DALTON, Mass. -- Over the next year, the Wahconah Regional School District will work on building a new high school.
The community that has been built at Wahconah was on full display Friday afternoon.
The school's annual pep rally put its Unified Sports programs front and center as Wahconah unveiled a banner celebrating its recognition by Special Olympics as a National Unified Champion School.
"This isn't just about Unified athletics," Principal Aaron Robb told the student body gathered in Ed Ladley Gymnasium. "When we applied for this ... they want to know what we're doing in the classrooms. They want to know what we're doing in the hallways. They want to know what we're doing in the community.
"So this isn't just about Unified athletics. This is about Best Buddies. It's about what some of you do on Sundays at Pine Grove Park. It's what some of you do during the winter with swimming at the CRA.
"It isn't just about Wahconah. It's about the entire Central Berkshire community."
Unified Sports, an initiative of Special Olympics, allows students of all abilities to compete side-by-side wearing their school's colors. Special education students join forces with other members of the student body to compete in sports like track and field and basketball.
In Berkshire County, Wahconah was a trailblazer with the first Unified track and field team two years ago. Last year, Mount Greylock started a Unified basketball team and Hoosac Valley added Unified track.
In spring of 2019, Wahconah's Unified track and field team earned a state championship. And just this week, it battled against Mount Greylock in a thrilling basketball game that came down to overtime.
Special Olympics Massachusetts Unified Sports Manager Kathy Lutz was on hand Friday to talk about the community Wahconah has fostered.
"I'm proud and excited to be here with you all today for what Wahconah is doing for inclusion," Lutz said. "You didn't just come in at a baseline level. You didn't do the bare minimum to get by. You guys brought it to the next level.
"And what that means is you have two Unified sports. That means you have more youth inclusive leadership. And what I see out here from the amazing tweets and coverage of your games is you're bringing cheer and cheer tunnels and excitement to your games. The whole school is part of this."
On Friday, it truly was. The Wahconah student body cheered as hard and as loud for its members playing a Unified basketball scrimmage as it possibly could Friday night at the Homecoming football game.
It is the kind of enthusiasm that made Wahconah one of just 16 schools in the commonwealth and 173 schools nationwide to be named a National Unified Champion.
Lutz said she hopes that spirit will help keep the Special Olympics movement to expand.
"We applaud your efforts," she said. "And we know that this work here that you are doing and this experience that you are sharing here today -- that work is not yet done.
"We're going to grow in the Berkshires. You're going to influence your neighbors to join Unified Sports. And you are going to be the Unified generation. We expect your enthusiasm and excitement to lead this movement forward."
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Dalton Seeks Input on Hazard Mitigation Plan
DALTON, Mass. — The town invites the community to participate in a public meeting as it updates its Hazard Mitigation Plan.
The meeting will be held on Friday, March 8 from 10:30 to 11:30 am at Town Hall. Participants can also attend the meeting virtually using this information:
This plan details all the natural hazard risks that may impact the town and includes potential actions to mitigate those risks.
The Town invites residents from both Dalton and regional communities to actively participate in this upcoming public meeting. The town welcomes insights on identifying high-risk hazards, pinpointing vulnerable areas within the town, and providing constructive feedback on effective strategies for mitigating these risks.
The Hazard Mitigation Planning Committee, in partnership with Jamie Caplan Consulting LLC, a Northampton based firm, is developing the plan with a grant from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA).
FEMA approval, coupled with Town adoption, will enable Dalton to access pre- and post-disaster hazard mitigation grant funds.
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