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Massachusetts providing $12M to pay for 6,000 summer jobs

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Gov. Deval Patrick announced Saturday that Massachusetts is investing $12 million in state funds in a program that will pay for nearly 6,000 summer job-training opportunities.

BOSTON — Gov. Deval Patrick announced Saturday that Massachusetts is investing $12 million in state funds in a program that will pay for nearly 6,000 summer job-training opportunities.

The funding for the program overseen by YouthWorks — a state-subsidized jobs initiative for at-risk youth aged 14 to 21 — is part of the state budget proposal for the 2015 financial year, Patrick said.

The investment represents a $3 million increase over the budged for the 2014 financial year.

"These jobs are essential to providing our Commonwealth's at-risk youth with a better opportunity for a brighter future, while reducing youth violence across the Commonwealth," Patrick said. "I look forward to working with our partners to ensure that YouthWorks remains fully funded this summer, so we can continue our commitment to the next generation."

Last summer, the program provided job training to 5,175 young people in 31 cities.

The YouthWorks program has grown steadily since Patrick took office, expanding from $4.7 million in the summer of 2007 to $10 million in the summer of 2013. This year's proposed funding would be the largest investment in the program's history.

Patrick's administration also announced that it will preserve funding for YouthBuild at $2 million and maintain its support for the School to Career Connective Activities program at $2.7 million. YouthBuild helps low-income residents, ages 16 to 24, earn high school diplomas or GEDs by learning job skills building affordable housing. School to Career Connecting Activities establishes a partnership between schools and businesses and provide work-based learning experiences for students.


Slippery roads blamed for Amherst crash sending woman to hospital

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The crash was just one of many throughout the Pioneer Valley on Saturday as the snow fell before tapering off in the early evening.

AMHERST — Winter weather is being blamed for a single-vehicle crash in Amherst Saturday that sent a woman to the hospital.

According to Hugh Zeitlin of CBS 3 Springfield, media partner of The Republican/MassLive.com, Capt. Bill Dunn of the Amherst Fire Department said that around 3:40 p.m. a woman's vehicle slid off the pavement on Bay Road, sending it into the woods where it came to rest against a tree.

Dunn said that firefighters had to cut the woman from the vehicle and she was taken to Cooley-Dickinson Hospital for treatment of apparently non-life-threatening injuries.

The crash was just one of many throughout the Pioneer Valley on Saturday as the snow fell before tapering off in the early evening. Local police departments reported dozens of minor accidents that kept offers and towing companies busy for much of the day.

Winter weather advisories issued for many Massachusetts counties expired at 7 p.m., with the low-pressure system that spurred the afternoon snowstorm pushing into northern New England.

According to Mike Skurko, a meteorologist with CBS 3 Springfield, a strong cold front approaches the region on Sunday night with a surge of arctic air beginning its decent on southern New England on Monday.


Massachusetts casino hopefuls to make pitches to state gambling commission

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The three companies hoping to operate the first resort casinos in Massachusetts are getting a chance to make direct pitches to the state gambling commission.

BOSTON — The three companies hoping to operate the first resort casinos in Massachusetts are getting a chance to make direct pitches to the state gambling commission.

MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun and Wynn Resorts are scheduled to each make 90-minute presentations to the panel on Wednesday.

MGM has proposed a casino in downtown Springfield and is the only remaining applicant for the western Massachusetts casino license.

Mohegan Sun wants to build a casino in Revere, if voters there approve a Feb. 25 referendum. The company would be competing for the sole eastern Massachusetts casino license with Wynn, which has proposed a facility in Everett.

All three firms have filed thousands of pages of documents with the five-member commission, which hopes to make decisions and award the licenses in May.

23-year-old Skylar Ormond dies in snowboarding accident at Killington Ski Resort in Vermont

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According to Vermont State Police, Skylar Ormond, 23, of Canandaigua, N.Y. died due to injuries sustained in a snowboarding accident on Friday.

KILLINGTON, Vt. — What was supposed to be a day of fun on the slopes ended with tragedy on Friday after a young New Yorker snowboarding at Killington Ski Resort in Vermont died following an accident.

Skylar OrmondView full sizeSkylar Ormond (Facebook photo) 

According to Vermont State Police, Skylar Ormond, 23, of Canandaigua, N.Y. was snowboarding with two friends on Friday around 9:30 a.m. When in the area of Mouse Trap Trail, police say one of Ormond's friends fell in front of him.

Ormond swerved to miss him, according to police, and apparently lost control and tumbled through a wooded area, striking a tree. Police say his friends immediately contacted the ski patrol and Ormond was taken by ambulance to Rutland Regional Medical Center, where he succumbed to internal injuries a few hours later.

According to his public Twitter feed, Ormond had been traveling through New England, including a stop in Springfield, Mass. on Jan. 8. His final tweet, sent at 6:11 a.m. on Friday, reflected his excitement about the trip, saying, "Welcome to the heart of the green mountains baby! #killingit @killington."




Obama fuels reform on some, but not all, NSA spying

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Obama admitted that he has been torn between how to protect privacy rights and how to protect the U.S. from terror attacks — what officials have called the main purpose of the spy programs.

Barack ObamaIn this Jan. 17 photo, President Barack Obama talks about National Security Agency surveillance at the Justice Department in Washington. Obama'€™s orders to change some U.S. surveillance practices put the burden on Congress to deal with a national security controversy that has alarmed Americans and outraged foreign allies. 

LARA JAKES
Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama's orders to change some U.S. surveillance practices put the burden on Congress to deal with a national security controversy that has alarmed Americans and outraged foreign allies. Yet he avoided major action on the practice of sweeping up billions of phone, email and text messages from across the globe.

In a speech at the Justice Department on Friday, Obama said he was placing new limits on the way intelligence officials access phone records from hundreds of millions of Americans — and was moving toward eventually stripping the massive data collection from the government's hands.

His promises to end government storage of its collection of data on Americans' telephone calls — and require judicial review to examine the data — were met with skepticism from privacy advocates and some lawmakers.

But Obama has made it nearly impossible for reluctant leaders in Congress to avoid making some changes in the U.S. phone surveillance they have supported for years.

