Pickleball in Chesterfield

CHESTERFIELD — Pickleball will begin Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at the New Hingham Regional Elementary School, 30 Smith Road.

Advanced players will play from 10 to 11, and beginners will play from 11 to noon.

Instruction will be offered. All ages are welcome. To protect the gym floor, please plan on changing into clean sneakers to play.

Questions: Megan at: megansw@aol.com

Holidays get
underway Saturday in Holyoke

HOLYOKE — The holiday season gets underway in Holyoke Saturday at 3 p.m. with free, unlimited rides at the Holyoke Merry-Go-Round. Families are invited to visit and take pictures with holiday characters, then make their way to the Holyoke Children’s Museum to create holiday crafts.

The action moves to City Hall at 5 p.m. for hot chocolate, cookies, popcorn, holiday characters and Christmas music. At 5:15 p.m., The Ambassador’s Choir of the First Lutheran Church will perform. They will be followed at 5:30 by the Holyoke High School Madrigal Choir.

At 6 p.m., Holyoke Mayor Joshua A. Garcia will light the City Hall Christmas tree. The annual Parade of Lights will follow with Santa arriving on a firetruck. Bomba de Aqui will perform. 

HCC to host first fall graduate reception Nov. 29

HOLYOKE — For the first time in its 77-year history, Holyoke Community College will celebrate its fall semester graduates with a special reception on Wednesday.

The inaugural reception will run from 5-7 p.m. on the main campus, beginning in HCC’s Leslie Phillips Theater for the official ceremony and continuing over appetizers and activities on the third floor of HCC’s Kittredge Center.

The college says 172 students will be fall 2023 semester graduates, many of whom will transfer to four-year schools for the spring semester. Although fall graduates are always invited to attend HCC’s formal commencement ceremony in the spring, historically, many choose not to attend.

Wednesday’s event will be livestreamed on the HCC website for those who cannot attend: hcc.edu

Vaccine clinic

PLAINFIELD — A flu and COVID vaccine clinic will be held Dec. 13 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Public Safety Building.

To register: (413) 587-1314

Good Neighbor Energy accepting applications

CANTON — The Massachusetts Good Neighbor Energy Fund (GNEF) is accepting applications for its program that provides financial assistance to eligible households to pay for home energy expenses.

The fund helps families and individuals impacted by a temporary crisis and who don’t qualify for federal or state assistance. The 2023-24 campaign year’s fund disbursement is $400 per eligible household per heating season. The Good Neighbor Energy Fund’s 39th annual “Give the Gift of Warmth” campaign’s goal is to raise $500,000 and assist more than 1,500 local households.

Those in temporary crisis are encouraged to visit the Fund’s website at magoodneighbor.org to see if they qualify for assistance.

The Salvation Army Massachusetts Division, which administers the fund for the sponsoring energy companies, pays the energy provider directly for households whose gross income falls between 60 and 80% of the state’s median income levels. For example, a household size of four would need to have a total gross yearly income of between $87,294 and $116,392 to qualify.