Healey-Driscoll Administration Breaks Ground on Transformational Holyoke Veterans Home Reconstruction Project

Healey-Driscoll Administration Breaks Ground on Transformational Holyoke Veterans Home Reconstruction Project 

 

HOLYOKE– Today, Governor Maura T. Healey and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll hosted a groundbreaking ceremony at the Massachusetts Veterans Home at Holyoke. In coordination with Congressman Richard Neal and Veterans Services Secretary Jon Santiago, the groundbreaking ceremony represents a new era of investment, care, and support for veterans across Massachusetts.  

 

"Today marks a historic milestone for Massachusetts veterans, service members and their families," said Governor Healey. "The commencement of construction for the new Holyoke Veterans Home represents our commitment to ensuring that Massachusetts veterans receive the care and support they deserve. Working with our local, state and federal partners, and under the leadership of Secretary Santiago and the team at the Executive Office of Veteran Services, we will continue our work to revitalize both Veterans Homes, enhancing personnel and facilities to provide nothing less than world-class care for our veterans." 

 

"Our administration is resolute in our commitment to invest in and support our veterans,” said Lieutenant Governor Driscoll, who herself is the daughter of a Navy Veteran. “Together, we will honor the sacrifices of our veterans by ensuring they receive the comprehensive care and services that they deserve." 

 

Having served as a long-term healthcare facility for veterans in the Commonwealth since 1949, the Holyoke Soldiers Home has played a vital role for over seven decades. The newly constructed Massachusetts Veterans Home at Holyoke will accommodate 234 long-term care beds, offering essential nursing support and meticulously designed community spaces.   

 

“Today’s groundbreaking comes after years of advocacy by local, state, and federal officials, and most importantly, the family members of Holyoke Veterans’ Home residents both past and present. These efforts have culminated in a new 234-bed facility that will provide our veterans with the care and treatment they have earned,” said Congressman Richard Neal. “I would like to thank VA Secretary Denis McDonough, who I have been in regular communication with over the past several years, for recognizing the significant impact a project of this magnitude will have on our veteran community. Three years ago, we gathered here after seventy-six veterans tragically lost their lives. At that time, we promised to deliver change that would prevent such a tragedy from happening again. Today, we are delivering on that promise.”   

 

In March 2023, Secretary Jon Santiago announced that the Executive Office of Veterans Services (EOVS) completed the necessary final steps to ensure compliance and receive grant funding through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) State Home Construction Grant Program. The Holyoke Veterans’ Home then entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with the VA, committing $263.5 million in federal funds. $164 million of the grant has been awarded this fiscal year, with the remainder to be paid out in future fiscal years.  

 

"Our mission is to honor those who have selflessly served our nation,” said Secretary Jon Santiago. “Though the past remains immutable, the future is ours to shape. The Holyoke Veterans’ Home reconstruction project is our unwavering commitment to ensuring that Massachusetts veterans receive exceptional long-term care. Their sacrifices for our freedom should never be forgotten or taken for granted." 

 

“We have made great strides over the last three years,” said Michael Lazo, Superintendent, Holyoke Veterans’ Home. “Today marks the culmination of a lot of hard work and planning —it’s great to be at the point of construction of the new Home that will serve as a constant reminder of our commitment to Massachusetts veterans.”   

 

Further enhancements for the project include upgraded clinical spaces, a 30-bed memory care floor, and a 40-person Adult Day Health Program catering to community-residing veterans. A Memorial Garden at the entrance will honor veterans, especially those lost during the COVID-19 pandemic. The state-of-the-art Veterans Home will gradually replace the existing Soldiers' Home facility through phased construction, aiming to minimize disruptions. Completion is expected by late 2026, with complete site restoration anticipated by Summer 2028. 

