Company Notebook

Holyoke Mall Announces ‘Magical Night of Giving’
HOLYOKE — Holyoke Mall at Ingleside will be hosting its ninth annual “Magical Night of Giving” event to help local nonprofit groups and schools raise funds for their organizations. The event will be held on Sunday, Nov. 23 from 6 to 9:30 p.m., with the orientation and ticket-distribution session held on Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 5:30 p.m. The orientation will be held at Holyoke Mall’s Guest Services Center, located on the lower level in Sears Court. The “Magical Night of Giving” is a simple and effective way for nonprofit groups and schools to raise funds for their organization. Holyoke Mall at Ingleside covers all overhead expenses, and the charity keeps 100% of each $5 admission ticket sold. The event works as follows:
• Holyoke Mall at Ingleside will print admission tickets. These tickets will be available for nonprofit groups to pick up and sell beginning Sept. 24.
• Prior to November’s event, organizations will sell these admission tickets for $5 each and keep all money earned from the sale of these tickets.
• For anyone not purchasing tickets in advance, admission tickets will also be sold the evening of the event at all mall entrances by some of the participating organizations.
• Participating Holyoke Mall at Ingleside retailers will offer special discounts that are exclusive to the “Magical Night of Giving.” The ticket is the only means to receive these special discounts between 6 and 9:30 p.m. on Nov. 23.
• Admission tickets sold also act as a raffle ticket. Prizes will be awarded, including a $1,000 Holyoke Mall gift card. The raffle drawing will begin at 8:30 p.m. the evening of the event.
Said Holyoke Mall General Manager Bill Rogalski, “this event helps to raise approximately $50,000 each year between the various organizations involved. Holyoke Mall is providing the tools for the groups to hold their own fund-raiser. It’s a simple way for nonprofit groups and area schools to raise much-needed funding for their organizations.” To reserve tickets for pickup on Sept. 24, contact Simone Enright at (413) 536-1441 or [email protected] by Friday, Sept. 19. Anyone unable to pick up tickets on Sept. 24 may make arrangements with Enright to pick them up at a later date. Call Holyoke Mall’s Marketing department at (413) 536-1441 with any questions.

Webber & Grinnell Named to Circle of Excellence
NORTHAMPTON — Webber and Grinnell Insurance Agency has been inducted into the Plymouth Rock Assurance and Bunker Hill Insurance 2014 Circle of Excellence, recognizing outstanding professionalism, financial performance, and commitment to customer service by independent insurance agents during 2013. Selected from a pool of more than 400 independent agents across Massachusetts, Webber & Grinnell was one of 25 agents to receive this honor. “The Circle of Excellence is our premiere recognition and rewards program reserved for our top independent agents,” said Chris Olie, president of Plymouth Rock Assurance and chairman of Bunker Hill Insurance.“These agents are key parts of Plymouth Rock and Bunker Hill’s success. They have each worked hard to build their businesses while also providing excellent service and trusting advice to their customers.” Webber & Grinnell is one of the largest insurance agencies in Western Mass. The agency currently serves more than 5,000 automobile and homeowner policyholders, and insures nearly 900 businesses throughout the region. “As an independent agent, our goal is to provide expert service tailored to the specific needs of each client we serve,” said Bill Grinnell, president of Webber & Grinnell. “It’s always rewarding to be recognized for our hard work and dedication, and we’re grateful to receive this honor from Plymouth Rock and Bunker Hill.” Plymouth Rock and Bunker Hill are leading automobile- and home-insurance carriers serving Massachusetts. As a member of the Circle of Excellence, Webber & Grinnell will receive marketing support funds, education and training, and other initiatives designed to promote sustained success. The agency will be honored at a fall retreat.

Freedom Credit Union Touts New Logo, Website
SPRINGFIELD — Freedom Credit Union recently unveiled its updated look with a new logo and a redesigned website. At the same time, the credit union launched its presence on social media with new Facebook and LinkedIn pages. “This rebrand is an effort for us to freshen up our image and present a more contemporary look and design across all parts of the credit union, from our website and in-branch messaging to our advertising and promotional materials,” said Barry Crosby, president and CEO. The new logo incorporates the outline of a bell, which represents the credit union’s founding as the Western Massachusetts Telephone Workers Credit Union in 1922. The new website features a more modern design with enhanced navigation and organization. Most of the information is organized within four areas — personal banking, business banking, member tools, and ‘about us’ — and the new rates page is arranged in tabs so that all credit-union rates can be accessed on one page. “Our new website also makes it very convenient for our members to apply for a mortgage or consumer loan online,” said Jeffrey Smith, Freedom’s vice president and chief lending officer. “Members can even get pre-qualified for a mortgage on our website in just a few minutes.” Members can apply for any type of consumer loan online — mortgages, home-equity loans, auto loans, personal loans, home-improvement loans, education loans, and more. On social media, Freedom has attracted hundreds of ‘likes’ on its Facebook page and numerous followers on its LinkedIn page. To access Freedom’s social-media sites, go to www.freedom.coop and click on the logos at the top of the page. Membership at Freedom is available to include anyone who lives, works, or attends a college or university in Hampden, Hampshire, Franklin, or Berkshire county. The organization boasts nine branches throughout the Pioneer Valley in Ludlow, Chicopee, Feeding Hills, Sixteen Acres, Springfield, Easthampton, Northampton, Greenfield, and Turners Falls. A tenth branch is slated to open in September at the Roger L. Putnam Technical Academy in Springfield.

