The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
BUSINESS BRIEFS
Burke receives professional award
LAKEVILLE — Salisbury Bank recently announced that Spring Burke, vice president and mortgage advisor, has been named a Five Star Mortgage Professional in 2018. She will be featured in the March issue of Connecticut Magazine.
To receive the Five Star Mortgage Professional award, a mortgage professional must satisfy five objective eligibility and evaluation criteria that are associated with mortgage professionals who provide quality services to their clients. The award process is conducted annually in each market. Spring is a recipient of this prestigious award for the fifth consecutive year.
“Congratulations to Spring on receiving this award for the fifth year in a row,” said Amy Raymond, Senior Vice President, Retail Lending and Commercial Operations, CRA Officer of Salisbury Bank and Trust Company, in a written statement. “We are incredibly proud of Spring and her accomplishments. She goes above and beyond to provide exceptional service to her clients.”
Burke has been in the banking industry since she was 15, when she was part of a work-study program for school. Her official career launched in 2001 at Canaan National Bank, which was acquired by Salisbury Bank in 2004. She has been a top performer in mortgage originations since 2010, according to bank officials.
Watson named executive director of Operation Fuel
BLOOMFIELD — Brenda Watson, of Bloomfield, Conn., has been named Executive Director of Operation Fuel.
“We look forward to working with Brenda in her new role,” said Nancy H. Bulkeley, Operation Fuel’s board chairperson, in a written statement.
Watson joined Operation Fuel in 2010 as its Director of Community Programs. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Florida Memorial University and a master’s degree from Trinity College in Hartford.
Operation Fuel is a statewide nonprofit organization that provides emergency energy assistance yearround to lower-income working families and individuals, the elderly, and disabled individuals who are in financial crisis. Individuals who need energy assistance should call 211. For more information on Operation Fuel or to make a donation, go to www.operationfuel.org.
National Iron Bank opens loan production office in Litchfield
LITCHFIELD — National Iron Bank will open a new loan production office in Litchfield on March 1 at 39 West St. A team of National Iron Bank lenders including Dinesh Rajagopalan, Catherine Dougan and Brock Wehry will staff the office.
“We want to thank the town of Litchfield for welcoming our team to their community and we look forward to serving our existing clients and building new relationships,” said Steven Cornell, President and Chief Executive Officer at National Iron Bank, in a statement. “We are excited to expand our presence and lending capability to the market. Our experienced and professional staff are eager to help our clients achieve their financial goals.”
National Iron Bank has four branches, in Cornwall Bridge, Norfolk, Salisbury and Washington Depot.
Lime Rock Park announces ‘key hires’
LAKEVILLE — Lime Rock Park, the historic motorsports venue, recently announced two “key hires” for its marketing department. Stephen Berner has been tapped to lead the park’s marketing team as director of marketing and business development. Additionally, Marlane White has joined the team, serving as public relations and communications manager. Both will work to further spread the historic park’s story.
With a background in Motorsports Publishing and Ad Agency New Business, Berner will lead Lime Rock’s marketing and communications efforts, working with the executive team to onboard sponsors and partners.
White comes to Lime Rock Park with more than 20 years of communication experience, specializing in the travel and tourism sectors. At Lime Rock, she will oversee content delivery tasks, focused on sharing information on the Park’s digital media streams such as www.limerock.com.
Lime Rock Park kicks off its 2018 season with three events: The Pirelli World Challenge on Memorial Day weekend (May 25-27); the Northeast Grand Prix, featuring the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge (July 20-21); and the historic Festival 36 on Labor Day weekend (Aug. 31 - Sept. 3).
O&G wins paving award for highway project
TORRINGTON — The team of O&G Industries and Tutor Perini Corporation was recently awarded the National Asphalt Pavement Association’s (NAPA) Qual-
ity in Construction Award for the reconstruction of I-95 / I-91 / Route 34 Interchange, known as Contract E.
The six-year, $365 million project was completed in the fall of 2017 and involved the demolition of 19 bridges over the 7.2 mile span of highway, including one that took place overnight in sub-freezing temperatures. The project was one of several that comprised the Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge replacement project.
