North Adams' UNO Program Celebrates 25 Years
 UNO founder Shirley Davis poses with NBCC's new Executive Director Adam Hinds, left, and former President Steven Green. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The United Neighborhood Organization celebrated its 25 anniversary with fond memories and visions for the future.
Residents and Northern Berkshire Community Coalition members gathered Thursday evening at the newly built UNO Center on River Street to mark the anniversary of UNO, the oldest neighborhood organization in the Northern Berkshires.
Founder Shirley Davis recalled how 60 residents met in 1990 at the Salvation Army to discuss the decline of their neighborhood, which was suffering from things such as vandalism and drug use.
"Enough was enough, so we called the meeting with everybody and everything because nobody was doing anything," Davis said. "They called us the vigilantes; we were tough."
She said the first big event the organization held was a Halloween party.
"I just prayed kids would come and the best think I ever saw was on the foot of the hill where I live looking up the hill and kids were coming in piles from all over the city because they heard about the party," she said.
She said UNO continued its work and hosted cleanup days, field days, potlucks, holiday parties, and even built a playground. UNO was able to revitalize the neighborhood, which has not seen a broken window in 20 years.
The founder and longtime leader of the coalition, Alan Bashevkin, said Davis is the neighborhood grandmother.
"She is like the grandmother of this neighborhood," he said. "She knows the kids and they know her. They trust her and if her name is on it, it is going to be OK."
Davis pointed out all her "kids" as they filed into the UNO Center and said the new building allows the organization to do even more. She said they have coffee hours and cooking classes and plan to expand as much as they can.
Northern Berkshire Neighbors Program Director Annie Rodgers said UNO got NBCC involved and started a whole push toward closer communities and neighborhood organizations.
"It was so needed and was doing really wonderful things," Rodgers said. "So NBCC realized there needs to be neighborhood development and in order to have a healthy community you need to take a look at neighborhoods,"
Rodgers said it is important to celebrate UNO because of all the great things it has done.
"I think it is rare that any organization can 25 years, let alone one that is basically volunteer run," she said. "They have done a lot in 25 years and when things got hard the neighbors just came together even more."
Davis agreed and said she fondly looks back on the past 25 years and plans to only gain momentum. She said everyone is part of UNO if they want to be.
"You walk into UNO, you are part of UNO," she said.
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