COME TO THE BASH SAT. APRIL 6, 12:00 TO 3PM
We are returning this year to Nonotuck Community School for our annual springtime BASH. All BSVA members, potential members, and their children of all ages are welcome. The school is at 221 Riverside Drive with ample parking behind the school.
By tradition, the BASH is a Potluck event. BSVA will provide a selection of soda, juices, and coffee. Reheating your contributed lunch is available in an oven in the school’s kitchen. A major food change is that the Nonotuck School is now a NUT FREE facility. So, as respectful guests, please remember to omit nuts of any kind, in a cup of nibbles, in a salad, in brownies, no peanut butter, etc.
There will be games for the kiddies and art materials for their future masterpieces. The playground behind the parking lot will be available. Our Wall of BSVA History will, as usual, be hung in the hallway. And a raffle for all.
DUES ARE INCREASED FOR 2024
Our annual dues of $10 per household per calendar year has remained unchanged for over 20 years. Little else in the financial world has been that stable.
Our largest expenses are for our now doubled number of annual social events to four, and for our Scholarship Awards to a graduating Bay State student at Northampton High School and to a Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School.
Each Scholarship Award has more than tripled from $200 in 2004. The cost of each of our social events (the upcoming BASH, summer’s Ice-Cream Social, September’s picnic, and the new Donuts & Hot Cider last October) varies from year to year,) but in the course of 20 years, the overall expense has more than doubled. Several years ago we added the annual neighborhood Clean-Up which last year cost $116 for protective gloves, heavy-duty refuse bags, and disposal fees.
We can no longer afford all those programs, plus our administrative and office expenses which include this Newsletter. The August 2023 Newsletter which was distributed to 400 households cost $112 to print. Add maintenance of the flower garden and repair and maintenance of the WELCOME sign in front of Greg’s Auto Repair.
We thank you for your understanding.
HOW TO PAY DUES, and DONATING TO OUR OPERATING EXPENSES OR TO OUR SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Our dues, $20 per household, per calendar year are optional for households with a family member over 65. Please write Dues in the memo space.
We welcome donations to our Operating Expenses and to our Scholarship Fund. Our Operating Expenses, as detailed elsewhere in this Newsletter, pay for our four annual social gatherings, the annual roadside and riverbank Clean-Up, maintenance of our garden, attention to our WELCOME sign in that garden, production of these Newsletters, and the requisite office expenses of any organization.
As a not-for-profit organization, your donation to BSVA may be tax-deductible if you meet the IRS qualifications.
Our Scholarship Fund, begun in the late 1990’s, makes possible our annual awards to one Bay State resident who is graduating from Northampton High School and likewise to one Smith Vocational High School graduate. Our neighbors’ generosity enabled us to double the award since 2017 to $650 last year.
Your gift can be included in your check for dues. Please write an explanatory breakdown in the memo space of your check.
Send your check, payable to BSVA, Inc. to: BSVA, Inc; c/o Norman Spencer, Treasurer; 26 Nutting Ave; Florence MA 01062. A pre-addressed envelope is enclosed with this newsletter for your convenience.
Alternatively, payment can be made via PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=XUF35XB64KNU2
Call Norman Spencer at (413) 587-0801 with any questions.
Thank you.
BSVA GOOGLE GROUPS LISTSERV FOR ALERTS, UPDATES AND YOUR POSTS
If you’d like to be added to Baystate’s Google Groups listserv, please email Josh Bedell at [email protected]. The listserv is a great way to be alerted to what’s happening in your neighborhood and to reach out if you need help with something.
To post a message to all 300 BSVA GOOGLE GROUPS participants, likewise send it to [email protected].
BSVA SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS
The BSVA college scholarship winners — one at Northampton High and a second at Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School — are being selected and will be awarded in late May. If you’d like to contribute to the Baystate Scholarship Fund, please send a check made out to BSVA to Norman Spencer at 26 Nutting Ave., Florence, MA 01062.