Eight Rural Small Business Track Semifinalists will give a five-minute pitch about their business before a panel of judges. This free event offers an inspiring glimpse of some great businesses growing during this unprecedented time.

The final round of the PitchFork Challenge will be on September 22nd as part of the Radically Rural Summit, held as a hybrid event in 2021.  The Businesses competing in this year’s competition for the $10,000 prize include:

Blake Amacker, Copper Cannon Distillery, Located in West Chesterfield, NH, Copper Cannon Distillery is an award-winning, family-owned, premium rum distillery that hand-crafts spirits for people that appreciate outstanding quality. All spirits are mashed and double-distilled on-site using a modular small batch production still that allows for customized configurations to extract subtle flavors from high-quality ingredients. The New England Style Rums are aged in charred new oak barrels to add complexity and smoothness. Learn more at www.coppercannon.com

Jessica Hipp, Way Around, WayAround is a smart assistant that lets people with blindness and vision loss know more and do more. Using a mobile app and smart audio labels, WayAround provides detailed, relevant information about specific places and things. Created by two architects with vision loss, the simple tag-and-scan system promotes life-changing independence in everyday situations.
Learn more at www.wayaround.com

Kevin Dremel, Jack’s Crackers, Jack’s Crackers products are based on the idea that a cracker is a lot like life.  It may be simple, but it doesn’t have to be boring. Based in Keene, New Hampshire, our crackers are hand-made in small batches with natural, GMO-free ingredients and are preservative-free. They are great by themselves or with your favorite toppings. Learn more at www.jackscrackers.com

Leanne Horvath, Highlife Homestead, Highlife Homestead is a humane hatchery specializing in heritage dual purpose breeds for homesteaders and hobbyists alike.  The unique setting of their poultry farm offers the birds a diverse diet, consisting of bugs, leaf litter, ferns and wild plants. They aim to provide the region with healthy, vibrant poultry that are humanely hatched and cared for.  Highlife Homestead offers hatching eggs, day old poultry and laying hens.

Learn More at www.highlifehomestead.com

Megan Lafaso Hercher, Sullivan Country Store, Located along bustling Route 9 in Sullivan, NH, The Sullivan Country Store will be reopening in the fall of 2021. New owners, Megan and William Hercher are working towards ensuring that place making visioning in the rural community of Sullivan occurs. The store will be a place for the community to come together, there will be all the hallmarks of a traditional country store, with the modern conveniences of the present. Learn More at www.facebook.com/NHcountrystore

Michele Chalice, Healthy Home Habitats,
Healthy Home Habitats offers affordable, environmentally-friendly landscape design, co-gardening assistance, fun, family growing projects and home resource efficiency options. We make it easy to be an environmental steward in the Monadnock region with a beautiful, economical landscape and efficient home. Discover the different choices you can make each day for more color, more efficiency, more health and more joy. Create your own healthy, home habitat. Learn More at healthyhomehabitats.com

Patrick Erickson, EH&P, EH&P Green is a zero-emission lawn care company dedicated to providing ethically and environmentally responsible lawn care at an affordable rate. It is EH&P Green’s mission to deliver a beautiful result with zero impact on the environment – without using toxic chemical fertilizers or gas-powered equipment. EH&P Green’s goal is to create a healthy, biodiverse soil to achieve a beautiful lawn while concurrently reducing emissions with all electric, battery operated equipment.
Learn More at www.edc-chesterfield.com/post/eh-p-green-a-division-of-ericson-homes-properties

Paul Bemis, Air Cleaners Inc,
Air Cleaners Inc designs, develops and supports HEPA based Portable Air Cleaners. Their unique patent pending design was developed by experts in the fields of indoor airflow using advanced CFD (Computational Fluid Mechanics) modeling techniques. The resulting product has recently been selected as the product of choice by major multinational entertainment companies to ensure safe indoor air for their employees. Learn More at aircleanersinc.com

The Judges
Josh Cyr, Senior Director of Startup Initiatives at the NH Tech Alliance
Linda Rubin, Owner of Frisky Cow Gelato, 2020 Winner of the PitchFork Challenge
Marcia Passos Duffy, Editor NH Business Journal, owner of Geographic Gems
Roy Wallen, CEO of Directional Healthcare Advisors, LLC
Tim Pipp, Owner of Beeze Tees

This free event can be found at Ticket ELF | PitchFork Challenge Semi-Finals 2021
Franklin Pierce University will be streaming the event. 
For more information https://radicallyrural.org/pitchfork-challenge-semi-final-2021/