Woodstock — Woodstock Pizza Chef was named the Woodstock Area Business of the Year at the annual meeting of the Woodstock Area Chamber of Commerce earlier this month. The chamber also honored its 2017 New Business of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.

Gary Thulander, president of the chamber’s board, presented the Business of the Year award in recognition of Woodstock Pizza Chef’s “outstanding spirit and contribution” to the Woodstock area community.

“Owned and operated by Alex Tsouknakis and his family, this family-friendly business … has continuously supported the Woodstock Rotary, the Woodstock Pistol and Gun Club, Woodstock Union High School and Elementary School and virtually every team and club associated with our schools, as well as fire departments and public safety professionals,” a news release from the chamber said. “His personal time and support of local events and organizations is deeply appreciated.”

Andrew Pearce Bowls was selected as the chamber’s 2017 New Business of the Year.

“Andrew Pearce holds a very strong artisan spirit, a love of his family tradition, and at the same time, the courage to take a new path,” the chamber said in the release. “The beauty of using raw, sustainable materials and minimizing environmental impact is deeply appreciated by our community residents and visitors, and represents the brand of Vermont.”

Mary MacVey was named the chamber’s Woodstock Area Volunteer of the Year for her support for “a multitude of community organizations,” including The Woodstock Job Bank, Pentangle, Vermont Symphony Summer Performances, the Thompson Senior Center, the Woodstock Rotary, the Ottauquechee Health Foundation, the Woodstock Garden Club, the East End Action Group and Sustainable Woodstock.

Hartford Chamber Awards; Officer Elections

Dead River Co. was named the Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce Chamber Partner of the Year, and the Upper Valley Aquatic Center was selected as Community Business of the Year at the chamber’s recent annual meeting at the Tip Top Cafe in White River Junction.

Bill Blaiklock and Crystal Rogers accepted the award on behalf of Dead River, and Rich Synnott accepted on behalf of UVAC.

The Hartford chamber’s board of directors and officers elected for 2017 were: Tammy Latvis of Curves, chair; Nicolaas Bekker of Ledyard National Bank, vice chair; Irene Green of Northern Stage, secretary; Cheryl Lindberg of Lindell Associates LLC, treasurer; Tricia Kent of Community College of Vermont; Steven Burnett of The Richards Group; Rick Trahan of The Quechee Inn; Lindsay Obar of Mike’s Store & Deli; Lynn Luczkowski of L2 Communications; Jason Whitney of Whitney Pension Associates; Tan Nunez of Hartford Parks and Recreation; and Marcos Stafne of the Montshire Museum of Science.

Company News

Engineering Ventures, which provides land use planning, permitting, and civil and structural engineering to institutions, housing organizations, public facilities and private clients, has relocated its offices within the Rivermill Building at 85 Mechanic St. The new office is Suite E2-3, a ground-floor location that the company said will help improve client service, offer new amenities for its 30 employees, and allow room for growth in both civil and structural services. “Recent growth in the structural staff in the Lebanon office was the catalyst for a larger space,” the company said in a news release. Engineering Ventures also has an office in Burlington.

Upcoming Event

The Upper Valley chapter of SCORE is offering a morning workshop on Starting Your Own Business on Thursday, from 9-noon at 20 W. Park St., Lebanon, Suite 316, in the Citizens Bank Building. A primer on developing and managing any new business, this workshop provides critical materials and a step-by-step process for developing a business plan. The format is a combination of presentations and discussion. The presenter will be John M. Roy, who has 15 years of management experience in trust and investment service operations; 18 years in financial and information technology management positions in the nonprofit sector; and seven years in engineering positions in chemical-petroleum plant operations. He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a graduate diploma in management from McGill University. Cost is $40, two for $60. Veterans free. For more information or to reserve a spot, visit www.uppervalley.score.org, email score@valley.net or call 603-448-3491.

Items of interest to the local business community are published in the Business & Money section of the Sunday Valley News. Submissions may be sent by email to: biznotes@vnews.com (high-resolution photographs may be attached in .jpg format), or by mail to: Business Notes, c/o Sunday Valley News, P.O. Box 877, White River Junction, Vt. 05001. (Photographs cannot be returned unless accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope.) All items are subject to editing for clarity or space.

Correction

This story was updated to correct the spelling of Rich Synnott’s and Crystal Rogers’ last names.