 

“While our Commonwealth’s veteran population and their medical needs are changing, the Holyoke Veterans’ Home’s mission remains the same: to provide care with honor and dignity. Veterans and their families will be depending on the Home for decades to come and this new state-of-the-art facility will help ensure they receive the critical medical care and services that they have earned in service to our nation. I am grateful to the Healey-Driscoll Administration, Congressman Neal, Secretary Santiago, and my colleagues in the Legislature for their steadfast commitment to the Holyoke Veterans’ Home and this reconstruction,” said Senator John Velis. “At the end of the day this project is all about the blood, sweat, and tears of our Commonwealth’s service-members and our recognition of the need to give them what they profoundly deserve. Most of all, I want to thank all the veterans, families, and community members from across Western Massachusetts who have advocated for a new Holyoke Veterans’ Home facility for so long. This has been a long process, but today we are one step closer to making this incredible project a reality.” 

 

“I have worked with the veterans, their families, and the staff at the Holyoke Soldiers Home for twenty years, as a union field representative, community organizer, legislative staffer, and now as State Representative. To have a role in these people getting the Home they deserve is the honor of my public service career,” said Representative Pat Duffy.

Western Mass Businessman Cesar Ruiz Launches Hispanic Latino Leaders Now Political Action Committee

 Western Mass Businessman Cesar Ruiz Launches Hispanic Latino Leaders Now Political Action Committee

Organization will Support Latino Agenda & Candidates in Massachusetts

 

         Springfield—East Longmeadow businessman Cesar Ruiz, the President and CEO of Golden Years Home Care and a one-time Springfield School Committee member, has announced the launch of the Hispanic Latino Leaders Now Political Action Committee (HLLNPAC).

 

            Ruiz formed the Political Action Committee to advance public policy that reflects the values and addresses issues important to Hispanic and Latino voters in Massachusetts and also to advance Hispanic/Latino candidates for office throughout the Commonwealth.

 

            The PAC was established with an initial $100,000 personal loan by Ruiz to the new entity, as allowed by the regulations for establishing a political action committee.

 

            The mission of the new Hispanic Latino Leaders Now PAC, according to Ruiz, is to “support our goals and ideals, including, but not limited to, a fair tax code, support of electronic ballot signature legislation and equity and inclusion on statewide committees and appointments.”

 

            Ruiz said, “this new Political Action Committee will also make political campaign contributions and provide support to persons of color running for local, regional and statewide office who will represent the issues of importance and that matter most to Hispanic and Latino voters and populations.”

 

            According to the new website supporting the formation of HLLNPAC, while Hispanics and Latinos are 13% of the population in Massachusetts, they represent a very small proportion of the elected chambers of the State House and Senate.  While these proportions slightly have increased on the local level, they still do not rise to the representative population of residents in Massachusetts that identify as Hispanic or Latino.  A further mission of the Political Action Committee is to advance qualified candidates to better represent the electorate and population as a whole. 

 

            In addition to founding HLLNPAC he is serving on its inaugural Board and as Clerk of the new organization. Ruiz operates Golden Years Home Care, Golden Years Behavioral Health Group and Golden Years Staffing, and is a member of the Board of the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts. He is also a corporator at Monson Savings Bank and from 1980 to 1986 served as an At-Large Member of the Springfield School Committee, becoming the first Latino to be elected in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

 

Ruiz is joined on the PAC Board by Andrew Melendez who currently is the Director of the Latino Economic Development Corporation headquartered in Springfield. That organization connects Latino business organizations to available capital improvement grants and serves as an advocacy group in support of Latino economic development in the Commonwealth.

 

Melendez formerly served as the Western Massachusetts Director for the Associated Industries of Massachusetts, the largest business association in Massachusetts having over 700 members in the western region.

 

The Board of the new PAC also includes two other individuals. Lidya Rivera-Early is part of the founding Board and serves as Director of Community Engagement at Springfield Technical Community College. Born in Stamford, Connecticut, Rivera-Early spent part of her childhood in Puerto Rico before moving to Springfield.

 

Rounding out the Board is Cristina Berrios serves as Office Manager at Golden Years Home Care Services. She handles the coordination of all central office functions at the company including training and staff development.

Ben Weber Announces IBEW 103 Endorsement of His Campaign

 Ben Weber Announces IBEW 103 Endorsement of His Campaign 

 Ben Weber announces today that he is being endorsed by IBEW 103 representing electrical and telecommunications workers across Boston for City Council District 6. 

