This is Bennett Walsh with his good friend Charlie Baker who appointed him to be Superintendent of the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home for veterans.
Bennett donated $1,950 to both Karyn Polito and Charlie Baker since being appointed to the position in 2016.
He is a politically connected hack whose father (Daniel Walsh) was the former Springfield veterans services director, and his mother (Kateri Walsh) is a Springfield City Councilor.
Bennett is a veteran himself, and I’m sure he was a fine marine. But he wasn’t qualified for the position, and the previous superintendent (Paul Barabani) and several higher ups quit because the state wasn’t giving them enough financial support.
Walsh officially began the $115,000-a-year job at the end of May. A Marine Corps veteran, Walsh takes the helm of the soldiers’ home at a time of significant leadership changes. Former superintendent Paul Barabani retired in January, claiming that the state was failing to provide sufficient funding for the home. At the same time, the deputy superintendent and chairman of the board of trustees also resigned.
Shockingly, the new management appointed by Charlie Baker said that funding was perfectly adequate for the home.
Secretary of Veteran Services Francisco Urena called the swearing-in “an exciting day” for the facility. Asked whether the soldiers’ home needs more state money, Urena said, “We’re very pleased with the level of funding…that Gov. Baker has committed to our home.”
Bennett Walsh was praised by both Democratic and Republican elected officials, despite having no experience running a home of this size (well over 200 residents).
Local lawmakers also praised Walsh. “This is someone who’s led Marines in combat in Somalia, Afghanistan and Iraq. I couldn’t be happier, couldn’t be prouder with the governor’s and the trustees’ selection,” said State Rep. John Velis, D-Westfield, a U.S. Army Reserves captain.
State Sen. Don Humason, R-Westfield, said he thinks Walsh “will be that fierce advocate that we need to protect the soldiers’ home.” “Bennett has that right local feeling, being a Springfield kid… He will make sure that it retains its unique character as a Western Massachusetts entity, although it serves veterans from across the state,” Humason said.
Bennett Walsh’s entire list of qualifications seem to be that he was a “local kid”, his Mommy and Daddy were well known political hacks, and he wasn’t gonna complain like the guy before him.
Update: It’s now being reported that 18 are dead at the Hoyloke Soldier’s Home.
Then this week it was revealed that the home had covered up the deaths of at least six veterans from the commie cold, which had infected even more veterans and staff. The first veteran tested positive on March 21. Charlie Baker was not alerted about it until March 29, after Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse found out through the grapevine that multiple people had died. The testimonials coming from people who work there are insane, and have been documented by the Hampshire Gazette:
One Soldiers’ Home CNA said management allowed the first veteran awaiting his COVID-19 test result to mingle in common areas with two dozen other veterans. After he tested positive, the veteran’s roommates were moved to rooms with other residents instead of being isolated in accordance with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that CNA said.
The CNA also alleged that management did not provide employees with personal protective equipment, or PPE, when they were interacting with the patient awaiting coronavirus test results. And after the patient tested positive for COVID-19, management did not direct those employees to self-isolate.
“We were not allowed to wear proper PPE, the N95, until somebody was positive,” the second CNA said, referring to the masks used in most hospital settings when interacting with potentially contagious patients.
As employees became sick, other staffers who were still able to work had to float from unit to unit to make up for the absences, risking spreading the virus further, the first CNA said.
The first CNA said Walsh created a threatening environment in the building for workers, saying over the intercom that those using COVID-19 as an excuse to stay home from work would be disciplined.
“There’s no staff, and some people are being mandated to work 16-hour shifts because there’s nobody to cover, and these people don’t have a choice,” the first CNA said. “You can refuse to work, but you get suspended … So people are kind of stuck between, ‘Do I work in unsafe conditions, or do I keep my job?’”
Eventually, the CNA said, so many employees had called out of work with COVID-19 symptoms that Soldiers’ Home higher-ups decided to combine the facility’s two dementia units, packing residents into even closer quarters.
“They took all the veterans from the floor on the top and combined them with the veterans downstairs, where the original illness began,” said the CNA. “All they’re doing is creating a big petri dish with all of these gentlemen getting this virus.”
