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BusinessTalk with Alex Balise, Director of Corporate Strategy for Balise Auto Group, and Giancarlo Crivelli, Executive Director of Fishing Friends: Welcome to the Club

By Ryan Leary
Business Talk Podcast Special Coverage

With new episodes airing every other Monday, BusinessTalk features in-depth interviews and discussions with local industry leaders who offer thoughtful perspectives on the Western Massachusetts economy and the many business ventures that keep it running. BusinessTalk is sponsored and presented by Greenfield Cooperative Bank.

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Episode 256: May 5, 2026

George O’Brien talks to Alex Balise, Director of Corporate Strategy for Balise Auto Group, and Giancarlo Crivelli, Executive Director of Fishing Friends

Alexandra Balise
Giancarlo Crivelli

There are now 800 people in the club — that would be the BusinessWest 40 Under Forty club. That’s 20 classes of rising stars, with the latest, the class of 2026, announced late last month. For this episode of BusinessTalk, George O’Brien sits down with two members of the class of 2026 — Alex Balise, director of Corporate Strategy for Balise Auto Group, and Giancarlo Crivelli, executive director of Fishing Friends. They exemplify the class of 2026, the many accomplishments of its members, and its commitment to giving back. On the podcast, we tell their stories, and we also hear some fish stories — Alex counts that among her favorite pastimes as well — along the way. It’s must listening, so tune into BusinessTalk, a podcast presented by BusinessWest over both audio and video platforms, and sponsored by Greenfield Cooperative Bank.

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Giancarlo Crivelli

By
40 Under 40 Class of 2026

Executive Director, Fishing Friends: Age 24

For Giancarlo Crivelli, fishing has always been more than a pastime.

It’s been a passion, a way to connect the generations in his family, and a vehicle for bringing joy, and some valuable life lessons, to others.

Indeed, Crivelli has lasting memories of fishing with his father and grandfather when he was younger. They both passed away when he was 12, and since then, fishing has always been a way to remember them and bring him closer to them.

And in recent years, fishing has become even more — a way to honor his father’s legacy of using the activity to connect with young people in the community who didn’t have a father figure in their lives.

“He would take them fishing, too, and it soon became a regular thing,” Crivelli recalled. “He would become a friend to these kids, teaching them about the importance of getting back in touch with nature. Fishing, he would say, grounded us, helped us relax, and taught us the value of patience.”

All of this informs the mission of a nonprofit that Crivelli started called Fishing Friends. The 501(c)(3) provides fishing trips to local young people throughout Western Mass. — but it goes beyond baiting hooks and casting lines. Trips are designed to educate children on boat safety, water stewardship, fishing, patience, kindness, sharing, and more.

These are skills that can last a lifetime, said Crivelli, adding that Fishing Friends has several components, from the fishing trips to conservation cleanups, where participants gather to protect and preserve local waterways, to Harbor Hands, a youth boat repair program.

As for the best fishing spots … Crivelli didn’t reveal all of them or get too specific. But he gave a partial list, including Hampton Ponds in Westfield, Five Mile Pond in Springfield, the Oxbow in Northampton, and Red Bridge, a recreational area on the Chicopee River bordering Ludlow, Wilbraham, and Palmer.

“That’s just a few spots … we’re all about exploring new areas and teaching kids about all the different and unique places to go fishing,” he said.

And these places on the map are just a small part of the story, he went on, as he recited the Fishing Friends mission statement. “We teach youth about fishing so they can build character, connect with nature, develop meaningful relationships, and learn new life skills.”

That’s quite a mission, but he knows from experience, and all those coveted memories of times spent with his father and grandfather, that fishing can do all that.

—George O’Brien