Restoration work to begin at former Clinton A.M.E. Zion Church
Great Barrington — Clinton Church Restoration has engaged a general contractor to undertake the first phase of restoration work on the former Clinton A.M.E. Zion Church at 9 Elm Court. Larochelle Construction of South Hadley has been awarded a contract to repair and replace the roof on the historic church. The firm will work closely with the project’s design team, led by Huff + Gooden Architects.
A construction kickoff event will be held at the site Wednesday, Oct. 23, at 12:30 p.m.
“This will be a great day for Clinton Church Restoration,” said Wray Gunn Sr., board chair of the nonprofit and a former church trustee. “We have worked hard to save this historic landmark in downtown Great Barrington and look forward to seeing it restored in a way that will benefit the community.”
The church’s failing roof has been patched or tarped several times since the organization formed in 2016 to save the National Register of Historic Places property and repurpose it as an African-American heritage site and cultural center. Cora Portnoff, a former congregant who also serves on the nonprofit’s board, said the planned center will honor the legacy of the local African-American community, in part by “bringing awareness to the largely unknown stories of the people who founded the church and lived around it for years.”
More than 500 individual donors have contributed to the effort to save and restore the church for adaptive reuse. The project is also being supported in part by an African American Civil Rights Grant from the Historic Preservation Fund administered by the National Park Service and the Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area; an emergency matching grant from the Massachusetts Preservation Projects Fund through the Massachusetts Historical Commission; and the citizens of Great Barrington through the Community Preservation Act.
–E.E.
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Close Encounters With Music to present ‘Kohelet’ featuring Sam Waterston
Great Barrington — Close Encounters With Music will kick off its 2019-20 season Sunday, Oct. 27, at 5 p.m. at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center with the American premiere of Andre Hajdu’s ‘Kohelet’ (Ecclesiastes) for four cellos, narrated by film, stage and television actor Sam Waterston.
“For every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven”: These famous words underscore some of the lessons of the Bible’s Wisdom Literature, which usher readers into the inner chambers of the author’s — traditionally said to be King Solomon — philosophical wrestlings with the universal issues of life. Hajdu’s worldview and artistic aesthetic were influenced by Samuel Beckett, whom he befriended in Paris, and his musical schooling was in the modern Hungarian models of Bartók and Kodály. Waterston will take on the role of the philosopher king, traversing the proverbs, aphorisms and familiar passages that have entered the collective lexicon. ‘Kohelet’ has received performances in Germany, Holland, France and Israel, and, with its CEWM performance, will now be heard in the U.S. for the first time. Performing on cellos will be CEWM artistic director Yehuda Hanani, Kivie Cahn-Lipman, Michael Nicolas and Do Yeon Kim.
Tickets are $38-$62, and $15 at the door for students. The performance will be followed by an AFTERGLOW reception, with hors d’oeuvres and wine provided by local restaurants. For tickets and more information, see the Berkshire Edge calendar or call the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center at (413) 528-0100.
–E.E.
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Berkshire ‘Creative Aging’ exhibit travels to State House
Boston — Twenty-five profiles of Berkshire residents ages 65 and up are on display on the fourth floor of the Massachusetts State House through Friday, Oct. 25, as part of National Arts and Humanities Month. “Creative Aging: 65 and Better in the Berkshires” was organized by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College; created in collaboration with Age Friendly Berkshires; and sponsored by Sen. Adam Hinds, D-Pittsfield.
The photographs and written profiles were created by OLLI member volunteers for its University Day in August. After being exhibited at the State House, the installation will return to Berkshire County and be shown in a variety of locations. Those profiled for the exhibit are: restaurateur Craig Bero; Williams College dance professor Sandra Burton; biking and outdoor advocate Marjorie Cohan; drum circle facilitator Otha Day; grandparents raising grandchildren advocate Ella Deane; Soldier On chaplain Father Peter Gregory; Latino community advocate Don Ramiro Guerrero; African-American heritage advocate Wray Gunn; artist and fire chief Mark Hanford; baritone singer Benjamin Luxon; musician and workforce education advocate Bill Mulholland; LGBTQ advocate Judy Nardacci; food insecurity activist Janie Pellish; businessman and innovator Andy Plumer; Berkshire County NAACP President Dennis Powell; business and college mentor Alan Rubin; artist-entrepreneur Eric Rudd; music and community advocates Claudia and Carl Shuster; TV and radio personality Bill Sturgeon; Rock On band camp founder Mary Talmi; Pittsfield School Committee member Cindy Taylor; director and playwright Barbara and Jesse Waldinger; and ceramics artist and activist June Wink.
A free public reception will be held Thursday, Oct. 24, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Room 428 of the State House, adjacent to the exhibit. Confirmed speakers will include Hinds, AARP Massachusetts director Michael Festa and OLLI at BCC executive director Megan Whilden. An optional group tour of the State House will be held immediately afterwards RSVPs are encouraged for the reception and may be made by contacting (413) 236-2190 or olli@berkshirecc.edu.
–E.E.
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STEAM Challenge Night to celebrate learning
Sheffield — To celebrate the statewide STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) week and bring more STEAM Challenges (including Art) to the Berkshires, Flying Cloud Institute and the Southern Berkshire Regional School District will partner to host the 2019 STEAM Challenge Night Friday, Oct. 25, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Mount Everett Regional School.
The event will offer children and their families a full immersion in diverse STEM and STEAM activities while providing refreshments, raffle prizes and games. Massachusetts celebrated the first statewide STEM week in 2018, a highlight of which was Flying Cloud’s STEAM Challenge Night at Hancock Shaker Village that drew over 200 people who engaged in engineering challenges, hands-on robotics activities and energy explorations. This year’s event will include robotics and drone demonstrations by Mount Everett students, a GPS treasure hunt by General Dynamics, forging demonstrations with Battle HIll Forge artist Izzy Fitch, 3D printing with Terry Bell, and engineering challenges with Flying Cloud.
The event is free and open to all families in the region. For more information please contact Rachel Gall at rgall@flyingcloudinstitute.org.
–E.E.
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Red Cross announces blood donation opportunities
Dedham — During Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October, the American Red Cross urges eligible donors to give blood or platelets to provide hope and healing to patients fighting cancer. Prospective donors may make appointments to give blood or platelets by downloading the free Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting redcrossblood.org, calling 1 (800) RED CROSS or enabling the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device.
Upcoming blood drive locations include the Bard College at Simon’s Rock Kilpatrick Athletic Center in Great Barrington Friday, Oct. 25, from 1 to 6 p.m.; Lee Middle & High School Tuesday, Oct. 29, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.; The Lebanon Valley Protective Association in New Lebanon, New York, Wednesday, Oct. 30, from 2 to 6 p.m.; and the Hillcrest Highpoint campus in Lenox Wednesday, Oct. 30, from 12:30 to 5:30 p.m.
–E.E.
