Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - December 18, 2020

HOT

Cha-Ching

MacKenzie Scott, formerly the wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is worth $59.6 billion according to HowMuch.com. $10 million of her fortune is coming to Rhode Island. 

United Way of Rhode Island announced on Tuesday that it received a gift in the amount of $10 million from Scott.

Forbes values Scott's wealth slightly lower -- they rank her fourth in the world at $36 billion.

Read more about her gift HERE.

HOT

Beep-Beep

Anthony Spiratos doesn't want to run a food delivery business -- he wants to start a movement. 

The Aquidneck Island native said he launched No Contact Valet during the pandemic to help out struggling restaurants, as well as out-of-work industry professionals. 

"At the start of this pandemic back in March, I was driving down Broadway and Thames [in Newport] and would see a lot of restaurants were closed, and I couldn’t figure out why they weren’t doing delivery," said Spiratos. "When I started to look into it, I saw an alarming trend — they can’t afford to go with the big [food delivery] apps who charge 15% commissions and up, charging customers, often inflating menu costs. I said we can be better than this."

Read more HERE. 

HOT

Hotel California They Are Not - You Can Check Out Anytime You Want, and You Can Leave

For months now we have spent more time in our homes than we could ever imagine. We have worn out couches and comfy chairs binging on our favorite reality series to tubs of ice cream.

There is a safe option to cleanse the spirit, change the scenery and maybe stay in a great Rhode Island hotel or B&B that you might not otherwise have thought to visit -- or wanted to spend money on the in-season, or even out-of-season, rates.

Rhode Island is a destination for so many visitors in normal times. Sometimes the demands of tourists consume the hotel rooms, take the ocean views and leave few options for us natives.

Well, now in an upside world, you can stay at some of Rhode Island’s most glorious hotels for a fraction of the cost.

In the ultimate irony, with the vaccine coming, you might want to hurry now - these rates won’t last forever.

Providence or Newport -- Westerly or Narragansett

Get a suite at the Hotel Providence for about $200 or stay in a standard room for around $110.

You can head to Newport and stay at Gurney’s on Goat Island for under $160 a night on Hotels.com.

Or, if you are feeling grand, take up a Superior Beach Cottage a the Castle Hill Inn for less than $600 a night — with your own private beach -- a nice alternative to the European vacation you were hoping for in 2020 or 2021. That trip didn’t happen and probably won’t, but Castle Hill could help reset the perspective and be the cure for this year’s pounding bad news.

Regardless of the property -- you literally don't have to interact with anyone other than a quick check-in.

The staycation may be the perfect trip to one of the world’s favorite destinations — Rhode Island.

HOT

Ho, Ho, Ho!

The St. Mary’s Feast Society, located in the Knightsville section of Cranston, has announced a toy giveaway event to benefit the less fortunate during the 2020 holiday season. 

The giveaway event will take place at 4 pm at The St. Mary’s Feast Society Headquarters located at 15 Phenix Avenue on December 20. It will be a contactless drive-through event.

Participants should wear a mask, and socially distanced when attending the giveaway. Toy donations of unwrapped and unused toys can be dropped off at the Feast Society Building (at the above location) any afternoon until 6 pm. 

READ MORE HERE

HOT

We Are the Champions 

GoLocalProv.com has won the 2020 Media Impact Award from #YesPVD, which runs the Youth Empowerment Summit — and more.

GoLocal served as the media sponsor for the 2020 YesPVD Virtual Youth Summit, featuring the work of organizers and participants in the career development forum for inner-city youth. 

Read more here. 

NOT

Gong!

Judge Daniel Procaccini's decision this week was, in part, a blistering criticism of the Office of the RI Attorney General's application of the law -- and failed preparation.

Jeff Britt is an expert at the political game, but that doesn't mean he should be mischarged and dragged through a trial at a personal cost of his reputation and a couple hundred thousand in legal fees. 

NOT

Take this Job and...Move It to India

The next time you call the Providence Journal or the Newport Daily News you may be talking to someone in India. 

Gannett, the parent company of the two Rhode Island papers, told its business side employees that 485 of their jobs will be outsourced to India early in the next couple of months, according to Poynter.

In Providence, the decimated Providence Journal, whose newsroom continues to shrink, has seen executive editor Alan Rosenberg, reporter Emily List, and long-time photographer Sandor Bodo leave the paper in the past few weeks.

For the company-wide jobs, all of the outsourcing involves “business process,” the company said in a frequently asked questions document — things like paying bills, invoicing customers, preparing monthly summary reports and reconciling the books.

According to Poynter, those losing their jobs in the U.S. will be notified by January 15 but can stay on until April.

During that period they will be training their replacements overseas.

NOT

Loser (the song)

The Patriots' performance against the Rams was, how do we say, horrific.

Cam's pick on the screen was, how do we say, just god awful.