Summer 2025
From Executive Director, Chloe Collins:
It's been a hot and eventful summer at Valley Eye Radio!
We have the pleasure of hosting an intern through MCB, Jacob Maccarini is currently working on a marketing campaign for VER to reach more of the potential 3,000 visually impaired individuals in the Pioneer Valley. VER is thankful for this new partnership with Massachusetts Commission of the Blind. We look forward to hosting one to two interns each summer!
VER received our main annual operating grant despite uncertain times in the budget and legislature. We are very thankful for the support and hard work of our lobbyist, Erin Riley, as well as all of the legislators who took the time to meet with the MAIN stations. The VER Board just voted on our annual 2026 operating budget and are thankful to be able to continue operating due to the generous support of listeners like you.
VER is looking forward to the opportunity to promote an original podcast in the near future based on the results of our survey and your feedback. VER is also now using new editing software on our volunteer recordings which will enable our staff, Diane and Harold, to more quickly and seamlessly manage volunteer recordings.
VER had the opportunity to make another visit to the annual “Aging in Place: Health and Wellness Fair” held at the South Hadley Senior Center in June.
We had our wonderful volunteers Warren, Duchess and Joan join me to get the word out about us to those that visited our information table. There was even a photo feature in the local Town Reminder newspaper!
Chloe Collins
● If you know of someone who’s no longer able to read print material independently, we have informational postcards available for your workplace or organization to help explain our mission to those who need our service. Please contact us for more details.
● The week of June 5th was Medicare Fraud Prevention Week and Valley Eye Radio used the occasion for checking in with Lucilia Prates, State Director of the MA Senior Medicare Patrol to update us on the latest regarding this problem and the resources available to fight Medicare fraud, errors and abuse.
● Thanks to our membership in IAAIS (International Association of Audio Information Services), Valley Eye Radio has been able to add some exiting new programming to our schedule. Eligible listeners can now hear “Blindness and Disability News Hour” from Minds Eye on Wednesday afternoons and “Science News” from ARS (Audio Reading Service) from the Allen County Public Library on Saturday afternoons. In a local programming update, the “Elder Law News” program from Shatz, Schwartz and Fenton is now featured twice a month on Thursday afternoons.
● Thanks to our friends at the Public Health Institute of Western Mass, Valley Eye Radio was able to rebroadcast another informative webinar on another timely issue for our region.
From the Healthy Air Network and the Pioneer Valley Asthma Coalition, we aired the audio recording from “Fighting for Air: Updates on the proposed biomass plant in Springfield” to provide the latest information regarding the health aspects of the biomass plant and proposed legislation related to the issue. <o:p></o:p>Our thanks to all those involved with bringing this program to Valley Eye Radio.
Happy Birthday to all of our volunteer readers who celebrated in June: Paul, Tim, Lorraine A., Marcia, Jeannine, Marvee, Ken B., Gerald, Stonks and Arnold.
Happy Birthday also to our valued volunteers who enjoyed their cake and presents in July: Johanna, Barbara K., Dondi, Mary Z., Steve S., Sandy and Claire.
…and a rousing chorus of “Happy Birthday to You” to all of those in our volunteer reader family who begin another trip around the sun in August: Chuck, Ray, Sue, Tom C., Rich, Mary D., Paul, Mariana, Simon and Nicholas.
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