Community Recreation Association welcomes Ariana Massery as Executive Director
Dalton— The Community Recreation Association (CRA) Board of Trustees welcomes Ariana Massery as the nonprofit’s new Executive Director, succeeding Alison Peters, who is retiring after 16 years of dedicated leadership and service.
Massery brings more than a decade of experience in organizational leadership, community engagement, and large-scale program management. She joins the CRA after serving as a senior leader at Jacob’s Pillow. She holds a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership from Quinnipiac University, as well as dual bachelor’s degrees in Dance and Communication from the University of Arizona. She serves on the Board of the Berkshire Music School.
The CRA Board also expressed deep gratitude for outgoing Executive Director Alison Peters. “Alison has been a warm, steady, and compassionate leader whose work has helped the organization evolve significantly over her 16 years of leadership,” said Rich Rowe, president of the CRA Board of Trustees. “We wish her every joy in her well-deserved retirement.”
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MountainOne Bank promotes Peter Duckett to Assistant Vice President, Commercial Loan Officer and appoints Kevin Carpenter as Vice President, Commercial Lending Officer
North Adams— MountainOne Bank announces the promotion of Peter Duckett to Assistant Vice President, Commercial Loan Officer and the appointment of Kevin Carpenter as Vice President, Commercial Lending Officer.
In his role, Duckett supports commercial lending activities through loan origination, portfolio management, financial analysis, and client relationship development. He works closely with local businesses to help them access financing that supports growth and strengthens the regional economy, reflecting MountainOne’s ongoing commitment to community and customer success.
Before joining MountainOne as a Portfolio Manager in February 2024, Duckett spent a decade at Brookline Bank, where he held several positions, most recently as Portfolio Manager. He holds a degree in Economics and Business Management from Assumption University. He has also completed multiple professional development programs through the Risk Management Association (RMA), earning certificates in Lending Decision Process, Financial Statement Analysis, Commercial Credit for Lenders, and Small Business Lending Decision Process. He also serves on MountainOne’s Communications Committee, contributing to internal engagement and outreach initiatives.
In his role, Carpenter leads business development efforts and oversees a portfolio of commercial relationships across the region. His responsibilities include loan origination, deposit growth, and portfolio management, with a focus on delivering financing solutions that support business expansion and community growth.
Carpenter joins MountainOne Bank with nearly a decade of experience in commercial banking, most recently as a Relationship Manager with South Shore Bank and previously as Vice President, Portfolio Manager with Eastern Bank. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Finance from Bentley University and is currently pursuing a Certificate in Commercial Real Estate from Boston University. He also participated in the MassBankers New England Leadership Development Program. In 2024, he was recognized by the New England Real Estate Journal in its “Ones to Watch – Rising Stars” spotlight. He co-chairs the Friends Council of the Boys and Girls Club of Boston; is a Finance Committee member of the South Shore YMCA and chair of its Golf Classic; and sits on the Young Professionals Board of Rodman for Kids.
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Berkshire Community College announces staffing updates
Pittsfield— Berkshire Community College (BCC) announced the addition of five new staff members and three title changes.
Meghan Bone joins BCC as Special Programs Coordinator, Bridge to College, bringing over a decade of experience leading college readiness programs for high school and first-year college students. Before joining the BCC team, she worked as the Eureka! Director at Girls Inc. of the Valley and as the STEM Starter Academy Director at Springfield Technical Community College (STCC).
Andrew Liebenow joins BCC as HVAC Mechanic II. He holds an associate degree in Environmental Science from BCC and a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science from Broward College. Most recently, he served as a senior maintenance technician for the Florida Department of Transportation.
Dr. Anna Mester joins BCC as Coordinator of Instructional Design. Most recently, she served as Program Manager of Public Engagement and Research Impacts at the University of Michigan. She has also served as an instructional consultant at the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching/ Dr. Mester began her career as a faculty of Spanish and Portuguese at UMass-Boston. She holds a B.A. in Romance Languages and Cultures and Critical Social Thought from Mount Holyoke College, and a Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures with an African Studies concentration from the University of Michigan.
Jane Singer joins BCC as Executive Director of Human Resources. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from New York University and brings more than a decade of HR leadership experience across diverse industries, including hospitality, retail and multi-state operations. Most recently, she served as Director of HR Strategy for Resort Operations at Holiday Inn Club Vacations, where she led organizational redesign efforts, enhanced HR data systems and partnered closely with business leaders to strengthen engagement, retention, and succession planning.
