Berkshires Beat: Pine Cobble Ski and Skate Sale Set for Nov. 1
Ski and Skate Sale
Pine Cobble School will hold its annual Ski and Skate Sale on Friday, Nov. 1, from 3 to 8 p.m. The sale offers a vast array of the finest in new and gently used winter sports equipment, including both adult and kids sizes. It features an assortment of ski clothing and equipment from top brands: Rossignol, Atomic, Volant, Dynastar, Nordica, Salomon, Lange, Oakley, Marker and many more. Skis (racing & parabolic with current bindings), poles, boots, snowboards, snowshoes, X-country equipment, hockey & figure skates, ski clothing, fleece, hats, gloves, parkas, pants, goggles, winter socks, liners and accessories for adults and children will be available.
Expert skiers, snowboarders, and skaters will be on hand to answer all technical & sizing questions. Major credit cards are accepted, and Pine Cobble community members will be on hand to help customers carry gear to your car.
It’s a great way to make money too: The school will accept gently used winter sports equipment for consignment. Consigning your old equipment is a great way to upgrade your winter sports gear, or to finance new equipment for your growing kids. Consignments for the sale (60 percent to consignor/40 percent to school programs) may be dropped off at Pine Cobble on Tuesday and Wednesday, Oct. 29 and 30, from 3 to 7 p.m. All skis must be parabolic/shaped and must have current bindings.
Donations are always welcome and can be dropped off at the school’s entrance. The event includes a cafe with dinner options and a bake sale. Pine Cobble School is at 163 Gale Road in Williamstown.
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Warm socks
Two local children gave up birthday presents so they could collect warm socks for local veterans.
Natalie Gallagher 7, and Jaxxon Cleveland, 5, presented the socks to Tina Samson, administrative assistant of the Veteran Services office in North Adams City Hall.
Deer hunting permit
Hopkins Memorial Forest in Williamstown will again be open to deer hunting by special permit during the 12-day shotgun season this fall. The 2019 Massachusetts deer shotgun season runs from Dec. 2-14, excluding Sunday, Dec. 8, and a limited number of complimentary permits will be issued to hunters from local communities. Applications can be submitted online or obtained from the Center for Environmental Studies. Regardless of how they are submitted, applications are due back to the Center by Nov. 1. They will be evaluated on a first-come, first-served basis and permits will be issued to selected hunters by mid-November.
Annually, 80 to 100 hunters are awarded permits to hunt in this research and teaching forest owned by Williams College, which closes the forest to other users during the hunt. Hunter surveys from recent seasons indicate that typically four to eight deer are harvested from the area each year. Such reductions in the herd help to minimize browse damage to the forest's understory and herb layer and protect ecological research areas. Due to possible conflicts with other forest uses, no other hunting, aside from the 12-day deer shotgun season, is allowed in Hopkins Forest.
Bruins raffle
The Adams American legion Post 160 is raffling off four Bruins tickets and $200 spending. Raffle tickets are $10 each. The date of the game is Feb. 8, 2020, at 3 p.m. The Bruins are playing Arizona Coyotes.
The drawing is Dec. 24. For more information or tickets, call the American legion at 413-743-1469 or leave a message at 413-281-4857.
Brien Center high school grant
The Brien Center has been awarded a total of $357,480 in state grants that will fund a first-of-its kind program in two Berkshire County high schools that is designed to reduce such risky behaviors as smoking, vaping, drinking and substance misuse that could compromise the students' futures. The local organization applied for the funds through a competitive grant process offered for the first time by the state Department of Public Health, Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, Office of Youth and Young Adult Services. The bureau awarded 18 grants state-wide, with the Brien Center winning two of them.
The grants will fund new and intensive services at Taconic High School in Pittsfield and Drury High School in North Adams – schools that already work closely with the Brien Center's youth programs. The schools are not identified because their students have riskier behaviors. Schools identified for the grants have a strong internal system to identify high risk youth.
To qualify for Brien Center intervention, students must have engaged in a risky behavior that has not yet escalated to addiction. They can be referred by the schools, by the court, by healthcare providers and even by their families. The state grants will fund the program for three years. During that time, the Brien Center and the 16 other grantees across the state will keep close track of the data in hopes that the state will provide permanent funding.
Arts Build investment
Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation has announced a $1 million investment from the Barr Foundation to expand its Arts Build Community initiative, a resident-led effort to increase community engagement through the arts in Berkshire County. Arts Build Community is a partnership of arts and culture nonprofits, schools and students, donors and residents of diverse incomes, ethnicities and ages.
Over the next three years, the initiative will deploy over $600,000 in flexible grant support. The funding will also be used to provide group trainings and leadership development, as well as actively involve changing communities in making and experiencing art in their neighborhoods and schools, and through Berkshire County’s arts and culture institutions.
In 2017, Berkshire Taconic was one of five Massachusetts community foundations to receive $500,000 from Barr to pursue local community engagement strategies. BTCF began by conducting community-based research into barriers to arts participation experienced by lower-income residents and communities of color, including immigrants.
Winter Blitz homes
Student volunteers from Williams College, MCLA, and Bennington College will take part in the 12th annual Winter Blitz day of weatherization on Saturday, Nov. 16. During this day of service, volunteers will travel across northern Berkshire County and parts of southern Vermont to weatherize homes, free of charge to homeowners, for the upcoming winter.
Volunteers from the three colleges will go out in teams of five or six students to provide basic comfort measures such as installing window kits, door sweeps, hot water pipe insulation, energy-efficient light bulbs, and more. All materials are paid for by the Williams College Zilkha Center for Environmental Initiatives, and each group will be led by a trained team leader. Weatherizing these homes will save money for the residents. Weatherization can save homeowners 25 to 40 percent on their heating and cooling bills and contributes to our global mission of reducing energy consumption.
Homeowners who are seeking to lower their energy costs and who cannot weatherize themselves are encouraged to sign up for this free program. If you are interested in having volunteers come to your house to weatherize through the Winter Blitz, please contact the 2019 Winter Blitz Planning Committee by one of three ways by Nov. 1: sign up online, call 413-217-4717 and leave a voicemail, or send an email.
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Prudential Committee on Wednesday signed off on more than $1 million in cost cutting measures for the planned Main Street fire station.
