by LaMara HunterKelly | Nov 20, 2018 | In The News
Peggy Vezina joins the RECOVER Project with over 20 years’ experience in human services. She has worked throughout the Pioneer Valley in many diverse settings. She especially loved working with youth in the Holyoke, Greenfield and Springfield communities. She has a passion for working with families and learning the supports they need to build communities where children are well loved, cared for and thriving.
Peggy feels blessed to be part of a movement of people who are changing the way we look at the world and how we engage and interact in this world in meaningful ways. What excites her about this position is the opportunity to do what she loves the most. She is a strong advocate for elevating the voices of people who have faced tremendous adversity and creating space where they can flourish and lead. She will continue to foster the development of the peer leader model, focus on staff and peer development and hopes to further integrate the RP into the larger community. Peggy strongly believes there is so much to be learned from and shared by the recovery community.
Peggy and her wife are enjoying the birth of their second grandchild. Peggy loves to travel and to be outdoors. She is very devoted to her cats and cannot get enough time to play ping pong where everything is in play!
![The Consortium Welcomes New Executive Director, Kristel Applebee]()
by LaMara HunterKelly | Nov 16, 2018 | In The News
HOLYOKE, MA – The Western Massachusetts Training Consortium welcomes new Executive Director, Kristel Applebee, as successor to longtime leader, Marylou Sullivan. Marylou retired at the end of October, and was at the helm for 38 of the organization’s 45 years. PJ Moynihan, President of the Consortium Board of Directors related, “as we express our gratitude and honor Marylou for decades of tireless and devoted service, we enthusiastically welcome Kristel to lead the agency, and its work, into the future.”
The Consortium was founded in 1975 to support developing community-based models of support, in response to deinstitutionalization. Their earliest mission was clear: to serve as a catalyst for incredible change in the creation and development of community supports. They achieved this by supporting staff to think critically about what positive community supports would look like and to dream about what was possible for people who had been denied the experience of community. From the very start, the Consortium’s role has been unique in cultivating new perspectives, encouraging progressive initiatives, and supporting change.
Kristel has served the agency in myriad roles for more than twenty years and is steeped in the values that have shaped the Consortium community for more than four decades. She truly believes in “creating conditions in which people with lived experience pursue their dreams and strengthen our communities through full participation.” Her leadership style has been influenced by numerous mentors in Western Massachusetts and beyond. Kristel has served on several local non-profit Boards and as a volunteer and community builder for community groups. She is a fierce advocate for giving voice to the silenced and values being a lifelong learner.
“To have this opportunity to reflect the collective voice of our community through deep listening – to bring a discerning ear and gentle voice, is a sacred gift. My intention is to honor those who’ve come before, are with us now, and those who will join us along our future path – and that is no small task. Indeed, it is what we’re here for,” said Applebee.
Moynihan added, “The Board has been consistently impressed with Kristel’s vision for the organization’s future, and her commitment to the values of The Consortium. We believe she is an ideal fit for this leadership role. As much as we chose Kristel, she also chose us, and we are honored to have such a remarkable woman to lead our work forward.”
Check out www.wmtcinfo.org to learn more about the Consortium’s impactful work, which is connecting with communities across Western Mass and beyond.
Media Inquiries Please Contact: [email protected]
Photo Credit: Ryan Williams, Four Wings Photography, LLC www.fourwingsphotography.com
by LaMara HunterKelly | Sep 24, 2018 | In The News
[PICTURED] Organizers of last year’s Recovery Jam, run by The RECOVER Project, from left, lead organizer Amie Hyson, Trudy Willis, Pauline Gensen and director Mary Doherty. Staff file photo
Thursday, September 20, 2018
GREENFIELD — For the past 15 years, Recovery Jam, a sober music festival, shows people there is fun in recovery, and celebrates national recovery month in September. The jam is a family-oriented event featuring arts and crafts, activities, music and food.
The 15th annual Recovery Jam sober music festival will be on Saturday from noon to 8 p.m. at Camp Kee-wanee on 1 Health Camp Road in Greenfield. The event is overseen by the RECOVER Project, a peer recovery center in Greenfield.
[Continue Reading…]
![The Consortium Welcomes New Executive Director, Kristel Applebee]()
by LaMara HunterKelly | Sep 19, 2018 | In The News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SPRINGFIELD — BusinessWest and Healthcare News magazines, the business and healthcare journals covering Western Massachusetts, will honor their 2nd Annual Healthcare Heroes this Thursday, Oct. 25 at the Starting Gate at GreatHorse in Hampden.
