Editorial, Author at BusinessWest

Celebrating Four Class Acts

By Editorial May 22, 2026

Alumni Achievement Award Opinion

BusinessWest launched its 40 Under Forty program in 2007 to recognize the rising stars in the 413. It’s become an immensely popular initiative that has created a somewhat exclusive club, if you will, one that now boasts 800 members.

That’s a big number, and something to bear in mind when considering a spinoff from that original program, something we call the Alumni Achievement Award, which, as that name suggests, recognizes 40 Under Forty winners who have continued to build on their résumés, both professionally and with their work in the community.

This is a far more exclusive club and, in many ways, a more notable achievement, just because of those numbers.

Which brings us to our latest AAA competition, presented by Baystate Health/Health New England. There can be only one winner — and he or she will be announced at the 40 Under Forty gala on June 11. But we celebrate our finalists because it’s an honor just to be in that group. And their accomplishments provide us with a great opportunity to tell more stories about individuals who continue to excel and find new ways to give back and make a difference.

Each of our finalists has a unique story, but there are common denominators, especially a commitment to this region and using their talents to improve quality of life here. Each story is compelling, and each finalist is certainly worthy of being the next AAA winner:

• Jim Krupienski, part of the 40 Under Forty class of 2010 and a finalist for the AAA in 2025, has risen to the rank of partner at the accounting firm Meyers Brothers Kalicka, where he is a real leader and mentor to many young people entering the field. And he gives back to the community in many ways, whether it’s through his own work with the Westfield State Foundation or the Westfield YMCA, or the way he encourages the firm to support agencies ranging from the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts to Habitat for Humanity.

• When Modesto Montero-Forman entered the 40 Under Forty class of 2020, he had been leading the middle school he founded for three years. Now, Libertas Academy serves grades 6-12 — around 600 students in all — and graduated its first class of high-school seniors last year. He has also shepherded the school to a new, larger location, where it has been able to expand its educational and enrichment offerings, while overseeing some of the most impressive math and language arts performances in the state.

• Adam Quenneville launched his roofing enterprise, known today as Adam Quenneville Roofing & Siding, 31 years ago, and he was honored for that success with inclusion in the 40 Under Forty class of 2009. But not only has he continued to expand his client base — growing revenues by 500% over the past 17 years — but the company has also become well-known for its philanthropic endeavors, gifting roofs to numerous area nonprofits and donating free roofs annually to veterans, first responders, and teachers.

• It took Ciara Speller only three years since being honored in the 40 Under Forty class of 2023 for her success as evening anchor at WWLP-22 News. And it’s not hard to see why. Since that time, she has turned a personal tragedy — the death of her father to a rare form of cancer — into the Jeffrey Speller Foundation ‘4 Change,’ which raises tens of thousands of dollars every year to help young people participate in golf. Ciara’s father believed in the power of the sport to connect people and improve lives, and she is certainly seeing his vision to fruition.

As noted earlier, all four are worthy of the AAA award, and all four should be celebrated for all they’ve done, and all they continue to do in — and for — this region.

Twenty Years of Celebrating Excellence

By Editorial April 24, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

An even 800.

That’s how many people are now members of ‘the club.’

That would the 40 Under Forty club, which BusinessWest launched back in the spring of 2007. It is comprised of rising stars in this region, people who are making a difference in their business, nonprofit, school, or seat in government — and also in the community.

This is the 20th class of honorees to be chosen by independent panels of judges. Members of the class of 2026 are officially in the club, but they will get their plaques at the annual gala on June 11 at the MassMutual Center in downtown Springfield.

Like the 19 classes that came before, this one is diverse in every respect, but especially with regard to what earned individual honorees a spot among the 40. For some, it’s professional accomplishments. For others, it’s primarily their work within the community. For most, it’s a combination of both, as the stories that begin on page A6 clearly relate.

Here are some snapshots that convey the depth of this class and the many ways its members stand out.

• Inspired by his father, a commercial banker who passed away in 2012 after battling ALS, Paul Accorsi Jr. has followed in his footsteps, not merely as an assistant vice president and business banking lender for PeoplesBank, but as a leader in the community, getting involved with groups and causes ranging from the Springfield Kiwanis Club to the South End Community Center to a wide range of charitable road races.

• Alexandra Balise ultimately decided to join the family business — a growing collection of auto dealerships and related ventures that bears her family’s name — but while she has made her mark there, now as director of Corporate Strategy, she has been a force in the community as well, especially with the early childhood education provider Square One, but also Benjamin Swan School, Link to Libraries, the Zoo in Forest Park, and other instititions and causes.

• Alicia Brown is an English teacher at Springfield’s John J. Duggan Academy who created ‘the Royals,’ an after-school program to empower young women through mentorship, leadership development, and life skills education — “helping them build healthy coping mechanisms to navigate life,” as she put it.

• Shannon O’Connell turned a lifelong heart for animals into a long-running stint as facility manager at the Good Dog Spot in Chicopee — but, more impressively, a role as foster mom to more than 250 animals (and counting) over the years, creating a calm, nurturing environment where they can safely grow, heal, and learn to trust.

• Almost two decades ago, Aimee Salmon launched Positively Africana by Aimee, a thriving retail, online, and fitness enterprise that works directly with women entrepreneurs and artists across Africa, creating economic opportunties for them while bringing authentic African gifts and experiences to Western Mass.

• Brandon Towle is the manager of Rolling Meadows Country Club in Ellington, Conn. And while he excels in that role, he’s an honoree for the manner in which he has gained the confidence and courage to move past a severe stutter and, even more importantly, create Camp Words Unspoken in Pittsfield, where young people are provided with the tools to do the same.

• Yeselie Tulloch, this year’s top scorer among the five independent judges, co-founded the Academic Leadership Assoc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering youth through school-based mentoring, literacy support, social-emotional development, and self-advocacy programming. “It’s so important to me to work with children and just be that adult that some kids might not have,” she said.

That last quote speaks to another thread that runs throughout this year’s 40 Under Forty class: impact. Real impact that goes well beyond personal success. We’re once again honored to share their stories with you in the 20th edition of BusinessWest’s 40 Under Forty. Here’s to 20 more years, and so many more stories waiting to be told.

A Heartbreaking Reality on Many Levels

By Editorial April 24, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

The news that came out of Hampshire College on April 14 — that the nearly 60-year-old, unconventional liberal arts institution will be closing — was hardly a surprise.

The news came maybe a little sooner than many expected, but the handwriting has been on the wall for some time now. Indeed, this quirky school had fought a brave fight to keep the doors open over the past decade or so, but in the end, it simply could not overcome a powerful mix of forces, everything from a sharp drop in enrollment to an inability to refinance its bond debt to a waning unrestricted endowment.

“Despite this herculean effort, the financial pressures on the college’s operations have become increasingly complex, compounded by shifting external factors,” according to a public letter released by the board and college President Jennifer Chrisler, noting that attempts were made to increase enrollment, refinance existing debt, and realize new revenue via the sale of a portion of land.

“We have long known that addressing these issues is essential to establishing a stable financial foundation, supporting long-term operations, and meeting regulatory requirements,” the letter noted. “We are faced with the clear, heartbreaking reality that progress on each of these three key factors has fallen far short of what we had hoped.”

Another reality is that, while Hampshire’s situation was dire and certainly magnified by the fact that it became increasingly difficult to attract students to a college with a seriously uncertain future, many private colleges are struggling and may soon face hard choices themselves.

Indeed, a new forecast by the Huron Consulting Group projects that nearly one-quarter of the nation’s 1,700 private, nonprofit four-year colleges and universities are at risk of closing or having to merge within the next 10 years.

To survive, these schools must find ways to increase enrollment at a time when the number of high school graduates continues to fall, and convince enough families of the value of a four-year college degree.

If current trends continue, this will become an increasingly tall order, and the higher education landscape in this region and this country could change considerably.

That, too, is a heartbreaking reality.

An Inspiring Story of Business Survival

By Editorial April 10, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

There are many positive aspects to the story (on page 4) about how Rick’s Auto Body will live on after the death of its founder and inspiration, Rick Recor, and remain part of the local landscape.

Indeed, the passing of a company’s founder often means the passing of a company because that founder was the business, and there was not a plan in place for succession. In this case, there was.

And that plan entailed the very best aspect of this story — that Rick’s will not only live on, but it will be local, and it will be independent — still family-owned and operated, to be more specific.

This, at a time when so many businesses, many of them small to mid-sized, are being snatched up by venture capital-backed companies and private equity firms as part of comprehensive roll-up strategies that are changing the face of business communities across the country.

We’ve seen it with a wide range of sectors, from insurance agencies to IT; from legal services to, yes, auto body repair shops. The strategy is simple: buy up as many of these companies as you can, take full advantage of the economies of scale, make a lot of money, and then, when the time is right, cash out.

These companies are throwing what some would call ‘stupid money’ at small business owners, many of them nearing retirement age, making it very difficult for them to say no.

But they when they say yes — and who can blame them, really — they’re doing more than selling their business to an interested party. They’re changing the dynamic of the local business community by taking more local businesses out of the equation.

And, as we all know, locally owned businesses usually … care more.

They care more about the customer, and they care more about the community than regional and national interests who are out to maximize profits by becoming ever larger.

We’ve seen this across the broad spectrum of business, from funeral home operators to banks (generally, the larger, more national they are, the less they are involved with area causes and nonprofits) to convenience store chains; indeed, the Pride chain was a powerful force in the region when it was locally owned. Now, it’s much less so.

All of this brings us back to Rick’s.

Recor’s widow, Mari Tarpinian, told BusinessWest that, over the years, the company received countless calls from larger entities making super attractive offers to make Rick’s part of their fold.

Had Recor or Tarpinian said yes to any these offers, there’s a good chance the ‘Rick’s’ name would have stayed over the door, but it would not have been the same company. It would have been part of a larger entity that, in all likelihood, would have cared less about local customers and local causes than the company Recor started more than 50 years ago.

Rick’s will remain local because there was a plan in place. And there’s a lesson there. Area businesses, especially smaller entities, need to have similar succession plans in place. Creating such a plan isn’t easy — it involves sometimes difficult discussions and hard decisions — but the lack of a plan often leads to more chaotic endings when founders retire or pass away, and this often leads to more … let’s call it panic selling.

That didn’t happen with Rick’s, and we’re glad it didn’t. This region needs more stories of succession, stories of survival, like this one.

Restaurants Need Our Support

By Editorial March 27, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

The restaurant business has never been an easy one.

In fact, it’s always been among the most challenging sectors within our economy, one of the first to feel the impact when times turn challenging, and among the last to fully recover when things get better, Meanwhile, tastes change, habits change, and downtowns change. And consumers are fickle.

We see some restaurants that are part of the local landscape for decades, but the truth is that many struggle to survive for even a few years.

And these days, the challenges for restaurants are mounting, and the number of vacant storefronts is growing at a similar clip. In this region, and across the state, it seems, restaurant closures are rising as the owners of such establishments grapple with a laundry list of challenges, some age-old, some much more recent.

Indeed, costs are rising for just about everything, and this is a business where it’s difficult to pass along those increases to consumers. Meanwhile, habits are changing again: people are eating earlier, eating out less often, and drinking less when they do go out, adding more challenges to those trying to keep a restaurant’s doors open.

But maybe the biggest challenge to this industry has been the rise of remote work and its impact on what we’ll call central business districts. With fewer people in the office towers in downtown Springfield — and there are far fewer people in those towers — and in the office buildings in Amherst, Northampton, and other communities, the restaurants that rely on those workers for breakfast, lunch, and often after-work gatherings are suffering greatly.

