I have been so busy over the past year. Work has just kept on coming, and I have welcomed it with open arms.

In the past few months, though, I’ve been excited because the deadlines began to ease up. I caught up on some me time. Took a few vacations. Cleaned my closets. Reorganized my house. Repotted some plants. All that stuff. You know.

Then, I carved out some time to reflect on my 25th anniversary of launching Beetle Press. Way back in 1998.

I had a 25th anniversary logo created months ago, and I printed it on t-shirts for my husband and myself, but that was about it. I didn’t have the time or the mental bandwidth for more. I was determined to create a little 25th anniversary marketing campaign.

I sat down to dig out some memorabilia and start doing some planning to celebrate 25 years as a business owner.

I found my first Beetle Press business card with its clip art of a ladybug on a leaf. I found my first newsletters, which were printed and mailed back then, and I read through lots of thank you notes from Westfield State University interns I’ve had over the past few decades.

One of them said, “Thank you for letting me see all of the hard work, frustration, and amazing end results that go into running a business. I will be taking what I have learned at Beetle Press with me as I continue my journey through life.”

It took me back to read this note and all the others and put faces to names and remember projects and services from so long ago.

I read some of the great feedback I received from clients, people I’d interviewed for stories and readers of local publications I wrote for. I remembered assignments long forgotten.

Then, I stumbled on the newspaper coverage of Beetle Press’ 20th anniversary. I sent out a press release back then, and it was picked up in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, the Springfield Republican and BusinessWest.

Oops, I realized as I read. All the clips were dated 2018. That means 2024 is actually my 26th anniversary.

Right. I had that logo made in September 2023, thinking I’d create a little anniversary campaign and then, wham, I began some interim work for a local newspaper in New Hampshire that was woefully short of staff. Time got away from me until the middle of March, when that paper was in much better shape and no longer needed my help.

I’d forgotten we were in a whole new year. My 26th year, to be precise.

That’s fine. Over the remaining months in 2024, I’ll be posting on social media to celebrate the 26th anniversary of Beetle Press.

Because I love my work. I’m privileged to still be able to do it 26 years after I got started, and I’m thankful for the clients I am working with now who bring me new things to research and explore.

Happy 26th, Beetle Press, and thank you to each of you who follow my work.

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EAST LONGMEADOW—Laplante Construction recently announced that 2024 marks the 60th year it has been developing luxury homes and commercial properties in Western Mass and Northern Connecticut. 

Founded in 1964 by Ray Laplante, the business designs and develops homes from executive ranches to classic contemporary homes to farmhouse cottages. Over the years, Laplante Construction has also designed and built condominium and new home developments as well as commercial real estate such as professional offices, banks and restaurants. 

Three years ago, Laplante Construction opened an office on Cape Cod, in Chatham. 

A self-proclaimed perfectionist, Ray Laplante learned carpentry skills from his Canadian father, worked in the family firm and launched his own framing business after graduation. Within a few years, he was building luxury homes.

Bill Laplante also worked at the family business through high school and while earning his bachelor’s degree in economics from Trinity College. After graduating in 1992, he joined the Laplante framing crew and transitioned into marketing and finances five years later, becoming president in 2003. 

“I really enjoy working with people and helping them create their dream home,” Bill Laplante said. 

Over the years, Laplante Construction has worked with over 700 clients on projects ranging from $50,000 to $5 million, offering architectural design and project management.

Quality materials, skilled workmanship, crisp and clean finishes, architecturally interesting exteriors and trusted subcontractors and suppliers contribute to business success. “People tell me they can spot a home built by Laplante Construction from the curb,” said Bill Laplante.

The most majestic home Laplante Construction has created in six decades is a replica of President Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. While the original is in Virginia, the Laplante version is in Somers, Connecticut, and was built for the late S. Prestley Blake and his wife, Helen, for Prestley’s 100th birthday 10 years ago. 

Ray Laplante created all the architectural designs by hand, on graph paper, as part of a massive project negotiated with a handshake. The local Monticello features the original façade, including dome roof, and touches that include a foyer with double, soaring staircases; a pantry with a rolling library ladder; and parquet floors and coffered ceilings.

