State Sen. Jake Oliveira recieves the Massachusetts Municipal Association’s Municipal Advocate Award.
Reminder Publishing file photo
LONGMEADOW — The Longmeadow Select Board recognized and congratulated state Sen. Jake Oliveira in its Jan. 20 meeting for being awarded the Massachusetts Municipal Association’s 2026 municipal advocate award at the MMA Connect 351 conference.
The conference runs from Jan. 22-24 in Boston’s seaport district.
According to the MMA’s website, it is the “voice of cities and towns in Massachusetts.” They bring local leaders together to articulate a clear and unified municipal message, develop and advocate for shared policy goals, share information and best practices and work together to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of municipal service delivery.
The Connect 351 Conference is a gathering of over 1,000 municipal offices and offers workshops, learning labs, a large vendor exhibition and meetings with state officials. In 2025, the MMA recognized six legislators, with two winning legislator of the year and four winning municipal advocate awards.
“This recognition is a testament to Sen. Oliveira’s steadfast commitment to empowering and supporting cities and towns across the commonwealth, and to his deep understanding of municipal government rooted in decades of public service,” Longmeadow’s certificate of recognition said.
The certificate of recognition also said that Oliveira has been a tireless advocate for public education, municipal resources and local decision-making.
“His leadership has delivered tangible results for communities, including securing more than $3 million in additional state aid for regional public libraries over the past two fiscal years and advancing legislation to protect access to books in public libraries across Massachusetts,” the certificate said.
Select Board member Dan Zwirko introduced the recognition and said this award was a good opportunity for them to recognize Oliveira for his work and thank him for making their jobs a little bit easier and keeping an open line of communication.
“I just wanted to say thanks to Sen. Oliveira,” Zwirko said “He’s been doing a great job and some of the things, personally, that I like about Jake is that he’s very accessible, I think everyone on the board knows that, acknowledges that, and if there’s ever some issue we need help with, Jake is always quick to make a text or a call.”
Select Board Chair Josh Levine said recognizing him was a great idea and that the attentiveness Oliveira has shown, without being a resident of Longmeadow, is fantastic.
“He’s great to engage with but he’s really attentive and cares a lot, and just a real boon to us,” Levine said.
Oliveira said that receiving this award is a meaningful honor because local government is often where public service has the most immediate impact on people’s lives.
“Having spent 16 years in municipal government before joining the Legislature, I have seen firsthand how cities and towns deliver the services residents rely on every day,” Oliveira said. “Now that I have the privilege of representing 12 diverse communities, my focus has remained on supporting our municipalities as they support strong schools, public safety, infrastructure, libraries and the full range of local services that keep our communities thriving.”
