Dear Friends,
 
Happy late Spring! It finally feels as if Spring might be here - just in time for Summer!
 
I was thrilled to be sworn in for my third term as State Representative for the 11th Worcester District on Wednesday, January 2nd. Representing Shrewsbury and Westborough and working together with my colleagues in local and state government is an honor and opportunity that I cherish each day. The day following my swearing in, Governor Charlie Baker and Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito were sworn in for their second term and I was excited to be part of the legislative delegation that accompanied them from the Governor's office to the House Chamber. The Governor enjoyed snapping one of his famous selfies as we began the procession!


I have been fortunate to work with my good friends and previous two State Representatives for the 11th Worcester District Karyn Polito and Matt Beaton the last four years. In late April, Matt announced that he was stepping down as the longest serving Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs and returning to the private sector. I sat down with Matt to record an episode of Conversations with Hannah and we discussed his efforts leading the diversification of the Commonwealth's energy supply, his work to lead the rebuilding in the Merrimack Valley after gas explosions last fall, and his love, oversight and dedicated use of the Commonwealth's many parks and recreation areas. You can watch the show here .


On The Record
Janet Wu of WCVB Channel 5 asked me to join the April 28th episode of On the Record as the Republican analyst. I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to be part of the conversation and was honored that they asked me to be one of their rotating Republican analysts and I taped another episode that aired on May 12th.


Greater Boston
In January I had another opportunity to appear on Jim Braude's show Greater Boston on WGBH. In this show my colleague Representative Marjorie Decker and I discussed the path forward from then ongoing federal government shutdown.


Beacon Hill Update

Committee Assignments
The beginning of each two-year legislative session is a very busy time. Legislators are assigned to committees and I was very pleased to be appointed to the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, whose primary responsibilities are producing an annual operating budget and reviewing all legislative proposals that impact the finances of the Commonwealth. The Minority Leader also appointed me as the Ranking Minority House Member of the Joint Committee on Public Health and the Joint Committee on Cannabis Policy. I was also re-elected to the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators to serve on the Board of Directors. I am very grateful for the opportunity to serve on these important committees. My colleague Rep. Kim Ferguson and I discuss the beginning of 191st Legislative Session in an episode of Conversations with Hannah you can watch here .
 
RTA Task Force & Special Commission on Local and Regional Public Health
My work on the Regional Transit Authority Performance and Funding Task Force wrapped up in early April when we issued a report with 24 recommendations on how to strengthen the network of regional public transportation to better serve the residents of the Commonwealth. In May I co-hosted a Legislative Briefing for the Special Commission on Local and Regional Public Health to preview our findings on how to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of municipal and regional public health systems. The recommendations served as a basis for legislation (H1935) I co-filed in January with Representative Denise Garlick, and many members of the Commission, including Shrewsbury Town Manager Kevin Mizikar, were on-hand for the public hearing held by the Joint Committee on Public Health.


Transportation Related Working Groups
As a member of the Worcester-Framingham Commuter Rail Line Working Group I have focused on advocating for increased investment and performance improvements. The Telegram highlighted a letter the group sent the Lieutenant Governor in March requesting focus on seven aspects of commuter rail service. This month I begin working as the Central MA member on the I-90 Allston Task Force that was assembled to advocate during the planning work for the effort to straighten the MassPike in Allston and demolish the deteriorating viaduct portion by Boston University. The project will also allow the necessary space for the future (2040) envisioned West Station for the MBTA. The project is estimated to begin in the third quarter of 2022 and take eight to ten years to complete. My goal is to find ways to lessen the impact to commuters during the complicated construction with the Pike, Soldiers Field Road and the commuter line all together in a tight area bordered by the Charles River and surface roads.
 