Homes built more recently in the region include such features as a greenhouse, lap pool, golf simulator, Brunswick two-lane bowling alley, and porches, patios and pools overlooking rolling hills.

“Each individual house is a source of pride,” Bill said. 

To learn more, visit laplanteconstruction.com.

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Sponsorships totaling $4,000 will help fund four events offered in a year packed with festivities

FLORENCE—Florence Bank has donated $4,000 to the city of West Springfield to help support four events the city has planned in 2024 as part of a year packed with 250th anniversary festivities. 

Florence Bank’s backing of the West Springfield 250th Celebration specifically offers support for three 5K races, happening in March, July and November; a 250th Block Party on June 22 and 23, when Elm and Central streets will be closed for activities from dancing to vendors and food trucks; family photo sessions at historic town locations; and a golf tournament in July.

Also part of the 250th events in West Springfield in 2024 are a birthday celebration in Clark Field on Feb. 23, the same day West Springfield was incorporated in 1774; a black-tie ball in May; various ongoing public art projects; and a Bright Nights display next winter.

Nikki Gleason, vice president / branch manager in West Springfield, said in addition to the financial support, a team of bank staff will help man some of the events in town. She also noted they are particularly excited to be part of the family photo event on May 11 with photographer Branden Brus, who will capture portraits of interested families who sign up for sessions at a historic town location to be determined.

“I’ve worked in West Springfield for 13 years, the last five with Florence Bank at our West Springfield branch, and I believe in the town and in the way it is celebrating this important anniversary,” Gleason said. “This is such a diverse community. It’s very unique, and I’m pleased that the bank is involved in celebrations that will bring everyone together. It’s a great fit for Florence Bank because supporting community events that bring people together is really important to us.”

Sarah Calabrese-Dunphy, anniversary committee co-chair, agreed. “Florence Bank has shown a commitment to the well-being of our town that goes beyond just providing financial services. Through sponsorships, donations, and volunteerism, Florence Bank has helped improve the lives of our local kids, families and the community as a whole.”

Carly Camossi, chief of operations for West Springfield and co-chair of the anniversary committee, said over 100 business sponsors are part of the anniversary celebrations, and over 400 area residents attended the mayoral ball kick-off event earlier this year. 

“It’s amazing to me how many people want to participate,” said Camossi, who grew up in West Springfield. “Everyone is incredibly generous and feels that community spirit. It’s very humbling.”

Since 2007, Florence Bank has had a presence in West Springfield, which was enhanced five years ago, when the current full-service branch opened at 1010 Union Street. 

To learn more about West Springfield’s 250th, visit Westside250.com.

To volunteer or offer an idea, email Celebrate250@tows.org.

About Florence Bank

Florence Bank is a mutual savings bank chartered in 1873. Currently, the bank serves the Pioneer Valley through 12 full-service branch locations in Florence, Northampton, Easthampton, Williamsburg, Amherst, Hadley, Belchertown, Granby, Chicopee, West Springfield, and Springfield. Additionally, it offers 25 ATMs and a wide range of financial services, including investment management through FSB Financial Group (FSBFG) to consumers and businesses. Florence Bank is consistently voted best local bank by the readers of the Valley Advocate.

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NORTHAMPTON—Cedar Chest, a longtime eclectic gift store, is celebrating its 75th anniversary in downtown Northampton as its new sister store, Stay Golden, announces a rebrand and grand opening event in its permanent location in Thornes Marketplace.

The anniversary for Cedar Chest, which carries everything from home décor to stationery and holiday items, will be marked with special promotions in the store from Thursday, Sept. 22 to Sunday, Sept. 25. Customers who spend over $75 will receive a gift bag full of free items from different sections of the store.

The grand opening for Stay Golden will be held Oct. 14 and is free and open to the public.

The launch will be held in conjunction with Arts Night Out from 5 to 8 p.m., and those who visit the shop can dance to music played by a DJ, have their photo taken in a photo booth, and sample charcuterie by Fed by Foley and cocktails from Tellus & The Satellite Bar. There will also be giveaway items and a raffle.

