Welcome to the Upper Valley!

Friendly communities. Beautiful natural surroundings. Fresh, local food. Businesses and nonprofit organizations that care about the place we call home. There’s a lot to love about the Upper Valley!

Vital Communities is here to help you get to know the region. Explore the resources below to find ways to connect with your community today.

Explore the Upper Valley

Find a Quest

Valley Quest is an award-winning, place-based education program that uses treasure hunts to celebrate community, natural history, cultural sites, stories, and special places. Discover the Upper Valley’s hidden gems on one of our 200+ Quests.

Want to support the local economy when you shop? Check out our Local First Alliance member directory to find local restaurants, retail shops, service providers, and more. Look for the logo and Think Local First!

Think Local First

Find a Local Business

Eat Valley Farm Fresh

Find Local Food

Our online guide is the easiest way to find local food and farm products in the Upper Valley. Simply indicate the product or service you’re looking for and we’ll give you a detailed list of all the local places to find it.

Whether you’re commuting to work or heading to school, we make it easy to figure out how to get there with resources for carpooling, active commuting, and local public transit. You can even calculate the annual cost of your commute.

Get Going!

Find Transportation Options

Sign Up!

Join the Discussion

Woodstock Green 2Looking for an easy way to keep in touch with your neighbors and what’s happening in your town? Our local community email discussion lists allow members to post and respond to messages about their town. Join your local list to get connected—and if you don’t see it on our list, check with your town about whether there’s something similar for your community.

Lifelong Learning

The Upper Valley is the perfect place to continue your building your education, your professional network, and yourself.

Vital Communities’ program Leadership Upper Valley provides UV residents with a comprehensive knowledge of leadership and volunteer opportunities within the Upper Valley. Classes meet once a month for ten months.

OSHER@Dartmouth is a lifelong learning institute within Dartmouth College dedicated to educating Upper Valley residents with year-round study opportunities.

The Learning Lab (TLL) is a nonprofit organization in Woodstock, Vermont that brings together an array of valuable courses, from art to history to dream analysis, and is open to the entire community.

Upper Valley Young Professionals (UVYP) brings the Upper Valley community of young professionals together for educational opportunities and social networking events in the area.

Adventures in Learning at Colby Sawyer College is dedicated to helping adults expand their education and knowledge of the world in an informal, no-pressure setting.

Want to Volunteer?

Trek to Taste 2014

Whether you’re new to the Upper Valley, or you have  lived here for a while, you may be looking for new ways to volunteer. Fortunately, here are plenty of ways to give back to this region.

By becoming a box monitor for the Vital Communities’ Valley Quest program, you can explore the area around you while making sure Valley Quest boxes are in place and ready to be found by other Questers.

The Valley News, the news source of the Upper Valley, runs a volunteer section in which new (and continuous) volunteer job opportunities are listed, making applying for some of them as easy as clicking “apply.”

Once a year Hypertherm, in conjunction with the Hypertherm HOPE Foundation, hold a volunteer fair in an effort to encourage Upper Valley residents and Hypertherm employees to volunteer their time with local nonprofits.

Remember to check out our calendar to find even more volunteer opportunities within the Upper Valley.

Get the News!

Want to know what’s going on in the Upper Valley? Then get the news!

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Other Work of Vital Communities

Community Discussion Lists

Community engagement thru online discussions (“listservs”).

Learn More  >

Corporate Council

Business leaders working on issues facing our region.

Learn More  >

Publications

Spring Newsletter

Annual Report

Fall Newsletter

Board of Directors

Our Programs

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Valley Quest

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Discover our special places.

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Transportation

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Working to reduce reliance on driving alone.

Leadership Upper Valley

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Inspiring, educating, and engaging leaders.

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Valley Food & Farm

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Keeping agriculture a vital part of regional life.

Local First Alliance

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Pursuing a thriving local economy.

Energy

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Moving towards energy independence.

