Year: 2016

HOLYOKE — Parents are invited to bring their little ghosts and goblins under the age of 12 for trick-or-treating at Holyoke Mall during its Halloween Mall-O-Ween event on Monday, Oct. 31.

Children will have the opportunity to trick or treat at participating stores from 4 to 6 p.m. Parents and children should look for the “Trick or Treat Here” sign displayed in participating storefronts for special treats during the designated hours. Promptly at 5:30 p.m., a costume contest will be held in Café Square. Contestants must be registered before 5:30 p.m. Also, stop by Sbarro on Oct. 31 in your Halloween costume and receive a free slice of cheese pizza with a $5 purchase.

SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield Symphony Orchestra (SSO) has more than just a memorable season of classical music on tap. On Thurs., Oct. 27, the SSO is inviting the public to support the symphony at its third annual celebrity bartending fund-raiser, to be held at the Student Prince and the Fort in downtown Springfield. All tips and a portion of all purchases will benefit the SSO. There is no admission fee, but participants must be at least 21 years old.

From 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., celebrity bartenders will include Springfield Mayor Dominic Sarno, Fire Commissioner Joseph Conant, Springfield Sting owner Zach Baru, White Lion Brewery owner Ray Berry, Springfield Thunderbirds Manager Ryan Smith, Springfield BID Executive Director Chris Russell, Western Mass News Anchors Lindsay Iadeluca and Chris Pisano, and Lazer 99.3 DJ Leslie, to name a few. Celebrities will staff the bar, serving up beer and wine to symphony supporters. To find out when your favorite local celebrity will be behind the bar, visit springfieldsymphony.org/calendar.

In addition to a fun evening of drinks and conversation with members of the SSO staff and local celebrities, guests may enter to win raffle prizes, including free concert tickets. Free valet parking will also be provided.

After the success of last year’s event, this year promises to be a well-attended evening of socializing and support for the SSO, said SSO Executive Director Peter Salerno. “For three years running, this has been an exciting event for both the symphony and our guests. It also provides an opportunity for the city to support and celebrate the outstanding music the symphony is able to bring to Springfield.”

SPRINGFIELD — Baystate Health has appointed Ben Craft to the new position of senior director of Government and Public Affairs.

Craft, who has served as the organization’s director of Public Affairs since 2012, is assuming the additional responsibility of government affairs to support Baystate’s needs for strong connections with local, state, and federal government amid continuing rapid change in the healthcare environment.

Craft returned home to Western Mass. to join Baystate in 2008, having worked previously at the United Nations and the Wall Street Journal in New York City. His work at the UN included communications and policy advocacy with government, nonprofit, and civil-society partners. He will report to Jennifer Endicott, Baystate’s chief strategy officer and senior vice president of Strategy and External Relations.

“With his deep understanding of the challenges facing healthcare providers today and a strong network of relationships in the community and across Baystate Health, Ben is well-positioned to serve as point person for our local, state, and federal government partners,” said Endicott. “Ben is committed to finding ways to improve the dialogue between our dedicated elected officials and Baystate Health, the largest provider of safety-net services and largest private employer in Western Massachusetts. Ben’s previous experience, particularly at the UN, will be invaluable in achieving this goal.”

Craft grew up in East Longmeadow and is a 1996 graduate of UMass Amherst.

SPRINGFIELD — Thanksgiving is approaching, and the Gray House, a nonprofit human-service agency in the North End of Springfield, is requesting donations to help ensure everyone enjoys a traditional Thanksgiving meal.

“Thanksgiving is such a special day when we gather with friends and family and express our gratitude for all that we have,” said executive director Teresa Spaziani. “For those who go without the turkey and other traditional dishes, I imagine it would feel like just another meal. We want it to be special for all of our neighbors who can’t afford to purchase a holiday meal or who have to decide between paying the rent or buying food for their family.”

The Gray House provides food-pantry services throughout the year to an average of 80 to 120 families every week. With the holiday approaching, it is expecting an even greater demand, and is seeking donations of frozen turkeys as well as gravy, stuffing, potatoes, canned yams or sweet potatoes, canned vegetables, cake mixes and frosting, pie crust, and pie filling.

“Last year, we were able to provide 525 families with a turkey and sides. The number of families we can provide holiday groceries for truly depends on the number of turkeys donated, so even if you are able to donate one turkey, that means one more family in our neighborhood gets to enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving meal,” Spaziani said.

In addition to donations, volunteers, especially those who speak Spanish, are also needed to help with registration and distribution. Volunteer opportunities can be found at grayhouse.org/volunteer-opportunities.

Food donations can be dropped off weekdays from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. through Nov. 18, or by appointment at the Gray House, 22 Sheldon St., Springfield. Donors are asked to drive up to the side door the house (near the ramp) and are asked to leave all donations in their car until staff can come out to help unload their cars. Donors are also asked not to leave any donations sitting outside the Gray House.

HOLYOKE — Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C. (MBK) announced that Melyssa Brown, CPA, MBA, has been accepted into the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) Leadership Academy. She was previously honored with a Women to Watch Emerging Leader Award from the Massachusetts Society of CPAs.

Brown’s induction into the Leadership Academy took place over the course of a four-day program held earlier this month in Durham, N.C. The prestigious invitation-only program featured interactive dialogue with the profession’s top leaders designed to build on the foundational knowledge perspective of each individual. Attendees were immersed in experiential exercises and self-examination of leadership and how a new strategic vision will positively impact their personal life, career path, and the CPA profession.