Obama admitted that he has been torn between how to protect privacy rights and how to protect the U.S. from terror attacks — what officials have called the main purpose of the spy programs.

"The challenge is getting the details right, and that is not simple," he said.

His speech had been anticipated since former National Security Agency analyst Edward Snowden made off with an estimated 1.7 million documents related to surveillance and other NSA operations and gave them to several journalists around the world. The revelations in the documents touched off a public debate about whether Americans wanted to give up some privacy in exchange for intelligence-gathering on terror suspects.

The president said his proposals "should give the American people greater confidence that their rights are being protected, even as our intelligence and law enforcement agencies maintain the tools they need to keep us safe."

Obama acknowledged more needs to be done, but he largely left it to Congress to work out the details.

The NSA says it does not listen in on the phone calls or read the Internet messages without specific court orders on a case-by-case basis. But intelligence officials do collect specific information about the calls and messages, such as how long they lasted, to try to track communications of suspected terrorists.

Plans to end the sweep of phone records have been building momentum in Congress among both liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans. Congressional leadership and the chairmen of the intelligence committees who for years have signed off on the programs have opposed dramatic changes.

Obama's order signals that the phone program must be overhauled, and lawmakers called his speech a welcome first step.

"It is now time for Congress to take the next step by enacting legislation to appropriately limit these programs," said Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., a member of the House Judiciary Committee.

The leaders of the Senate and House intelligence committees, which have proposed far less sweeping legislation, threw the responsibility back to Obama.

"We encourage the White House to send legislation with the president's proposed changes to Congress so they can be fully debated," Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., said in a coolly worded statement.

Privacy advocates called Obama's proposal a shell game — by assigning the collection to a new, as-of-yet undecided entity instead of ending it outright. They had even sharper criticism for the speech's scant attention to the NSA program that intercepts billions of overseas Internet messages and phone conversations from foreigners each day.

The program, authorized under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, allows the U.S. government to read or listen to the messages and phone calls as long as they do not target American citizens who live overseas.

Obama said he would seek new restrictions on the government's ability to collect or use the overseas messages that accidentally included messages or phone calls from Americans. But he did not spell out how, or by when.

Nor did Obama specify any sweeping changes to the so-called 702 program to protect foreigners' privacy, although he did broadly promise to order "the unprecedented step of extending certain protections that we have for the American people to people overseas." He said that would include limiting the time that the U.S. holds the foreign information it collects and restricting its use.

Given the mass of the foreign communications surveillance, the reforms offered Friday offered just a "sliver" of respite from fears of U.S. spying, said Matt Simons, director of social and economic justice at Chicago-based software company ThoughtWorks.

"There was a clear attempt to narrow down what we're talking about to the easiest, lowest-hanging fruit," said Simons, whose company is among a number of U.S. tech firms demanding broad reforms to prevent their clients from defecting to foreign firms that might offer more protections.

Mark Jaycox, legislative analyst at the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco, predicted that the foreign surveillance under Section 702 will be Congress' next target after the government stops storing its collection of Americans' phone records. The group is suing the NSA to reveal more information about the programs.

At a Brookings Institution forum Friday afternoon, intelligence experts debated the effects of Obama's orders on privacy, security and commerce. While the collection of Americans' phone records "is the molten core of the political debate," the surveillance of foreigners' communications is at the heart of NSA operations, senior fellow Benjamin Wittes said.

Massive changes likely would not be needed, Wittes said, because U.S. intelligence officials generally don't eavesdrop on or read foreign communications they don't need. He called Obama's pledge to protect foreigners' privacy rights a significant step toward rebuilding U.S. trust overseas.

"It is very hard to overstate the sort of spiritual importance of that statement," Wittes said. "This might be an area where the spiritual statement goes a long way without actually changing very much."

Winter Weather Advisory issued for several counties across Massachusetts

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The winter weather advisory is in effect for Hampshire, Franklin, Worcester and Middlesex counties until 7 p.m. Essex County in northeastern Massachusetts has a winter storm warning until the same time.

The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory for much of Massachusetts on Saturday, as a low-pressure system moved into the region before pushing into Northern New England later this evening.

The winter weather advisory is in effect for Hampshire, Franklin, Worcester and Middlesex counties until 7 p.m. Essex County in northeastern Massachusetts has a winter storm warning until the same time.

Hampden County and the greater Springfield area are forecast to receive some snow accumulation, leading to potentially slick roadways, but much less than the counties to the north, according to Nick Morganelli, a meteorologist with CBS 3 Springfield.

By early Saturday afternoon, police in the Pioneer Valley were reporting minor weather-related accidents as DPW crews worked to get sand on the typical problem spots.

WSHM 7 day forecast 1.18.14 

The counties affected by the advisory are expected to see three to five inches of snow this afternoon before the precipitation tapers off around 7-8 p.m. The low-pressure system bringing the snow to the Bay State, mostly north of the Mass. Pike, will then push into Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, leaving much of the commonwealth with a partially clear evening.

Morganelli reports that Sunday will be breezy and with some flurries in the Pioneer Valley. But beginning on Monday, another Arctic air mass moves into the region, bringing potentially dangerous wind chills and temperatures.


Interactive Live Weather Map

 

Snow, sleet and water main break combine for hazardous driving

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Weather and a water main break combine to make driving difficult and dangerous.

SPRINGFIELD— Less than an inch of snow fell on most of Western Mass. but combined with sleet, that layer of precipitation has made roadways across the region slick and dangerous.

The State Police at the Springfield Barracks report numerous sliding accidents on I-91, including three nearly simultaneous crashes near the Chicopee curve on I-91 shortly after 8 a.m.

Police in Springfield, Holyoke and Chicopee report numerous sliding accidents, including one on South Street in Holyoke at approximately 4 a.m. that knocked down a utility pole blocking the street for more than an hour. One person was transported to Holyoke Hospital for treatment of injuries. So far, there have been no reports of serious injuries.

Springfield driving in the North End found driving that much harder after a water main broke on West Street Saturday evening. Most of the roadway was blocked as crews worked through the night to repair the breach.

DPW officials say they hope to have the work completed by mid-morning.

Westfield man appeals conviction in boy's death on Norwich Lake

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The details of the boating crash were haunting: A power boat slammed into a man and his 10-year-old son fishing from a kayak, shearing off the boy's left arm and puncturing his lung as his distraught father tried in vain to save him.

