DEPARTMENT

Alumni Out & About

‘So Incredibly Thankful’

Meagan Rodriguez (veterinary and animal science) received two scholarships from the HCC Foundation for the 2022-2023 academic, the Patrick J. and Margaret V. Sheehan Memorial Scholarship and the Teddy Bear Pools Scholarship. She gave the student address at the HCC Foundation’s Nov. 9 scholarship reception. 

“My time at HCC has been nothing short of transformative. I’m so grateful to have been able to competently navigate academia with the support of my fellow classmates, the phenomenal HCC staff, and the incredible support of the generous donors who see the value of investing in education for others. 

I’ve dreamed of working in veterinary medicine for a decade, and being at HCC has allowed me to pursue my passion confidently and courageously. The individualized help I’ve received from my advisor and from the many resources that are available have helped me flourish and focus on my studies without having to worry about the cost of attending my courses or buying the materials needed for my classes and my labs.

Returning to school in the middle of a global pandemic was daunting, to say the least, as well as moving out on my own. There were a lot of challenges all at once. But HCC has a phenomenal network of support systems for students to help us navigate our courses and careers and pursue further education moving forward.

I have made amazing connections at HCC, and I know I will continue to meet more enthusiastic and inspiring people, day in and day out. Without HCC, I would not be as knowledgeable or as progressed in my field. And I am so incredibly thankful for all of the friends, coworkers, mentors, and teachers I’ve had the opportunity to learn with and from. I’m so proud to be a student at HCC.”

President Christina Royal bumps fists with student speaker Meagan Rodriguez at the HCC Foundation’s Nov. 9 scholarship reception.
President Christina Royal bumps fists with student speaker Meagan Rodriguez at the HCC Foundation’s Nov. 9 scholarship reception.

Gap Years

James Bradford graduated from HCC in 1973. 

Fifty years later, he did it again.

In December, Bradford, 69, a U.S. Army veteran, retired police officer, lawyer, teacher, and Shriner’s clown, completed his associate’s degree in visual art. That means he is officially a member of the classes of 1973 and 2023. “My first major was law enforcement, which is now called criminal justice,” he said. “I graduated from here with honors.” From HCC, he went on to UMass for a bachelor’s degree before enlisting and serving in Virginia as a military policeman. After the Army, he used his G.I. Bill money to go to law school and raised five children. He returned to HCC a few years ago as an aide to his autistic son, who was a student. He enrolled himself after learning that anyone 60 or older can take classes for $50 a semester. “I got hooked on visual art, even though I had never drawn a straight line before,” he said. In November, Bradford was asked to be the featured speaker at HCC’s Veterans Day celebration. “Unfortunately, this is my last semester,” he said. “Maybe I’ll be done with HCC for good. I hope not. I’m hoping to find some way to stay involved.” In any case, he donned his cap and gown again in June to walk across the stage at Commencement.

U.S. Army veteran James Bradford ’73, ’23, gives a Veterans Day address at HCC.
U.S. Army veteran James Bradford ’73, ’23, gives a Veterans Day address at HCC.

To the Rescue

After Ann Fisher ’15, ’22, graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 2008 with her bachelor’s degree in environmental science, her curiosity took her all over the world, from conservation work on the Appalachian Trail in Vermont and survey work on the Irish coast, to wildlife rehabilitation in British Columbia and preservation work in Poland, where she helped protect the threatened aquatic warbler. Realizing her calling, she enrolled in HCC’s veterinary technician program, graduated in 2015, and found a job at Angell Animal Medical Center in Boston. She loved her work, but knee and ankle issues led her to consider a new career that didn’t require her to be on her feet all day. Inspired by the gift processing work she’d been doing as a volunteer for Urban Wildlife Rehabilitation, Fisher returned to HCC for the certificate in accounting program and found a job as a gift processor in HCC’s division of Institutional Advancement, while also working part-time at Angell and as a volunteer with Urban Wildlife Rehabilitation. “I like being able to help those who don’t have a voice,” says Fisher, above, with raccoon. “It’s a great feeling to be able to help the animals and to make things a little bit better for them.”

