Springfield, MA- March 24, 2020- As Western Mass business slows during the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the local hospitality community are finding creative ways to help the community.

  • Delaney’s Market is offering individual meals for local businesses to provide to their employees. They’ll prepare one item per day at a cost of $5 each including tax. There is a minimum order of 50 meals which includes delivery.   Orders must be placed a day in advance by contacting Peter Rosskothen at 413-530-6999. In addition to this service, all three Delaney’s Markets are still open and offer a variety of individually packaged meals. These locations are in Westfield, Wilbraham, and East Longmeadow.
  • MGM Springfield has partnered with the Springfield Thunderbirds, Sheraton Hotel, Hilton Garden Inn, and Uno Pizzeria & Grill to prepare and deliver hot meals to healthcare workers and first responders across the city over the coming week. The food deliveries will began this week when volunteers from MGM and the Thunderbirds dropped off hundreds of cooked meals to emergency-room workers at Baystate Medical Center. Subsequent deliveries will take place at the headquarters of the Springfield Police Department, Springfield Fire Department, and American Medical Response. MGM Springfield also donated 12,000 pounds of food to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts and partner agencies like Open Pantry.  The local casino resort is also partnering with Link to Libraries and Springfield Public Schools to provide books to children in the community during this challenging time for the public education system.
  • Tower Square Hotel is offering employee rates for anyone required to travel. The $59 rate includes overnight parking.
  • SER Exposition Services has repurposed some of the company’s regular products to function as temporary testing and administration centers for healthcare facilities. This includes drive-up clinics, testing facilities, waiting rooms, or even temporary hospital rooms.
  • Get Set Marketing is reworking take-out menus for local restaurants to post on social media and on websites at a discounted price.

“The hospitality industry in Western Mass is strong, resilient and even during this point in time when the tourism industry is being disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, they continue to put the community first,” said Mary Kay Wydra, GSCVB President.  “I have no doubt, that the Western Mass hospitality community will rebound when this is over.”

The GSCVB, an affiliate of the Economic Development Council of Western Mass, is a private non-profit destination marketing organization dedicated to promoting Western Mass for meetings and conventions, group tours, sports and leisure travel. For more information on the GSCVB, visit www.ExploreWesternMass.com or like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/explorewesternmass and follow us on Twitter using handle @XploreWesternMA. Engage with us using #westernmass.