Agenda

Positively Holyoke Summer Concert Series
July 8, 15, 22, 29: The Holyoke Rotary Club has announced the lineup of the 2015 Positively Holyoke Summer Concert Series. The free concerts will be held on Wednesday evenings in July, from 6 to 8 p.m., at Heritage State Park in Holyoke. Performances canceled due to weather will be scheduled for the following evening (Thursday of the same week). The schedule is as follows: July 8, Out of the Blue (rock & roll); July 15, Brass Attack (classic/modern rock); July 22, the Franny O Show (covers and original songs); and July 29, Ireland Parish (Irish ballads). Heritage State Park is a family-friendly area located between the Volleyball Hall of Fame, the Holyoke Children’s Museum, and historic Holyoke Merry-Go-Round. The park has no formal seating, and concertgoers are encouraged to bring folding chairs and picnic blankets. “The Positively Holyoke Summer Concert Series began five years ago at the request of the City of Holyoke Parks & Recreation Department. The department approached the Holyoke Rotary Club with the knowledge that many local Rotary clubs provide this form of entertainment in the communities they serve. The events are fun and family-friendly,” said Maureen Ross O’Connell, co-chairperson of the concert committee. Attendees are welcome to enjoy food at the Rotary Grill, provided this year by Sláinte, which will open at 5:30 p.m. each week. Beer and wine will be available for purchase courtesy of Brennan’s Place from 5:30 to 8 p.m. New this year, attendees will be allowed to take their purchases from the beer garden onto the grounds of Heritage State Park. Coolers and beverages not purchased at the event will not be allowed. The concert series will also feature a 50/50 raffle each week. Free parking is provided in the Proulx Garage on Dwight Street after 5 p.m. (entrance on Front Street). Major sponsors of the Positively Holyoke Summer Concert Series include Holyoke Gas & Electric Department and Holyoke Parks & Recreation. Band sponsors include Ross Insurance Agency Inc., O’Connell Care at Home, and the O’Connell Companies. To learn more about the concert series, visit www.positivelyholyoke.com. For sponsorship opportunities, call Maureen Ross O’Connell at (413) 536-8380.

Indian Motocycle Day
July 26: From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Springfield Museums will present their sixth annual Indian Motocycle Day, the continuation of a long-standing tradition honoring the classic motorcycles that were manufactured in the city from 1901 to 1953. Last year, more than 1,000 people attended the event, which featured more than 60 classic, Springfield-built Indians owned by local collectors, The event is sponsored by the Sampson Family and AAA Pioneer Valley; the media sponsor is Rock 102 WAQY. MassMutual is the 2015 premier sponsor of the Springfield Museums. The museums re-established the Indian Day tradition in 2010 after a five-year hiatus. From 1970 to 2005, the event was held at the now-closed Indian Motocycle Museum on Hendee Street in Springfield. Esta Manthos, together with her late husband Charlie, were the owners of the former museum. In 2007, Manthos donated her extensive collection of Indian Motocycles, artifacts, and memorabilia to the Springfield Museums, where it is now on view in the Lyman & Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History. This year’s Indian Day will pay tribute to Bob’s Indian of Etters, Pa., for its many years of supporting the heritage of classic Indian cycles. The original dealership was founded in the 1950s by Bob and Kay Markey, and has been a treasure trove of motorcycle history for over half a century. In addition to the motorcycles on display, there will be a variety of vendors, food and beverages, music provided by Rock 102, and the awarding of trophies for the best Indians in a variety of categories. Commemorative T-shirts will be available for purchase. Anyone bringing a pre-1953 Indian will receive a free admission pass plus a commemorative Indian Day button. Exhibitors, and especially vendors, are encouraged to pre-register by calling (413) 263-6800, ext. 304. Admission to the event is $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 3-17. For those wishing to attend the event and tour museum buildings, general admission is $18 for adults, $12 for seniors and college students, and $9.50 for children ages 3-17. Admission to the event and the museums is free for members of Springfield Museums; free museum admission is available for Springfield residents after 3 p.m. For information, call (413) 263-6800, ext. 304, or visit www.springfieldmuseums.org.

Advance Directives and Healthcare Proxies
July 29: Hillcrest Commons Nursing and Rehabilitation Center will offer an informational session on advance directives and healthcare proxies at 10 a.m. at the Ralph Froio Senior Center in Pittsfield. The event will include a free continental breakfast. Part of Hillcrest’s “Berkshire Senior Subjects” monthly series, the presentation will focus on advance directives, healthcare proxies, and MOLST forms. The guest speaker is Patricia Tremblay, MS, RN. The presentation is free and open to the public; registration is requested by calling (413) 445-9747 by July 27. Hillcrest Commons Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, a nonprofit organization that has been caring for people in the Berkshire area since 1995, provides personalized short-term rehabilitation, long-term skilled-nursing care, respite care, and specialized Alzheimer’s and dementia care, all in a homelike setting. Specialty services include a ventilator program to support ventilator-dependent patients or to wean dependence, and a behavioral-health program for those with chronic psychiatric conditions. Hospice services are available for compassionate end-of-life care. For more information, visit www.hillcrestcommons.org.

