Berkshire County — As the weather got warmer and the days got longer during the late spring and summer months in the Berkshires, residents got out of their houses to attend cultural events, including various galas, fairs, and fundraisers. It was a season of farmers’ markets, concerts, and other various events in Berkshire County.
There were also special guests who visited Berkshire County throughout the season, including Gov. Maura Healey at Fairview Hospital’s annual gala in July. Also in July, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at a fundraising event at Pittsfield’s Colonial Theatre.
Here is a recap of some of the many stories The Berkshire Edge covered from May through August 2024:
May
On May 1, hundreds of residents attended a ceremony in Sheffield dedicating a new headstone for Civil War Veteran William D. Jones at the Center Cemetery. Jones served in the Civil War in the Massachusetts 54th Infantry Company B. According to the Historical Society, Jones was a lifelong Sheffield resident who enlisted in the Civil War at 45 years old. His enlistment lasted for three years.
On May 2, Lenox held its annual town meeting. Residents who attended the meeting approved a $35.4 million budget for fiscal year 2025, along with all 14 articles on the town meeting warrant.
Also on May 2, the state’s Department of Transportation indefinitely closed Great Barrington’s Brookside Road Bridge following a routine inspection.
On May 6, 253 residents attended Great Barrington’s annual town meeting. Topics at the meeting included Ramsdell Library project funding, the school budget, Marble Block affordable-housing funding, police investigations at schools, and the purchase of a wood chipper for the town. Residents also passed the proposed fiscal 2025 town operating budget of $16.4 million.
Lee held its annual town meeting on May 9, with attendees approving a $22.8 million budget for fiscal 2025.
On May 11, Great Barrington’s Farmers’ Market opened for a new season at its location at 18 Church Street. It was the 34th year for the market, with 28 vendors participating this season.
Also on May 11, The Bookloft in Great Barrington celebrated its 50th anniversary. Eric and Ev Wilska started the bookstore in 1974 at its original location in the Barrington Plaza on Stockbridge Road.
On May 14, former W.E.B. Du Bois Middle School teacher Arantzazú Zuzene Galdós-Shapiro filed a lawsuit against Great Barrington, the Berkshire Hills Regional School District, Superintendent of Schools Peter Dillon, Great Barrington Police Chief Paul Storti, and Great Barrington Police Officer Joseph O’Brien. The lawsuit is over the Great Barrington Police Department’s December 2023 investigation in response to an anonymous report that Galdós-Shapiro had a copy of the book “Gender Queer” in her classroom.
On May 18, Bard College at Simon’s Rock held its 55th commencement, during which 106 students received their diplomas, including 77 Associate of Arts degrees and 29 Bachelor of Arts degrees.
On May 28, Ryan Salame, Sandisfield resident and former CEO of FTX, was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. Back in September 2023, in the United States Southern District Court of New York, Salame entered two guilty pleas for the charges of Conspiracy to Make Unlawful Political Contributions and Defraud the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and Conspiracy to Operate an Unlicensed Money Transmitting Business.
Following a one-year hiatus, Great Barrington held its Memorial Day Parade and observance on May 27.
Lee also held its Memorial Day observance on May 27.
June
In early June, the Community Development Corporation of South Berkshire (CDCSB) announced the completion of its Thornewood Inn affordable housing complex and that it was now open to tenants. The organization purchased the inn, which is a Dutch Colonial home built in 1919, back in December.
On June 2, Monument Mountain Regional High School celebrated the accomplishments of 104 graduates in its commencement ceremony at Tanglewood.
On June 8, Berkshire Pride held its eighth annual Pride Festival at Pittsfield’s Common Park. The mission of the nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, which was founded in 2017, is to “provide safe spaces and events where LGBTQIA+ community members can live and thrive as their authentic selves, not only during Pride Month, but also throughout the year.”
Also on June 8, residents, businesses, and community organizations all came together for the second annual Housatonic Party in the Park at the Village Common.
