule of events above!

This event is sponsored by Heritage Family Credit Union.

Learn more! → 

Still Looking for Whoopie Pie Festival Volunteers

We need your help to make the Second Annual Whoopie Pie Festival a success!

Please sign up to volunteer at the link below. There are about two dozen volunteer opportunities left. The majority of jobs remaining are in the evening, 5:00-7:00 p.m. to help with packing up. Descriptions for each job are listed on the website.

Sign up! → 

Take Our Survey! Employee Attraction and Retention Survey for Business Owners

In collaboration with Social Tinkering, the Chamber & Economic Development of the Rutland Region is interested in learning how both organizations can support you  in retaining and attracting a skilled, dedicated, and happy workforce.

Research continues to prove that positive and inclusive workplaces are critical to attracting and retaining employees and contribute significantly to the overall success of businesses and community economies.

The survey results will help populate a website with resources for community coordination, learning, and evolving workplace culture to help businesses. This survey does not ask for your business name, just your thoughts and needs.

Thank you for taking the time to provide us with guidance and direction. This survey should take about 3 minutes to complete.

Take the Survey → 

Cape Air Tecnam

Cape Air Reselected as Essential Air Service Airline for Rutland, Vermont

On August 30, 2023 the US Department of Transportation (DOT) reselected Cape Air to provide Essential Air Service (EAS) for Rutland, Vermont during a four-year period through October 2027. The DOT order specifies that Cape Air will fly three daily round trip flights between Boston Logan International Airport and the Rutland Southern Vermont Regional Airport in brand new Tecnam Traveller aircraft. JetBlue Airways will continue to codeshare on Cape Air’s Boston – Rutland route. Cape Air has been the EAS carrier for the Rutland region since October 2007.

The company is not only dedicated to providing a high level of service to its passengers but is also committed to being a good business partner within the community.

“Cape Air is an important partner with our region because of its reliability and timeliness, its support and sponsorship of events and activities within our community, and the personal and professional attention it provides to passengers,” said Lyle Jepson, Executive Director of the Chamber & Economic Development of the Rutland Region.

Read the full press release → 

Jeff Dejarnette explains how to use his virtual reality program.

Tacitly, The Hub CoWorks' First Tenant, Featured for Virtual Reality Hospital Training Tool  

Jeff Dejarnette started his company last year after a mentor, Kalow Technologies founder Rick Gile, introduced him to his granddaughter-in-law, a traveling nurse. 

She told him about some of the training challenges traveling nurses face. That’s when he first learned about a code cart, a piece of equipment introduced in the most vital moments of a patient’s hospitalization. 

The code cart, also known as a crash cart, is wheeled into an emergency room to save a patient’s life. It contains instruments for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other medical supplies. The carts enable medical personnel to save time in an emergency, thereby increasing the chance of saving a patient’s life.

However, each hospital configures the carts in a different way, which means that every time traveling nurses arrive at a new hospital, they need to learn the new configuration, Dejarnette said. 

“If we could get people familiar, especially with code blue situations, and train in a comfortable environment, then they’ll be more prepared,” he said. “They’d be less likely to make medication errors.” 

If virtual training on crash carts could reduce cardiac arrest deaths by 5%, he estimated that 10,000 lives a year could be saved in the United States.

Read the full article  → 

"Very Much Open" Visitation Campaign 

Vermont Tourism's flood recovery visitation launched Labor Day weekend with billboards in Vermont's key drive markets, from metro DC to north of Boston. 

Thanks to the support of vendors, Vermont’s ‘very much open’ messaging will appear in over 325 locations in our major markets, including New York, New Jersey, and southern New England, at a fraction of the typical cost.

Additional components of the campaign include national and regional public radio underwriting, digital display advertising, and a series of social media stories that will profile businesses and communities coming back from the flood.

Vermont has also secured sponsorship of the weekly fall foliage reports broadcast on WCVB in Boston, giving us the opportunity to reach a very wide audience in a key market. Along with everyone in the industry, we are looking forward to a hopefully very robust fall foliage season.