Those accounts were separately confirmed by the second CNA, who said that staffing has always been thin at the Soldiers’ Home and was made even worse by the pandemic.
“They’ve spread out veterans so now we have six beds in rooms that normally had three or four beds,” the second CNA said. “So forget about social distancing — they’re all on top of one another.”
The second CNA said that employees voicing concerns about developing symptoms after being exposed — without PPE — to possibly contagious patients were told by managers that they could have simply caught the virus “at the grocery store.” The CNA added that workers are now being required to use their sick time while awaiting test results.
“I lost four (veterans) in one day,” the second CNA said. “And I just needed to go and cry because it’s not OK.”
According to Masslive family members had no idea any of this was happening and were not alerted to it by the home.
“I was shocked on the phone call when the superintendent let me know that there had been eight veteran deaths between Wednesday and Sunday without any public notice, without any notification to our office and no notification to the state government that oversees the facility in the first place,” he said. “There was a clear lack of urgency on that phone call. We were repeatedly told these were people who had underlying health conditions.”
“At no time did I, or anyone on my staff, hide, conceal or mislead anyone regarding the tragic impact of the virus and it would be outrageous for anyone to even think of doing such a thing.”
NEW: Holyoke Soldiers' Home Superintendent Bennett Walsh releases a statement denying any wrongdoing as 2 more veterans die, bringing total number of deaths to 15. 6 have tested positive for COVID-19. The test results for 6 others are pending. 2 tested negative & 1 unknown. pic.twitter.com/suDyGx2Zdi
— Mike Saccone (@mikesacconetv) April 2, 2020
You didn’t hide anything? Governor Baker didn’t find out until EIGHT DAYS after the first guy was testing positive. You run a building that holds people who are most likely to get and died from the disease, and you not only failed to report to the governor, you also allowed it to spread all over your facility by not following social distance guidelines. Meanwhile I’m sitting in my home and I’m being told we can’t have Grandma over to see her grand crotch fruits.
And according to family members of residents who live there they really weren’t told much besides the fact that one resident who tested positive was put into isolation.
“You hoped for the best and you prayed,” Turgeon said of her reaction to the letter. “At no time did we know it was as serious as what was going on.”
Like Twining, she said she only learned about the extent of the crisis — including the deaths — through news reports on Monday. Turgeon said she was “floored” because she had been in daily phone contact with her father via staff at the facility.
Twining said that for two weeks she scoured social media for hints of what was happening at the facility. She learned about the outbreak through news reports on Monday.
“All last week I tried to get a hold of the nurses, the social workers, and nobody would return my call,” she said. “I think that they’re not allowed to tell the public anything.”
So basically they told them that one guy had the bug and gave them the impression that everything was under control. Meanwhile residents who came in contact with the guy who had it were mingling with everyone else, the disease spread throughout the facility, no one was made aware of anything (including the governor) and now six veterans are dead.
Bennett Walsh is now on paid administrative leave while he is being investigated. Ya got that? While millions of Americans have lost their jobs to this disease, the guy who fucked up and let a bunch of veterans die gets to sit at home and collect a six figure salary. Did he mean to kill these people? Of course not. But you don’t have to commit a crime to be fired from your job.
Bennett Walsh is just the latest in a long list of controversial people who Charlie Baker has advocated for. Let’s not forget, Baker still has not renounced his endorsement of Luke Noble for North Andover Selectmen, despite the fact that Noble was caught on video verbally abusing his daughter, and was credibly accused by that same daughter, her pediatrician, and her therapist of sexual abuse.
This is a disturbing video of Luke Noble, a candidate for North Andover Board of Selectmen pic.twitter.com/IDg9WCCWLu
— Max (@SurelyMacks) March 13, 2020
He also refused to discipline his friend Dan Bennett for his role in Troopergate, nor has he done anything to Stephanie Pollack for her role in allowing seven bikers to be killed by a man whose license she had the power to revoke in June.
Charlie Baker must answer for this, but which mainstream media outlet has the guts to ask the right questions? Bennett Walsh didn’t appoint himself. Charlie Baker did.
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61 Comment(s)
and the veterans lose again.
