Staff from BFAIR, Humane Society and Elder Services with participants in BFAIR's Community-Based Day Services Program celebrate the launch of the pet food assistance program on Tuesday.
Elder Services' Kayla Brown-Wood, left, and a volunteer from the BFAIR day program deliver pet food to Carol Lecours, who is a member of the Meals on Wheels program.
Laura Baran of BFAIR, left, Nicole McKeen of Berkshire Humane and Elder Services' Kayla Brown-Wood with a load of dog and cat food to be delivered as part of the Meals on Wheels program.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A new component to the Meals on Wheels program is keeping pets and their owners together.
A collaboration between Berkshire Humane Society, Elder Services of Berkshire County, and Berkshire Family & Individual Resources (BFAIR) has established a pet assistance program for Meals on Wheels members.
Elder Services has been providing meals in Berkshire County since 1975 and, since 1994, has operated a kitchen on Route 7 in Lanesborough where the meals are prepared
Although the Tuesday delivery only consisted of Dalton and Pittsfield members it is open to all Meals on Wheels members in Berkshire County, including Lanesborough, Richmond, North Adams and Lee, Elder Services Community Services Director Kayla Brown-Wood said.
There are also several other towns in Berkshire County they hope to expand into, Brown-Wood said. To be eligible for this program you have to be part of the Meals On Wheels program.
Meals are either delivered to the recipient's home, hence the name Meals on Wheels, or can be received at one of Elder Services' Nutrition Program Senior Dining Centers. More information here.
The pet assistance program delivers pet food to seniors who are unable to go to the store to purchase food or visit the Berkshire Humane Society to utilize its Pet Food Bank.
With price increases for groceries, some pet owners are struggling to feed their beloved animals so are sometimes forced to make sacrifices whether it's surrendering their dog or foraging their own food to give to their animal, pet assistance program leaders said.
"I think most people would feed their pets before they feed themselves. So, this helps minimize that from happening," Brown-Wood said.
"It's just a really great collaboration and the idea is to be able to help those people that might not have the means to come here and visit the emergency pet food bank at Berkshire Humane Society. So, it's just another way to help bridge that gap and that need in the community."
Animals are an important part of the household as they provide comfort and aid in mental well-being, Nicole McKeen, Berkshire Humane's director of development and marketing, said.
"All of us are here probably because we have an affinity for our animals in our households and you just don't want to lose those members. We know that dogs, cats, and other pets in our lives are warming and also are really good for our overall mental well being," McKeen said.
"Mental health is a huge issue and keeping your pet in your home will only help support that in a positive manner. So, that's why I think it's really important we make sure that we provide food for anybody that might be struggling or have that insecurity so they can keep those pets in the home."
Every first Tuesday of the month BFAIR's Community-Based Day Services Program participants will load and deliver pet food to seniors.
The animals in our lives are family and should be taken care of along with the owners, the program's Senior Director Laura Baran said, "And we're happy to be a part of it."
The BFAIR program provides individuals with disabilities work opportunities in an effort to foster community engagement. More information here.
"[The pet assistance program] is just a nice opportunity for us. I know the individuals are very, very excited about participating in it," Baran said.
"We're so thrilled to be partnering with Elder Services and the Berkshire Humane Society and providing the service for the seniors in our community to be able to keep their pets at home."
Deliveries on Tuesday were made to 29 Meals on Wheels members and 43 pets. The Humane Society donated 18 bags of 18 1/2 pound dog food, 29 18-pound bags of cat food, and a case of cat canned food.
The Meals on Wheels program and now the pet assistance initiative has been a "wonderful gift," Carol Lecours, Meals on Wheels and pet assistance program member, said.
"It's wonderful. With the cost of groceries and things now every little bit helps and it's expensive but I appreciate it so much. It's a wonderful gift," Lecours said.
CBDS program participants Hannah and Emilee Eichorn described the pet delivery service as a great initiative and felt grateful to be part of it.
"I feel it's important to the community because we get to help out others," Emilee Eichorn said.
The Berkshire Humane Society opened its Pet Food Bank in 1987 when it entered into agreement with Hill's Science Diet to feed that dog food brand to its shelter dogs. The Food Bank also has other donated brands that are given to community members in need.
"If there's people out there having temporary issues, that's what the food bank is for. They can come to the shelter rather than surrender their pet. Obviously, it keeps pets at home, pet retention. You know, that's really what we've been focused on going back to probably 1987," the shelter's Executive Director John Perreault said.
Something that has been sitting in Perreault's mind is how to improve access to this service to seniors who are unable to visit the shelter because of mobility issues.
"I got thinking about the Meals on Wheels program where we have people that are great people that are going into people's homes, not only providing them with the meals, but some companionship as well," Perreault said.
In January, Perreault reached out to Elder Services' Client Services Director Maureen Tuggey, who gathered the team to start planning.
"We're really excited about this, keeping pets in homes and collaborating with not only the Elder Services and Meals on Wheels, but also BFAIR who gives us the drivers and the volunteers to make this happen," Perreault said.
"So I always say in a lot of my talks and speeches, that it takes a village to make a difference and the great thing about the Berkshires is we're pretty isolated and we have a lot of people that do collaborative work together and it shows that we can make a difference."
This initiative is just one example of the collaboration within the Berkshire County community, he said.
"Berkshire Humane Society reached out to Elder Services, who has a connection to BFAIR, and collectively those three organizations are all working together to keep animals in some homes that are well deserved for sure," Perreault said.
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With Taxes Paid, Berkshire Mall Owners Plan for Senior Housing
By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
The majority of the mall will have to be demolished as the 40-year-old big box stores are not suitable because of space and condition.
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The Berkshire Mall owners have paid their town taxes and plan to transform the property into more than 400 units of housing.
JMJ Holdings is entering into the design process for a nine-figure overhaul of the shuttered mall property into 420 to 450 units of senior housing. Town Administrator Gina Dario confirmed that the full fiscal year 2025 tax balance, totaling $293,380, has been paid.
"It's basically an apartment building that's catered towards older populations, people generally in their mid-60s, and the amenities on site really cater to that lifestyle. It's kind of all comprising," Timothy Grogan of the Housing Development Corp. explained, adding that there will also be assisted living, memory care, independent living, and senior affordable housing.
Grogan was hired as a consultant to guide a feasibility study for the property. He said there haven't been recent conversations with the town "because we're really hashing it out, we want to come to them with a fully thought-out proposal in terms of the amount of supportable units."
"I think it would be a huge boon to Berkshire County, generally, in a way that the mall used to be," he said. "We're really excited about it. We're moving forward with full steam ahead."
The feasibility study determined that there could be up to 600 units, but the project team imagines a more conservative amount between 420 and 450 units.
It is being scoped as a Low Income Housing Tax Credit project, which means that at least 20 percent of the units would need to be reserved for people at/or below 50 percent of the area median income or at least 40 percent of the units would need to made affordable for persons with incomes at/or below 60 percent of the area median income.
Grogan said conversations have been scheduled with the offices of Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and state Secretary of Housing Ed Augustus.
"Given the political importance of this property and Governor Healey's emphasis on gateway cities, we don't expect that to be such a long lead item. That being said, this is envisioned to be a phased project where we have the assisted living, active adult and independent living kind of in one bucket with affordable housing in another one," he said.
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