The Latest: Week of March 13, 2026

The Latest is a roundup of the comings and goings of the movers and shakers in NH's business community

HEALTH CARE

Granite VNA, New Hampshire’s largest nonprofit home health and hospice agency, has named James Culhane as its next president and CEO. He will succeed Beth Slepian, who has served in that role since 2015, upon her retirement in June 2026. Culhane has served as president and CEO of Lake Sunapee Region VNA & Hospice in New London since 2015.

Concord Hospital (CH) has been recognized as a 2026 Evernorth Behavioral Health Center of Excellence (COE) for Mental Health – Adult at the inpatient level of care, a distinction that highlights the hospital’s commitment to high-quality, coordinated and cost-effective behavioral health treatment. The hospital also met Evernorth’s cost-efficiency and utilization standards, supporting 20 unique adult mental health treatment episodes with an average cost per admission of $5,580, excluding physician charges.

Five Catholic Charities NH skilled nursing facilities have received a 2026 Customer Experience Award from Activated Insights: St. Teresa Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Manchester, St. Francis Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Laconia, St. Ann Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Dover, St. Vincent Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Berlin, and Warde Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Windham. Each organization ranked within the top 15% of care providers across the nation over the past 12 months on key customer service and operational areas such as nursing care, life enrichment activities, seamless admission processes, safety and security, and more.

Concord Hospital Primary Care – Meredith has been named Best Medical Clinic in Meredith for 2025 by BusinessRate as part of the BusinessRate Best of 2025 Awards. The recognition honors local organizations that demonstrate excellence in customer satisfaction, brand reputation and service quality. Award recipients are selected based on verified Google Reviews data, reflecting authentic feedback from patients and community members.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Kevin Kimball, CLTC, AIF, has joined the Concord office of LPM Advisory Group, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC, as a financial advisor.

NHTrust has promoted Kelly Brown to senior vice president, wealth operations manager, responsible for daily operations at NHT Wealth Management, a division of NHTrust. She joined NHTrust in 2021 as assistant vice president, trust administration manager, and was promoted in 2022 to vice president, administration and operations manager.

Judith L. Bomster, J.D., was named a senior vice president, senior trust officer, with Cambridge Trust Wealth Management. She has more than 25 years of legal experience, including most recently as senior attorney and head of the Estate Planning Practice Group at Morneau Law, and previously as a shareholder at Sheehan Phinney Bass & Green.

Michael Quinn has joined Merrimack County Savings Bank (The Merrimack) as vice president, commercial portfolio loan officer based out of the Bank’s Nashua branch. Quinn brings more than 25 years of experience in commercial banking and venture lending to the role, specializing in structuring debt solutions and managing commercial portfolios, helping businesses navigate their financing needs and move confidently toward their goals.

For the 12th consecutive year, Eastern Bank has received a score of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2026 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), a nationwide benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion. Eastern joins 534 U.S. businesses being honored as leaders in LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion.

Lighthouse Credit Union in Dover has expanded its wealth management team to offer tailored financial support for individuals and families. New team members include financial advisors Nathan Aldrich, AJ Camlin, Yocasta Carozza, Jeffrey Cossar, Bill MacGregor and Anthony Marciano; administrative associates Toni Baldi, Suzanne Davis and Diane Martel; and VP of wealth management John Olerio.

Before the new year started, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI) announced Evernorth Rural Ventures was awarded a $70 million allocation of New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) to continue its economic and community development work in low-income areas. Since 2008, Evernorth Rural Ventures has provided $316 million in affordable capital to support $660 million in total development activity supporting investment in the economic, environmental, and social well-being of 22 northern New England communities and their regional economies.

NONPROFITS

The 40-year-old Enfield Shaker Museum has joined the NH Heritage Museum Trail. The 2026 season features special exhibitions including “Sweet Summer Land” and “Keeping Warm,” along with Fiber Arts Weekend (March 20-22), the annual Shaker Forum (April 17-19), and a 40th Anniversary Opening Day celebration on May 13. In addition, the John Hay Estate at the Fells, which is the historic summer home of John Milton Hay located on Lake Sunapee, has also joined the trail system. The Fells’ 2025-26 season features a mix of musical performances, new sculpture installations, curated art exhibitions and special historical programming including a presentation on Abraham Lincoln by historian Ralph Nurnberger.

The Mental Health Center of Great Manchester (MHCGM) welcomed Chris Toppin to its board of directors. Toppin is the senior director of response services for Mainstay Technologies in Manchester. In addition, MHCGM welcomed Russell Payne, APRN, MSN to its organization as a nurse practitioner. Payne was previously employed by Catholic Medical Center, the NH Department of Corrections and Springfield Medical Care Systems, in Springfield, Vt. Director of the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire, Jane Bard, was honored by the Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce with their 2026 Community Arts Champion Award. Bard, who has been with the museum for 31 years, was nominated by the Dover Arts Commission, and accepted on behalf of the entire staff at the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire.

BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS

The Law Family Companies recently announced that Alex Spring-Connell was named vice president of finance. In this role, he will oversee all financial management, and will partner with all divisions of the company including transportation, warehousing, moving and storage, and commercial real estate businesses.

Thomas J. Hartley, president of Hartley Transportation in Pembroke, recently received the National Coffee Association Volunteer of the Year Award in recognition of his volunteer leadership and contributions during the past year. Hartley formed Hartley Transportation in 1992 and has been involved with the coffee trade for 34 years, transporting green coffee throughout North America daily. In response to the increase of green coffee thefts in the U.S., he drew on his expertise to identify potential vulnerabilities and practical steps to avoid coffee thefts. Working with the NCA, he dedicated many volunteer hours as a key member of the diverse stakeholder group whose insights resulted in the NCA guide, “Combating Fraud & Coffee Theft within the Trade,” which is available to the public on the NCA website.

