Council for Human Services elects chair, names representatives to contract review committee

At its Thursday, July 31, meeting the Council for Human Services elected Veronica Bolchick as chair and Sarah Wright as co-chair and approved two council members to represent the body on the town’s Contract Review Committee. The council voted by roll call to confirm the leadership and to name Veronica Bolchick and Suzanne Keating as the council’s two representatives to the Contract Review Committee (CRC).

The vote followed roll-call motions and brief discussion of members’ availability. “I would be interested in staying involved on this level,” Bolchick said during the meeting when noting that one prior co-chair had stepped down and that she expects to travel later in the fiscal year. Sarah Wright, who was elected co-chair, is identified in the meeting as director of social services at Nantucket Cottage Hospital.

The council also addressed staffing and participation on CRC, the subcommittee that develops and evaluates human-services grant requests. Suzanne Keating volunteered to serve on CRC; the council ratified Bolchick and Keating as its representatives. John Belash, introduced as a member at large of the Contract Review Committee, was present as a member of the public and noted his long experience on CRC.

Discussion at the meeting emphasized continuity and institutional memory as reasons for confirming the appointments. Members said CRC work is more time intensive during the fall grant season and requires review of proposals, interviews and quarterly monitoring.

The council closed the meeting by confirming the appointments and adjourning. No substantive policy decisions beyond the leadership and representative appointments were made at the meeting.

The council’s next planned meeting activity related to CRC is a joint informational session with the town finance office scheduled for the coming week to review funding rules and timelines for fiscal year 2027 grants.