NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Just two weeks ago, Mayor Richard Alcombright had sent an email to his representative asking for a House resolution for an event.
On Monday, state Rep. Gailanne Cariddi's aide brought it to his office.
It might seem an everyday thing, but what many didn't know was that Cariddi had taken a sudden turn for the worse in her battle against cancer in these last weeks. She died Saturday at age 63 at Massachusetts General Hospital.
But making sure that mundane task was completed showed the type of person she was, Alcombright said at her wake on Wednesday night. She was continuing to do the work for her constituents even as she was fighting the illness that claimed her life.
"She was for the people," he said. "She didn't have any 'special interests.'"
The most frequent comment was that the North Berkshire community had a large hole in it now that would be difficult to fill.
"She literally gave her life for everybody else. Her family, her business, her community, the city and commonwealth," said Margaret Ware, former Williamstown selectman. "She was amazing person."
Jocye Wrend and Diane Parsons, who both served on the City Council with Cariddi, said she was always on top of things, always working.
Parsons said even in her last week they were talking about a bill she was working on, and that Speaker Robert DeLeo said she was still sending him information. "She was a rare breed," she said. "Politics used to be fun and Gail and I were at it for a long time and it was still fun when we were doing it."
"She was so damned smart, she was so intelligent, she knew what she wanted and went and she got it," said Wrend, who described her as a mentor.
Ware, who's been involved in local and Democratic state politics, said there weren't and still aren't many women in politics here.
"So we were all friends and we all supported one another," she said.
She was also fun loving, they said, with Parsons recalling a trip to Cape Cod to help clear out an unusual amount of snow at Cariddi's house there.
"My best memory of her is when we cross country skied on the beach in Harwichport in January," she laughed.
"I've never forget the fun we had when she wast still around," Wrend said. "I could tell you stories ... but I won't."
For four hours on Wednesday evening, family, friends, constituents and local officials passed by the photos of Cariddi in happier times that were displayed inside St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church. They signed the books and read the cards with the bouquets of flowers from the people she'd touched and the many, many agencies and organizations she'd helped over her long career in public service. And they shared their memories.
"The outpouring has been tremendous," her sister, Antoinette Cariddi, said.
An honor guard of state police officers stood at the doors and by the urn containing Cariddi's cremains at the altar. Across the from the church on a closed section of Marshall Street, the ladder trucks from North Adams and Adams flew a giant American flag under breezy skies.
The members of the City Council on which Cariddi had served for more than 20 years, came in together to pay respects. They were followed not long after by a long line of uniformed police officers, firefighters and ambulance personnel from the city and surrounding communities.
In Boston, the House started Wednesday's session with memories about their colleague, whose vacant desk held memorial flowers. According to State House News Service, DeLeo had visited her in the hospital on Friday to tell her how much she was loved and would be missed.
Cariddi's funeral will be Thursday at 11 a.m. from St. Elizabeth's.
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Cost, Access to NBCTC High Among Concerns North Berkshire Residents
By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
Adams Select Chair Christine Hoyt, NBCTC Executive Director David Fabiano and William Solomon, the attorney representing the four communities, talk after the session.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Public access channels should be supported and made more available to the public — and not be subject to a charge.
More than three dozen community members in-person and online attended the public hearing Wednesday on public access and service from Spectrum/Charter Communications. The session at City Hall was held for residents in Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg and North Adams to express their concerns to Spectrum ahead of another 10-year contract that starts in October.
Listening via Zoom but not speaking was Jennifer Young, director state government affairs at Charter.
One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly.
"I don't know if everybody else feels the same way but they have a monopoly," said Clarksburg resident David Emery. "They control everything we do because there's nobody else to go to. You're stuck with with them."
Public access television, like the 30-year-old Northern Berkshire Community Television, is funded by cable television companies through franchise fees, member fees, grants and contributions.
Spectrum is the only cable provider in the region and while residents can shift to satellite providers or streaming, Northern Berkshire Community Television is not available on those alternatives and they may not be easy for some to navigate. For instance, the Spectrum app is available on smart televisions but it doesn't include PEG, the public, educational and governmental channels provided by NBCTC.
One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly.
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