“We’re very proud of Melyssa’s achievement,” said MBK partner James Barrett. “It’s not her first honor, and it certainly won’t be her last. She started here as an entry-level staff member and quickly went on to become the youngest senior manager in the firm’s history. We look forward to more amazing things from her.”

Brown received her bachelor in accountancy degree from Elms College and her MBA in accounting from the Isenberg School of Management at UMass Amherst. She is vice president of the Girls Inc. board of directors and is active in the UMass Family Business Center and the Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield. She was also a BusinessWest 40 Under Forty honoree in 2013.

SPRINGFIELD — Beginning Wednesday, Nov. 2, the Realtor Assoc. of Pioneer Valley will sponsor a 40-hour, 14-class sales licensing course to help individuals prepare for the Massachusetts real-estate salesperson license exam. The course will be completed on Dec. 7.

Tuition is $359 and includes the book and materials. For an application, call the Realtor Assoc. of Pioneer Valley at (413) 785-1328.

HADLEY — After more than two years of strategic planning, in a deal valued at approximately $1.6 million, Paragus IT’s employee stock-ownership plan (ESOP), which distributes ownership of 40% of the company to its 40-plus employees, is officially a go.

To celebrate, Paragus is bringing in the founder of Harpoon Brewery, one of the country’s most high-profile ESOPs. Dan Kenary will sit down with Paragus founder Delcie Bean for a conversation about how ESOPs work and what it means for businesses, clients, and customers. The event, open to the public, will take place today, Oct. 21, at 3:30 p.m. at Paragus Headquarters, 112 Russell St., Hadley.

“Everyone here is very excited about the ESOP,” Bean said. “For us, it’s about fueling growth by giving everyone a direct stake and a personal investment in the future of the company. But lots of people on the outside still have questions. This is a fun way to team up with a great company with a similar vision and get everybody up to speed — and have a couple of beers doing it.”

To that end, Paragus hasn’t just invited Harpoon’s founder. The taps in the Paragus pub will be flowing with a selection of Harpoon’s best seasonal brews for attendees to enjoy.

“This is a great reason to cut out of work a little early on a Friday and kick the weekend off right with a snack, a beer or two, and some interesting conversation,” Bean said.

SPRINGFIELD — As the community enjoyed a stretch of summer-like temperatures, more than 100 children at Square One in Springfield enjoyed a cool treat thanks to Frankie & Johnnie’s Pizza.

Frankie & Johnnie’s owner Leon Giard recently contacted Square One and offered to spread a little summertime cheer at Square One by delivering his remaining ice-cream supplies for the children to enjoy.

“The timing was perfect,” says Kris Allard, vice president of Square One. “Frankie & Johnnie’s seasonal ice-cream business was wrapping up now that the fall temperatures are here. Leon is an amazing supporter of Square One and asked if the children could have the opportunity to enjoy the remaining inventory. Who knew that we would be experiencing record-breaking temperatures this week and that the ice cream would be the perfect treat?”

SPRINGFIELD — The Springfield College computer graphics/digital arts program will host a free game lab workshop on Saturday, Oct. 22 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. inside Blake Hall. The program is designed for high-school students who have an interest in being a video-game designer.

The workshop will introduce individuals to video-game design experts, and allow guests the opportunity to experience the field first-hand. Attendees will have the chance to witness how video games are made and what it takes to design a video game of their own.

The event will include a panel of video-game design experts, including Pat King, owner of Woodpenny Studio; Matthew Zanni, director of Software Engineering at Carousel Industries; and Sarah Como, game developer at Disruptor Beam.

Attendees will have an opportunity to win an iPad by bringing in their best 3D game character as a concept drawing, digital image, or 3D model and be judged by experts in the field.

SPRINGFIELD — With one week left in the annual Salvation Army Coats for Kids campaign, Pride Markets has seen a remarkable outpouring of support from the community in its recent participation, which includes stores in Longmeadow, Agawam, Ludlow, Springfield, and other Western Mass locations. Last year, more than 300 coats were collected. This year’s donations look to be even greater.

Pride Markets is a long-time sponsor of the Salvation Army Coats for Kids campaign, which was established in 1980. Over the last 30 years, tens of thousands of winter coats have been collected and given to Western Mass. children in need. Each year, dozens of local businesses and organizations take part in the initiative to keep kids warm by collecting gently used or new winter coats.

The initiative asks members of the community to donate new or gently used winter coats that have been outgrown or simply not worn. Belmont Laundry, with several other locations throughout greater Springfield, has pledged to clean every donated coat before it is distributed to a child in need.

PITTSFIELD — Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG) announced that its Made in the Berkshires Festival is the recipient of the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Festivals Program grant.

In November, BTG will host the sixth annual Made in the Berkshires Festival, which will utilize both Pittsfield and Stockbridge locations throughout the November 11-13 festival weekend. Made in the Berkshires is a locally grown festival of new works including theater, film, dance, poetry, music, short stories, performance, and visual art.

“We’re proud to be included on the list of fall and winter festivals supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Festivals Program,” said Artistic Director and CEO Kate Maguire. “Since ticket sales only cover half of our expenses, outside funding is vital to maintain our educational and transformative programs. We are grateful that the MCC supports the valuable work we do.”

MCC’s Festivals Program is designed to provide funding to help festival programmers meet the needs of producing, promoting, and developing audiences. In the program’s first round, 125 grants of $500 were awarded. Grant recipients also receive technical support from ArtsBoston in social media and best practices in data collection to create a framework to deepen the marketing and data-collection capacity of festivals across the Commonwealth.