In addition to my work at the state level on transportation issues, I am very much focused on the needs of the district as well. Partnering with my legislative colleagues representing Westborough, we are working to add more parking at the Westborough Commuter Rail Station. In Shrewsbury, I have been very involved with MassDOT and town officials in the current Route 20 Corridor Master Plan which will provide for safety and operations improvement along this critical state roadway over the next 20 years. On Monday June 24th at Shrewsbury Town Hall, there will be two Public Information Meetings. The first meeting at 5:30pm will cover the Route 20 Corridor from Centech Boulevard to the Northborough town line, and the second meeting at 7pm will over Centech Boulevard west to the Worcester city line. These meetings are open to all and I encourage you to attend and see what changes are being proposed.
 
Food System Caucus
In January, the first in the nation legislative Food System Caucus, which I co-founded and co-chair, was launched and we quickly grew to be the second largest caucus with 77 members, second in size only to the Democratic Caucus. The goal of the caucus is to support and grow the local food system in the Commonwealth through three priority areas:
  • Food access/insecurity - reducing waste, hunger and food insecurity while making available more fresh healthy food to everyone who lives in the Commonwealth.
  • Farmland - protecting the land and resources necessary to produce food, while maximizing the environmental benefits of agriculture and fishing, and the preservation of agricultural land.
  • Economic development - recognizing the significant impact to local, regional and state economies, supporting the increase of production, sales and consumption of Massachusetts grown food and creating jobs and improving wages in food and farming.
The caucus has united around six major pieces of legislation to prioritize this session, in addition to endorsing 18 bills that are supportive of the caucus goals - you can find them all on our newly formed website www.mafoodsystemcaucus.com. We worked to unite caucus members and House colleagues on the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) budget amendment we submitted during the House budget debate and were thrilled to have 129 co-sponsors in a body of 160 members of the House, the largest number of co-sponsors of any single budget amendment. You can hear more about the impetus for the caucus and the Healthy Incentives Program by watching my Conversations with Hannah show here.


In early May, we held our first caucus outing in Westport and South Dartmouth, designed to help caucus members see the food system in action and learn more about the 41,000 food businesses in Massachusetts that account for about 4.5% of all economic activity and employ 1 in 10 workers. The day-long tour featured visits to a slaughterhouse to discuss food production, presentations on aquaculture and oyster farming at Westport Sea Farms, a discussion about specialty crops at Wainer Family Farm, and a briefing on dairy farming and the Agricultural Preservations Restrictions program at the Westport Rivers Winery. Caucus Co-chair and beef farmer Rep. Paul Schmid and his staff organized the highly informative day.


In March, I was very honored to receive the 2019 Public Official of the Year award from the Worcester County Bar Association, along with my colleague Representative Dan Donahue. Dan, one of my fellow Co-founders and Co-chairs of the Food System Caucus, and I were selected for the award based on our bi-partisan work on the Healthy Incentives Program.


Briefings & Legislative Forums
The first few months of the year are always busy, especially at the start of a new session. Over the last few months I have attended many meetings and events designed to educate legislators and policy makers on pressing public policy issues, including two that I found particularly informative:
  • MassBio's Policy Leadership Breakfast which focuses on the most pressing policy initiatives facing the life sciences industry
  • MA Association of Health Plans Health Policy Forum, which explored the increasing price of prescription drugs and what solutions exist to rein in the cost 
Framingham State University (FSU) hosted the launch of two new initiatives. Project Onramp is an initiative of the four organizations in the life sciences industry designed to boost diversity and tap new talent with 50 paid internships for talented, first generation students from low-income backgrounds. MA biotech companies need to fill 12,000 new jobs by 2023 and are hoping to reduce barriers to entry into employment.
 
The Baker-Polito Administration also announced at FSU funding for a new housing pilot program seeking to end homelessness by connecting homeless youth with education, employment, and housing supports and services. A Student Housing Security Pilot at four campuses will provide dorm rooms at state schools to homeless youth attending a local community college. FSU and MassBay Community College are part of this innovative initiative to help some of Massachusetts' 1,800 homeless young adults gain a college education and housing.
 
