Dear colleagues,

It has been a celebratory week! On Tuesday, I had the pleasure of representing MHOA at the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. It was exciting to hear from the distinguished speakers and marvel at the accomplishments of the past 50 years and what's to come.

Then it was back to the State House on Thursday for Public Health Excellence Day! What an amazing turnout of local public health professionals, legislators, staff, and supporters. The vibe in the room was incredible as we highlighted PHE successes from the past five years, celebrated the passage of SAPHE 2.0, and looked forward to continued growth. MHOA Treasurer Matthew Brennan and MHOA member Victoria Selser each spoke about work in their shared services arrangement, alongside Commissioner Robbie Goldstein and elected officials. You can check out a few photos and additional highlights in this Massachusetts Public Health Alliance post. I'm grateful MHOA is a part of this incredible work, and for everyone who took the time to travel to Boston. Your presence was impactful.

And on Wednesday in between, MHOA Program Director Jen Tsoi and I attended the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network conference in Worcester. It was very helpful to take the time to lean into MHOA's nonprofit identity, and all things that go along with that by learning from and networking with other nonprofit professionals.

It's been a busy week as excitement and preparations continue for the 2025 MHOA Annual Conference. For those of you attending the conference, you'll continue to hear from us via the conference newsletter. This MHOA Weekly Newsletter will be on hiatus until Friday, Nov. 14. 

For those of you joining us in Springfield, I hope we get a chance to say hello! And for those who can't make it this year, save the date for next year: Oct. 28-30!

Take care,

Teresa Wood Kett, executive director