Great Marine, terrible medical facility administrator.
Homeless shelters are sad.
Let’s not pretend he is a great Marine- he was a shitty Marine that only got to where he was based off of his family’s political connections.
This really pisses me off! Everyone who died here contributed to a “war effort” and served their country, often writing a blank check… meanwhile fucking snowflakes who studied gender studies get to whine about their their student loans now… you want loan forgiveness: go help move some bodies, mop a hospital floor, deliver supplies, etc.
Today 22 News reports the total is 21 that have died at the Holyoke Soldier’s Home.
A Walsh/Baker supporter downvoted a fact from 22 News. Don Shipman from 22 News went to his house in one report and Walsh would not open the door to him.
A down vote in this case means “Jesus that’s a sad thing”. Not a thumbs up that “Hey good job.” Do you really need that explained?
MORE THAN 6 HAVE DIED! DO NOT UNDERPLAY THIS!
This man has blood on his hands. Right off a cliff!
Why do we need a Lt governor,what purpose does it really fill,except stupid photo shoots
I believe the death toll is now up to 18 at that Vets home.
You are correct Lee. Such a tragedy. Bennett Walsh needs to be held accountable. Pray for our Veterans and their caregivers.
Imagine being the aging veteran next in line on the waiting list to get into this place….
You want to look at Kateri Walsh and her “job” at American International College, which is in Springfield…..
Exactly !!!
This is a family of hacks!
Expose them, TB !
Hey Charlie check those masks for covod 19. The chinese kept all the good 3M masks they bought from America and they gave MA all rhe inferior mask that were made in china.
To make matters worse the chinese who made the virus in a lab and spread it all over the world (see wuhan workers in Italy) laced the masks with the chinese virus.
This guy was qualified to be in charge of security, but not in running a medical care facility. Covering up the problem is criminal, especially when he made it easier for it to spread. Anyone who is responsible for 18 deaths (who isn’t butt buddies with the fraud in the corner office that is) would be in deep shit with no pay pending indictment. Make his sorry ass stay in the biohazard facility he created – veteran or not he had a duty to provide a safe environment for those in the care of that facility he needs to pay a steep price.
Thats nothing compared to the New England Compounding Center cover up. 80 patients murdered. Ma board of pharmacy and FDA should be ashamed
Exactly what medical qualifications did he have?
Killing people — which he did as a Marine, isn’t exactly a qualification for this job.
Or, perhaps it is…
Governor’s son AJ Baker sexually assaults a woman on a commercial flight… no charges, case file is lost. You ask stewardess for entire can of soda, interfering with a flight crew felony charge.
Charlie Baker a real piece of shit
Whatever happened to his alcoholic drug addicted son who molested the woman on the plane
Mysteriously the piece of shit was never charged
Compare and contrast with CAPT Brett Crozier, USN, who risked his command of the USS Theodore Roosevelt to keep his sailors healthy, and lost that command because of it.
The Captain of a US Aircraft Carrier with 50 sick none serious sends a status report on his crew to the Pentagon through unsecured e-mail and it ends up public knowledge through leaks. Do you think the Chinese, North Koreans, Russians knew, every intelligence agency in the world had this information and it portrayed the carrier as vulnerable. Captains e-mail was in a US newspaper and on a website? Keep in mind the ship was on active deployment and in port in the Philippines. That’s close to China and North Korea if you didn’t know. Maybe they shouldn’t have held liberty in Vietnam during the Coronavirus pandemic. The Captain created a massive panic among the ships family members back in the US with no way to address that panic some of his own crew also began to panic. Unsecured e-mail, panicking your crew… he’s not a hero he’s a zero, he should probably go on trial for that but Hunter Biden smoked crack as a US Navy officer so whateva man.
Read his crazy sad letter for yourself, he completely panicked and the letter reads like a Emo Teen who just got dumped before the transgender prom. Thank god he revealed his true nature and he’s fired imagine his panic in time of war. Fire aboard ship, income aircraft/missiles, dead wounded he’s no Admiral Halsey more like Gilligan’s Island.
Thanks for the reply, but I’m a former Naval officer and Captain Crozier was my classmate at USNA. Obviously you didn’t glean that from my user name, not that I would have expected you to.
