🌱 Ann & Hope Sold For $3.5 Million + Check Out Bluffing Boutique

Morning, neighbors, and happy National Winnie the Pooh Day! Sylvia here with your Tuesday issue of the Woonsocket Daily.

The Ann & Hope property sold for a lot less than its asking price. Also, Geri’s Bluffing Boutique is the business of the day. Finally, 42.2% of RI residents are fully vaccinated.

First, today's weather:

Colder with sunshine. High: 29 Low: 16.

Here are the top five stories in Woonsocket today:

1. Hartford Holdings LLC paid $3.5 million to buy the Ann & Hope property in nearby Cumberland. We learned Thursday that the deal went through on December 21. The purchase price was considerably lower than the asking price of $4.79 million. (The Valley Breeze)
2. Woonsocket Radio’s business of the day is Geri’s Bluffing Boutique at 285 Main Street. Geri returned to her Liberian roots to create fashions that look good and feel good. Bluffing "is used by Liberians to denote the use of fashion to project confidence and positivity, even when one might not be feeling their best." (@WoonsocketRadio, Bluffing Boutique)
3. Only 11.9% of RI residents are currently unvaccinated. Another 13.2% are partially vaccinated. On the other hand, the latest figures from Thursday show that 32.8% of residents received their booster shots and 42.2% are fully vaccinated. (WPRI)
4. Rhode Island State Police officials released operating-while-under-the-influence arrest figures on Monday. In 2019, they arrested 425 drivers. By 2020, the number had risen to 603. The number jumped again in 2021, when they arrested 953 individuals. (WPRI)
5. “A lot of Woonsocket felt empty, a relic of better times,” reads a line in Robert B. Parker's Old Black Magic by Ace Atkins. Published in 2018, it is an installment of the New York Times best-selling author’s Spenser series. There’s just something about reading your city’s name in print. (Ace Atkins, 2)

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Today in Woonsocket:

• West Warwick Public Library’s Story Time (Ages 0-2) (10 AM)
• Silver Rings Jewelry Workshop at The Bench - Jewelry and Metalsmithing Studio (10 AM to 1 PM)
• Volunteer Day at The Steel Yard (1 PM to 4 PM)
• Side Hustle Accelerator Masterclass (online) (5 PM)

From my notebook:

• The Woonsocket Cat Sanctuary announced that beautiful Ella and handsome Max both went to their forever homes! (Facebook)
• A Harris neighbor reported two dogs escaped their home on Oakley RD in Woonsocket. Please keep your eyes open and report any sightings to Kimberly Ann 978-423-3014 (Nextdoor)
  
• Our Nursery Ave neighbor is looking for help 2 days (Tue, Thu) per week to cook Indian food in their kitchen. They can discuss payment. (Nextdoor)

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Events:

• Divorce Boot Camp – Vesta's N. Attleboro, MA / Providence, RI Hub (January 21)
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You're all caught up for today! I'll see you around.

— Sylvia Cochran

About me: Sylvia Cochran works out of sunny Southern California and has been freelance writing full-time since 2005. She loves dogs, cats, books, plays Best Fiends (don't judge), embraces social justice, and tries to live out Micah 6:8.