“Ben has shown through 18 years of work as a workers’ rights attorney that he will always be on the side of working-class people,” said IBEW 103 Business Manager Lou Antonellis.  “He will bring integrity, dedication, and intelligence to the Boston City Council.  We believe he would be a strong City Councilor and know that he has our members' backs.” 

“I am honored to have the hardworking people of IBEW 103 supporting my campaign,” Ben Weber said.  “IBEW 103 has a leading role in not just ensuring workers are paid a fair and livable wage, but in transitioning our economy to clean energy, ensuring our public infrastructure is safe, and so much more.  As a City Councilor, organized labor will not just have an ear to bend but a partner who will help narrow the wealth gap and ensure working families can afford to live in Boston.”

 IBEW 103’s mission is “to provide Greater Boston's developers with the best trained, most efficient, safest electricians and telecommunications specialists while fostering our Union's values of economic fairness, equal opportunity and charitable giving in the communities we work, live and raise our families.”  Along with representing their workers and ensuring they get the highest wages and benefits possible, IBEW 103 is active in charity work across Boston and has dedicated itself to helping the less fortunate. 

Ben and his wife Xan have lived in Jamaica Plain for 15 years, raising their son Noah, 16, and daughter Hannah, 11.  He is running for District 6 City Councilor because he believes that he can contribute to a collaborative City Council that focuses on the issues facing Boston residents and families every single day. 

Weber has devoted his legal career to protecting workers from wage theft and other forms of corporate greed. He represented migrant cotton workers in the Mississippi Delta, learning Spanish to better communicate with his immigrant clients, then moved to Boston in 2008 to join the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office. As Counsel at the law firm Lichten & Liss-Riordan, Weber has advocated on behalf of hospital workers, Black and Latino public safety workers, farm workers, and delivery drivers. He believes that the City Council has an important role to play in protecting Boston’s workers, by ordinance and through political advocacy.  

Both children were students at the Mission Hill School, where Weber’s family and their close-knit community of MHS families suffered the turmoil of last year’s alarming report and sudden closure. Noah is now at Boston Arts Academy and Hannah at the Curley School, but the experience showed Weber the need for BPS to communicate better, truly empower families as partners, and ensure more quality school options for everyone. In Weber’s words, “I’m committed to Boston Public Schools, so I’m running to make sure that we learn from the Mission Hill School situation to guarantee every BPS student an excellent education.” 

A college athlete himself at Brandeis University, Weber believes in the value of youth sports. He has served as a coach to Hannah and Noah’s teams in both Jamaica Plain Youth Soccer and Parkway Soccer and has seen firsthand Boston’s great need for improved public sports fields. Weber strongly supports capital investments such as the proposed renovation of White Stadium to finally provide BPS track and field athletes with the updated facilities they deserve. Weber is also a member of the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council, where he is dedicated to working together to achieve affordable housing solutions that preserve Jamaica Plain’s diverse character and tackle the housing crisis burdening so many of Boston’s working families. 

Weber is running for the District 6 City Council seat currently held by Councilor Kendra Lara, representing West Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, and parts of Roslindale and Mission Hill.

美國最高法院擋下Purdue製藥與州市政府達成的和解協議

            (Boston Orange 編譯) 美國最高法院 (Supreme Court) 今 (10) 日阻止了奧施康定(OxyContin) 製造商普渡 (Purdue)製藥公司的全球和解協議，不讓該公司擁有者的薩克勒家族成員豁免於因鴉片類藥物所造成損失而提起的民事訴訟。

法官們同意拜登政府的請求，暫停州和地方政府去年和普渡公司達成的協議。 此外，這最高法院將在年底前就是否可以繼續進行和解聆聽辯論。

和解協議將容許該公司以一個不同實體身份，用收益來對抗鴉片類藥物的流行，並擺脫破產困境。薩克勒家族成員將捐款高達 60 億美元。

不過該協議的一個關鍵部分將保護不以個人身份尋求破產保護的薩克勒家族家庭成員免於訴訟。

由美國司法部所代表的美國破產信託人反對免除薩克勒家族的法律責任。

法官指示雙方去處理破產法是否授權對所有鴉片類藥物受害者提起的訴訟，都給予全面保護。

美國第二巡迴上訴法院已准許進行重組計劃。

普渡公司的律師和協議的其他各方曾促請司法不們不要介入此案。普渡的律師寫道，”這是毫無根據的擱置申請，如果獲得批准，將會傷害受害者，並不必要地推遲了分配數十億美元，緩解阿片類藥物危機。”

