Making News in Business

UMassFive donates over 13K to Food Bank of W. Mass

HADLEY — UMassFive College Federal Credit Union has provided over $13,500 in donations to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts during 2020. These donations have been facilitated through community giving campaigns in partnership with staff and members of the Credit Union.

UMassFive donated $1,000 to help offset the increase in demand presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, and sponsored and participated in the annual Will Bike 4 Food event. A team of 11 employees raised money and rode bikes as part of the event, which took place virtually, resulting in donations of $3,422.

A campaign called “Share Your Story” allowed credit union members to choose a local organization to receive a $25 donation from UMassFive on their behalf; of $5,000 donated, $1,300 was donated to the food bank. A debit card spending reward program has contributed, year-to-date, the equivalent of $2,830 in donations to the Food Bank.

During the month of July, 1{de3fc13d4eb210e6ea91a63b91641ad51ecf4a1f1306988bf846a537e7024eeb} of every purchase made on an eligible member’s UMassFive credit card was donated to the food bank. The $2,500 raised was met with a matching grant from credit card servicer PSCU, resulting in a $5,000 overall donation.

Health New England awards 350K tolocal organizations

SPRINGFIELD — Health New England and its community benefits advisory council awarded grants in the Where Health Matters Grant Program. Recipients include Clinical & Support Options and The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, both in Hampshire County. Each grant recipient’s program supports one of the focus areas that influences health — built environment and care coordination.

Laplante RealEstate adds staff

SOUTH HADLEY — Selina Ortega is a new team member at ERA M. Connie Laplante Real Estate. Ortega is a Holyoke native and United States Air Force veteran. She is bilingual and happy to assist Spanish speakers.

TommyCar Collision open in Hamp

NORTHAMPTON — TommyCar Auto Group, which operates five car dealerships in Hampshire County, is expanding into the autobody business with the opening of its new TommyCar Collision Center at 32 Damon Road, next door to the auto group’s Volvo Cars Pioneer Valley dealership.

TommyCar Collision will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and offers free estimates.

New leadership planned atGreenfieldCooperative

NORTHAMPTON — Anthony J. Worden will be president and chief operating officer at Greenfield Cooperative Bank and Northampton Cooperative Bank as of Jan. 1. This promotion is in anticipation of the retirement next year of current President and Chief Executive Officer Michael E. Tucker. Tucker is relinquishing his title as president, but will remain as chief executive officer until he retires in January 2022, when Worden will take over that role as well. Tucker will remain as a director of the bank and holding company. This transition schedule is part of an overall succession plan for the bank adopted some time ago.

Worden is honored and excited to take over his new role at the bank. He is a native of Brattleboro, and has lived in the Pioneer Valley for the past 30 years. Worden is a director, executive committee member and chair of governance committee for the United Way of Franklin County; a former director of the Franklin County Community Development Corporation; and a former director of the Berkshire Brewing Company of South Deerfield. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst; his master’s degree in business from the Isenberg School of Management at UMass; and is a graduate of the ABA Stonier Graduate School of Banking at the University of Pennsylvania. He lives with his wife Jennifer and their family in Greenfield.

Tucker will retire after a 41-plus year career in banking. While in law school he took a job in February 1980 as a teller at the former Springfield Institution for Savings (SIS Bank). As a lawyer, he worked for almost 20 years at the bank to become senior vice president and general counsel at SIS Bank. He subsequently worked at Easthampton Savings Bank as senior vice president & chief operating officer. In July 2002, he was recruited by Greenfield Cooperative Bank to become president of the bank. His leadership has been invaluable in the bank’s growth and success for the past two decades. He has been very active in the community and industry, including as director (and former chair) of the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce; member of the economic development committee of the Northampton Chamber of Commerce; director of the Deposit Insurance Fund of Massachusetts; and trustee of the Horace Smith scholarship fund in Springfield. He is currently completing his term as a director and chair of the audit committee of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Tucker was also a long-time director and state chairperson for the Massachusetts Bankers Association and also for the Cooperative Bank Employees’ Retirement Association. Tucker is also former director and campaign chairperson of the United Way of Franklin County. He and his wife Janet live in Easthampton.