Library and Housing Authority Advocacy Days
The 33rd annual Library Legislative Day was well attended by Shrewsbury and Westborough Library Trustees and our two terrific library advocates - Head Librarians Ellen Dolan and Maureen Ambrosino. Shrewsbury Housing Commissioner and Executive Director Kelly Bergeron also visited in March during the statewide Housing Authorities Advocacy Day and briefed my Legislative Director Jessica Beliveau.


Brian Donaghue Simpson Opioid Awareness Advocacy Day
Kate Donaghue and Kim Simpson lost their son Brian in March of 2018. On the sad anniversary of Brian's death, Kate and Kim gathered at the State House with many others who had lost family members to advocate for increased awareness of opioid addiction and legislation filed to combat this indiscriminate and deadly epidemic. Reginald Steele of Shrewsbury shared with me a picture of his beautiful daughter Catherine who passed away at 22 years old after a four-year battle with addiction. 497 people, more than five people a day, passed away from a confirmed or suspected opioid overdose in the first three months of this year - we clearly have more work to do and advocacy of family members still grieving their loss is moving and powerful.
 
Shrewsbury Special Olympics Men's Basketball Team
Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito and I welcomed the Team USA delegation who won Silver in basketball at the Special Olympics World Games in Abu Dhabi! The team met with the LG, toured the State House and was officially recognized in the House of Representatives during informal session. Very proud of this team and their coaches!


Westborough's Mill Pond School Chamber Chorus Sings at the State House
The Chamber Chorus lent their beautiful voices to sing patriotic songs on the Friday of Memorial Day Weekend. Standing on the Grand Staircase, the Westborough Chorus delighted people who work in the Capitol building and lucky visitors. Following the performance, the Chorus and their chaperones took a tour of the State House.


Constituent Advocates
There are many ways for constituents to communicate with me directly to advocate for issues and legislation important to them - email, phone, office hours, scheduled meetings, Facebook message, twitter and in the community at planned events or while I am out and about to name a few! Yet it is always wonderful to have in person visits at the State House. In March, my friend and constituent Tucker Collins came to visit and advocate with me one on one - and he brought me a framed photograph of one of the many amazing images he has captured that now sits on my window shelf! Jessica and I moved offices at the beginning of the legislative session and we are now located in Room 167 - please come visit if you are in Boston!


Legislative Update

I filed 28 bills during the two-week bill filing period in January. The legislation covers a wide range of policy issues including education, public health, judiciary, financial services, transportation, environment, elder services and marijuana policy. A complete list of the bills I sponsored and co-sponsored can be found here. Committees have begun to hold public hearings and in the last few weeks I have testified on several bills, including legislation I filed to improve patient access to cancer clinical trial programs heard by the Public Health Committee, and a bill to establish an educational mandate task force heard by the Education Committee, where I was joined by Shrewsbury's Assistant Superintendent of Schools Patrick Collins.


An Act to Create a Massachusetts Rare Disease Advisory Council
In May, we held a Rare Disease Advocacy Event to highlight a bill I co-sponsored in the House with Representative Joe McKenna, H1934. Senator Paul Feeney filed the bill in the Senate as well. A rare disease is one that affects fewer than 200,000 people - but with over 7,000 identified rare diseases there are 25-30 million people in the U.S. living with one. Our bill would create a cohesive and collective framework for championing the rare disease community and making cutting edge progress in tackling rare disease in the Commonwealth.


An Act to Enhance Enforcement Against Unlicensed Marijuana Operators
Senator Mike Moore and I introduced a bill that would seek to diminish the illicit market where numerous businesses are operating without a license from the Cannabis Control Commission. The bill models the Illegal Tobacco Task Force and focuses on bringing the illicit market into the legal marketplace and ensures that any business operating illegally will forfeit 60% of their revenue into the Marijuana Fund that funds youth prevention, municipal police training and social equity programs. My greatest concern is that the illicit market will turn to youth more and more as their customer base, as the legal marketplace for adults expands. The Boston Herald published an editorial concluding that "an innovative approach is needed to bridge the gap in the meantime, and the legislation brought forward by Sen. Moore and Rep. Kane is worth debating."


An Act Requiring the Hands-free Use of Mobile Telephones While Driving
In an effort to improve safety and reduce fatalities the House approved H3793 on a 155-2 vote last week, which will ban the use of a hand-held phone while operating a motor vehicle and impose fines ranging from $100-$500. The bill provides exceptions for reporting emergencies and viewing GPS navigation. Violations would not be considered a surchargeable offense for insurance purposes. The bill now moves to the Senate for action.
 
FY20 State Budget
In late April the House passed a $42.7 billion state budget for Fiscal Year 2020. The House spending plan includes significant funding increases in local aid to cities and towns, while foregoing any broad-based tax increases. It also calls for a $264 million deposit into the rainy-day account providing the Commonwealth $2.7 billion to mitigate future spending in an economic downturn. The House budget plan will provide Shrewsbury and Westborough with $30,068,648 and $8,064,504 in Chapter 70 education aid and $2,958,042 and $1,230,539 in unrestricted local aid respectively in FY20. During the debate on the budget, I was able to secure $50,000 for Shrewsbury Youth Family Services to continue to provide Youth Mental Health First Aid Training to individuals and organizations throughout Central MA and the Commonwealth. SYFS has already provided training to Westborough Public Schools and Westborough Youth and Family Services through funding in last years budget. You can read more about the House budget plan for FY20 here.
 
Road and Bridge Funding for Shrewsbury and Westborough
The House passed the annual Chapter 90 appropriation in early May with funds designated for the construction and reconstruction of municipal roads and other pressing transportation infrastructure needs. Shrewsbury will receive $989,833 and Westborough will receive $790,457. Funding for each community is allocated based on a formula that factors population, employment and total road miles.
 
Speaking Opportunities
 
Westborough Women's Club
The Westborough Women's Club meets monthly and I have been the scheduled March speaker in 2017 and 2018, only to be canceled due to snowstorms and no school days for two years in a row. Third time was the charm and I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to speak on "Women in Public Service and Leadership Roles." I am grateful to Nancy Virzi and Reene Hatherley for their persistence in scheduling!
 
Kennedy Institute Women in Leadership - Massachusetts Trailblazers
The panel discussion at the Kennedy Institute highlighted the pathways to elected service and the importance of increasing women's political representation in the Commonwealth. I was honored to be on the panel moderated by Janet Wu, and to contribute to the narrative my own interest and experience serving in the Legislature as one of the 57 women members of the 200-member body.


Worcester County City & Town Clerks Association
I am grateful to Westborough Town Clerk Wendy Mickel for recommending me to speak to the Association on "What's New in Worcester County & Women in Leadership in Massachusetts" and that Shrewsbury's Town Clerk Sandy Wright and Assistant Town Clerk Sharyn Thomas could also be part of the morning program at the Worcester Art Museum.
 
Local Grants/Awards

Westborough and Shrewsbury Presented with Green Communities Designation Grants
At an event held at Shrewsbury Town Hall, six central MA communities were awarded funds for energy efficiency projects. Shrewsbury received $183,411 and Westborough was awarded $152,096. Both communities applied for and were recently designated Green Communities.
 
Shrewsbury Public Schools Receives Two Grants for Mental and Behavioral Health Programming and Support as well as a STEM Grant
Shrewsbury Public Schools has received a $1 million grant ($100,000 a year for ten years) through the MA Department of Public Health, primarily for providing mental and behavioral health at Sherwood Middle School. SPS also received a $100,000 grant from the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education for mental and behavioral health counseling at the elementary level.
 
Shrewsbury High School was awarded a $50,000 grant for biotechnology and a $20,000 grant for computer science through Project Lead the Way, a STEM Career Pathway Capacity Grant Program overseen by the Baker-Polito Administration and the STEM Advisory Council. Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito and I enjoyed the opportunity to meet with the educators who will be teaching the expanded biotech and computer science classes and talking to students about the program.


Westborough's Fales Elementary School Advances at MSBA
The MA School Building Authority gave approval for the Annie E. Fales Elementary School new building project to move into the Project Scope and Budget phase at its February meeting.
 
Shrewsbury Awarded $15,000 in Downtown Initiative Technical Assistance
The Department of Housing and Community Development awarded $15,000 worth of consulting services to assist the Town of Shrewsbury with a branding and wayfinding strategy for the town center, as part of the Town's overall efforts to improve the downtown area.
 
Industrial Polymers & Chemicals in Shrewsbury Receives a Training Grant
The Baker-Polito Administration awarded $39,400 to Industrial Polymers & Chemicals in Shrewsbury to train 36 employees and in anticipation of adding 10 jobs by 2021. The grants help companies improve productivity and competitiveness by investing in their workforces.
 
Community Events, Town Celebrations & Recognitions
 
"Towns of Love for Ava Roy" Community Fundraiser
On Friday, January 25th, over 400 people joined firefighters, community members and local officials from Shrewsbury, Northborough and Westborough at Marionis Park in Shrewsbury to raise over $80,000 for the Ava Roy Fund. The memorial fund established by the Worcester Firefighters IAFF Local 1009 after Shrewsbury resident and Worcester Firefighter Christopher J. Roy passed away from injuries he sustained while fighting a fire as a member of the Webster Square Station, Ladder 4, will support Christopher's daughter Ava. Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito and Congressman Jim McGovern attended the event that featured three great local bands who donated their talent to the event - Tim Pitney and Red Badge, Dark Horse and Worcester Jazz Collective. Westborough Paramedic/Firefighter Kelly Manning also ran the Boston Marathon and raised over $7,000 as part of the event proceeds. On behalf of the Host Committee, thank you to so many for your generosity and coming together to support Ava and her family. We still have t-shirts available if anyone would like to purchase one please let me know.


Shrewsbury and Westborough Memorial Day Programs
It was an honor to welcome the parade participants in Shrewsbury and to present Jeff Chin, the keynote speaker with a citation honoring his service as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy Reserves and his community service in Central MA. In Westborough, I was able to speak at the Forbes Building about Ensign Leroy J. Brown, the first African-American Naval Aviator, who lost his life in the Korean War. Many know the story of the courage displayed by U.S. Medal of Honor recipient and Massachusetts native Captain Thomas Hudner, when he intentionally crash-landed his Navy plane on a snowy mountain in freezing temperatures to try to rescue his wingman Leroy Brown, during the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir. The bravery of Thomas Hudner and the difficult path that Ensign Brown took to serve as a naval aviator, his dream since he was a 6-year old growing up in the segregated south, was astonishing. I was also pleased to present a citation to Nelson Ball, the Westborough Grand Marshal, recognizing his service in the U.S. Army and his civic service at home.
 
"If They Had Known" Documentary
We had a strong turnout of middle and high-school parents and some students attending the forum hosted by the Shrewsbury Coalition for Addiction Prevention and Education (SCAPE) and Shrewsbury Youth and Family Services (SYFS). The film, provided to SCAPE by Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early, Jr., tells the story of the accidental death of a high school student who mixes prescription drugs with alcohol, and the naivety of his friends who thought he had just had too much to drink and laid him down in a bed to sleep it off. After the film, I moderated a panel on underage drinking with Tim Connolly of the DA's office, Dr. Nandana Kansra of Saint Vincent Medical Group, and Jennifer Rifkin, Clinical Director at SYFS. Next fall, SCAPE and I will be hosting Dr. Ruth Potee on November 21st in the evening to discuss why our youth's still developing brain makes them so much more susceptible to addiction. I will provide more details in the fall.
 
Glavin Ceremonial Deed Signing
In early April, I joined Shrewsbury local officials, Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito, Senator Mike Moore and state officials from the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance, to celebrate the Town of Shrewsbury's acquisition of the Glavin property on Lake Street from the Commonwealth. The transfer, made possible by legislation that Senator Moore and I filed, provides the land for the construction of the new Beal Elementary School. Groundbreaking will occur this summer with the goal of students entering the school in the fall of 2021.