BOSTON (AP) — The details of the boating crash were haunting: A power boat slammed into a man and his 10-year-old son fishing from a kayak, shearing off the boy's left arm and puncturing his lung as his distraught father tried in vain to save him.

Prosecutors said the boat driver, Steven Morse, was impaired by alcohol and marijuana when he hit Gus Adamopoulos and his father. Morse contended that he was temporarily blinded by a sun glare off the lake while pulling a friend on water skis.

Next month, the state's highest court will be asked to consider whether Morse's convictions for misdemeanor homicide by vessel and misleading a police officer should be overturned.

Morse's lawyer argues that prosecutors didn't prove he was impaired. He passed several field sobriety tests and two breath tests that night.

Prosecutors presented testimony that Morse drank five beers and smoked marijuana three times in the hours before the crash. They also called a drug recognition expert who testified that the combined effects of alcohol and marijuana can cause impaired perception of time and distance, judgment and critical thinking.

Morse, of Westfield, insists he wasn't impaired when he took the boat out on Norwich Lake in Huntington on Aug. 17, 2010.

His appellate lawyer said the state's expert testified only generally about how alcohol and marijuana might affect someone.

"(The expert's) testimony told the jury nothing about what the actual effects of Mr. Morse's consumption of beer and marijuana actually or even likely were, and instead only told them what they could have been," Merritt Schnipper wrote in a legal brief.

Prosecutors offered two theories under the charge of homicide by vessel: Morse was negligent because he didn't slow down or take any other evasive action when he became blinded by the sun, or he operated the boat under the influence of an intoxicating substance. The judge told the jury that if they found Morse guilty, they had to specify which theory they believed.

Morse's lawyer argues that his conviction must be overturned because prosecutors didn't prove he was impaired and the jury never specified the theory.

He is also challenging the state law on misleading a police officer, saying it is overly vague and violates the constitutional right against self-incrimination.

But prosecutors say they amply proved that Morse drove the boat while under the influence. After turning into the sun, Morse continued to operate the boat for four seconds before hitting the kayak, and a man on shore said the boat kept moving even after that.

"Considering these factors, the jury readily could have concluded that the defendant's consumption of alcohol or marijuana diminished his ability to safely operate the ski boat by impairing his temporal and spatial perception, slowing his reaction time, and exacerbating his eyes' vulnerability to light," Assistant District Attorney Thomas Townsend argued in a legal brief.

Prosecutors said Morse misled police and intentionally hindered their investigation by withholding that he had smoked marijuana. State troopers never asked specifically about marijuana but did ask whether he had consumed anything other than alcohol that might have impaired his ability to know what was going on around him. He answered no.

Morse's lawyer contends that his response to the trooper's "ambiguous question" cannot be considered a false statement. He said Morse's rights against self-incrimination were violated because he was convicted based on his refusal to tell police he had smoked marijuana that day, which would have helped police gather evidence against him.

But James Adamopoulos said Morse's answer virtually shut down any further testing by police. Since his son's death, he has pushed for a change in the law that would require mandatory testing for both drug and alcohol use after fatal vehicular crashes.

"He knew full well that if police did not know about his consumption of marijuana — and not seeing evidence there in the boat — they would not investigate further. Therefore, no further questions about the specifics of the marijuana use, no efforts to confiscate the marijuana nor test its potency, nor to seek a warrant to test Steven Morse for the presence of the drug in his system. And that is just what happened," Adamopoulos said.

A man who had smoked marijuana with Morse that day later told police about it, so prosecutors were allowed to use his testimony.

Morse was acquitted of six other charges, including manslaughter, and sentenced to five years in a county jail. He was freed on bail after a little over a year while he appeals his conviction.

"He's always been remorseful about it. He's never taken this cavalierly. He has a young son himself," said Michael Jennings, Morse's trial attorney.

The Supreme Judicial Court will hear arguments Feb. 3.


Friendly's introduces new menu

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Friendly’s has created several new desserts that act as the perfect finale to a meal.

WILBRAHAM - To kick off the New Year, Friendly’s Ice Cream, LLC., announced the launch of new breakfast, lunch and dinner, kids and ice cream menus, which will be available in all Friendly’s restaurants this week.

The 78-year-old restaurant and ice cream company, which is known for its family-friendly, value-driven dining, has rolled out a diverse selection of fresh offerings for diners to enjoy. New additions include creative takes on classic dishes as well as an array of healthy meal options, according to a news release. Friendly's has credibility in serving all of the new items and is excited to share the menus with its diners.

It's a lengthy revision, but highlights include Bananas Foster Pancackes and steel cut oatmeal in addition to the Big-Two-Do and Lumber Jack Breakfasts

Complimenting a selection of lunch and dinner offerings are an array of newcomers to Friendly’s Munchies, Salads, SuperMelt Sandwiches, Entrees, Big Beef Burgers and Sandwiches. Stand-out appetizer additions include Buffalo Wings, spicing things up with crispy chicken wings tossed in Buffalo sauce and accompanied by celery sticks and Bleu Cheese dressing; and Cheeseburger Sliders, which features three delicious mini burgers topped with American cheese and served with fresh lettuce, tomatoes, pickle chips and Roasted Red Pepper Garlic sauce for dipping.


With young diners in mind, Friendly's has introduced a new kids menu.

Friendly’s has created several new desserts that act as the perfect finale to a meal. The Forbidden Fudge Brownie, which boasts three scoops of Forbidden Chocolate ice cream with chunks of brownie topped with Friendly's signature hot fudge, Swiss Chocolate and sprinkles; and Caramel Fudge Brownie Sundae, adorned with a warm brownie covered with two scoops of vanilla ice cream and one scoop of Forbidden Chocolate, Friendly's signature hot fudge, caramel and whipped topping, are sure to delight the chocolate-lover in everyone! Additionally, for a limited time, Friendly’s Scoopologists will be serving cups and cones of Toasted Marshmallow Peanut Butter Supreme ice cream, which features toasted marshmallow ice cream with chopped peanut butter cups and swirls of toffee ripple.