Both businesses are owned by Rich Madowitz, also one of the co-owners of Thornes. About 30 associates work at the shops, with a half dozen dedicated to Stay Golden.

“We are excited our customers can find us in two spaces in Thornes,” said Lauren Gunther, merchandise manager for Cedar Chest since 2010 and now Stay Golden as well. “We are excited to see Stay Golden grow.”

Cedar Chest was originally on Main Street in Northampton and dates back at least to 1947, the year the oldest-known photo of the shop was taken. After Brinkley and Gordon Thorne, and their wives Mazie Cox and Annie Woodhull, purchased the McCallum Building in 1977 and launched Thornes Marketplace, Cox purchased Cedar Chest and moved the business into Thornes, where it remains an anchor store.

Madowitz purchased the business in 2010.

Gunther said, initially, the shop sold linens, bedding, and home décor. “Now it’s a gift shop of epic proportions,” she said, noting the business tagline is “Home. Body. Heart.”

The store sprawls over two floors with items ranging from loungewear and bath and body items on the ground floor to kitchen products, home décor, holiday and seasonal items, books and stationery on the second floor. “We try to separate what we’re doing from what other people are doing in town and in the building,” Gunther said. “We have unique products not represented elsewhere.”

As the buyer for the business, Gunther is pleased that she can visit trade shows once again and move away from buying online, as she was forced to do during the pandemic. Before she came to Thornes, Gunther’s background was in fashion, so it has been exciting for her to watch Cedar Chest’s sister store evolve with a focus on women’s clothing.

First launched last summer as an eight-week-long pop-up shop on Level One by the parking garage and sky walk, the business was called Cedar Chest Fashion. The concept was successful, so it expanded and rebranded as Stay Golden with the help of Carrie Lenard of Lenard Design.

“Golden” in the name is a reference to each day’s Golden Hour—after sunrise or before sunset, when the intensity of the sun’s light is reduced, and the sky appears redder and softer. “Golden Hour is about the feeling you get when the sun and the air and the mood feel right, all at the same time,” Gunther said. “We want to be with people in those moments where they feel—and look—their best and can hold onto that feeling. We want women to Stay Golden.”

Some of the fixtures and décor in the shop—from hangers to mannequins—came from Faces, which closed in 2019 after nearly 45 years in business. “We now occupy the whole shop, and we cater to professional women who want to update their closet every season with a couple great new products,” she said. 

Stay Golden carries primarily clothing for women—a mix of everyday casual and some business wear, such as silk blouses or items with rich patterns and textures. “Women will find things like fuzzy jackets and sweaters in fall and glitz around the holidays,” Gunther said, noting the shop also carries jewelry and small accessories, like sunglasses. 

“The store’s mission is to ride the edge of trends with a focus on the classic styling and to make women look and feel beautiful,” she added.

Soon, Stay Golden will launch an informational website at staygoldennorthampton.com.

For more information on Cedar Chest, visit explorecedarchest.com.

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LACONIA—The Greater Lakes Region Children’s Auction is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year as an annual fundraising event that provides grant funds to dozens of nonprofit organizations that assist underserved children. 

“We kicked off the 40th celebration with a webinar for all of our volunteers on May 19, powered by The Enablement Group, and we updated our volunteers on the 2021 auction,” said Executive Director Jennifer Kelley.  

Created in 1981 as a one-day radio auction—the brainchild of Warren Bailey, then a DJ for WLNH—the annual event has since raised over $7 million for children and families in the Lakes Region.

“It has evolved so much, and it really is a tradition,” said Bailey. “There are so many people I run into who come here to visit relatives. Not a year goes by that I don’t see somebody who shares a memory of being a child who benefited. They reminisce about the past and say it’s not Christmas until they get into the Lakes Region so they can listen and hear and see the Auction.”

Bailey feels a tremendous sense of pride that he founded the auction. “From the very beginning, when I witnessed the unseen poverty and brought the idea back to the radio station, members of the community said, ‘Yes, how can I help?’”

