Locals enter historic gay-marriage fray

By Linda CarmanPrint Story | Email Story
NORTH ADAMS — When Stephen D. Collingsworth Jr. and Donny Riehl say their marriage vows on May 28 in Williamstown, it will be, they said, a “very small, very private” ceremony. That will be in marked contrast to their visit to City Clerk Marilyn Gomeau’s office Monday to file their marriage intentions, an event that attracted a horde of media drawn by its groundbreaking nature. Monday was the first day gay and lesbian couples in Massachusetts could file intentions to wed, and, as Collingsworth had promised in November when the state’s Supreme Judicial Court ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry, he and Riehl were first in line at Gomeau’s office. “We’re doing the same thing our parents did, but they didn’t have the cameras,” Collingsworth quipped, speaking in front of a battery of television and other cameras. Asked if they thought they were striking a blow for same sex couples, he responded, “We’re just striking a blow for ourselves.” In Williamstown, Town Clerk Mary C. Kennedy found one couple waiting for her when she opened her office at 8:30 a.m., and another couple soon followed. The first couple, Steven Dansky and Barry Safran of Canaan, N.Y., who obtained a waiver of the three-day waiting period at Northern Berkshire District Court at a cost of $195, was married later that morning on the lawn of the municipal building by Kennedy, who is a justice of the peace, on the Town Hall lawn. Showtime television network recorded the ceremony. Collingsworth and Riehl’s filing drew teams of reporters and cameramen from three television stations, local newspapers and the local radio station, similar to media attention throughout the state, particularly in the Boston area and in Provincetown, known for its large gay population. Collingsworth and Riehl, who have been together seven years, said they plan to combine last names and both be known as Riehl Collingsworth. Shared last names could be crucial if one member of the couple had to be hospitalized in another state that does not recognize gay marriages, they said. Collingsworth is assistant director and “queer life coordinator” of Williams College’s multicultural center; Riehl is a chef at Craneville Place in Dalton. On June 30, 2003, they were joined in a civil union in Pownal, Vt., and were the first gay couple to announce their union in local newspapers. “For us, it’s the legal component,” said Collingsworth, adding that he and his partner hope to adopt children in the future. “That whole legal side wasn’t available to us,” said Riehl. The legalization of same-sex marriage has “happened very quickly,” Collingsworth said, recalling that Hawaii married same-sex couples in 1993 until it was ordered through a state constitutional amendment to stop doing so. “The [SJC] decision took me by surprise,” he said. “In college, when I was asked if I ever expected this, I’d say ‘Nah.’ I didn’t expect to see it in my lifetime.” He stressed that for gays, the right to marry is a civil-rights issue. “Nothing says this is a civil-rights issue as much as the governor [Mitt Romney] using a 1913 law aimed at combating interracial marriage” [to block out-of-state couples from marrying in Massachusetts], he said. “Homophobia is driving this. Everything else is just an excuse.” Despite his belief that gay marriage is a right, he said, “I still can’t quite believe it’s going to happen. We’re very thrilled. I’ve always been hesitant about the patriarchal aspect of marriage, but its rights and privileges should be available to everyone, and when it comes right down to it, I want to protect my partner.” He said he also believed gay couples’ relationships should be on a par with those of heterosexual. “We want our love to be as respected as anyone’s.” He and Riehl said they have met many well-wishers in Northern Berkshire. Noting that the forms for filing marriage intentions have changed to reflect the new reality, referring to Party A and Party B rather than to husband and wife, Riehl said to Collingsworth, “You can be Party A. I don’t care.” A Williamstown couple was on hand bright and early Monday at Town Clerk Kennedy’s office to file their intentions. Kim Rozell and Lucinda Edmonds have been together for 24 years, and, in an interview last week, talked about their reasons for wanting to marry, which they plan to do today, [Thursday, May 20] with Kennedy officiating, in a quiet, private ceremony. “We started to think about it last fall, when the SJC ruling came down,” Edmonds said. “Our reasons are emotional, legal and political – and we love each other very much. So emotionally, it will be very satisfying.” The legal benefits of marriage will be restricted to state benefits. Still out of reach are federal benefits, such as survivors’ rights for social security. “Politically, marriage is a civil institution, and Kim and I feel very strongly about equal rights,” Edmonds said. “We’re not second-class citizens. People will see that when gays marry, the world does not fall apart.” Edmonds and Rozell are well aware that they will be making a political statement as well as a personal one, but Rozell, said, “It is our right.” They both agreed that they have felt, over the years, that they were being denied an important aspect to their relationship. “It mattered more before companies began offering domestic-partner benefits,” Edmonds said. “But it’s not ‘married.’ Like the SJC said [when it was asked if civil unions would do instead of marriage], ‘separate does not necessarily mean equal.’” The couple operates a long established business and is active in town organizations. They spoke at the graciously decorated and serenely landscaped Williamstown Bed & Breakfast, which they have operated on Cold Spring Road since moving here from Boston 15 years ago. In Boston, Rozell, a navy junior born in California, was a corporate meeting planner for a financial services company, and Edmonds, who is from Michigan, was vice president of communications for an environmental services company. In addition to running their business, they have long been active in civic organizations; Rozell serves as a library trustee. “When working in the corporate world, it would have been nice to have benefits,” she said. “But in 24 years, society’s acceptance has increased dramatically.” “Emotionally, it’s very important to us. It goes way beyond us,” added Edmonds. “We’ve never felt deprived [by not being married]. It was just irritating.” “Our doctors know, our friends know, our families know. Everything is in place,” said Rozell. “But it’s important to do it. We’re very excited. It seems like an extraordinarily logical progression, but I never thought I’d see it in my lifetime.” The two couples were among hundreds who filed intentions Monday, as Massachusetts became the first state to allow same-sex couples to marry. Kennedy said four couples filed intentions by the end of Monday. City Clerk’s Gomeau said only one other couple besides Collingsworth and Riehl filed intentions Monday. Present during the day was Justice of the Peace Maryanne Santelli, who said she is scheduled to perform five same-sex marriages this weekend. One couple, Santelli said, has been together for 45 years.
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Lanesborough Fifth-Graders Win Snowplow Name Contest

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — One of the snowplows for Highway District 1 has a new name: "The Blizzard Boss."
 
The name comes from teacher Gina Wagner's fifth-grade class at Lanesborough Elementary School. 
 
The state Department of Transportation announced the winners of the fourth annual "Name A Snowplow" contest on Monday. 
 
The department received entries from public elementary and middle school classrooms across the commonwealth to name the 12 MassDOT snowplows that will be in service during the 2025/2026 winter season. 
 
The purpose of the contest is to celebrate the snow and ice season and to recognize the hard work and dedication shown by public works employees and contractors during winter operations. 
 
"Thank you to all of the students who participated. Your creativity allows us to highlight to all, the importance of the work performed by our workforce," said  interim MassDOT Secretary Phil Eng.  
 
"Our workforce takes pride as they clear snow and ice, keeping our roads safe during adverse weather events for all that need to travel. ?To our contest winners and participants, know that you have added some fun to the serious take of operating plows. ?I'm proud of the skill and dedication from our crews and thank the public of the shared responsibility to slow down, give plows space and put safety first every time there is a winter weather event."
 
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