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Gary Johnson of Johnson Dealerships, Marilyn Sperling of Greylock Federal Credit Union, winner Michael Mroz, Berkshire United Way President Kristine Hazzard, and Onyx Speciality Papers co-owner Chris Mathews on Friday.

Williamstown Man Wins Car Through Berkshire United Way Giveaway

By Andy McKeeveriBerkshires Staff
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Officials from Greylock, Johnson and the United Way tried to convince Michael Mroz to keep the decals on his new car. But, they'll allow him to take them off if he wants.
LEE, Mass. — Michael Mroz Jr. can now give his son the car he needs — his old one, of course.
 
Mroz just won a 2014 Ford Fiesta through the Berkshire United Way's annual fundraising drive. Mroz donated to the organization and his name was drawn as the winner of the annual car giveaway. 
 
"It's a promotion connection to our annual campaign," said Berkshire United Way President Kristine Hazzard on Friday when the organization and sponsors delivered the car right to Mroz's work at Onyx Specialty Papers.
 
For 15 years, Greylock Federal Credit Union and Johnson Dealerships have teamed up to split the cost of a new car to give away. The car is brought all over the county throughout the summer, encouraging people to donate to the organization.
 
"The United way and Gary Johnson are great community partners," said Greylock President Marilyn Sperling. "It is part of who we are and we, at Greylock, take the United Way seriously."
 
Mroz now has the option of keeping the car, trading up for something that fits his personality better, or $10,000 cash. Mroz says he'll probably trade up for something else for his commute from Williamstown to Lee every day. And his son, who needs a car, can have his old one.
 
"I'd just like to thank Johnson Ford, Greylock Federal Credit Union and the Berkshire United Way," Mroz said.
 
More than 200 companies participate in workplace campaigns through which employees can contribute to the United Way through payroll deductions. Employees donating $150 or more are entered in the giveaway. Onyx participates so if Mroz "wasn't working here, it wouldn't have happened," he said.
 
Some 15 years ago, the leaders of the Berkshire United Way had heard a car giveaway helped another branch raise money. They asked Johnson, who said he'd do it if they organized it properly. And the tradition was started.
 
"If this is used right, it is a good incentive to take to the employees," Johnson said.
 
The 90-year-old organization has raised $1.7 million so far this fund drive to support some 46 programs in Central and Southern Berkshire ranging from childhood literacy to youth associations to the Elizabeth Freeman Center. The campaign runs through June and Hazzard said she is confident it will hit the $2.7 million target.

Tags: automobiles,   Berkshire United Way,   dealership,   fundraiser,   giveaway,   

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WCMA: 'Cracking the Code on Numerology'

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) opens a new exhibition, "Cracking the Cosmic Code: Numerology in Medieval Art."
 
The exhibit opened on March 22.
 
According to a press release: 
 
The idea that numbers emanate sacred significance, and connect the past with the future, is prehistoric and global. Rooted in the Babylonian science of astrology, medieval Christian numerology taught that God created a well-ordered universe. Deciphering the universe's numerical patterns would reveal the Creator's grand plan for humanity, including individual fates. 
 
This unquestioned concept deeply pervaded European cultures through centuries. Theologians and lay people alike fervently interpreted the Bible literally and figuratively via number theory, because as King Solomon told God, "Thou hast ordered all things in measure, and number, and weight" (Wisdom 11:22). 
 
"Cracking the Cosmic Code" explores medieval relationships among numbers, events, and works of art. The medieval and Renaissance art on display in this exhibition from the 5th to 17th centuries—including a 15th-century birth platter by Lippo d'Andrea from Florence; a 14th-century panel fragment with courtly scenes from Palace Curiel de los Ajos, Valladolid, Spain; and a 12th-century wall capital from the Monastery at Moutiers-Saint-Jean—reveal numerical patterns as they relate to architecture, literature, gender, and timekeeping. 
 
"There was no realm of thought that was not influenced by the all-consuming belief that all things were celestially ordered, from human life to stones, herbs, and metals," said WCMA Assistant Curator Elizabeth Sandoval, who curated the exhibition. "As Vincent Foster Hopper expounds, numbers were 'fundamental realities, alive with memories and eloquent with meaning.' These artworks tease out numerical patterns and their multiple possible meanings, in relation to gender, literature, and the celestial sphere. 
 
"The exhibition looks back while moving forward: It relies on the collection's strengths in Western medieval Christianity, but points to the future with goals of acquiring works from the global Middle Ages. It also nods to the history of the gallery as a medieval period room at this pivotal time in WCMA's history before the momentous move to a new building," Sandoval said.
 
Cracking the Cosmic Code runs through Dec. 22.
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