When Johnny became a member of the Mill River chapter of BNI just over a year ago, Janice was his mentor, teaching him the skills he would need to be successful and build his clientele.

With degrees in both political science and sociology from the University of Puerto Rico, Johnny feels that his current work with Human Resources Unlimited has successfully combined his passion for business with social services. Johnny holds the firm belief that those who are advantaged and educated have the common social mission to help those who are less fortunate.

Johnny practices what he preaches. During high school and college, Johnny was a Jesuit missionary, working to provide clothing, homes and other necessities to people in South America. He has also worked with a variety of homeless shelters in Puerto Rico and has worked with individuals from the Friends of the Homeless shelter in Springfield.

In his work, Johnny’s goal is always to empower others in order to put them on a road of self-sufficiency, breaking them out of what can become a cycle of dependency so that they can attain goals. Helping these individuals obtain their GED (General Education Development) is an important part of making his clients self-sufficient. According to Johnny, there is nothing more rewarding than bringing such a positive change to somebody’s life.

Currently Johnny is focused on broadening his understanding of assistive technology that makes communication possible without the help of an interpreter. Technology like this is available for a wide variety of disabilities, and Johnny intends to make this well-known.

Here are some tips that Johnny has for anybody looking for employment:

• Stay positive throughout the process.
• Don’t just have a goal; have a strategy too.
• Portray positivity by smiling at potential employers.
• Research potential employers and learn as much as you can before an interview.
• Stay committed: to the goal, to the plan, and to the idea of change

Johnny also has a few tips for employers:

• Give disabled individuals the opportunity to work. The resources are there to make it beneficial and easy for both employer and employee.
• Show that you are committed to your community.
• Make your cause visible by being inclusive to all possible employees.

The post A Change Agent in the Lives of Others appeared first on Beetle Press.

It’s a true calling for Karen to work with elders and their families to ensure their financial legacies are kept safe and intact.

Hearing about people who have had their finances destroyed through death or disability is frustrating for Karen because she knows that security can be achieved with good planning. This is why she speaks and writes often on elder law and estate planning and even teaches a course on the topic regularly at Holyoke Community College.

Karen earned her bachelor’s degree in science at the University of California, Los Angeles, and earned her law degree at Loyola Law School. She became a member of the Mill River chapter of BNI in 2006, which gives Karen yet another vehicle for speaking about her work and raising awareness on the importance of good estate planning.

Janice met Karen in BNI, and the two have worked together on several projects. Janice promotes Karen’s work through occasional press releases.

When choosing or working with a new attorney on estate planning, Karen offers these tips:

-Find an attorney who is clear and understandable, and who will return emails and calls. If an attorney talks in legalese, find one that can speak in a language that’s meaningful to you.

-Come to the first meeting prepared with a list of all assets and titles.

-Bring all documents for review, including your wills, durable power of attorney, health care proxy, HIPAA release and trusts. It is better to have too much documentation than not enough.

If you have questions for your attorney, make a list to bring with you so that you don’t forget.

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When I began, I had no idea what to expect, even after Janice had assigned me a few of my main tasks, which included managing the social media for the Mill River chapter of BNI, of which Janice is a member, and interviewing BNI members to blog about their work and experience.

My meatiest assignment was to interview volunteers and a cancer survivor associated with the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life of Hampshire County and write an article on their work for the Daily Hampshire Gazette.

Working for Janice had a tangible effect on the efficiency with which I performed my work for Beetle Press and my school work in general. Despite having a busy schedule during the semester, I became extremely organized and focused on allotting specific time to complete tasks.

Being in good contact with Janice also got me into the habit of using my email more than ever and kept me up to date on my assignments, which grew week by week.

My favorite experience in working at Beetle Press was interviewing BNI members. I had a great time meeting with and speaking to members and getting to hear both about their businesses and their experience with BNI. It was a pleasure to meet these successful people, and it allowed me to gain a lot of experience in conducting interviews and writing profile pieces.

While most of my work ran smoothly, I did manage to make a mess of one particular assignment; this formed the basis for my best learnings, among them taking responsibility for my assignments, maintaining clear and open communications and taking charge of follow-up efforts.

Throughout the rest of the semester, I noticed my interviews with BNI members improved. I was more thorough. My confidence grew, and I rarely had to go back to those I’d interviewed for more information. I paid better attention to detail and knew how to follow up on questions and comments.

Working at Beetle Press this semester has helped me improve both my writing skills and my work practice in general. Working with Janice and the other interns has been a pleasure and a great experience. I came to Beetle Press for a real-world work experience and a learning experience, and I got more than I had imagined.

