Chambers of Commerce Face the Same Challenges as Their Members
Kate Phelon says she misses her members. Claudia Pazmany recalls the early days of this crisis, when she was bought to tears on an almost daily basis by the stories related to her by devastated business owners. Nancy Creed says it’s become her mission to provide members with comprehensive and reliable information as they try…
Coronavirus recovery bill sends $841M to Massachusetts hospitals, Rep. Richard Neal says
Hospitals across Massachusetts will receive more than $841 million in federal funds under the CARES Act Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal announced Monday. The $841 million, sent Friday to 8,746 health care providers , includes $32.1 million for Springfield based Baystate Health. Neal, D-Springfield, is chairman of the…
MGM Donates Sleeping Cots, Outdoor Heaters to Mercy Medical Center, City of Springfield
MGM Springfield announced a donation of 160 portable sleeping cots and 16 outdoor heaters to Mercy Medical Center and the city of Springfield. A portion of the cots will provide much-needed overflow support for the hospital, while the other portion of cots and the outdoor heaters will assist the city’s work to help the homeless…
Universal Plastics of Holyoke pivots to make face shields, intubation boxes for pandemic needs
Universal Plastics is doing its part in the fight against the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The manufacturer, which specializes in custom thermoforming, is making plastic face shields and acrylic intubation boxes. “We all just have to do our part in this,” says Pia Kumar, co-owner and chief strategy officer at Universal Plastics. Read the source article…
Amid coronavirus, Springfield extends deadline for bids for small downtown lot along Interstate 91
Citing the impact the coronavirus is having on small businesses, the city has postponed the deadline for bids for a small grass lot downtown along Interstate 91. Bids were initially due Friday for the lot on lower Hampden Street at the corner of East Columbus Avenue. The deadline has been extended 12 days and bids…
Coronavirus and unemployment: Speaker Robert DeLeo calls for Massachusetts to offer online application in multiple languages
Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo is the latest lawmaker to ask state officials to make the online unemployment application available in multiple languages, as attorneys, advocates and unions complain about an English-only form that isn’t mobile friendly. DeLeo asked Gov. Charlie Baker and Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders about expanding the online portal…
Coronavirus response: CRRC rail company donates 10,000 protective masks to Springfield police and firefighters
The CRRC rail car company has donated 10,000 protective masks for use by city police, firefighters and hospital workers during the coronavirus pandemic after hearing an appeal from Mayor Domenic J. Sarno. Read the source article at masslive.com
UMass Amherst Engineer Sarah Perry Gets Nsf Career Grant To Stabilize Proteins to Increase Access to Vaccines
Sarah Perry, a chemical engineer at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, is studying a new approach to protein stabilization based on how cells work at body temperature. The research is aimed at boosting the accessibility of vaccines and other therapeutics, especially in developing countries, and extending the reach of temperature-stable proteins to sensing and catalysis…
Springfield prepares new round of ‘Prime the Pump’ small business grants totaling $500,000
The city has made another $500,000 available in small business grants aimed at fighting the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. The second round of the “Prime the Pump” program, which relies on federal Community Development Block Grant money, is over twice the amount of the first, which sent $222,000 to 30 restaurants in the city.…
Coronavirus fears prompt Wright Builders to temporarily halt construction of new River Valley Co-op location in Easthampton
Construction of the River Valley Co-op’s second Western Massachusetts grocery store has been temporarily halted due to concerns about the coronavirus outbreak. The business, which already has a location on North King Street in Northampton, announced in February it had purchased a roughly ten-acre property on 228 Northampton Street in Easthampton, where a new store…
Country Bank Makes $50,000 Donation to First Responder Recovery Home
To help the Hampden County Sheriff’s Department successfully operate the First Responder Recovery Home for COVID-19-diagnosed first responders, Country Bank announced it will contribute $50,000 to the efforts. The contribution from the Ware-based financial institution comes with the aim of inspiring other similar organizations to do what they can to assist the department’s effort to…
UMass Medical students make 130 gallons of hand sanitizer to help fight COVID-19 – masslive.com
The coronavirus pandemic has created shortages throughout the community of first responders. The need for masks and personal protective equipment shortages have dominated the headlines, but there are still voids that need to be filled. Students at UMass Medical School’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences have stepped up to help fill one of those, by…