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The Anthony family reunion in 1897, with Susan B. Anthony in black the center. Illustration from 'The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony (Volume 2 of 2)' by Ida Husted Harper, 1898. Another Anthony reunion is planned this month.

Susan B. Anthony Reunion BBQ Kicks Off Centennial Celebrations

By Jack GuerinoiBerkshires Staff
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The Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum.
ADAMS, Mass. — Susan B. Anthony's efforts to secure women the vote will be celebrated Saturday, Aug. 26, with a cookout and presentation on the Town Common from 2 to 5. 
 
The Anthony Family Reunion BBQ kicks off celebrations that will lead up to the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment in 2020. The event is free and the Adams Centennial Suffrage Committee will be selling hot dogs and hamburgers. 
 
"We are really excited about this event because not only is it a kick off to tell everyone what we are planning for the 100th anniversary of suffrage but people will get to sit and have hamburgers and hot dogs with Susan B. Anthony," Colleen Janz, executive director of the Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum, said.    
 
The Adams Centennial Suffrage Committee plans to mark the centennial with a variety of events over the next three years and recognize Anthony, an Adams native. 
 
Janz said abolitionist and suffragist Lucy Stone (portrayed by Judith Black) will be at the cookout with Anthony to meet with residents and members of the Anthony family who will be invited.
 
"Lucy Stone is coming to life to tell about her days as a reformer and Susan B. Anthony will walk around and meet some of her family members and meet with the children of Adams," Janz said. "We want people to realize the importance of Susan B. Anthony and corral some enthusiasm and show the children that someone from Adams can change the world."  
 
Celebration Committee member William Kolis added that the event will also allow the committee to announce some of its plans and a fundraising drive.
 
Kolis said the last Anthony family reunion was held 120 years ago in Adams. Anthony attended at the age of 76.
 
"Her biographers said that her return to this town was one of the happiest moments in her life," Kolis said. "The Plunketts also invited her back to speak at the former pavilion which is an incredible thing because the Plunketts and Susan B. Anthony didn't necessarily see eye to eye."  

Tags: centennial,   Susan B. Anthony,   

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Adams Welcomes New Officer; Appoints Housing Authority Board Member

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

Officer Cole Desroches recently graduated from the Police Academy. 
ADAMS, Mass. — The Selectmen welcomed the newest member of the Adams Police Department, Officer Cole Desroches, on Wednesday evening. 
 
Desroches graduated from the Police Academy on March 22 in the top tier in his class. He's currently in the field training program and assigned to Sgt. Curtis Crane. He attended Hoosac Valley High School and Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. 
 
"He's going to serve and protect the town of Adams very well," said Crane, who with Sgts. Matthew Wright and Gregory Onorato stepped in to introduce the new officer while Chief R. Scott Kelley was on vacation. 
 
"We don't often get an opportunity to kind of talk about, frankly, some of the positive things that are happening in town and one of the many things that I feel are positive with are the Adams Police Department," said Town Administrator Jay Green. "We are right now at full staff. We have a full complement of officers. We have a chief who just resigned a three-year contract. ... We have four very capable sergeants (including Donna Malloy)."
 
The force consists of the chief, the four sergeants, a full-time detective and 11 patrol officers. It also has a new position in Cpl. Joshua Baker who is responsible for training and keeping staff equipped. 
 
"We're on the cutting edge of ensuring that we have proper training in a very changing environment with law enforcement," continued Green. "And we have a nice complement of officers and we have a well-respected detective who handles some very complicated cases."
 
He called out the half-dozen officers who attended the meeting for the work they're doing as well as the K9 unit. 
 
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