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CASA NH is Looking for Volunteers to Speak Up for Abused Children in the Granite State – 04/06/2021

April is National Child Abuse Awareness & Prevention Month, making it a good time to focus on what is being done to help abused and neglected children in New Hampshire.
Since 1989, CASA of NH has been training volunteers to speak up for abused and neglected children in NH’s court system. Diane Valladares is the Recruitment Director at CASA and she joined Roy on today’s Morning Show to talk about CASA‘s mission and about volunteering for CASA. Listen below!

For more information about CASA NH and how YOU can volunteer go to CASANH.ORG
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Settlers Green is Adding 5 NEW Tenants including an Arcade!

Settlers Green is adding five new tenants including an arcade for Summer 2021.

It is also expanding Stonewall Kitchen and Kitchen Store Outlet and welcoming back local favorites Cheese Louise and Trails End Ice Cream to the food kiosks in the Courtyard.

Ryan Family Amusements will be opening an arcade next to Old Navy that will include a game room with skill, prize and video games. Ryan’s can host birthday parties, private parties and fundraising events.

There will be a new candy shop, Sweetz & More, set to open in early May next to Under Armour.

For the adults, new alcohol retailer Beer & Wine Nation offers a unique list of microbrews including singles and bombers, four-packs, and six-packs, along with a curated collection of popular wines. Beer & Wine Nation is set to open in June next to White Mountain Cupcakery at Suite D54.

Also en route is Pepper Palace is a family-owned business that started in 1989 in Wisconsin and has grown to over 100 retail locations in the US and Canada. Award-winning products include hot sauce, dry rubs, and salsa.

Beyond new stores, several expansions and construction projects are underway.

“Kitchen Store Outlet has doubled its size since its initial opening last September,” Settlers Green’s Laura Lemieux said. “There is high-demand for home goods and kitchen products in today’s market and this store has a lot to offer.”

There is also a flurry of construction activity taking place as OVP Management Inc. prepares to make way for Market Basket. Site work is expected to begin by summer at Settlers Green Streetside. On Route 16 across from Settlers Crossing, construction of a new building that will include Chipotle Mexican Grill in on track and expected to be complete by August.

OVP Management, Inc., a Newton, Massachusetts based real estate development company that has developed over 500,000 square feet of commercial properties in North Conway. Settlers Green is also the home of the Mt. Washington Radio Group.

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President Biden Signs Into Law Senator Hassan’s Bipartisan Bill to Expand Veterans’ Access to Vaccines

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden signed into law bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan, a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and her colleagues that will expand COVID-19 vaccine access to all veterans, their spouses, and their caregivers through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

While many VA Medical Centers offer vaccines to veterans who receive their health care through the VA, this new law changes the policy that restricted VA Medical Centers from providing no-cost vaccine options for veterans not enrolled in VA services. Now VA Medical Centers have the option to offer vaccines to veterans who are not enrolled in VA services – as well as their spouses and caregivers.

“Getting more vaccines into arms is critical to our efforts to save lives and get through this devastating pandemic. I am very pleased that President Biden signed into law our bipartisan bill that will allow VA Medical Centers to build on their current vaccination efforts. Because of this new law, more veterans – and their spouses and caregivers – will be able to get vaccinated more quickly,” said Senator Hassan. “I will continue to work to strengthen our country’s vaccine production and distribution, and help ensure that veterans receive the care that they deserve and have earned.”

The bipartisan Strengthening and Amplifying Vaccination Efforts to Locally Immunize all Veterans and Every Spouse (SAVE LIVES) Act would allow the VA to provide no-cost COVID vaccination services to all veterans, the spouses of veterans, caregivers, and Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) recipients to the extent that such vaccines are available. The legislation also urges the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to adjust the VA’s vaccine allocation based on this increased eligibility pool, as much as the supply chain allows.

The SAVE LIVES Act will expand VA’s authority to provide vaccines to:

  • Veterans who are not eligible for enrollment in VA’s health care system, including veterans without compensable service-connected disabilities and veterans who have incomes above a certain threshold;
  • Caregivers of veterans who are enrolled in various VA home-based and long-term care programs;
  • Veterans living abroad who rely on the Foreign Medical Program;
  • Spouses of veterans; and
  • CHAMPVA recipients (spouses or children of permanently and totally disabled veterans or of veterans who have died from service-connected disabilities).

Senator Hassan is working to support veterans throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. The Senator recently participated in a Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee hearing, where she pressed top officials at the VA about what the agency is doing to distribute COVID-19 vaccines quickly and efficiently to veterans in New Hampshire and across the country. Additionally, the American Rescue Plan that Senator Hassan helped pass into law will strengthen veterans’ health care services, including to support mental health and telehealth, and also includes significant funding for job training to help veterans get good-paying jobs. Senator Hassan also recently helped secure key priorities for Granite State veterans in the bipartisan veterans package that was signed into law earlier this year, including the Deborah Sampson Act, which Senator Hassan joined in introducing to eliminate barriers to care and services that many women veterans face. The bipartisan package also included a number of other measures cosponsored by Senator Hassan, including supporting veterans experiencing homelessness, helping veterans safely dispose of unwanted medication, and helping address the high rate of unemployment among veterans as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, last year Senator Hassan cosponsored bipartisan legislation, which is now law, to improve veterans’ access to mental health care in New Hampshire and across the country.

