Going for GOLD
Lindsay Hernandez ‘22 and Cassandra DaSilva ’15 have some photo fun during the college’s first “Fall Back Together: Graduates of the Last Decade” alumni event Oct. 20 at the HCC MGM Culinary Arts Institute. Attendees enjoyed complimentary gourmet appetizers and desserts prepared by students and faculty in HCC’s culinary arts program, built their own HCC swag bags, reconnected with professors, won raffle prizes, and also got free professional headshots. Both Hernandez and DaSilva now work at HCC, Hernandez as classroom coordinator for the Itsy Bitsy Child Watch Center and DaSilva as the talent acquisition coordinator in the Department of People and Talent. The next GOLD event is tentatively scheduled for October 2026.
‘I would have stayed here’
In October, HCC’s Integrated Learning Programs hosted a community networking and internship fair. Behind one of the tables sat police officers John Blascak ’93 and Chris Coach ’97 from the Westfield Police Department’s Community Service Unit. Blascak and Coach both graduated from HCC with their associate degrees in criminal justice. “I think I speak for most people who attended HCC who studied criminal justice,” said Blascak. “They like this program the best out of any they’ve attended because most of our teachers were professionals from the real world and brought real world experience.” “One hundred percent,” said Coach. “I went on to a four-year college, and I felt I learned way more from the professors at HCC.” That’s not to disparage Westfield State University, where both collected their bachelor’s degrees. Blascak also holds a master’s degree in criminal justice and police science from California Coast University. “It seemed like, one, the students really wanted to be here,” said Blascak, “and two, the professors wanted to be here. If it had been four years, I would have stayed here.”
Family Ties
Kya Ransom ’24 (liberal arts and science) is completing her bachelor’s degree in psychology at the UMass Amherst and recently married her partner, Max, in Salem. She recalls feeling deeply supported by the HCC community when she was a single parent who relied on the Itsy Bitsy Child Watch to care for her son, Renwick, while she was in class. “Many of you may remember Renwick from my time at HCC,” she writes. “He was the baby in the stroller at advising meetings, the little one exploring the library during study sessions and campus events, the source of giggles down the hall as we went to child watch. Today, he’s an energetic preschooler, exploring and learning, and Max plans to adopt him as we continue building our family together.” Along with other alumni featured this section, Ransom attended HCC’s Spring 2026 Alumni Happy Hour at Fame in downtown Holyoke.
1962
Neil Curran lives in Midlothian, Texas, and is the founder and chief executive officer of Biblical Communications International. He recently published a new book, Teachings of Jesus: Major Bible Themes, which is available on Amazon — and in the HCC Library, thanks to his donation.
1989
Jeffrey Gosselin (liberal arts) was elected to the Westfield School Committee on Nov. 4. A former teacher in both Springfield and Northampton schools, Gosselin has also served as a member of the adjunct faculty at Westfield State University. Now retired, Gosselin is living in Westfield.
1991
Susan Manewich (early childhood education) is the founder of IET Evolve Consulting, a trainer, organizational counselor, published author, researcher, and speaker with expertise in emotional intelligence, consciousness, emerging moral technologies and geomagnetic changes affecting the planet and humanity. She has worked with thousands of people globally and with multiple Ivy League institutions, including Harvard Business School, Yale Medical School, University of Singapore, London Business School, Cambridge University, and University of Chicago Business School, as well as organizations involved in the aerospace industry and inner-city youth education. A certified hypnotherapist and medical Qigong practitioner, she holds a master’s degree in organizational development and behavior and is pursuing her Ph.D. in consciousness and cosmology with a focus on geomagnetic changes and human evolution.
1994
Gina Barry (arts and science) was recognized in Best Lawyers in America and named the 2026 Lawyer of the Year in Elder Law for Springfield. Barry is partner and chair of the Estate Planning and Elder Law department at Bacon Wilson, P.C. in Springfield. Barry was the featured speaker at HCC’s “Inspired Giving: Pro Tips for the Savvy Philanthropist” event in February at the HCC MGM Culinary Arts Institute.
1997
Trudy Monson (business administration) celebrated her 25th anniversary working at Cracker Barrel in Holyoke. Although Monson retired from Verizon in 2002, she has continued to work part time at Cracker Barrel to keep herself busy and connected to the community, boasting about HCC to anyone who will listen. Monson is the president of the HCC Alumni Council.