Back in January, Novus Public Affairs welcomed Ava MacDowell to the team as a public affairs intern. MacDowell will support online advocacy and social media outreach initiatives for the firm, which represents Fortune 100 companies, trade associations, independent businesses, and nonprofits in the public arena. The firm’s practice areas include media relations, grassroots campaigning, crisis communications, and strategies for securing regulatory approvals and permitting throughout New England.

Wicked Cool Mechanical, a locally owned commercial HVAC and refrigeration contractor serving New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, has relocated its operations to a new facility at 21 Meadowbrook Lane, Unit 1, in Gilford. Owned by John and Alesha Desharnais, Wicked Cool Mechanical moved into the new space in December to bring office, warehouse and field operations together under one roof, allowing the team to work more efficiently, better manage inventory and support faster response times for commercial customers.

btone FITNESS has opened its first New Hampshire studio in Salem with a new 1,860-square-foot studio located at 125 South Broadway. The studio is owned and operated by Boxford, Mass., resident Noelle English. Classes consist of a customizable hybrid of Pilates-inspired movements and strength training. A second location is expected to open in Nashua, more others planned for other parts of the country.

REAL ESTATE

Real estate organization Touchstone Closing has partnered with Accurate Title, welcoming industry leaders Carol DeCola, Jack Bielagus and Susan Contos, along with a team of title professionals. Jack O’Donohue will step into the role of CEO of Accurate Title. Carol DeCola, Jack Bielagus, and Susan Contos will all remain in their leadership positions and maintain oversight of day-today operations with expanded resources and infrastructure of Touchstone.

EDUCATION

Dr. Michael Lewis has been named the 12th president of Saint Anselm College, effective July 1, 2026. Dr. Lewis currently serves as provost and chief academic officer at Saint Louis University. He will succeed President Joseph A. Favazza, Ph.D., who will retire on June 30, 2026.

LAW

Shaheen & Gordon, P.A., recently welcomed attorney Sean A. Denis to the firm’s Family Law Group, based out of the Manchester office. After graduating from the UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law’s Daniel Webster Scholars program in 2024, Denis entered private practice. Since then, he’s worked for clients across various practice areas, mostly family law and real estate litigation.

ENGINEERING

Turner Group has announced that Carole Zielinski has been promoted to the role of chief financial officer. She has been with the Turner Group for four years, and has more than 30 years of experience in the construction industry. She oversees the finance department, human resources, project accounting and risk management.

TECHNOLOGY

BathyLab, founded in Brookfield by Shannon Hoy and Patrick Cooper, has been selected for Seaworthy Collective’s national Ocean Enterprise Studio & Incubator, part of a $14 million NOAA-backed accelerator network supporting Blue Economy innovation. BathyLab develops AI-powered tools that help seafloor-mapping teams collect higher-quality data and scale operations across both crewed and autonomous vessels — technology that supports ocean research, maritime safety and climate science.

RETAIL

Terracea, the New Hampshire-based outdoor apparel brand, announced the latest addition to its curated co-branded collection with NH merino wool maker Minus 33: the Terracea X Minus 33 Midweight Merino Wool Crew, now available in Men’s and Women’s styles at www.terracea.com. Merino wool’s natural ability to regulate temperature and manage moisture makes it a natural fit for Terracea’s mission of making gear that simply works, so wearers can focus on being outside rather than worrying about what they’re wearing.

HOSPITALITY

The Music Hall in Portsmouth received the largest gift in its history: a $3 million pledge from longtime community leader and philanthropist Martha Fuller Clark. In recognition of this investment, the organization’s recently acquired Congress Street property will be named The Music Hall’s Kearsarge House, in Honor of Dr. Geoffrey E. Clark, paying tribute to her late husband and his legacy in Portsmouth. Clark’s pledge will support the continued preservation of the Historic Theater and advance critical capital investments that strengthen the building’s safety, accessibility and long-term sustainability.

Greenstreet celebrated for biotechnology impact

The International Institute of New England (IINE) has named Dr. Yvonne Greenstreet, CEO of Massachusetts-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, as the recipient of its 44th annual Golden Door Award. The honor is given each year to a leader born outside of the United States, who has made outstanding contributions to American society.

Born in London and raised in Ghana and the U.K., Dr. Greenstreet, MD, MBA, OBE, earned a medical degree from the University of Leeds and practiced as a clinician before earning her MBA from INSEAD and moving into the biopharmaceutical industry, driven by her ambition to have an impact on patients. She moved to the United States in 2004.

Her career includes senior roles at GlaxoSmithKline plc and Pfizer, where she ran a multi-billion-dollar medicine development division. Greenstreet joined Alnylam in 2016 as chief operating officer, rising to become president and then, in late 2021, CEO. She has guided Alnylam’s quest to turn the Nobel-Prize-winning science of RNA interference into a new class of medicines and helped to transform the company from an R&D organization into one of the top biotechnology companies in the world, with a portfolio of medicines available in more than 70 countries and an expanding pipeline of promising medicines in development for both rare and prevalent diseases.

Dr. Greenstreet will be recognized at The Golden Door Award Gala held on April 15, 2026, at the Omni Seaport Hotel in Boston.

Please send items for possible publication in The Latest to AANDREWS@NHBR.COM Include a color photo if available.