Huge boxes of squash arrive at the Visitors Center for distribution.
ADAMS, Mass. — Rain or shine, volunteers have continued to distribute food from the mobile food bank throughout the pandemic.
Not even a rainy day can stop the mobile food bank and Tuesday volunteers were out in full force making hundreds of deliveries.
"You can see that people need this," volunteer Karen Daigle said. "There is a joy to helping people and being part of this community. It is important to give back."
The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts' Mobile Food Bank visits the Adams Council on Aging every second and fourth Tuesday of the month. The program reaches underserved populations throughout Western Massachusetts who don't have access to healthy foods.
Before COVID-19, people would line up, grab a bag of food, and be off but now the operation is far more complex. Cars park in the Visitors Center's parking lot or the Waverly Mill parking lot and a volunteer delivers a bag of food.
"We do both parking lots," volunteer Greg Lucia said. "We have crews. One does this parking lot and one goes the other way. When that empties out we all come up here and try to finish it off."
Council on Aging Director Erica Girgenti said this limits contact and the congregation of large crowds but takes a bit more manpower. She said before the pandemic, only a group of 10 or so volunteers would be needed. Now they need about 30.
Girgenti said the Council on Aging has about 40 volunteers on file and, on Tuesday, 35 were on-site in rain gear ready to deliver food to the hundred or so cars in the queue.
"COVID-19 changed the way we did things," she said. "... It was overwhelming we had to turn down some volunteers because we can't have so many people that we are on top of each other."
In the past, the COA has served more than 350 households on a single day, and Girgenti said Tuesday looked to be ramping up quickly by 10 a.m.
Daigle lauded the organization of the food drop off and noted that it not only ran like a well-oiled machine but was safe.
Lucia agreed and said Adams has a history of stepping up to help the community.
"There are so many people out of work right now, and the little bit of food we do give does help," he said. "Adams has always been a great community for helping. You just put the word out and people step right up."
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Suspect in High-Speed Adams Chase Arrested
ADAMS, Mass. — A suspect test-driving a pickup truck who led police on a wild high-speed chase on Tuesday was arrested in Adams early Wednesday morning.
The incident began at about 11:41 a.m. on Tuesday when an officer conducted a motor vehicle stop on Howland Avenue. During the stop, the operator was positively identified and was determined to have a suspended license. When ordered out of the vehicle, he fled, said police, leading law enforcement on a multijurisdictional pursuit toward the town of Florida.
A number of people posted about seeing the black pickup truck enter the Walmart parking lot; a video shows the driver surrounded by cruisers as they try to exit the parking lot at the light. Witnesses say the pickup backed into cruiser to get around the block.
The driver headed up West Shaft Road and toward Florida with Adams and North Adams Police in pursuit. The pursuit was called off at the city line.
The suspect was able to elude police but his vehicle was found abandoned in a remote location in the Savoy State Forest. It was later learned this vehicle was being test driven from a local auto dealer. With the assistance of the State Police Airwing, K9 Unit and drone unit, officers canvased the wilderness for the suspect but were unsuccessful.
Officers received information at about 3:14 a.m. on Wednesday that the suspect was in the area of Glen Street. Police say he fled on foot as officers secured a perimeter.
K9 Adam and his handler Sgt. Curtis Crane began an area search. K9 Adam was able to locate the suspect hiding in a back yard, but the suspect again ran — straight into officers on the perimeter who took him into custody.
The suspect faces a litany of charges pending from the previous day's encounter as well as the early morning contact with officers. Additional charges are pending as well from North Adams Police Department and their involvement in the apprehension.
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