Officers:
Bill Geraghty, Hanover, NH, Chair
Clifton Below, Lebanon, NH, Vice Chair
Stan Williams, Norwich, VT, Secretary
George Newcomb, Norwich, VT, Treasurer

Ellen Arnold, Plainfield, NH
Jenn Hayslett, S. Royalton, VT
Jenny Levy, Norwich VT
Barry McCabe, West Hartford, VT
Ron Shaiko, Hanover, NH
Cindi Taylor, Meriden, NH

Janet Taylor, Post Mills, VT
Peter Thurber, Canaan, NH
Dan Weinstein, Grantham, NH
Tuck Students:
Ryan Amica, Hanover, NH
Sebastian Restrepo, Hanover, NH

Advisory Council

Clay Adams, Norwich, VT
Lisa Cashdan, Norwich, VT
Jon Chaffee, West Lebanon, NH
Steve Christy, Lebanon, NH
Delia Clark, Taftsville,VT
Glenn English, Haverhill, NH
Charlotte Faulkner, Hanover, NH
Sharon Francis, Charlestown, NH
Byron Hathorn, Fairlee, VT

Rick Hausman, Ryegate,VT
Harvey Hill, Charlestown, NH
Sandra Hoeh, Hanover, NH
Henry Homeyer, Cornish Flat, NH
Biddy Irwin, Newport, NH
Barbara Jones, Grantham, NH
Peggy Kannenstine, Woodstock, VT
Carola Lea, Lyme, NH
Richard Lewin, Hanover, NH
Jane Kitchel McLaughlin, Lyme, NH

Charlotte Metcalf, Norwich,VT
Lizann Peyton, Norwich, VT
Bill Ploog, Lyme, NH
Betty Porter, Norwich, VT
Sylvia Provost, White River Junction, VT
Allie Quinn, Hanover, NH
Barry Schuster, Lebanon, NH
Bruce Schwaegler, Orford, NH
Anne Silberfarb, Norwich, VT

Becky Smith, Concord, NH
Stuart V. Smith, Lyme, NH
Vicki Smith, Lyme, NH
Peter Stein, Norwich, VT
Steve Taylor, Meriden, NH
Fred Thomas, Thetford, VT
Peter Welch, Hartland, VT
Diana Wright, Thetford, VT

Vital Communities Program News

Fat Hat Clothing-Keeping it Local for 40 years

Forty years ago Joan Ecker started Fat Hat Clothing Company with free fabric remnants and a treadle sewing machine. Today F.H. Clothing Company is a nationally known family business that designs, produces and sells stylish, ...more

Quest Spotlight: Trees of Hanover Quest

With this amazing stretch of sunny days we've been having, I wanted to get outside and do more Questing! This week, I went out to do the Trees of Hanover Quest. This Quest takes you ...more

Supporting Social Enterprises

Exciting news! Local First is one of five sites across the country participating in a National Science Foundation research project to pilot The Local Crowd, a community crowd funding platform to support social enterprises. Crowdfunding ...more

Quest Spotlight: Quest for the Kestrel

This month, I wanted to spotlight a Quest on the Super Quest list! If you haven't signed up for the Super Quest yet, there is still time! Register your team, and then find a Quest off ...more

New South Royalton Quest!

We are excited to announce the Royalton Historical Quest, a new Valley Quest! This Quest will take you around the green in South Royalton while teaching you about the town’s history. Starting at the White ...more

Stand in Your Circle of Strength and Lead

Ed. Note: On May 30, Vital Communities honored 12 community leaders who’ve added immeasurably to the vitality of the Upper Valley at its annual Heroes & Leaders Celebration. The following are the event’s keynote remarks ...more

West Lebanon Feed & Supply is Committed to Community

A strong work ethic, a passion for helping others, and a sincere love of animals have been at the core of Curt and Sharon Jacques’ life and their business. West Lebanon Feed & Supply's success ...more

Heroes & Leaders: Creating a Vital Upper Valley

Every spring, Leadership Upper Valley, a program of Vital Communities, hosts the annual Heroes & Leaders Celebration to recognize individuals who make significant contributions to the Upper Valley. In 2019, we are pleased to honor ...more

2nd Annual Curb The Car Day - Friday, May 17!

