Letter: Greylock Glen Camping Proposal Aligns with Town's Needs

To the Editor:

For many years, we've maintained our community with little economic growth. It has not been for lack of effort. And now, smart people from many different backgrounds have uncovered what we all knew — Adams is special! The founders of the Project 13 1/2 Grove Gallery and Real Eyes Gallery know it, as does Yina Moore, who has breathed new life into the Adams Theater, a revitalization effort started by our Topia Arts friends.

Our Greylock Glen trail partners DCR and TSR contribute to Adams by maintaining and expanding our trails. The outdoor center is being built, after years of hard work from our Community Development Director Donna Cesan, our town administrator(s) and our state Rep. John Barrett, and [former] state Sen. Adam Hinds, to name a few. We never lost sight of the end game, and now the state has funded further investment in Adams.

The newest developers interested in Adams have proposed an EcoVillage at the Greylock Glen. