Baystate Wing Hospital Awards $30,000 in Grants

PALMER —  Baystate Wing Hospital has announced an investment of $30,000 in grants to benefit local community-based nonprofit organizations. The grant awards were given to the Quaboag Valley Community Development Corporation, the Quaboag Connector to support local transportation in the region, the Ware Fire Department to support Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and paramedic training, and to the Ware Regional Recovery Center to increased access to support and expand knowledge about recovery support services and resources in the region.  

“Everyone is strengthened when we work together to build and sustain a culture of health and wellness within our communities,” said Molly Gray, president and chief administrative officer for Baystate Health’s Eastern Region, which includes Baystate Wing Hospital and Baystate Mary Lane Outpatient Center. “We are very happy to support the work with our community partners with these grant investments.” 

Baystate Health’s Eastern Region represents 15 communities comprising a population of approximately 120,000 people. Programs supported by the hospital’s grant investments include:  

   

Quaboag Valley Community Development Corporation, the Quaboag Connector: The $30,000 grant to the Quaboag Valley Community Development Corporation (QVCDC) will provide continued support to the Quaboag Connector Transportation Initiative which addresses the lack of transportation to employment, education, healthcare, workforce training, shopping, and benefit services within and outside the region. The service which began in January 2017 has provided thousands of rides to community members. In March 2022, the Quaboag Connector surpassed all previous months in number of rides providing 1,397 rides demonstrating the continued need for this service. 

  

The Ware Fire Department $11,500: The $11,500 grant was awarded to the Ware Fire Department in support of EMS Paramedic training for a member of the Ware Fire/EMS Team. 

  

Growing Strong: Ware Regional Recovery Center’s Next Chapter 

The $3500 grant to the Ware Regional Recovery Center, a program of the Western Massachusetts Training Consortium, will support their work in the Quaboag Hills Region to respond with increased momentum in raising community awareness about local access to recovery support and resources, to decrease stigma and to encourage people to seek out recovery support services in a time of critical need.