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2021 Mount Washington Valley Mr. Crowned

Clay Groves is Valley Mr. 2021 – Picture courtesy of Valley Promotions

 

NORTH CONWAY, NH – Over $29,000.00 was raised for local non-profits by the 11 men who competed in the 2021 Mount Washington Valley Mr. Pageant, aired on Sunday, March 21st.  Presented by Mount Washington Valley Promotions, the collaborative fund-raising event was hosted virtually by Valley Vision Channel 3.  Each man was scored in Interview, Runway and Prepared Speech by a panel of judges.  In addition, each was asked to collect funds for his chosen non-profit, those figures also factoring into the final score.

At the end of the pageantry, Clay Groves, representing White Mountains Pride, was crowned 2021 Valley Mr. and received a check for $500.00 for the organization, in addition to the funds he raised in his Ca$h Can.  Eric Moran represented White Horse Recovery, claiming the Runner-up position. Top fund-raiser, for Conway Area Humane Society, was Jimmy Gardner.  The other contestants were Marshall Allan – representing Carroll County RSVP, Del Bean – representing Harvest Hills Animal Shelter, Brendan King – representing Linderhof Country Club, Joe McCusker – representing North Conway Community Center, Tee Rendleman – representing Project SUCCEED, Benjamin Russell – representing Visiting Nurses of Carroll County & Western Maine, Grayson Smith – representing M&D Playhouse and Robert Young – representing North Conway Rotary Club.

Reigning Mount Washington Valley Ms., Laurie Ramsay, served as emcee of the event, with 2019 Mount Washington Valley Mr., Christopher Bellis, passing the crown to the new king.  Entertainment was provided by Kennett Drumline, Kennett Dance Team, Miss MWV Teen Ella Fecteau and Miss NH for America Hannah-Jo Weisberg.  Local businesses donated “swag” items for all of the participants so everyone who participated, and their causes, were winners in the end.

Event organizer and Valley Promotions Executive Director, Lisa DuFault, was thrilled with the collaboration.  “Not only did these men represent their chosen organizations well”, she stated, “they supported one another and raised a LOT of money for the local non-profits”.

To learn about future collaborative events,  visit www.ValleyPromotions.net.

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NH DNCR Opens FY2021 ‘Moose Plate’ Cultural Conservation Grant Round

The N.H. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources is now accepting letters of intent for projects seeking funding from its Conservation License Plate fiscal year 2021 grant round.

DNCR “Moose Plate” grants support the restoration, preservation and / or conservation of publicly owned items significant to New Hampshire’s cultural heritage.

Three of the DNCR’s divisions – the Division of Historical Resources, the State Council on the Arts and the State Library – support cultural conservation grant programs through Moose Plate funding. Each division’s grant program has specific requirements.

Organizations seeking Moose Plate grant funding are required to submit a letter of intent, providing a brief description of the project and confirming that the resource is publicly owned, by May 7th. Applicants will be notified if their project fits a DNCR division’s program criteria. They may then choose to submit a full application by June 25th.

More information about each division’s specific grant program requirements is available at dncr.nh.gov/moose_plate. Applicants may only apply to one DNCR grant program in a given year.

Each year, the DNCR receives a percentage of funds raised from the sales of Moose Plates. To help preserve the state’s cultural heritage, the department designates a portion of those funds for the conservation of cultural resources in New Hampshire.

Funds received by the DNCR also support its Division of Forests and Lands’ Natural Heritage Bureau and its Division of Parks and Recreation’s Historic Sites Bureau.

In fiscal year 2019, 30 projects received a total of $269,218 in DNCR cultural conservation grant funding.

For more information about the Moose Plate Program, including how to purchase a Moose Plate, visit mooseplate.com.

The N.H. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources’ five divisions are dedicated to protecting, promoting and managing a wide variety of New Hampshire’s natural, recreational and cultural resources.

Together, these resources help define our state and are major drivers of our economy and high quality of life. For more information, visit dncr.nh.gov.

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How to Watch the KHS Girls Basketball Championship

North Conway, NH – If you were hoping to watch the championship basketball game this Sunday in Bedford between Kennett High School and Bishop Brady girls basketball teams on Valley Vision, you’re going to have to wait to watch for free.

According to Rick West at Valley Vision, NH Intersholastic Athletic Association regulations regarding LIVE broadcasts of any State Championship game, ONLY the National Federation of High Schools Network may broadcast this game LIVE.

Valley Vision WILL be there and covering the game, but ONLY for delayed broadcast beginning Tuesday (03/16) evening at 7pm on Channel 3.  They will also be streaming to the Valley Vision website and to the Valley Vision Facebook page over the course of next week. Again, this is due to NHIAA restrictions for championship games.

If you want to watch the game live, you will need to go to the National Federation website; nfhsnetwork.com sign up and pay a fee of $10.99.

Again, you will need to go to the National Federation of High Schools Network on the web. At the top of the home page you will see a search bar. Type in Kennett High School and you will be directed to the payment area. The game can be viewed on a number of platforms.

Game time is 5PM. The championship match is being played at Bedford because it’s a neutral site.