Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Eric Oulette. (SUBMITTED PHOTO)
WESTFIELD — Executive Director Eric Oulette and the Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce have stacked events for the holiday season through the end of the year.
“We’re getting back into the swing of things,” Oulette said.
On Nov. 1, the Chamber started its annual “Share the Warmth” coat drive for children in pre-kindergarten through grade 12 in conjunction with Westfield Public Schools. He said the drive, which runs through Dec. 22, has been held for many years, even during the pandemic.
The Chamber has added a dozen drop-off locations, including its office at 16 N. Elm St., which is open Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Other locations include Westfield Barnes Airport’s public terminal building, River Valley Counseling’s new location in the Westwood Building at 92 N. Elm St., and at other sites across the city. Oulette said hats, mittens, gloves and scarves are also welcome.
“I’d like to thank new Executive Director Eric Oulette for working with the school department to continue this drive that we started several years ago. Our school system has a significant number of students that are in need of winter jackets, hats, and gloves every year. This drive does a lot to meet these needs annually and for that we are grateful to the Westfield community,” said Superintendent Stefan Czaporowski.
“We’re also ramping up for Shop Small Saturday, the Saturday after Thanksgiving,” Oulette said. He said a lot of businesses have opened over the last 18 months in Westfield, and the Chamber is encouraging residents to shop locally for Christmas, not only on that Saturday, but throughout the season.
The Chamber is working in conjunction with Westfield on Weekends to promote its holiday activities. It is also encouraging residents when they shop at a local store or boutique to use the hashtag the #greaterwestfieldchamber to enter a drawing for a $25 gift certificate to another local businesses.
On Dec. 9, the Chamber will host its Holiday breakfast at the East Mountain Country Club. Oulette said this will be a festive event, with the Westfield High School Chorus on hand to celebrate the holiday season.
“We weren’t able to do it last year,” Oulette said, adding that there won’t be a business meeting portion, just the celebration, which he said is sponsored by Westfield Bank. The Chamber will also be collecting canned food items for the Westfield Food Pantry.
Oulette said it feels like Westfield has finally turned the corner on the pandemic.
“We’re very lucky, people are excited to get back together,” he said, adding that the Chamber breakfasts held in September and October had 90 people attend. “We’re very fortunate that the city of Westfield is here to support each other,” he added.
For more information on these and other upcoming events, or to register for the holiday breakfast, visit www.westfieldbiz.org, email [email protected], or call the Chamber at 413-568-1618.
