James Paleologopoulos

A decade ago, Springfield Public Schools began to roll out one of the largest “Breakfast in the Classroom” programs in Massachusetts – tackling food insecurity with the most important meal of the day. Ten years later, the program’s only grown in popularity, with proponents calling it a “national model.”

The biggest city in western Massachusetts is the latest to get an alternative electricity supply option. Come December, much of Springfield will be in the program – one that community members and officials have spent years advocating for.

At a time when getting healthy food to those who need it most is critical, a farm-focused non-profit in western Massachusetts has been firing on all cylinders.

Tuesday’s elections featured plenty of incumbent mayors sticking around in western Massachusetts – though just barely in Northampton. And in Easthampton, with no incumbent on the ballot, voters picked the city’s 4th mayor in 30 years.

With the federal government committing to funding only half of this month’s SNAP benefits, states across the country, including in the Northeast, are continuing to pick a path forward with less federal food assistance funding now on the table. Massachusetts is home to at least a million people who rely on the program, with many in the state’s Gateway cities. However, as Hampshire, Franklin and Worcester State Senator Jo Comerford tells WAMC, food insecurity is just as present in one of the state’s most rural corners.

Nearly half of all residents in Springfield, Mass. utilize SNAP benefits in some way. With federal funding for the food assistance in flux, city officials have announced a series of efforts and partnerships to help stave off hunger in their community.

Amid a national legal battle to keep federal food assistance flowing during the government shutdown, produce providers in western Massachusetts have been bracing for impact -- with some taking action to ensure fruits and vegetables continue to go to those who need it most.

Next Tuesday, voters in Greenfield, Mass., will head to the polls, with a ballot measure drawing as much interest as some local races, if not more.It all stems from a vote the city council took months ago over a parking lot: a decision opponents have turned into a referendum.

Springfield, Massachusetts, played host to a Supreme Court justice this week, with at least 2,000 people packing Symphony Hall to hear from a member of the nation’s highest court.

In less than 48 hours, millions of American will likely face delays for one of the nation’s largest federal food assistance program. It’s prompting states across the country to take action, including Massachusetts, where at least a million residents will be affected, with some communities hit especially hard.