Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito served as the keynote speaker for the 146th annual meeting of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce held last Friday, December 3.

The Central Mass native, with strong roots in Worcester, touched upon the investments of the Baker Administration in Worcester and beyond, as well as the civic and business leadership that has made a Worcester a growing destination for investment and economic development.

She also noted that it was the ongoing partnership between government, business and community leaders that proved critical in working through the uncharted waters of the pandemic.

“There was no playbook,” Polito said. “Fortunately, for us, we live in a place that has an abundance of expertise and it allowed for the Governor and I to rely on these voices for these decisions along the way.”

She recognized that the DCU Center, where the Chamber event took place, served as a critical field hospital. The center provided additional capacity for patients with Covid-19. From early April to late May of 2020, the DCU site served 161 patients, according to UMass Memorial Medical Center.

“I want to thank you all for doing your part,” Polito said. “82 percent of our adults here in Massachusetts are fully vaccinated.” She added however that only 23 percent of adults have received their booster shots and she encouraged more people to get their booster.

“We have come a long way this year,” she said, adding how the Massachusetts Emergency Response Team set up a call for manufacturing and workplaces to help make masks, gowns, ventilators, and more to support the efforts. “We have an amazing ability in this Commonwealth to be able to do something that was never done before…In the face of adversity, uncertainty, and sadness, we saw and witnessed the greatest of humanity and the greatest of our abilities.”

In addition to recognizing Worcester’s many health care professionals and frontline workers, she lauded Worcester for supporting small businesses and the community at large during and after the first few months of the pandemic. It’s estimated that 465 businesses were supported with about $20 million with federal money in Worcester.

“You came up with the playbook,” Polito said, “how to safely reopen, how to get workers back in the workplace, and how to get your customers and others you do business with back in the game.”

Polito noted that Worcester’s draw as a growing destination for investment is well deserved and serves as a model for other municipalities across the Commonwealth. “How you treated Polar Park and the WooSox team is how every business in Worcester should be treated,” Polito said. “They belong here. Their jobs, their workforce, their investment of their tax dollars in this community — that is Worcester’s future.”

Polito made clear that over the remaining 13 months of the Baker Administration, she will work to help Worcester continue that growth trajectory. “I want to make sure that Worcester continues to understand the assets that you have and how important it is to lose sight of what they are,” Polito said. “Worcester knows how to do this.”

For Polito, Worcester also holds a strong personal connection to her family. In 1909, her great-grandfather, Francesco, came to this city with the hope that he could provide a better life for his family.

“He found all of that and more,” Polito said. “Many generations later, we’re still going strong. That opportunity is here in Worcester today for many people that want to call this home.”