John Garde, of Westfield, was one of 11 participants chosen by the Hartford Marathon Foundation to represent the 2023 Inspiration Team at the Eversource Hartford Marathon and Half Marathon that was held Saturday.
Garde has worked for Eversource for nearly 42 years in a Springfield area office. For the past eight years, on marathon Saturday in Hartford, Garde has run the 5K and then volunteered at the finish line. He can be seen handing out medals, blankets and waters to those finishing the half marathon and marathon.
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The Western Mass Economic Development Council and Economic Development Partners will hold the 2023 Western Mass Developers Conference Wednesday, Oct. 18, at MGM Springfield.
Conference highlights include a CEO panel, a “Community Lightning Round” highlighting the vitality of communities in Western Massachusetts and a workshop highlighting incentives available to businesses in the region.
Presenting sponsor is MassMutual, lunch sponsor is Westmass, breakfast sponsor is MGM Springfield, hosting sponsor is MGM Springfield and silver sponsors are Onyx and M&T Bank.
The luncheon keynote address will feature Gov. Maura T. Healey and Secretary of Economic Development Yvonne Hao.
For more information, go to https://www.westernmassedc.com/2023-western-massachusetts-developers-conference/
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Mayhew Tools in Turners Falls recently received an award for its outstanding leadership skills in the Manufacturing Industry at the eighth Annual Manufacturing Awards Ceremony. This ceremony is part of the “Massachusetts Manufacturing Mash-Up” held in Polar Park in Worcester, hosted by the Massachusetts Legislative Manufacturing Caucus and other key partners.
Sen. Jo Comerford, D-Northampton, and Rep. Natalie Blais, D-Deerfield, nominated Mayhew for this award.
“Mayhew Tools is a family-owned hand tool manufacturer operating in Franklin County since 1856,” said John and Bill Lawless, owners and presidents of Mayhew Tools. Comerford and Blais will also visit and tour Mayhew’s facilityand congratulate John and Bill Lawless and their team later this fall.
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A study initiated by the Norwottuck Network to assess the benefits of the completion of the Massachusetts Central Rail Trail system predicts that general health and wellness would improve, and annual trail usage could quadruple, creating opportunities for overnight visitation, new jobs, increased local small businesses and an overall economic benefit ranging from $87 million to $182 million annually.
The Norwottuck Network, a nonprofit, raised $75,000 to commission the study by Kittelson & Associates, Inc. of Boston and Cambridge Econometrics of Northampton to evaluate the potential use and health and economic benefits of completing the 104-mile, multi-use bicycle and pedestrian trail system that runs between Boston and Northampton along the historic Massachusetts Central Railroad corridor.
Findings outlined in “Envisioning a Statewide Connection: Mass Central Rail Trail Benefits Study,” released in mid-May, indicate that completion of the trail would result in increased usage of up to four to five million people annually and reduced health costs from $4.1 million to $5.8 million per year. On the economic side, a completed trail would create $87 million to $182 million per year in new economic activity, including $55 million to $114 million in new spending by trail users and up to 1,250 new jobs.
Leaders of the nine-member Norwottuck Network board, founded in 2000, will now ask the state Department of Transportation to evaluate construction costs and create a timeline for completion.
Currently, 55 miles of the trail are officially open with roughly 20 miles in the planning or construction stages.
Kittelson & Associates noted that the completed network would be within 10 miles of 64 percent of all Massachusetts residents and would offer a boost to 19 cities and towns defined by the consultants as Gateway Communities—those that face social and economic challenges but retain assets such as infrastructure or major institutions.
These Gateway Communities would benefit: Barre, Billerica, Clinton, Easthampton, Hardwick, Hatfield, Lunenburg, Marlborough, New Braintree, Oakham, Palmer, Saugus, South Hadley, Southampton, Southwick, Ware, Warren, West Boylston and West Brookfield.
The first section of the Mass Central Rail Trail was a segment called the Norwottuck Rail Trail, completed in 1993.
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American Eagle Financial Credit Union is hosting a free First-Time Home Buyer Seminar on Wednesday, Oct. 18, from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Central Library, located at 220 State St., Springfield.
This program is free and open to the public, but attendees need to register. Attendees will hear from industry professionals who will share their knowledge and experience, and answer questions about purchasing your first home.
To register or learn more about this event, go to https://www.americaneagle.org/fthb-springfield.
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The Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield has announced its upcoming fall events. To learn more about Springfield YPS and its programming, visit https://www.springfieldyps.com/.
Upcoming events include:
YPS October Third Thursday: Munich Haus With Chicopee Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, Oct. 19, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. located at Munich Haus, 13 Center St., Chicopee.
YPS November Leadership Luncheon: Jill Monson of POP!more on Nov. 14 from noon to 1 p.m. located at Venture X, 98 Lower Westfield Road, Holyoke.
YPS Friendsgiving: Friendsgiving on Thursday, Nov. 16, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. located at Dewey’s Jazz Lounge, 232 Worthington St., Springfield.
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Northeast Paving’s road crews will wear pink safety shirts throughout the month, advocating for increased awareness and support for breast cancer patients and survivors.
Wearing pink emerged as a symbol of awareness in 1992 for the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The campaign will run throughout October.
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