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 The Northern Berkshire Community Coalition held its 24th annual meeting at the Williams Inn on Thursday. |
NBCC Marks 24th Year With Goodbyes, RecognitionsBy Tammy Daniels
iBerkshires Staff
10:44PM / Thursday, June 03, 2010
Executive Director Alan Bashevkin talks about the contributions of retiring community organizer Sister Natalie Cain on Thursday. |
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Northern Berkshire Community Coalition marked the end of a challenging 24th year by recognizing its staff and many volunteers and by bidding adieu to some longtime supporters from their current roles.
Executive Director Alan Bashevkin said the coalition had weathered a challenging year as it, like so many other nonprofits, struggled with declining aid and rising needs and also saw changes in staffing.
"So we try to hold the ship steady in rougher waters by offering a range of programs, which I call our 'Coalition Comfort Food,'" said Bashevkin to the dozens of volunteers, partners and area officials gathered for the luncheon at the Williams Inn on Thursday. "We continue to do what we have done for the past decade ... provide the means for the community to gather and address local issues."
He noted the increased participation in the coalition's monthly roundtables and its continuing outreach with local youth through its UNITY programs in writing, music, leadership and community development. The monthly newsletter reaches more than a 1,000 households.
"What we have is a dream for the community and a love for the people that live and work here as well as for the area itself. It's our love, that works as the strongest tool we have to help the community remain true to itself."
A lot of it wouldn't happen without the many within the community, he said, including this year's Northern Berkshire Heroes Award recipient Judith Grinnell of the Hoosic River Revival Coalition.
Introduced by her longtime friend Hulda Jowett, Grinnell's voice broke as she thanked the NBCC for its recognition of the ongoing work of the river coalition and its members to transform the concrete-encased river into a more welcoming and natural habitat. The award was presented by Jowett and North Adams Mayor Richard Alcombright.
"I'm honored by your acknowledgment of the work of the coalition, the River Revival Coalition," said Grinnell. "For almost 10 years, I had this dream of making the Hoosic River beautiful, healthy for fish and wildlife, accessible for families. In summary, I wanted it to be an asset for the city along with our mountains, and our museums and our restaurants."
Judith Grinnell, center, is honored as this year's Northern Berkshire Hero by Mayor Richard Alcombright and Hulda Jowett. |
For the past 2 1/2 years, the coalition has been pursuing partners and grants and spreading the word; a community presentation and visioning sessions will be held on Saturday, June 26, from 9 to 3 at St. Elizabeth's Parish Center (St. Anthony's).
"It will be interesting, it will be fun and, more importantly, you'll be making a difference in the river."
Also speaking at the event was coalition board President Rabbi Jeffrey W. Goldwasser and Jake "Phoenix" Snow performed his slam poem "How to Save a Life" written at UNITY writer's workshop.
Sister Natalie Cain was honored for 17 years working with the coalition's neighborhood programs and state Rep. Daniel E. Bosley, an original member of the coalition, will end his term this year representing the 1st Berkshire District and championing NBCC's programs.
Cain, a Sister of St. Joseph and North Berkshire native, returned to the city in 1989 to find much had changed since her childhood growing up in tightly knit neighborhoods. She searched for a way to bring the community together and joined the coalition as a part-time neighborhood development specialist.
"The job came to me to serve as a wonderful catalyst for my own development as a person, as a human being living in a time of great social shifting in the world at large, in the nation and in our Northern Berkshire community.
"There was no clear model or plan — we were to create the path by walking it."
Her position changed over the years and she later teamed on Northern Berkshire Neighbors with Kathy Keeser, who called her as "a cheerleader of the spirit." Bashevkin said she was retiring but not "lost" to the coalition.
"Thank you for letting me come back here as a Sister of St. Joseph and work among you and with you these past 17 years," said Cain, describing the community as a flourishing garden. "I'm happy to think of myself as one of the mothers of Northern Berkshire Neighbors and thank you from the bottom of my heart for allowing me to grow my love in your soil. May peace be in your heart."
 Rep. Daniel E. Bosley gets a standing ovation above. Left, Jake Snow reads his slam poem 'How to Save A Life'; below, Natalie Cain poses with friends.
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Bosley was director of the Community Development Corp. a quarter-century ago when he sat down with the original group to try hash out a way to work together. He would soon become the area's state representative and continued to work with the coalition and gave it a voice on Beacon Hill.
"Since this first meeting this coalition has thought globally and acted locally," said Bosley. "You're so important to the people who need you. You're their justice and sometimes you're the only justice that these people receive."
Being in the Legislature lets you see the bigger picture of not only what the coalition is doing but all the other organizations as well, he said.
"I know the difference you make," Bosley continued. "So when you get frustrated over your budget or bemoan the fact there are still people you haven't been able to help, please know that you are the difference between opportunity and despair for hundreds if not thousands of people in our area over the past few decades.
"And if you don't believe that, give me a call and I'll tell what I've seen." |
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