Friendly’s Ice Cream, LLC is a vertically integrated restaurant company, with an iconic brand name, serving signature sandwiches, burgers and ice cream desserts in a friendly, family environment. Together with its broad franchisee base, the company has system-wide sales of over $550 million and distribution through over 8,000 retail locations. For 78 years, Friendly’s restaurants and dedicated service teams have delighted generations of guests. For the future, Friendly’s has plans for new food and ice cream products, enhanced buildings, and new service channels. In 2014, Friendly's won a Technomic Chain Restaurant Consumers' Choice Award, in the category of "kid-friendly restaurant." For additional information please visit www.friendlys.com.

Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield taking applications for Leadership Institute

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Since 1982, the program has developed members of the business community for volunteer service to community organizations.

chamberlogo.jpg 

SPRINGFIELD – The Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield is accepting applications are now being accepted for the 2014 session of Leadership Institute, Rethinking Leadership: Sharpening Skills for Organization and Community Service, sponsored by MassMutual Financial Group and the Irene E. and George A. Davis Foundation.

The Leadership Institute is a unique collaboration between the Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield and Western New England University to teach mid and upper level managers the crucial thinking and problem solving skills needed to enable them to be effective leaders in service to the community and in their workplaces and designed to develop high energy and high involvement leadership.

"We have sent a number of our junior to mid level managers to the ACCGS Leadership Institute because it is a cost and time effective ‘mini-MBA’,” said David Southworth, president of the Southworth Company. “The Institute broadens their knowledge and skill set very nicely. The peer participants are all smart, motivated contributors in their own organizations and that is a powerful learning opportunity for our people, as well."

Since 1982, the program has developed members of the business community for volunteer service to community organizations. Institute alumni represent many accomplished and distinguished leaders both in business and education, government and nonprofit communities, including Congressman Richard E. Neal; former Massachusetts Senator and Hampden County Clerk of Courts Brian P. Lees; Henry Thomas, president and chief executive officer of the Urban League of Springfield; and MassMutual Financial Group Vice President Carol Demas and its Community Responsibility Consultant Glenn Davis.

"I developed the self-confidence, vision and delivery skills that most effective leaders have and am broadening my community involvement,” said Hanny Jabiev, a 2013 graduate of the program and small business lending officer with Hampden Bank.

"Having the opportunity to be involved with the chamber, the institute and WNEU has been an investment in attaining my personal and professional goals. I learned to constructively assess my leadership style and evaluate decisions and process that impact my organization, community and my future. The experience of networking and learning from other leaders in our community with the guidance of the WNEU faculty is invaluable," added another 2013 graduate Dianne Gallo, practice manager for Baystate Plastic Surgery.

Directed by the university’s Dean of the College of Business Julie Siciliano and Executive -in-Residence Jack Greeley, Leadership 2014 will challenge participants to think in new ways and to analyze their own strengths and organizational challenges within a dynamic economy. Taught by Western New England faculty, participants will focus on problem solving, learning to ask the right questions and implementing creative solutions for both nonprofit and for-profit organizations. Participants will actively explore best practices of leaders; analyze their own leadership, learning and problem solving styles, and experience the synergies that come from high performing teams. Emphasis will be on experiential activities that identify, develop and refine skill sets for effective leadership.

“If you manage people, sit on a board, or want to explore your leadership potential the Springfield Leadership Institute is a great investment,” said Dawn Starks, general manager of Acres Power Equipment and 2010 graduate. “I learned how to identify my personal leadership style and translate it into the skills necessary for a strong and positive leadership role in my business and community service roles.”

The Leadership Institute runs for seven consecutive Thursdays from 1 to 4:30 p.m., Feb. 13 through March 27, in the TD Bank Conference Center, 1441 Main St., Springfield, and culminates in the ACCGS Beacon Hill Summit, the chamber’s annual trip to Beacon Hill, and a graduation ceremony and dinner, both in April. Tuition is $885 per participant and includes all materials, several learning and personality inventory tools, the summit and the graduation ceremony and dinner. Not-for-profit organizations interested in participating may apply for scholarship funding provided by the Irene E. and George A. Davis Foundation

Interested participants must complete the application, obtain a letter from a sponsor supporting the application and provide written letter of interest with background. Information and applications are available by contacting Kara Cavanaugh at the ACCGS at (413) 755-1310 or by email at cavanaugh@myonlinechamber.com. Deadline for applications is Feb. 5.

The Affiliated Chambers of Commerce of Greater Springfield, Inc. is a business association representing the East of the River Five Town Chamber of Commerce (East Longmeadow/Longmeadow, Hampden/Wilbraham and Ludlow), the city of Springfield, the Professional Women’s Chamber and nearly 1,200 businesses of all sizes, industry and profession, providing leadership in creating a healthy economic climate.

Reader Raves 2014: PeoplesBank named Best Place to Get a Mortgage

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PeoplesBank of Holyoke first when it comes to getting a mortgage.

HOLYOKE - Getting a mortgage can be a daunting experience: reams of legalistic forms, question after question about the roof, the basement, your job, your life.

That's why, says James A. Sherbo, senior vice president of consumer lending at PeoplesBank, it pays to have a team.

Sherbo credits his team of 30 mortgage lenders as the reason why PeoplesBank was named Reader Raves Best Place to Get a Mortgage in the most recent MassLive.com and The Republican reader poll.

"It really means a lot to us, because we work hard to serve our customers," Sherbo said.

The mortgage win follows up PeoplesBank accolades in Reader Raves: 2013 summer-fall for Best Place to Work, Best Financial Advisor and Best Local Bank and a 2013 win as Best Mortgage Lender.

The bank has also been earned a great place to work and has received a number of awards for its environmentally friendly bank branches and its efforts to loan for green-energy projects.

Recent changes in federal banking law mean stricter rules for lenders and a lot of adjustment in the industry. But Sherbo said PeoplesBank was ready to make the switch when those new rules took effect on Jan. 1.

"We've dealt with all those issues," he said, "and our lending standards were always high."

PeoplesBank also has no bank-owned properties or any foreclosures on its books now.

"We go to great lengths to work with all of our customers," Sherbo said. "It's about availability. If one of our customers is in trouble, we work with them."

PeoplesBank lending officers are local, and decisions are made locally, he said.

