Relay for Life Kicks Off in North Adams

Staff reportsiBerkshires
05:12PM / Friday, May 29, 2009Print Story | Email Story

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Northern Berkshire Relay for Life kicks off with the survivors' lap at 6 tonight at Noel Field Athletic Complex.

This year's Relay theme is "Relay Time Warp: Celebrating 25 years of Hope" to mark the event's 25th anniversary benefiting the American Cancer Society.

Relay For Life will begin with the survivor lap recognizing those who have won the battle against cancer followed by the "caregivers" lap. Survivors and caregivers could start registering at 3 p.m. The luminaria ceremony in remembrance of those who have died will begin at 9 p.m.

New this year will be a drawing with all proceeds benefiting the American Cancer Society. This event is open to the public and will continue through the night with teams and individuals walking to raise money for research for the cure for cancer and in support of those suffering from the disease.

For more photos of the event, click here.

For a follow-up on how much was raised, click here.

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'Into Light': Addressing Addiction One Portrait at a Time

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
08:13AM / Sunday, March 08, 2026

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The "Into Light" exhibit is sketching a new path toward transforming the conversation around addiction — one portrait and story at a time.

Since 2019, the nonprofit's founder Theresa Clower has put on close to 21 exhibitions around the country, sharing the stories of more than 600 people who have lost their lives to addiction.

Now, the installation will be on view at Hotel Downstreet from Friday, March 13, through June 30, featuring 10 portraits of local community members who died from addiction and 20 portraits from the eastern Massachusetts exhibit.

This collaborative effort combines municipal opioid settlement funds and lead sponsor Berkshire Health Systems, in collaboration with the Northern Berkshire Opioid Abatement Collaborative, HEAL Coalition, Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, and North Adams Regional Hospital.

In addition to the installation, the team has developed programs and forums to be held throughout the three months to start a conversation and improve education on the disease.

"The core to our efforts around 'Into Light' is the community education, especially building on people's awareness of addiction as a disease and as a disease that is curable," said Andy Ottoson, BRPC senior public health planner.

Ottoson stressed the importance of treating substance use disorder like any other disease, reducing stigma, and normalizing open conversations around addiction and the resources out there to help recover.

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