Hello Everyone,
I hope everyone is enjoying these last few weeks of summer. The mornings have started to get chilly and pretty soon the tips of the leaves will begin to change.
I started off my week Sunday morning at the Easthampton Farmers Market. Rep. Carey and I had a great time. We are truly lucky to have a community of local artisans and farmers who put something like this on. The strawberries I went home with were delicious too.
Tuesday morning, I had the honor of riding along with the Holyoke Police Department’s Behavioral Health response division. This group of law enforcement officers are trained specifically to respond to mental and emotional crises. Those officers who respond to these calls are at the front line of the policy work that we do in the Joint Committee of Mental Health, Substance Abuse, and Recovery. HPD is doing remarkable work and I thank them for letting me come along.
Tuesday afternoon I met with the staff of Nueva Esperanza in Holyoke. This organization does great work for the community development and advancement of Puerto Rican and Afro-Caribbean culture here in Western Mass. Among their many contributions to our community, the recent “Fiestas Patronales” in Holyoke was a huge success and if any of you attended, like myself and my family, you would have seen firsthand this group’s impact. Our meeting Tuesday was to discuss how we in the legislature can best work alongside them to help in their mission. I look forward to what we will accomplish together.
Thursday afternoon I met with two national recovery advocates to hear what Massachusetts can do to improve on that front. It was a great conversation and was very interesting to learn about initiatives across our country. Thursday evening, I presented Ryan Mossmiesl of West Springfield with a citation for the completion of his Eagle Scout requirements. Ryan, as a former baseball player for West Springfield, noticed his dugouts had no place to store equipment and for his final project, he built the brand-new gear cubbies. Our community is lucky to have you, Ryan. Keep up the good work.
Friday morning, we celebrated the 95th birthday of Westfield resident, Jane O’Donoghue, where my team and I presented her with an official citation from the State Senate. Congratulations, Jane!
This week my team held office hours at the Russell COA on Tuesday, and I was glad to personally hold office hours at the Chicopee COA on Thursday. Next week, we will be at the Westfield COA on Monday at 12:30pm and at the Southampton COA on Wednesday at 10:00am. If you can’t make office hours, I can always be reached by email, john.velis@masenate.gov, by phone, (413) 527-3920, and you can find me online at senatorjohnvelis.com
Sincerely,
John Velis