GREATER SPRINGFIELD – Incumbent candidate for the Hampden District Sen. James Welch and challenger Adam Gomez Sr. discussed food insecurity and other issues facing the district during a question and answer forum on Aug. 19.

The forum was hosted via Zoom by The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, the Springfield Food Policy & Action Council, Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA), and the Springfield Urban League sponsored the event called “Food for Thought: Food Justice and Equity,” Hampden County Candidates Forums. The event was moderated by Reminder Publishing’s Managing Editor, G. Michael Dobbs.

Welch, who was born and raised in West Springfield, was first elected as a state senator to the Hampden District in November of 2010 and sworn into office in Jan. 2011. The Hampden District includes all of West Springfield along with parts of Springfield and Chicopee.

Gomez is a current Springfield resident and city councilor. If elected, serving as state senator for the Hampden District would be his first job in state politics.

The forum consisted of two parts. In the first part of the forum, each candidate had 90 seconds to answer the same question. In the second part of the forum, candidates took turns choosing from a board of 12 random questions.

In the first question of the night, each candidate addressed which food programs they thought were working well, which weren’t working well and how they would fix those they thought weren’t working. Gomez referenced programs he thought were successful such as Breakfast After the Bell, but said as a senator he would want to build on the program and add nutrition to ensure students and teachers were beginning their day right. Additionally, he said he wanted to introduce legislation that would “require all food waste from other groceries stores that are donated to local non-governmental organizations and other charities who help feed the poor.”

 “I think we’re having a collapse when it comes to our food and making sure that communities of color and our rural communities are getting adequate food access,” he said.

Welch, however, spoke about the healthy incentives program, which he said was a “tremendous program” and recently he said, “We made sure there was complete funding for.”

The program, he said, connects “inner cities with rural farms and rural places that grow vegetables.” He said the program needed to be continue to be built on and funded each year.

The next question candidates were asked what their understanding of food insecurity was and how access to food impacted communities within the district. Welch said people’s health is directly related to “the type of food they’re able to access and able to eat.” He also referenced the many disparities in regard to food and food deserts within the district.

Welch said, “Without fruit and vegetables and access, we all know people’s health declines. Access to healthy food is a direct correlation to somebody’s health.”

Gomez said it was “no secret that we know in communities of colors there are complete food deserts.” In his time talking with members of the community and hosting town halls, he said, he had heard firsthand that people wanted access to healthy, nutritional foods. “The number one thing we hear from our seniors is that there isn’t enough food, healthy foods for them to be able to eat nutritiously,” he said.

Gomez said he, himself, is diabetic and eating healthy was important. He also referenced the obesity rate and pre-existing conditions in communities such as this were high and the price disparity between healthy and unhealthy food.

When asked about ideas each man had for getting locally grown food to those who do not have enough food, Gomez touched on his family’s history with farming. He said he believed in educating children about agriculture. Gomez said he envisioned “working with our schools to introduce programming on healthy eating, specifically with learning and teaching them how to grow.”

“That was something that was essential in my life and that’s really something I can work toward and look forward to championing when I get to the state senate,” he said.

Additionally, Gomez said he believed in providing spaces for farmers to exist within the district. “It’s important for us to create spaces where farmers from outside of the region can come in and we can create farmers markets that are just pop up and where people can come together safely,” he said.

Welch again touched on the Healthy Incentives Program, which he said “made that connection between rural friends, farmers that make and grow the food.”

“The more and more we can do that, and then increase the amount of vendors that are supplying that food I think is in the long term goal will create that many more opportunities for people to access that food,” he said.

When asked about disparities within the district and how they would address such disparities, Welch said he believed healthcare was a significant issue, “especially in communities of color.” These communities, he said, “don’t have access to proper healthcare and being able to access the right services when we need them.” This, he said, is something he’s worked to correct and “work to make better” throughout his career.

“There’s absolutely no reason why one person who lives in one end of the state as opposed to the other end of the state should not have access to the same type of healthcare services as their peer in another location,” he said. “We’re a Commonwealth and the Commonwealth needs to provide all the same healthcare opportunities and services to everybody no matter where they live.”

Gomez said Western Massachusetts feels like an afterthought on Beacon Hill. “We need bold leadership that will fight every day for all of us. Not just the town they live in,” he said. He also referenced economic disparities and the proposed East West Rail.

“Connecting us to each other is- just brings economic opportunity,” he stated.

Gomez also referenced the disparities between public transportation and cited an instance when the PVTA wanted to eliminate some stops. Gomez said that was a battle they won, but the “PVTA shouldn’t matter less than MBTA.”

The next question asked each candidate to address how they would address food access and health problems that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Gomez said while he was a single person, he would work hard to bring entities such as food banks in the district together to advocate for their needs and come up with creative solutions.

He also addressed how constituents within the district struggled to get access to food throughout the pandemic as grocery delivery service, Instacart, and other similar services, do not accept SNAP benefits as payment. He also referenced the lack of transportation constituents had to simply get to grocery stores.

