Support iBerkshires, Support Local News on Giving Tuesday

Dear Readers,

iBerkshires.com, like many small local businesses, struggled through the pandemic. We understood that the local businesses that supported us with advertising through the years were having their own problems. And we knew that our readers were dealing with disruptions as well. 

During that time, we did our best to keep everyone updated on the course of the pandemic, its affect on schools and the community, and to provide a place for local business to keep their customers apprised of their hours and policies for free. 

Our goal for the past two decades has been to keep our community informed about the important events happening in the Berkshires. That has meant keeping access to our content as free as possible.

Three years ago, we first asked if our readers would be interested in subscription donations. The response was heartening and now we're asking if you would like to help us again.

There are many great causes out there to help on Giving Tuesday. But if you like us, you can support the work we're doing for as a little as the cost of a cup of coffee a week.

What began 20 years ago as a community billboard has now become the go-to news source for the Berkshires.

How did this happen? In three words: We show up.

We show up at hurricanes, budget meetings, high school games, accidents, fires, community events, parades. We show up at celebrations and tragedies and everything in between. We show up so our readers can learn about the pivotal events that can affect their communities and their lives.

We do it because we feel it is our mission, both as journalists and community members, to make sure citizens know what's happening in their own neighborhoods.

We have done all this without instituting a paywall.

We are a locally owned and operated business that is dependent on advertising to keep our small news team going. But the advertising landscape has changed dramatically over the past decade.

So we're asking how important is local news to you? Would you consider financially supporting the work we're doing to cover your communities?

Here's what you are getting now from iBerkshires:

• Free access daily on our site to local news and sports (no paywall!)
• Free daily and weekly email bulletins to keep you abreast of local news
• Free calendar postings for local events
• Coverage of local meetings from city councils to school committees
• Browse thousands of images of parades, ceremonies, sports, graduations and proms
• Extensive coverage of high school sports
• Breaking news, accidents and fires
• Articles about new businesses, school events, local people
• Coverage of local politics and elections
• Free access to more than 12,000 obituaries

What your contribution will go toward: Retaining and adding staff writers, editors and programmers; purchasing equipment to enhance our ability to cover local news; expanding our coverage areas.

We will continue to strive to be your No. 1 news source for all things in Berkshire County.

You can help sustain local news coverage in a very challenging era for journalism. Numerous newspapers have cut back or closed over the past decade, including the North Adams Transcript and The Advocate, because of the changes in how we consume news. Large holding companies are buying up newspapers and wringing every last cent out of them.

That's not the way iBerkshires operates. You won't find pop-ups, or click-bait headlines about celebrities or skeevy ads that some other sites use to make money. We're all local — including our advertisers, so don't forget to support them, too.

Help keep iBerkshires going and growing. Buy us a cup of coffee.

If you have questions or for more information, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Berkshires Remember First Responders, Military Personnel Lost at 9/11 and Aftermath

By Jack Guerino & Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
02:30PM / Friday, September 11, 2026

North Adams Mayor Jennifer Macksey, with Fire Chief Brent Lefebvre speaks at Friday's memorial. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The county's two cities held memorials on Friday morning to mark the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks. 

Great Barrington was scheduled to hold a dedication of piece of steel from the World Trade Center at 6 p.m.

North Adams held its ceremony in the fire station's side garden starting at exactly 8:46 a.m., the time Flight 11 crashed into the World Trade Center's North Tower.

 

The small square of grass was packed with police officers, firefighters, wire and alarm personnel, dispatchers, and Northern Berkshire EMS employees, and city employees, officials and community members. 

 

After the ceremonial tolling of the bell, an honor guard presented the colors.

 

Mayor Jennifer Macksey said it felt odd welcoming people to a very solemn event.

 

"What happened 25 years ago put a mark on emergency services. It put additional pressure on police, fire, EMS, and dispatchers," Macksey said. "While we remember those who lost their lives during 9/11, and those who ran to help as many as they could during 9/11, we have to pause and appreciate those who continue to serve despite that awful threat that occurred 25 years ago."

 

She said it was a direct attack on the United States and all of its people.

 

"It was a question of our freedoms and our ability to be safe in our communities," the mayor said. "I can say today that here in North Adams, it could happen to us, but I know with the professionalism of our Fire Department, Police Department, EMS, and our dispatch team, we are a better community; we are a safer community than we were 25 years ago."