I’m fairly positive you don’t come to command a capital ship in the USN without understanding quite fully the chain of command, and not only that, the politics surrounding it. I’ve read the SECNAV’s explanation of why he did what he did, and lo and behold, guess what – they both did the right thing.
Captain Crozier did what he did for the health and safety of his crew, knowing full well, I’m sure, that he was more than likely going to be relieved of his command. SECNAV did what he did because yeah, in the grand context of strategy, you don’t want to broadcast your readiness to the globe like that. However, if you don’t think our enemies wouldn’t have been fully aware of the TR’s readiness after docking in Guam and not letting any sailors out on liberty, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you.
This was a black shoe decision, but it had to be this way. That Captain Crozier is maintaining his rank and is staying in the Navy speaks volumes.
“the enemy probably already knows all this stuff so why don’t I just send it in an unsecured email what could possibly go wrong?”
Great justification, glad you two were classmates but but guessing you achieved far less than him and I don’t care what color shoes he wears. The fact that he was relieved of command also speaks volumes as does your support for his reckless actions it also shows you to be a complete incompetent. I thought more of the US Navy before reading your Naval Officer insight and justifications for his unlawful actions. But both of you care so much it kind of makes up for everything, now group hug everybody. Welcome to the transgender navy.
Oh boy.
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“the enemy probably already knows all this stuff so why don’t I just send it in an unsecured email what could possibly go wrong?”
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That you can boil it all down to this probably speaks volumes about you.
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and I don’t care what color shoes he wears.
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“Black shoe” is slang for Surface Warfare Officers / the SWO community, and “brown shoe” is slang for Naval Aviators / the Naval Aviation community. Black shoes are notoriously more hard line on formalities and regulations than brown shoes. Captain Crozier is a brown shoe.
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But both of you care so much it kind of makes up for everything, now group hug everybody. Welcome to the transgender navy.
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Sure thing, sport.
It’s really terrible that people don’t rapidly GLEAN who you are and your importance from your name. Everybody needs to know abut your time at the Academy and the importance of silly Naval jargon black shoe brown shoes a tisket a tasket.
The enemy already knows everything, so get me the CIC send out an emergency Tweet on Twitter, follow up with a full statement on facebook then let’s get some good selfies onto instagram. That should get the ball rolling in DC, great call sir. Let’s make sure those insta pics include officers holding hands with as many sailors as possible and a few tears in the officers eyes would be nice but you already got that covered Lt jg McFeels. Losing his nerve and choosing a teen emotional melt down was such a good choice.
Gilligan would have bitch slapped him.
I was just watching videos of the Sailors and Marines of the Theodore Roosevelt cheering his name in unison upon his departure from the ship. It’s almost as if your point of view is wrong to anyone that matters. Weird.
If people cheer for you it means you did the right thing, yay!! You pussy.
Yeah, the 5,000 Sailor and Marines cheered him. What do you think you’re replying about?
Hey “MIDN 1/C W.T. Door”, please comment on this. It used to be that the only biological threat to a US Navy vessel was that the Marines aboard would visit the working girls in the ports, and it would hurt when they pissed afterwards, and this was treated with penicillin by the medics aboard ship. Crozier may or may have not done something good for his crew, but he has put future crews at risk, because he has publicly confirmed that the US Navy is unable to function in a biological warfare environment.
We’re in uncharted waters here, my friend. A virus or a sickness is always a threat to neutralize the military effectiveness of a unit, and capital ships are no exception. I don’t think this is news to anyone, including our enemies, but you’re right…they may be emboldened by what happened.
That said, if push came to shove, I have no doubt the TR would’ve been able to fight, virus or no virus. That’s what sailors and Marines do.
There is only one thing that matters in this society we created, who you know. With few exceptions
And most everyone in every profession got there because of a friend or family. Private sector, public sector, and unions. Having said that it’s fucking bullshit if you get a position because you paid the right politician. These hack politicians think the world is their oyster, boy o boy are they wrong.
Maline! Tonight you die!