While area elected leaders, especially Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno, have made repeated calls to bring people back to work because of the boost they provide, these calls have mostly fallen on deaf ears. Remote work, or at least the hybrid work schedule, is here to stay, and the impact on the retail sector, and especially restaurants, is tangible.

Area communities understand these challenges, and they have responded in various ways, from programs helping entrepreneurs and property owners work collaboratively to fill vacant storefronts to efforts — such as those in Amherst, Northampton, and elsewhere — to promote those community’s restaurant sectors, to initiatives to bring people downtown for entertainment, retail, and also dining.

And these efforts need to continue because restaurants do a lot more than fill spaces on Main Streets across our region. They add to the vibrancy — and the vibe — of our cities and towns. And they help create memories for families, groups, and individuals gathering for special occasions, from a 50th wedding anniversary to the Wednesday before Thanksgiving at the Student Prince in downtown Springfield.

That’s one eatery that has managed to survive the decades, most recently with the help of a group of area business leaders committed to seeing it live on. But many haven’t, and memories are all that’s left.

Local communities need to continue their efforts to encourage and support this vital sector of our economy, and those who call this area home or do business here must understand the challenges they face and do what they can to help keep the doors open and the memories coming.

Introducing the StratAI Series

By Editorial March 13, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

Last week, a new international study, called “Firm Data on AI,” reported that artificial intelligence (AI) adoption is now widespread across the U.S. and other countries with advanced economies — but measurable impact remains limited, or at least elusive.

The study, which surveyed nearly 6,000 CFOs, CEOs, and senior executives across the U.S., U.K., Germany, and Australia found that about 70% of firms are actively using some form of AI; in the U.S., that figure is 78%.

However, more than 80% of the surveyed firms say AI has had no impact on employment or productivity over the past three years.

Something has to give — and it’s probably not going to be the advance of AI, which seems here to stay.

“The total impact of AI … I don’t think anyone knows what it is,” said Scott Longley, a manufacturing expert in residence for FORGE, one of the companies partnering with BusinessWest on a new workshop series centered on putting AI to the most productive uses (see story on page 4).

Our new StratAI Series aims to demystify the potential of AI in several different sectors, starting with manufacturing on Thursday, March 26 at the STCC Technology Park. Future workshops will address the impact of AI in professional services such as law, accounting, and financial services; nonprofits; the service sector; and others.

Considering the statistics above — the idea that almost everyone is using AI, but few companies truly grasp it — this series is especially timely, and we are excited to partner with a number of smart, forward-thinking business leaders to bring it to you.

“Manufacturers, especially Western Mass. manufacturers, have had their hands so full dealing with the regular chaos of the economy that taking time for new technology has never been at the top of the priority stack, and understandably so,” said Paul Silva of Innovate413, one of the partners on StratAI. “It needs to be a conservative industry. You spend a lot of money for capital assets, so you can’t afford to really screw up; they have to be very careful.”

But that’s also true of other sectors, and so are the feelings of general uncertainty around how best to incorporate AI — and why. We are confident, and excited, that this StratAI Series is an important step in the right direction.

The Appeal of Careers in the Trades

By Editorial February 27, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

It’s a refrain we hear all the time: the construction trades are facing a shortage of workers as retirements continue to outpace young talent entering the pipeline. Sure, jobs in carpentry, roofing, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and more are hard work, but they also pay well and are (probably) resistant to the AI trend that many folks in the white-collar world worry could threaten their jobs.

As Sam Pomeroy, an HVAC professional and president of Climates by Pomeroy, told us in this issue, “robots won’t be doing our job anytime soon.”

But at the same time, what do surveys tell us Generation Z values in the workplace? Purpose-driven work. Communication. Opportunities for advancement. The idea that employers have their goals at heart.

And that’s where a few of the business leaders we spoke with for this month’s home improvement focus are doing things the right way.

Pomeroy has been working in his field for almost 40 years, and said he still feels like a “hero” when he can return heat to a family’s home or restore power to a business storing perishable food. That’s purpose.

Tim Drost, CEO of Window World of Western Massachusetts, talks about the robust array of apprenticeship programs his company has developed, ensuring that young people can get a foot in the door. That’s opportunity.

Both Drost and Scott Cernak, president of Western Mass Heating, Cooling & Plumbing, talk about their investments in continuing education and training, helping employees, even long-time ones, advance their careers. That’s understanding — and advancing — career goals.

The fact is, during a time of economic uncertainty, with the long-term impact of AI and automation on many jobs still very much up in the air, there is a real appeal to be made to young people that careers in the trades can be satisfying, well-paying, purposeful, and — importantly — stable. And demand for their talent is only rising.

“It’s a rewarding career,” Pomeroy told us. And companies in the trades that aren’t making an effort to apprentice, train, and mentor potential workers are missing out on an opportunity to create another form of stability: in their own workforce.

Celebrating Entrepreneurship

By Editorial January 30, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

Thirty years ago this month, BusinessWest launched a new recognition program.

We called it Top Entrepreneur, and from the beginning, this award has been about paying homage to this region’s long history of entrepreneurship — more than 300 years of it — and recognizing those who continue that tradition today.

And for 30 years, we’ve enjoyed telling the stories of people who follow in the footsteps of Horace Smith and Daniel Wesson, Milton Bradley, Everett Barney, inventor of the ice skate, the Picknelly family, William Skinner, and so many others. Entrepreneurship played a huge role in the development of this region and communities like Springfield, Holyoke, Westfield, Lee, and North Adams, and it continues to shape our region today, in ways large and small.

As the list on page 9 reveals, this award has been given to individuals, families, and institutions across the broad spectrum of business — from car dealers (the Balise family) to hardware (the Falcone family) to technology, healthcare, energy, education, and the nonprofit realm.

This year, there is a new twist, sort of. We’ve chosen to recognize Dan Dziuban and Frank Langone, founders and owners of Theory Skate Shop. It’s a different kind of story, but one with many of the same threads as the ones we’ve told starting in 1996.

Only this one lends itself to some poetic analogies between business and the sports of skateboarding and snowboarding — the twists and turns, ups and downs, thrills and spills, and the need to keep getting right back up when you’ve fallen.

Dziuban and Langone, like all entrepreneurs, have experienced all of this on a journey that will soon mark 30 years itself. They started with a small shop in West Springfield and gradually set up headquarters in the Holyoke Mall, with a second location in Northampton and a large presence at the Big E. They sell a broad range of items and have created their own line of clothing.

But they’re being honored not just because of their success in the challenging, ever-changing, ever-fickle world of retail, but also because of the way they have changed the landscape in the region — literally, by helping several area communities create skateboard parks — and also changed the lives of countless young people by introducing them to a new sport, and, in some cases, providing them with a new passion.

They’ve done this through the skateparks, summer skate camps, and through countless other efforts to promote a sport they discovered themselves in the late ’80s.

As for being entrepreneurs, like skateboarding, it’s something you get better at over time, and they’ve done that, applying lessons they’ve learned over nearly three decades to continue on their growth trajectory and grab some air, as they say in the skateboarding world.

We started this program to recognize the very important role entrepreneurship has played in this region, and how it continues to not only provide jobs and fill spaces on Main Street and in industrial parks, but shape our cities and towns.

Dziuban and Langone continue that proud tradition, and they are quite worthy of the title Top Entrepreneurs.

The Importance of Teen Employment

By Editorial January 2, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

Tim Paciorek, president of Paciorek Electric in Hatfield — whose story we share starting on page 4 — always had a desire to own his own business someday, even as a child.

What fueled that desire — and, in many ways, was fueled by it — was a work ethic that came from simply … well, working. He had lots of jobs throughout his youth, from a paper route to farm labor; from reconditioning cars to woodcrafting; from raking leaves to mowing lawns. It’s a path he believes would benefit many young people today — only, it’s not as easy to find those jobs for teenagers.

The past 30 years has seen a dramatic decline in youth labor force participation. In the 1990s, most U.S. teenagers had at least some connection to work. But according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the labor force participation rate for teenagers dropped from well above 50% in the mid-1990s to just 36% today. The steepest declines came between the late 1990s and early 2010s, after which participation stabilized at much lower levels.

There are many reasons for that. Fewer jobs for teens exist today due to automation replacing entry-level tasks, increased competition from college graduates, older people staying in the workforce longer, higher minimum wages making teens — and their relative dearth of experience — seem costly, and stricter child labor laws reducing available hours and roles compared to past decades.

Paciorek said any teenager who really wants a job can still likely find one, but less motivated young people aren’t as likely to dig beyond the obvious, while opportunities that dominated in decades past, from paper routes to fast food, aren’t as prevalent today, or are much more populated with adults than in the past.

Some of those adults are seniors, and one can’t blame them for being part of the competition. Many want to work to feel vibrant and stay active and sharp, and many may need to work just to make ends meet.

But first, second, and third jobs are important — for a number of reasons. From a practical standpoint, jobs provide young people with the resources to help pay for college and, in many cases, just to support themselves. Also, they provide key lessons in how the world of work operates, thus better preparing them for future employment — or, for budding entrepreneurs like Paciorek, launching their own enterprises. Jobs also help keep young people from getting bored and getting into trouble.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce lists several reasons why small businesses might want to hire teen workers:

• They’re eager for work. Many teens want financial freedom, and they’re willing to work to get their foot in the door.

• They’re an efficient means to expand the workforce during peak times. Since they’re typically not seeking benefits, hiring teenage workers in part-time, limited-skill positions can be especially useful for businesses operating seasonally or needing extra hands temporarily, such as during summer vacation or over the holidays.

• The business might be eligible for a tax credit. Teens are included under the federal Work Opportunity Tax Credit, which encourages employers to hire candidates who face challenges securing employment, and Massachusetts offers state tax credits for hiring registered apprentices in specific industries.

• Businesses can help shape the next generation of working professionals. No matter the industry, teenage workers can develop soft skills such as responsibility, organization, time management, and creative problem solving that will serve them well throughout high school, college, and the workforce. Professional experience at a young age can lead to higher-paying jobs later on, as it boosts résumés and professional skills.

We’ve been saying it for decades, and it’s still true now: area economic development leaders and employers need to collaborate to find ways to get more young people into the workforce, and help build the next generation of success stories.

Getting Down to Business in 2026

By Editorial December 19, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Almost 42 years after John Gormally published the first issue of the Western Mass. Business Journal — which would later be rebranded as BusinessWest — the biweekly magazine continues to shine a spotlight on the Western Mass. business landscape, telling the stories behind the stories — of entrepreneurs, visionaries, and legacy companies alike — and sharing the trends, challenges, and opportunities that drive those companies and their industries, as well as sharing articles written by experts in a variety of fields.

And as the calendar turns to 2026, business leaders continue to rely on BusinessWest to illuminate not just present conditions, but what’s ahead for myriad sectors, from law to education; from finance to healthcare; from retail to technology — and so many more.

They’re emerging from a year of uncertainty — about the overall economy, costs, and interest rates; funding pressures from Washington (and a deeply divided electorate on matters economic and cultural); and concerns about what comes next. Those funding challenges have landed hard in Western Mass., impacting higher education, healthcare, the broad nonprofit sector, and startups like Sublime Systems, which continues to cope with the loss of an $87 million federal grant last spring that would have helped fund a new manufacturing plant in Holyoke.

But almost six years out from a crippling pandemic, many companies recorded strong years in 2025, and entrepreneurship — a critical and robust element of the economy in the 413 — continues to produce new, and inspiring, successes.

What is certain is that BusinessWest will continue to reflect the current times, trends, and stories from a local perspective — that is, through the eyes, minds, and experiences of business owners and economic experts throughout the 413.

In the Jan. 5 issue, we’ll present our annual Economic Outlook, once again featuring the voices of dozens of regional business leaders from many different sectors. And on Jan. 19, we’ll reveal our 30th annual Top Entrepreneur.