也將得到和解協議一部分，代表鴉片類藥物危機個人受害者的律師埃德·尼格（Ed Neiger）表示，得等更長時間來得到任何賠償，很令人失望，但他同時讚揚法院那麼快就同意審理此案。 他說，“他們顯然看到了事情的緊迫性”。

大都由子女死於鴉片類藥物過量的父母所組成的另一個群體，已要求不接受和解協議。

近年來，美國每年有超過 70,000 宗因服用鴉片類藥物過量死亡事件。 其中大部分來自芬太尼和其他合成藥物。 但隨著奧施康定和其他強效處方止痛藥的流行，這危機在 2000 年代初進一步擴大。

波士頓市議會議長Ed Flynn主持道德及反霸凌培訓

           (Boston Orange編譯) 波士頓市議會議長愛德華費連 (Ed Flynn) 為推行他於5月份提出的反霸凌政策，相繼於8月8日和10日，在市政府內為市議會議員們及其屬下，主持了2小時的麻州道德培訓，以及3小時的工作會議。他誓言在議長任期內讓這政策落實成為法案。

8月8日，週二時，Flynn議長邀請麻州道德委員會公共教育和傳播組長 David Giannotti 到市政廳做道德培訓，並邀請所有議員及其工作人員出席。這定期培訓是禮貌性的安排，並不是波士頓市每年強制性的符合規定要求，但由於議會成員最近有法律和倫理方面的失誤，因此顯得及時。麻州道德委員會的培訓內容包括了利益衝突法、禮品限制、行為標準和相關的道德問題。

Flynn議長表示，"作為民選官員，市議員和工作人員具備了解如何獲得法律建議、披露信息以及處理任何潛在利益衝突的知識，非常重要，以完全遵循法令” 。

8月10日，Flynn議長 舉行了法規委員會工作會議，討論他在5月份向議會提交的反霸凌政策。他說，"反霸凌政策幾十年前就該實施了，那也是市議會所推廣，最重要的一種文化，既包容，右能吸引人才近市政府擔任公僕。他希望市議會同仁繼續朝向可同意的標準合作，使市議會成為一個受所有人歡迎，正面的工作環境。

Council President Flynn Holds State Ethics Training and Anti-bullying Working Session for Boston City Council

BOSTON - This week, Boston City Council President Ed Flynn hosted a Massachusetts State Ethics Training for over two hours on Tuesday, August 8th, followed by a three hour working session on Thursday, August 10th regarding an Anti-Bullying Policy for City Councilors, Council staff, and Council Central Staff that he introduced in May. 

On Tuesday, Council President Flynn invited the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission Public Education and Communications Division Chief David Giannotti to provide ethics training at City Hall, with all Councilors and staff invited to attend. The regular training was scheduled as a courtesy and not part of the mandatory City of Boston annual compliance, although it proved timely due to recent legal and ethical lapses by members of the body. The State Ethics Commission covered conflict of interest law, gift restrictions, code of conduct and related ethics issues.

“As Elected Officials, it is critical that City Councilors and staff are equipped with knowledge on how to obtain legal advice, disclose information, and manage any potential conflicts of interest so that we are in full compliance of the law,” said Council President Flynn. “I want to thank the Massachusetts State Ethics Commission for this training, in addition to the City’s annual compliance, and my colleagues and their staff for attending. In positions of public trust, it is helpful that we continually refresh ourselves and receive any updates on rules, regulations, and always remain aware of avoiding any hint of impropriety.”

On Thursday, Council President Flynn held a Rules Committee working session to discuss the Anti-Bullying policy he filed with the Council in May. 

“An Anti-Bullying Policy should have been implemented decades ago, and I intend to do so before my term as Boston City Council President concludes,”said Council President Flynn. “It is of the utmost importance that we promote a culture that is inclusive and attracts talent to public service at City Hall, where everyone feels welcome in the workplace, and not subject to any type of bullying or harassment. I hope that my colleagues and I can continue to work together towards agreeable standards and make the City Council a positive and welcoming work environment for all.”