Joshua Visser joins BCC as a Graphic Designer. Having grown up in western Canada, he moved to the United States as a teenager. He attended the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, studying Digital Media Production, Television Production, and Graphic Design. After university, Visser participated in the Disney College Program, where he drove the WDW Monorail. Following his time at Disney, he began his career in digital media — first in educational publishing, and later in the music industry.
Dana Buxton is now Disabilities Counselor. She had been the Special Programs Coordinator- Academic Success/Disability Resource Center Coach. Buxton joined BCC in September 2022. Katherine Elliot is now Assistant Professor of Nursing. She had been Adjunct Faculty for the Nursing, Health and Wellness Division. Elliot joined BCC in May 2022. Erin Morris is now Sr. Special Program Coordinator & Mentor – EEC Career Pathways Grant. She had been Special Program Coordinator- HRSA Grant Mentor. Morris joined BCC in January 2023.
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Berkshire Humane Society welcomes two new board members
Pittsfield— Berkshire Humane Society welcomes two new board members, Lisa Sihvonen-Binder and Susan Tremblay.
Sihvonen-Binder brings management and grant-writing expertise to the board. She’s operated a grant consulting practice since 2007, taught Grant Writing for Corporations & Foundations for Bay Path University for 13 years, and is a member of the Grant Professionals Association. Her 34 years of professional experience also includes roles in communications and program management in nonprofit and corporate sectors. Sihvonen-Binder has edited several books for CharityChannel Press on nonprofit management and fundraising. She holds a Master of Science degree in Nonprofit Management and Philanthropy.
Tremblay’s background includes sales, marketing, and volunteerism. In her corporate marketing career with businesses ranging from a small startup long distance telephone company to Fortune 500, multi-national MCI, Inc., she has been responsible for web development, communications, revenue production, sales force productivity, product management. and corporate partner deal execution. She was a key donations-producing volunteer in leadership roles with two Fairfield County (Connecticut) private schools, Malta House (a homeless shelter for women and children,) and The American Red Cross. Tremblay has a BA in English from Franklin and Marshall College.
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Southern Berkshire Ambulance receives $50,000 from Laura and Richard Allen of Egremont
Egremont— Southern Berkshire Ambulance receives $50,000 from Laura and Richard Allen of Egremont to help defray the cost of the two new ambulances the squad recently ordered for delivery in 2026.
Patrick White, CFO of Southern Berkshire Ambulance, observed, “These rigs cost nearly $500,000 apiece. We are so appreciative of the generosity of the Allens, and folks like them, who recognize the imperative to keep South County EMS strong and secure.”
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Berkshire Natural Resources Council receives $180,000 to improve visitor experience at Berkshire trailheads
Lenox— Berkshire Natural Resources Council (BNRC) has been awarded $180,000 from the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism’s (MOTT) Destination Development Capital (DDC) Grant Program to enhance the visitor access and wayfinding at several of the most-visited BNRC reserves across the Berkshires.
The MOTT award requires a 1:1 match, and the Jane and Jack Fitzpatrick Trust recently provided BNRC with a $75,000 grant to support the project and help meet the match.
The project will upgrade trailhead infrastructure, improve accessibility at selected sites, and enhance wayfinding so residents and visitors can more easily and comfortably enjoy the region’s conserved lands year-round.
The grant funds will support targeted improvements, including:
- More welcoming and informative trailhead kiosks and signage
- Accessibility improvements at selected trail entrances
- Parking changes at busy trailheads
- Incorporating climate-smart features like permeable parking surfaces, native plant rain gardens, and usage of durable, sustainable materials
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Berkshire Community College welcomes applicants to Culinary Apprenticeship Program
Pittsfield— Berkshire Community College (BCC) is accepting applications to its culinary apprenticeship program. Successful program graduates are awarded the industry-recognized ServSafe Food Handler Certificate and are job-ready for a wide range of food service employment opportunities, from school cafeterias and hospital kitchens to restaurants and private households.
The 15-week culinary arts apprenticeship program blends hands-on, practical training with systematic accompanying education, combining classroom and kitchen instruction with professional work in the field. After seven weeks of foundational coursework, students apply their knowledge and receive further practical training by working with a Berkshires-area restaurant or other food service organization.
Upon successful completion of the program, students should be able to demonstrate professional knife skills, correctly choose and use kitchen equipment and hand tools, maintain food safety and kitchen sanitation requirements, understand basic preparation techniques for a variety of foods, manage production of simple baked goods and participate in a fast-paced professional kitchen environment, among other skills.
Student apprentices are paid, and students of all ages may qualify for free tuition and fees. More information can be found online. To apply to BCC, visit www.berkshirecc.edu/apply.
