School Closing Conte Middle School in North Adams will be closed Friday, December 5, as the investigation into a mercury spill continues.
Light'em Up! North Adams kicks off the holiday season with its annual treelighting on Thursday, Dec. 4, at 5:30 p.m.
Pittsfield lights its tree on Friday, Dec. 5, at 6 at Park Square.
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By Brian Flagg - July 31, 2008 Special to iBerkshires
Shannon Garvey
CLARKSBURG — There are many exciting times in a teenager's life and local hoopster Shannon Garvey just lived one of her own.
As part of the People to People Sports Ambassador Program, Shannon embarked on a journey many of us only dream of — the chance to play overseas. The 13-year-old spent 10 days playing basketball in Austria with other athletes from all over the globe.
Just getting to Austria was an event in itself for Shannon. "Our plane ride was seven hours to Frankfurt [Germany]," she said. "We had a six-hour layover in Frankfurt. Then we went to Vienna, which took one hour and 15 minutes."
After a long flight there was not much time to spare when she finally landed. "We got there really late," she added. "So we just went up to our rooms and went to bed. Then we got up in the morning and went to the imperial castle, Schonbrunn. Then we had practice."
More Than Just Basketball
In addition to playing basketball, the young ambassadors were shown some of the local sites and given some time to get to know their counterparts from around the world.
"Our hotel was awesome," Shannon said. "It was a glass pyramid. We had a players' village, which had video games, a mechanical bull, sumo wrestling, and all different sports.
"We also went to Mauthausen concentration camp and we went to an amusement park and rode the highest Ferris wheel in Austria." Shannon added that there was "plenty of shopping and the street performers were really cool."
There were some lessons learned on the trip outside of basketball. Shannon said, "budgeting my money" was something she had not had to do before. She also learned that kids maybe from other nations do have some differences but that they are all the same in one regard ... they are all kids. While she met many youngsters from other countries she said most of the friends she made were from California.
Let The Games Begin
The basketball tournament, World Sports Festival '08, consisted of four games. Shannon's team played teams from Slovakia, Hungary and the United States, and went 2-2 for the tourney.
The practice time in preparing for the contest was rather grueling but rewarding. "We had two- to three-hour practices for three days," said Shannon. "One day we met and trained with Rick Barry." In jest she added, "He has an unusual foul shot."
Barry, a longtime NBA player, was most known for shooting his free throws from between his legs. At the time of his retirement from professional basketball, he was the all-time leading free-throw shooter at 90 percent.
The games also added another element that made it even more exciting for the athletes. "We had an Olympic-style ceremony with all the athletes parading around for their countries for all of the sports," said Shannon.
Lessons Learned
While the trip and the experience itself were rewarding for Shannon, she said she learned a lot more than just basketball while she was there.
"The best part was meeting all these new people," she said. "My least favorite part was the plane ride."
"I really appreciate how supportive my friends and family have been," she added. "I was very lucky to have the chance to go on this trip."
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North Adams kicks off the holiday season with its annual treelighting on 
Passionate about local sports? Into the environment? Obsessive about local meetings?
