Taunton, MA (April 4, 2024) – The Manet Community Health Center (Manet) Board of Directors voted unanimously to present its highest honor -- the Manet Medallion – to the City of Quincy Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program and the City of Taunton School Committee. The award will be presented at Manet’s June Bloom fundraising event on Thursday, June 6, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Shields Science Center Pettit Atrium at Stonehill College in Easton, MA.
“The selection of Manet Medallion honorees is an endeavor taken very seriously and contemplatively by the Board of Directors, and this year we were in the enviable position of having several meritorious candidates from which to choose,” explains Board President Grace Murphy-McAuliffe. “Despite this, the Board came to an immediate unanimous decision based on the considerable benefits to our patients and communities that have resulted from our longstanding and meaningful partnerships with the City of Quincy CDBG Program and the City of Taunton School Committee. We look forward to recognizing their outstanding contributions at our June Bloom event on June 6.”
The Manet Medallion has been presented by the Board periodically since 2005 to an individual or group living or working in a community served by the health center, who has/have significantly lifted, supported, championed or advanced the health center’s dedication to providing accessible, high-quality health care and supportive services and demonstrated consistent community goodwill and fellowship beyond the health center walls. It was last presented in 2022 to Manet’s Pandemic Response Team Volunteers, a group of nearly 50 individuals who assisted with Manet’s community COVID-19 vaccine clinics, helping the health center to vaccinate thousands of children, adults and seniors across its service areas.
“We are so pleased to offer our congratulations and profound gratitude to our Manet Medallion honorees for their outstanding partnership and contributions, which have enabled Manet to expand and respond to the growing health care needs of the communities we exist to serve,” says Cynthia Sierra, Manet Chief Executive Officer. “Partnership with the City of Quincy’s CDBG program has spanned Manet’s 45-year history, beginning with the founding support to open and incorporate Manet. Since then, the CDBG program has distributed funding for numerous health center projects, including the most recent construction of a Radiology Suite and lobby redesign at Manet’s North Quincy location and renovation of Manet’s Houghs Neck site.
“In late 2023, Manet was able to open the doors to its first school-based health center (Manet at TPS) at a premier location on campus with the Parker Middle School, Taunton High School and the Welcome Center of the Taunton Public Schools, thanks to the partnership and support of the Taunton School Committee, which directed a portion of its Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds to cover the majority of construction costs for Manet at TPS.”
In addition to recognizing the Manet Medallion honorees, the June Bloom event celebrates Manet’s 45th anniversary and is the health center’s only major annual fundraiser. Proceeds help Manet continue to expand its programs and services and increase much needed access to quality care for existing and new patients across our service areas. Thanks to the event planning committee: Grace Murphy-McAuliffe, Karen Ward, Philanthropy Committee Chair, Nancy Wyrebek, Dr. Eric Cohen, Phyllis Dohanian, Helen Fatseas, Alicia Gardner, Nancy Noble.
The June Bloom Honorary Committee includes representation from across Manet’s service areas in Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth counties: Congressman Jake Auchincloss, Rep. Bruce Ayers, Jennifer Berardi-Constable, Rep. Tackey Chan, Wendell Cosgrove, Michael Curry, Esq., Mayor Cathleen DeSimone, Rep. Carol Doherty, Sen. Paul Feeney, Rep. Patricia Haddad, Rep. James Hawkins, David Kellem, Esq., Mayor Thomas P. Koch, Jimmy Liang, Robert & Julie Littlefield, Congressman Stephen Lynch, Rep. Ronald J. Mariano, Rep. Joan Meschino, Mayor Shaunna O'Connell, Sen. Patrick O'Connor and Rep. Adam Scanlon.
Special thanks to our sponsors, including Health Center Champion Sponsors: FoxRock and Bob Griffin & Roseann Russell; Community Hope Sponsors: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Griffin Maintenance Services, Inc. and the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers; and Health Care Advocate Sponsors: Mayor Tom Koch, Codman Square Health Center, Eastern Bank, Dr. Eric & Betsy Cohen, Highland Surgical Associates, South Boston Community Health Center, Karen Ward & Mark Sanner, Cynthia H. Sierra and Brown & Brown of Massachusetts.
Sponsorship opportunities are available and tickets are on sale now. Tickets are $145 each or $245 for a pair, and $85 for seniors (65+). For more information and to view our complete sponsor list to date please visit: www.manetchc.org/june-bloom.
About Manet Community Health Center:
Founded in 1979, Manet Community Health Center, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) dedicated to providing preventive, primary care, same-day, mental health, and substance use services for all. With four practice locations in Quincy, two in Taunton, one each in Attleboro and Hull, and a Community Outreach and Prevention Services office in Quincy, Manet serves patients from across the South Shore and Southeastern Mass. Manet is accredited by The Joint Commission, recognized as a Level 3 Patient Centered Medical Home by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NQCA), and Manet’s Diabetes program is accredited by the Association of Diabetes Care and Education Specialist (ADCES). Manet has a primary affiliation with Boston Medical Center Health System. For more information, visit www.manetchc.org or follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/ManetCommunityHealthCenter or Twitter @ManetCommunity.