Small Grafton Farm Turns To Online Sales, Social Media Engagement

Small Grafton Farm Turns To Online Sales, Social Media Engagement

Sayer Palmer was all ready to launch her businesses, coming into 2020. She’d long had plans to start a farming career, but they’d been delayed after she became pregnant in 2018. Now, she was ready to get started, providing fresh, local produce to Grafton, Canaan and Enfield.

“I had started ordering seeds, gathering supplies, and doing a lot of crop planning and business planning,” said Palmer, owner of Open Woods Farm in Grafton.

Then, in February, the coronavirus outbreak began to catch her attention. In March, Vermont announced that it would not open farmers markets because of the pandemic, and Palmer was worried that New Hampshire might do the same, undermining her business plan.

Laid Off Auto Techs Use Pandemic To Start Shop

Laid Off Auto Techs Use Pandemic To Start Shop

When Tyler Stager and his friend David Symonds found themselves working reduced hours at their jobs as automotive technicians, they started chasing their long-held dream of starting their own auto shop.

“It gave us time to think,” said Stager, 27.

At the time, Stager and Symonds were working at two different New Hampshire auto shops. Both had had hours reduced, and Stager was ultimately laid off. But despite that, the duo became convinced that the pandemic could be a good time to start a business.

Manchester Nonprofit Distributes More Food To Address Pandemic Food Insecurity

Manchester Nonprofit Distributes More Food To Address Pandemic Food Insecurity

Fueled By Kids is a nonprofit that was founded in 2016 by Mikol’s oldest sister, Grace, who is now a junior in college. She was at one of Mikol’s basketball games, when she started chatting to a social worker about food insecurity in the Manchester school system. Rather than just talking about the problem, Grace took action, starting a program that fed about 80 kids that year.

Amid Social Distancing, Non-profit Aims To Keep Veterans Engaged

Amid Social Distancing, Non-profit Aims To Keep Veterans Engaged

During September, David Gray, of Warner, spent countless hours in the North Country, tucked into a tree stand beside his fellow veterans, both men and women. Gray is the New Hampshire lead for The Fallen Outdoors, a nonprofit that provides outdoor activities for veterans and active-duty military. He was bear hunting with the veterans, but also serving a much bigger purpose.

New Hampshire Social Services Contractor Braces For Long-term Impact of Pandemic

New Hampshire Social Services Contractor Braces For Long-term Impact of Pandemic

When the pandemic hit in March, Waypoint, a social service organization that serves people throughout New Hampshire, sent their 300 employees home. But much of their work with at-risk populations was essential — there were still seniors in need of home care, new young mothers in need of visits and homeless youth that needed food and clothing.

Transparency and Employee Happiness Drive Manchester Landscaping Firm

Transparency and Employee Happiness Drive Manchester Landscaping Firm

When coronavirus hit New Hampshire in March, medical providers and trucking facilities were essential to keeping the state functioning and supplying peace-of-mind when everything seemed uncertain. Many of them turned to Mark Aquilino, president of Outdoor Pride, to make sure that they and their customers could come and go as needed

Laundry Service Thrives During The Pandemic

Laundry Service Thrives During The Pandemic

Laura Simoes and Kristyn Van Ostern both have careers, families and partners who also work full-time. They could outsource some stressful household tasks like landscaping or cleaning, but laundry was ever-present.

Three years ago, they realized that there had to be a better option, and they founded Wash Street. The Manchester business provides an on-site laundromat, laundry service with free drop-off and pick-up, and dry-cleaning.

Salem Spirit Company Embraces Hand Sanitizer Long-term

Salem Spirit Company Embraces Hand Sanitizer Long-term

Philip Mastroianni was surrounded by lemons and tequila when he realized that his world was about to change.

Along with his brother, Nick, Mastroianni owns Fabrizia Spirits in Salem. Over the past few years, the company has expanded into canned cocktails and other liquors, but their flagship product remains limoncello, a liquor made by infusing one million lemons into gallons of alcohol in preparation for the busy summer season.