Annual Holiday Luncheon Recognized Link to Libraries and Valued Employees in Our Community

The dearest ones of time, the strongest friends of the soul: books.
- Emily Dickinson

It was a day of joy. It was a time for laughter. It was a few hours in our busy lives to celebrate others in this holiday season.

On Thursday, December 16, 2021, Bay Path held its annual Holiday Luncheon and Employee Recognition event. Members of the community attended both in person and on Zoom to salute a local charity, honor our retirees, and cheer on fellow colleagues recognized for milestones anniversaries.

One of the centerpieces of this jolly occasion is the annual charity. It is a longstanding tradition at Bay Path to select a local charity that will be the recipient of the community’s good will. For 2021, Link to Libraries was chosen. Founded over 15 years ago, over the years Link to Libraries has presented over 750,000 books to area children in support of their mission which is “… to distribute new books to the school and home libraries of children in need. By increasing a child's access to books, Link to Libraries strives to enhance the language and literacy skills of children of all cultural backgrounds.”

Laurie Flynn, president and chief executive officer, represented Link to Libraries and offered this sentiment:

Bay Path University and Link to Libraries have been partners in the effort to better children's lives through books and reading for many years. We are so grateful to the University for choosing to honor our organization at their annual charity luncheon this year. As our fears about COVID's impact on literacy have been confirmed, the books and programming that Link to Libraries provide are more critical now than ever, and we are so thankful to Bay Path for helping to ensure that we can continue to help children and schools in need across Western Massachusetts."

If you would like to donate to this life-changing local nonprofit, please click on this link.

And one of the great highlights of the gathering was saluting our retirees and recognizing our employees. This year we honored four talented and dedicated individuals who are moving on:

• Susan Wyckoff, Professor of Practice in Higher Education Program;
• Diane Hajdamowicz, Associate Director of Employee Benefits;
• Suzanne Strempek Shea, Writer in Residence and Instructor in MFA Program;
•  And Liz Fleming, Associate Provost & Dean, School of Education, Human & Health Sciences.

Employees celebrating their 5, 10, 15, and 20 years of service were applauded by their peers. In total, 112 members of the community providing over 865 years of service were honored. Carpe Diem!

On behalf of the entire Bay Path community, please have a magical holiday season, and a happy and healthy New Year.