Follow-ups

Virginia Business
July 2007

Doris Buffett’s Sunshine Lady Foundation is donating $450,000 to The Boys & Girls Clubs of Roanoke Valley. The money will match another $450,000 being raised locally to build a teen center at the organization’s Ninth Street building in Roanoke. Buffett, a Fredericksburg resident who is the sister of billionaire Warren Buffett, was the subject of our cover story in June issue, which focused on wealth and philanthropy in Virginia.

Merck & Co. Inc. has announced the second expansion at its Elkton pharmaceutical plant since December. In early June, the company said it will invest $193 million and create 70 new jobs at the plant, which now has about 700 workers. In December, Merck said it would spend $57 million to produce Gardasil, a cervical cancer vaccine, in Elkton. Virginia Business has tracked the plant’s growth in several issues since October 2005.

Virginia Business Bank in Richmond has completed its first year of operation. The bank, which primarily focuses on small to mid-sized companies, opened in April 2006. In late May, it had $49.5 million in total assets, $36 million in loans and $30 million in deposits. The bank was featured in stories about niche banking in the February 2006 issue.