Flood Recovery Assistance from Efficiency Vermont

Efficiency Vermont's team of engineers are offering technical assistance for businesses recovering from flooding. Contact Efficiency Vermont for technical assistance to discuss:

• Your business's electrical and mechanical needs
• What equipment qualifies for the flood recovery rebate
• What to do if you're moving locations
• How to mitigate future weather-related damage to your equipment

Businesses whose appliances or equipment were damaged by summer flooding can get assistance from Efficiency Vermont. You can get an additional $1,000 rebate per eligible product, up to four products, in addition to Efficiency Vermont's standard offers. get $1,000 back on qualifying:

• Heating & cooling equipment
• Refrigeration
• Commercial kitchen equipment

Additional rebates may be available.

Learn more and apply →

AmeriCorps NCCC Request for Proposals 

AmeriCorps NCCC is an AmeriCorps Program that places teams of people with a variety of nonprofit and governmental agencies to help meet critical needs rather than providing grant funds. 

Submit a Concept Form for a 2024 project and apply now for a team of 8-12 young adults to serve on your community-based service learning project that focuses on natural and other disasters, energy conservation, environmental stewardship, infrastructure improvement, and urban and rural development.

Informational Webinars:

Friday, September 15 at 10:00 a.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. ET

Register Here: https://americorps.zoomgov.com/j/1604637242

Tuesday, September 19 at 2:00 p.m. CT / 3:00 p.m. ET

Register Here: https://americorps.zoomgov.com/j/1600405980

Request for proposal →

Vermont Ranked #1 for Small Business Support

Vermont's search interest in small businesses has spiked more than any other state since 2019. Across the nation, small business support has increased by 267% in that same period. Using Good Trends data from 2019 to 2022 the following facts were discovered:

• Vermont ranks #1 in small business support
• Vermont's most searched small business category is specialty food stores
• Vermont is 1 of 4 states that most searched for specialty food store small businesses, including Massachusetts, Maine, and Wisconsin
• Despite inflation, searches related to small businesses increased by 33% across 2022

View More Statistics → 

Super Swamped September Schedule

The month of September is filling up quickly at The MINT. Here's what's happening on our calendar, we hope you mark yours!

If you have taken a mosaics class with us before, check out this three-session Mosaic Table Workshop that starts September 20. We provide all materials and step-by-step instructions to take your projects from beginning to end. This class is an intermediate-level class and requires a previous mosaics class.

If you are interested in learning more about 3D printing, try our Introduction to Resign Printing, September 19 and 20. This is a beginner-friendly class. Instruction will be provided on safety, finding files to print, use of slicing software, printing setup, and washing/curing prints. We will learn how to prepare an object to be printed during the first session. We will print, clean, and cure the object in the second session.

There are two opportunities to create Stained Glass Candle Holders. Come make beautiful candle holders with a variety of art glass. Students will learn the basics of stained glass using the copper foil technique. Join Lisa on either Saturday, September 16 or Sunday, September 17.

If classes aren't quite your thing, but you are curious about The MINT, make sure to come during MINTacular!

Each and every one of our shops will be open and operational. Demonstrations and hands-on projects abound. Come get a tour of our 20,000ft makerspace. Meet some of our maker community. Learn more about classes and membership. This is a family-friendly event. All ages and abilities are welcome.

This year, we are excited to align with Vermont Craft Council Open Studios. Some of our makers will have their own crafts and creations for sale.

Learn more about The MINT →

Looking for Business Exposure?

Rutland Young Professionals is an all-volunteer, all-inclusive organization focused on creating a vibrant Rutland Region and promoting all of the opportunities available here to young professionals near and far. We were founded in July 2013 by a group of energetic young professionals seeking a way to connect with other people, jobs, volunteer and mentorship opportunities, professional development, and fun.   

September MeetUp 

·         Rutland Country Club Trivia Night with Jeff Cassarino 

·         September 20 

·         More info and RSVP details will be shared on social media

Reach out to us info@rutlandyoungprofessionals.org 

Learn more about Rutland Young Professionals →

CEDRR would like to thank the following businesses for renewing their membership:

Community College of Vermont, Dream Maker Bakers, and Rutland-Southern Vermont Regional Airport.

The Chamber & Economic Development of the Rutland Region's Career Hub features full-time jobs across Rutland County that provide a salary higher than the Vermont living wage.