People on the Move

Prudence Blond has been promoted to vice president and trust officer at Greenfield Savings Bank. In her new position, Blond, as a client service officer, oversees the administration and tax departments and also works with the Bank’s internal and external auditors. Blond joined the bank after graduating from Greenfield Community College in 1997 as a teller. In 1999, she was promoted to trust operations associate with responsibility for processing operational work along with administrative assistant tasks of the GSB Trust Department. Over the next 10 years, she began to work directly clients and was promoted to assistant trust officer, then trust officer, then to assistant vice president and trust officer before her new promotion to vice president and trust officer. After graduating from GCC, she earned a personal trust diploma through the American Bankers Assoc. in 2011 and a general financial services diploma through the Centre for Financial Training. She has continued to take educational classes in administration, personal tax preparation, trust and estate-tax preparation, financial planning, and IRAs. She earned her certified trust and financial advisor (CTFA) designation in 2012 through the Institute of Certified Banks. Blond is currently serving on the board of directors, personnel committee, and nominating committee at LifePath Inc. (formerly known as Franklin County Home Care Corp.). She is a member of the annual campaign team at Greenfield Community College. She has previously served on the board of trustees, as treasurer, and as Sunday school superintendent at Robbins Memorial Church.

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Michael Tucker, president and CEO, announced that Kevin Bowler has joined Greenfield Cooperative Bank as the new senior vice president of Loan Resolution. He began working in the Northampton office on July 1. “Kevin brings to us over 30 years of lending experience,” Tucker said. “We are lucky to have someone with his level of experience in handling and working with commercial and residential credits to help them through these times.” Bowler, who will report directly to Tony Worden, executive vice president and chief operating officer, previously worked for Peoples United Bank (the Bank of Western Massachusetts). He has a bachelor’s degree from Westfield State University.

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Leadership Pioneer Valley (LPV) recently welcomed Lidya Rivera-Early of Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) to its board of directors. Rivera-Early has a demonstrated history of serving on various boards and committees within the community. As an LPV LEAP alumna, she also brings a passion for both the mission of the organization and the continued success of the Pioneer Valley. “We are delighted to have Lidya join us,” said Lora Wondolowski, Leadership Pioneer Valley executive director. “Lidya understands firsthand the value of LPV. She will bring her voice, skills, and experiences to the board and will help LPV to fulfill its mission of building and connecting more diverse, committed, and effective leadership for the Pioneer Valley.” The Board also announced that Russell Peotter and Annamarie Golden will continue for an additional year in their current roles as chair and vice chair, respectively. Francia Wisnewski will continue as clerk, and Callie Niezgoda as treasurer.

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The Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts (CFWM) announced two new staff members, filling key development and finance roles at the organization. Daisy Pereira-Tosado joins CFWM as director of Philanthropy, and Didi de Almeida has been hired as account manager. Pereira-Tosado is responsible for bolstering and diversifying the foundation’s development strategy. She brings 25 years of experience in the nonprofit arena and has led and served in leadership roles for community-based organizations, most recently as senior director of Philanthropy at New England Public Media. Pereira-Tosado has developed many valuable resources for the local community as an active volunteer for local organizations such as Girls Inc. of Holyoke, Link to Libraries, and the Springfield Puerto Rican Day Parade Committee. She is a graduate of Boston University. Meanwhile, de Almeida brings seven years of experience in nonprofit accounting management for local nonprofit organizations, and recently earned her MBA from the Isenberg School of Management at UMass Amherst. Prior to her graduate studies, de Almeida was fiscal manager for the Center for New Americans, business manager for the Brick House Community Resource Center, and staff accountant for the MassHire Franklin Hampshire Career Center. Her experience includes budgeting, compliance, financial reporting, expense tracking, tax filing, and audit preparation.

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Bulkley Richardson announced that Christopher Gelino will be spending the next several weeks at the firm as a summer associate. During this assignment, he will have the opportunity to assist with legal work from all practice areas within the firm. Gelino is currently attending the University of Connecticut School of Law with an expected graduation date of May 2021. He is a 2014 graduate of the University of Connecticut, where he received degrees in both political science and human rights, and was recognized as a university honors scholar. He also earned a master’s degree in international politics in 2017 from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.

