Berkshire Money Management Donates To Drive-Through Food Distribution For Families

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DALTON, Mass. — Berkshire Money Money Management donates more than $11,000 to drive-through food distribution for local families, MLK day of service

Berkshire Money Management (BMM) has teamed up with Berkshire Bounty, Berkshire United Way (BUW), Northern Berkshire United Way and Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires to assemble and distribute 1,000 bags of nutritious canned and packaged food throughout Berkshire County to celebrate the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service on Monday, Jan. 18, 2021.

BMM has donated $11,000 as well as more than 1,000 re-useable grocery bags to help with food accessibility to Berkshire residents in need.

"This has been a devastating time for many of friends, family and neighbors," BMM Community Development Director Nichole Dupont said. "We hit the ground running last March, knowing that the community was going to be hard-hit by the pandemic. Access to food for our local families is an issue that is top of mind for everyone. We will continue our efforts to support the local community—young people, local business owners, social justice leaders, displaced residents—knowing full well that we can’t eradicate every problem, but that we will try our best to serve the community that has served us."

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, approximately 12 percent of all people in Berkshire County suffered from food insecurity. Over the course of the pandemic, this percentage has increased exponentially. Financed by Berkshire Money Management, Berkshire Bounty and an anonymous donor, the Jan. 18 distribution of 19,000 pounds of food will be countywide.

Distribution will take place at the Boys & Girls Club of the Berkshires at 16 Melville St., Pittsfield, from 10am to 1pm. During those hours, volunteers will place a bag of food in each car.

Volunteers will also deliver food to those who are not able to pick it up themselves. The food packing and distribution will take place in a safe, masked and socially distant manner. To volunteer go to www.volunteerberkshireuw.org. Financial donations for future food distribution efforts are needed and can be made at www.berkshire-bounty.org.

For more information on BMM’s commitment to community efforts including STEM education, warm clothing donations, PPE distribution, help for local businesses, and social justice initiatives, please visit our "In the Press" page here: https://berkshiremm.com/who-we-are/in-the-press/.


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Dalton Health Dept. Develops Temporary Food Event Info Sheet

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass.—The Board of Health approved an amended version of a Temporary Food Event Informational Sheet.
 
Health Agent Agnes Witkowski and her Administrative Assistant Christina Parkington developed this information sheet to streamline the permitting process for temporary food events. 
 
Before this information sheet, Witkowski would work with event organizers to determine the vendors. Then Witkowski and Parkington would reach out to the vendors with applications and information. 
 
"There's times when we even had somebody show up as a vendor not being permitted and then they're looking for what we require. Well, this is to help organize that and to make it smoother," Witkowski said. 
 
This document will be given to the event organizer and the vendors. 
 
"I think it's just good communication, and it's helping guidelines and expectations," Witkowski said. 
 
The sheet instructs the event coordinator to provide the Board of Health with a contact list of all vendors 30 days before the event. The list must include the vendor's name, contact person, phone number, and email address.
 
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