Denny Drewry Honored as Westborough Veteran of the Year
The Westborough Veterans Advisory Board honored Denny Drewry in early May. Denny is a veteran of the U.S. Army where he served as a Green Beret in the Vietnam War. In addition to his distinguished service where he received a Purple Heart and the Bronze Star for valor, Denny has been a consummate actively engaged resident of Westborough, serving in many elected and volunteer capacities. I was thrilled to see my good friend honored and to join my colleague Rep. Carolyn Dykema in presenting Denny with a citation from the House of Representatives.
 
5th Annual Armed Forces Day Celebration
For the 5th year, I hosted an Armed Forces Day Celebration with my legislative colleagues representing the Central Massachusetts Veterans Service District, the Towns of Shrewsbury, Westborough, Grafton and Northborough. This year we had the Director of Veterans' Affairs at the MA National Guard, retired Brigadier General Paul "Greg" Smith as our keynote speaker. Jason Arigoni, Regional Vice President of Home Depot also spoke of why supporting veterans is important to Home Depot and U.S. Army Veteran Colonel Jeff Perry, Human Resources Manager at Home Depot, spoke of his service. The event, which features Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, the Grafton Job Corp Color Guard, student readers and the beautiful voice of Shrewsbury resident and UNH rising junior Carly O'Brien, is only made possible by the support of Shrewsbury Selectman Beth Casavant, Housing Commissioner Gayle Vigeant and local business-woman and SYFS Vice-Chair Melissa Pride-Fahs. You can watch the Celebration here .Thank you to Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School student Julia Casavant for taping and editing the show.


Local Events and Initiatives

Spending time in Shrewsbury and Westborough supporting local initiatives, attending events and speaking on issues important to our community are the most rewarding aspects of being State Representative. Here is a sampling of initiatives and events from the last few months.
  • Westborough Economic Development Committees Fifth Annual Celebratory event highlighted all of the ongoing business expansions and new businesses relocating in town and awarded a number of businesses and individuals for their commitment to growth, innovation and revitalization!
  • Joined the packed house for the Board & Brush Creative Studio opening in Westborough!

  • Celebrated my friend Jim Heald at the Shrewsbury Youth and Family Services Annual Meeting where Jim received the Harry S. Cutting Jr. award for his exceptional community service - I was proud to have nominated Jim!
  • Happy to help the Shrewsbury Lions Club by attending their "Craft Beer & Wine Tasting Event"!
  • The Shrewsbury Education Foundation hosted their annual Awards and Recognition Event at Cyprian Keyes. It was wonderful to see Paula and Jim Buonomo recognized with the Community Service Award, as long-time, actively engaged and philanthropic members of our community and for spearheading the fundraising effort for the new turf field at Shrewsbury High School!

 

  • As a member of the India Society of Worcester I attended the annual meeting and heard about the planned building expansion and all of the many exciting events and cultural activities going on, and especially exciting the growth of the Youth Group!
  • The Corridor 9/495 Chamber of Commerce hosted their yearly Legislative Breakfast and my legislative colleagues and I discussed issues facing the region and the Commonwealth, including affordable housing, transportation, climate change and workforce development.
  • Representatives Carolyn Dykema, Danielle Gregoire and I attended a meeting of the Westborough Girl Scout Troops 30125, 30508 and 30633 to talk about our pathways to public service and our experiences working collaboratively on issues impacting Westborough.

 

  • Greatly enjoyed being a Community Reader at Spring Street School as part of celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday - the students were excellent listeners.
  • Took in the beautiful costumes and wonderful performances at the Chinese Spring Festival organized by the MA Beijing Chinese Language School.

 

  • Joined the Daly family, friends and members of the Worcester Police Department to thank Shrewsbury resident Thomas Daly for his 33 years of dedicated service.
  • I had a great evening at the Worcester County League of Sportsmen's Club's 56th Annual Appreciation Banquet - Jim ended up winning a few raffle prizes he was quite pleased with!