Ann Fisher ’15, ’22
Ann Fisher ’15, ’22,

Remaking Mountain Park

Jay Ducharme ‘78 has never quite gotten over the loss of Mountain Park. The Easthampton native grew up visiting the beloved amusement park on the Holyoke side of Mount Tom and worked there for many years as a ride operator (before) and caretaker (after) it closed in 1987. He’s spent the past 35 years collecting Mountain Park memorabilia and is no doubt the foremost authority on the subject, having written the definitive history of the place, Images of America: Mountain Park, in 2008, and its sequel, The Happiness Machine, about the preservation and relocation of the Mountain Park carousel to Holyoke’s Heritage State Park. On Oct. 1, at the Heritage State Park Museum — next door to the carousel — Ducharme unveiled what is sure to evoke misty memories — a meticulously hand-crafted, miniature model of the long-lost park. Ducharme built the model in the basement of his Westfield home before relocating it to the museum lobby, where it will remain in perpetuity. “It took four years of my life,” he said. “Hopefully it will outlast me.” Ducharme, who retired from HCC in 2020 as a professor of electronic media and was the subject of a Connection cover story in 2019, chronicled the construction on his website, Karenandjay.com, under the header, “Remaking Mountain Park.”

Above, Jay Ducharme ’78 unveils his tribute to Mountain Park.
Above, Jay Ducharme ’78 unveils his tribute to Mountain Park.

Media Acclaim

Editor & Publisher magazine, “the authoritative voice of the #NewsMedia since 1884,” recently named Reminder Publications Executive Editor Payton North ’15 to its list of “25 Under 35” for 2023. North, 27, a Monson native, was one of 25 young journalists nationwide featured in a Feb. 1 E&P story under the headline, “Meet the next generation of news media professionals.” 

“It feels both exciting and humbling,” said North. “I’m certainly honored to be picked among such great talent.” North assumed the top editor’s spot at the weekly newspaper chain late last year. After earning her associate’s degree in communications from HCC, North transferred to Western New England University for her bachelor’s. She started writing for The Reminder newspapers as a freelancer during her senior year at WNEU and was later hired as assistant editor before steadily ascending the masthead. “When I was 5 years old, I knew I wanted to be a journalist,” North wrote in an Oct. 4 column explaining the managerial shift. “I fell in love with the ability to tell someone’s story – and to tell it well.”

Payton North ’15 reads The Reminder at her desk in East Longmeadow.
Payton North ’15 reads The Reminder at her desk in East Longmeadow.

Dramatic Return

Nearly 100 HCC alumni, students, staff, and friends turned out on Oct. 8 for the college’s fifth Leslie
Phillips 24-hour theater festival – the first since 2019 – a night meant to honor the founder of the HCC theater program, raise funds for the department, reminisce, and have fun on stage. Participants wrote and rehearsed five, original one-act plays in one day before performing them the next night. After the show, everyone gathered on the stage to eat cake and celebrate the 50th anniversary of the theater program and the HCC Players, the unofficial name for all those students and alumni who have ever played a role in an HCC production, on stage or off.  “We had about an equal number of alums and students who participated,” said HCC alum and theater professor Pat Sandoval ‘84. “It was a wonderful event. They all said they had a really good time and want to come back and do it again next year.” The festival was first organized in 2016 by HCC alumni as a tribute to Phillips, who died in 1988 after inspiring legions of HCC theater students. 

Pictured, from left to right: HCC theater professor Pat Sandoval ’84, festival organizer Lisa Poehler ‘84, Donna DeFant ’77, Paul Goddu ’72, and Ben Phillips, son of Leslie Phillips, who played a part in one of the festival skits.
Pictured, from left to right: HCC theater professor Pat Sandoval ’84, festival organizer Lisa Poehler ‘84, Donna DeFant ’77, Paul Goddu ’72, and Ben Phillips, son of Leslie Phillips, who played a part in one of the festival skits.

STEM Action

HCC alum Aaron Portillo ‘22 kept the 3-D printers quietly humming during Massachusetts STEM Week, Oct. 17-21. During an open house showcasing the college’s STEM Innovation Lab,  Portillo was simultaneously building a puzzle in one corner of the room, a “STEM Starter Academy” keychain in another, and a hybrid jack-o-lantern/octopus in another.  “I like making the pumpkins to hand out with candy to students,” said Portillo, HCC’s resident 3-D printing expert, who works part time for the college as a STEM peer mentor and tech specialist. Portillo studied biotechnology at HCC and is now a full time biology student at UMass. “I wanted to incorporate more reptiles and insects into my studies, cause I love them,” she said. During the pandemic, Portillo and other HCC STEM students 3-D printed bags of plastic bones for biology students to use at home for remote lab assignments. During a STEM Week tour, Portillo described the potential of 3-D printers to make prosthetics and even organs from real cells. “That’s why I got interested in 3-D printing,” said Portillo, pointing to a pair of robotic hands on a shelf. “That’s the coolest kind of technology to me.”

Aaron Portillo ’22 tends to a 3-D printer in the HCC STEM Innovation Lab.
Aaron Portillo ’22 tends to a 3-D printer in the HCC STEM Innovation Lab.
The Magazine of Holyoke Community College
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