波士頓華排協第四屆9人排賽 南加華排、紐約校聯奪冠

刻正代理市長一職的波士頓市議會議長Ed Flynn(中)應阮鴻燦(左三)之邀，
出席波士頓華人排球協會第四屆邀請賽開幕式，和比賽主要籌辦人
伍達慈(左起)、梅健興，雷海等人合影。 (阮鴻燦提供)

           (Boston Orange 周菊子波士頓報導) 波士頓華人排球協會第四屆9人排球邀請賽，共有來自麻州波士頓、紐約、加州及康州的14隊參加，在黃述沾紀念公園激烈競比一日後，依序由南加州華人排球俱樂部，紐約校聯隊奪得青年隊、中年隊冠軍，

青年組的亞、季軍依序為波士頓排協，波士頓安良(Hurricanes)，中年組的亞、季軍依序為紐約龍旺、紐約布碌崙排協。

南加州華人排球俱樂部奪得青年組冠軍。(周菊子攝)

                         紐英崙中華公所主席雷國輝，英文書記阮鴻燦，劍虹體育會創辦人暨牙醫阮浩鑾，Chenk Chan，金神賭場副總裁Kelly Lennis等人應邀，當晚在帝苑大酒樓頒獎給得獎隊伍。

波士頓華人排球協會」的3名會長，伍達慈，雷海、李健新都很低調，在頒獎晚宴中分桌而坐，和球員們一起慶祝。倒是司儀十分懂得造勢，為第一次參賽的康州隊大喊加油，明年再來。

紐約校聯隊奪得中年隊冠軍。(周菊子攝)

                        今年參加比賽的14隊，中年組有波士頓排協，波士頓小南閣、紐約校聯、紐約友聯，紐約龍旺，布碌倫排協、台山僑中、康州隊。青年組有颶風隊 (Hurricanes)、紐約華體會A隊、紐約華體會B隊，南加州華人排球俱樂部，波士頓排協、紐約斗山隊。無論是隊伍數目或州別都增多了，頗有追趕北美華人排球邀請賽的勢頭。

              根據維基百科，排球是美國麻州Holyoke基督教青年會幹事William Morgan於1895年發明的一種運動，1896年在如今的春田學院舉行了第一場公開賽。不過這是6人一隊的排球賽。

紐英崙中華公所主席雷國輝(左五)頒發青年組亞軍獎給波士頓排協。(周菊子攝)

              9人排球賽則是美國台山移民獨有的排球打法，而且興起於波士頓，也是波士頓諸多全美第一的其中一個第一。1938年時，第一場正式的9人排球賽，就是由麻州波士頓和羅德島州普域敦斯市 (Providence)組隊舉辦的。

              隨著時移日遷，當年打9人排球賽的老一輩波士頓人逐漸凋零，新一代打9人排球的多半都是在美出生的ABC，9人排球賽也一度英文化。

阮浩鑾頒發青年組季軍獎給波士頓安良 (Hurricanes)隊。(周菊子攝)

              大約四年多前，一批後期移民來美的台山人，因為當年9人排球賽從美國流行回中國，成為台山人都採用的排球打法，在台山時就都已習慣並喜愛打9人排球的人，儘管來美後從事不同行業，卻都保留了打9人排球的喜好，於是在熱心人登高一呼下，聚攏而來，就從友聯隊擴大成為波士頓華人排球協會，還依端芬镇、斗山镇、大江镇、開平镇、都斛、冲蒌、三合，台城等8個鄉鎮，各自有隊長協調打球事宜。

中華公所英文書記阮鴻燦(前)頒發中年組亞軍獎給紐約龍旺隊。(周菊子攝)

              8月6日的這場第四屆波士頓華人排球邀請賽，不僅參賽隊伍從去年的10隊增加到今年的14隊，隊伍來自州別，也從麻州、紐約，增加到有加州和康州。當天貼在會場主席台上的一張巨型海報，列名贊助的個人及商鋪數量近百，可見9人排球賽在美國華人社區受歡迎，迄今不歇。

紐約布碌崙排協贏得中年組季軍。(周菊子攝)