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Heather Touchette, 18, of Ludlow is a member of the Event Leadership Team for the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life of Hampshire County.

Like other relay leaders, her work load is not light. In any given week, she’s apt to be recruiting and registering teams for the event, working on the set-up plan or helping with coordination for the fundraising group.

“She has also been there for whatever I needed as I progressed with the last two relays,” said Tom McCusker, coordinator for the event.

Touchette’s life was touched by cancer after her aunt, the late Gail Mainville of Holyoke, was diagnosed and treated for lung cancer while Touchette was in elementary school in 2005. Mainville lost her battle in 2007, and Touchette got involved with relay in 2013, offering to do whatever was needed.

The following September, Touchette joined the leadership committee after a friend spoke with enthusiasm about her own committee involvement. Touchette enjoys seeing just how many people come together, united by the same cause.

“I think the most rewarding thing about it is seeing the amount of people who are willing to help others,” Touchette said.

McCusker is pleased with Touchette’s work. His challenge is finding more volunteers like her.

This year, McCusker said leaders of the fundraiser for the American Cancer Society have made it a goal to ramp up recruitment of new volunteers and to have members step into leadership positions. Many volunteers, such as McCusker, have been at the work for many years. Janice has been overseeing the publicity for the event for several years now. New volunteers are desperately needed.

On the day of the Relay For Life event alone, 75 to 100 volunteers are needed, but there is much preparation to be done before the event, he said, so volunteers are needed now. More volunteers are needed now than in past years because the event is growing, and team participation is increasing.

In 2014, at the 18^th annual relay, a total of 1,017 participants on 93 teams, including 214 survivors, took part, and a total of $234,504 was raised. The fundraising goal is $250,000 this year, and 105 teams are expected to take part.

“The number of planning members is decreasing,” says McCusker, “while the number of participants is increasing.”

Recruiting requires some finesse, McCusker said. One of the greatest challenges when trying to fill these roles is finding people with the right set of skills, but it’s a difficult balance to question volunteers to discern their skill-sets without intimidating or offending them.

“Recruiting has always been a passive process,” said McCusker. “This year we are trying to be more actively involved in our recruitment.”

Relay For Life is a 24-hour event that allows participants to celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost and fight back against the disease. This year’s relay will be held June 19-20 at Look Memorial Park in Florence; as it is each year, Cooley Dickinson Hospital is the event’s presenting sponsor.

During relay, teams of participants take turns walking on a temporary track to raise money for cancer research and programs that benefit cancer patients and their families.

To learn more, volunteer or donate, visit www.relayforlife.org/hampshirecountyma or email hamprelay@gmail.com

Tim Schreiner is a student at Westfield State University. He assists with publicity for Relay For Life of Hampshire County.

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Matt Spaulding isn’t afraid of April 15. Instead, the certified public accountant at DeJordy, Dugre, Croteau & Co., P.C. in Chicopee, enjoys taking the stress of filing tax returns off of his clients.

Matt works well with individuals as well as corporate clients, and says one major challenge in his work is keeping up with the constant changes in tax laws.

Matt is the vice president of BNI’s Mill River chapter, of which Janice is a member. He lives in South Hadley with his wife, Kathleen, his 3-year-old daughter Lucy, his 1-year-old son Owen, and his Jack Russell Terrier, Larry.

Matt has been an accountant for nine years, having worked at Samet & Company for nearly four years and PlumChoice, Inc. for four years before joining DeJordy, Dugre, Croteau & Co., P.C., where he has now worked for one year.

Matt holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in accounting and a bachelor’s in science with a concentration in hospitality management.

During college, Matt found that he excelled at working with numbers as he held a job doing audits and taxes. His work in college is what sparked his interest in the field and set him on the path to the career he has now.

Having worked in both private and public accounting, Matt can honestly say that he prefers the latter. Being able to help individuals and families is a very rewarding feeling, and this always inspires him to assist those less knowledgeable with taxes.

After being referred to BNI by the partners in his firm, Matt joined in January 2014, and appreciates having the time to network and build relationships with other businesspeople in the Pioneer Valley. He was honored to become vice president of the chapter and has found it rewarding to interview and induct new members.

Matt is very personable and quite easy to get along with. This easy-going manner allows him to work well with his clients.