Springfield Jazz & Roots Festival
Aug 8: The second annual Springfield Jazz & Roots Festival celebrates the emergence of Springfield’s Cultural District and promotes an arts-driven, community-oriented, and sustainable revitalization of the city. The free event in Court Square will offer a festive atmosphere featuring locally and internationally acclaimed musical artists, dance and theater workshops, local arts and crafts, and plenty of food. More than 5,000 people are expected to attend and enjoy the sounds of jazz, Latin jazz, gospel, blues, funk, and more. The festival is produced by Blues to Green, which uses music and art to celebrate community and culture, build shared purpose, and catalyze social and environmental change. For more information and a lineup of performers, visit springfieldjazzfest.com.

Driving for the Cure Golf Tournament
Aug. 17: The seventh annual Tom Cosenzi Driving for the Cure Charity Golf Tournament will tee off at Crestview Country Club in Agawam. The presenting sponsor for this year’s tournament is Autotrader. The tournament will be a four-player scramble. Tournament-day check-in begins at 10:30 a.m., and tee time is at 12:30 p.m. The event includes lunch, golf, dinner, raffle prizes, contests, and more. The tournament was started by Carla and Tommy Cosenzi, owners of TommyCar Auto Group, in memory of their father, Tom Cosenzi, who passed away from a glioblastoma brain tumor in 2009, in the hopes of carrying on his legacy and finding a cure for this disease. To date, this tournament has raised a total of $480,000 in its six-year partnership with the Jimmy Fund, one of the largest organized golf programs in the U.S. All proceeds support Dr. Patrick Wen and his team of researchers in the Neuro-Oncology Department at Dana Farber Cancer Institute. “My father’s vision was that no other family would have to endure the pain of cancer,” said Carla Cosenzi. “It was his wish that we continue to raise money for cancer research at Dana Farber through its Jimmy Fund.” To register an individual or team, or to become a tournament sponsor, visit www.tomcosenzidrivingforthecure.com. For more information, contact Kayla Currie at (413) 570-1319 or [email protected].

Valley Fest
Aug. 29: White Lion Brewing Co. will host its inaugural beer festival, called Valley Fest, at Court Square in downtown Springfield. MGM Springfield will be the presenting sponsor. The festival is poised to be White Lion’s signature annual event, introducing the young brand to craft-beer enthusiasts throughout New England and beyond. White Lion Brewing Co., the city of Springfield’s only brewery, launched in October 2014. Founder Ray Berry and brewmaster Mike Yates have released three selections under the White Lion brand and have been busy promoting their efforts in venues all over Massachusetts and other New England states. “Valley Fest will have the best of the best local, regional, and national beer and hard cider brands,” Berry said. “Even in our inaugural year, Valley Fest will be the largest one-day beer festival in Western Massachusetts. We expect to draw up to 2,000 enthusiasts from throughout New England. We are very excited to showcase the fourth-largest city in New England and all of its amenities.” Berry anticipates that more than 50 breweries and many local food vendors will converge on Court Square for two sessions. Enthusiasts will have an opportunity to sample more than 100 varieties of beer and hard cider alongside pairing selections by local chefs. A number of sponsors have already committed to the event, including MassMutual Financial Group, the Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield, the Dennis Group, Springfield Sheraton Monarch Place, Paragus Strategic IT, Williams Distributing, and the Springfield Business Improvement District (BID). “We are honored to sponsor Valley Fest and look forward to it being an annual event that shares in the facilitation of growth within the downtown community,” said Chris Russell, executive director of the Springfield BID. Visit www.valleybrewfest.com for event details, ongoing updates, and sponsorship opportunities.

Western Mass. Business Expo
Nov. 4: Comcast Business will present the fifth annual Western Mass. Business Expo at the MassMutual Center in downtown Springfield, produced by BusinessWest and the Healthcare News in partnership with Go Graphix and Rider Productions. The business-to-business show will feature more than 100 booths, seminars and Show Floor Theater presentations, breakfast and lunch programs, and a day-capping Expo Social. Details about specific events, programs, and featured speakers will be printed in future issues of BusinessWest. Current sponsors include Comcast Business, presenting sponsor; the Isenberg School of Business at UMass Amherst, education sponsor; Johnson & Hill and Health New England, director level sponsors; and 94.7 WMAS, media sponsor. Additional sponsorship opportunities are available. Exhibitor spaces are also available; booth prices start at $750. For more information on sponsorships or booth purchase, call (413) 781-8600, ext. 100.