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Industry leader LEE — The Lawrence V. Toole Insurance Agency has been selected to be part of a group of independent insurance agencies across the United States participating in the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (IIABA) “Best Practices” Study Group. More than 900 independent agencies were nominated to take part in the annual study, but only 195 agencies nationwide — and only five in Massachusetts — qualified, according to a company news release. To be chosen, agencies had to be the top-performing agencies in their revenue category. The agency was nominated by either an IIABA-affiliated state association or an insurance company and was qualified based on its outstanding customer services, growth, stability and financial management. The Best Practices Study was initiated by the IIABA in 1993 as the foundation for efforts to improve agency performance. The annual survey and study of leading independent insurance agencies documents the business practices of these “best” agencies and urges others to adopt similar practices. The Toole Agency was founded in 1939 and offers personal and commercial insurance products and services from dozens of the nation’s leading insurance companies. Information: John E. Toole, president of the Toole Insurance Agency, 243-0089. Founded in 1896, the IIABA is the nation’s oldest and largest national association of independent insurance agents and brokers, representing a network of more than 300,000 agents, brokers and their employees nationally. Its members are businesses that offer customers a choice of policies from a variety of insurance companies. Independent agents and brokers offer all lines of insurance — property, casualty, life and health — as well as employee benefit plans and retirement products. Information: www.independentagent.com. Nice brochure ADAMS — The International Association of Professional Brochure Distributors has selected the Berkshire Visitors Bureau’s “Culture in the Country” brochure as the fourth-place international winner in the association’s 2004 International Best Brochure Competition. The brochure was submitted for consideration by association members John and Mary Hart of Berkshire Brochure Display in Stockbridge and chosen from a possible field of more than 7,500 brochures. Contest results were announced at the association’s annual meeting in Atlantic City, N.J. Brochures were evaluated through competitive comparisons using specific criteria, including headline quality, construction, content and overall appeal. Judging was performed by industry professionals representing brochure-distribution-and-display companies from across the United States, Canada, Europe and South Africa. The bureau has produced the full color “Culture in the Country” brochure for more than a decade, and it remains one of the organization’s most popular publications, according to William R. Wilson Jr., bureau president and CEO. Wilson and Ray Smith, vice president of marketing and operations, accepted an award plaque from the Harts at the bureau’s Tourism Tuesday luncheon Oct. 26 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Pittsfield. Produced with support from bureau members and the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism, the brochure highlights 45 cultural organizations in the Berkshires, with a photograph and descriptive information on each. It also includes a foldout page with driving distances, a Berkshire County map and individual city and town maps showing the location of each venue. Berkshire Brochure Display distributes “Culture in the Country” through out the region, and the bureau mails the brochures to interested travelers worldwide. Breakfast forum PITTSFIELD — “Minding the Books,” a breakfast forum designed to help businesses succeed, will be held on Friday, Nov. 5, from 7:30 to 9 a.m. at Berkshire Enterprises, One Fenn St., third floor board room. The forum is free, and a continental breakfast will be served. Bryon Sherman, CPA, of Smith Watson and Company, and Jim Rose, registered agent and owner of Dollars and Sense, will lead a discussion of what to include in a chart of accounts and how to read monthly financial statements to improve profits. The forum is designed to help owners and managers of small businesses learn from each other as they share their own experiences trying to understand and manage their business using financial information they are receiving or should be receiving. The goal is to improve financial record-keeping and how to best use the information produced. The monthly breakfast forums are presented by the Berkshire Business Information Center (BBIC), Berkshire Enterprises, the Pittsfield Enterprise Center and the Berkshire Chamber of Commerce. The BBIC is funded by contributions from Greylock Federal Credit Union, Banknorth, Pittsfield Co-op Bank, Berkshire Bank, Legacy Banks and the Chamber. The center is sponsored by the Small Business Administration and is in the offices of Berkshire