The annual Buddy Walk is a national event established in 1995 to promote inclusion and awareness. It's raised more than $15 million.
DALTON, Mass. — For the 17th year, the Berkshire County Arc's Down Syndrome Family Group and its allies took over Main Street for the annual Buddy Walk.
Hundreds of people in maroon walk T-shirts gathered at Craneville School for a festive event that includes the signature walk through downtown, music, food and games on school's playground.
The walk was one of two in Massachusetts (the other is in Wakefield next Sunday) and dozens across the country under the auspices of the National Down Syndrome Society, which started the program in 1995.
The goals of the walk are three-fold: to celebrate Down syndrome awareness, to educate the general public and to advocate on behalf of the 5,100 Americans born with Down syndrome each year.
Locally, BCArc is the lead agency serving Berkshire County residents with developmental disabilities, brain injuries and autism and their families.
A longtime advocate of the agency and its clients is state Sen. Paul Mark, D-Peru, a member of the Legislature's Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities and one of several public officials to participate in Saturday's walk.
Mark was back in his district after joining an overwhelming majority in both houses of the Legislature to pass a $1 billion tax relief measure earlier in the week.
On Saturday, he said there is no concern that the tax cuts to be phased in over several years will negatively impact social service agencies, like BCArc, that rely on state funding and have struggled to address staff salary needs even before this year's tax relief push.
"Overall, everything we're hearing is that this [tax cut] is safe, that we're on a good pace of revenue growth," Mark said. "And the cuts and the [tax] credits that are happening aren't going to hamper that, that they're in line with what we think is going to keep our state growing in a responsible manner.
"We have an $8 billion rainy day fund that we're sitting on, and also the cuts are going to be phased in."
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Pittsfield School Committee OKs $82M Budget, $1.5M Cuts
By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The school budget is less grim than the original proposal but still requires more than $1.5 million in cuts.
On Thursday, the School Committee approved an $82.8 million spending plan for fiscal year 2025, including a city appropriation of $80.4 million and $2.4 million in Chapter 70 funds.
The cuts made to balance the budget include about 50 staff reductions — some due to the sunsetting of federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds.
"The final version does not answer all needs. It will be unacceptable to some or to many but I must say that tonight's final proposal is very different than where we started when we believed we would have a $3,600,000 reduction. I want to assure everyone that every effort has been made to minimize the impact on both students, families, and staff members while also ensuring that our district has the necessary resources to progress forward," Superintendent Joseph Curtis said.
"Nevertheless, there are incredibly passionate, dedicated staff members who will not be with us next year. This pains me as I've been a part of this organization for now 30 years so I want to assure everyone that our team, this has weighed very heavily in our hearts, this entire process. This is not a group of people that is looking at a spreadsheet saying ‘Well that can go and this can go’ and take that lightly."
Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finance Kristen Behnke and other officials worked with the state Department of Secondary and Elementary Education to rectify an error in the Chapter 70 funding formula, recognized 11 more low-income students in the district, and added an additional $2.4 million to the FY25 budget.
Curtis commented that when he first saw the governor’s FY25 budget, he was "rather stunned."
"The extraordinary circumstances we face this budget season by the conclusion of the substantial ESSER federal grant and a significant reduction in Chapter 70 allotment caused challenges for this team and our school principals and our educators and our staff that have been nothing short of all-consuming," he said.
Downtown Pittsfield Inc. proposed angled parking on North Street and was pleasantly surprised that the city responded with an in-depth study and new plans — even if they don't include angled parking.
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Officials celebrated Arbor Day on Friday by installing a commemorative plaque next to the American elm sapling. This is a tree that James McGrath, the city's park program manager, said Presutti would have been particularly proud of.
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Albert Ingegni III was applauded for four decades of service on the Zoning Board of Appeals during City Council. Mayor Peter Marchetti presented him with a certificate of thanks for his commitment to the community.
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