Until this situation, Bennett Walsh was a real American hero. Marine Corps infantry, dealing with all that goes with that. It doesn’t mean he was competent at his job at the home in Holyoke. But I want to hear his side of the story before vilifying him. It wouldn’t be the first time that an honorable man was set up to be a fall guy by backstabbers.
Some excerpts from news stories below.
He served three tours in Iraq and was under fire in Somalia commanding the same platoon that his father commanded in Vietnam: the 2nd Platoon, Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, First Marines. He returned from Afghanistan on September 25th, where he was the Current Operations Officer for the First Marine Division.
December 21, 2006 — .U.S. Marine Major Bennett Walsh heads the office that is responsible for notifying next of kin in Maine when a Marine dies.
His extensive Marine experiences include being infantry platoon commander in Mogadishu, Somalia and commander of a combat deployment in in Al Anbar, Iraq.
Walsh has a master’s of arts in national security strategy from the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a master’s of arts in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts and a bachelor’s of arts in political science from Providence College in Rhode Island.
This is like putting a combat arms guy in charge of the quartermasters corps — it ain’t gonna work!
You need a bureaucrat to do this job, you need someone with experience working in some sort of medical facility (and a morgue doesn’t count). He had none of this….
I don’t see the problem. The guy just saved taxpayers a ton of money with these freeloaders off the dole.
Veteran’s benefits are to lifelong welfare freeloaders, as sex is to rape.
I doubt that you ever served our great country in the military…and, with a POS remark like that, you are either trying to incite controversy because this is how you get your wrinkled little sissy rocks off, or, you are, (may I say) just a total loser…Signed, PROUD Veteran
You’re a piece of shit, part of the same group of zero compassion assholes that label CoV19 as the “boomer remover”
FOAD
It’s a good thing for you that this comment section is anonymous.
Someone in one of the families of the deceased might read your pussyboi comment.
The connections go even deeper on the Bennett side of the family
Charlie, start counting down the days. Your days of occupying the corner office at the State House are numbered.
Commie Cold still not as bad as FAGGOT AIDS! FAGS!!!!
These inept hacks always go on paid leave. This is so egregious that he will have to submit his resignation. In a few months he be found hiding in another state agency. They are never held accountable, never fired and always end up with another state job.
And criminal negligence is a crime.
As sad as this is, it’s nothing new. Hack-a-rama is as old as Massachusetts politics. In my former life, working in the periphery of state government, I’ve seen absolute idiots appointed . Clerk-magistrates and Asst. Clerk-magistrates about as qualified as my left testicle. State department heads as qualified as my right one. I don’t have enough space in this thread to tell the stories, but if I did, your heads would spin.
In a nutshell? It’s all about who ponies up the most money for election campaigns and who knows who ! It’s sad, actually. The hack-a-rama and the nepotism runs deep.
The fix?
Stop reelecting the same old clowns. And….start exposing or continue exposing them! Articles like this are a great start !
I, for one, would love to read one of those stories in the comments section.
Oh, the state was giving them adequate support, they just needed to right size the number of patients….
Charlie Baker is the biggest P.O.S. politician ever. This M.F ‘er thinks he’s going to be president someday. He has as much stink on him as any politician in MA. history and that’s saying something. Fuck You Baker and your drunken pervert son.
Baker’s boy, hack on!
Some people have no conscience. They only think of themselves not caring of the outcome of their actions. The old attitude “It’s not my fault.” Responsibility for your actions is a thing of the past in this country. Meanwhile this is the result of such actions. Prayers to the families of these great men who fought bravely for our God given rights. May they Rest In Peace. Hopefully some good comes out of this pathetic situation. They definitely deserved better.
I smell lawsuit! Actually lots and lots of lawsuits!
Sorry, the State Tort Claim Act limits liability to $100,000 — good luck finding a lawyer who knows that the most he can get is $30K after a long suit.
Now as to a Federal Grand Jury (as there is Federal money here), that is another story…
Excellent news break. This is what id like to read instead of 18 stories on that other cunt. Btw, why you use pics of her that make her look hot when she a freakin rino in real life
I want on the Baker Mobile. Gimme a job!!
Thank you. Hold Tall Duval accountable. Charlie Faker needs to go!