“That generosity continues now with the 40th,” he added. “It’s now such a large organization that helps out so many.”

The auction’s mission is to engage the community to financially support children in need with a vision to ensure that every child is empowered to succeed and positively impact a thriving Greater Lakes Region community. 

In its 40th year, leaders of the auction, including Executive Director Jennifer Kelley and a 17-member board, want to spread the word about the good work it does in the Lakes Region. 

These are some ways area residents can help: 

• Learn more about the Auction by visiting www.childrensauction.com/. “We help agencies that support children in need by providing basic needs, like food, clothing, and shelter; services to help mitigate those needs; and educational and recreational opportunities that kids would not have access to otherwise,” said Jaimie Sousa, board chairperson.
• Tell 40 people about the Auction’s work and how it improves the lives of children and families in the Lakes Region—whether in person, via email, or on social media. “Helping us spread the word will make the community stronger by increasing auction donations and bids,” Sousa said.
• Help recruit auction items or fundraise. You will have fun and make great friends in the process. 
• Make a donation. Said Sousa, “Financial support allows us to expand opportunities for children. Each year we have many more deserving grant requests than we can possibly meet. We have grown incredibly, but there is still more to do. Consider giving $40 as a celebration of 40 years!”

Learn more about the auction at www.ChildrensAuction.com, where you can discover sponsorship opportunities, donate or volunteer or email Jenn@ChildrensAuction.com.

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HOLYOKE—Kyle Sullivan, assistant vice president at John M. Glover Insurance Agency, recently celebrated his 10th anniversary at the firm.

John M. Glover has 19 offices in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, and Hawaii. Sullivan, a third-generation broker, has worked for the business with his father since 2010 in the Holyoke office. 

Sullivan sells home, auto, and business insurance and became assistant vice president in 2016. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Nichols College. To better assist his commercial customers, he also holds a Commercial Lines Coverage Specialist certification through the Hartford School of Insurance. 

Sullivan previously worked in the restaurant industry for 10 years, which gave him excellent customer-service experience along with a unique perspective on insuring restauranteurs.

He works with commercial clients who range from contractors, real estate investors, restauranteur, and the owners of car dealerships and auto body shops. 

“I work with clients to understand their business and recommend a coverage plan that provides the best protection,” he said.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought changes at John M. Glover Insurance Agency that find Sullivan working from a home office. 

For more information, find Sullivan on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, or email him at ksullivan@jmg.com.

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The relocation comes during the agency’s 65th anniversary year and symbolizes a future shift to fourth-generation owners

EASTHAMPTON—Taylor Real Estate, which is celebrating 65 years of operation this year, announced recently it will move to a new location on Liberty Street in Easthampton in June.

Chuck Conner, a third-generation owner of the business founded by his grandfather in 1955, said the new office space offers convenient off-street parking for clients and staff as well as on-site storage for the firm’s plentiful “For Sale” signage, and a newer, brighter work space for staff.

“We have been helping clients move for 65 years, and now it’s our turn to pack up and go,” Conner said.

He noted that the move is symbolic of moving the firm into the future, when ownership and operations will be assumed by Conner’s daughters, Megan Conner and Danica Achin, both licensed Realtors with the firm. In addition to working with buyers and sellers, Megan Conner handles administration and advertising, and Achin is the rental division manager.

“We’re moving toward the future—Danica and myself being the fourth generation coming in,” Megan Conner said. “We’re moving forward.”

For most of the past 65 years, the real estate firm run by the Conners has been located on Main Street—otherwise known as Shop Row.

Chuck Conner’s grandfather Charles Taylor founded the Charles W. Taylor Agency at 85 Main St. in 1955. In 1965, when Taylor passed the business to his daughter, Bernice, and her husband, Bob Conner—Chuck Conner’s parents—the business was run out of the Conners’ Easthampton home. 

Around 1980, the Conners reopened the office at 77 Main St., later moving to 87 Main St.—until now. Chuck Conner expects the move to 4A Liberty St. will be complete by mid-June. Liberty Street is off of Union Street, making the new space equally central to downtown and also accessible to walkers and bicyclists arriving via the Manhan Rail Trail.