Enterprises. Bellisimo Dolce will provide pastries. Space is limited, and reservations are required. Reservations or information: Steve Fogel, 448-2755. Pottery & more PITTSFIELD — Bisque, Beads & Beyond, 370 Pecks Road in the Porter Plaza, opened on Oct. 15, offering “an alternative to movies, malls and hanging out.” “We have designed the studio to be a wonderful place for families and friends to gather and create memories together,” said Donna Todd Rivers, owner of Bisque, Beads & Beyond, in a news release. “No creative or artistic ability is required to have fun. We work hard to ensure that “visiting artists relax and enjoy the process of making one-of-a-kind ceramic pieces that they will treasure as much as the time spent creating them.” Customers can pick from hundreds of ready-to-paint pottery pieces, produced on site by Production Manager Alexis Jones, and decorate them. The studio features a private party room that is available for meetings and parties. It features thousands of handcrafted beads in a bead bar where customers can create their own jewelry. The studio is open Sunday from noon to 5; Monday from 11 to 6; Tuesday and Wednesday from 11 to 8; Thursday and Friday from noon to 9 and Saturdays from 10 to 7. Other hours are available for groups and private parties. Bisque, Beads & Beyond is a member of the Contemporary Ceramic Studios Association, and Rivers is a member of the National Potter’s Council. Information: Rivers, 442-9300, or e-mail dtr8957@aol.com. BMA meeting PITTSFIELD — The Pittsfield Berkshire Management Association (BMA) will hold its monthly meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 10, at Mazzeo’s Ristorante, featuring Cindy Shogry-Raimer, regional manager of Central County for Greylock Federal Credit Union. The program, “Protecting Your Business & Yourself from Identity Theft,” will deal with three specific topics: family related fraud, Internet-based fraud and identity theft. True-life examples will be used (names will not be released), and literature will be provided. Raimer, an employee at Greylock for 18 1/2 years, has worked as teller, member service representative, accounting clerk, staff accountant, internal auditor, supervisor of operations and now as a regional manager. She has an associate’s degree in business careers, a bachelor’s degree in accounting and an MBA from the University of Massachusetts. She is a member of the BMA Executive Board. The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. with networking. The dinner and presentation will begin at 6. BMA members and guests can reserve for the meeting by contacting Judy Sheehan, BMA secretary, at 743-7002 or via e-mail at judys@brownpackaginginc.com. The public is invited. The cost for the dinner is $25. Reservations should be made by Friday, Nov. 5. Vacation Expo NORTH ADAMS — A-plus Vacations will hold its fourth annual Vacation Expo at Eagles Hall, 515 Curran Highway, on Saturday, Nov. 13, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Representatives from several cruise lines, tour operators, vacation companies and hotels will be present. “I started this four years ago, so that the area residents could come down and talk first hand with the major players in the vacation market,” said Steve Lescarbeau, owner of A-plus Vacations, in a news release. “This is the perfect time of the year, as the weather begins to change, and people start to think about the long winter ahead. It’s also the time of the year that the tour companies have their new brochures available.” He said many of the companies will offer discounts to those who attend the expo. Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Holland America Cruises, Windstar Cruises, Swan Hellenic Cruises and Seaborn Cruises will be present. Touring and vacation companies will include Apple Vacations, Delta Vacations, Travel Impressions, Air Jamaica Vacations, Club Med, Almond Beach Resorts, USAirways Vacations and Sandals & Beaches. Ramada Bradley Airport will give away a park-sleep-and fly package. Free door prizes will be given out to those who register for A-plus Vacations’ mailing list. Prizes will include $50 and $100 gift certificates, T-shirts, hats and travel bags. A grand prize drawing for two round-trip airline tickets to Cancun or Punta Cana, courtesy of Apple Vacations, will also be given away. Equipe donations RAWSONVILLE, Vt. – To help celebrate its 15th year in business, Equipe Sport has announced that, in addition to its usual Annual Giving Program, it will donate $1,500 more to each of 15 local charities, schools and organizations. "We opened what’s now our flagship location in Rawsonville on Nov. 4, 1989," said Wilbur Rice, Equipe Sport’s owner, in a news release. "Our plan was to sell the best product at a fair price and give excellent customer service. We’ve done well, thanks to our loyal customers, and we thought that instead of having an anniversary party, it would be good to give something back to the people and the communities that have supported us over the years." The