The project has won four additional awards including: 2017 Congress (CBC) Project Team Award of Merit for a Transportation Project, 2017 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials America’s Transportation Award for Projects over $200M, 2017 Connecticut Road Builders Association (CRBA) Arthur Gruhn Excellence in Construction Award for Large Projects and the 2014 Connecticut Construction Industries Association (CCIA) Excellence in Construction Health & Safety Award.
The award was presented at NAPA’s 63rd Annual Meeting in San Diego on February 14th.
Nutmeg honors Eastside Electric ‘sponsor of month’
TORRINGTON – Sharon E. Dante, founder of Nutmeg Ballet and the Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts, announced recently that Eastside Electric, Inc. has been named Nutmeg’s “Corporate Sponsor of the Month” for February.
“We are grateful to all our sponsors, each of whom generously helps Nutmeg offer quality dance instruction to our students and professional-quality dance entertainment for audiences,” Dante said in a statement. The Nutmeg plans to honor other corporate sponsors in the coming months, she said.
Gregory L. Mele, founder of Eastside Electric, Inc., said he has always had a special place in his heart for Nutmeg Ballet. Not long after he founded Eastside in 1987, the company performed electrical services at Nutmeg’s old Water Street location, updating lighting, panels and more. Mele’s niece, Laura Mele, was a student at Nutmeg. And when the Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts was established at 58 Main Street in 2001, Eastside Electric upgraded the entire electrical system for the building.
“Our affiliation now is that Lee Carter, my estimation project manager, has a daughter, Macy Carter, who dances for Nutmeg, so it’s still kind of near and dear to us,” Mele said.
Mele earned an associates degree in electrical engineering from Waterbury State Technical College and worked for an electrical contractor in Southington for five years before founding Eastside Electric. Home improvement services include windows, siding, remodeling, additions and more. Eastside Electric also sells and installs generators. The company is not too small for large projects at industrial sites, yet not too big to offer personalized service to residential homes, he said. The company has been a longtime friend and sponsor of the Nutmeg and supports its plans to redesign the set for “The Nutcracker,” which is scheduled to be completed in time for Nutmeg’s 50th anniversary in 2019.
Eastside Electric has earned the Register Citizen award for Best Electrician four years in a row, from 2013-2016, and is located at 178 Birge Park Rd., Harwinton. It can be reached at 860-485-0700.
UNICO renews scholarship with arts council
TORRINGTON — The Northwest Connecticut Arts Council is pleased to announce that the Torrington UNICO Foundation Scholarship Fund, a fund of the Northwest Connecticut Community Foundation, has renewed its commitment to The Paulo Abate Mini Grant Arts Award program administered by the Arts Council. This grant has enabled the Arts Council to direct funds to visual and performing art students and practitioners in the region who are 25 years old or younger. The goal of the grant is to foster the talent and career development of Northwest Connecticut youth in all areas of the arts.
Past recipients of the Paolo Abate Mini Grant Arts Award of the Torrington UNICO Foundation Scholarship Fund have included students studying at the Massachusetts College of Art, Berklee College of Music, The Pratt Institute of Art, Hartt School of Music, Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts, Northwestern CT Community College, and those studying with private music teachers. The Arts Council will consider awarding the 2018 grant to either a past recipient to continue arts studies, a new applicant, or a combination of the two, to be announced in the spring of 2018.
The Paolo Abate Mini Grant Arts Award of the Torrington UNICO Foundation Scholarship Fund is named in honor of sculptor and artist Paolo Abate, who lived in Torrington for much of his career. Paolo Salvatore Abate (1884-1973), an internationally renowned sculptor, was born in Italy, and was also a teacher and author. He came to the United States in 1903, first settling in Winsted, then moving to New York City. His New York studio was a gathering place for notable such as Enrico Caruso and Joyce Kilmar, both of whom Abate sculpted. In 1928, he moved to Torrington where he continued to sculpt and teach. Abate was president of the International Fine Arts League, a member of the National Sculptor's Council, the Artists Council, the Connecticut Artists and Writers Society, and was an active member of the Torrington UNICO Club, an Italian/ American service organization.