Headquartered in Holyoke, PeoplesBank has 17 offices and also allows customers to apply for a mortgage online. But even if they apply online, their case is handled by a banker who can also meet and discuss the application in person, Sherbo said.

Obituaries today: Joseph Gagne worked at The Mills in Indian Orchard

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Obituaries from The Republican.

 
011914-joseph-gagneJoseph Gagné 

Joseph R. Gagné, 82, of Palmer, passed away on Tuesday. Born in Highgate, Vt., he was a longtime area resident. He was employed at The Mills in Indian Orchard for many years, and for 10 years worked as a graphic artist. He had a passion for drawing and art. He was a lifelong Red Sox fan. He enjoyed candlepin bowling and was a die-hard Yahtzee fan. He enjoyed being a drummer in numerous country bands over the years, especially with his three brothers in "The Gagne Brothers Band."

Obituaries from The Republican:


Urban streets named for MLK still struggle

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A walk down the 6-mile city street in St. Louis named for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. yields plenty of images that would surely unsettle the civil rights leader.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A walk down the 6-mile city street named for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. yields plenty of images that would surely unsettle the civil rights leader: shuttered storefronts, open-air drug markets and a glut of pawn shops, quickie check-cashing providers and liquor stores.

The urban decay along Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in St. Louis can be found in other major American cities, from Houston and Milwaukee to the nation's capital.

"It's a national problem," said Melvin White, a 46-year-old postal worker in St. Louis and founder of a 3-year-old nonprofit group that is trying to restore King's legacy on asphalt. "Dr. King would be turning over in his grave."

Nearly three decades into the observance of Monday's federal holiday, the continuing decline of the most visible symbols of King's work has White and others calling for a renewed commitment to the more than 900 streets nationwide named in the Atlanta native's honor. The effort centers in St. Louis, where the small nonprofit is working to reclaim MLK roadways as a source of pride and inspiration, not disappointment over a dream derailed.

White's goals are ambitious, his resources admittedly modest. A neighborhood park is planned across the street from the group's headquarters. An urban agriculture project to encourage residents to eat healthy and grow their own food has preliminary support from nearby Washington University, one of the country's wealthiest private colleges. Above all, Beloved Streets of America wants to build community from the ashes of what was once a thriving retail corridor when White was a child.

The template can be found just a mile away. Delmar Boulevard, which saw a similar decline, is now a vibrant retail corridor packed with restaurants, nightclubs, a renovated movie theater and a boutique hotel. The renaissance earned Delmar recognition in 2007 as one of "10 Great Streets in America" by the American Planning Association.

Locally, the stark racial split of the east-west thoroughfare — largely white and affluent to the south, mostly poor and black to the north — is referred to as the "Delmar Divide." Journalist Jonathan Tilove, who wrote a 2003 book based on visits to 650 King streets nationwide, called the King byways "black America's Main Street."

"Map them and you map a nation within a nation, a place where white America seldom goes and black America can be itself," he wrote. "It is a parallel universe with a different center of gravity and distinctive sensibilities. ... There is no other street like it."

But while streets named for King undoubtedly resonate widely in the black community, a University of Tennessee geography professor whose research explores the cultural and political significance of such streets said the compromised condition of streets named for King in St. Louis and other cities deserves broader attention.

"In some ways we racially profile these streets," said Derek Alderman, author of a 2007 study that found a smaller disparity among MLK-named streets and other "main streets" than is popularly portrayed. "We need to move beyond those images and see what concrete lives and realities are living on those streets."

More than 50 years after King led his march on Washington, communities large and small still debate whether to rename local streets in his honor. In Harrisonburg, Va., city leaders recently agreed to rename a street for King over protests by some residents. A similar debate continues in High Point, N.C., where a King street proposal first suggested two decades ago remains up in the air.

Other cities have had more success in balancing the desire to commemorate King without superceding local tradition. Alderman singled out Chapel Hill, N.C., which in 2005 renamed a major thoroughfare that abuts the University of North Carolina campus. Street signs that identify Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard also include the name "Historic Airport Road."

Chicago's Martin Luther King Drive, a major thoroughfare spanning roughly a dozen miles south of downtown, is anchored by important hubs of black life in the city. The street features grassy boulevards with stately greystones, while other segments touch rougher patches that have fallen into disrepair, including a dilapidated motel that drew community protests over crime. Gentrification is taking hold along some parts.

The major landmarks include Bronzeville, the neighborhood where numerous black activists lived or worked and tourism officials have marked with plaques. There's also Chicago State University, where Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Gwendolyn Brooks taught.

In Miami, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard stretches from the predominantly Cuban town of Hialeah through largely black Liberty City and into Little Haiti — a reflection of both the city's diverse demographics as well as its lingering segregation.

Along MLK Boulevard in Hialeah, where U.S. flags fly alongside Cuban ones, MLK Boulevard isn't known as the street named after a civil rights leader. Rather, it's simply referred to by its number: "La Nueve Street," or 9th Street.

The sights and sounds of MLK Boulevard change in Liberty City, where many buildings are shuttered and storefront churches can be found on almost every block. In the decades after the civil rights movement, Liberty City has seen two race riots and struggled to escape a cycle of violence and poverty.

At Miami Edison High School on the border of Liberty City and Little Haiti, 17-year-old Judith Etienne said King would be disappointed in his unfulfilled dream.

"I'm sure Martin Luther King didn't have this in his dream," she said. "There's a lot of kids dying of gang violence in this community."

For Alderman, the King street scholar, the struggle to reclaim MLK Jr. Drive in St. Louis offers a realistic portrayal of the battles King waged a half-century ago — and where such efforts need to reach into the 21st Century.

"Those street names are really powerful social indicators of how far we've come in really fulfilling the dream, and giving us an indication of where we need to do more work," he said. "As much as it may sadden us, it demarcates and defines boundaries for civil rights activism for the future. You've got something that remembers the past that actually works, in its own tragic irony, to symbolize where the struggle still is."


McLadden Restaurant Group expands to Simsbury, Conn., for its fourth Irish Publick House

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The chain, owned by Michael Ladden, also operates restaurants in West Hartford, where it is based, and in Hampden and Northampton, Mass.