The Healthcare Heroes program was created to shed a bright light on the outstanding work being done across the broad spectrum of health and wellness services, and the institutions and individuals providing that care.
More than 80 nominations were submitted, and candidates were scored by an esteemed panel of three judges. The stories behind the seven heroes reveal large quantities of energy, imagination, innovation, compassion, entrepreneurship, forward thinking, and dedication to the community. Honorees are profiled in the Sept. 3 issue of BusinesssWest and the September issue of Healthcare News, and are also available on www.businesswest.com and www.healthcarenews.com.
This year’s honorees are:
- The Consortium and The Opioid Task Force: Collaboration in Healthcare
- Mary Paquette, MS, RN, FNP Patient/Resident/Client Care Provider
- TechSpring, The Baystate Health Technology Innovation Center: Innovation in Health/Wellness
- Matthew Sadof, MD Community Health
- Robert Fazzi Lifetime Achievement
- Celeste Surreira, DNP, MS, FNP-BC, CNL Health/Wellness Administrator
- Peter A. DePergola II, Ph.D., M.T.S. Emerging Leader
The Healthcare Heroes Gala on Oct. 25 will begin with a VIP reception at 4:30 p.m. with networking and opportunities to meet this year’s honorees. There will be entertainment, butlered hors d’oeuvres, a lavish plated dinner, and more networking opportunities. Healthcare Heroes is presented by American International College and Baystate Health/Health New England and sponsored by Bay Path University, Elms College MBA Program, National Grid, Renew.Calm, and Trinity Health of New England/Mercy Medical Center.
![The Consortium Welcomes New Executive Director, Kristel Applebee]()
by LaMara HunterKelly | Sep 7, 2018 | In The News
Collaboration In Health/Wellness: The Consortium And The Opioid Task Force
By George O’Brien
September 3, 2018
This Unique Initiative Has a Simple Mission: to Save Lives
Larry Thomas remembers not knowing exactly what to say or how to respond.
He had just been encouraged to apply for a job as a peer coordinator and recovery coach for something called the Recover Project, a recovery support center operating in downtown Greenfield under the umbrella of the Western Mass. Training Consortium and funded by the Bureau of Substance Abuse Services in Massachusetts. Thomas paused, because the last job he held was as part of a work-release program operated by the Department of Corrections.
“I had never had a job as a free man, applying on my own,” he explained. “When they posted the job, people said I should apply. I said, ‘maybe I should, but I don’t even have a résumé.’ I did apply, but I was scared to put down the last place I worked, because I was still in jail.’”
Thomas, in applying and then earning the job, essentially put his past behind him and focused on solidifying his future, which is, by and large, what he encourages others to do as a recovery coach. He takes his ‘lived experience’ — that’s a phrase you’ll read often in this article — and puts it to work helping others combating addiction and trying to put their lives back together.
(CONTINUE READING)
![The Consortium Welcomes New Executive Director, Kristel Applebee]()
by LaMara HunterKelly | Aug 27, 2018 | In The News
We are thrilled to announce that Pam Fitzpatrick has accepted the position as the Consortium’s new Salasin Project Director beginning on Monday August 27, 2018!
Pam Fitzpatrick comes to Salasin Project with many years’ experience working in the social service field. In one of her more recent long-term positions, she worked as the Director in a non-profit agency partnering with families to have a voice and decide on the best services to meet their needs. While there, she managed a large budget and stretched resources to serve many individuals and families in the Franklin and Hampshire Counties.
Pam believes in resilience and the power of community. She has witnessed many people overcome great hardships and challenges. She believes in the ability to change and the realization of potential. She received her Master’s Degree in New York City at Hunter College School of Social Work and later went on to get her LICSW. In one of her roles she had the distinct pleasure of working with Maria Rodman where she furthered her knowledge of Trauma Informed Care.
Faith, family and friends are three extremely important gifts that help to balance day-to-day living for Pam. She can often be counted on to carry a small bottle of bubbles and believes that sometimes it is the simplest of things that bring the greatest joy. Her husband Mike and their rescue dog Cleo, short for Cleopatra, enjoy hiking, camping and relaxing in all four seasons of New England (well maybe not the camping).
Welcome Pam!
