General Cleaners of Holyoke held its New Year coat drive, including a special collection event during the Greater Holyoke Chamber’s “Power Hour” on Feb. 15. Attendees brought used coats as their admission. Additionally, Access Care Partners (formerly WestMass Eldercare) collected coats at its Mill Road location.
All coats were professionally cleaned by General Cleaners.
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The Chamber of Greater Easthampton (Chamber) will hold a Member/Hubster Mixer on April 10 from 4 to 6 p.m. at its WorkHub on Union coworking space at 33 Union St., Easthampton.
Registration is free and open to all and includes complimentary beverages and light snacks. Registration is required due to limited registrations available. For more information or to register, visit the chamber’s events calendar at www.easthamptonchamber.org or email info@easthamptonchamber.org.
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The 24th annual 94.7 WMAS Radiothon for Baystate Children’s Hospital was held March 4-5.
The event raised $256,235 in support of care for patients at Baystate Children’s Hospital. These funds will go to support pediatric care, including the purchase of kid-sized equipment, creating an inviting and friendly space for patients, and research. All proceeds raised during the event stay in Western Massachusetts.
Baystate Children’s Hospital is the local Children’s Miracle Network Hospital, which helps provide more opportunities to support kids in our communities. Events occur throughout the year to support pediatric care at Baystate Health, including the Baystate Children’s Hospital Golf Tournament on June 9.
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A nurse-engineer team at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has been honored with an ANA Innovation Award for inventing a new intravenous (IV) pole designed to improve the safety and ease of administering IV medications at the hospital bedside.
The American Nurses Association Foundation and the American Nurses Enterprise announced the 2025 award winners on Tuesday, March. 11. The team — Karen Giuliano, nursing co-director of the Elaine Marieb Center for Nursing and Engineering Innovation; Jeannine Blake, assistant professor of nursing; and Juan Jiménez, associate professor of mechanical and industrial engineering and a Manning/IALS Innovation Fellow — won honorable mention in the 2025 Team Innovation Award category.
By combining the engineering and fluid dynamics expertise of Jiménez with the clinical knowledge of critical-care nurses Giuliano and Blake, this interdisciplinary team set out to develop an IV pole that simplifies and accelerates the setup and delivery of IV medications in hospitals when using an IV pump, ultimately reducing the occurrence of dangerous yet largely preventable medication errors. The idea stemmed from real-world clinical observations, which revealed that standard IV poles often made it more challenging and time-consuming for frontline nurses to achieve optimal IV infusion setups.
A patent is under review for this novel IV pole, which features an adjustable crossbar for hanging infusions.
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The Better Business Bureau of Central New England announces the 2025 Western Massachusetts Awards for Marketplace Excellence. The event will take place on Thursday, April 24, from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Hotel Northampton, 36 King St.
This event celebrates and honors businesses and nonprofits that exemplify outstanding ethical practices, leadership, and commitment to their customers, employees, and communities. The evening will include a buffet dinner, a cash bar, and opportunities for local business leaders to connect and network.
The evening will begin with a cocktail hour and registration from 5 to 6 p.m., followed by a buffet dinner that opens at 6 p.m.. The awards presentation and guest speakers will take the stage at 7 p.m. The night will conclude with a networking reception from 8 to 9 p.m.
Large business, midsize businesses and small businesses Emerging Leaders winners will be announced in early April.
Tickets are now on sale: $50 for individual tickets or $500 for a table of 10. Tickets can be purchased online at Event Tickets or by contacting the BBB at events@cne.bbb.org or 508-552-0353.
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The Western Mass Home & Garden Show has two buildings of home improvement companies that will be on hand to show, tell, demonstrate and advise the thousands of homeowners expected to attend the Home & Garden Show scheduled to run from March 27-30 on the grounds of the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield.
The show website at https://westernmasshomeshow.com/ has a list of current vendors and is being updated daily. A coupon offering a discount for entry is available on the website.
