Monadnock Ledger-Transcript
Published: 2023-01-25 10:58:52
Modified: 2023/01/25 10:58:26
The Jaffrey Chamber of Commerce has named Bonnie Coll Cutter as Citizen of the Year, The Shakespeare Project as Nonprofit of the Year and Shattuck Golf Club and Dublin Road Taproom & Eatery as Business of the Year for 2022.
Coll Cutter was nominated by friend and fellow business owner Marc Tieger. Coll Cutter, who owns Coll’s Garden Center and Florist, is also an avid city volunteer, including maintaining the city’s flower boxes.
“The person I am nominating for our Citizen of the Year is a perfect example of why Jaffrey is so special,” Tieger wrote in his nomination.
In an interview, Coll Cutter said she was “absolutely blown away” when told she had been selected.
“My exact words were, ‘Are you sure you said my name?'” Coll Cutter said. “I’m kind of a behind-the-scenes kind of girl. I never, ever thought it would be me. It gave me more pep in my step, that what I’m doing is being accepted, seen and making my community happy.”
“Bonnie, her love of community, her ability to spread sunshine on the darkest days, and her role in making Jaffrey a better place to live and play make her my choice for Citizen of Jaffrey Chamber Year 2022,” the chamber said. President Cyndy Burgess.
The 2022 business is the Shattuck Golf Club and its pub, Dublin Road Taproom & Eatery.
Doni Ash purchased Shattuck in 2019 and under his ownership, the business has undergone several improvements and renovations. In addition to being a golf course, Shattuck also allows residents to access miles of trails on the carriage trails along the property during the winter for snowshoeing and skiing, free of charge.
Cathy Furze, one of the people who nominated Shattuck and Dublin Road Taproom, said Ash’s involvement with the community reaches beyond the doors of his business. Ash and the Shattuck work with nonprofits like Jaffrey’s transient shelter, Shelter from the Storm, and the chamber’s Ron Despres Memorial Golf Tournament is held there.
“Shattuck Golf Club is home to one of the best courses in New England for its course and management. With all the improvements that have been made under Don’s ownership, Shattuck is definitely an asset to Jaffrey and the Monadnock region,” Burgess said.
The 2022 nonprofit is Project Shakespeare, a youth theater company that stages Shakespeare productions each summer, plus the traditional annual production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol in the winter.
Clay Hollister of Jaffrey, who was one of the citizens who nominated the Shakespeare Project, wrote, “It’s hard for me to imagine a local organization that has a more unique, inspiring and wholly positive impact on the children in our community than the Shakespeare Project. Deborah Shakespeare Thurber, the creator and driving force behind The Shakespeare Project, is a true dynamo of imagination, determination and love focused on expanding our children’s worlds into the rich and varied worlds of Shakespeare.
All three winners will be honored during the Jaffrey Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting and gala, scheduled this year for Feb. 9 at 5:30 p.m. at the Woodbound Inn in Rindge. Tickets for the gala are $40 and include a seated meal. Tickets are available at jaffreychmaber.com, or by calling the room at 603-532-4549.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172, Ext. 244, or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She is on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.
