Hello everyone,
We hope you’ve all had a great start to December! Despite the snowy weather, Team Velis had a very busy week around the district and out in Boston.
This week, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that seven communities in our district were awarded FY25 Justice Assistance Grants. This funding will support local public safety officials through prevention and education programs, technology upgrades, and other critical law enforcement initiatives. If you haven’t already, be sure to check out one of the Senator’s social media channels to see how much was awarded to each community!
On Wednesday, Bridget joined community members in Chicopee to celebrate the grand opening of Rumbleseat Golf Room, keep your swing warm all winter long with this new golf simulator. That evening Mark attended a Westfield Gas & Electric Municipal Light Board meeting to help celebrate the retirement of Commissioner Kevin Kelleher. During Commissioner Kelleher’s final meeting, an official senate citation was presented on behalf of Senator Velis to recognize the Commissioner’s 22 years of service.
This past Wednesday was also the Joint Rule 10 deadline in the Senate. This is an important date in the legislative calendar when most Committees must determine which bills will move forward in the legislative process. This session, Joint Rule 10 Day was moved up from its typical time in mid-February to the first Wednesday in December. This change has helped ensure that many bills can advance more efficiently during the two-year legislative session. Throughout this week, Josie was staying in close contact with various committee staff to help move many of the Senator’s bills forward.
To round out the week, Mark helped welcome Superior ElectroMechanics to Westfield. Superior ElectroMechanics specializes in repairing a wide range of equipment to ensure that their customers can resume operations as quickly as possible
All of us on Team Velis want to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the countless first responders, community organizations, and individuals who provided support to those in Holyoke impacted by this week’s devasting fires. Please know our office remains in close contact with Holyoke officials and state partners to continue to provide support to those affected.
This week Team Velis held office hours in Agawam and Southampton. Next week, we will be hosting office hours at the Chicopee Council on Aging from 10:00AM to 11:00AM on Tuesday and again on Wednesday at the West Springfield from 11:00AM to 12:00PM. If you are unable to make office hours or if you have any questions about the changes to some community’s regularly scheduled office hours this month please do not hesitate to contact us by email,  john.velis@masenate.gov, by phone, (413) 572-3920, and online at senatorjohnvelis.com.   
Sincerely,  
Team Velis