On June 9, over $150,000 was raised at Berkshire Immigrant Center’s (BIC’s) Beacon of Hope event at Shakespeare & Company. The mission of BIC, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1997 as the New American Citizenship Coalition, is to advocate for the rights of immigrants and to help them through various programs and initiatives. The organization provides more than 800 individuals annually with legal services, education, and resources.
On June 10, the Berkshire Hills Regional School District announced that Williamstown native Christopher Barnes had been chosen as the new principal for Monument Mountain High School. Barnes, who was originally from Baltimore, Md., moved to Berkshire County in 2011.
On June 14, the Berkshire Hills Regional School District announced that former Mount Greylock Regional School District Superintendent Jason “Jake” McCandless had been named the new principal for Du Bois Regional Middle School. McCandless previously worked as a superintendent at Mount Greylock, Pittsfield, and Lee school districts.
On June 16, NAACP Berkshires held its third annual Juneteenth event at Durant Park in commemoration of the federal holiday celebrated on June 19.
On June 19, the formal Juneteenth federal holiday, the Du Bois Freedom Center held a discussion with Michael Blake, CEO of Atlas Strategy Inc. from New York City, and Georgia Congresswoman Nikema Williams at Great Barrington’s Saint James Place.
The annual Relay for Life was held at Monument Mountain High School in Great Barrington on June 23. The event was supposed to last 12 hours, but a devastating storm cut the event short.
The fourth season of Berkshire Busk! started on June 28 and June 29. The outdoor summertime event started back in 2020 during the pandemic in order to bring people to the downtown area through live musical performances and performances by magicians, circus artists, and dancers.
On June 29, Shakespeare & Company celebrated the work of Director of Education Kevin Coleman, a founding member, at the organization’s annual gala.
July
Thousands of people all lined up to watch this year’s Fourth of July Parade in Pittsfield. The over-two-hour parade went through the downtown area, starting at Housatonic Street and proceeding through South Street, Park Square, North Street, and Wahconah Street, before finally ending at Wahconah Park.
On July 6, West Stockbridge celebrated its 250th anniversary with a town-wide festival.
On July 9, Berkshire Grown held its annual farm tour. The event included tours of River Run Farm in Great Barrington, Greenagers/April Hill Farm in South Egremont, Dancing Greens Farms/The Farm in New Marlborough, and the Berkshire Mobile Farmers Market in Monterey. Members of multiple local organizations and the state’s Department of Agricultural Resources and state Agriculture Commissioner Ashley Randle all took part in the tour.
On July 7, The Mount in Lenox held its annual gala. According to The Mount’s website, the property, which now covers 49.5 acres, has an estimated 77,000 visitors a year.
On July 11, Josh Risen was named the new town clerk for Great Barrington. Risen replaced Jennifer Messina, who worked as town clerk starting in 2019.
On July 17, Fairview Hospital held its annual gala at Gedney Farm in New Marlborough. Gov. Maura Healey (D) was a special guest at the 26th annual event.
On July 27, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at a fundraising event at Pittsfield’s Colonial Theatre.
August
On August 1, the Great Barrington Fire Department held its 15th annual car show, a benefit for the department’s scholarship fund. The fund is dedicated to Rod Mead, who died in 2005. Mead was a retired member of the fire department and was the president and CEO of S&A Supply.
On August 10, West Stockbridge held its annual Zucchini Festival. The theme for the annual event derives from the local legend of a resident who would find parked cars with their windows open and fill them with enormous amounts of zucchinis.
On August 15, former Gov. Deval Patrick was a guest speaker at the Greenagers gala at April Hill Farm. Since 2007, the nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization Greenagers has created programs for teenagers and young adults to learn about the environment and agriculture.
On August 20, Flying Cloud Institute celebrated art in the downtown Great Barrington area with its art crawl event. The organization, which moved its operating offices in 2017 to Great Barrington, operates multiple youth programs in the Berkshire County region relating to dynamic science and art experiences.
On August 22, after three public hearings, Great Barrington’s Board of Health approved an Order to Correct for Housatonic Water Works.
On August 23 and August 24, the first-ever Festival of Friendship was held at the Bushnell-Sage Library in Sheffield. The event included professional wrestling matches at the library’s backyard on August 24.