Bauzá & Associates Joins Worldwide Partners
ENFIELD, Conn. — Worldwide Partners Inc. (WPI) has added another partner to the world’s 8th-largest full-service ad-agency network and the world’s largest network of independent ad agencies, according to Al Moffatt, president and CEO of Worldwide Partners, headquartered in Denver. Bauzá & Associates, headquartered in Enfield, Conn., specializes in multicultural marketing and is headed by principal and CEO Héctor Bauzá. Founded in 2003, the agency became an LLC in Massachusetts in 2005 and has a roster of clients including the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, Harvard Street Neighborhood Health Center of Dorchester, and the Connecticut Lottery. “What makes us attractive to clients worldwide is that we’re comprised of innovative, progressive agencies across a full range of disciplines and industries,” Moffatt said. “We’re a collaborative, bottom-up network whereby the partner agencies own us rather than us owning them. We provide the resources and the global outreach to help our partners achieve greater profits and revenue while the partner agencies work together to build each other’s business and service clients locally, regionally, and internationally. We’re an efficient, international network that is built to succeed in today’s highly competitive and fragmented marketing environment. Each partner is hand-selected for its progressive and innovative approach. In short, we have the critical mass and skills of the agency conglomerates coupled with the flexibility of the independents. We’re very happy to have Bauzá & Associates join us.” Added Bauzá, “we are honored to be a part of WPI’s tremendously successful network of independent agencies. As a smaller agency, the added muscle from WPI will help to increase the size of the projects Bauzá & Associates will compete for and expand this agency’s reach to regional, national, and global markets.” Worldwide Partners Inc., which celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2013, has more than 20 network-wide regional and international clients, including Wal-Mart Centroamerica, Caterpillar, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Group Santander, MINI, Western Digital, California Tourism, and Novartis.

Dadanco Opens New Facility in Westfield
WESTFIELD — Dadanco, a manufacturer of commercial hydronic-based heating and cooling products, including active chilled beams, induction units, and induction diffusers, announced the grand opening of its Luxton-Reed Center, with an open house to be held on Sept. 12, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Luxton-Reed Center is aptly named after two industry pioneers for heating and cooling technologies: professor Russell Luxton of Australia, the co-founder of Dadanco, and John Reed of Westfield, the founder of several hydronic heating companies, including Sterling Residential & Commercial Hydronics, which are divisions of Mestek Inc., the largest manufacturer of finned-tube baseboard radiation in North America. The Luxton-Reed Center (LRC) is a unique facility focused on research and development and specific high-efficiency equipment testing utilizing a thermal-scenario test chamber which accurately measures air and water flow, temperature, and capacities. The test chamber is highly configurable and can simulate actual real-life application conditions. Alongside the LRC corporate offices are several live-fire training and showcase spaces. Each space meticulously represents an actual real-world installation, including a hotel suite, hospital room, and laboratory. The hotel suite is one of the most technically complex demonstration spaces in the LRC facility, as the room features a thermal wall with glass façade which simulates outside conditions and three different types of hydronic cooling solutions, so guests get to compare and contrast without leaving the room. LRC’s main mechanical room is host to multiple high-efficiency products produced by other Westfield-based Mestek companies, including condensing cast-iron boilers from Advanced Thermal Hydronics, flexible small-duct air distribution, and reverse-cycle chiller systems by SpacePak, direct outside air systems by Applied Air, hydronic fan coils by Airtherm, and integrated control systems by HeatNet. The facility is a fully operational showroom and research center for high-efficiency indoor comfort equipment and integrated control platforms. Every room, including the offices, the classroom/training room, the videoconferencing room, and the kitchen/break room, houses various mediums of high-efficiency air-distribution equipment.