2001
Sarah Johnson Court (visual art) graduated with honors from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a bachelor’s degree in art history and completed a master’s degree in art history from Richmond American University in London. She lived and worked in London for seven years as a Lloyd’s of London art insurance broker before returning to the United States to work in high net worth and art insurance broking. Court served as director of development for Design Miami and taught art history at Barry University. She returned to art and high net worth insurance broking in 2024 and travels frequently to speak on art, risk management, collection preparation, and maintenance.
2003
Sarah Monson (arts and sciences) is senior director of philanthropy and external relations at Aurora Women & Girls Foundation, Inc. in West Hartford, Conn. Monson previously worked as the senior director of philanthropy at the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts in Springfield. She has a bachelor’s degree in health care administration from the University of Phoenix and a professional fundraising certificate from Boston University. She was the alumni guest on Episode 6 of HCC’s The Green Thread podcast. See page 20.
2004
Delia Hickey (visual art) earned a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2012. She took classes at The Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts, where she was a recipient of the 2023 Palette & Chisel Scholarship. Hickey also published illustrations in the book Threadbare in 2016 and was the 2014 Eagle Hill artist in residence at Eagle Hill School in Hardwick.
Amneris Narvaez (Deaf studies) is regional director for Central and Western MA Programs for Generation Teach, a nationwide AmeriCorps-funded program, where she has worked since 2019. After HCC, she went to Westfield State University for her bachelor’s degree in special education and Lesley University for her master’s in math education. During the summer, she leads a teaching internship program in Holyoke for high school and college students. She attended HCC’s community networking and internship fair in October, where she was recruiting students for the program.
Rashad Uqday (arts and science) completed a bachelor’s degree in communications from UMass Amherst. He now works as a chef at Smith College during the school year and at Belvior Terrace in Lenox. during the summer. He married Nelly Carmona ’05 in 2002 and the couple live in Northampton, with their daughter.
2005
Nelly Carmona (criminal justice) was a finalist for the 2021 Remarkable Women initiative, honoring local women who make a significant impact in western Massachusetts through community service, leadership, and advocacy. In 2017, she completed a master’s degree in social work from Smith College and was named the National Association of Social Workers Student of the Year. Carmona currently works as a social worker for Northampton Public Schools and is married to HCC alum Rashad Uqday ’04.
2006
Matt McMahon (psychology) is the senior technical advisor of cybersecurity for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health. He was awarded the 2025 Partnership Medallion from the Healthcare Sector Coordinating Council Cybersecurity Working Group in honor of his commitment to HSCC’s imperative “Cyber Safety is Patient Safety.” The Healthcare Sector Coordinating Council works to protect the security and resilience of the health sector.
2010
Brian Nadeau (liberal arts and science) completed a bachelor’s degree in biology and communications at Westfield State University, a DMD (doctor of medicine in dentistry) at Boston University Henry Goldman School of Dental Medicine, and a master’s degree in oral health at Uniformed Services University at Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. He lives in Yucca Valley, California, and is currently serving as a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy.
2015
Cassandra DaSilva (liberal arts and science) has been the talent and acquisition coordinator for HCC’s Department of People and Talent (formerly Human Resources) since March 2025. After graduating from HCC, she received her bachelor’s degree psychology from Bay Path University.
Jason Haskins (criminal justice) was named police chief of the Montague Police Department in January. A Montague native, Haskins has 25 years of law enforcement experience working for the Greenfield Police Department for 18 years and serving as police chief in Colrain from 2009 to 2016. After HCC, he went on for a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from UMass Amherst. He is now working on his doctorate through Keiser University.
Tracy Thompson Viola (accounting) has established the Thompson Real Estate Group in Springfield. She is also a mobile notary public and an ordained minister.
2017
Noah Paradis-Burnett (engineering studies) received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 2020 and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering in 2022 from UMass Amherst. He has worked as a quality engineer in the aerospace industry for three years and is now the ISO quality assurance manager at Instrument Technology, Inc. Paradis-Burnett came to HCC through the Gateway to College program. At HCC, he was part of the STEM Scholars program and graduated with high honors.
Brianna Owen (liberal arts and science) received the 2025 “Her Legacy: Women of Western Massachusetts Award” from the Springfield Creative City Collective during the Springfield Legacy Celebration, an event that honored the contributions of 80 women leaders in the region.
2019
Adam Chapman (liberal arts and science) started his second year of teaching at Springfield International Charter School. After graduating from HCC, he completed a bachelor’s degree in history from UMass Amherst. He lives in Chicopee.
