Berkshires 4-H'er Takes Top Honor at World Dairy Expo

By Angelica Paredes4-H Extension Educator
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Top, Caitlin Moriarty, 16, took first place in showmanship in her age division at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisc. The expo ran from Oct. 1 to 5. At left, she shows WFSupreme Suzanne at the Big E.
CHESHIRE, Mass. — Caitlin Moriarty, 16, has started her sixth year with in 4-H and her sixth year showing dairy cows, including placing at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisc., in early October.

Starting out locally and then regionally showing dairy cattle, she has moved her way to bigger shows this year.

Moriarty went in September to the All American Dairy Show in Harrisburg, Penn., where she showed in both the Junior and Open Show, making it to the finals in Senior Showmanship (along with about 140 other showman).   

With her 4-H Dairy Project animal, a brown Swiss summer yearling named WFSupreme Suzanne, she received third place in both the Junior and Open show. 

The day after returning from a great show in Harrisburg, Moriarty made her way to the Brown Swiss Show at the Eastern States Exposition (The Big E). At the end of the five-day Big E show, Caitlin and her heifer were the Junior Champion of the Junior Show and Open Show and she received first in her class.

The next Sunday, she and four other Massachusetts 4-H delegates made their way out to Madison for the National 4-H Dairy Conference. At the conference, she learned about the dairy industry and visited places like Hoards Dairy and Crave Brothers. 

She also attended the World Dairy Expo, where her heifer received fifth in the Open Show, second in the Junior Show in her class. Caitlin took home 1st place in Senior Showmanship (ages 16-21) against showmen from across the country and the world.

More than 300 youth in three age divisions competed in the showmanship categories. Moriarty was presented the Keith King Award for her first place showing. She also was one of only two New Englanders to be named in the top 10 in the three categories; Morgan Betti of Goshen, Conn., took third in the Junior division.

Tags: 4-H,   agricultural show,   agriculture,   dairy,   domestic animals,   youth programs,   

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Tickets On Sale for Berkshire Flyer

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Amtrak, in conjunction with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) and New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), announced tickets are now on sale for the Berkshire Flyer.
 
The Berkshire Flyer is a seasonal summer passenger rail service that operates between New York City from Moynihan Train Hall and Pittsfield. The service, which began as a successful pilot in 2022, is scheduled to resume on Friday, June 21 through Monday, Sept. 2 for Labor Day weekend. Trains depart New York City Friday nights and return at the end of the weekend, leaving Pittsfield Sunday afternoon.
 
In addition, for the first time this year, the Berkshire Flyer service now includes a train from New York City to Pittsfield on Sunday mornings.
 
"We're thrilled to announce this season's Berkshire Flyer service," said Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt. "The Berkshire Flyer makes visiting Western Massachusetts on weekends convenient, relaxing, and easy. We are pleased to continue our successful partnership with Amtrak, the New York State Department of Transportation and CSX."
 
The Berkshire Flyer departs from Moynihan Train Hall at 3:16 p.m. on Fridays and arrives at Joseph Scelsi Intermodal Transportation Center in Pittsfield at 7:27 p.m. The train will make all intermediate station stops as the scheduled Amtrak Empire Service train does in New York State on Fridays, which include Yonkers, Croton-Harmon, Poughkeepsie, Rhinecliff, Hudson, and Albany-Rensselaer Station. 
 
The Sunday return trip, making all the same station stops, will depart Pittsfield at 3:35 p.m. and arrive in New York at 7:55 p.m. The new Sunday Berkshire Flyer train from New York City to Pittsfield will depart Moynihan Train Hall at 10:50 a.m. and arrive in Pittsfield at 3:15 p.m.
 
The Berkshire Flyer is building upon two successful seasons where some of the Pittsfield-bound trains were sold out well in advance. Based on that experience, passengers planning a trip are encouraged to purchase tickets early by visiting Amtrak.com, the Amtrak app or by calling 1-800-USA-RAIL.
 
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