Welch said he believed in bringing money back to the district and putting the funding in the hands of the constituents. “I personally believe that when money gets allocated, and if it’s not directed specifically to certain neighborhoods, often times money doesn’t find its way to the neighborhoods that we’re actually trying to pinpoint and bring resources back,” he said.

Candidates were then asked about factors contributing to the low voter turnout within the district and how such a problem could be addressed. Welch said this year prompted early and mail-in voting, “much more accessible for people.”

He said, “There should be no hurdles in front of anybody to be able to cast a vote.” He said he hoped that the more technology became available, it would be able to be used to the district’s advantage “to get people to utilize those services to be able to vote.”

 “The more and more options we can provide people to vote, the better turnout should be and we have to continue to educate people about how important it is to cast your vote,” Welch said. “And not only cast your vote this year, but we got to make sure everyone gets counted in the census as well because that’s very important for our region.”

Gomez said he was proud that the Springfield City Council had, last spring, passed a resolution for voting by mail. He said while that was good, it was important to note that same day registration and same day voting needed “to be worked on.” Additionally, he said language barriers were “a big issue.”

Gomez said Spanish is not the only other language to use to reach potential voters.                                                   “Springfield is a diverse city that has so many different languages,” he explained. Ultimately, he said they “have to make it as easy as possible” so people know when the election is, how to vote, how to register to vote and understand what they’re voting for.

Gomez chose the first question for the second round of the forum, and was asked about early childhood education within the district. He said early childhood education would “absolutely” be a priority, and he understood the need and importance of the matter as he had a three-year-old daughter. “This is a no-brainer. We know that in communities of color an education, a degree is the passport out of poverty, so that is something I plan to champion,” he said.

Gomez added that he also planned to ensure “that we fully fund our school system and get that formula straight so we can get what we deserve.”

Welch’s next question asked about his position on legislation that would allow undocumented immigrants living in the Commonwealth to get a driver’s license. In his response, he said he had “come around” and believed that “we’ll be safer as a community if we do provide an option for people to be able to gain licenses.”

 “When you really think about it, if a person who does not have the ability to get a license, but they’re still going to drive, if we provide an avenue and provide a way for them to be able to obtain their license, one they’re going to be better trained more likely to have automobile insurance,” he said.

Welch continued, “We have to recognize and be honest that even if people don’t have the ability to access a license, if they are of age and have to work more than likely and they have the access to an automobile, they’re going to drive.” He said, “So let’s make sure we’re providing them safe training, proper training, access to insurance and that way we’ll have a much safer community and better prepared to drive on the roads.”

When Gomez was asked about food deserts within Springfield and other communities in the district, he said this is something he’s passionate about, and has been actively working on with the Springfield City Council. He outlined several places they have been looking to “create those avenues” to create smaller versions of stores near market rate housing.

Welch was asked how he would support urban garden programs. These programs, he said, are multi-purpose. He said, “It’s a local way to provide healthy food, it’s a way to teach kids especially the art or the trade of agriculture, which is something that will follow them for the rest of their lives. It’s a win, win, win situation.”

He said he had supported garden programs so far during his time as state senator, and would continue to do so, but didn’t outline any specific ways he intended to do so.

In his final question Gomez was asked how he would promote the building of agricultural centers and programs within the district. Gomez said this was “something near and dear to his heart.” The addition of more centers and programs, he said, would create jobs and create co-ops.

 “We want to make sure in these urban areas we create these gardens and access to water, because that’s one of the things I ran into,” he said and spoke of farmers he knew in Springfield that received donations of water from firefighters due to their lack of access. He said, “We have to make sure they have every single resource possible.”

Welch’s last question asked him to address how he would ensure protection for all farm workers amid the coronavirus pandemic, from the supplying of free personal protective equipment (PPE), to testing and childcare when needed. He said farm workers had been relied on heavily throughout the pandemic and “there was absolutely no reason why PPE should not be provided.” Additionally, he said “As a country we were not ready to provide PPE for all of our citizens and front line workers.”

However, he said over time the Commonwealth was able to provide the proper equipment needed. Welch said thus far during the pandemic he’s tried to “put my money where my mouth is” by advocating for funding to provide testing and PPE in Western Massachusetts.

 In his closing remarks, Gomez thanked all involved for a discussion on the issues. He said he was running for state senate in his hometown of Springfield, which he said was one of the “most impoverished areas of Massachusetts.”

“I have seen and lived the challenges our district faces with housing, economic development, transportation, healthcare and education,” he said. Gomez said he wanted to be the change, and as a small business owner, father and resident he wanted to help the community get the education and opportunity he felt they deserved.

Welch’s closing statement followed Gomez’s. He said he was running for reelection for one simple reason: he loved the district. “It’s a special place, people live here because they want to live here,” he said.

Welch said as legislators, “every day we have to go down to Boston and fight” for resources and programs in Western Massachusetts. “I feel as though my record has shown I’m very successful at providing these resources and bringing these resources back to our district and getting them into the hands of these people who provide these services on the ground,” he said. He added that he was proud of the work he’d done so far, and was going to continue to do the work needed and hoped that constituents would consider voting for him.

Voters will choose which candidate will serve as the state senator of the Hampden District during the Massachusetts Primary Election on Sept. 1.