In this time of year that makes others cringe, Matt offers up these tips for taxpayers:

• Be aware of the deadlines (April 15 for individuals, partnerships and LLCs. The March 15 deadline for corporations has passed.)
• Make sure, ahead of time, that you have all the information necessary to file your taxes.
• If you may be missing something (W2, 1099s, etc.) it is best to contact the necessary party well in advance of the deadline.

To learn more about Matt or for his advice, call 413-536-0666 or stop by 727 Grattan St., Chicopee.

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When it comes to his work, Brian Risler has a lot of positive energy and will gladly take the opportunity to get you to know his business.

Brian is the producing branch manager of Residential Mortgage Services, Inc. in Easthampton. He’s been working in his current field for 14 years, and before that, he spent 15 years working in commercial insurance. Since he was young, Brian has always been interested in working with numbers and got into the field when a friend began a mortgage company.

Janice knows Brian through her membership in the Mill River chapter of BNI, a global business networking organization with chapters all over the Valley. Brian, 49, of South Hadley, is the current chapter president, and Janice is impressed with the professional—and compassionate—way he runs the group.

Janice has also helped Residential Mortgage Services with a press release announcing new staff members.

Residential Mortgage Services, Inc. is a non-banking mortgage lender, meaning their main service is providing mortgages that are tailored toward particular buyers, such as veterans, for instance.

Brian’s work involves finding the right mortgage fit for clients and also helping those who struggle with credit to repair their credit history so they might become mortgage eligible. Brian views his work as extremely rewarding; he loves helping people finance their own homes, giving them independence, and a stable and predictable housing payment. He enjoys helping people take charge of their own personal wealth.

Brian’s field of work often finds him thinking critically. His work has shaped the way he thinks, and he thinks in terms of verifiability. Instead of taking information at face value, Brian thinks about the reliability of both the information and its sources.

Brian attended the University of Massachusetts, where he began degrees in both English and math. Eventually, he transferred to Stonehill College in North Easton, Massachusetts to earn a degree in business administration, concentrating in finance.

Brian joined BNI in December 2013. He finds it rewarding to work with referrals from many different members of the group, and to learn about their businesses. He also enjoys interacting with members and their visitors and is a constant source of ideas and encouragement.

Here are some tips from Brian for anyone considering the purchase of a home or selecting a mortgage lender:

• Always begin the process early.
• Gather paperwork that shows the income being used to repay the loan, as well as any bank account or other asset statements that show the money to be used for the down payment.
• Get a credit consultation early in the process of your home search, and don’t be afraid to ask your lender about the details of the loan being recommended. Some questions are:
  • “What makes this loan a good choice for my situation?”
  • “Are there other options we should be considering?”
  • “How many of these loans do you and your institution make every year?”
• And of course, Brian always suggests asking yourself, “How can I verify that?”

The post He’ll ‘Guide You Home’ appeared first on Beetle Press.

Vanessa is a senior at Westfield State University and is majoring in English with a concentration in literature. She is 28 and originally from Brockton. Vanessa is the daughter of Vicki and Robert Pesa and is the oldest of five siblings with one brother and three sisters. She also has a dog named Jasper.

Vanessa attended Bridgewater State University but transferred to Westfield State University when she moved to Springfield in order to live with her girlfriend. Although she lives off-campus, Vanessa says that she enjoys the sense of community and involvement that she feels at Westfield State, something that she didn’t quite experience while at Bridgewater.

Attending Westfield State University has helped Vanessa to clear up her career goals for her. Teaching was a strong consideration, but she now hopes to work as an editor with a publishing company. At Beetle Press, Vanessa will focus on Janice’s creative projects, helping to increase the distribution of her first book, Divine Renovations, and helping to edit and promote her second book, with a working title of The Sun Drifters.

Vanessa values the opportunities that the college has offered and believes that her internship at Beetle Press will help prepare her for the work world due to the hands-on experience that it will provide.

The internship at Beetle Press was suggested to Vanessa by her advisor, Professor Marilyn Sandidge. Given the kind of work that Vanessa hopes to do in the future, Beetle Press seemed the perfect opportunity, as Janice can pass on her knowledge and experience in the publishing arena.

Currently, Vanessa works at Berkshire Bank in Southwick as a teller. She is a member of Sigma Tau Delta, Westfield State University’s English Honors Society, and she is also on the committee of Persona, the school’s literary journal. Vanessa enjoys running during the summer, and her hobbies include reading, writing, painting and yoga.

Vanessa is working hard to prepare herself for the career path that she has set, making use of the many opportunities offered by the school. Thanks to Janice, Vanessa will be able to end her senior year with some hands-on experience and a large step in the right direction.

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