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From left, Veterans Agent Stephen Roy, Big Y employees Maggie D'Amour and Nikki Smith, and veterans assistant Tina Samson show some of the goods Big Y donated to a new food pantry for veterans in North Adams City Hall.

North Adams Veterans Services Now Offering City Hall Food Pantry

By Rebecca DravisiBerkshires Staff
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'Scratch and dent' cans of fruit are among the donated items in the food pantry.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The jobs of local Veterans Agent Stephen Roy and his assistant, Tina Samson, just got a little bigger.

Lucky for them, so has the generosity of the Northern Berkshire community.

The Veterans Services office, located in North Adams City Hall, had been serving veterans in the towns of Williamstown, Adams, Clarksburg, Florida and Savoy in addition to vets living in the city itself. On March 1, the office's reach expanded to include the towns of Dalton, Lanesborough and Cheshire. That is why it has been a blessing for the office to be able to expand its cache of free items for the 180 to 200 veterans it now serves monthly, including a new endeavor of providing a food pantry led by donations from Big Y supermarkets in North Adams and Pittsfield.

"It's helped a lot of people," Roy said.

On Friday, Roy and Samson welcomed Maggie D'Amour, the store director of the North Adams Big Y, as well as Big Y receiver Nikki Smith over to City Hall to tour the first-floor space currently housing not only the food donations but coats and clothing donated by other businesses, including Ocean State Job Lots and Olympia Sports.

"The community has been a great big help to the veterans," Samson said.

Samson said volunteers go to the two Big Y markets monthly and pick up at least 10 boxes of "scratch and dent" food items like chips, canned fruit and pasta as well as "top-shelf" items like organic sauces and dressings. She then tries to have the food pantry open when veterans come to pick up their checks on the 15th of the month.



"The response has been really good," said Samson, who said she then donates any leftover food to the Louison House homeless shelter in North Adams. "It just helps out everybody in the community. It does not go to waste."

D'Amour, a member of the family that owns the Big Y chains, said she is happy to help the effort, not only to help the community but also because her brother is a Marine veteran.

"We're very happy to be part of helping the veterans," she said. "It makes me proud."

Samson hopes to expand the food pantry by soliciting donations from other local stores but is waiting to find a permanent home for the items: City Hall offices are consolidating to the first floor of the current building to make room for North Adams Public Schools offices on the second floor, leaving her storage space in jeopardy. She said she is working with North Adams Mayor Tom Bernard to find a new space to keep the operation going.

"We'll definitely find a space," she said.


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Hoosic River Revival to Host Hybrid Fundraiser and Community Events

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Hoosic River Revival is scheduled to host a hybrid internet and event fundraiser from June 9 to June 21, 2025, which includes an online silent auction and an in-person walk and gathering at MASS MoCA.
 
The online "Confluence Of Two" Silent-Auction Fundraiser will run from June 9 to June 20 at 12 p.m. This auction provides an opportunity to bid on one-on-one time with various Berkshires-celebrated VIPs, with proceeds benefiting the non-profit Hoosic River Revival. The VIP experiences offer winning bidders the chance to walk up to one mile with a community leader as they lead registered walkers in the "Hoosic River Run" on the morning of June 21.
 
The "Hoosic River Run" is a mile walk and timed 5k race, hosted by Hoosic River Revival and the City of North Adams. The event begins and ends at MASS MoCA, following a route along a section of the Hoosic River that is lined with flood chutes. For those who do not win auction lots, in-person registration to walk or run will be available on June 21, starting at 7 a.m.
 
At 7 a.m. on June 21, the "Confluence Of Two" meetup and photo opportunity will take place at MASS MoCA Courtyard A. Winning bidders and their VIP walking partners will be introduced by Hoosic River Revival. Participants will receive Hoosic River Run T-shirts and swag bags, and each duo will be photographed for publication.
 
Also at 7 a.m., conceptual designs for a new architectural riverwalk will be premiered. These designs, recently commissioned by Hoosic River Revival, in collaboration with the City of North Adams and internationally-acclaimed architecture firm Group Work, aim to transform the river into a central asset for the city. The visualized concepts are intended to enhance flood safety, ecology, infrastructure for recreation, and riverside accessibility for residents and visitors. They include the option for a riverwalk loop that could connect diverse neighborhoods and potentially link to the Natural Bridge State Park, expanding on the vision of Hoosic River Revival Founder Judy Grinnell since 2008.
 
The one-mile walk will commence at 8 a.m., following the same route as the timed race. Participants will traverse the MASS MoCA campus, pass the Little Hoosac Tunnel, and circle back at Western Gateway Heritage State Park. At the park, students from the Berkshires' Academy for Advanced Musical Studies (BAAMS), accompanied by founding musician Richard Boulger, faculty, and alumni, will premiere an original song titled "The Wise Old Hoosic," dedicated to the Hoosic River.
 
Following the outdoor gatherings and race awards presentation at Courtyard A, MASS MoCA Community Day will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., offering additional special events. Visitors can view the industrial-engineering perspective of the "Confluence Of Two" branches of the Hoosic River from The Prow balcony in Building 6, which was redesigned by Bruner/Cott Architects.
 
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