Richard C. Borges is the new executive director of the Bennington Museum

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Richard C. Borges has begun his tenure as executive director at the Bennington Museum. Borges has broad professional experience in a variety of museums and arts organizations, most recently holding the position of executive director of the Upper Midwest Conservation Association, located at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts in Minnesota. After graduating with a B.S. in Marine Science from the Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, Borges accepted the position of curator of collections at the Marine Historical Association at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut. Two years later, he decided to pursue a career in museum work and he entered the Cooperstown Graduate Program at the State University of New York where he received a M.A. in Museum Studies. His master’s thesis project was the design of a study/storage facility for the collections of the New York State Historical Association; following graduation, Borges became assistant curator for NYSHA. Subsequently, he moved on to become curator at Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. While there, his work focused on the acquisition of a significant tool collection as well as the acquisition and renovation of several buildings. After six years at Strawbery Banke, Borges went to the University of New Hampshire in Durham where he received his Ph.D. in history; his dissertation topic was a demographic analysis of the Canterbury, New Hampshire Shakers. After completion of the UNH program, he accepted a position at the Registrar’s Office at the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D. C., where he was in charge of management of museum collections in transit. He was promoted to another position in the Harpers Ferry, West Virginia office of the Curatorial Services Division of the National Park Service, where he developed collections management and storage plans for the more than 300 National Park Museums across the country. Borges moved back to New England to become the director of the Old York Historical Society in York, Maine. He managed nearly a dozen buildings on twenty-five acres on several sites throughout York, with special emphasis on collections storage and conservation. After eight years, he accepted the position of director at the Upper Midwest Conservation Association, a regional art conservation center located in Minnesota. The center serves over 140 collecting institutions in a five-state region. There he oversaw operations including a successful grant-writing effort that produced a dramatic increase in the operating budget. Missing his native New England and wanting to direct the operations of a museum again, Borges was pleased to accept the position of executive director at the Bennington Museum. Of his appointment, Borges stated: “I am delighted to have the opportunity to return to New England as the director of this wonderful community museum in Bennington. I look forward to working with the museum's staff, trustees and members, and the people of Bennington and surrounding towns as we develop a long-range strategic plan for our future. Bennington is a community with a rich historical past, one that deserves to be preserved, interpreted and enjoyed by those who live and visit here.”
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Downed Line Slows North Adams Traffic, Closes Restaurant

Staff Reports

Wire & Alarm Inspector Mitchell Meranti works to disconnect the line to get it out of the roadway. 
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A tractor-trailer truck took down an electrical line on State Street, closing the road for an hour and Grazie for several days. 
 
The incident occurred just past 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday as the daily rush hour was about to start. Northbound traffic was detoured at Hodges Cross Road and southbound traffic was allowed through, using the driveway of Automan Sam to get around the line. 
 
The line came down across both lanes until Wire and Alarm Inspector Mitchell Meranti was able to disconnect it from the pole outside Automan Sam's.
 
The automotive accessories store and the restaurant both lost power, but Grazie owner Matt Tatro described the damage as a "face punch" on Facebook. 
 
The line was pulled off the restaurant taking out the power, a new mini split air conditioning unit and sign. 
 
"We will need a couple days (hopefully) to get back in game day form.  We apologize that we will be closed tomorrow and Thursday to hopefully get the place back in shape. No power, internet, etc. All wires sheared off," the restaurant posted on its Facebook page. 
 
The restaurant's tentative reopening is Friday. 
 
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