Hi Everyone,
Team Velis wishes you all a Happy Mother’s Day! Our team is so thankful for the strong women that raised us and are eager to celebrate all that they have done for us over the years. Fingers crossed we will have nice weather this Sunday while we all celebrate the ones we love!
This week Team Velis is excited to introduce you all to our new Legislative Director, Sam Hershman. We kicked off the week on Monday, welcoming Sam on his first day with our office and catching him up to date on all things Team Velis! Sam is a great new addition to the team, and we cannot wait to dive into budget season with him.
On Tuesday, Mark attended a ribbon cutting to celebrate PV Allergy’s opening in Westfield. Our district staff always looks forward to attending ribbon cuttings and learning more about the new business that help our district continue to grow. Tuesday was also the Nurses Association Day on the Hill at the State House. Gabe and Sam had the opportunity to meet with nurses from the district to discuss legislation exploring safety protections for healthcare workers.
Wednesday was a busy day at the State House as the whole building was abuzz as the Senate prepares to take up its version of the FY27 budget. Team Velis spent the day meeting with various local advocacy groups and learning about different budget priorities from local Western Mass providers.
This Thursday, Mark met with community leaders in the district to discuss potential youth intervention programs. This program in particular is focused on engaging youth with sustainability efforts in order to drive community-based engagement in Western Mass. Senator Velis always looks forward to learning more about resources in our district that promote healthy mindsets and developing civic engagement in our youth. Later that evening, Team Velis attended an information session on Leaders Engaged and Activated to Drive System-wide change (LEADS), an executive fellowship program dedicated to connecting gateway city leaders to discuss entrepreneurship, collaboration, and development. This was a great opportunity for our team to learn more about educational resources out there to help our community and gateway cities continue to grow.
This week, Team Velis hosted office hours in Agawam. Next week we will be hosting office hours at the Chicopee Council on Aging on Tuesday from 10:00am to 11:00am, and at the West Springfield Council on Aging on Wednesday from 11:00am to 12:00pm. 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