SIMSBURY - McLadden Restaurant Group announced that it will be opening a fourth McLadden’s Irish Publick House, in Simsbury, Conn.

This is the second location in Connecticut. The original restaurant began in West Hartford Center in 2009. In addition to these Connecticut operations, the group has restaurants in Hampden and Northampton, Mass. The group will be bringing its unique brand of casual dining, craft beer experience and pub atmosphere to the Farmington Valley. Renovations and infrastructure improvements have begun at the former Iron Frog Tavern location on Wilcox Street in downtown Simsbury. The restaurant is expected to open in February.

Michael Ladden, president of McLadden Restaurant Group, grew up in Granby, Conn., and was
a long time resident of the Farmington Valley.

“Simsbury provides us with an exciting opportunity to take our growing organization once again to the next level,” Ladden said. “We have had the success and good fortune to continue to grow and bring what I believe to be a unique blending of a traditional Irish pub, a craft beer destination spot and a casual comfort food experience.

McLadden Restaurant Group, headquartered in West Hartford, is a privately held restaurant and bar company operating under the McLadden’s Irish Publick House trademark name. It operates as a craft beer destination, traditional Irish restaurant and pub. In addition it is known for live music, a wide range of sporting events, pub quiz trivia, bar bingo and beer dinners.

US lawmakers raise safety concerns about Olympics in Sochi

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Suicide bombings last month in the southern Russian city of Volgograd, about 400 miles from where the Sochi Games will be held, have contributed to the safety anxiety.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Members of Congress expressed serious concerns Sunday about the safety of Americans at next month's Olympics in Russia and said Moscow needs to cooperate more on security.

Suicide bombings last month in the southern Russian city of Volgograd, about 400 miles from where the Sochi Games will be held, have contributed to the safety anxiety. Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised that his country will do all it can to ensure a safe Olympics without imposing security measures that are too intrusive.

The State Department has advised Americans who plan to attend the Olympics, which run Feb. 7-23, that they should keep vigilant about security because of potential terrorist threats, crime and uncertain medical care.

Rep. Mike RogersU.S. Rep. Mike Rogers of Michigan

"We don't seem to be getting all of the information we need to protect our athletes in the games," said Rep. Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. "I think this needs to change, and it should change soon."

But FBI Director James Comey said earlier in January that the Russian government "understands the threat and is devoting the resources to address it."

Rogers, R-Mich., contended that the Russians "aren't giving us the full story about what are the threat streams, who do we need to worry about, are those groups, the terrorist groups who have had some success, are they still plotting? There's a missing gap, and you never want that when you go into something I think as important as the Olympic Games and the security of the athletes, and the participants and those who come to watch."

Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said from Moscow that he planned to be in Sochi on Monday to assess the security situation.

"All the briefings that I've received, from the intelligence community to the FBI and others, indicate that there are serious concerns, and that we need to do a lot to step up security. I do believe Putin is doing a lot of that," said McCaul, R-Texas.

While he said diplomatic security has declared Russian cooperation on safety measures is good, he said "it could be a lot better, and that's one thing I want to press while I'm over here."

Comey, the FBI head, told reporters this month in Washington that "we have been in regular communication -- including me personally -- with their security organizations to make sure we're coordinating well. I think that we are. We've improved our information sharing on counterterrorism and it's important."

No one has claimed responsibility for the December bombings in Volgograd. But the blasts followed Chechen warlord Doku Umarov's call to launch attacks on the Olympics.

"I would not go, and I don't think I would send my family," said Sen. Angus King, I-Maine.

An insurgency seeking to create an independent Islamic state in the Caucasus has swept the region after two separatist wars in Chechnya. Chechnya's Moscow-backed strongman, Ramzan Kadyrov, claimed Thursday that Umarov was dead, but he offered no proof to the claim he had repeatedly made in the past.

The province of Dagestan, located between Chechnya and the Caspian Sea, about 300 miles east of Sochi, has become the center of the rebellion, with daily shootings and bombings of police and other officials.

Rogers appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" and CBS' "Face the Nation." King was on CNN and McCaul spoke on ABC's "This Week."


FieldEddy Insurance launches Applied Epic, state-of-the-art computer system

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The new system will allow agents to streamline workflows and operational tasks, manage policies in a consistent manner to minimize risk, reduce operating expenses and drive sustainable growth and profitability.

fieldeddylogo.jpg 

LONGMEADOW – FieldEddy Insurance last week launched its new computer operating system, Applied Epic.

This has been a 10-month, hands-on training process that has been instituted as a way to better serve clients and optimize the day-to-day operations. Applied Epic is the insurance industry’s fastest-growing agency management system chosen by more agencies to enhance business for growth and to build stronger client relationships.

timm mariniTimm Marini 

“About three years of planning comes to an end with the launch of the new EPIC software,” said Timm Marini, president of FieldEddy Insurance. "The two systems that were used prior were becoming more outmoded and couldn’t seem to keep up with the level of growth and productivity that the agency is seeing. We knew it was time to research and institute a new system that would be a better fit and one that would generate high-performance results. We are happy and confident that Epic is the best and right choice for us.”

All the firm's 79 employees have been expected to participate in detailed training sessions in order to be well-prepared and knowledgeable in the interface prior to launch. The system will allow agents to streamline workflows and operational tasks, manage policies in a consistent manner to minimize risk, reduce operating expenses and drive sustainable growth and profitability.

Along with some of the benefits mentioned above, everyone in all four offices will now be using the same computer program.

“It has been a significant financial investment and I can’t wait to see the results. Our focus has always been the customer and this new program will certainly provide exceptional customer service,” Marini said.

Virginia quickly emerging as key in gay marriage fight

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Almost overnight, Virginia has emerged as a critical state in the nationwide fight to grant gay men and women the right to wed.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Almost overnight, Virginia has emerged as a critical state in the nationwide fight to grant gay men and women the right to wed.

This purple state was once perceived as unfriendly and even bordering on hostile to gay rights. That's changed after a seismic political shift in the top three elected offices, from conservative Republicans to liberal Democrats who support gay marriage.

Two federal lawsuits challenging the state's constitutional ban on gay marriage are moving forward, and a hearing on one of the cases is scheduled for Jan. 30.

