On January 7th, 2026, the Leadership Greater Nashua class of 2026 started our day at Can-One USA. Can-One USA just opened in Nashua back in 2023, becoming and still holding the title of the only aluminum can supplier in New England. Beginning with an overview of the seven-step manufacturing process from Joe Brito, their Compliance Specialist, the cohort then toured the manufacturing pipeline, getting to see this process in action. We also heard from upper-management Chaidir Umar, Plant Manager, and Hansen Tai Seng Han, Group Financial Controller. In speaking with Chaidir and Hansen, we learned that Can-One USA sources all its raw materials in the United States, and selected Nashua, NH, as the home for its first location in the western hemisphere due to its proximity to its already established United States and Canadian customer base.
The group then travelled to the new headquarters of W.H. Bagshaw. W.H. Bagshaw is the oldest pin manufacturer in America, having first opened in Lowell, MA, back in 1870 before moving to Nashua, NH in 1949. W.H. Bagshaw just recently relocated to Hudson, NH in the summer of 2025. W.H. Bagshaw is now in its fifth generation of family leadership, with Aaron Bagshaw holding the title of President and his wife Adria being the current Vice President. Patrick Harvey, Josh Hardwick, and Amanda Varga educated the group on the facility, high-technology Swiss CNC machines, and the pin manufacturing process. LGN also got a look into Walter Bat Company, the Bagshaws’ newer business venture, which produces stock or custom wooden bats for baseball and softball players. We got to see the manufacturing workflow for turning wooden billets into a baseball bat, as well as learn a bit of science behind the construction of an essential piece of equipment for America’s Pastime
Written By
Emma Williamson
GNCC
After we toured Can One and WH Bagshaw (both of which were amazing) LGN spent the afternoon at Rivier University, specifically the Science & Innovation building, so that we could listen to a presentation on the high tech industry as well as a mid-point check in on our overall mental well-being by GMNH.
We listened to Sky Terra co-founder Dan Bergeron tell us his story about how his company came to be specifically how in high school tech was the furthest thing from his mind and/or potential career path. However, after a conversation with his school counselor, he decided that he may want to pursue a something different which led him down the path of wealth management and eventually to creating Sky Terra in 2015 and since then his company has grown from a small firm to a medium size one of +/- fifty employees serving over 300 clients. It was clear that Sky Terra values the interpersonal relationships we have with one another on daily basis and their ultimate goal when working with clients is to do whatever his company can to maximize the efficiency of said company while also keeping a strong working relationship with them.
Dan also discussed the importance of having a strong level of cyber security due to the rise in AI hackers which I found to be interesting because of the increased usage of AI in daily life. One thing that stuck out to me was just how much information sites, or AI, can see when you allow cookies to be used (life lesson: do not allow sites to use cookies). Lastly, he discussed his hiring practices which he said is something that he not only enjoys doing but also takes great pride in because he has such a small yet dedicated staff that he takes pride in all that they do to help the greater community from a tech perspective.
At the conclusion of the Sky Terra presentation, we were provided lunch by Texas Roadhouse before our final two afternoon sessions. Our first session was a check-in of sorts by Dr. Cynthia Whitaker of GNMH who asked us to self-assess where we are at from a mental health perspective since our initial LGN overnight in early September. She asked us to focus on making sure that we are aligned, internally, as leaders because others around us can sense when we are not…..this is something I found to be particularly important when I look back at things. She asked us to do a small group activity where we described what we thought made effective leaders and while there was a wide array of descriptions we had a lot of similarities as well. For the most part, the group felt leaders listened, provided clear instructions, allowed for growth/creativity from their co-workers.
For the last hour, each sub-committee met to go over their plans for the group project and shared those ideas with the overall group to make sure we agreed on those ideas. Overall, as a group, it seems that we are working towards completing our proposal in the coming days and starting our group specific goals in the coming weeks as well.
Written by:
Dylan Mullin
Bishop Guertin
