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Monument Mountain to graduate 128 seniors at Tanglewood on Sunday, June 1

This Sunday, June 1, at 1:30 p.m., in the Shed at Tanglewood, this resilient class will graduate, with co-valedictorians Tessa Baldwin and Max Wood and salutatorian Liam O’Gara offering words of wisdom to their peers, along with those of the district’s adult leaders.

Lenox — “Resilient” might be overused, but it does certainly apply to Monument Mountain Regional High School’s (MMRHS’s) Class of 2025. As Guidance Counselor Sean Flynn pointed out in his remarks at the Senior Awards Ceremony on May 29, they were the first group of incoming freshmen to start high school just as the world was trying to find a new normal after a long era of COVID-related losses and disruptions, back in August 2022.

This Sunday, June 1, at 1:30 p.m., in the Shed at Tanglewood, this resilient class will graduate, with co-valedictorians Tessa Baldwin and Max Wood and salutatorian Liam O’Gara offering words of wisdom to their peers, along with those of the district’s adult leaders.

Thirty-eight members of the Class of 2025 were inducted into the National Honor Society; more than one is already well established in the local business world; several more are fresh off of an extraordinary state-wide winning streak in basketball; many are headed to the Ivy League and other national ranked liberal arts colleges as well as premier national research universities; others are pursuing further studies or work in the skilled trades; and still others intend to make a life in public service.

Among the hundreds of scholarships handed out on Thursday morning were five given to the senior members of the Western Mass Champion Boys’ Basketball team: Emanuel Brown, Christian Blanchard, Isaiah Keefner, Griffin McElroy, and Samuel Roman-Guitierrez. Among those scholarships created to honor MMRHS alumni who are no longer with us was the “Smile like Jack” award, given by Star O’Brien in honor of her son Jack, member of the MMRHS Class of 2020, to Sam St. Peter, Christopher Paul, Megan DeCelle, and Keegan Dargie.

As far as future plans among the graduates, certain trends are clear. MMRHS’ Career Pathways have been giving students a good, strong push-off. Among the grads whose high school focus was early education and care and who intend to pursue that or a related field in college are Olivia Simms, winner of a Questbridge Scholarship to the College of the Holy Cross; Olivia Ostrander, going to Framingham State University; Ava Ross, headed to Springfield College; and Sophia Curletti, off to Curry College.

The skilled trades are an increasingly popular career direction for Monument graduates, and among this year’s directed CVTE-focused cohort are Kitson Stover, winner of the Garrett Norton Memorial Automotive Scholarship, who is headed to Hudson Valley Community College; Lucas Faggioni, winner of the Creative Building Solutions Scholarship, who is headed to McCann Technical School for electrical; Elijan Burch, going to lineman’s school; Shaun Frank, going to work for Mercier Stone Masonry; Sean Scarbro, going to work for Vanzandt Plumbing and Heating; and Logan Stevens, going into the carpentry field.

Highly selective liberal arts colleges and universities were impressed with the Class of 2025’s applicants, accepting, among others, Tessa Baldwin into Columbia University, Hannah Roller into Yale, Annabel Holmes and David Cull into Tufts, Bronly Boyd into Boston College, Lulu Bowman and Lily Haskins-Vaughn into Middlebury, Liam O’Gara into Colgate, Lilabel Kierstead into St. Andrews in Scotland, Sam St. Peter into Bates, Madeleine Rundle into Vassar, and Lukas Forouhar Graff and Ella Watson into Northeastern. Twelve are headed to the University of Massachusetts, and 18 to Berkshire Community College.

Arts-focused graduates include Orson Handel, headed to the Berklee School of Music, and Audrey Allard, who won the National Choral Award, headed to the University of Vermont.

The Seal of Biliteracy was presented to students demonstrating proficiency in two or more languages. These are Annabel Holmes, Lily Haskins-Vaughan, Ana Sangines Arteaga, Angel Sangines Canacuan, Helen Thorp, Eidy Lucia de la Cruz Garcia, Denisse Juarez Lopez, Lorenzo Gonzalez Quiacain, and Aidden Melo Riano, and those achieving the Seal of Biliteracy with Distinction are Tessa Baldwin, Eriel Dominguez, and Lucas Forouhar Graff.

Ian Drucker and Trevor Hoff have already established themselves in the workforce, so seek them out for your property-management needs this summer.

Jack Quinlan is joining the U.S. Army, Grayson Beacco is joining the National Guard, and Megan Decelle is attending West Point Academy. Gregory Kay is off to the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, and Jade Abderhalden—winner of too many senior awards to list, among them the Joseph and Dolores Aberdale Scholarship, a Rosalie Conte Scholarship, and the Housatonic Hose Company Scholarship—intends to pursue criminal justice at Westfield State University.

It takes a village to raise a child, and a whole community to steward children from preschool through the 12th grade. Congratulations to the Class of 2025 and to this community for all their successes.

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A celebration of meaning, purpose, joy, and happiness: Hevreh of Southern Berkshire’s 50th anniversary concert on June 29

“Hevreh has connected a sense of community where everyone feels connected,” Hevreh Senior Rabbi Jodie Gordon told The Berkshire Edge. “This is not a place where you go do Jewish activities and then you leave. We are all connected, both in people’s homes and out in the world."

Thousands attend No Kings rallies all across Berkshire County

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Relay for Life of Berkshire County returns on June 28

Last year, the event was held outside at Monument Mountain's track. However, four hours into the event, a microburst storm hit the track, destroying the event area. This year, event organizer Ray Gardino told The Berkshire Edge they are not taking any chances and will hold the event indoors.

The Edge Is Free To Read.

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