Annual Gala Fundraiser

Bonnie Katusich

Longtime Employee

After an unsuccessful attempt to 'work with people' in the Reagan years (80's), Bonnie stumbled into the field of accounting and discovered she enjoyed numbers as much as she enjoyed working with people. Life is ever changing - after years of moving due to having a military father and then attending schools from Boston to New Mexico, Bonnie landed in western MA. Then came love, then came marriage, then came babies, and as life happens Bonnie moved from public accounting to managing the finances of nonprofit organizations, where she has worked (except for a short stint selling and training people in nonprofit accounting software) for 30 years.

It was in June, 2004 that Bonnie first started work as the Director of Operations at Willie Ross School for the Deaf, Inc. First under the leadership of Dr. Louis Abbate, and now under the leadership of Bert Carter, Bonnie has grown and thrived just as WRSD has grown and thrived. Personally, Bonnie has grown too - from marriage and two children, to a second marriage and four children, The kids are grown and (almost) gone, and now it's Bonnie's time to retire. This June (2024) will be the 20th anniversary of her work here at WRSD, and it's time to pass the torch! Bonnie and her husband John Ewell will be moving their lives to Bushkill, PA in the summer of 2024. After enjoying a long four-ish months off, Bonnie hopes to work part time, continuing her work with nonprofits in the Stroudsburg, PA area.

Bonnie has felt fulfilled in her life and her career, having been able to work both with people and with numbers. While she can say sometimes it's been crazy people and amazing numbers, more often she is grateful for the amazing people and yes - for the crazy numbers!

Guertin Family
Founding Family

Armand and Aline Guertin were founding parents of Willie Ross, establishing the school to educate their son, Vincent, and so many other young students. Vincent has nine siblings, including Pierre, Michelle, Celeste, Janine, Louise, Yvette, Norman, Daniel and Thomas.

Armand, an electrical contractor, spent countless hours to prepare and maintain the facilities. Aline volunteered to assist teachers and staff with many events. Aside from raising their family, Willie Ross was their greatest legacy and they inspired us to remain connected to the school.

Julie, married Armand after the early passing of Aline, assisting him with his large and young family. Many of us remember visiting the Longmeadow campus before it opened, watching it take shape and were impressed by what a small group of passionate, caring parents was able to accomplish. We’re committed to seeing the school continue to succeed because we see how much it helped our brother. He is very independent. He not only has the love and respect of his family, but his employers, friends and colleagues as well.

In connection with the 50th Anniversary celebration, the Guertin family made a leadership, challenge gift to establish the Founders Fund. Celebrating the Founding Parents, the Fund hopes to continuously raise discretionary funds to support school needs.

Dr. J. Robert Kirkwood

Longtime Trustee & Chair

Twenty years ago, John Gallup, a member of the Board at the Willie Ross School for the Deaf, and Lou Abbate, then the CEO of Willie Ross School, asked me if I would serve on the Board of the school.

They explained over a lunch meeting the complex and good work being done with students. I visited the school, saw what they described, and from then on, I served as a Board member and ultimately as Chair of the Board. I learned a lot about deaf education and was impressed by the skill and dedication of our teachers of the deaf who work closely with students, often on-on-one.

I expanded the Board to bring needed skills, and through my connection with Baystate Health hosted educational events on deaf education for community educators. Our excellent, skilled, and diverse Board actively interacts with the school administration, discussing new ideas for deaf education, while creating and implementing a detailed strategic action plan.

I cherish my membership on the Board. It is an honor and rewarding for me to help the school achieve its goals in educating the more than 200 deaf students in Western Massachusetts.

Monson Savings
Longtime Partner

Monson Savings Bank got involved with Willie Ross School for the Deaf about a decade ago. We were given the opportunity to share with them the “Monson Savings Bank difference;” WRSD gave us the opportunity to share our financing and banking offerings for non-profits.

Monson Savings Bank truly cares about our local communities and support the non-profits, like WRSD, that make our communities a better place to live.

It is our honor to be able to provide WRSD with the financing and banking products that they need to run their organization and fulfill their mission.

Over the past 10 years, we have formed a relationship with WRSD and have enjoyed watching the school grow into what it is today.