Two issues after that, we’ll unveil our 18th annual class of Difference Makers, the first of four very popular recognition programs throughout 2026, along with 40 Under Forty in April — marking its 20th year of honoring high-achieving young professionals — Healthcare Heroes in September, and Women of Impact in October. BusinessWest accepts nominations for all four programs all year long.

This year will also bring a broad mix of feature stories, as well as returning favorites like each issue’s Community Spotlight, shedding light on economic development, municipal projects, tourism, and quality of life in individual cities and towns; and the quarterly Where Are They Now? — each installment visiting with a past winner of one of the four awards mentioned earlier, detailing how their life and career have evolved since. All that is, of course, on top of our regular coverage of dozens of industries.

And look for our annual Book of Lists early in the year as well, a comprehensive resource guide to the businesses and sectors that drive this region’s economic engine.

As 2026 takes shape, with all the challenges and successes it might produce, we’re excited to bring all that, and more, to you — on the page, through our podcast conversations with local business owners, at our recognition events, and at businesswest.com. Happy New Year.

For Square One, It Takes a Village

By Editorial December 5, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

More than 14 years after a tornado destroyed its former home, Square One recently opened its new home at a ribbon cutting that looked a whole lot like a Frank Capra movie.

Indeed, the ceremony became a celebration of the people and the institutions that it took to get this done — from the federal, state, and local governments to the Davis Foundation and the Red Sox Foundation, to the Balise family, which ultimately contributed more than $3 million toward the cause.

Amid the many comments from the speakers about going back to square one and rising from the ashes, there was a palpable sense of pride in all that had been overcome for Square One to be able to turn the key at its new, $18 million facility and remain in Springfield’s South End, where it all started 142 years ago as Springfield Day Nursery.

It took 14 years because Square One first had to get back on its feet, which became more challenging when another of its facilities was leveled in a natural gas explosion in 2012. And then it had to decide to what to do and where to rebuild. And then it had to survive a pandemic. And then it had to find a site — and that site turned out to be its old site. And then it had to raise the money, clear the site, and design and build a new facility.

None of that was easy, but just as Square One was committed to staying in the South End and building new, the community it has served for nearly a century and a half became committed to help get the job done.

There were many contributors to this cause — from the federal government and its New Markets Tax Credits program to the city chipping in $1 million in ARPA money; from the foundations to the Balise family, which first donated $1 million and then bought a building on Main Street for more than $2 million and donated it to Square One to create a campus.

And there were many times at the ribbon cutting when it was said this ‘wouldn’t have happened without…’ any of the above.

And while that’s accurate, the truth is it wouldn’t have happened without all of them coming together as they did.

This was a 14-year journey, one with more than enough bumps in the road to traverse. But like all Frank Capra movies, this one also had a happy ending, one the community can share in.

Fertile Ground in the 413

By Editorial November 21, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Innovation and collaboration.

As he steps down from his leadership post next month, Rick Sullivan, president and CEO of the Western Massachusetts Economic Development Council (EDC), has been touting those two elements among what makes the Western Mass. economy tick, and what it needs to continue to build on in the coming years.

And those were two words he drew on when it was announced earlier this month that Western Mass. has been designated as both a Quantum Technology TechHub and a Food Science TechHub through the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative.

In addition to the two designations, funding in the form of $1 million to advance a feasibility and design study of a quantum supply chain accelerator (QSCA) was awarded to Springfield Technical Community College.

The QSCA will anchor the next phase of the Commonwealth’s quantum strategy, building on the foundation established in Holyoke at the Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center (MGHPCC) and the state’s first quantum computing complex launched with QuEra Computing Inc. The accelerator will be the first regional facility of its kind to drive commercialization, support startups, and strengthen advanced manufacturing supply chains across the Pioneer Valley.

In a recent conversation with BusinessWest, Sullivan said it’s impossible to know for sure what the economy will look like a decade or two down the road, or what will be driving it, but the EDC and other local leaders have been proactive about considering that question and pushing for strategic investments.

“These are sectors that are going be more important tomorrow and 10 years down the road than they even are today,” he said of these evolving industries. “AI is booming, and quantum is booming, and the issues of food science and food scarcity, water delivery systems and water scarcity … those problems are only going to grow and be more important in 10 years.”

We’ve been talking about innovation and collaboration for many years at BusinessWest because we recognize how those concepts have raised the profile and economic strength of a region that sometimes gets forgotten out east — concept that, when put into action, create not just vibrancy, but jobs, and a promising future.

“Springfield, the City of Firsts, has a proud legacy of innovation,” U.S. Rep. Richard Neal said regarding the QSCA. “This award will help solidify Springfield’s position as a leader in this new technological era, placing the city at the forefront of advancement in quantum technology.”

We believe this project, and the TechHub designations, have that potential — and more.

Let the Speculation Begin

By Editorial November 11, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Several weeks back, we opined that the ongoing search for a new courthouse site in Springfield has been much like the race to locate the Western Mass. casino more than a decade ago — an exercise packed with speculation, hope, and … more speculation.

Now that DCAMM (the state Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance) has released the list of proposed locations and developers, we’d have to say this search is like the casino hunt on steroids.

In all, 11 proposals have been submitted, covering a wide range of properties across downtown Springfield, many of them vacant or underutilized to one extent or another — everything from Steiger Park to the building that was home to the closed Mardi Gras strip club; from the Springfield Newspapers property to the current courthouse itself; from the former YMCA building on Chestnut Street to office properties on Main Street, Maple Street, and State Street.

It’s quite a list, and together these proposals tell the story of just how much real estate downtown falls into the categories of ‘non-performing’ and ‘underperforming.’

Indeed, the quest for a new courthouse offers an intriguing answer to the question — and in some cases it’s been asked for years, if not decades — ‘what to do with…?’ Examples include:

• Steiger Park. Created after the demolition of the Steiger’s department store on Main Street, it was then called by some ‘a little park for a little while.’ That was nearly 30 years ago. Meanwhile, the park has become a popular gathering spot, home to a farmers’ market and at least one art exhibit. Many would like to see it stay a park.

• The Republican building. Built during a much different time for newspapers and for a staff exponentially larger than the one now working there, the property has been the subject of considerable speculation in recent years and was a big part of one of the proposed Springfield casino plans. In a few signs of the times, a considerable portion of the property is now being leased out to a cannabis dispensary;

• The Liberty Arts Building (125 Liberty St.). Built in the mid-’60s as part of comprehensive urban renewal in the North End (as was the Republican building), this property has certainly seen better days and now has a relatively high vacancy rate. It would be combined with another parcel to create the requisite space for a new courthouse.

• The Mardi Gras building (91 Taylor St.). The strip club has been closed for years, and the building that housed it has been mostly vacant. Housing has been proposed as a new use, but this would be an expensive retrofit.

• The existing courthouse site. It has long been considered a second development opportunity if and when a new courthouse is built elsewhere. It has some advantages as home to the new courthouse, but a temporary facility would have to be found while a new facility is being built, and that might prove problematic. The theater section of the former Eastfield Mall had been suggested for that role before it was torn down.

We can continue this exercise with the other properties on the list, including the former YMCA, the office building at 55 State St., and two mostly vacant office and medical buildings on Maple Street.

Unfortunately, the courthouse project will only solve one of these problems. It will be up to the city and the development community to solve the others.

Meanwhile, Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno is calling for a courthouse project that will be ‘game-changing.’ We interpret that to mean something that will do more than solve one of the above-listed problems, a project that could help transform a part of the downtown.

It remains to be seen if any of the projects actually fit that description. So let the speculation begin. Actually, it began a long time ago, so … let it continue.

Celebrating the Women of Impact

By Editorial October 22, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

In 2019, BusinessWest created a new recognition program, one to recognize a large and significant constituency, and one whose accomplishments often went unrecognized.

We thought about calling it Women in Business, but then we decided this didn’t fit the bill, as we didn’t want to recognize only individuals’ accomplishments in the business world.

Rather, we wanted to celebrate women of achievement, women who stand out, women who go far beyond what’s in their job description, women who are making a difference. So a name came about naturally: Women of Impact.

The plan was to honor those who excel in their chosen field, or fields, as the case may be, but who are also giving back in the community, who inspire others around them, who serve as mentors to others and especially younger women, and who, as one of our honorees is fond of saying, ‘show up.’

We’ve done that, and this year’s class continues that tradition, as the stories that begin on page W4 clearly show. They are:

• Tara Brewster, vice president of Business Development and director of Philanthropy at Greenfield Savings Bank. Her passion for connecting the community and boosting nonprofits is reflected in both her career and her activities outside the bank as she asks, “what are we here for if not to make a difference?”

• Ayanna Crawford, president of AC Consulting and Media Services. Her work spans her consulting business, numerous nonprofit boards, serving the public as chief of staff to state Rep. Orlando Ramos, and a flourishing organization called Take the Mic, which gives both young people and adults the confidence they need to be public speakers.

• Tracy Friedenberg, executive director of Bacon Wilson, P.C. Early on, she decided that she wanted to serve in roles where she could help team members thrive and drive organizational success. She’s been described as “a visionary leader, compassionate mentor, and an extraordinary human being” who is actively involved in her community.

• Rania Kfuri, vice president of Philanthropy, Sales, and Marketing at Glenmeadow. Showing up has been her credo, and the continuation of a pattern set by several generations of her extended family. Showing up means excelling at work, giving back to the community, mentoring others, literally showing up at events, and convening others to help solve regional problems.

• Chelsea Kline, executive director of Cancer Connection. She understood the value of this “lean, scrappy” nonprofit when her mother accessed its services two decades ago, and today, she and her team successfully build community support for a wide array of programs that bring calm, courage, and even fun to people dealing with the harshest challenge of their lives.

• Angelina Ramirez, CEO of Stavros Center for Independent Living. For the past 35 years, she has been dedicated to this critical nonprofit that helps people with disabilities secure resources and equipment, stay in their homes, access education and job opportunities, and otherwise achieve the kind of live they desire to live.

• Amanda Sanderson, executive director of the Resilience Center of Franklin County. Inspired by her mother’s resiliency in overcoming physical and sexual abuse, she has dedicated her life to leading nonprofits, which she calls the ‘glue’ of our society, and constantly raising the bar when it comes to serving clients and acting as a convener and collaborator.

• Sarah Rose Stack, lecturer of Public Relations at UMass Amherst — just the latest chapter in a compelling story. Inspired by music teachers, she overcame poverty in childhood to excel in music and the arts, and they remain a big part of who she is. Another big part is being a mentor and the kind of teacher who can change a life, as her teachers changed hers.

We at BusinessWest congratulate the Women of Impact class of 2025 and are grateful for their powerful example and inspiring stories.

A Good Choice for the EDC

By Editorial October 22, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Aaron Vega, director of Planning & Economic Development in Holyoke, will assume the reins at the Western Massachusetts Economic Development Council (EDC) in January. And he takes the helm at a very intriguing time for the region.

Indeed, many of the traditional pillars of this region’s economy, especially healthcare and higher education, are struggling and shedding jobs rather than adding them. Manufacturing is more than holding its own, but still coping with workforce issues — specifically the retirement of Baby Boomers and difficulty with replacing them. Other sectors are shrinking as a wave of mergers and acquisitions continues unabated.

Meanwhile, emerging sectors are trying to … emerge. This list includes food science, quantum computing, and green energy, with several of the businesses at the forefront of these efforts located in Holyoke.

All of this — as well as the EDC’s broad mission itself — ties back nicely to something Dave Fontaine Jr., president of the construction firm Fontaine Brothers Inc., said of this region at the recent Developers Conference in downtown Springfield.

He said of the 413, and he’s not alone in these sentiments, “it’s a great place to live … if you can make a living.”

