We are pleased to announce Laura Lind-Blum as the new Director of the Vermont Women’s Business Center. Lind-Blum, known in the women’s business community as “the Idea Midwife,” brings many years of experience helping women entrepreneurs find innovative strategies for nurturing their businesses. “We are delighted to welcome Laura to this leadership post in the women’s business community,” states Mary Niebling, Director of Community Action’s Community Economic Development programs. “Her experience in helping business owners bring new ideas to life will help bring the work of the Vermont Women’s Business Center to a new level.”  In addition to having operated her own coaching business, Lind-Blum has served as a management and leadership trainer for Vermont businesses, has been an instructor for Vermont educational institutions and programs, and has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to women in business as an active member and former board member of WBON, the Women Business Owners Network. Since opening in 2002, Vermont Women’s Business Center has assisted with the creation of 253 new jobs, helped launch 98 new businesses, and since 2005, has helped women business owners access more than $3.6 million in financing for their businesses. Each year, the Center assists more than 1,500 Vermonters with one-to-one business counseling, inquiries, referrals, lending library resources, and group trainings.  The Vermont Women’s Business Center is a project of Central Vermont Community Action Council and funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).  The Center operates statewide through the five Community Action Agencies, with a home office located at 327 US Route 302 in Berlin. For more information call 802-479-9813 or toll-free at 877-524-1998.