Page 44 - BusinessWest July 21, 2021

The following is a compilation of recent lawsuits involving area businesses and organizations. These are strictly allegations that have yet to be proven in a court of law. Readers are advised to contact the par- ties listed, or the court, for more information concern- ing the individual claims.
Court Dockets
HAMPDEN SUPERIOR COURT
Eric Brewer v. R & R Industries Inc. Allegation: Negligence causing personal injury: $5,041,134.56
Filed: 5/26/21
Shirley Contino v. MGM MA Sub, LLC Allegation: Negligence causing personal injury: $25,000+
Filed: 5/27/21
Frederick Mancini and Ann Mancini v. Fedex Ground Package System Inc.
Allegation: Negligence causing personal injury: $170,000
Filed: 6/2/21
Marissa Cuff v. Springfield Anesthesia Service Inc.; Jonathan Ross, M.D.; and Derek Rosner, M.D. Allegation: Breach of contract, violations of Wage Act: $60,000
Filed: 6/3/21
Erik Hong v. Kraftsmen Remodeling & Construc- tion, LLC and Vieira Building & Home Improve- ment Inc.
Allegation: Construction dispute: $60,000+
Filed: 6/4/21
Francis J. Stasiowski v. North End Auto Body Inc. and Vyacheslav Privedenyuk
Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall causing personal injury: $130,229.71
Erin Francis, as mother and next friend of Cam- den Francis v. Troy-Bilt, LLC and Briggs & Stratton Corp.
Allegation: Product liability: $22,098.71+
Filed: 6/10/21
Kelsey Azzato v. Springfield College
Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall causing personal injury: $97,670.38
Filed: 6/14/21
Tracy A. Holloway v. Sarat Ford Sales Inc. Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall causing personal injury: $35,000
Filed: 6/15/21
Keisa Williams, mother and next friend of Deyare Williams v. City of Springfield
Allegation: Negligence causing personal injury, premises liability: $6,392.66
Filed: 6/17/21
Robert Dziekan v. Springfield Technical Commu- nity College
Allegation: Violation of Massachusetts Equal Pay Act Filed: 6/18/21
And then, there’s east-west rail.
“Frankly, I got laughed out of a lot of rooms when I talked about connecting Springfield and Boston by train service,” he told BusinessWest. “People said it would never happen; they said it was something we shouldn’t focus on. But now, our chances are as good as they’ve ever been, and the next year will provide the answer. We need to get the federal money secured, and we’re closer than we’ve been to seeing that happen.
“A major unfinished piece is the governor support- ing it from there,” he went on. “That’s a major piece that requires our focus and our attention. An eyelash isn’t batted about investments in Boston, but when an invest- ment will help the whole state ... suddenly there’s a lot of questions about how expensive it will be.”
Lesser’s latest assignment is as co-chair of the new Future of Work Commission, which will include 17 mem- bers from across the state who will address a topic that was already dominated by question marks before the pandemic.
“These are some of the biggest questions in society right now,” he said. “How are people going to work in an era of remote working? How are benefits going to work? How is commuting going to work? What does transpor- tation look like when people are no longer in 9-to-5, in- an-office-building jobs? How is automation going to be impacting society? These are some of the biggest ques- tions we have, and this commission will look to answer them.”
Summing up his first seven years in the Legislature, Lesser said this time has been a learning experience, and what he’s learned is that change and progress come through patience and diligence.
“Success in politics is about methodical, persistent progress,” he explained. “Sometimes it’s two steps for- ward, one step back; sometimes it’s two steps forward, three steps back. But staying focused on the ultimate goals and working collaboratively with people is the key. One of the things I’ve seen seven years in is that some of the seeds we’ve planted back in 2015, 2016, and 2017 are now blooming.”
By keeping that focus and working collaboratively, Lesser has certainly seen many of his initiatives bear fruit, which helps explain why he is a finalist for the coveted Alumni Achievement Award. u
—George O’Brien
Filed: 6/8/21
Continued from page 13
Desmarais
Continued from page 9
especially as chairman of the board, Desmarais worked to improve fund- raising efforts and create more com- munity events for the nonprofit, enabling it to grow and serve more families each year. Under his leader- ship, Revitalize CDC officially became a community-development corpora- tion in 2015.
During COVID, Desmarais helped orchestrate a needed shift in services, with volunteers mostly unable to go into individuals’ homes. Indeed, the nonprofit found new ways to give back.
“We had a few projects to rehab here and there, but mostly we were bringing sanitary products, household cleaners, masks, and food to people,” he explained. “We found more ways to help people in those difficult times.”
Colleen Loveless, president and CEO of Revitalize CDC, who nominat- ed Desmarais for the Alumni Achieve- ment Award, summed up not only his work with her group, but his ability to inspire others to give back.
“Gregg exemplifies the character- istics of a strong, community-based leader — vision, mentorship, hands- on service, and a positive understand- ing of the strength of the local com- munity,” she wrote in her nomination. “He quickly saw the underserved pop- ulation of Springfield residents who could directly benefit from the services of Revitalize CDC, and he understood that it would take a more robust fund- raising structure.”
In these and other ways, Desmarais truly exemplifies the characteristics of an Alumni Achievement Award final- ist — an individual who continues
to build on an already strong record, both in business and within the com- munity. u
—George O’Brien
Lesser
“The animat- ing principle of
both my campaign in 2014 and, really, every day I’ve been in office since then has been unlocking and creating eco- nomic opportunity for Western Mass. that’s comparable and equal to people in Eastern Mass.,” said Lesser, a first- time finalist for the Alumni Achievement Award. “I will have succeeded if a child born in Springfield or Chicopee or anywhere in Western Mass. has the same shot at mak- ing a good living and supporting a family as a kid born in the Boston area.”
By now, most know the story of how Lesser, then 29, moved to the State House from the White House, specifi- cally a position in the Obama administration as a special assistant to Senior Advisor David Axelrod. Lesser, who has a bachelor’s degree in government from Harvard and a juris doctor from Harvard Law School, started his career as an aide on Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign.
Today, he holds several leadership positions in the Legislature. He is Senate chair of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies, Senate vice chair of the Joint Committee on Financial Services, Senate vice chair of the Joint Committee on Transportation, and Senate chair of the Joint Legislative Manufacturing Caucus, the Gateway Cities Caucus, and the Libraries Caucus.
Recent initiatives have included a number of efforts to bolster the state’s manufacturing sector and raise aware- ness of the 10,000 vacant manufacturing jobs in the four western counties, including work to create apprentice- ship tax credits and fund mid-career training programs for workers. Lesser has also been at the forefront of efforts to create the Student Loan Borrower Bill of Rights, which recently became law in the Commonwealth.
As for those efforts to level the playing field between east and west, they come in a number of forms, said Lesser, who started by referencing the Clinical Trials unit at Baystate Health, which will open in the fall, part of the Life Sciences Bill passed several years ago. It will cre- ate jobs, but also enable people in this part of the state to take part in clinical trials without having to travel to Boston.
He also cited his efforts to lead an initiative to encour- age more people to relocate to Western Mass. through a remote-worker incentive, which would pay workers up to $10,000 to move to this region, a concept that, given the lessons provided by the pandemic about where people can work and how, proved to be ahead of its time.
44 JULY 21, 2021
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