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American International College (AIC) recently welcomed two members to its board of trustees: E. Thomas Foster and Denise Jordan. Foster is managing director of the Retirement Advisor University Speakers Bureau. A 1970 graduate of American International College, he also attended Suffolk University Law School. In a career spanning more than 30 years, he is well-regarded as an industry expert, educating and advising individuals and businesses on the retirement marketplace, including products, legislation, regulation, and compliance. Most recently, Foster served as the spokesperson for MassMutual Retirement Services, working directly with financial advisors and employers to educate about 401(k) and other qualified retirement-savings plans. In 2007, he co-authored a book on practice management for advisors titled To Sell or Not to Sell … Employer Retirement Plans. He has been featured in numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Dallas Morning News, the Miami Herald, the Los Angeles Times, Forbes, Kiplinger, Financial Planning, Investment News, and the London Stock Exchange. Jordan was born and raised in the city of Springfield. She attended Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, where she received a bachelor’s degree in political science, and in 2000, she earned a master’s degree in human resource development from American International College. AIC presented Jordan with an honorary doctor of laws degree in 2019, awarded for outstanding achievement in the social sciences and for significant community contributions at the local and national levels. Jordan worked for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in a variety of roles for more than 20 years. In 2008, she became the city of Springfield’s first African-American chief of staff, a position she held for more than a decade in the office of Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno. She currently serves as executive director of the Springfield Housing Authority, the third-largest public housing authority in the state. She has held seats on many boards and has won several awards for her volunteer work.

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Christopher Heights of Northampton announced that Crystal Cote-Stosz has joined its team as executive director, effective immediately. Cote-Stosz brings a long history of elder-care experience. She began her career in elder care in 2007 as an information and referral specialist and later moved up to a geriatric resource advisor with Greater Springfield Senior Services. In 2009, she and her family relocated to Easthampton, and in 2010, she accepted a position in social work at the Northampton Senior Center. Within a year at the senior center, she was promoted to assistant director. Her responsibilities included volunteer recruitment, scheduling, training, and supervising the social worker, activities director, and fitness center, ensuring the needs of elders in the Northampton community were met with dignity, respect, and enthusiasm. Cote-Stosz’s commitment to serving elders presented a new opportunity in 2016 at the Lathrop Home in Northampton, where she accepted the position of executive director in 2016 and focused her talents on expanding relationships with community partners, developing effective teams within the Lathrop community, and increasing resident census to stabilize the operations of the home. She said she enjoyed the growth opportunity and experiences she had at the Lathrop Home and is now accepting this new opportunity to expand to a larger community.

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Country Bank announced several grant recipients associated with its Community Heroes campaign, an effort to recognize exceptional acts of service by local individuals in the region and the continued fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the campaign, more than 200 heroes were nominated through an online submission process explaining why they should be chosen. A new hero was selected each week and awarded a $250 gift card to the local business of their choice. In addition, a donation to a COVID-19 relief organizations was made in their name. The chosen Community Heroes include Noelle Grace Efantis, registered nurse at Baystate Wing Hospital; Michelle and Jay Demore of Demore’s Automotive Center; Paula Perrier, director of Child Development Services at the YMCA Tri-Community Child Development Center; Benjamin Mead, operations manager of Environmental Services at St. Francis Hospital; Alan Tracy, Pioneer Valley USO director at Westover Air Reserve Base; and the directors and transit care specialist at Beers & Story Funeral Home of Palmer. Country Bank continues to be one of the many businesses supporting its communities throughout the pandemic. The bank has made $450,000 in donations to local COVID-19 relief efforts and continues to look for ways to give back in a meaningful way during these challenging times.

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Adam Berman, president of JGS Lifecare, announced that Mary-Anne Schelb has rejoined the JGS Lifecare team as director of Business Development for the Western Mass. market. Prior to returning to JGS Lifecare, Schelb led marketing operations at Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital in Ludlow. In her prior role at JGS Lifecare as director of Sales and Community Relations, she developed strategic partnerships and spearheaded the efforts that succeeded in making Longmeadow a dementia-friendly community. Prior to that, she headed up sales, marketing, and community relations at Monastery Heights Assisted Living in West Springfield. Schelb is very active in numerous community organizations. She is a Rotarian, a board member of the East of the River Chamber of Commerce, and a member of the West of the River Chamber of Commerce, the Retirement Marketing Directors Assoc., the Western Massachusetts Eldercare Professionals Assoc., the Women Business Owners Alliance, the Western Mass. Elder Care Conference steering committee, and the Tri-County Partnership, just to name a few. She began her career with an accounting certification from St. John’s School of Business and worked in the mainstream until continuing onto a more wellness-based path as a Holistic Health Practitioner, holding master/teacher certifications from the International Center for Reiki Training. She is also a certified cranial sacral therapist in Profound Neutral from the Neurovascular Institute.