Residents filled Whately Town Hall on Monday to hear from U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, who shared his frustrations with the Trump administration’s recent actions and called on the audience to speak out, even in the face of discomfort.
McGovern described his Republican colleagues in Congress disapproving of President Donald Trump’s decisions, but “[voting] the opposite way.”
“When a reporter puts a microphone in front of their face, they’ll say [Trump’s] the greatest president in the history of the world,” McGovern said. “And those people bother me more, because they know better. … This is a moment when we need people with a backbone, where we need more courage.”
Congressman Jim McGovern met with constituents at Whately Town Hall on Monday. 
Reenie Grybko Clancy speaks at the Whately Town Hall meeting with Congressman Jim McGovern on Monday. 
Deerfield Selectboard Chair Trevor McDaniel asks Congressman Jim McGovern about federal funding at Whately Town Hall on Monday. 
Congressman Jim McGovern talked about current affairs and answered questions at Whately Town Hall on Monday. 
Congressman Jim McGovern met with constituents at Whately Town Hall on Monday. 
Congressman Jim McGovern answers more questions at the end of his Whately Town Hall conversation on Monday. 
William Torello of South Deerfield has his picture taken with Congressman Jim McGovern at Whately Town Hall on Monday.
Along with cuts to Medicaid that were folded into the One Big Beautiful Bill, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials sending immigrant families to detention centers, and corporations financing elected officials’ runs for office, McGovern also criticized the United States’ involvement in Iran, saying he is “deeply concerned about this war that Trump has engaged us in.”
According to McGovern, the federal government has spent $40 billion on the war in Iran.
“Think about what $40 billion could do here. How many hospitals could we build? How many schools could we build? How many senior centers could we build? How many people could we help pay for their health care or make sure they have access to nutrition benefits, affordable child care, affordable elder care?” McGovern asked the audience.
He continued, “I thought the government was about helping people. I thought the reason why you wanted to pay attention to who got elected to your selectboard or your state Legislature or to the federal offices was because you wanted people that would … help make life a little bit easier, and it just seems like we’re walking away from that.”
To McGovern’s point, Deerfield Select Board Chair Trevor McDaniel mentioned how the South County Senior Center Board of Oversight has long been engaged in a search for a new senior center building.
“We’re struggling right now as a community of three towns, Sunderland, Deerfield and Whately, to fund a senior center. Our seniors have been in tents, they’ve been in dilapidated buildings. We’re really struggling to find a way to make a home for our seniors,” McDaniel told McGovern. “Just one of those bombs going overseas [to Iran] would fund our senior centers. Just one.”
When McDaniel asked if there are enough votes in Congress to block funding for the war in Iran, McGovern said the answer is “unclear,” but emphasized the value of a senior center.
“A senior center is real. It is a valued asset in a community,” McGovern said. “People deserve to go to a place that’s state of the art, where they can gather and do all the things that you can do in a senior center.”
McGovern encouraged the audience to act on the frustrations that many voiced with the federal government and step outside of their comfort zones to speak up, even at the family dinner table.
“This is not a time to retreat,” McGovern said. “This is a time to express yourselves, not only to your elected officials, but to your family and friends.”
He recalled a former teacher telling him and his classmates, “The world will not get better on its own. Class dismissed.”
“I now know what he’s talking about,” McGovern said.
Shea Theater Arts Center tour
After the stop at Whately Town Hall, McGovern set off to the Shea Theater Arts Center to celebrate the theater’s $165,000 federal earmark for fiscal year 2026 that recently came through, along with $975,000 in federal funds being used to improve Avenue A.
With her back to the Shea Theater’s stage, Managing Director Linda Tardif said the earmark will fund sound and lighting improvements to stay “competitive” and draw entertainment acts; “critical upgrades” to the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system (HVAC); and safety improvements.
“The Shea belongs to this community, and this announcement and the community’s continued support means that our future looks very, very bright,” Tardif said.
“This is a great asset, not just to the community, but to the region,” McGovern said. “Anytime there’s federal cuts, the state has to plug in those holes, and when they plug in the holes, there’s less money to invest in other things, and we don’t want good things to fall through the cracks like this.”
Beyond the Shea Theater, Tardif said neighboring businesses are collaborating in a “downtown working group.”
“We’re seeing the benefit of the energy that the Shea is bringing, but also the energy the businesses, the energy that the Chamber of Commerce is bringing to the town,” Tardif said.
Shea Theater Arts Center Managing Director Linda Tardif and Montague Selectboard member Marina Goldman, left, talk with Congressman Jim McGovern at the theater in Turners Falls on Monday. 
Shea Theater Arts Center Managing Director Linda Tardif and Congressman Jim McGovern speak on Monday about funds for the theater and the Avenue A streetscape project. 
Shea Theater Arts Center Managing Director Linda Tardif gives Congressman Jim McGovern a tour of the theater on Monday. 
Montague Town Administrator Walter Ramsey speaks with Congressman Jim McGovern outside the Shea Theater Arts Center about the Avenue A streetscape project on Monday. 
Montague Selectboard member Marina Goldman and Shea Theater Arts Center Managing Director Linda Tardif take a selfie with Congressman Jim McGovern in Turners Falls on Monday.
Montague Town Administrator Walter Ramsey said the $975,000 helped “accelerate” the improvement of the streets stretching from the Shea Theater to Montague Town Hall, including ramps for accessibility.
“Downtown Turners Falls is a great example of a successful town revitalization,” Ramsey said. With new businesses moving in and a Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity project on the horizon, Ramsey added, “The momentum is continuing.”
