GB Fire Department’s rope rescue training weekend
Great Barrington — On the weekend of October 31, members of the Great Barrington Fire Department, along with members of the Egremont and Sheffield fire departments, participated in 16 hours of rope rescue training. The focus of the class was rigging rope systems using mechanical advantage to safely lower and raise rescuers, equipment, and victims down and up steep embankments.
“Every year we respond to multiple incidents where topography provides a challenge,” said Great Barrington Fire Chief Charles Burger. “Whether it is an injured hiker on the Appalachian Trail, someone fallen off the face of Monument Mountain, or a car over an embankment, we need to be able to quickly and safely navigate steep, treacherous, inclines. We identified the need for additional training in this area several years ago. The brute force method was not safe or efficient.”
Cross St. Associates, a Massachusetts-based company dedicated to training firefighters, was hired by the Great Barrington Firefighter’s Association to teach the class. Students spent Saturday tying knots and learning to rig various types of anchors, lowering devices, haul lines, and safety belays. On Sunday students tested their abilities with full-scale rescue evolutions. Construct allowed a property it owns on State Road to be used for the drills. Grades ranged from 45 degrees to a full, vertical, 90 degrees. A realistic scenario of a hunter falling out of a tree stand into a 150 foot ravine was simulated, using a training dummy as the victim.
“It is great to immerse yourself in rope rescue for a weekend”, said Great Barrington Captain Marc Palumbo. “We have been training on this for several years but it is too much to master on our weekly Monday night drills. Each time we respond to an incident or train, we learn something new and become a little more proficient with the craft.”
The Great Barrington Fire Department also has technicians training in High Angle, Confined Space, Trench, and Ice Water rescue, including three members on the Western Mass Technical Rescue Team. The class was paid for with donations to the Great Barrington Firefighter’s Association’s Training Fund, supported by an annual appeals letter.
–E.E.
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Nature educator Connor Stedman at the Mahaiwe
Great Barrington — How can backyard gardens, woodlands, and local farms play positive roles in slowing climate change, restoring the environment, and building a resilient economy? That question and others will be answered when Berkshire Co-op Market and the Great Barrington Agricultural Commission present noted ecological designer, holistic farm planner, and educator Connor Stedman at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center on Saturday, November 7 at 7 p.m.
Stedman is a lead designer with AppleSeed Permaculture LLC, where he specializes in regenerative carbon-sequestering agriculture, agroforestry, and land management systems. Stedman is also faculty for the Omega Institute’s Ecological Literacy Immersion Program; associate faculty for the University of Vermont’s Leadership for Sustainability program; a lead facilitator for week-long Art of Mentoring trainings held across North America; and an organizer for the Greenhorns, a national nonprofit dedicated to recruiting, promoting, and supporting young farmers. Connor holds an M.S. in Ecological Planning from the University of Vermont and is an avid seed saver and naturalist.
The talk, entitled “Gardening to Save the World,” will be preceded by Berkshire Co-op Market’s annual Meeting of Co-op Owners at 5:30 p.m. The event is free to anyone who wants to attend. Co-op member-owners are invited to attend the annual meeting and get priority seating. Other community members will be welcomed into the theater at 10 minutes of seven. Seats are available on a first come, first served basis. For more information, contact Berkshire Co-op Market at community@berkshire.coop.
–E.E.
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Farm to Glass Throwdown for the Downtown Pittsfield Farmers Market
Pittsfield — On Sunday, November 8 at 5 p.m., the Downtown Pittsfield Farmers Market will present the Farm to Glass Throwdown at Hotel on North. The event will be a fundraiser for the Market’s new winter farmers market to be held each second Saturday, November through April, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Boys and Girls Club.
The Farm to Glass Throwdown will pit six local bartenders against each other to craft cocktails with ingredients from the farmers market. In Round One, competitors will each craft a cocktail with a Berkshire Mountain Distillers spirit and two of the six farmers market ingredients provided. Guests will sample each of the competitors’ cocktails and vote to determine the “People’s Choice Winner.” The judges will vote for three competitors to continue on to the second round. In Round Two, competitors will choose a Berkshire Mountain Distillers spirit and craft a cocktail with the “mystery market ingredient” and the judges will choose the Farm to Glass Throwdown Champ.
The competitors will be Johnny Burns of Methuselah Bar and Lounge, Ashley Junod of Brava, Meghan Merrigan of District Kitchen & Bar, Kristen Parker of the Dream Away Lodge, Billy Paul of Allium Restaurant and Bar, and Joseph Scully of Prairie Whale. Judging the competition will be Mitch and Seth Nash of Blue Q, artist Nathan Hanford of Soldier On, Caitlin Harrison of Mise Wines, Waterfall Perry of Jan Perry Realty, and Nancy Thomas of Mezze Restaurant Group.
Light hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar will be provided. A dance party with DJ BFG will begin after the Throwdown Champ has been announced. Tickets to the event are $40 and include samples of the first six cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and a chance to win a “Winter in the Berkshires” gift basket. See the Berkshire Edge calendar for more information.
–E.E.
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Organist Vincent Dubois at Congregational Church of Salisbury
Salisbury, Conn. — The Congregational Church of Salisbury will present French organist, Vincent Dubois, in concert on Sunday, November 8 at 3 p.m. This concert, made possible with funds from the Al Sly Music Fund, is free and open to the public. Donations will be accepted for the Al Sly Music Fund.
Dubois is a graduate of the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris, a Gold Medal winner in the 2002 Calgary International Organ Competition, and winner of the Grand Prize at the 2002 International Competition of Toulouse, France. Dubois has appeared as guest soloist with many orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
The program includes works by J.S. Bach, Cesar Franck, Louis Vierne, Maurice Durufle, and Olivier Messiaen. Dubois will also play an improvisation on a New England melody. Anyone with a suggestion of a favorite melody they would like to hear should contact Minister of Music Jack Bowman at jack.bowman.dma@gmail.com. Concert-goers will vote on the tune before the improvisation.
–E.E.
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Town of Great Barrington now accepting online bill payments
Great Barrington — The Town of Great Barrington’s website now has the capability to accept online payments that are paid through the Tax Collector, Town Clerk, and Building Department.
Only current bills can be paid online for the Tax Collector’s office. If the payment is late or for a previous tax year, it must be made at the Tax Collector’s office.
The Tax Collector will accept excise tax, real estate tax, personal property tax, and sewer bill payments online. Those using the service should have their bill numbers ready. Bill numbers can be found at the top right corner of the bills. The Town Clerk will accept payment for birth, death, and marriage certificates; dog licenses and dog violation tickets; and landfill, annual, and trash bag stickers.
Users may set up an account if they wish but an account is not required in order to pay a bill. Payment can be made via checking account at no cost, and also by credit card for which there is a sliding fee scale.
For more information contact Town Treasurer/Tax Collector Sandra Larkin at (413) 528-1619 x4 or Town Clerk Marie Ryan at (413) 528-1619 x3.
–E.E.
