Cavendish Update: 4/3/20 Market Update/New Resources
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4/3/20
1. Cavendish Resources Updated
2. The Cave Fish: Links for mental health resources?
3. Market Update 4/1/20 by Mark Huntley
4. What’s Been Happening
5. Sanity Break
6. Events
We’re staying at home for Cavendish’s Town Crew today. Thank you for working to maintain our roads during challenging situations.
As we continue in our Stay at Home, Stay Safe, we know it’s not always easy. However, we are making a difference, in spite of the screaming headlines that truthfully can make my skin crawl some days. The rates of positive cases for Windsor County, they don’t break down any further than that, are not rising that rapidly. We held at 18 cases for almost a solid week, and went up by two yesterday. Keep up the good work. We don’t want to just “bend that curve, “ we want to pound that sucker into the ground!!! The peak period is estimated to occur from mid-April to early May. Oh, did you know that social distancing also cuts crime? Nice benefit.
If you aren’t aware, you can skip those trips to the grocery store all together now as Singleton’s not only is providing curb side pick-up, but they are providing free delivery for those who live within 5 miles of the store, and charge a nominal fee for those outside that area. Thank you Singleton’s!!
And really, I cannot believe I’m still having to write about our TP crises. Years from now our kids will be telling their kids about the Toilet Paper Panic of 2020. Just what are these people doing with it? If you are running out and can’t find it, we have located several sources and can get it to you. Just call the Town Office. Who in their right mind would have ever thought we’d be placing calls and saying, “Can you spare a roll?” Geesh!
Finally, I want to take a moment and thank all of you who have contributed to Cavendish Connects. It makes a real difference and I’ve enjoyed your notes and e-mails. Each of us is making a difference, but together we’re unstoppable.
See ya Monday and I’ll be at the Cavendish Facebook page over the weekend.
If you need help with shopping, a transfer station run or something else, please call the Cavendish Town Office, M-F from 9-5 226-7291 or 7292.
1. CAVENDISH RESOURCES UPDATED: To make things easier for everyone, we now have new pages to help you stay on top of available resources, as well as continuing to provide you with new ways you can help out. Because so many people in Cavendish are self-employed, the Cavendish Covid-19 Resource Guide now has have a special section for Small Business Owners.
Many of you have asked how you can help, so there is now a How to Help Guide that lists many different ways you can contribute to this effort.
If you have additions, updates or corrections to either of these resources, please send them to cavendishconnects@gmail.com
2. THE CAVE FISH ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS: Do you have links to mental health resources, particularly for kids. Cavendish’s Kate Lamphere, of Health Care & Rehabilitation of Vermont (HCRS) answers that question, I am happy to chat with anyone about our supports and services. We are still open, taking new clients and providing telemedicine and telephone support. We also have 24/7 Crisis Line, 1-800-622-4235. Children, youth and adult. VT Helplink is the statewide, public resource for finding substance use treatment and recovery services in Vermont. Call 802-565-LINK. Note that the Cavendish Resource Guide has a number of support services listed.
3. MARKET UPDATE 4/1/20: by Mark Huntley: There is a lot of news, our feeling is people want assurances that their financial ship is not going to sink.
We are in bear market territory and this shut down may have put us into a recession, which is months sooner than we had anticipated. Armstrong Economics (whom I follow) sensed that our sentiment was shifting toward a recession and recommended positioning portfolios for that outcome back in January.
It seems clear that the next 3-6 months is going to be about patience and letting these situations play out. There are many opinions and thoughts on the virus and its impact on the economy and the markets. The Government’s stimulus and the Fed’s unprecedented liquidity actions “should” provide a reprieve within the financial markets, but this process will take some time.
Blue chip stocks, cash, treasuries and SHORT term high-quality corporate bonds might: 1) weather the ongoing volatility and 2) allow you to be in a position to take advantage of opportunities as they arise.
I mentioned the bond market before. The challenge is average investors (401k’s, Pensions, Target date mutual funds) are bond heavy. New issue bonds from “cruise lines” are offering 12-14% for a 3-year bond (institution only, so don’t get too excited) is not necessarily a positive. Bonds globally are already bubble bound, and our 10-year bond is now closing in on 0%. The reality is, most folks do not know how bonds really work, what the risks are, and what duration to hold. I get it, as I can’t change the oil in my truck.