波士頓華人排球協會在黃述沾紀念公園舉行第四屆9人排球邀請賽。(阮鴻燦提供)

波士頓華人排球協會第四屆9人排球邀請賽，贊助者眾。(阮鴻燦提供)

勒星頓中文學校家長遊華埠 中華公所主席雷國輝親導覽

波士頓食健會在華埠牌樓前留影。陳台榮(右一)透露，華埠牌樓
之所以能夠掛出中華民國國旗，讓中國大陸來波士頓觀光的遊客們，
在拍照時都得把中華民國國旗拍進照片中帶回家，原因之一是
因為他認識綠路保護會的其中一名董事，爭取到了掛旗權。

               (Boston Orange 周菊子波士頓報導) 麻州郊區和波士頓，其實頂多也就一、二個小時的距離，成語中的”呎尺天涯”，卻至今有驗證。勒星頓中文學校早年家長們組成的” 波士頓食健會” ，8月6日到華埠參訪，紛紛感嘆，之前還真不知道波士頓華埠那麼有內涵。

              ” 波士頓食健會” 是勒星頓中文學校家長們組成的同樂會，由會員草擬計畫，爬山、郊遊或聚餐的每月歡聚，豐富退休後生活。

              由於食健會成員們儘管在麻州住了那麼多年，許多人卻已十幾、廿年沒踏進過波士頓華埠，其他來過的，也多半只是上餐館，進超市，並不了解華埠。

波士頓食健會在中華廣教學校的禮堂中留影。

              8月6日這天，他們在早年曾追隨前年辭世的波士頓僑領陳毓璇，在波士頓華埠工作過，近年又因身為紐英崙至孝篤親公所幹部，經常出入華埠的陳台榮，為他們安排了一場一般人無緣享受到的導覽，從鑲有” 天下為公” 牌匾的華埠牌樓出發，參觀了中華公所，廣教學校，波士頓安良工商會，紐英崙至孝篤親公所等地方，還在波士頓洪門致公堂門口，聽到國父孫中山當年為建國籌款，曾借宿洪門的故事。                

在波士頓安良工商會大樓屋頂上看到的波士頓街景。

                      這場導覽之特別，在於陳台榮仗著他和中華公所主席雷國輝當年同在陳毓璇餐廳中打工，彼此認識近半世紀的關係，邀得雷國輝親自解說，還登上一般人去不到的波士頓安良工商會大樓屋頂，在中華民國青天白日滿地紅國旗飄揚的陪伴中，俯瞰波士頓華埠。

              包括鍾曼怡、金兆珉、江佩蓉、莊紀華等多位曾任勒星頓中文學校校長的30多名”波士頓食健會”成員，這天聽了包括華埠牌樓建造歷史，國旗得以懸掛在牌樓上的因緣，中華公所與姓氏宗親會功能等好多故事。

波士頓安良工商會樓頂，有座古色古香的中國式涼亭，
讓人一看就知道進華埠了。

                        在中華公所主席雷國輝的解說鍾，他們知道了紐英崙中華公所其實清朝時就已存在，主要是由姓氏宗親會和社區僑團所組成，當年是華人社區的龍頭組織，為華人同胞排難解紛，提供生活所需的各種協助，1923年才在麻州政府正式註冊立案，今年慶祝100週年。

其中的波士頓安良工商會，當年肩負著維護華埠治安的重任，如今注重培訓下一代舞龍、舞獅。

中華公所主席雷國輝(左一)為波士頓食健會做中華公所及廣教學校導覽。

                             華埠牌樓也有很多故事。當年位於台灣的國府，捐了建牌樓的材料，但波士頓市府沒有建牌樓的經費，於是瓦片有好長一段時間堆在倉庫，還得付倉租。後來還是當年在波士頓市政府內任職的陳毓禮和陳建立，聯袂晉見時任市長的Kevin White，爭取到10萬元經費，這才把華埠牌樓蓋了起來。然而好事多磨，台灣運過來的瓦片，經不起紐英崙的寒冬摧殘，很快就破了，碎了。經過波士頓僑社再次努力，重新尋覓適合瓦片，才又重建。

