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Erin Starsja of Berkshire Humane Society reunites Tellus with owner Chris Knowles at the shelter on Monday.
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Tellus goes straight into her carrier, ready to go home and apparently tired of his big adventure.
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This handsome girl was a barn cat until she made the Knowles his family.

Kitty Missing Since September Returns Home for Christmas

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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Tellus had been missing since September when she escaped from the family's temporary home while they were waiting to move into their new house.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Tellus, a feline friend that went missing almost three months ago, was united with her family just in time for Christmas thanks to the work of a compassionate community and the Berkshire Humane Society.

"If there's ever a story to show that you should never stop looking for a lost pet, this is it!" said the shelter's feline manager Erin Starsja, who reunited Tellus and her dad.

Back in September, Alicia and Chris Knowles were renting an Airbnb property while house hunting in Berkshire County. The couple and their two children, ages 3 and 9, were relocating from Maine. The Knowles brought their furry family members with them including two cats named Tellus and Nikka.

During their stay, the two cats got outside and Nikka returned, but Tellus did not. Heartbroken, the family searched everywhere and posted her picture on lost-pet Facebook pages to get the word out, such as Missing Pets of Berkshire County.

Monday, their hopes were answered when a resident posted that they had found Tellus settled under their house in Pittsfield. The Knowles responded to the post and did not get an instant reply, so Chris Knowles went knocking door to door to see if he could locate the person who found their missing kitty.

Upon meeting the patron who posted about Tellus, he was told that the cat was brought to the Berkshire Humane Society and was assumed to be a stray. Knowles said the Humane Society was not open, but he was able to contact shelter staff to be united with the beloved family member.


Tellus was only at the Humane Society for one night.

Knowles said he and his wife didn't want to tell their children about the situation until they were 100 percent sure Tellus had been found. When he arrived at the Humane Society, Tellus hopped right into his cat carrier, which was apparently something that had never happened before.

"I was really great how quickly we were able to go from seeing her picture," Knowles said. "and pretty much 24 hours later we have her here at home now."

Tellus has been a part of the Knowles family for about four years. She started life as a barn cat in Maine and carried her desire for the outdoors into her domesticated life.

This Christmas will be a special one for the Knowles family because they will be celebrating their first holiday in the Berkshires, and most importantly will have Tellus by their side.


Tags: animal shelter,   cats,   good news,   

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North Adams Regional Reopens With Ribbon-Cutting Celebration

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

BHS President and CEO Darlene Rodowicz welcomes the gathering to the celebration of the hospital's reopening 10 years to the day it closed. 
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The joyful celebration on Thursday at North Adams Regional Hospital was a far cry from the scene 10 years ago when protests and tears marked the facility's closing
 
Hospital officials, local leaders, medical staff, residents and elected officials gathered under a tent on the campus to mark the efforts over the past decade to restore NARH and cut the ribbon officially reopening the 136-year-old medical center. 
 
"This hospital under previous ownership closed its doors. It was a day that was full of tears, anger and fear in the Northern Berkshire community about where and how residents would be able to receive what should be a fundamental right for everyone — access to health care," said Darlene Rodowicz, president and CEO of Berkshire Health Systems. 
 
"Today the historic opportunity to enhance the health and wellness of Northern Berkshire community is here. And we've been waiting for this moment for 10 years. It is the key to keeping in line with our strategic plan which is to increase access and support coordinated county wide system of care." 
 
Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, under the BHS umbrella, purchased the campus and affiliated systems when Northern Berkshire Healthcare declared bankruptcy and closed on March 28, 2014. NBH had been beset by falling admissions, reductions in Medicare and Medicaid payments, and investments that had gone sour leaving it more than $30 million in debt. 
 
BMC was able to reopen the ER as an emergency satellite facility and slowly restored and enhanced medical services including outpatient surgery, imaging, dialysis, pharmacy and physician services. 
 
But it would take a slight tweak in the U.S. Health and Human Services' regulations — thank to U.S. Rep. Richie Neal — to bring back inpatient beds and resurrect North Adams Regional Hospital 
 
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