Hello everyone,
I hope that everyone’s fall is off to a good start. As leaves and temperatures begin to drop, I would like to remind everyone that my office is readily available to assist with fuel assistance applications for you or anyone you my know.
This past Thursday marked World Mental Health Day. In celebration this week I spoke at Holyoke Community College as a part of my “Let’s Talk about Mental Health” listening session tour. The students and faculty who participated were incredibly engaged and empathetic, and the topics we touched upon ranged over so many of the issues associated with mental health. Stigma around mental health issues remain ones of the biggest barriers to those suffering, and I hope forums like this help normalize the conversation and encourage folks to feel comfortable enough to reach out for help when they need it. It is incredibly heartening to know that many of the students who participated in the listening session hope to be the next generation of mental health providers. Thank you, HCC and President Timmons, for providing this opportunity!
Wednesday morning, I joined Representative Finn at the West Springfield Boys and Girls Club to see some of the new programming they have going on. Our local Boys and Girls Club are always working hard to serve our youth, and I appreciated to opportunity to connect and discuss how we can best continue to advocate for them out in Boston. Later that day, I toured the Placon Plastics manufacturing facility also in West Springfield. Employing approximately 100 Massachusetts residents, this facility provides important employment opportunities for those in our communities. Thank you to Placon for inviting us and for sharing with us your work to achieve a more sustainable future.
Thursday evening, I attended the ribbon cutting for the new office of the Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce. This was a wonderful event where I was joined by my fellow elected officials and business leaders from all across the community. The Chamber does such good work making sure our local businesses have the resources they need and that our region continues to grow. I’m looking forward to seeing how this new space will help serve them in that mission.
This week my office hosted office hours in Agawam, Chicopee, and West Springfield. Next week, we will be at the Easthampton COA on Tuesday October 15th from 10:30am to 11:30am and again on Wednesday at the Holyoke COA 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.
Please enjoy the long weekend and wishing a yom tov and a meaningful Yom Kippur to all those observing.
Sincerely,
John Velis