Juice bar opens in Chester; business recovery grants increased for certain sectors

Aurora’s Fresh Juice & Smoothie Bah opens in Chester

Aurora McCarthy, 42, has opened Aurora’s Fresh Juice and Smoothie Bah at Blair Books & More on the Green in Chester.

McCarthy first visited Chester 22 years ago for a workshop retreat and said she felt drawn to return to this ‘special high-vibe corner of the world,” to fulfill her ambition to promote healthy, organic food options to the local community and sourcing as much locally grown produce as possible.

Following the death of her mother at the beginning of 2020, McCarthy decided it was time to quit her job in Plymouth, Mass., and, with a little help from friends and a warm welcome from the town, she has made the first step toward building a bright new future.

“Juicing has been key to my own personal recovery journey, and I want to share it,” she said, adding, “The energy in Chester is magical. The community is so welcoming, and they are showing up for the loving creations of fresh fruits and veggies. My goal is to eventually open a plant-based café.”

Aurora’s Juice Bah, named as a play on her Massachusetts accent, also offers a wide range of quality organic loose teas, iced and hot, brewed to order.

For more information, call, 508-840-6786 or email lovelight0144@gmail.com

Business recovery grants increased for lodging, retail, others

Gov. Phil Scott, the Agency of Commerce and Community Development and the Department of Taxes have announced an increase to the maximum grant award for Economic Recovery Grants for Vermont businesses negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.  The increase in the maximum grant award is available to businesses in the lodging, retail, hospitality, arts, travel and event affiliated sectors that have continued capacity constraints.

Previously, businesses could receive up to $50,000 in grant funds. Now, businesses in eligible industries can receive up to an additional $100,000 in grant funding, for a total of $150,000 from the program. The increased maximum award is available both to new applicants to the program and to those businesses that have already received a $50,000 grant.

“We realize how hard this pandemic and the ensuing public health mitigation policies have been on these sectors, which are crucial to the state’s economy,” said Scott. “In raising the limit by $100,000, we hope businesses that were previously capped at $50,000 can now access additional funding to help them survive as the pandemic continues to limit their capacity.”

All businesses that received a $50,000 grant award from the Department of Taxes are eligible to request an increase to the new maximum award amount and can do so through myVTax. ACCD will be contacting eligible businesses that already received a $50,000 grant notifying them this supplemental grant funding may be available to them starting Monday, Aug. 24, 2020.

Businesses that have not yet applied for an Economic Recovery Grant are encouraged to apply if they have experienced losses of at least 50 percent in the months of March to July 2020 (compared to any one-month period from March to July in 2019). Businesses that may not have been eligible based on earlier months are encouraged to evaluate their losses for the month of July as they may now be eligible.  More information can be found at Economic Recovery Grant Program website.

More than $90 million has been awarded to more than 3,500 businesses in 22 different sectors and all 14 counties in Vermont, but there are still funds available.