Cultural Grants Awarded To Northern Berkshire Communities

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — State Representative John Barrett III and the Northern Berkshire Cultural Council jointly announced the award of 63 grants totaling $72,500.00, for cultural programs in Northern Berkshire Communities. 
 
These eleven communities are comprised of ; Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg, Florida, Hancock, Lanesborough, Monroe, New Ashford, Savoy, Williamstown, and the City of North Adams. A complete list of recipients and grant amounts can be found here. http://Www.mass-culture.org/ccnb
 
"It's the local volunteers who really make this system work," said State Representative Barrett. "They make limited resources go as far as possible, and they make the tough decisions about which projects should be supported. Thanks to them, the arts, sciences, and humanities are part of people's everyday lives in communities across the state."
 
The Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire is part of a network of 329 Local Cultural Councils serving all 351 cities and towns in the Commonwealth. The LCC Program is the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the nation, supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences, and humanities every year. The state legislature provides an annual appropriation to the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency, which then allocates funds to each community.
 
Decisions about which activities to support are made at the community level by a board of municipally appointed volunteers. The members of the Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire are:
 
Arthur De Bow, Co-Chair - North Adams               
 
Lorna Gayle - Lanesborough      
 
Cecilia Hirsch, Co-Chair - Williamstown
 
Henry Klein - Adams     
 
Donna Motta - North Adams      
 
Barbara Proper - Cheshire          
 
Linda Rhoads - Adams  
 
Mark Siegars - Lanesborough    
 
Sally Sussman - Williamstown
 
Peter Traub - Savoy
 
Erica Jane Wetherell - Hancock
 
Maureen Riley Moriarty, Staff/Administrator
 
Statewide, more than $3.3 million will be distributed by local cultural councils in 2021. Grants will support an enormous range of grass-roots activities: concerts, exhibitions, radio and video productions, field trips for schoolchildren, after-school youth programs, writing workshops, historical preservation efforts, lectures, First Night celebrations, nature and science education programs for families and town festivals. Nearly half of LCC funds support educational activities for young people.
 
The Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire will seek applications again in the fall. For guidelines and complete information on the Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire, contact us at the email or number above.  Applications and more information about the Local Cultural Council Program are available online at www.mass-culture.org .  Applications are due Oct 15.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Possible Measles Exposure at Boston, Logan

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed Wednesday that an out-of-state adult visitor who spent time in Boston and Westborough earlier this month was diagnosed with measles and was present in a number of locations.
 
This could have resulted in other people being exposed to measles virus.
 
The visitor arrived at Logan International Airport on American Airlines flight 2384 from Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, on Dec. 11 at 2:39 p.m. They stayed at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Boston-Westborough in Westborough and departed the state on Dec. 12 via Logan at 9:19 p.m. on JetBlue flight 117 to Las Vegas.
 
DPH is working with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local partners to identify and notify those who may have been exposed to measles from this individual.
 
"Measles is a highly contagious, airborne disease, which has increased significantly in the United States because of the unfortunate decrease in vaccination rates. It is also a preventable disease," said Public Health Commissioner Dr. Robbie Goldstein. "This current situation serves as an important reminder of the critical role vaccination plays in protecting our communities. While Massachusetts has not had a measles case this year, 2025 saw the highest number of nationwide cases in more than a decade — nearly 2,000 in 44 jurisdictions, and sadly, three deaths. 
 
"Fifteen years ago, measles had been considered eliminated in the United States, but that tremendous progress is at risk. Vaccines are one of the most important public health interventions ever — they are safe, effective, and lifesaving."
 
Measles is very contagious. However, the risk to most people in Massachusetts is low because the vaccination rate in the state is high. People who are not immune and visited any of the locations on the following dates and times may be at risk for developing measles.
 
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