Big Brothers Big Sisters Appoints New Directors

Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Big Brother Big Sisters of Berkshire County has appointed three new directors to its board: Ed Olimpo, Joan McMenemy and Terri Digrigoli.

New officers named for the board are Dan Zunitch, president, and Linda Febles, vice president

"We are pleased to welcome three outstanding local people to the board and two new officers. We look forward to working with them," said Mike Monti, outgoing president. "They bring passion, experience and an enthusiasm to the team. In addition to their organizational and leadership skills, they also bring a genuine love and concern for the residents of Berkshire County — both children and adults alike."

Dan Zunitch
Zunitch owns Business Point Systems and provides industry certifications and workforce skills teaching courses both independently and through partnerships with Holyoke Community College and Mount Wachusett Community College. Zunitch has a bachelor of arts degree in computer science from Brandeis University. He is vice chairman of the steering committee for the Pittsfield Prevention Partnership and a member of the Pittsfield Tree Watch.

Linda A. Febles
Febles, an account executive with Coakley, Pierpan, Dolan & Collins Insurance Agency Inc., has 25 years experience in the insurance industry and holds a certified professional insurance woman designation and certified insurance service representative designation and is working toward others. Febles is a past Berkshire Chapter director of Massachusetts Insurance for Women and is on the board of directors for the Berkshire Chamber of Commerce and has recently joined the board of directors for AdLib Inc. Center for Independent Living.
 
Ed Olimpo
Olimpo is a marketing and design consultant who previously worked with startups and Fortune 500 consulting firms in New York, New Jersey and Georgia prior to moving to Pittsfield. He has a bachelor of science in marketing/management from Siena College. Olimpo is also treasurer of the AdLib Center for Independent Living and a graduate of the Berkshire Leadership Program class of 2008.
 
Joan McMenemy


McMenemy moved to the Berkshires in 1994 and took a position with then-District Attorney Gerard D. Downing as an assistant district attorney. Currently, McMenemy is second assistant district attorney and carries a full caseload in Berkshire Superior Court. She is a graduate of Vassar College and Suffolk University Law School.

Terri DiGrigoli
DiGrigoli is a coordinator and case manager at the Juvenile Resource Center working with at-risk youth. She has a bachelor's degree in psychology from Worcester State College and a master's in education with a concentration in guidance from Cambridge College. DiGrigoli worked as a part-time guidance counselor at Herberg Middle School with the Key Program as an outreach tracker.

Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Berkshire County seek volunteers from all walks of life who share the common goal of wanting to help a child.

"It's easy to get involved — you don't have to change your life, you just have to make a bit of room for a new friend. It does not matter if your 17 or 70, there is always a way to help," said Monti. "The benefits of the Big Brothers Big Sisters one-to-one approach to mentoring are significant and measurable. Children matched in the program are more able to develop a positive perspective, which empowers them to make better decisions and become responsible adults who give back to their community." 
 
Anyone wishing to learn more about volunteering in Berkshire County should call 413-443-9471.
 
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Berkshire County has been serving children in Berkshire County since 1969, starting out as Big Brothers of Pittsfield, then in 1987 as Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. The Mission of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Berkshire County is to help children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships with measurable outcomes. Big Brothers Big Sisters is the only nationally affiliated agency in Berkshire County whose mission is solely devoted to mentoring. More information can be found at www.berkshirebbbs.org.

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

North Adams Regional Reopens With Ribbon-Cutting Celebration

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

BHS President and CEO Darlene Rodowicz welcomes the gathering to the celebration of the hospital's reopening 10 years to the day it closed. 
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The joyful celebration on Thursday at North Adams Regional Hospital was a far cry from the scene 10 years ago when protests and tears marked the facility's closing
 
Hospital officials, local leaders, medical staff, residents and elected officials gathered under a tent on the campus to mark the efforts over the past decade to restore NARH and cut the ribbon officially reopening the 136-year-old medical center. 
 
"This hospital under previous ownership closed its doors. It was a day that was full of tears, anger and fear in the Northern Berkshire community about where and how residents would be able to receive what should be a fundamental right for everyone — access to health care," said Darlene Rodowicz, president and CEO of Berkshire Health Systems. 
 
"Today the historic opportunity to enhance the health and wellness of Northern Berkshire community is here. And we've been waiting for this moment for 10 years. It is the key to keeping in line with our strategic plan which is to increase access and support coordinated county wide system of care." 
 
Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, under the BHS umbrella, purchased the campus and affiliated systems when Northern Berkshire Healthcare declared bankruptcy and closed on March 28, 2014. NBH had been beset by falling admissions, reductions in Medicare and Medicaid payments, and investments that had gone sour leaving it more than $30 million in debt. 
 
BMC was able to reopen the ER as an emergency satellite facility and slowly restored and enhanced medical services including outpatient surgery, imaging, dialysis, pharmacy and physician services. 
 
But it would take a slight tweak in the U.S. Health and Human Services' regulations — thank to U.S. Rep. Richie Neal — to bring back inpatient beds and resurrect North Adams Regional Hospital 
 
View Full Story

More Pittsfield Stories