This is from my “introductory” questionnaire to clients: The value of most investments fluctuates from year to year as well as over the short-term. How would you feel if an investment you had committed to for five to ten years lost 25% of its value during the first year?
A. I would be extremely concerned and would sell my investment.
B. I would be concerned and may consider selling my investment.
C. I would be concerned, but I would not consider selling my investment.
D. I would not be overly concerned given my long-term investment philosophy.
Please know how much risk you can take so you don’t sell into fear. Markets usually overreact and so do investors.
Tread carefully in a prudent and disciplined manner, and let’s be safe out there.
Mark a. Huntley, HUNTLEY FINANCIAL SERVICES inc. Facebook
4. WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING
• Details start to emerge on unemployment insurance, other relief payments: People who are filing for state unemployment insurance for this week will start receiving their weekly $600 supplement from the federal government when they receive their unemployment check next week, according to state officials. But for the self-employed and independent contractors, who are also in line to receive assistance from the state as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, the wait is going to be longer. It will be a few weeks before the state Department of Labor can set up and implement the new relief system for those who haven’t previously been eligible for unemployment insurance. VT Digger
• Gov. Scott is calling all Vermonters to sign up to volunteer through a website allowing people to support the state’s response to COVID-19. This website directs those with medical and health care skills to the Medical Reserve Corps, and those with other needed skills to a quick registration process for other needs.
• Fill out the Census, officials urge, amid fears pandemic will subdue participation
• Neal’s Restaurant Pays it Forward with “Feed a Friend for Five” In a little over two weeks, Neal Baron, owner of Neal’s Bar and Restaurant in Proctorsville, has gone from uncertainty to a laser focused purpose while navigating through the new normal of the COVID-19 pandemic. Driving him is the need to help his community in the best way he knows how – through great food. Enter his brainchild, “Feed a Friend for Five.” The concept is simple. Purchase a meal from his takeout menu, which is published on Facebook nightly, add $5 to your bill, and that will deliver his nightly meal special to a community member in need. The idea is an extension of one he heard happening in a Philadelphia pizza shop that encouraged patrons to buy an extra slice for a future customer who might be in need.
• Weston Playhouse has cancelled the 2020 summer’s season.
• Senate committee Zoom hearing derailed by porn hacker:
• The Cavendish Library is now offering some new services. Adult and teen patrons may call the library 226-7503 to request a bag of books and or movie-specify genre. These are yours to keep. Please allow us 24 hours to put together your request. When filled, it will be at the library entrance with your name on it. Students grades Pre-K through 6 will receive a bag with 2-4 free books in it each month. These are yours to keep. CTES students are already signed up for this program. If you are a homeschooler contact the library if you would like your child to be part of this program. Thank you to CLiF and the Windham Foundation for supporting this endeavor. Please be aware that these programs are for Cavendish residents and CTES students and staff.
• For all you Harry Potter fans, no age limit, J.K. Rowling has a new free website Harry Potter at Home.
• Risk of COVID-19 exposure from packages is ‘small and manageable’: While recent research has shown that the virus can be detected on some surfaces for up to a day, “the reality is that the levels drop off quickly.”
• Covid-19 Affects Funeral Practices
• Springfield Hospital to open testing site, alters some procedures
5. SANITY BREAK: You can help yourself by helping others. Go to Cavendish How You Can Help and select something to do.
6. UPCOMING EVENTS: Go to dgBody Works for classes that are being posted via Facebook live. Take a new one, do an old one. Stay fit and healthy. Class schedule for the week.
Fri (4/3) 7 am Bootcamp with Denise
Sat (4/4) 7 am Good Morning Sun Salutations with Lori
Sat (4/4) 9 am Above the Barre with Kata
Staying home for Patty, Bob Kirkbride, Singletons, Dave Norton, Deb Hryckiewicz, Ludlow Ambulance Service and the Cavendish Water/Waste Water Treatment Team, Rocky and the Cavendish Transfer Station Crew, and Cavendish Town Crew.
Have a Heart -stay home or 6 feet apart.
Stay healthy to protect yourself and Cavendish.