And that’s essentially where we’re at right now in this region — trying to enable those who might want to live here for all the reasons we know about, especially quality of life, to make a living.

And while that is not Vega’s official job description, it might as well be. The EDC is charged with leading and coordinating efforts to stimulate the region’s economy, including efforts that don’t fall in traditional categories of economic development, like workforce development, entrepreneurship, and even marketing.

We’ve followed Vega’s career for nearly 20 years now, since he was a freelance film editor, yoga studio owner, and Holyoke city councilor, a package that earned him a spot in BusinessWest’s 40 Under Forty class of 2010. He would later go on to serve four terms as a state representative before returning to Holyoke City Hall as director of Planning & Economic Development.

He brings to his new post connections in Boston and across the region, but also a track record for getting things done, especially with complicated projects and bringing companies to this region to get started — and, hopefully, put down deep roots.

We believe he is the right person to lead the EDC at this critical juncture and continue the work of the agency and its outgoing president, Rick Sullivan, to make this region not only a great place to live, but one where people can make a living.

This Could Be the Start of Something

By Editorial September 24, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Back in 2009, the first year BusinessWest staged its Difference Makers recognition program, the group of honorees included a relatively new nonprofit devoted to inspiring entrepreneurship and giving startups and early-stage companies a leg up as they sought to develop concepts and bring them to the market.

It was called Valley Venture Mentors, and its mission was relatively simple … give entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs exposure to mentors within the business community and provide programming to accelerate startup initiatives and get them off the ground. And the need was real, because new businesses weren’t coming to the region in large numbers, existing businesses were being merged into other entities at an increasingly alarming rate, and, because of these forces, new sources of jobs would be needed for the decades to come.

VVM, as it was called, was still in its infancy then, but it was already generating momentum and some positive results, enough to earn it the designation Difference Maker.

A dozen or so years later, VVM all but vanished from the landscape. We’re not sure what happened, but it was probably a combination of the pandemic, which robbed it of momentum and the ability to stage in-person meetings, changes in leadership, and other factors that led to dormancy — and a sizable hole in the region’s entrepreneurship ecosystem.

Recognizing the importance of filling this hole, a group led by Paul Silva, one of the early leaders of VVM and an entrepreneur himself who has created several ventures aimed at fostering startups, has launched Innovate413, or what they have nicknamed VVM 2.0 (see related story, page 4).

Silva joked that he was ‘getting the band back together,’ a reference to some of the mentors involved with the original VVM who will be participating with this version as well. But Innovate413 will go a step or two further.

Indeed, fueled by $250,000 in seed money from the Irene E. and George A. Davis Foundation and the MassMutual Foundation, the new nonprofit will seek to link entrepreneurs with mentors, but also catalysts in the form of access to potential customers (employers with problems that need solving) and access to the latest artificial intelligence and product-development technology from groups such as the Center for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (CDS) at the Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences at UMass Amherst.

The broad goal, said Silva, is to provide teach-based startups with what he called “an unfair advantage,” meaning direct access to businesses looking for solutions. This will enable entrepreneurs to problem-solve and develop technology for which there is a recognized need, rather than developing a product or service and hope that a market for it will develop.

It sounds good on paper. Whether Innovate413 will succeed with this mission remains to be seen, but we are encouraged that the band is coming back together and that there is a concerted effort to fill this hole in the entrepreneurship ecosystem.

That’s because the need that was apparent back in 2009, is still painfully evident. The region is not attracting large employers, the pace of mergers and acquisitions is only accelerating, and, while there is a strong wave of entrepreneurship sweeping the region, there remains a need for new tech-based companies that will stay in the 413 and potentially become large sources of jobs.

We hope VVM 2.0 can generate some momentum on this front and become a Difference Maker in its own right.

High Impact, Weather or Not

By Editorial August 27, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Rain, rain, go away.

That’s Gene Cassidy’s wish every year when it comes to the 17 days of the Big E, the agricultural fair that will celebrate its 110th year when it kicks off next week.

That’s because the weather is typically the most impactful factor in how successful the fair proves to be. After a rainy 2023 dampened attendance (and profits), a largely clear-skied 2024 saw the Big E set records for attendance (1,633,937) and net income (more than $6 million).

As Cassidy, president and CEO of Eastern States Exposition, told BusinessWest in the story on page 10, all of that $6 million will be put back into the facility, which is grappling with some $250 million in deferred maintenance on grounds dominated by buildings more 100 years old.

So, clearly, the success of the Big E is critical to the Eastern States Exposition (ESE), as is the site’s robust, year-round slate of activities, from animal, mineral, and home shows to the annual Hooplandia 3-on-3 basketball tournament.

And that success — and impact — ripples out much further than the grounds on Memorial Avenue. In fact, ESE attracts about 3 million people to West Springfield annually, across a bustling calendar of more than 120 year-round events — slightly more than half that crowd count coming from the Big E itself.

And, according to a study conducted by Regional Economic Models Inc. (REMI) of Amherst, ESE’s economic impact on Hampden County in 2024 was $235 million in gross regional product (GRP), and its larger footprint across New England and New York equaled a record-breaking $1.167 billion.

“The impact of Eastern States Exposition is not limited to the Springfield area, agriculture in Massachusetts, or even agriculture in New England; we have touched 26 states and multiple Canadian provinces,” Cassidy said when the report was released earlier this summer. “This makes us arguably the most impactful agricultural fair in North America.”

The study revealed that the ESE created 8,085 jobs across New England and New York in 2024; 60.8% of all jobs created went to individuals without a college degree, 5,646 jobs were filled by individuals in the bottom 20% of income earners, and 1,310 jobs created across the region supported Hispanic employment. Employment growth was observed across all races, income levels, and education groups.

Meanwhile, since 1995, when the Big E first expanded from 12 to 17 days, ESE has donated 1% of its annual gross revenue to the town of West Springfield each year to build and bolster the Eastern States Exposition-West Springfield Trust. In 2024, 26 groups benefited from the trust, including sports teams, food rescues, and cultural centers. ESE’s overall contributions, including a sizable donation of $370,970 made on June 12 of this year, now total $5,425,220.

At a time of economic uncertainty, that overall impact of the ESE — again, much of it driven by that 17-day fair window in September — is critical to this region, and something to be celebrated.

Plus, the Big E is simply a lot of fun — rain or shine.

Coping with Tariffs

By Editorial August 13, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Maroun Hannoush doesn’t seem fazed by what some are describing as ‘trade wars’ and a rapidly changing scene when it comes to tariffs imposed on products from around the world.

Indeed, while Hannoush, CEO of the family-owned chain of jewelry stores and manufacturing facilities, acknowledged the 39% tariff rate imposed on products from Switzerland, including a wide array of watches sold in his stores, and some uncertainly about will happen with the price tags on those and other items, he was generally upbeat when he talked with BusinessWest.

He spoke of manufacturing moving to other countries, and especially this one, and, more generally, about how his industry (and others) will respond to this latest challenge with creative efforts to continue thriving, while also minimizing the impact on their customers.

“It’s exciting to see — there’s great potential for new jobs and new opportunities,” he said of already announced plans to move some manufacturing to this country, and the promise of more. “The United States has a great deal of untapped resources when it comes to making products like jewelry here.”

While most others are not as openly optimistic and upbeat, the general tone we’re sensing is that, yes, the tariffs are just another challenge to be overcome, and they are confident that they can make the needed adjustments, whether it’s steering wine lovers toward domestic labels or finding ways to absorb or offset some of the price increases.

As we talked with several other local business owners about tariffs, most said the full impact of these measures are still matters for the future tense.

Whether it’s Swiss watches, German beers, French wines, Japanese cars, or even some construction materials, there is mostly plenty of stock in warehouses that arrived well before the tariff rates were set in stone — if they’ve actually been set in stone — for the next several months.

Meanwhile, other factors, from attractive incentives on the sale and lease of new cars to falling prices on some construction materials amid a mild slowdown, are keeping the full effects from tariffs from being felt.

The question is, for how long? Actually, that’s just one of the questions being asked — questions for which there are no real answers at this point.

But amid these questions, there is a certain amount of confidence that many of these tariff issues can be minimized through the same creativity and diligence that has seen this business community endure through a Great Recession, a pandemic, an ongoing workforce crisis, and much more.

Maybe Hannoush is right. Perhaps these tariffs will generate more manufacturing in this country, equating to more jobs and more game-changing investments in communities across the country. Maybe the negotiations will continue, tariffs will fall, and important concessions will be gained as a result.

Maybe.

In the meantime, area businesses are responding as they always do — with imagination and determination.

A Triumph for Holyoke

By Editorial July 30, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

There have been a lot of good stories to come out of Holyoke in recent years, including a wave of entrepreneurship, an emerging clean-tech sector, a cannabis sector that isn’t what it once was but is still prominent, and a more vibrant downtown.

But there was always a cloud hanging over the city in the form of an school system in receivership, a radical step taken by the state when a system is chronically underperforming, local leadership is ineffective, and there is essentially no hope and few alternatives.

This is where the Holyoke schools were a decade ago, with one of the state’s lowest graduation rates, highest drop-out rates, poor MCAS scores, and leadership that seemed unwilling or unable (actually, a mix of both) to do anything about it.

Receivership, as we noted, is a dramatic step. Only three systems across the state have been put into receivership — Lawrence, Holyoke, and Southbridge. And until July 1, no community had emerged from receivership, until Holyoke managed to achieve that feat.

It did so by achieving progress on many on those aforementioned fronts, including graduation rates that have soared from 52% to 77% — not where anyone wants them, but much better than they were.

But mostly, this was accomplished through a commitment to regaining local control — Mayor Joshua Garcia is firm in his belief that receivership should be temporary and that a community should run its own schools, and he’s right about that — and also through partnering with the state, and, most importantly, showing the kind of leadership that was, quite frankly, missing a decade ago in the years leading up to receivership.

Garcia and Anthony Soto — the interim school superintendent and, now, former receiver — like to say there was no blueprint for coming out of receivership, and that they believe they have created one. Its fine points includes everything from continued strong involvement from the city’s school board (even though it had no real power with a receiver in place); investments in schools, such as the new Peck Middle School; hard but necessary decisions, such as rezoning and restructuring away from the K-8 model; and programs designed to keep students engaged and motivated not to drop out.

And, don’t forget, all this happened with the pandemic serving to stifle momentum, isolate students, and add to an already deep list of societal problems that include poverty, homelessness, and more.

Make no mistake, these problems still exist. They make it difficult for students to focus on learning, and equally difficult to attract and retain the talent needed in the classrooms and administrative offices to provide a quality education. And there is much work still to be done to improve MCAS scores and further improve those graduation rates.

But Holyoke has taken a huge step forward, one that bodes well for the community and its business community. The challenge now is to maintain the current momentum — but the black cloud is gone.

An Achievement of Note

By Editorial July 16, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

When Bob Bolduc sold his hugely successful chain of Pride stations and stores a few years ago, people wondered what the entrepreneur, philanthropist, and BusinessWest Difference Maker would do next. They didn’t have to wait long for the answer.

It came in the form of Hope for Youth & Families, a foundation into which Bolduc has put the same intense drive and attention to detail as his business. In three short years, the family foundation has made progress with its three stated points of focus — literacy, helping young people find paths to a college education, and the arts.

And it is in the last category that the foundation has made its most visible, and potentially most impactful, contribution, with the creation of the Hope Center for the Arts in the former CityStage space in downtown Springfield (see story on page 4).

CityStage has been dormant for many years now, and the stunning transformation into the Hope Center for the Arts reactivates that space in a powerful way. But this is about much more than turning the stage lights back on at that theater — although that has been accomplished as well.

Bolduc and others at the foundation realized early on that they could do a lot more than bring CityStage online. They could create a true learning and performance center, where young people could become immersed in everything from dance to theater; music to photography; creative writing to visual arts.

