Company Notebook

Westfield’s New Baseball Team Unveils ‘Starfires’ Name, Logo

WESTFIELD — The latest entry in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League unveiled its name and logo on Wednesday night at an event held at the Shortstop Bar and Grill in Westfield. The Westfield Starfires will begin play in the summer of 2019 at Bullens Field in Westfield. The team name pays homage to the city of Westfield’s deep connection with the Air National Guard stationed at Barnes Airport. The name is derived from the Lockheed F-94 Starfire, a first-generation jet aircraft of the U.S. Air Force. The F-94 was the first operational USAF fighter equipped with an afterburner and was the first jet-powered all-weather fighter to enter combat during the Korean War in January 1953. The Westfield Starfires were founded by local entrepreneurs Christopher Thompson and Donald Moorhouse, and are now part of the FCBL’s seven-team circuit. Since 2011, the Futures League has experienced a meteoric rise to become one of the top summer collegiate leagues in the country. Season-ticket packages and merchandise for the new franchise are available now through westfieldstarfires.com.

GreatHorse Named Northeast’s Golf Course of the Year

HAMPDEN — The National Golf Course Owners Assoc. (NGCOA) recently recognized GreatHorse, the golf and lifestyle club in Hampden, as Regional Golf Course of the Year for the Northeast Region. The award recognizes those courses that epitomize exceptional course quality and management excellence, make important contributions to their communities and the game, and serve as models of operations to their peers. “We’re honored to receive such a prestigious award from the NGCOA,” said Guy Antonacci, owner of GreatHorse. “This national recognition is a testament to how far we have come in the four short years since we opened our doors, and we are excited to continue our growth in the years ahead.”

Michael’s Party Rentals Receives National Recognition

PALMER — Michael’s Party Rentals recently received a national accolade at the 2019 American Rental Assoc. (ARA) annual convention and trade show in Anaheim, Calif. The ARA is the international trade association for equipment-rental businesses and manufacturers and suppliers of rental equipment, with members in every U.S. state, every Canadian province, and more than 30 countries worldwide. Michael’s Party Rentals was acknowledged with a Presidents Image Award from ARA. It was a co-recipient along with True Value Rental of Rollinsford, N.H., representing Region One, which covers all of New England and New York. The honor is given to a business facility or store celebrating its commitment to improving the rental-industry image through a remodeling, rebuilding, or renovation project. The award was in response to Michael’s Party Rentals’ new showroom, which opened in July 2016.

United Bank Earns Accolades

HARTFORD, Conn. — United Bank announced that Greenwich Associates, the leading global provider of data, analytics, and insights to the financial-services industry, honored United with its 2018 Greenwich Excellence Awards for Middle Market Banking and Small Business Banking. Specifically, United Bank earned the 2018 Greenwich Excellence Awards for Overall Satisfaction in Middle Market Banking and Overall Satisfaction and Branch Satisfaction in Small Business Banking. Greenwich Associates, after evaluating more than 600 banks, determined that United Bank was among a select number of banks performing at a differentiated level relative to its peers. To qualify for consideration for these national awards, each winning bank had to have a minimum of 50 clients that responded to the survey. In addition, the Small Business Banking accolade was based on more than 14,400 interviews with businesses with sales of $1 million to $10 million across the country. For Middle Market Banking, the ranking was derived from more than 14,400 interviews with businesses with sales of $10 million to $500 million across the country.

 

Pathlight Moves to

Bigger Quarters in Pittsfield

PITTSFIELD — Pathlight, a local organization that supports people with developmental disabilities and those with autism throughout Western Mass., is moving from its longtime space on North Street in Pittsfield to bigger quarters at 75 South Church St. The move, scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 21, allows Pathlight to better support its programs in the Berkshires. Pathlight’s Autism Connections as well as its Shared Living and Adult Family Care programs are growing in response to community demand. Autism Connections offers workshops, social-skills groups, and support groups, as well as recreation opportunities, to people with autism and their caregivers. The program’s autism specialists also work individually with families in their homes. In Pathlight’s Shared Living and Adult Family Care programs, a community member shares their home and provides support for a person with an intellectual disability or autism. The new office space features a large activity room, several meeting rooms, and a kitchen. The space will host community activities, including education workshops on a host of issues, social-skills groups for people with autism, and support groups for families caring for a person with autism. In the future, Pathlight plans to offer recreational and performing-arts classes for children and teens of all abilities.

Country Bank Donates $1M

to Local Charities in 2018

WARE — Country Bank reported that donations for 2018 exceeded $1 million. Through the bank’s established charitable-giving program, support is provided to local nonprofits throughout the region; in 2018, more than 400 organizations received generous contributions from the program. Among the organizations that received donations, the Salvation Army, the YMCA of Greater Springfield, the Springfield Rescue Mission, Friends of the Homeless, and the USO of Pioneer Valley each received $5,000, while the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts and Christina’s House each received $10,000. The bank also teamed up with Habitat for Humanity to build a home in Springfield last September. Country Bank also has an employee charitable-giving program that raised more than $30,000 in 2018, through events such as jeans days, bake sales, and raffles.

Governors America Corp. Partners

with CTEC to Develop Workforce

WEST SPRINGFIELD — Governors America Corp. has, over the last few years, hired seven past and/or current students from the Lower Pioneer Valley Educational Collaborative’s Career and Technical Education Center (CTEC), a half-day high-school vocational and technical training facility located in West Springfield. CTEC services students from nine communities in and around Hampden and Hampshire counties with 11 program offerings. Governors America Corp. is a leading provider of engine-governing and system controls to manufacturers and power providers worldwide. The new hires mainly come from CTEC’S Machine Technology program and have worked directly on the manufacturing floor, operating computer numerical control machines. CTEC has also provided Governors Corp. with support in its Information Technology department. This mutually beneficial partnership has enabled students to apply the skills that they have learned in one of the area’s premier manufacturing environments and provided Governors Corp. with a reliable source of pre-screened talent that has enriched its staff and production.