November 6, 2026
East Burke, VT – The Burke Area Chamber of Commerce is pleased to recognize H.O.P.E. (Helping Other People Every Day) as the 2026 Business of the Year! The award is given to a Burke Chamber member based on nominations from fellow chamber members. The award is meant to celebrate a business that demonstrate exemplary business practices and gives back to the community in various ways.
Located in Lyndonville, H.O.P.E. is a non-profit organization founded in 2005 to assist people with life’s basic needs. They provide many services to Northeast Kingdom individuals and families including operating a food pantry, a backpack program to ensure that kids have enough food at home, providing start-up packages for domestic abuse survivors, fire survivors or people experiencing homelessness, and connecting people with other area resources for whatever assistance they may need. The Sparkle & Shine Prom Closet program ensures that every teen has something to wear so they can attend their high school prom. The H.O.P.E. thrift store collects and sells donated items including clothing, winterwear, sports gear, toys, furniture and more at affordable prices.
Noting his own positive experience shopping and volunteering at H.O.P.E., Burke Chamber Board Member, Kraig Sourbeer, presented the award to them at the Chamber’s annual meeting on November 4th. Said Sourbeer, “I had the opportunity to volunteer for H.O.P.E. a few times now and saw how dedicated the staff are to keeping the store organized and providing a welcoming place to shop. They also have quality soccer, baseball and other sports equipment so our kids can get out there and enjoy the variety of outdoor recreation available in the area. We are fortunate to have a place like H.O.P.E. to get some really nice things for a low, low cost. The services they provide fill in a gap for many local families with financial challenges.”
Jaime Brown, H.O.P.E. Operations Manager, accepted the award, saying, “Thank you for this amazing honor and recognizing the work that we do.”
Brown emphasized the importance of the thrift store in providing funds for the organization to provide services to the community. Said Brown, “The thrift store is the heart of what we do. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to provide the services we offer and just help people every day. That’s our mission. We are happy to be able to do that and be part of a community that supports us and each other.”
In addition to providing funding for the organization and good deals for shoppers, Brown noted that the thrift store also provides an opportunity for people to put ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ into practice and prevent tens of thousands of items from ending up in a landfill each year.
Brown also spoke of positive changes at the store including reorganizing items to make things easier to find which has had a big impact on sales and improving the shopping experience for customers. Brown also introduced the group to Romela Occaso who is the new store manager.
The thrift store is located at 136 Church Street in Lyndonville and is open Tuesdays through Saturdays. To learn more about services offered, community impacts, donation policies and more, visit hopevermont.com.