Tuesday, February 17, 2026

News and Ideas Worth Sharing

BHRSD Superintendent Dillon: ‘Fiscal 2027 is a difficult and impactful budget situation’

The proposal includes class size increases and staffing cuts alongside reinstated stipends and a new literacy coach position.

Alleged perpetrator in Pittsfield fatal hit and run incident arrested

Further details, along with an arraignment date, have not been released.

WHERE WE ARE: Steve Bannon — ‘They needed people…’

I caught Steve Bannon for a sit-down as he had just come off a shift at Fairview Hospital, where both he and I were born, and where he has worked as a pharmacist for 17 years.

Notes from Southern Berkshire Ambulance: Contract negotiations, February 2026

We want to ask together: Given who lives here year-round, who joins us seasonally, how far we must travel to definitive care, and how bad our worst days can be, at what level of busyness are we willing to operate and what are we willing to invest to keep both patients and providers safe?

In honor of President’s Day and the forming of our constitutional republic

As we approach the 250th anniversary of our constitutional republic, we would be wise to contemplate the freedoms we declare we are entitled to, such as the freedom of speech and the right to protest.

BUSINESS MONDAY: Spotlight on Barrington Hall in Great Barrington

New owners, familiar address: The former Crissey Farm space is reborn as a flexible performance venue and community hub for private, corporate, and curated events.

TECH & INNOVATION: Why innovation needs continuity

People think innovation is about breaking things. It distinctly is not. Continuity is required to make anything stick long enough to be adopted.

CAPITAL IDEAS: The EU-India trade deal — Should you sell America and buy foreign stocks?

The EU–India trade agreement is a long-term re-routing of growth and capital, not a trading opportunity. The EU and India have effectively created a more predictable investment corridor by lowering trade frictions and modernizing rules around services, digital trade, and intellectual property.

‘Joy and Play,’ a round-up of February school vacation week activities in the Berkshires

Whether your family is vacationing or “stay-cationing” in the Berkshires over the February school vacation, there are events to keep you entertained and inspired all week long!

THE OTHER SIDE: More quackery

For the life of me, I am unable to find a single justification for the Trump administration’s war on science, on rationality, and their refusal to accept the continuing need to expand opportunity to educate, train, and expand our pool of doctors and nurses and medical researchers.

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Barrington Hall (formerly Crissey Farm)

Barrington Hall is now booking weddings. We host weddings for 80-180 guests. Make our beautiful home in the southern Berkshires your perfect wedding destination. We...

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Sandra L. Trudeau, 69, of Sheffield

Sandra worked for many years at the Monument Mountain Motel and the Weathervane Inn.

Morton E. Trudeau, 70, of Sheffield

Morton worked for many years as plant foreman for Country Log Homes, Phizers, and Gingras Lumber and was also a farmer. He enjoyed golfing and Nascar and had been to Daytona six times.

Kathleen S. Rosier, 92, of Ashley Falls

A celebration of life will be held in Kathleen's honor at the Bitterman Center in Canaan, Conn., on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, from 1 to 4 p.m. All are welcome.

Gary Paul Fretwell, 70, of Great Barrington

A celebration of Gary's life will be held at St. James Place in Great Barrington on March 14, 2026, from 2:30 to 4:30 pm.