“We’ll still be steps to downtown,” Megan Conner said. “We are really excited. We’ve all been saying it will be a really nice, fresh start, especially as people are getting back to work after the pandemic closures and getting back to regular routines again. It will be really nice.”

Megan Conner added that the inconvenience of change is dwarfed by the improvements the new space will offer clients and staff. 

Chuck Conner said the new office for Taylor Real Estate will provide the same amount of square footage as the Main Street space at about 1,500 square feet. The Liberty Street space will allow for a more open floor plan for Taylor’s roughly 12 full- and part-time agents.

“It has more natural light and good acoustics, which creates a more open-concept and pleasing environment,” Conner added.

While Taylor Real Estate has been a Main Street staple from the start, there have been many changes in its rich, 65-year history, among them a name change. The business was originally the Charles W. Taylor Agency; the name was changed in 2013 to Taylor Real Estate, over three decades after Chuck Conner started working full-time with his parents. 

Conner said additional change has come in the form of new technology that allows a digital approach to marketing and communication and the execution of documentation. Houses can be shown to potential buyers via virtual visits made possible by professional photography, and closing papers can be signed electronically.

“We can do almost every aspect of our work remotely with cell phones,” he added.

These advances have come in handy over the past few months, as COVID-19 spread across the region. “People have been very hesitant to be around other people, interacting,” Megan Conner said. 

Achin said, “Technology has saved us during this time.”

For more information on Taylor Real Estate, visit www.taylorrealtors.net.

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Keynote speaker, a New York Times op-ed columnist, to talk about social justice

NORTHAMPTON—In honor of its 30-year anniversary, Valley Community Development will hold a celebration on April 12 at the Hadley Farms Meeting House, and Executive Director Joanne Campbell is grateful to announce that the organization’s $400,000 anniversary fundraising goal has been met.

“Many donors this anniversary year are institutions, small businesses and individuals who have been long-time contributors to Valley Community Development,” said Campbell. “They stepped up to a higher level this year, and we are pleased and honored to have their support, which will strengthen the agency financially and programmatically.”

Campbell noted that $32,000 was also raised from first-time donors to the nonprofit.

She said the celebration is one new way to educate community members about the nonprofit’s mission to empower people with low and moderate incomes to manage and improve the quality of their lives through the development of affordable housing, economic opportunity and small business development.

The event is open to the public and will kick off with a cocktail reception from 6 to 7 p.m. Dinner and the keynote speaker, Charles M. Blow, an op-ed columnist for The New York Times, will be offered from 7 to 9 p.m. Tickets cost $125 and are available online by visiting valleycdc.com.

Blow writes about politics, public opinion and social justice. He is a CNN commentator, and, last year, was a Presidential Visiting Professor at Yale. He is also the author of the best-selling memoir Fire Shut Up in My Bones, which tells his story of growing up in the Deep South with a fiercely driven mother and four brothers, and his escape after a trauma.

At the celebratory event, Blow will speak on the general theme of social justice.

“It will be very timely and appropriate for the work we’re doing right now,” said Campbell. “Valley Community Development is involved in navigating the crisis in housing and serving people with very low incomes. We collaborate with regional and local organizations to work on these local issues.”

Campbell said financial giving this year is almost double that of a typical year, with many donors taking advantage of the Massachusetts Community Investment Tax Credit (CITC) program, which allows state and federal tax incentives for giving.

Increased support comes as the organization is expanding its reach. “We are hopeful that we will be able to expand and sustain our small business program, which is now staffed by a part-time coordinator,” Campbell said.

“The money we’re raising is also helping small businesses, and first-time and existing homeowners,” she added, noting that donations are still encouraged. “It’s a way to continue the programming we have and look for new ways to give to the population we serve as well as reach out to underserved populations, immigrant communities and households of color. We’re always looking for new ways to reach these groups.”

Since 1988, Valley Community Development has created 224 units of affordable housing in Northampton, Easthampton and Amherst. It has counseled over 8,000 homebuyers and homeowners and educated over 1,500 businesspeople.

