The Lee Sportsman’s Club proved to be a beautiful setting for the Southern Berkshire Chapter of the Nation Wild Turkey Federations’ Women in the Outdoors event, held at the club on September 24th.
Twenty women, all over the age of 14, gathered from throughout the tri-state region of MA, NY and CT to learn how to shoot, rope, paddle & cook as part of the NWTF Women in the Outdoors Event.
“Fun was had by all†stated one of the three key program organizers, Dawn Goodrich of Lee, MA, who was joined in organizing the event by Mary Smith of Lee, and Laurie Lee Sawin of Otis.
Women were introduced to a number of interesting activities, including the safe handling of pistols, shotguns, rifles, muzzleloaders and archery equipment. Individuals learned from qualified instructors how to shoot moving clay targets with a shotgun (women had the opportunity to experience both Skeet & Trap shooting). They also learned how to hit the bulls-eye with a rifle, pistol or bow and arrow, and how to load, shoot and care for a variety of muzzle loading firearm.
The hands on archery presentation by Patsy Leader, owner of Shooters Highland in Valatie, NY allowed them to experience the use of compound bows as well as traditional archery equipment. They received instruction on the selection and safe use of archery equipment and its application in both target shooting as well as hunting situations.
Kayak instruction was presented by PJ Hunt, manager of the Expeditions Outdoor Sports Store in Great Barrington. The women had the opportunity to paddle a variety of kayaks while learning the basic of kayaking in flat water.
Additional programs were presented in tree-stand basics, turkey calling, stamping, cowboy roping and outdoor cooking. Outdoor cooking featured an interesting presentation titled: Trashcan Turkey. Here the women learned to cook a whole turkey outdoors using a metal trashcan. The trashcan was in essence converted into a convection oven by piling hot coals around the trash cans edge. In about one hour and twenty minutes a whole 15 pound turkey was perfectly cooked and ready to eat.
The program achieved the following goals in many ways. All the women in attendance said they had fun while learning how to handle firearms safely. They also learned the importance of responsible wildlife management. Programs like this convince women that they can truly enjoy the outdoors. These women specific events have also proven to increase women’s comfort level and participation in outdoor related pursuits, a key goal of the program.
The NWTF developed The Women in the Outdoors program to increase women’s participation in outdoor activities, and it has proven to also serve as a networking activity that brings men and women with similar outdoor interests together. Women interested in the program can get more information from their local NWTF chapter. Chapter information can be found on the www.NWTF.org web site. Or contact one of the organizers whose information is shown below.
For more information on future Women in the Outdoors Events please contact:
Dawn Goodrich at 413-243-6145 thegoodrichs@earthlink.net
Mary Smith at 413-243-2710 Ssmith570@adelphia.net
Or Laurie Lee Sawin at 413-269-0226 Darrylldee@gillanet.net
Or visit the NWTF website at www.NWTF.org
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.
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Pittsfield Council Passes $232.7M Budget
By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The City Council unanimously approved a $232.7 million budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
It is a modest, almost 2.9 percent increase from FY26.
"I do want to give the community kind of a heads up as we move forward on budgets. What we see coming out of the federal government that's trickling down to the states, it's going to be harder and harder for us as a community to meet our needs under the Proposition 2 1/2," Councilor at Large Alisa Costa said.
"We're going to have challenges, as we've seen communities across the state trying to override the Proposition 2 1/2, because we have dwindling amounts of money coming from the state and federal government."
She pointed out that, at the same time, utility bills are going up for both residents and the city, as are the costs of pavement and other items.
The amended budget of $232,777,720, down from the $232,782,090 originally proposed, includes cuts to the Department of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and the restoration of funds for councilors to attend the annual Massachusetts Municipal Association conference.
The Pittsfield Public Schools' $86,855,061 budget includes $68,886,061 in state Chapter 70 funding and $18 million from the city. With $345,000 in school choice and Richmond tuition revenues, it totals $87,200,061 and is an approximately $300,000 increase from the Pittsfield Public Schools' FY26 budget of $86.9 million.
The district's budget will fund 13 schools, as Morningside Community School will retire in the fall, and includes the middle school restructuring.
Councilors also approved the use of $2 million in certified free cash to reduce the tax rate, and appropriated $450,551 for parking-related expenditures.
Cassidy Flynn scattered five hits in a complete-game effort in the circle as Lenox upset top-seeded Hoosac Valley, 3-2, in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament. click for more
Brayden Durant struck out seven and walked one in a complete-game effort on the mound Saturday to pitch the Drury baseball team to a 6-0 win over Keefe Tech in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament at Joe Wolfe Field. click for more
Jason Codey struck out 13, walked two and allowed just an infield single as the Generals earned a 7-1 win over Wahconah to claim their third straight regional title. click for more
Gracelyn Wright struck out eight, and Genevieve Lagess went 3-for-5 with four runs batted in as the Hurricanes beat Monson, 17-3, to claim their first Western Mass title in four years. click for more
For the boys, Ward Bianchi helped lead the way with a win in the shot put and a second place in the javelin as the Mounties finished 16 points ahead of runner-up Pittsfield (pending the results of the pole vault, which were unavailable at 11 p.m. Friday night). click for more