fifteen recipients are the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Red Cross, Grace Cottage Hospital, Manchester Health Services, The Mountain School, Northshire Day School, Stratton Mountain School, Komen VT/NH Race for the Cure, United Counseling Service, United Way, Vermont Food Bank, Vermont Humane Society, Vermont Literacy Program and Vermont Special Olympics. "We think this is the right thing to do as a good corporate citizen of the community, " Rice said. "I hope others will consider supporting the charities and organizations of their choice." In addition to the expanded Rawsonville location at the junction of Routes 30 and 100, there are Equipe Sport shops in Bondville, Stratton Village and Mount Snow, Vermont, as well as Mtn. Riders shops, which cater to bike and snowboard enthusiasts, in Rawsonville and on Mount Snow. Equipe can be reached toll free at 800-282-6665, via e-mail at equipe@equipesport.com and online at www.equipesport.com. Winsted openings WINSTED, Conn. — Two more new businesses held ribbon-cutting ceremonies downtown on Saturday, Oct. 30. The Brass Eagle Bed & Breakfast opened at 151 Main St., with four guest rooms and a variety of breakfast selections. Owners Brant and Joanie Cover left the “rat race” of traditional employment to turn their skills to hospitality. JM Framing Plus/JM Sports Cards opened at 454 Main St., offering a selection of sports cards and framing. The facility will also soon offer art supplies. Owners Joe and Joyce Miles said in a news release that they were pleased to be supporting the artistic community in and around Winsted. Winsted is a Connecticut Main Street Community, tucked into the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains. For a virtual tour, visit www.townofwinchester.org. SBA awards BOSTON — The U.S. Small Business Administration is accepting nominations for the Massachusetts Small Business Person of the Year, as well as for other small business owner and special small-business champion awards for 2005. All winners will be recognized at functions in Massachusetts, while the Small Business Person of the Year will also be honored in Washington, D.C., during National Small Business Week next April. Last year's Massachusetts winner, Larry O'Toole, president of Somerville-based Gentle Giant Moving Co. Inc., finished second in SBA's national competition. "This is a great opportunity for employees to recognize and nominate the owner of the business they work for; or for chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, banks and civic organizations to nominate deserving individuals in their communities," said Mark S. Hayward, Massachusetts SBA director, in a news release. "These awards give us a chance to recognize excellence and achievement in business and to honor not only the winner but all the nominees as well, for their contributions to our economy and our society.” The SBA is accepting nominations on behalf of business owners in the following four categories: Small Business Person of the Year, Small Business Exporter of the Year, Young Entrepreneur (under age 30 as of June 1, 2005) and Family-Owned Small Business of the Year. The Family-Owned Business award will be presented in honor of Jeffrey H. Butland, the SBA New England regional administrator who passed away unexpectedly in August. The SBA also recognizes the accomplishments of small business champions — individuals or organizations dedicated to supporting small business. Champion awards include Small Business Journalist, Women in Business, Minority, Veteran, Financial Services and Home-Based Business. Nominations must be submitted to Joan M. Trudell, SBA, 10 Causeway Street, Boston, MA 02222, by Nov. 15. Any person or organization can nominate a small business firm by following the guidelines established by the SBA. Information: Trudell, 617-565-5572 or e-mail joan.trudell@sba.gov.
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Friends of Great Barrington Libraries Holiday Book Sale

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — The Friends of Great Barrington Libraries invite the community to shop their annual Holiday Good-as-New Book Sale, happening now through the end of the year at the Mason Library, 231 Main Street. 
 
With hundreds of curated gently used books to choose from—fiction, nonfiction, children's favorites, gift-quality selections, cookbooks, and more—it's the perfect local stop for holiday gifting.
 
This year's sale is an addition to the Southern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce's Holiday Stroll on this Saturday, Dec. 13, 3–8 PM. Visitors can swing by the Mason Library for early parking, browse the sale until 3:00 PM, then meet Pete the Cat on the front lawn before heading downtown for the Stroll's shopping, music, and festive eats.
 
Can't make the Holiday Stroll? The book sale is open during regular Mason Library hours throughout December.
 
Proceeds support free library programming and events for all ages.
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