The organization now has goals that call for expanding its geographic reach, creating deeper community connections and assisting more new homebuyers and small business owners.

Its development of The Lumber Yard in Northampton, which will create 55 affordable family apartments, is ongoing and expected to be completed in May 2019. Campbell said a second project in Northampton, expanding 15 traditional single room occupancy (SRO) units into 31 units each with a fully accessible bathroom and kitchenette at Sergeant House on Bridge Street is also in the early phase of development.

The agency is also looking for a location to develop an SRO in Amherst.

Sponsors for the anniversary celebration include: bankESB; Florence Bank; Greenfield Cooperative Bank/Northampton Cooperative Bank; PeoplesBank; Dietz & Company Architects with Western Builders; Goggins Real Estate; Jack Hornor and Ron Skinn; Dorothy Nemetz and John Todd; Pamela Schwartz and Joel Feldman; Freedom Credit Union; Sally and Al Griggs; Richard Abbott; Berkshire Bank; Country Bank; Ruth Elcan; Fierst, Kane & Bloomberg LLP; Greenfield Savings Bank; KSK Insurance Agency; and Way Finders.

Members of Valley Community Development’s Board of Directors are: president, Peter Jessop; vice-president, Amy Fyden; treasurer, Richard Abbott; clerk, Pat Byrnes; and members Maxene Anderson, Richard Bauman, Madeline Weaver Blanchette, Maureen Borg, William Fontes, Theresa LaValley, Donald Perry, Greg Richane and Carol Walker.

For more information about Valley Community Development, its five-year strategic plan, the anniversary celebration, to buy tickets to the 30-year anniversary celebration, or to donate, visit valleycdc.com.

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Information can now be used to raise awareness about the positive educational outcomes for children who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as further improve those outcomes

OMAHA, NEBRASKA—OPTION Schools Inc. is celebrating the 10th year of the conception of its Listening and Spoken Language Data Repository (LSL-DR). Imagined in 2008 and created in 2010, it is now populated with substantial data by the 48 member organizations involved in the education of students who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The LSL-DR is the first reported database that consolidates and holds in one place demographic and outcome measures for children who are deaf or hard of hearing and receive specialized listening and spoken language training from multiple programs throughout the country.

“We are trying to meet a need. Families of children who are deaf or hard of hearing want it known that their child can develop language,” said Tamala S. Bradham, D.H.A., Ph.D., CCC-A, the principal investigator on the project. “In the past, you might see data available on several children—or see a study with 20 or 100 children. We now have the ability to tell the story of 7,000 children. The LSL-DR demonstrates that young children can listen and express themselves through spoken language.”

Bradham added, “The LSL-DR gives us a way to talk to legislators about outcomes individually, at a state level and on a national level. Children who are deaf or hard of hearing can indeed learn to listen, use spoken language, read and sing—all those things. The LSL-DR affords us an opportunity to look at children all across the United States who are deaf or hard of hearing.  

Located in Omaha, Nebraska, OPTION is an international, nonprofit organization comprised of listening and spoken language programs and schools for children who are deaf or hard of hearing in Canada, South America, and the U.S.

In 2008, OPTION made it part of its strategic plan to create a LSL-DR. The database went live on Nov. 10, 2010, and OPTION contracted with the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., where Bradham serves as quality and safety advisor. Bradham was chosen to oversee the population of the data.

Bradham said there are multiple uses for the data, including educating the public about positive outcomes for children who are deaf or hard of hearing as well as further improving those outcomes.

She said it took seven years to collect the data because the process was extremely thorough to ensure the systematic collection of enough data points in a low-incident field such as deaf and hard of hearing. “This kind of a project takes times,” Bradham added. “And everyone who took part should be applauded.”

Bradham added, “We didn’t rush into this. We took time to review literature and test procedures and then got programs on board,” she said. “We were consistently reviewing what data was being collected and identifying opportunities for improvement.”

Yearly workshops were held for participating programs on process and measures collection, she said.

Bradham noted that OPTION was “really ahead of its time when it started this process. It saw a need in the literature and worked to fulfill it.”

