Skowhegan

These companies were honored across several categories: beer, chocolate, condiments and grains. 

This year's Build Maine conference June 2 to 3, in downtown Skowhegan, will feature a day and a half of programming, including keynote speakers, walking tours, workshops — even an option for a guided kayak tour of the Kennebec River.

Mike Haws led the $500 million conversion and expansion of Paper Machine No. 2 at Sappi’s Somerset Mill in Skowhegan.

“We have a housing crisis. So I said, ‘How can we make something happen here?’” the buyer said of his purchase of a century-old building in Skowhegan.

Gifford's Ice Cream dishes out a trio of new pint flavors, while the team behind Mr. Tuna gets ready to roll out a pop-up seafood eatery in Portland's Old Port.

The sellers of the 1908 building operated an antiques and gift shop. The buyer plans a multi-use conversion to second-story apartments and lower-story commercial space.

Amber Lambke, co-founder and CEO of Maine Grains, says the company is purchasing a state-of-the-art extrusion line from Germany, capable of producing grain-based cereals, bars, snacks and specialty ingredients.

Tiffany Comis, a former nurse at Readington-Fairview General Hospital who has been with the hospital for more than two decades, succeeds longtime leader Richard “Dick” D. Willett.

The event featured a panel discussion on "60 ideas in 60 minutes," moderated by Deb Neuman, president and CEO of the Bangor Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Skowhegan Savings Bank, with 12 locations throughout Maine, has expanded its Fairfield branch lending team, with the promotion of a longtime employee and the addition of a new vice president and commercial lender.