Rotary to present Truck Day
Great Barrington – On Sunday, May 22, the Great Barrington Rotary Club will present Truck Day from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. at Ski Butternut. Truck Day will feature more 40 vehicles such as dump trucks, bulldozers, snow groomers, 18-wheelers, snowmobiles, police cars, and fire trucks for children to look at, climb on, sit in, and experience.
The event began nine years ago as a fundraiser for the former Great Barrington Cooperative Preschool and has grown to include all sorts of vehicles and equipment donated for the day by a variety of community organizations. This year’s event will also feature a truck pull: groups of 10 will pull Engine 9 of the Great Barrington Fire Department 50 feet. Registration is $100 for adult teams and $50 for student teams. The price for a student team is $50. The winning adult team will receive a trophy and bragging rights, and the winning student team will receive tickets to Six Flags. A silent auction will also take place, and food, drinks, and music will be available.
The cost is $15 per carload of people. Proceeds from the event will be used by Rotary support and fund community projects. For more information on Truck Day or to register a team for the truck pull, contact Mark DeCelle at (413) 441-5119 or mjd0336@yahoo.com.
–E.E.
* * *
Writers Read poetry series
Lee – The Writers Read poetry series will present its first ever celebration of haiku and other brief poems on Tuesday, May 24, at 5:30 p.m. at the Lee Library. The event will be hosted by David Giannini and will feature Pittsburgh poet and Lilliput Review editor Don Wentworth, Berkshires poet Colin Harrington, and the collaborative Canadian haiku group Yoko’s Dogs. For more information, call the Lee Library at (413) 423-0385.
–E.E.
* * *
South Berkshire paint & oil collection
Lenox — On Wednesday, May 25, from 4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m., the South Berkshire Household Hazardous Waste Collaborative will hold a paint and oil collection in Lenox for the 15 participating towns of Alford, Becket, Egremont, Great Barrington, Lee, Lenox, Monterey, Mount Washington, New Marlborough, Otis, Richmond, Sheffield, Stockbridge, Tyringham, and West Stockbridge. The Center for EcoTechnology will coordinate the collection.
Acceptable materials are oil-based paint, stains, paint thinners, spray paint, and turpentine as well as waste motor oil: no other types of oil or fuel will be accepted. Latex paint will not be accepted. Empty cans can be recycled with scrap metal. Dried-up cans of latex paint as well as empty cans of oil-based paint, stains, and solvents can be disposed of with regular trash.
Those wishing to participate in the collection must register by Tuesday, May 24. Registration and more information are available online and by contacting Coryanne Mansell at coryanne.mansell@cetonline.org or (888) 577-8448 x14. Residents of non-participating communities are urged to call their City or Town Halls for information about hazardous household product collections.
–E.E.
* * *
Petrichor releases first album
Dalton — Not all bands formed in high school stay together, but alternative rock/jazz outfit Petrichor has not only managed to do so, but has released its first physical album, “What We’ve Noticed,” despite its members being separated by long distances.
Petrichor’s story began roughly four years ago, when Justin Geyer, Christian Pickwell, and Nate Sears got involved with the praise band “Built on Rock” at the First Congregational Church of Dalton. The band is still relatively young, as are its members, most of whom who are in their early 20s and full-time college students.
According to lead guitarist Matt Geyer, “What We’ve Noticed” was recorded in two major sessions, the first during the band’s final Wahconah High School winter break in 2014, and the second the summer before starting college. The album includes 10 songs that are a predominant mix of alternative rock and jazz. The physical CD is available for purchase CDbaby, with digital copies available on CDbaby, iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, and Bandcamp. The band is currently working on a second and currently unnamed project.
–E.E.
* * *
BNRC to launch new website
Pittsfield — Berkshire Natural Resources Council, the county’s leading charitable land conservation organization, will unveil a new website, logo, and tagline on Wednesday, May 25, to help clarify its mission and public benefit in the Berkshires.
Along with features like “Top 10 Trail” recommendations, the new website will unveil a new tagline and look for the organization: “The Landkeepers.” The new website will be followed by redesigned road signs, kiosks and other improvements intended to make clear that Council lands are open to the public.
–E.E.
* * *
Camphill Ghent plants tribute orchard
Chatham, N.Y. — Residents, staff and community recently celebrated the planting of a commemorative fruit tree orchard at Camphill Ghent. More than 30 apple, pear, cherry, peach, and plum trees were planted to start the orchard in a dedication ceremony last week. Volunteers from all four Columbia County Camphill communities worked together to prepare the soil, plant the trees, and build a fence to surround the orchard. Trees are being sold for $150 each and may be dedicated in honor of or in memory of someone. A plaque listing donor names and those honored will be placed by the main gate of the orchard. For more information or purchase a tree, contact Camphill Ghent Community Relations Officer Nancy Benz at (518) 392-2760 x106.
–E.E.