An article on the implementation of the LSL-DR was recently published in the December issue of Language, Speech and Hearing Services in Schools, a journal of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. It was authored by four principals who worked on the project: Bradham, the first author of the article; Christopher Fonnesbeck, a bio-statistician at Vanderbilt University Medical Center; Alice Toll, a graduate student, also at Vanderbilt; and Barbara F. Hecht, PhD, director of the Boston campus for Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech.

The article offers an overview of the creation of the database as well as measures selection for data points and information on data collection and entry. An excerpt can be read at http://lshss.pubs.asha.org/article.aspx?articleid=2666236 or by clicking on “OPTION Article Published” at www.optionschools.org/

Hannah Eskridge, president of OPTION, said she is excited about the many possibilities that population of the LSL-DR creates. “We’ve spent seven years entering data and building what’s in the database and bringing all the programs on board to a data collection system together,” she said. “Now, through that database, we can dig into what variables have the most impact on enhancing possibilities for students who are deaf or hard of hearing. There is quite a bit of excitement around this work.”

As a next step in the process, OPTION has created a research committee of representatives from the various member programs who will determine ways in which the data will be used.

Some possibilities include: writing articles to promote awareness around the positive outcomes of listening and spoken language for children who are deaf or hard of hearing; identifying areas for continuing education; and analyzing outcomes to discover areas of improvement.

Bradham said individual programs can use the LSL-DR to review outcomes for individual children and cohorts of children; multiple programs in one state could collaborate and use the data to propose or shape policies in their state; and the information can also be used to track trends and continued opportunities to support students who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Eskridge said one example on how the LSL-DR can be used is to study the impact that receiving various services has on a child in terms of his or her educational outcomes. “We know that earlier identification, appropriate amplification and intervention is crucial to outcomes. What we don’t know is if it makes a difference if a child who receives a cochlear implant at a young age has a certain intensity of follow-up services. We don’t know if it matters if they see a therapist once a week or for five days a week,” she said.

Eskridge said educators know the mother’s level of education has an impact on a child’s outcomes. “We don’t know what types of interventions might change that impact,” she said.

To learn more about LSL-DR outcomes, watch for announcements on the OPTION website at  https://www.optionschools.org/ or contact Martha deHahn at Martha.dehahn@optionschools.org.

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EASTHAMPTON—Janice Beetle, principal of Beetle Press, a public relations and communications firm, recently announced she will celebrate 20 years in business in 2018.

Beetle established the business in 1998 after working as a journalist for 15 years, first as a beat reporter for the Springfield Republican and then as a writer and editor at the Daily Hampshire Gazette. That training has helped her assist clients in connecting with the media via press releases.

Beetle works with a diverse range of clients from the nonprofit and private sectors. She writes for and edits print pieces such as magazines and annual reports. She creates editorial calendars that include print and online media channels, and she supports digital marketing efforts for clients, writing blogs, enewsletters, and website content.

In 2013, Beetle introduced book development to her roster of services, and has since helped launch many authors’ publications.

To mark the 20th anniversary for the business, Alison Winkler, a graphic designer native to Northampton who now lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., adapted the original Beetle Press logo design by Lisa Stowe of Florence, creating an anniversary version.

For a number of years, Beetle promoted her business as a “one-stop shop,” offering writing, editing and graphic design services. Today, Beetle has returned to her roots, focusing on writing, editing and PR services. When clients need more comprehensive services, she partners with colleagues Ruth Griggs, a marketing strategist, and Maureen Scanlon, a graphic designer, in a collaborative called The Creative.

Beetle holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Westfield State College. Since 2003, she has mentored dozens of interns from Westfield State and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. She now employs four former interns on a freelance basis: Shelby Ashline, a graduate of UMass; Shannon Grossman and Ashley Pond, graduates of Westfield State; and David Kennedy, a current Westfield State student.

Clients of Beetle Press include Westfield State University, Glenmeadow, Florence Bank, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech, Sports Travel and Tours, and the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art.

For more information visit www.beetlepress.com.

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