Jeniliz Rodriguez Morales (business administration) was promoted to human resources senior generalist at Holyoke Chicopee Springfield Head Start. She
had previously served as a human resources assistant.
2020
Aspiring actress Hannah Labreche (theater arts) has played lead roles in several shows, including the witch in Into the Woods, Ms. Scarlet in Clue, and Mrs. Greene in The Prom, all at Exit 7 Players in Ludlow. She lives in Holyoke and works in retail while also working on a short film in Los Angeles. She has traveled to Germany, New Zealand, and Los Angeles multiple times and has had the honor of working with actors David Arquette, Tyler Hoechlin, and Sean Maguire. Among her roles on the HCC stage, Labreche played Dr. Catherine Stockman, the lead in a gender-reversed production of Henry Ibsen’s classic play, Enemy of the People in the spring of 2018.
Samantha Robinson (liberal arts and science) is enrolled in the digital photography program at Springfield Technical Community College. She is currently a work-study student in the athletics department at STCC and lives in East Longmeadow.
Brendan Rooney (creative writing) teaches 12th grade English at Chicopee Comprehensive High School and also works as a freelance reporter for multiple publications, including MassLive, and Turley Publications, and has published more than 2,000 articles.
Amy Stefanik (criminal justice) relocated to Orlando, Florida, where she works on Expedition Everest at Walt Disney World Resorts Animal Kingdom. She is also participating in the Disney College program and will soon be working as a park greeter.
2021
Alexandra Clark (entrepreneurship-business administration) operates her own hot dog cart business, The Good Dawg, out of Westfield, Massachusetts. She recently got engaged.
Karina Lineras Ly (business administration) works as a commercial underwriter at United Services Automobile Administration, where she has earned several professional designations. In 2025, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in information technology management from Western Governors University, where she was honored with the Capstone Excellence Award. She is the first in her family to graduate with both an associate degree and a bachelor’s degree. She got married in 2023.
2022
Jason Perez (criminal justice) earned a bachelor’s degree in legal studies from Commonwealth Honors College at UMass Amherst, graduating with “Greatest Distinction” and a GPA of 3.97. He plans to attend law school. He was the alumni guest for Episode 3 of HCC’s Green Thread podcast. See page 20.
Edwin Torres (criminal justice) became a Springfield police officer in November 2008 and has since been promoted to sergeant. During his career, he has been honored with two departmental commendations for outstanding performance of duty and received a citation in June 2023 for his professionalism during a funeral. Since officers began carrying Narcan, Torres has saved two individuals suffering from opioid overdoses. He is working toward his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice at American International College.
2023
Miguel Cruz (psychology) is completing a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education at UMass Amherst. He also served as choreographer for the musical Alice by Heart, which was performed at Amherst Regional High School in March.
Lance Fydenkevez (veterinary technician) earned a bachelor’s degree in veterinary technology from UMass Amherst after graduating from HCC. They joined the Minuteman Marching Band and marched in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2024. Fydenkevez is now beginning a career at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University in emergency and critical care.
Michael Mitchell (liberal arts and science) earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in leadership from Southern New Hampshire University and is completing a master’s degree in business administration. He works for the YWCA of Western Massachusetts as a direct service advocate. He credits HCC and his mentors from the ALANA Men In Motion program for helping him become an educated Black man and leader.
2024
Alannah Brunt (Latinx studies) is studying women, gender, sexuality studies, and African American studies at UMass Amherst, and expects to graduate in May 2026. At HCC, Brunt was a SAMP ambassador, a DJ on the college radio station, WCCH, a member of El Centro, and one of the student speakers at HCC’s first Fall Graduate Reception in December 2023.
Chestina Thrower (music) was selected as a member of the 2025 Pay It Forward residency at CitySpace Easthampton, which provides performance artists with venue access, rehearsal space, financial support, and one-on-one coaching. As a resident musician, Thrower headlined a show at CitySpace in August 2025. Thrower is studying jazz and African American studies at UMass Amherst and performed alongside western Massachusetts musical legend Charles Neville at the Springfield Jazz and Roots Festival, as well as at the Jazz in July All-Stars Concert at UMass. As an HCC student, Thrower was a featured singer at the Inauguration Ceremony for President George Timmons and at HCC’s 77th Commencement on June 1, 2024.
A junior majoring in critical race and political economy, Noah Neiweem (liberal arts and science) represented Mount Holyoke College at Wellesley College’s First-Generation Summit, a student-centered conference that brings together first-generation college students to build community, share experiences, and develop strategies for equity and inclusion in higher education.
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