Letter: Thanks for a Successful North Adams Library Book Sale

To the Editor:

On Sept. 16 and 17, Friends of the North Adams Public Library held our annual book and bake sale. This sale not only raised money to improve the library and provide programming for children and adults, but was a great community event for the citizens of North Adams and our neighboring communities.

At this time, we would like to thank the City of North Adams, especially Mike Cirullo and his crew, as well as the Trial Court Community Service program supervised by Shawn Wright for their commitment to transport boxes of books to St. Elizabeth's Center.

Dedicated workers and volunteers cleaned, sorted, packed, moved, set up and dismantled the sale. A special thanks to
those who donated books, shopped and helped at the sale.

Although it is a tremendous yearlong job to coordinate and put this event together, the results speak for themselves. Books of every genre found new homes and our library patrons continue to enjoy ongoing benefits from robust sales.

We look forward to seeing all of you next year and hope you consider donating books starting in the spring of 2023.

Many thanks,

Friends of the North Adams Public Library

Submitted by Stephen Smachetti
Stamford, Vt.

Barrett Holds off Fitch in State House Race

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
11:20PM / Tuesday, September 01, 2026

Candidate Andrew Fitch thanks his supporters for their work on the campaign and promised 'we're going to get him next time.'

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — State Rep. John Barrett III showed Tuesday that it is still his time to serve.

 

In an election night cliffhanger that had supporters of each candidate anxiously checking their cell phone screens two hours after the polls closed, Barrett defeated challenger Andrew Fitch in the First Berkshire Democratic primary for the State House of Representatives.

 

With one town, Peru, missing from the vote total, Fitch called Barrett to concede the race at about 10 p.m. with Barrett holding a 3,597-3,476 lead, a margin of 121 votes.

 

With no Republican on the ballot, Tuesday's winner will be unopposed in the November general election.

 

After receiving well wishes from his supporters at the GOAT Sports Bar and Grill, Barrett talked about his win and shared part of his motivation for seeking another two years in the post he has held since 2017.

 

"When [Fitch] called me up and said that he was going to be running against me and said, 'I want to announce I'm going to run in two weeks,' and then he says, 'This is my time and your time to retire,'" Barrett said. "Well, that's when I decided I was going to run."

 

On Tuesday, Barrett congratulated Fitch, a North Adams city councilor, on a well-run campaign after accepting his concession.