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Berkshires Beat: Berkshire United Way Hosts Day of Caring
01:55PM / Tuesday, May 31, 2016
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Over 260 guests gather at Hancock Shaker Village on May 20 for the Movers + Shakers Party, the culmination of Berkshire United Way’s 2016 Day of Caring, which included the installation of 50 Berkshire Book Houses in 24 communities throughout the county.

Day of caring: Berkshire United Way held its 2016 Day of Caring on May 20. Day of Caring is the name United Way has used to represent volunteer engagement and community building.

In the past, Berkshire United Way Day of Caring initiatives have included the installation of Born Learning Trails at Muddy Brook Elementary School in Great Barrington, and Durant and Springside Parks in Pittsfield. To enhance literacy, volunteers have painted classrooms and held book drives in support of education. Volunteers also have cleaned the Housatonic River in Great Barrington, and held countywide forums with youth called “You First” to help them build aspirations.

At the heart of the 2016 event was the installation of 50 Berkshire Book Houses in 24 communities throughout the county.  With the help of Jack Geary Builders, dozens of SABIC and JRL Construction volunteers, using materials donated by LP Adams, built 50 book houses, each of which can house 100 children’s books.

With volunteer support from Unistress and Dodge Construction, the book houses were installed in high-traffic public places. 47 local businesses and faith based or civic organizations, along with several individuals, have signed on as “caretakers” for the houses, which involves hosting book drives to keep them stocked with age-appropriate materials and conducting regular check-ins to ensure the continued upkeep of the structures.

To celebrate the hard work of this initiative and over 120 volunteers involved, plus hundreds more who have participated in book drives throughout the county to stock these houses, Berkshire United Way hosted a Movers + Shakers dance party celebration at Hancock Shaker Village on May 20 featuring a dance party led by DJ BFG, hearty hors d’oeuvres, dance performances, tastings, local milkshakes, and cash bar.

The celebration also provided attendees with an opportunity to view some of Berkshire United Way’s community impact work, which was on display in the Community Room.

Net proceeds from the 2016 Day of Caring benefit Berkshire United Way’s early literacy efforts across the county. For more information on Berkshire Book Houses, including a list of locations, please visit berkshireunitedway.org.


Marijuana class: The national media has recently reported that older Americans are the fastest growing segment of medical marijuana patients. Using data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), CBS News found that the number of marijuana users aged 55 or older jumped from 2,812,000 in 2013 to 4,309,000 in 2014.

OLLI, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College, which offers educational programs designed especially by and for people over 50 years old, offers a class in June titled “Introduction to Medical Cannabis.” The course runs for four Saturdays in June  from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at Berkshire Community College, beginning Saturday, June 4.  For more information or to register for the course, call 413-236-2190.

This course will address the ethnobotanical, medical, and natural history of the cannabis plant, which has co-evolved with global civilizations over thousands of years. The class will examine current medical research through literature review and case studies that address disease- and injury-specific applications, and the biochemical activities of cannabinoid molecules. Also covered will be current sociopolitical constructs surrounding patient access to medical cannabis and institutional access to the plant for research purposes.


Food grant: The City of Pittsfield is one of 26 recipients across the nation who will receive grant funding from The Kresge Foundation totaling nearly $2 million in grant funding to develop food oriented initiatives in cities across the nation.

Dubbed “FreshLo” – for “Fresh, Local & Equitable: Food as a Creative Platform for Neighborhood Revitalization” – the initiative is a joint effort by Kresge’s Arts & Culture Program and Health Program. Nonprofit organizations and coalitions from across the nation will receive $75,000 planning awards through FreshLo to design neighborhood-scale projects demonstrating creative, cross-sector visions of food-oriented development. Kresge is the first national funder to intentionally and equitably integrate food, art and community to drive neighborhood revitalization at this scale.

In Pittsfield, funds will be designated to the Morningside Neighborhood to organize existing and new efforts to utilize creative food-oriented development to revitalize the neighborhood through entrepreneurial training and support, community public art, and increased access to and knowledge of fresh local foods.

More than 500 organizations applied for FreshLo funding – the most applicants for a funding opportunity in The Kresge Foundation’s 92-year history. The overwhelming response resulted in the Foundation funding six more grants than initially planned. Pittsfield was one of two New England cities to receive the award.

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