On May 17, 2019 the rest of the country is celebrating National Bike to Work Day, but here in the Upper Valley we’ll be taking it a step further with our second annual Curb The ...more

12th Annual Roundtable - May 7

You're Invited! The 12th Annual Upper Valley Energy Committee Roundtable is Tuesday, May 7, 5-8 pm in West Lebanon! This annual gathering of local energy volunteers is open to all, whether you serve on an energy committee, wish to ...more

Eat. Meet. Buy. Flavors of the Valley 2019 Vendors are here!

Check out the hottest new vendors and returning favorites! Samples are listed if the vendor has provided sampling information. Vendors will also have many delicious items for sale! April 7, 11 am - 3 pm at Hartford ...more

April Meet-Up Series for Beginning Farmers

We have an exciting project for new farmers in the White River valley portion of our region! The High Meadows Fund is supporting a series of free peer-to-peer gatherings for beginning farmers to build community and learn. ...more

Dazzlingly Reflective, 80's Style

We love pairing style with nighttime visibility, so we've ordered REFLECTIVE SLAP BRACELETS to reward people who bike or walk to Flavors of the Valley on Sunday, April 7! If you bike and walk to the ...more

Apply for a Farm to School Mini-Grant!

We are excited to announce the 2019 mini-grant program from Vital Communities' Upper Valley Farm to School Network! Funding is available to both Vermont and New Hampshire schools. Start dreaming up your farm-to-school projects—we want ...more

Get your bike, boots, or shoes ready!

Get your bike, boots, or shoes ready! From our friends at Local Motion comes the Winter Edition of Vermont's Bike-Walk Challenge, February 1 to 8! Simply record two bike or walk commutes in the Go! Vermont app ...more

Seeking Bids from Solar Installers by Nov. 30

Vital Communities is teaming up with Kearsarge Climate Action to launch a Solarize Kearsarge campaign in spring 2019, following on the tails of the upcoming Weatherize Kearsarge campaign launching in January 2019. We are seeking proposals ...more

Lebanon Area Businesses - Join us on Sept. 27

So many small businesses in the Upper Valley are burdened with high energy costs. And not enough time to do anything about it! We've got some good news for you. A group of Lebanon residents are ...more

A Lot Lighter with More Hands: Leadership Upper Valley

On the bright, sunny morning of June 13, Cobb Hill was waking up, and the soon-to-be graduating 2018 Leadership Upper Valley class was just arriving for their final meeting. Before the ceremony at Harpoon Brewery, ...more

What's Happening

Calendar

July 2019

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  • Power of Produce Club at Hanover Farmers' Market
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  • Power of Produce Club at the Canaan Farmers & Artisans' Market
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  • Power of Produce Club at the Canaan Farmers & Artisans' Market
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  • Power of Produce Club at the Canaan Farmers & Artisans' Market
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  • Power of Produce Club at the Canaan Farmers & Artisans' Market
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  • Power of Produce Club at Hanover Farmers' Market

Photo Gallery

More Information

Privacy Policy

Vital Communities is a regional nonprofit organization based in White River Junction, Vermont, that works to engage citizens, organizations, and communities in creating solutions to our region’s challenges.

Information Privacy Policy – 08/2010

Vital Communities respects the privacy of its constituents, donors, and those who support its work as volunteers. Our privacy policy is reviewed annually and posted prominently online at our web site.

  1. We collect name, address, phone, and email contact information from people who express interest in our organization, or who attend our events. We use this information to mail correspondence, newsletters, and other informational products, and solicitations. We do not sell, rent, exchange, or share donor names with any firm or nonprofit organization. We honor any constituent’s wish to not receive mail, emails, or phone communications.
  2. Our online forms for donations and product orders collect credit card information for payment via Network for Good and PayPal, both of which use state-of-the-art encryption. Credit card information is not shared with third parties. Donors are advised in printed solicitations that their contributions can be made anonymously.
  3. Personal information about our constituents is rigorously protected using physical, electronic, and procedural protection mechanisms. To review information, and to make corrections, constituents are asked to contact: Stephanie Carter, Database Manager, by email or at 802.291.9100 x 108.

Important Documents

Vital Communities 990 Return

Read about Vital Communities History here.

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