With the recent court gains in Utah and Oklahoma, gay rights advocates are heartened by the new mood in Virginia. Symbolically as well, they say, the challenges of the state's gay marriage ban resonate because of the founding state's history of erecting a wall between church and state and a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision involving a Virginia couple and a past taboo: interracial marriage.

"Virginia is one of several important battlefronts where we have the opportunity now to build on the momentum, embrace the public's movement in favor of the freedom to marry and end the discrimination," said Evan Wolfson, founder and president of New York-based Freedom to Marry, which seeks to have same-sex marriage bans struck down nationwide.

With the election of Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Attorney General Mark Herring, the state made a hairpin turn away from the socially conservative officeholders they succeeded, particularly Republican Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, an activist on social issues such as abortion and gay marriage. Herring had campaigned, in part, on marriage equality, and McAuliffe issued an executive order on inauguration day prohibiting discrimination against state employees who are gay.

Democratic legislators, still widely outnumbered in the House of Delegates, have also been emboldened by the shift away from a reliably conservative state. They took immediate aim at the state's ban on gay marriage, but proposed constitutional amendments face a long road. The earliest voters could see a proposed amendment is in 2016.

The separate lawsuits intended to topple the constitutional ban on gay rights have been filed in federal courts, which are typically speedy in Virginia. The issue could ultimately be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

One lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Harrisonburg, involves two couples from the Shenandoah Valley who claim the state's ban on gay marriage violates the Constitution's equal protection and due process clauses. The American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal are representing the plaintiffs.

Camilla Taylor, marriage project director for Lambda Legal, said Virginia's "intriguing" history on marriage rights played a role in filing the challenge here. A 1967 Supreme Court decision involving a Virginia couple invalidated laws on miscegenation, or interracial marriage .

The case involved Mildred and Richard Loving. The interracial couple had been living in Virginia when police raided their home in 1958 and charged them with violating the state's Racial Integrity law. They had been married in Washington, D.C.

The Lovings were convicted before ultimately prevailing before the Supreme Court.

"The narrative in Virginia of how marriage plays into Virginia history, why the state was so important nationally for our struggle, is a very significant one," Taylor said.

The other lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Norfolk on similar constitutional claims. The legal costs in that case are being paid for by the American Foundation for Equal Rights, which was behind the effort to overturn California's gay marriage ban.

David Boies and Theodore B. Olson, the high-profile legal tandem that brought down California's prohibition on same-sex marriage, lead the legal team in that challenge. Both cited Virginia's history when they announced their challenge.

"This case is about state laws that violate personal freedoms, are unnecessary government intrusions, and cause serious harm to loving gay and lesbian couples," Olson said. "As a Virginian and a conservative, I believe these laws stand against the very principles of our nation's founding."

Boies compared their challenge of the state's gay marriage ban to the Loving case.

"Virginia gave us the first marriage equality case -- and the one that most clearly established that the right to marry the person you love is a fundamental right of all Americans," Boies said. "It's fitting, then, that Virginia be the battleground for another great test of that principal."

Virginia voters approved the same-sex marriage ban 57 percent to 43 percent in 2006.

A Quinnipiac University poll in July found that 50 percent of registered Virginia voters support same-sex marriage, while 43 percent oppose it. The survey's margin of error was plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

"Their hearts and minds have changed," Wolfson said of Virginians. "That's exactly why it should not be in the Constitution."

The lawsuit puts Herring's office in the position of arguing against a right he championed on the campaign trail. A spokeswoman said "he's reviewing appropriate legal options."

Victoria Cobb, president of the conservative Family Foundation of Virginia, said she is concerned about the recent court decisions on gay marriage and Herring's recalcitrance.

"I'd like to see the attorney general, as the person elected to defend our laws, give a staunch defense of it," she said. "That's what the top attorney should be doing ."

The judges presiding in the Harrisonburg and Norfolk challenges are appointees of President Barack Obama.

President Obama's surveillance idea won't work, lawmakers say

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A chief element of President Barack Obama's attempt to overhaul U.S. surveillance will not work, leaders of Congress' intelligence committees said today.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A chief element of President Barack Obama's attempt to overhaul U.S. surveillance will not work, leaders of Congress' intelligence committees said Sunday, pushing back against the idea that the government should cede control of how Americans' phone records are stored.

Obama, under pressure to calm the controversy over government spying, said Friday he wants bulk phone data stored outside the government to reduce the risk that the records will be abused. The president said he will require a special judge's advance approval before intelligence agencies can examine someone's data and will force analysts to keep their searches closer to suspected terrorists or organizations.

"And I think that's a very difficult thing," Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Sunday. "Because the whole purpose of this program is to provide instantaneous information to be able to disrupt any plot that may be taking place."

Under the surveillance program, the NSA gathers phone numbers called and the length of conversations, but not the content of the calls. Obama said the NSA sometimes needs to tap those records to find people linked to suspected terrorists. But he said eventually the bulk data should be stored somewhere out of the government's hands. That could mean finding a way for phone companies to store the records, though some companies have balked at the idea, or it could mean creating a third-party entity to hold the records.

Feinstein, D-Calif., said many Americans don't understand that threats persist a dozen years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. "New bombs are being devised. New terrorists are emerging, new groups. Actually, a new level of viciousness. And I think we need to be prepared," Feinstein said.

Rep. Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said Obama had intensified a sense of uncertainty about the country's ability to root out terrorist threats. Obama didn't say who should have control of Americans' data; he directed the attorney general and director of national intelligence to find a solution within 60 days.

"We really did need a decision on Friday, and what we got was lots of uncertainty," Rogers, R-Mich., said. "And just in my conversations over the weekend with intelligence officials, this new level of uncertainty is already having a bit of an impact on our ability to protect Americans by finding terrorists who are trying to reach into the United States."

The lawmakers did praise the president for his defense of the National Security Agency's surveillance programs. "First, I thought it was very important that the president laid out no abuses, this was not an illegal program, it wasn't a rogue agency," Rogers said.

The surveillance programs have been under fire since former National Security Agency analyst Edward Snowden absconded with an estimated 1.7 million documents related to surveillance and other NSA operations, giving the documents to journalists around the world. Revelations in the documents sparked a furor over whether Americans have been giving up privacy protections in exchange for intelligence-gathering on terrorism.