 

  • Bowling for Boosters in the 11th annual tournament was fun - especially being slotted near the Shrewsbury Police and Shrewsbury Firefighters teams!
  • Sponsored the always packed Westborough Troop 100 Pancake Breakfast at the Knights of Columbus Hall.
  • Amazed at all the work that went into Shrewsbury Robotics FIRST team 467 hosting the Central MA FRC Competition at Shrewsbury High School - and even more so by all the teams competing!
  • Gratefully attended the Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast at Al-Hamra Academy.
  • Attended the ribbon cutting for Rocco's Donuts in Westborough - delicious samples were well appreciated!

 

  • The 2nd Annual International Fair & Diversity Celebration highlighted the many cultures and communities in Shrewsbury. I was lucky to buy some new photo cards from my friend Tucker!
  • The Saint John's High School Gala was a fun night that raised significant scholarship funds for SJ students.
  • The Westborough Project 351 Ambassador Jayden Thomas did an excellent job spearheading the annual Spring Service drive to collect donations for Cradles to Crayons - nearly 400 bags helping out over 1,990 children!

 

  • I rode along with Elder Services of Worcester Area to deliver Meals on Wheels in Shrewsbury. This often-overlooked volunteer effort of meal prep and drivers to deliver nutritious food to homebound seniors is a godsend to so many people in our community.
  • Pleased to welcome attendees to the Fire Districts 7, 8 and 14 Legislative Breakfast at the Italian American Victory Club in Shrewsbury.
  • Loved being back at Floral Street School to talk to the engaged advocates in Mrs. Goulding, Mrs. Powell and Mrs. Manning's 4th grade classes. The students wrote terrific letters advocating for our bees and making sure we protect our pollinators.

 

  • Loved attending Thrive Advocacy & Support's "Living Life in Full Bloom" event. Thrive provides services and supports to people with special needs and it was wonderful to so many people turn out to learn more about the significant impact of this terrific organization.
  • Celebrated the 10th Anniversary of the 15-40 Connection with a terrific performance by comedian Jay Leno. This critical non-profit, founded by Jim and Nancy Coghlin and their family, raised over $1 million at the impactful event to teach people how to detect cancer early to save lives.
  • Representatives Carolyn Dykema, Danielle Gregoire and I congratulated and presented citations to the four new graduates of the Fire Academy Recruit Class S10 - Nathan Aubuchont, Taylor Blair, Tyler Coburn and Jacob Ruiz (not pictured below).

 

  • Joined Rabbi Rachel Gurevitz and members of the Congregation B'nai Shalom to celebrate the Congregation's 40th Anniversary!
  • Had a wonderful time at the Shrewsbury Youth and Family Services Evening of Giving where significant funds were raised to support the critical work of the agency in counseling, prevention and wellness for Greater Shrewsbury. Congratulations to the Chair of the Gala Melissa Pride-Fahs!

 

Events Coming Up!

 

Hannah Kane Charity Classic

The 5th annual golf tournament will be held on Monday, August 19th at The Haven in Boylston. We are still seeking sponsors and auction/raffle donations. Please contact me or Tournament Director Beth Casavant at [email protected] for more information and forms. Last year the tournament raised $57,000 for our three primary beneficiaries - Shrewsbury Youth and Family Services, St. Anne's Human Services and Westborough Food Pantry.

 

Monthly Office Hours
I hold office hours in the district for residents to stop in and discuss an issue or problem. The upcoming times and locations can be found on my home page on RepHannahKane.com. I hope you can join me!
 
Thank you for all of your support. As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or Jess. We have moved offices in the State House and are now located in Room 167 and our new office phone number is 617-722-2810. Stop in and see us if you are visiting the State House! I always welcome your thoughts, perspectives and questions and please know that it an amazing honor to serve as your State Representative.


With sincere gratitude,
Hannah Kane
State Representative
11th Worcester District

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