News from The News – July 1, 2021

Welcome, Margery
We are delighted to welcome Margery McCracken to our Board of Directors as our treasurer.

Margery is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with Davis & Hodgdon Associates, CPAs in Williston, where she focuses on providing financial audit services to local nonprofit organizations.

She grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and lived and worked in Washington, D.C. and New York City prior to her move to Charlotte seeking a change from the pace of city life and in order to enjoy the many recreational opportunities that Vermont offers.

Margery has worked as a financial auditor for over 12 years, starting her career working for the federal government as a financial auditor for the U.S. Government Accountability Office where she audited several federal agencies and continued her career with a CPA firm in New York City specializing in providing services to nonprofit organizations and private clubs. She has lived in Charlotte since 2015 with her husband and two daughters, ages eight and six. They ended up in Charlotte by chance as it was on the edge of the range they set when searching for houses within a certain distance from Burlington, but they feel very fortunate to have settled in this town.

Margery’s daughters attend Charlotte Central School and are thrilled with their school experience. They love being so close to the lake in the summer and to the town ice rink in the winter. Margery enjoys running, cross country skiing and swimming in the lake with her family. She has enjoyed getting The Charlotte News in her mailbox every other week and is excited to give back to the community in a small way by serving as the treasurer for The Charlotte News.
Welcome aboard, Margery.

Thank you, Ted
With Margery’s arrival on the board, and her appointment to the treasurer’s position, we say goodbye to Ted LeBlanc, who held the position for the past two years.

In her recent article, fellow board member Gay Regan dubbed Ted “an unsung hero.” I agree and hope that Gay’s piece, and this tribute, convey our heartfelt appreciation to Ted for his selfless and generous contributions to the paper and the organization.

Ted joined the board as our treasurer in March of 2019. Over the following two years, he worked steadily to improve our bookkeeping and accounting practices, to cut expenses, and to secure grants and contributions.

Last year, he invested many hours to learn about several federal loan and grant programs that would help The Charlotte News weather the pandemic. Ted prepared and submitted two applications, and soon after, we received two grants from the Small Business Administration. Then, earlier this year, Ted took on reporting and financial management responsibilities for the paper’s NewsMatch grant, awarded by the Independent News Network.

Ted recognized that printing the paper and renting office space were, after payroll, our two largest expenses. He found us a new printer and encouraged us to give up our office space and to work remotely. As a result, we saw substantial savings in our printing costs—as well as improved print quality. And, because we started working remotely before the pandemic arrived, the impact to our daily operations was minimal.

Earlier this year, Ted worked with Vince Crockenberg and Mike Russell on our IRS application for nonprofit 501(c)3 designation. Once this was achieved, Ted started on the many accounting, reporting and financial tasks that were required to complete the setup of our new nonprofit.

When not busy with his work as treasurer and board member, Ted enjoys playing guitar in a trio with Mike Walker of Charlotte and Patti Shannon of Essex. He has also been known to assume the role of Santa. In a few days, Ted will be travelling north to spend time with grandson, Jack Edward Millar, who he hasn’t seen in 18 months.

On behalf of everyone at the paper, staff, volunteers and board, we wish you well, Ted. Many thanks for giving so much of your time and expertise to The Charlotte News.