image description
The participants are given certificates for their summer efforts.
image description
State Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier.
image description
Mayor Linda Tyer.
image description
image description
image description
Darian Hunter.
image description
Daniela Herrera.

Youth Works Participants Honored in Pittsfield

By: Andy McKeeveriBerkshires Staff
Print Story | Email Story

The program got Destane Pope-White's foot in the door and now it has turned into a full-time, permanent job.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Destane Pope-White felt it was better to just do something rather than wait.
 
She was applying for jobs but not having much luck. She decided to enter the Youth Works program through MassHire Berkshire Career Center. The program is state-funded pays the wages for youth to work in various local companies. Pope-White ended up working for Jae's Spice this summer.
 
"I was a little discouraged. I was job searching and couldn't find anything. It took me to get into a program to be making some money again. I thought at least I am doing something, I'm not just sitting around waiting," Pope-White said. "This has helped me a lot. It got me a permanent job."
 
Jae's isn't going to let her go. The program helped create a path to meaningful employment for her and it is foundation for a total of 46 area youth who worked through 23 different companies. The program provides 125 hours of employment.
 
"Each worksite created quality jobs and provided appropriate tasks to help participants acquire new skills," said Youth Program Coordinator Kelly Groves-Skrocki.
 
The program is intended to provide coaching and mentorship to help young people take the first step in their careers. It has been ongoing in Pittsfield for 15 years, and for the last six Guardian Life Insurance has contributed. 
 
"To date, Pittsfield has provided over 600 youth with employment opportunities through this program," Groves-Skrocki said.
 
On Friday, those in the program were honored for their summer efforts. State Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier said the honor is deserved because not everyone was accepted into the program and not everyone completed it.
 
"That is our gift to you, that strong, first, sturdy step," Farley-Bouvier said.
 
Farley-Bouvier said each one of the graduates one day will be employers or supervisors and she called on them to provide the same support to future generations. She asked them to take on the responsibility of helping other youths get their starts.
 
"This step that has been built for you is that first step on a career ladder," Farley-Bouvier said. "When you have a stable foundation in a work, career path, then that path is so much easier."
 
Mayor Linda Tyer presented each of the graduates with certificates in City Council chambers Friday to honor the occasion. The event included testimonials from employers and past and current participants praising the program. 
 
Daniela Herrera was one of those speakers whose involvement with MassHire Berkshire Career Center extended beyond that first job. Herrera wasn't able to finish high school as she was taking care of her grandmother who had cancer. At the age of 20, she was struggling to find a job because of that lack of a diploma when her mother suggested MassHire. 
 
Herrera said the organization helped get her into and complete her high school equivalency, then helped her with resume building, and she ended up being hired by Berkshire Medical Center. And it didn't end there. She went back to MassHire to help her apply to college and she's been accepted to BYU.
 
After a decade of success in Pittsfield, the state provided funding to expand the program in North Adams. Last week, MassHire recognized the efforts of 11 youth who participated in the North Adams program.

Tags: employment,   job training,   masshire,   youth empowerment,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Dalton Man Accused of Kidnapping, Shooting Pittsfield Man

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A Dalton man was arrested on Thursday evening after allegedly kidnapping and shooting another man.

Nicholas Lighten, 35, was arraigned in Central Berkshire District Court on Friday on multiple charges including kidnapping with a firearm and armed assault with intent to murder. He was booked in Dalton around 11:45 p.m. the previous night.

There was heavy police presence Thursday night in the area of Lighten's East Housatonic Street home before his arrest.

Shortly before 7 p.m., Dalton dispatch received a call from the Pittsfield Police Department requesting that an officer respond to Berkshire Medical Center. Adrian Mclaughlin of Pittsfield claimed that he was shot in the leg by Lighten after an altercation at the defendants home. Mclaughlin drove himself to the hospital and was treated and released with non-life-threatening injuries. 

"We were told that Lighten told Adrian to go down to his basement, where he told Adrian to get down on his knees and pulled out a chain," the police report reads.

"We were told that throughout the struggle with Lighten, Adrian recalls three gunshots."

Dalton PD was advised that Pittsfield had swabbed Mclaughlin for DNA because he reported biting Lighten. A bite mark was later found on Lighten's shoulder. 

Later that night, the victim reportedly was "certain, very certain" that Lighten was his assailant when shown a photo array at the hospital.

According to Dalton Police, an officer was stationed near Lighten's house in an unmarked vehicle and instructed to call over the radio if he left the residence. The Berkshire County Special Response Team was also contacted.

Lighten was under surveillance at his home from about 7:50 p.m. to about 8:40 p.m. when he left the property in a vehicle with Massachusetts plates. Another officer initiated a high-risk motor vehicle stop with the sergeant and response team just past Mill Street on West Housatonic Street, police said, and traffic was stopped on both sides of the road.

Lighten and a passenger were removed from the vehicle and detained. Police reported finding items including a brass knuckle knife, three shell casings wrapped in a rubber glove, and a pair of rubber gloves on him.

The response team entered Lighten's home at 43 East Housatonic before 9:30 p.m. for a protective sweep and cleared the residence before 9:50 p.m., police said. The residence was secured for crime scene investigators.

View Full Story

More Pittsfield Stories