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The 25-foot fall white spruce is adorned by 20,000 lights, illuminating the area and spreading holiday cheer.
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Mr. and Mrs. Claus make an appearance.

Pittsfield In-Person Tree Lighting Ceremony Returns After 2-Year Hiatus

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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The Laviolette family donated the tree and turned on the lights on Friday.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Hundreds gathered at Park Square on Friday for the city's first in-person tree lighting ceremony in three years.

The 25-foot tall white spruce is adorned by 20,000 lights, illuminating the area and spreading holiday cheer.

"There are so many kids and families here this evening and I know everyone is anxious to see the beautiful tree that was donated by the Laviolette family," Mayor Linda Tyer said right before the switch was flipped.

"Thank you for your generosity. This tree will provide a whole month of beauty and festivity for all of us to enjoy and I love coming to the tree lighting because when you look all around Park Square, you can see just how beautiful our city is at this time of year."

Jack and Rita Laviolette and their daughter, Justine, donated the tree in memory of Jack's brother George Laviolette, who passed away in October. They said he was a gentle giant, similar to the tree.

"He was a sweetheart," Justine Laviolette said about her late uncle.

The Laviolette's grandchildren took the stage to help light the tree after an enthusiastic countdown from 10.


The Taconic High School chorus and the Berkshire Hills Chorus performed holiday songs at the event.  Across the street, Otto's Kitchen and Comfort held a free hot chocolate bar and photo booth.

Santa and Mrs. Claus made a special entrance on a firetruck and had a meet and greet with the kids. A line of little ones waited patiently to tell Santa what presents they wanted this year in hopes of being on his nice list.

Recreation & Special Events Coordinator Becky Manship said the city has "certainly" been looking forward to this event.

She thanked all involved in the endeavor: the donating family, the parks maintenance crew, Pittsfield Community Television, the highway department, the building maintenance department, police, LP Adams Co., the performers, and Otto's.

Donation bins were set up for nonperishable food items that will go to Christian Center's food pantry.  Manship reminded attendees that they can still bring donations to the center at 193 Robbins Ave. Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, an in-person ceremony was not able to happen in 2020 and 2021.  Last year, the city teamed up with PCTV for a virtual tree lighting, which included remote performances and a visit from the Clauses.

PCTV also provided live coverage of the event this year for everyone at home.

The tree lighting is a part of Downtown Pittsfield Inc's "Festive Frolick," which includes a number of holiday events on December 2 and 3 for a variety of ages.


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Companion Corner: Cali and Kyzer at The Berkshire Humane Society

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There's a bonded dog pair awaiting a new family at the Berkshire Humane Society.

Kyzer and Cali are both poodles. Kyzer is the male and is 7 years old, a quite a bit bigger than his sister Cali, who is a miniature of Kyzer and 8 years old.

Canine adoption counselor Rhonda Cyr introduced us to the two.

"They came from a household that couldn't hold on to them, and it sounds like they may have been abandoned by their previous owner with somebody else, and so they came to us looking for a new home," she said.

The two love to be around you and snuggle. But both are very happy dogs.

"Kyzer is 7 years old, and his personality is that he kind of wants to be in everything. He's very loving, very snuggly, as you can tell. And Callie here, she's 8 years old, and she is kind of like the life of the party," said Cyr. "She wants to tell you everything about her day, and she's a little bit of a little ham."

The two are considered seniors and really like soft treats as Cali just had a few teeth removed and Kyzer has a tooth procedure coming up.

"Currently, they really like soft treats, because they are both on the senior side of things. So they have had some dental work, so they are really in need of something softer. They are not big chewers at this age, really, their main focus right now is just really socializing and cuddling," Cyr said.

The two would love a quiet home with someone who wants to snuggle. They shouldn't go to a home with bigger dogs but if you have a dog, you can bring them in for a visitation with the poodles to see if they will get along. Cats will be fine and the preference is for older and more responsible children so that the pups don't get hurt, as they are senior citizens.

"The perfect home for them would be a quiet home that's not too active. Like I said, they're very social, so they could handle some visitors," she said. "They're very friendly, but I don't think that they would really enjoy any other dogs in the home."

Poodles need to be regularly groomed, and the prospective adopter will have to keep an eye on their health. Kyzer has a heart murmur that needs to be monitored. This doesn't mean he is in bad health, as he could live a perfectly normal life, but he will need to be checked by a veterinary specialist routinely.

"Ideally, he would go to a home that could provide further health care with a specialist in cardiac care. And you know, he could very well live out the rest of his life comfortably and happy," Cyr said. "We just don't have all that information at the moment, but I think that you know the way he's going right now. He's got a good spirit, and he seems to be pretty happy."

The shelter is hoping the to get them a home for the holidays.

"We would love to get them a home in time for the holidays. They've been here since the eighth of November, and they're really, really looking as much as the staff loves them here, we're really looking to get them into a home and somewhere nice and cozy so they can spend the rest of their life together," she said.

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