A North Adams man is the latest person to talk about his alleged molestation by a catholic priest.
33-year-old Paul Babeu says he was molested by the Reverend Richard Lavigne years before the Diocese of Springfield removed the priest from his duties. The Reverend Lavigne reportedly served at St. Francis of Assisi in North Adams.
Babeu said church officials were told that Lavigne molested him between the ages of 13 and 15 in the mid-1980's. Lavigne was arrested in 1991 and was eventually sentenced to a combination of probation and psychiatric evaluation and agreed not to serve as a priest again.
Babeu is a former Berkshire County Commissioner and former North Adams City Councilor.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.
Your Comments
iBerkshires.com welcomes critical, respectful dialogue. Name-calling, personal attacks, libel, slander or foul language is not allowed. All comments are reviewed before posting and will be deleted or edited as necessary.
No Comments
North Adams Shop Offers New & Vintage Games to Play
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
The shop is located in the corner of the Oasis Plaza, next to the ice cream shop.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A new card shop is bringing old and new games and trades to Oasis Plaza.
Renzi Retro and Repair owner Christian Richardson opened last Friday at 150 American Legion Drive, right next to the ice cream shop.
Richardson grew up collecting and playing different types of video games. He was recently selling games and cards on Facebook before deciding to find a space last month.
"I really just liked video games. I play a lot of video games, and I just started collecting them. And then one day, I was like, Oh, why don't we try seeing if I can make some money doing it?" he said.
His shop is filled with older game consoles, Pokémon cards, sports cards, and video games new and old. He hopes to give people a better deal than other places.
"We're just trying to be different. We're trying to give people better prices than they're given other places. Since prices have got kind of crazy and it's hard to live nowadays, so we're trying to make it a little bit easier," Richardson said.
His shop will also take in items like consoles, cards, and other game accessories for trades or cash back.
"We pretty much take anything in, from cards to retro to modern games to consoles, accessories," he said.
He plans to get televisions and host tournaments on Sundays in the future.
"Tournaments are going to be a big thing that we're going to be working towards. We're also be working on getting TVs set up for certain days so people want to come sit down," he said.
Richardson wants his shop to be a space for people to gather and have fun.
"I just want to get more people off the streets. I mean, the area is not always the best, and people get involved in the wrong things around here," he said. "I just want to be able to bring people in at a younger age and give them a place to be able to play cards, or at some point, we're going to get TVs up so they can play video games. And I just want not everybody to be stuck on the streets and give them something to do in the community."
He hopes to one day expand and create a room dedicated to game play.
"I really want to get a whole store set up just for people to be able to come and play video games and and that's it not to buy things, but more of a place with a membership where you come and you play games, or you you do tournaments all day," he said.
His store is open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Earlier this year, Williams College offered to donate used kitchen equipment that is no longer needed because of an upcoming renovation. That equipment is scheduled for delivery in May.
click for more
The Hoosac Valley Hurricanes boys basketball team used a fast start to claim the Western Massachusetts Class D title with a 62-47 win over the Mount Everett Eagles. click for more