And that’s what has been created in the various spaces at the center, into which the foundation has poured more than $15 million, by Bolduc’s estimates, for everything from new HVAC systems to a teen café and lounge to a revamped main stage that is state of the art in every way.

Bolduc likes to say he’s not making these investments in equipment or infrastructure or lighting. He’s making them in young people. Several generations of young people.

And he’s right. Because while the new stage might produce rich sound and intense lighting, what it and the other facilities at the center ultimately do is help educate young people and, through the arts, inspire them to reach higher, pursue excellence, unlock talent, and perhaps even find a career.

They might possibly have done all that without the Hope Center for the Arts, but this new facility, clearly one of the better and more inspiring stories unfolding in Springfield, makes it exponentially easier.

Bolduc says he hopes the new center changes the trajectory of many young lives in Springfield. We believe it will.

Jim Vinick Made a Difference

By Editorial July 2, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

When Jim Vinick put his mind to doing something — whether it was the next iteration of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame or a statue in honor of the man who would be identified as the ‘Jimmy’ in the Jimmy Fund — he got it done.

And that’s just one of the character traits that people remember as they celebrate the life and accomplishments of Vinick, most recently the managing director of Investments for Moors & Cabot, who passed away in June.

Mostly, they remember that he didn’t just get things done — he got them done right, the way he thought they should be done.

With the statue of Einar Gustafson (‘Jimmy’), that meant removing Red Sox slugger Ted Williams, a close friend, from the original plans for the piece — because it was the Boston Braves, not the Red Sox, that were originally associated with the nonprofit that raised money to battle cancer in children — and being steadfast in his efforts to have it located in a prominent area.

This determination to have things done his way sometimes ruffled people. Indeed, John Doleva, president and CEO of the Hall of Fame, who worked with and beside him for decades, said of Vinick: “while his exterior was gruff, his heart was pure.”

Indeed, it was, especially when it came to the Hall. For Vinick, it was literally a life-long passion.

“As a young teenager, he worked with his father, brother, and others to help establish the original Basketball Hall of Fame on the campus of Springfield College and since then has been a tireless advocate for the various iterations of the Hall,” Doleva noted. “He has served as our longtime finance committee chair and treasurer of the organization keeping a watchful eye on the Hall’s financial condition, and he helped guide the long-sought economic renaissance of the Hall and reveled in the current fiscal condition of the Hall and our growing impact on the game. He stands as the bedrock of the current Hall. He will be missed, but never forgotten.”

Those are sentiments shared by many, including those who tuned in to “The Vinick Report” on Channel 40, dedicated to financial literacy and helping viewers make smart, informed financial decisions. And those who worked with him on the Jeffrey Vinick Memorial Golf Tournament, staged in honor of his son, who lost his battle with a rare form of testicular cancer. And those who benefited from his many contributions to community institutions such as Jewish Geriatric Services, Temple Beth El, and the Willie Ross School for the Deaf.

Those sentiments explain why Vinick was honored by BusinessWest with its prestigious Difference Makers award in 2013. Only a few dozen people have earned that title, which is reserved for those who go above and beyond — in his case, with everything he did — and make this region a better place to live, work, and do business.

He certainly did that, and, as Doleva noted, he’ll be missed, but never forgotten.

Editorial

By Editorial June 18, 2025

Opinion

Not a Sublime Turn of Events

Leaders at Sublime Systems, a company that has developed a low-carbon cement, believe they can withstand the loss of an $87 million federal grant and move their plans forward, including those for a manufacturing plant in Holyoke.

News of the Trump administration’s plans to terminate $3.7 billion in grants issued by the the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, including the $87 million earmarked for Sublime, came down earlier this month.

To many, the news sounded like a death knell for Sublime, but officials there believe they have enough momentum, in the form of contracts with players ranging from Microsoft to regional and national construction companies, including Daniel O’Connell’s Sons in Holyoke, to press on and perhaps only be slowed down, not stopped, by the loss of the federal grant.

We hope they’re right, because Sublime’s ability to weather this storm has huge implications for both Holyoke and the region.

Before getting to that, we’ll just say that the termination of this grant makes little sense. The Trump administration has stated goals to bring more manufacturing to this country and lessen its dependence on foreign countries for everything from energy to construction materials.

Sublime’s cement does all that. It will bring jobs here, and it will reduce dependence on foreign makers of cement, including Canada and Mexico.

We can only assume it is the phrase ‘clean energy’ that does not align with the philosophy and goals of the Trump administration, but the ‘why’ in this case is not what matters. It’s the end result.

Now, Sublime must try to resecure that federal grant by restating its already strong case about what its product can do to dramatically reduce the carbon footprint from cement making, while also creating jobs and helping to revitalize a community like Holyoke.

The Paper City has a lot riding on Sublime’s ability to move forward with plans to construct a plant in the Flats section of the city that will produce 30,000 tons of cement per year. Indeed, the city is trying to stake a claim as a home to clean-tech companies, and brings many assets to bear, including land and former mills to develop and reliable, cheap, green energy (hydropower) from the Holyoke G&E.

With the cannabis sector plateauing, if not declining, Holyoke needs clean energy and companies like Sublime for job creation to help continue the momentum that has been building in this historic manufacturing city for several years now.

The region needs Sublime and other success stories in this realm as well. We’ve already documented how its traditional economic pillars — higher education, healthcare, and nonprofits — were already struggling before the Trump administration began changing policies and terminating grants, and now, their struggles are deepening. The region needs to tap new sources of innovation and jobs, and clean energy is one of them.

It’s very difficult for a company like Sublime to overcome the loss of an $87 million grant. It must tap other resources — from the state to venture capital — while also hoping to get that grant back.

We hope Sublime can overcome this loss and move forward, because Holyoke and this region need this company to succeed.

Celebrating Five Class Acts

By Editorial June 4, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

BusinessWest launched its 40 Under Forty program in 2007 to recognize the rising stars in the 413. It’s become an immensely popular initiative that has created a somewhat exclusive club, if you will, one that now boasts 760 members.

That’s a big number, and something to bear in mind when considering a spinoff from that original program, something we call the Alumni Achievement Award, which, as that name suggests, recognizes 40 Under Forty winners who have continued to build on their résumés, both professionally and with their work in the community.

This is a far more exclusive club and, in many ways, a more notable achievement, just because of those numbers.

Which brings us to our latest AAA competition, if you will. There can be only one winner — and he or she will be announced at the 40 Under Forty gala on June 19. But we celebrate our finalists because it’s an honor just to be in that group. And these stories provide us with a great opportunity to tell more stories about individuals who continue to excel and find new ways to give back and make a difference.

Each of our finalists (see cover story) has a unique story, but there are common denominators, especially a commitment to this region and using their talents to improve quality of life here. Each story is compelling, and each finalist is certainly worthy of being the next AAA winner:

• Jeff Fialky was an associate at the law firm Bacon Wilson when he became part of the just the second 40 Under Forty class in 2008. He’s now managing shareholder, leading the firm through a time of change and challenge in that sector while also giving back to the community and, specifically, agencies and causes ranging from the Springfield Regional Chamber to Springfield Museums.

• Amelia Holstrom was an associate at the law firm Skoler, Abbott & Presser when she earned her 40 Under Forty plaque. She’s now a partner and a regional leader in this ever-changing, vitally important field of law. She is also active in the community, with groups from the Girls Scouts to Clinical & Support Options, and roles such as library trustee in Wilbraham.

• Jim Krupienski has risen to the rank of partner at the accounting firm Meyers Brothers Kalicka, where is a real leader and mentor to many young people entering the field. And he acts as a true role model for them, especially with the many ways he gives back to the community, whether it’s through his own work with the Westfield State Foundation or the Westfield YMCA, or the way he encourages the firm to support agencies ranging from the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts to Habitat for Humanity.

• Ryan McCollum is, in a word, a ‘connector.’ As the founder and owner of RMC Strategies, he coordinates political campaigns and spearheads the marketing efforts of a growing number of area agencies, businesses, and causes, many of them involving under-represented constituencies. And, since long before joining the 40 Under Forty club in 2012, and continuing through his career, he has been involved in the community, with agencies like Square One, YPS, Suit Up Springfield, and the Healing Racism Institute of Pioneer Valley.

• Orlando Ramos and his family moved around a lot when he was young. They eventually settled in Springfield, which, for him, became a home — and a passion. He’s represented the community on the City Council, and now as state representative for the 9th Hampden District. It’s been 11 years since he was presented his 40 Under Forty plaque, and over that time, he’s continually found new ways to advocate for city residents and make the City of Homes a better place to live, work, and do business.

As noted earlier, all five are worthy of the AAA award, and all five should be celebrated for all they’ve done, and all they continue to do in, and for, this region.

Nonprofits Need to Be Resilient

By Editorial May 21, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

In many respects, the timing could not be worse.

Indeed, the sharp cutbacks — and threatened cutbacks — for programs provided by area nonprofits comes at a time when needs are rising.

There’s increased need for food provided by area pantries and soup kitchens because of inflation, workforce reductions at several area companies, and the soaring costs of other necessities, like housing and healthcare.

There’s rising need for behavioral health services as people young and old continue to grapple with the lingering effects of COVID, the isolation it created, and other side effects.

Need is also rising for programs to assist the victims of domestic violence, child abuse, stalking, and related issues because of a worsening economy and the pressures it puts on families.

These are just some of the many programs and initiatives that are being threatened by cuts or the threat of cuts in federal funding to everything from early childhood education to SNAP benefits; clean air programs to the arts.

As the story on page 4 reveals, these are extremely challenging times for the area’s nonprofits, who are seeing cuts large and small involving programs that, in one way or another, impact quality of life in Western Mass.

These nonprofits are responding, as they always do, with determination and a strong desire to find ways to carry out their missions and continue to provide some of the services mentioned above. They’re looking at alternative sources of funding — from appeals to the public and area foundations to, in the case of the YWCA of Western Massachusetts, a capital campaign, not to build a building, but to keep programs operating.

At the same time, nonprofits are exploring ways to collaborate with other agencies so that vital needs can be met.

In some cases, as with a terminated $1 million grant for programs to address asthma in area cities, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to find other sources of funding and continue initiatives that have yielded progress on this important front.

Overall, many nonprofits are fighting, not necessarily for survival, but for the ability to retain their talented workforces and carry on their critical missions. And it’s an important fight, for the reasons mentioned at the top, but also because our nonprofits are a large — much larger than many people realize — and very important cog in this region’s economy. And not just because of the tens of thousands of jobs they provide, but because of the services they offer that help strengthen families and enable people to work and thrive in this economy.

If there is one adjective that could best describe this region’s nonprofit ecosystem — and it is exactly that, an ecosystem — it’s resilience.

Indeed, nonprofits have weathered recessions, workforce challenges, and, most recently, a pandemic that forced many of them to find new and different ways to carry out their missions.

They will need similar resilience, and much of it, in these ultra-challenging times, and we are quite confident they will find it — because there’s simply too much at stake.

The Importance of Summer Jobs

By Editorial May 7, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

It is mid-May.

Most college students are back home now, and in a month or so, they’ll be joined by thousands of high-school students. Most of these young people will be looking for work, and we can’t stress enough how important it is for the region’s business community to help them find it.

We’ve delivered this message often, but it’s even more critical to send it this year, a time of uncertainty for all business owners and nonprofit managers, and a time when many in both categories are experiencing some form of hardship.

Indeed, there have been several reductions in workforce in our region in recent months. The cutbacks at Baystate Health, which is undergoing what its new leadership is calling an ‘ongoing transformation,’ have garnered large headlines, but many others have gone under the radar.