Congress will have a lot of say in how and whether Obama's ideas are carried out.

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has proposed to end the NSA's bulk data collection program, putting him at odds with his fellow Democrat Feinstein on the issue. Leahy said senators would have many questions for Attorney General Eric Holder when he comes before the Judiciary Committee next week.

Yet Leahy suggested Sunday he might not fight the president on allowing the NSA's surveillance programs to continue.

"No, I think we have a way that we could do this, but it's not a question of fighting the president," Leahy said on Fox. "The question is, what is Congress going to do on this? ... I just think that there should be an oversight.

"I mean, I was a prosecutor for eight years; I believe in going after the bad guys," Leahy said. "And I realize this is an entirely different level of the bad guys that I went after, but you still have to have some checks and balances, or you have a government that can run amok."

The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Michael McCaul, said on ABC that Obama was moving in the right direction.

"I think what gave most Americans heartburn was that this data was being stored under the NSA and warehoused under the government," said McCaul, R-Texas.

But McCaul allowed, "I think it's very difficult to decide who has the capability to store and use this data."

Sen. Mark Udall, another critic of the NSA surveillance program, praised the president's ideas and said the limitations Obama proposed mean that "we won't collect every Americans' phone records almost every day."

Udall, D-Colo. and a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Congress has a real motivation to make meaningful changes to the program because authority to conduct the spying under post-9/11 laws expires next year. "So we have real motivation to get it right and to work together," Udall said on CBS.

Feinstein and Rogers appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press." Rogers also appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" and CBS' "Face the Nation." Leahy appeared on "Fox News Sunday." Udall appeared on CBS.

Iran prepares for start of landmark nuclear deal

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Under the agreement, Iran will limit its uranium enrichment to 5 percent -- the grade commonly used to power reactors. The deal also commits Iran to stop producing 20 percent enriched uranium -- which is only a technical step away from weapons-grade material -- and to neutralize its 20 percent stockpile over the six months.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Ahead of the start of a nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, an official in the Islamic Republic called limiting uranium enrichment and diluting its stockpile the country's "most important commitments," state radio reported Sunday.

The comments by Behrouz Kamalvandi, a spokesman of Iran's atomic department, show how the government of moderate President Hassan Rouhani welcomes the deal, which begins Monday. International inspectors also already have arrived in Tehran, preparing for the government opening its facilities to them.

"Implementation of mutual commitments in the framework of the Geneva deal will begin from tomorrow," Kamalvandi said. "Under the agreement, suspension of 20-percent enrichment of uranium -- and the diluting of the current stockpile of enriched uranium -- are the most important commitments of our country."

Iran struck the deal in November with the so-called P5+1 countries -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States. Negotiators agreed to final terms of the deal Jan. 13.

Under the agreement, Iran will limit its uranium enrichment to 5 percent -- the grade commonly used to power reactors. The deal also commits Iran to stop producing 20 percent enriched uranium -- which is only a technical step away from weapons-grade material -- and to neutralize its 20 percent stockpile over the six months.

In exchange, economic sanctions Iran faces would be eased for six months. Senior officials in U.S. President Barack Obama's administration have put the total relief figure at some $7 billion.

During the six months, negotiations between Iran and the world powers would continue in hopes of reaching a permanent deal.

The West fears Iran's nuclear program could allow it to build an atomic weapon. Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, like power generation and medical research.

On Saturday a team of international inspectors arrived in Tehran in preparation of beginning their inspections. They will visit Fordo, where Iran enriches its 20 percent uranium, as well as its Natanz facility, which produces 5 percent enriched uranium, to ensure the country complies with the deal.

Kamalvandi said Sunday that Iran will use centrifuges now producing 20 percent enriched uranium to instead produce 5 percent enriched uranium to comply with the agreement.

But suspicions remain high in both Tehran and Washington after decades of hostility dating back to the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran that ousted the U.S.-backed shah dynasty. Rouhani, Iran's new reformist president, has reached out to the West, but must depend on support from Iran's top decision-maker, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, for his initiatives amid criticism from hard-line factions.

Hard-liners in Iran have already called the deal a "poison chalice" and are threatening legislation to increase uranium enrichment. Meanwhile, U.S. lawmakers have threatened to pass new sanctions legislation against Iran that would take effect if Tehran violates the interim nuclear deal or lets it expire without a follow-up accord.

Writing a post on his Facebook page Sunday, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif reassured the world that the deal will begin on time.

"I am hopeful that implementation of the first phase will have positive results for the country and peace and stability in the region and the world while preparing the ground for essential talks on a final solution," Zarif wrote.

Nuclea in Pittsfield signs development deals

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The deals signed with AccuGenomics Inc. and Nuvera Biosciences, Inc. will include validating two new assays in the treatment of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia and breast cancer.

PITTSFIELD — As Nuclea closed out a year of rapid growth, it signed two development deals that will expand its service offering to include CLIA federal standards validation. The deals signed with AccuGenomics Inc. and Nuvera Biosciences Inc. will include validating two new assays in the treatment of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia and breast cancer.

The deals include the manufacturing and selling of kits for one assay, and offering both assays in their CLIA laboratory. These agreements mark Nuclea’s rapid growth into CLIA laboratory developed tests.

The agreement with AccuGenomics, Inc. will soon lead to more effective treatments for those diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia. Nuclea will participate in the co-development of the BCR-abl diagnostic assay and will validate the test so it can be used in a clinical lab. The pairing of these two leaders in the fields of diagnostics and monitoring will accelerate the timeframe for making this test available.

Nuclea will manufacture the AccuGenomics BCR-abl Molecular Diagnostic Kit in its new GMP facility, sell the research use only kits, and offer the test in their CLIA laboratory. Nuclea also will develop and submit an IVD product to the FDA for approval.

After patients receive bone marrow transplants, they need to be continuously monitored. The BCR-abl test is able to monitor efficiency of treatment, residual disease, and disease relapse in those CML patients with a BCR-abl MBCR fusion gene event between oncogenes. Currently, there is a dry test available on the market. However, the BCR-abl test is chromosomal, and provides faster and more accurate results than other tests currently available.

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