Hello everyone,
Happy Parade weekend! Team Velis is so excited to see you all around Holyoke this weekend for the Holyoke St. Patrick’s Road Race and of course at tomorrow’s 73rd Holyoke St. Patrick’s Parade. We would like to extend our sincere appreciation to every parade committee member who has worked tirelessly these past few months to organize this exciting weekend of events.
This week in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day on Tuesday and in anticipation of this weekend’s events, Team Velis had the opportunity to join in on a few celebrations including the Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce’s St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast and Holyoke Medical Center’s annual celebration of the Chicopee and Holyoke Colleen Courts.
In addition to all the fun celebrations, Team Velis was hard at work throughout the week meeting with constituents, community organizations, and local leaders to discuss a wide variety of matters. From advocacy at the State House regarding youth health and addictive social media algorithms, to here in the district where discussions centered around accessibility for our neighbors with disabilities and local resources, our team remains committed to fostering positive change and supporting the well-being of our entire community.
This week, the Senate advanced efforts to enhance animal safety and welfare by passing the PETS Act. This legislation encourages ethical pet sales by prohibiting pet stores from selling cats and dogs from inhumane commercial breeding facilities, often known as “puppy mills”. If passed into law, Massachusetts would join a growing number of states in banning such sales, while allowing pet shops to continue operating profitably through the sale of pet supplies, services, and collaborations with rescues to feature adoptable animals. Additionally, the bill restricts homeowner insurance companies from considering a dog’s breed when making decisions regarding policy underwriting, rating, or renewal. As someone who has proudly supported animal welfare legislation throughout his career and having adopted his own family cat from the Westfield Homeless Cat Project, we know Senator Velis will be happy to hear that this legislation passed the Senate.
This week, Team Velis hosted office hours in Easthampton and Holyoke. Next week we have an exciting line-up of office hours beginning on Monday at the Westfield Council on Aging from 12:30pm to 1:30pm, on Tuesday at the Russell Council on Aging from 11:30am to 12:30pm, and again on Wednesday at the Southampton Council on Aging from 9:30am to 10:30am. If you are unable to make office hours, please remember that you can reach us by email, john.velis@masenate.gov, by phone, (413) 572-3920, and online at senatorjohnvelis.com.
Sincerely,
Team Velis