Meanwhile, many higher-education institutions are also experiencing hard times, with some implementing hiring freezes and other strategies designed to control budgets.

So, for many, it will be difficult to bring on more help, while for others, especially those in the hospitality industry and retail, it is still difficult to find help, and the arrival of summer and college and high-school students is a blessing.

We would encourage all those who can to try to find opportunities for these young people, and for many reasons.

That includes a paycheck, which they need. Beyond that, though, summer jobs, especially those all-important ‘first’ jobs — be they at a local farm, the Big Y or Rocky’s Ace Hardware down the street, Six Flags, or a landscaping company — bring with them many lessons and learning experiences.

Young people come to understand how the world of work operates, the importance of showing up on time every day, and the nuances of teamwork and being part of a team. And if these young people are working, they’re often less likely to be getting into trouble.

At the same time, summer jobs help people make connections with the local business community. Sometimes — not often, but sometimes — a summer job at a hospital, college, manufacturing facility, or accounting firm can lead to a career with one of those employers.

Everyone remembers their first job. Everyone remembers those jobs they had while they were in high school and home from college. They remember them because they were important steps in their development as adults and contributors to a team, a business, and the local economy.

That’s why, even in these difficult and uncertain times, it’s important for businesses of all sizes to create more of these experiences by creating some summer jobs.

Celebrating the 40 Under Forty

By Editorial April 23, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Turtlepalooza. The Sheriff’s Shuffle. Lynchie and Friends. Swim 1922.

Monson Free Library. The Miracle League of Western Massachusetts. Credit for Life. Girls on the Run.

Head of Internal Audit. Founder and CEO. Dental practice owner. Farm & Food Products Program director.

Respectively, these are some of the unique community programs that members of the 40 Under Forty class of 2025 are involved with; just a few of the nonprofits to which they donate time, energy, and expertise; and a handful of the many impressive titles they now hold.

Collectively, all this helps tell story of this class, which, like the 18 before it, is full of rising stars doing impressive things. And, like previous classes, this one is diverse, although 29 are women, tying a record set just last year; what that trend means, we don’t exactly know.

But it’s diverse in every other sense of that word, including geography — members represent communities from Greenfield to Monson; Holyoke to Ludlow — and business sectors. Indeed, while there are bankers, accountants, and nonprofit managers, there’s also a DJ with his own entertainment company, an EMS coordinator, and the employment program supervisor for the Hampden County Sheriff’s Department.

This rich diversity and collection of inspiring stories helps explain why BusinessWest created its 40 Under Forty program back in 2007. The strategy was simple: solicit nominations from across Western Mass., hand them to a panel of judges, let them decide which ones stand out the most, and then inspire a region by simply telling their stories.

We’re up to 760 of them now, and each one has been different, but with some common denominators — namely, outstanding work in their chosen field and a willingness to give back to the community.

And by highlighting what they do, we learn more about them — whether they keep bees and sell honey or play the guitar or raise milking shorthorns — and this personalizes the stories, bringing into focus the many ways in which they balance life and work.

One of the reasons we created Forty Under 40 and tell these stories is to inspire others to follow the lead of those being honored and find their own way to stand out. And we have to believe that the program has done that.

After reading about these 40 people, how could you not be inspired?

Straight Talk About Mental Health

By Editorial April 9, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

As she wrapped up an interview with BusinessWest for the story on Kathleen Szegda, director of Community Research and Evaluation at the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts, wanted to emphasize that PHIWM doesn’t work alone when it comes to tackling mental health — with an particular focus on youth mental health — in the 413.

“We do this all in collaboration,” she said. “So I just want to make sure that’s lifted up — that we’re doing this in partnership with so many amazing groups.”

It’s true. In addition to its many community program partners, stakeholders ranging from public schools and colleges to a host of mental-health organizations — River Valley Counseling Center, Clinical & Support Options, MiraVista, Gándara Center, and several others — were among the many advisory-group voices that helped craft the Youth Mental Health Roadmap for Western Massachusetts, which focuses on five themes: destigmatizing and normalizing mental health, boosting social connection, developing social and emotional learning, grappling with social media, and connecting mental-health promotion with clinical care.

But there’s another group that has long been intimately involved in PHIWM’s strategies and outreach around youth mental health, and that’s teenagers themselves, who — largely through a group called Beat the Odds, but in other ways as well — have provided a valued, street-level perspective to these issues that goes far beyond survey data.

But their involvement also speaks to another development, this one positive: the continued destigmatization of mental health among teenagers. Numerous behavioral-health professionals across the region have told BusinessWest for years now that teenagers are more willing to share their mental-health concerns, and even seek help, than they were decades ago, and that there’s much more openness and acceptance around these conversations.

As Tiffany Rufino, senior manager of the Youth Mental Health Coalition, a PHIWM program, explains in the article, “they’re using the resources that we’re putting forth, and they are vocal and open to talking about challenges that they’re facing. They are also really excited about sharing information with the community.”

At a time when young people are still dealing with long-term impacts from the pandemic years, that’s a heartening trend. So let’s keep the conversation going.

An Opportunity for the Region

By Editorial March 26, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Take a glance at the Competitive Index released recently by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Assoc. , and you’ll certainly sense some alarm bells for the Commonwealth.

Indeed, the poor national rankings in several categories, including energy costs, overall cost of living, commute time, childcare costs, and housing cost burden are not exactly news flashes — this state has always been expensive, and the Boston area has always endured extreme traffic — but they do not bode well at a time when professionals have real options when it comes to where they live and work, especially in the remote-work era.

But take a closer look, and you’ll see something else: all or most of those red flags (energy costs are high almost everywhere in the Commonwealth) do not pertain to this region — for better or worse, mostly the former.

The Western Mass. region, with the exception of the Berkshires, which has certainly benefited from the advent of remote work, does not have the sky-high housing costs that are making it increasingly difficult to afford to live anywhere near Boston. Childcare costs are not as high, nor are many other expenses. As for commute time … it’s not exactly something to be proud of, in our opinion, but Springfield does not have unbearable traffic or anything approaching parking shortages, except for Thunderbirds games or events at MGM.

So, if you’re an optimist, you can look at the Competitive Index and see concern for the Commonwealth on the whole, but opportunity for the 413, and some other area codes as well, like the Cape.

Indeed, as people leave the Bay State for other regions of the country, and even some of our neighbors such as Maine and New Hampshire, opportunity exists to convince them to stay in the Commonwealth — just move from one side to the other.

It will take some doing, and some marketing dollars (from where they would come, we don’t know), but it appears that the state can help stem the outmigration of some of its professionals if it promotes some of its lower-cost areas, such as the 413.

And there is much to promote. Indeed, while this region does not have the large employers or workforce of the Boston area, or the nightlife that is attractive to many young people, there is quality of life here, from large open spaces to recreation areas to arts and culture.

There are stories, and a growing number of them, concerning people who are trading the super-high cost of living in the Boston area for this part of the state. Many of them involve people who grew up here, have tasted life in the Hub, and now want to return to their roots for the reasons mentioned above. We could use some more of that, and swell those ranks to include people who didn’t grow up here.

Obviously, the biggest priority for the state at this pivotal time is to address its overall competitiveness in any and all ways that it can, from building more affordable housing to improving the overall transportation network to shorten commute times.

But while doing all that, it can also try to stem outmigration by stressing that there are some areas in Massachusetts that are already more affordable and more competitive.

Yes, within the sobering numbers there are some opportunities.

Challenging Times for a Screen Gem

By Editorial March 12, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

While extolling the benefits of Amherst Cinema in this issue’s lead feature story, Executive Director Yasmin Chin Eisenhauer didn’t mince words when it came to the challenges faced by the facility and other independent, nonprofit moviehouses like it.

One is the fact that ticket sales have never totally recovered from the COVID years. That’s true across the industry, but in the case of Amherst Cinema, while the 84,260 tickets sold in 2024 represented the continuation of a strong recovery from 21,150 in 2020, it was still only about 80% of the 108,000 sold in the average pre-pandemic year.

At least the facility survived; many theaters did not. The National Cinema Foundation reported that there were more than 39,000 movie screens in the U.S. in 2022, down from 41,000 in 2019, and more screens have been lost since then.

The main problem may be that more content is available to stream at home. The Atlantic reported last month that the average adult sees three films at the movie theater per year but consumes nearly 19 hours of television — the rough equivalent of eight movies — on a weekly basis.

“Combined with significant industry disruption and rising costs, the cinema has experienced three years of financial losses,” Eisenhauer told BusinessWest. “This is an unsustainable trend.”

Which is why Amherst Cinema is implementing measures to reduce costs as part of a broader, organization-wide sustainability plan, directing resources where they can have the greatest impact and safeguarding the nonprofit’s ability to deliver on its mission. (These decisions were finalized in the days following our interview with Eisenhauer, and related to us just before we went to press with this issue.)

Specifically, the facility has discontinued some of its least-attended showtimes (Sundays at 9 p.m. and Wednesdays at 2 p.m. and 9 p.m.). In mid-May, it will permanently shutter its Studio Theater, a space it leases rather than owns; after significant cost-benefit analysis, Eisenhauer said, reducing operations from four to three screens is the most sustainable path forward. Unfortunately, these measures will also necessitate a reduction in staff.

“That said, two things can be true at once,” she told BusinessWest. “While we’re experiencing the impacts of a disrupted film exhibition landscape, our commitment to advancing film arts and culture has never been stronger. We will continue to program critically acclaimed films and artfully created and educational film experiences. As we like to say, there is something for everyone at Amherst Cinema.”

As the article on page 4 makes clear, this is very true. From classic kids’ films to Friday-night cult films; from indie films difficult to find on other big screens to movies paired with lectures by filmmakers and topical experts, Amherst Cinema has certainly created and deepened a niche over the past two decades of, as Eisenhauer put it, catalyzing community. And, as we would put it, being an essential part of this region’s cultural landscape.

Which is why we encourage everyone to check out a movie — or many — there, and to consider becoming a member. Not every region has a resource like this one, offering an experience you just can’t find on a living-room couch: real community connection. It’s an institution worth supporting.

Looking Back on COVID — and Ahead

By Editorial February 27, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

Most of those asked by BusinessWest to recall the early days of COVID — and what’s happened since — either can’t believe how quickly time has flown, or that it’s only been five years.

Mostly, it’s the latter.

Indeed, COVID now seems like a long, long time ago, probably because those first few years were so difficult and change-filled, many compared them to dog years.

We asked business owners and managers to look back because … well, five years is a milestone, and there is so much that has changed over that half-decade (see story on page 4).

Changes have come to small business and how it is conducted, in healthcare and the mental health of people of all ages, in education (especially higher education), and, of course, in how work is done — and where it’s done.

As business owners looked back on the seismic events of mid-March 2020, what happened in the days, weeks, and months to follow, and what’s changed (and perhaps changed forever) since then, some themes emerge.

Perhaps the most intriguing, if not the most discernable, in many cases, is a sense of pride in accomplishment, if we can call it that.

Indeed, COVID was something unprecedented. Business owners and managers had seen economic ups and downs before. They had seen times when employment was tight, and times when it wasn’t. Some had even weathered a natural disaster, like the 2011 tornado.

But this was something completely different. The state was essentially shut down. Workers went home with their computers not knowing when they’d come back (some still haven’t come back). People couldn’t go restaurants, movie theaters, museums, banquet halls, bars, breweries, malls, car dealerships, airports, sports arenas, their dentist’s office … for weeks, they couldn’t go anywhere.

In many instances, business just stopped. But then, it picked up again — only, it was different. And this is where that pride in achievement come in: the innovation, the imagination, the perseverance, the needed humor, the bonding together, even if people were in different places.

Businesses found new modes of doing things, new revenue streams, intriguing ways to pivot, and ways to keep the doors open, even if customers couldn’t come through them.

