Outreach worker John Bergeron is retiring after almost three decades of helping hilltowners. (Photo by Amy Porter)
HUNTINGTON – There is probably no one living in the hilltowns who hasn’t been helped by John Bergeron, or knows someone who has. For the last 25 to 30 years, Bergeron has been one of the few people to turn to when needing guidance in obtaining health care, food stamps, fuel assistance, housing or most anything else.
Bergeron, a senior outreach worker with the Hilltown Community Health Centers (HCHC), will be leaving the position on Friday, Aug. 17. An ‘Aloha John Bergeron party on the occasion of his retirement’ is being planned the night before, Aug. 16 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Comfort Kitchen 4 Main St. in Huntington.
Bergeron said he has always done more than just health access, including “pretty much the whole gamut.” He’s helped people with resumes and job searches, and simple budgeting. “I even did a divorce. It was uncontested, just paperwork. They hadn’t lived together for years. It made sense financially for both of them at that point,” he said.
Navigating paperwork, lots of it, has been a big part of the way he’s helped people. “People tend to get intimidated by forms,” he said. “The need’s always been there. Seems like the need is even greater these days,” Bergeron added.
When asked how many people he helps, he shrugs, guessing at a couple of thousand a year. Officially, he serves the four hilltowns of Huntington, Chester, Middlefield and Russell through one grant-funded program. Most of the people who come to him are referred by HCHC, or through word of mouth.
As a health access worker, he also gets people from the other side of Springfield, and even calls from Boston. “If they reside in this state, I can help,” he said, adding, “We try to keep it to the area that HCHC serves, but it goes way beyond that.”
Bergeron grew up in Southwick, and plans to attend his 46th high school reunion there next Saturday. He moved to Huntington in 1982, where he soon became a single parent of a 1 ½ and 3 year old.
He first started providing social services under the Hampshire Community Action Center (HCAC) when he was hired for a five hour grant-funded position. At the time, HCAC was offered a grant to assess the experiences of the hilltown consumer with various agencies, such as MassHealth and food stamps.
“I identified a great need, and in a short time, turned it into a 35-hour position,” Bergeron said. At the same time, he was working 15-20 hours doing outreach for HCHC, where he has been full-time for the past 18 years.
John Bergeron and longtime Community Health Worker Diane Meehan, who also retired this year. (Photo by Amy Porter)
For many years, Bergeron and Community Health Worker Diane Meehan, who also retired earlier this year, were providing the only social services in the area.
“This was it for the Hilltowns. For years, there wasn’t anybody to lean on. If we had to figure something out, we figured it out by ourselves,” he said. The only alternatives people had were to go to Westfield, Northampton or Pittsfield to seek help.
Meehan also worked for HCAC for twelve years, and HCHC for thirteen years. Though retired, she is still the Director of the Hilltown Pantry in Chesterfield.
Meehan said she and Bergeron started in the basement of Town Hall before moving to an office in the Hilltown Community Center at 9 Russell Road in Huntington. She said they worked there while they were still rehabbing the building, using plastic on the walls to keep the cold out.
“The irony was not lost on us, while doing a fuel assistance application for someone, to suggest ‘you might want to keep your coat on,’ ” Meehan said.
Now HCHC rents the whole building, and provides a number of services, including the Hilltown Family Center, Health Access and Navigators, Hilltown Social Services, Health Outreach Program for Elders (HOPE), and Hilltown Safety at Home, a domestic violence victim advocacy program. Gail Bobbin, a domestic violence victim advocate for the program for many years, also retired this year.
Hilltown Community Center, 9 Russell Road in Huntington (WNG File Photo)
Meehan said HCHC has hired a domestic violence worker, and has four community health workers, one in the newly opened John P. Musante Health Center in Amherst. “What they mainly do is help people interested in bettering their health or well-being,” she said, adding that community health workers offer support and resources.
Much of the work that both Bergeron and Meehan have done has been grant-funded, initially through Community Development Block Grants, and also United Way, Mass DPH, Navigator and the BCBS Foundation. “Some years were more robust than others,” she said.
“I was always grateful that he was willing to work on the insurance end of things,” Meehan said about working with Bergeron, who she added had real determination, and tried to make it easy for people.
“What probably touches me the most is being able to help somebody in a great way. I’ve been able to take somebody from here, to here,” Bergeron said, marking a line with his hands. “I’ve seen the Affordable Care Act really help people,” he added, saying while it’s not perfect, “it has really helped.”
Bergeron said once he retires, he is going to take a break. Part of his focus will be on helping his son through some medical issues.
“It’s going to be sad, because I really enjoyed working with the people, and figuring out the problems. But it was work,” he added.
