Hello Everyone,
I hope we’ve all been enjoying the cool nights this week.
With session winding down, my staff and I have been out and about in the district quite a bit attending a number of community events. Tuesday morning marked the ribbon cutting for the newly renovated facility in Chicopee for the Mental Health Association. This beautiful building will serve the mission of providing quality mental health services for many across the Pioneer Valley.
On Tuesday evening I helped celebrate the graduation of 16 students from Agawam High School’s Adult Evening program. These students have all spent countless hours both in and out of the classroom studying a number of subjects to work towards obtaining their high school diplomas. Congratulations to all of these hard-working students!
Speaking of hard working, this week I congratulated Shannon Newsome of Agawam who is one of the few young women in America to have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. Over the past few years Shannon has taken on a number of leadership roles, completed a stunning community service project that benefited Agawam High’s outdoor classroom, and earned 21 different merit badges! Well done, Shannon – Congratulations!
Last night I was honored to help kick off the 96th annual Westfield Fair. The weekend long celebration is always a highlight each year from the rodeo to all the various competitions. Many thanks to all the organizers and exhibitors who not only organized this exciting weekend ahead of us but also the fairs in past years that have established the Westfield Fair as an annual community tradition. Hope to see you there!
To end the week, I am thrilled to join folks over at Stanley Park during their day long celebration of the park’s 75th anniversary. Some of my best memories at Stanley Park have been made more recently since I became a father. I truly cherish the moments where my wife and I are able to head over to Stanley Park with Carson to spend time together. From feedings the ducks and fish to visiting the dinosaur footprints, each and every time we are at Stanley Park a special and precious memory is made. Carson will even be joining me in presenting a citation to Stanley Park later this evening to help commemorate this anniversary.
This week my team hosted office hours in Chicopee and West Springfield. Next week, we will be at the Easthampton COA on Tuesday from 10:30am to 11:30am and at the Holyoke COA on Wednesday from 10:00am to 11:00am. If you can’t make office hours, I can always be reached by email, john.velis@masenate.gov, by phone, (413) 572-3920, and you can find me online at senatorjohnvelis.com.
Sincerely,
John Velis