華埠牌樓上的題字，據說”天下為公”用的是孫中山，”禮義廉恥”用的是蔣中正的墨寶，所以波士頓的華埠牌樓，有2名總統加持，比其他地方的華埠牌樓都矜貴。

中華公所主席雷國輝和陳台榮在中華公所正維修的房間中，招呼食健會成員。

                         同時具有中華廣教學校副董事長身份的雷國輝，還帶食健會參觀了廣教學校，包括寬闊的禮堂，會議室及許多間教室的共三層樓空間，都是廣教學校擁有的物業。陳台榮感歎表示，早年聚居華埠的人，多半學歷不高，在社會底層工作，卻能募款籌建出一棟屬於自己的校舍。他激勵全是高學歷的食健會參觀團” 亦復如是” 。(所有圖片均由陳台榮提供)

(僑務電子報:   https://ocacnews.net/article/347243 )

波士頓食健會還到紐英崙至孝篤親公所參觀，聆聽陳袁胡三姓組成至孝篤親公所的由來。

拜登政府推出2年期人工智能網路挑戰賽以保護美國關鍵軟體

Biden-Harris Administration Launches Artificial Intelligence Cyber Challenge to Protect America’s Critical Software

Several leading AI companies – Anthropic, Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI – to partner with DARPA in major competition to make software more secure

The Biden-Harris Administration today launched a major two-year competition that will use artificial intelligence (AI) to protect the United States’ most important software, such as code that helps run the internet and our critical infrastructure.  The “AI Cyber Challenge” (AIxCC) will challenge competitors across the United States, to identify and fix software vulnerabilities using AI. Led by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), this competition will include collaboration with several top AI companies – Anthropic, Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI – who are lending their expertise and making their cutting-edge technology available for this challenge. This competition, which will feature almost $20 million in prizes, will drive the creation of new technologies to rapidly improve the security of computer code, one of cybersecurity’s most pressing challenges. It marks the latest step by the Biden-Harris Administration to ensure the responsible advancement of emerging technologies and protect Americans.

The Biden-Harris Administration announced AIxCC at the Black Hat USA Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, the nation’s largest hacking conference, which for decades has produced many cybersecurity innovations. By finding and fixing vulnerabilities in an automated and scalable way, AIxCC fits into this tradition. It will demonstrate the potential benefits of AI to help secure software used across the internet and throughout society, from the electric grids that power America to the transportation systems that drive daily life.

DARPA will host an open competition in which the competitor that best secures vital software will win millions of dollars in prizes. AI companies will make their cutting-edge technology—some of the most powerful AI systems in the world—available for competitors to use in designing new cybersecurity solutions. To ensure broad participation and a level playing field for AIxCC, DARPA will also make available $7 million to small businesses who want to compete.

Teams will participate in a qualifying event in Spring 2024, where the top scoring teams (up to 20) will be invited to participate in the semifinal competition at DEF CON 2024, one of the world’s top cybersecurity conferences. Of these, the top scoring teams (up to five) will receive monetary prizes and continue to the final phase of the competition, to be held at DEF CON 2025. The top three scoring competitors in the final competition will receive additional monetary prizes.

The top competitors will make a meaningful difference in cybersecurity for America and the world. The Open Source Security Foundation (OpenSSF), a project of the Linux Foundation, will serve as a challenge advisor. It will also help ensure that the winning software code is put to use right away protecting America’s most vital software and keeping the American people safe.

Today’s announcement is part of a broader commitment by the Biden-Harris Administration to ensure that the power of AI is harnessed to address the nation’s great challenges, and that AI is developed safely and responsibly to protect Americans from harm and discrimination. Last month, the Biden-Harris Administration announced it had secured voluntary commitments from seven leading AI companies to manage the risks posed by the technology. Earlier this year, the Administration announced a commitment from several AI companies to participate in an independent, public evaluation of large language models (LLMs)—consistent with responsible disclosure principles—at DEF CON 2023. This exercise, which starts later this week and is the first-ever public assessment of multiple LLMs, will help advance safer, more secure and more transparent AI development.

In addition, the Biden-Harris Administration is currently developing an executive order and will pursue bipartisan legislation to help America lead the way in responsible AI innovation.