Well, most businesses, anyway. There were many casualties across several sectors, especially hospitality. The others? As we said, they found a way.

Sure, they had some help. Most small businesses received a PPP loan or some other form of assistance. But they didn’t survive on that. They survived on guts and creativity and a will to beat back a challenge unlike any other.

That’s what we’re celebrating — again, if that’s the right term — five years later.

Celebrating the Difference Makers

By Editorial February 12, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

The name came naturally.

Indeed, as the leadership team at BusinessWest was finalizing plans to create a new recognition program back in 2009, all that remained was a name. And as they talked about the individuals, nonprofits, and institutions that could, and would, be honored in the years to come, Difference Makers was the logical fit.

It says it all, and it describes, efficiently and succinctly, the dozens of honorees recognized since we launched this endeavor 16 years ago. It’s the same with the eight honorees for 2025, all of whom are making a difference in their own way, as is made clear in the stories in the special center section of this issue. They are:

• Jennie Adamczyk, executive director of Providence Ministries for the Needy (PMN). She oversees programs that include a soup kitchen, a pantry, sober homes for men, and a warming shelter. But it’s not what she does that makes her a Difference Maker, but show she does it, with determination and imagination that mirrors that of PMN founder Sr. Margaret McCleary: if she sees a need, she works aggressively to meet it.

• Sheryl Blancato, CEO of Second Chance Animal Services. She’s a true believer that all animals deserve a second chance, and from humble beginnings 26 years ago, she and her team have created a wide-ranging nonprofit, including four veterinary hospitals, that helps more than 56,000 animals each year. Her goal has always been to help not just pets, but their families, in an effort to keep them together.

• Andrea Bordenca, CEO of DESCO Service. Yes, she’s the leader of a successful healthcare emergency field-service response organization, but she’s a Difference Maker because of her many initiatives to bring people together, create dialogue, build community, and help young people, women, and other constituencies become the best versions of themselves.

• Mychal Connolly, owner of Stand Out Truck. He’s a serial entrepreneur and the successful owner of a unique marketing business, but he’s a Difference Maker because of the way he’s become a mentor, role model, and true inspiration to aspiring entrepreneurs, particularly young people, and for the way he’s helped many of them overcome challenges and get off the ground or to the next level.

• John Delaney, director of Ride to Remember. When a fellow Springfield police officer, Kevin Ambrose, died in the line of duty, Delaney helped create what has become one of the region’s premier bicycling events — not a competitive ride, but a communal one that has raised awareness of fallen heroes and money for a host of important charitable causes across the region.

• John Doleva, president and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. When he took this job, he expected to stay a few years and then return to the sporting-goods world from which he came. Instead, he’s stayed more than 20 years, leading the Hall through myriad challenges while also becoming greatly involved in the Western Mass. community, especially with programs involving young people and sports.

• The Michael J. Dias Foundation. From the crushing loss of her son to drug addiction, Grace Dias created a supportive community of fellow grieving parents — and then created something more: an organization that operates three (soon to be four) sober homes where individuals in recovery can develop resilience, responsibility, accountability, and a chance to move on to a successful life of independence.

• Dan Moriarty, president and CEO of Monson Savings Bank. A star athlete in high school and college, and a participant in marathons and Ironman competitions today, he makes frequent use of sports phrases and metaphors, especially those involving the importance of teamwork. He practices what he preaches and leads by example, and has built a strong team that is committed to getting involved and giving back.

Supporting the Local Food Economy

By Editorial January 29, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

In talking with Alisa Klein about Grow Food Northampton for the story that begins on page 25, she shared some sobering statistics in explaining why the nonprofit’s work is so important.

One is 30% — that’s the percentage of families in Hampden and Hampshire counties that are not able to access enough healthy, nutritious food on a regular basis. Many of those are single-mother households, and for families of color, the rate is much higher.

Alarmingly, that 30% figure actually shot up to close to 50% during the pandemic a few years ago. In response to that crisis, GFN launched a community food-distribution project along with the Northampton Survival Center, which delivered food weekly to 16 low-income housing sites.

“Each of our organizations has continued to do our work separately since the pandemic ended,” Klein told BusinessWest, “but it was the pandemic that kind of set off community insecurity in a new way.”

Adapting to changing needs is critical to the work that she and Michael Skillicorn, the organization’s co-executive directors, along with their teams of dedicated staffers and volunteers, do. In fact, Grow Food Northampton has been evolving since its origin in 2009, when a group of individuals banded together to save a couple of Florence farms — land that has since become a community farm that benefits local farmers, a community garden used by more than 400 local residents, a giving garden that grows thousands of pounds of food annually for food pantries and community meal sites, and much more, including a robust educational program.

The pandemic may have drawn sharp lines around the importance of a local food economy, Klein said, but it doesn’t take a crisis to understand why it’s always important to support farming, help low-income people access food, and, as a byproduct, reduce the pollution created by transporting fresh food long distances.

In Western Mass., any support of local agriculture is welcome, whether it’s the grants, foundations, and donations that fuel GFN’s efforts to help small-scale growers or the many funding partners of the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation’s Local Farmer Awards, which have assisted with capital projects on farms for the past 11 years (the latest winners will be announced in April).

Because, as Klein said, “if you lose farmland, you can’t grow your own food, and you become dependent on the national food system.” And if national crisis strikes — and even if it doesn’t — it’s good to have a safety net close to home.

A Tradition of Entrepreneurship

By Editorial January 15, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

In 1996, BusinessWest created a new recognition program, its Top Entrepreneur Award. We did so to acknowledge this region’s deep history of entrepreneurship and to recognize those that are continuing that tradition today.

As for that history, you know the names — or many of them, anyway: Milton Bradley, Horace Smith and Daniel Wesson, Charles and Frank Duryea; Everett Barney (clip-on ice skates), George Hendee (Indian Motocycle); Curtis and Prestley Blake (Friendly’s); Paul and Gerry D’Amour (Big Y), William Skinner (the Skinner Silk Mill) … the list goes on. And the people on that list created tens of thousands of jobs and helped shape the region.

Today, this tradition continues, although mostly with people creating dozens, and perhaps hundreds, of jobs, all of them vitally important to this region’s future. Indeed, entrepreneurship creates more than wealth — although it does that, too. It creates vibrancy in our communities, jobs (sometimes for generations of people), and opportunities for others to make their own mark.

This is why we recognize those that continue this region’s proud tradition of entrepreneurship with our annual award. Over the years, we’ve honored some traditional entrepreneurs — the Balise family of auto dealers, the D’Amours, the Falcone family (Rocky’s Hardware), and people like Paul Kozub, founder of V-One Vodka. We’ve also honored some non-traditional entrepreneurs, such as the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts; Andrew Scibelli, former president of Springfield Technical Community College; and Craig Melin, former president and CEO of Cooley Dickinson Hospital.

For 2024, we blend the past with the present and future by honoring John and Chris DeVoie, founders of the Hot Table chain of panini restaurants (see story on page 12).

Their story echoes many of those from the past. They started with an idea and started small, and eventually grew the venture. Indeed, from humble beginnings in the Breckwood Shoppes in Springfield, they have grown the chain to 13 locations across this region, into Eastern Mass., and also into Connecticut, with plans to continue growing and taking the concept to new markets.

Beyond growing their venture, the brothers DeVoie, along with third partner Rich Calcasola, have succeeded in creating a culture of giving back as well as a pattern of providing employment opportunities, especially to young people. These include all-important first and second jobs to high school and college students, who need the experience as well as the paycheck, but also opportunities to advance and take on leadership positions.

While doing all this, the partners have exemplified the traits of all successful entrepreneurs — vision, persistence, imagination, perseverance, and the ability to overcome adversity and learn from mistakes.

They share traits with Smith, Wesson, Bradley, Skinner, Barney, and three generations of the D’Amour family, and, like those others, they have become true inspirations to others.

They are making their own mark, but they are also carrying on a proud tradition, and that’s why they’re the Top Entrepreneurs for 2024.

Things We’d Like to See in 2025

By Editorial January 1, 2025

Opinion

Editorial

It’s a new year, and in keeping with what has become a tradition, we’ll take this opportunity in early January to list some things we’d like to see over the next 12 months — what should be an intriguing time, to say the least.

• More growth of new sectors. While traditional precision manufacturing, long a staple of the regional economy, has remained a constant, some other sectors, such as healthcare (especially hospitals) and higher education are struggling to some extent. Meanwhile, virtually all sectors, from banking to insurance to retail, are seeing consolidation, which usually translates into fewer jobs and higher vacancy rates with commercial real estate.

In this environment, the region needs growth in what would be considered non-traditional sectors. And there are opportunities in realms such as food science and food tech, clean energy and clean tech, and data centers, including a proposed, $3 billion project in Westfield that would be the largest of its kind in the state. Growth of these sectors and others represents the region’s best opportunity to create new jobs and perhaps replace those that will be lost in other areas.

• More creative use and re-use of commercial real estate. We’ve seen a lot of it in recent years, from former department stores converted into trampoline centers to the YMCA moving into Tower Square in Springfield; from artists moving into several old mills to Discovery Polytech Early College High School relocating to 1350 Main St., another office tower in downtown Springfield.

And we’ll need to see more it as sectors continue to shrink through consolidation and remote work continues to create more vacancies in office buildings. Creative re-use, be it housing, artists, schools, or small-business incubators, creates jobs and vibrancy.

• More people going to the office, and more often. Yes, there is a place for remote work and hybrid schedules — when such accommodations are needed, and maybe a day or two a week for those seeking a regular schedule of working from home. But having people in the office is better for businesses of all kinds, from the standpoints of communication, collaboration, and productivity, and better for communities and their central business districts.

Companies such as Amazon and even President-elect Trump are, or soon will be, ordering people back to work — or else. Business owners don’t need to be so demanding, we believe, but more work in the office and less remote work is good for the region’s economy.

• More entrepreneurship. Or even more, as the case may be. We’ve been encouraged by the efforts of several area agencies — from EforAll to area chambers of commerce to the Latino Economic Development Corp. — to encourage entrepreneurship among all constituencies, but especially women and minorities, and help businesses get off the ground and stay in business.

Such efforts not only enable people to work for themselves instead of someone else, they create jobs, fill some of those commercial real-estate vacancies, and create vibrancy in our gateway cities. Most of these businesses are small, as in very small, and most will not create more than a handful of jobs, but such ventures are an important source of growth for any region.

Bringing You Another Eventful Year

By Editorial December 18, 2024

Opinion

Editorial

BusinessWest celebrated its 40th anniversary this year, and that’s worth celebrating — so we did, with a special issue in May that looked back on how things have changed — and, in some ways, how they’ve stayed the same — in fields like banking, construction, education, technology, and more.

But as the calendar turns to 2025 — well into our 41st year of delivering key business news, trends, profiles, and much more to our readers — business leaders are far more focused on what’s ahead, not what’s behind, as they should be.

While they’re undoubtedly split on the results of the Nov. 5 election — some cheering the shift in power in Washington, some apprehensive of the policy changes ahead — any federal leadership change poses questions that won’t be answered immediately. Meanwhile, the economy continues to pose a mixed bag of good (still-healthy unemployment rates) and bad (still-pesky inflation, interest rates, and a housing shortage), all of which lend an unsettled element to the immediate future.

What is more certain is that BusinessWest will continue to reflect the current times, trends, and stories from a local perspective — that is, through the eyes, minds, and experiences of business owners and economic experts throughout the 413.

In the Jan. 6 issue, we’ll present our annual Economic Outlook, this year featuring the voices of dozens of regional business leaders from many different sectors. And on Jan. 20, we’ll reveal our 29th annual Top Entrepreneur, the owner of a local chain that’s pressing forward — and beyond this region — in some intriguing ways.

