Page 14 - BusinessWest February 19, 2024

EDITORIAL >>
Celebrating the Difference Makers
In late 2008, the leaders at BusinessWest decided to create new recognition program.
They had launched one a year earlier — 40 Under Forty
— and it became an immediate success. But with that suc- cess came the realization that something else was needed. That’s because not everyone making a difference in this region was under 40. Meanwhile, some of those making a difference were not individuals, necessarily, but groups and nonprofits and even businesses.
So, with these thoughts, a new recognition program — and its name — came into focus.
It would be called Difference Makers, and over the years, it has, indeed, recognized individuals (some of them under 40, actually), agencies, institutions, and a few married cou- ples, who have made significant contributions to quality of life in this region. The tradition continues this year with a group of honorees that are clearly making a difference in the 413:
• Matt Bannister plays a lead role in PeoplesBank’s chari- table giving efforts. But he goes well beyond those duties and becomes actively involved with several of the nonprofits in this region, especially those focused on health, wellness, edu- cation, and food insecurity.
• Delcie Bean started a company in his teens that, more than 20 years later, has ambitious, even national, goals — and he’s sharing the wealth with the Paragus team by expanding his employee stock ownership plan to 100% employee own- ership. Meanwhile, he continues to impact regional IT work- force development in positive ways.
• Linda Dunlavy understands that the complex problems facing the rural communities in this state cannot be solved quickly or easily. As executive director of the Franklin Region- al Council of Governments, she has been able to achieve
EDITORIAL >>
progress on critical issues ranging from rail service to broad- band access to housing.
• Fred and Mary Kay Kadushin started the Feed the Kids program after hearing a report about how many children go to bed hungry, and decided they needed to something. So they started a golf tournament and online auction to help financially support several nonprofits working actively to combat food insecurity among young people.
• Scott Keiter knew that, early on, he would have to spend most of his time and energy putting his construction com- pany on solid ground. But he also knew that, when he had done this, he would shift some of that time and energy to the community, and he has, through several initiatives, especially a popular Northampton gift card.
• The Mayflower Marathon started as a radio promotion at Rock 102 to collect food and monetary donations for the Open Pantry. Over the past 30 years, it has become a com- munity event, one that has continued to grow and evolve because of the Rock 102 staff’s ability to strengthen partner- ships that have brought the community together.
• Shannon Rudder has forged an impressive career, marked by roles that have emphasized social equity and equal access to a better life. These days, she’s doing the same at Martin Luther King Jr. Family Services, overseeing — and growing — an array of key initiatives.
• After achieving labor peace last spring, the Springfield Symphony Orchestra and the entity known as Springfield Chamber Players that emerged during the strife have both continued their missions: not only bringing back live music (with all its cultural and economic impact), but finding new ways to grow their audiences, especially among the critical younger generations. BW
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An Ambitious Proposal for Holyoke
As one glances at the dozens of completed or in-prog- ress projects detailed on the website for Sports Facili- ties Co. in Florida, it’s very easy to get excited about the sports complex planned for Holyoke and announced at a press conference earlier this month.
SFC, as it’s called, has been involved in planning and then managing projects of various sizes in many different states. These include everything from aquatics facilities to a ‘sports town complex’ with indoor and outdoor facilities spread over 82 acres; from event complexes that can seat more than 10,000 people to clusters of ballfields.
What’s proposed for Holyoke (see story on page 4) is a mix of much of the above, everything from a new home to the Volleyball Hall of Fame to a hotel to indoor and outdoor ath- letic facilities. And those behind the venture, especially local entrepreneur Cesar Ruiz, founder and president of Golden Years Home Care Services, have already engaged SFC to do some preliminary feasibility studies and impact statements.
At the press conference, Ruiz and others expressed confi- dence that at least one phase of their proposal, which is pro- jected to return $40 million to the local economy annually, could be completed by the end of 2026.
For that to happen, for Holyoke’s proposal to join the port- folio page on SFC’s website, quite a bit will have to go right.
A site will have to be secured, plans must be finalized, part- nerships must be forged, and, most importantly, investors will have to be found to secure the projected $50 million to $80 million it will take to make this concept a reality.
In a word, this is all very ambitious. Those behind it say it will be privately financed, but it seems unlikely that such a proposal can become reality without a very large public con- tribuition to the effort.
But if those pieces can fall into place, this facility will cer- tainly become an impactful asset for both Holyoke and the entire region.
Indeed, those images on the SFC website detail facilities that are not only tremendous resources for the communities in question, but attractions that draw people from hundreds and perhaps thousands of miles away, making those commu- nities — from West Monroe, La. to Brandon, Miss. to Tama- rac, Fla. — true destinations.
Holyoke could join that list, and if does, it will be another important step forward for a city steeped in industrial history that has been slowly reinventing itself through entrepreneur- ship, cannabis-related ventures, clean-energy initiatives, and more. Sports could become the next frontier for the Paper City — but it won’t be easy. BW
14 FEBRUARY 19, 2024
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