Two issues after that, we’ll unveil our 17th annual class of Difference Makers, the first of four very popular recognition programs throughout 2025, along with 40 Under Forty in April, Healthcare Heroes in September, and Women of Impact in October. BusinessWest accepts nominations for all four programs all year long.

This year will also bring a broader mix of feature stories, as well as returning favorites like each issue’s Community Spotlight, shedding light on economic development, municipal projects, tourism, and quality of life in individual cities and towns; and the quarterly Where Are They Now? — each installment visiting with a past winner of one of the four awards mentioned earlier, detailing how their life and career have evolved since. All that is, of course, on top of our regular coverage of dozens of industries.

And look for our annual Book of Lists early in the year as well, a comprehensive resource guide to the businesses and sectors that drive this region’s economic engine.

As 2025 takes shape, we’re excited to bring all that, and more, to you — on the page, at our recognition events, and at businesswest.com. Happy New Year.

Challenging Times for Economic Pillars

By Editorial December 4, 2024

Opinion

Editorial

‘Eds and meds.’

You hear that phrase repeatedly in reference to the local economy. It refers to education and healthcare, two of the largest sources of jobs in Western Mass.

And by education, we mean a broad spectrum, but especially higher education; this region is blessed with more than two dozen colleges and universities in communities ranging from Springfield to Amherst; Chicopee to Westfield.

On the ‘meds’ side, there are, likewise, a wide range of players, but the sector is dominated by its many fine hospitals, including all those within Baystate Health system as well as Mercy Medical Center, Holyoke Medical Center, Cooley Dickinson Hospital, and Berkshire Medical Center.

Both of these sectors remain strong, and they continue to be pillars of the local economy. But they are both being severely challenged, as evidenced by recent headlines and news items in BusinessWest.

Recently, Baystate Health, faced with $300 million in operating losses over the past few years, announced the first step in what it is calling a ‘transformation,’ the difficult decision to reduce 134 leadership positions across the Baystate system. That’s less than 1% of the workforce, but a significant workforce reduction nonetheless.

And it symbolizes the many challenges facing all hospitals today as they continue to recover from COVID-related setbacks that include higher costs, inadequate reimbursements, stern workforce challenges, and the ongoing need to invest in new technology and equipment.

Baystate has been in the headlines, but all area hospitals are struggling, and they are all making adjustments and hard decisions.

It is the same with many education institutions, a reality punctuated by a new organizational business plan announced at American International College (AIC). Dubbed ‘Pathway to Progress,’ it details an expansion of degree options, but also a comprehensive re-enrollment program to engage and recruit former students to return to AIC and complete their degrees, as well as cuts within the athletic program, including the return of the men’s hockey program to Division II and the discontinuation of two women’s programs.

“In an era of unprecedented disruption across the higher-education industry, it is more important than ever that we do all we can to ensure AIC can adapt and evolve to best serve our students — those we serve today, and in the future,” interim President Nicolle Cestero said of the new business plan.

Her comments, and that plan, help drive home the fact that this disruption — marked by demographic changes, the nationwide conversation about the value of a college education, free community college, and other issues — is not an AIC problem. It’s a problem for the entire sector. Indeed, noted institutions such as Brandeis University in Waltham, Lesley University in Cambridge, and countless others have embarked on their own cost-cutting programs and revisions to their business plans.

Most colleges and universities in this region remain on very solid ground and, like the region’s hospitals, remain sources of pride — and good-paying jobs.

But these recent headlines reflect the fact that these are, indeed, very challenging times, during which we hope these institutions can and will make the hard decisions and the needed adjustments to remain vital cogs in the region’s economy for decades to come.

Is Tide Turning on Remote Work?

By Editorial December 4, 2024

Opinion

Editorial

It was an announcement that reverberated through workplaces across the country — and in cities large and small as well.

In September, Amazon President and CEO Andy Jassy informed tens of thousands of workers that they will be back in the office five days a week come January.

In the ongoing discussion about remote work and the future of work, this is a huge development. Indeed, it is seen by many as an important milestone in this debate, a moment in time when the pendulum started shifting back to the way things were before everyone packed up to go home in March 2020.

But while Amazon’s move will be closely watched and undoubtedly emulated by other employers, we’re not sure if businesses large and small will ever be able to get the toothpaste back in the tube and get everyone back in the office. Remote work has in many ways become a perk, a recruiting tool, a way to keep employees, especially the younger generations, content.

So much so, in fact, that employees that follow Amazon’s lead may be putting themselves at risk when it comes to attracting and retaining talent.

Getting back to Amazon’s statement decision, this is the one that office-building owners, mayors, and economic-development leaders had been waiting for. Those in the real-estate sector have been saying for years now that companies large and small would eventually decide that the improved collaboration and communication, as well as the learning opportunities that come when everyone is together as opposed to on Zoom, would outweigh any benefits that might come from remote work and hybrid schedules. Amazon’s move gives some credence to those arguments and the hope that the struggling office market will improve.

Meanwhile, municipal leaders who had been decrying the loss of foot traffic during the week due to remote work saw the Amazon decision as progress in their mostly unsuccessful efforts to get people back in downtown office buildings.

And Amazon’s decision comes amid mounting evidence of a changing mood when it comes to remote work. A recent survey by the consulting firm KPMG revealed that 79% of U.S. chief executives plan to resume largely in-office work within the next three years, up from 62% a year ago.

That statistic comes amid growing sentiment that the balance of power is shifting in the workplace from employees — who had firm control during the prolonged workforce crisis that gripped every sector of the economy — to employers, many of whom have been eager to bring employees back to the office.

Despite this shift, and Amazon’s landmark decision, we believe that it will remain challenging for employers to bring their workers back five days a week. Remote work has become a fixture, if you will, at many local businesses, from banks to law firms to health-insurance companies.

If there is a shift, it will likely be toward more days in the office — from two to three or even four. This will help build foot traffic in cities while also keeping businesses from shrinking their overall office footprints.

Overall, the tide is probably turning, but until it turns more — and companies bringing people back to the office are not left at a competitive disadvantage — we see many businesses maintaining the status quo.

Association Membership Has Value

By Editorial November 20, 2024

Opinion

Editorial

On a recent BusinessTalk podcast, Emily Leonczyk, executive vice president and chief operating officer at the Markens Group, talked about an interesting generational trend that concerns many business associations and chambers of commerce. And as one of the leaders of an association-management firm, it concerns her, too.

Simply put, Zoomers and Millennials in the workforce aren’t as interested in association membership to the degree Gen-Xers and Boomers have been.

“Gone are the days of a person showing up to, let’s say, a chamber of commerce because it’s the right thing to do, a betterment of your community,” Leonczyk said, before offering a couple of reasons why. “That next generation really needs to, number one, see the return on investment, what’s in it for me. And, number two, they need to feel like it’s a place where they belong.”

There are multiple takeaways here. For one thing, associations shouldn’t assume that what once drove membership will continue to do so today.

“Gone are the days of, ‘well, we’ve always done it this way.’ We don’t want to lose the historical frame of reference that has to be a guiding light, but also it’s different,” Leonczyk explained.

Irene Costello, director of Operations at the Markens Group, recently told BusinessWest that young people are looking for a tangible takeaway from membership and giving their time. “Is it a résumé builder? Is there something of value at this conference, some credentialing? Instead of just going to build community, what am I getting from this networking?”

Those are valid desires that associations need to consider as they craft their programming, but Leonczyk also suggested that young professionals can also receive plenty of return in terms of personal growth, new connections, and lasting friendships — all things she personally experienced long before working with those organizations through her current job.

“That friendship and camaraderie and networking can be so enriching to somebody’s life. And that’s really on kind of a heartfelt level, but I think professionally, there’s so much data around how you grow in your professional career. It’s by watching other leaders; it’s by accessing mentorship; it’s by making connections.

“So there’s a matter of the heart, to which I would say, ‘show up, get involved, because it’s going to just make your life richer.’ And then there’s that professional side, where building those connections is going to supercharge your career.”

These are messages that apply to many aspects of business. The way it’s always been done may not be the way going forward. But at the same time, younger generations may want to consider the inherent value in some important traditions as well. They are discussions well worth having.

Consider Shopping Local This Year

By Editorial November 6, 2024

Opinion

Editorial

Everyone wants to buy great gifts. But what about building a great economy? While it’s only one part of a healthy economic ecosystem, the idea of buying local has gained traction in recent years, even at a time when online commerce is still a massive force.

Amazon isn’t going anywhere, and we get the importance of convenience. But why not do both? Sure, there may be some gifts especially well-suited to an online order, for reasons of availability and especially price. But why not check out the abundance of locally owned retail shops, artisans, restaurants, and personal-care services — people love gift cards, after all — when rounding out that shopping list?

Local shops are where you’ll find unique wares you can’t find anywhere else — the sort of special gifts that make an impact and create memories. Plus, every $100 spent in a local shop returns $68 to the local economy. Local businesses are more likely to utilize other local businesses, such as banks, service providers, and farms, and the cycle continues.

Meanwhile, according to the U.S. Small Business Assoc. and the U.S. Department of Labor, independent retailers return more than three times as much money per dollar of sales to the community in which they operate than chain competitors. And independent restaurants return more than twice that of national restaurant chains. Local businesses are also more accountable to their local communities and donate more money to nonprofits.

Finally, supporting local businesses is good for the environment because they often have a smaller carbon footprint than larger companies, and goods don’t have to be shipped across the country or the world.

It isn’t always the most convenient option to drive to an independent business rather than visiting a large chain down the road — or clicking a keyboard and having Amazon deliver right to your house. But so often, it’s the right option. The holiday season would be a good time to start.

Impact Comes in Many Forms

By Editorial October 23, 2024

Opinion

Editorial

In 2018, BusinessWest launched a new recognition program, one what would recognize the outstanding accomplishments of women across this region and tell stories that might otherwise go untold.

Over the first six years of this program, we have done that just, and this pattern continues with the class of 2024 — a very diverse group of eight women who have given back, and changed lives, in many different ways: by taking their business or nonprofit to new levels of success; by serving as a role model to others, but especially women and girls; by mentoring others and helping them find direction and purpose in their lives; by persevering through adversity; by doing, well … all of the above. They are:

• Alison Berman, council director of Girls on the Run Western Massachusetts, whose efforts to boost girls’ confidence and character have impacted not only thousands of program participants, but entire schools and communities;

• Dianne Fuller Doherty, co-founder of the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts and former director of the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center’s Regional Office, who has spent a lifetime not only being the 413’s biggest cheerleader, but tangibly improving its communities through a host of key leadership roles;

• JoAnne Finck, president of Friends of Cooley Dickinson, whose goal has always been to make a difference in the community and individual lives, and has found myriad roles through which to accomplish that;

• Kimberley Lee, chief of Creative Strategy and Development at MiraVista Behavioral Health Center, who has not only boosted the impact of numerous nonprofits, but has found many ways to help people, especially women, overcome barriers to self-sufficiency;

• Megan McDonough, executive director of Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity, whose work to advance homeownership in the region has improved the economic prospects for both individual families and the entire region;

• LaTonia Monroe Naylor, chief business educator at Monroe Naylor Consulting, LLC; and president and CEO of Parent Villages, who is not only helping entrepreneurs get their enterprises to the next level, but working on key issues of education and trauma resilience;

• Kristi Reale, partner at Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C., whose reputation as a local leader in her industry extends not only to her clients, but the many young people, especially young women, she has mentored; and

• Dr. Shirley Jackson Whitaker, a nephrologist and artist who brought lessons in patient histories and healing to her latest role, as the producer of an important, moving documentary about one of America’s deep, unhealed wounds.

Congratulations to the Women of Impact class of 2024.

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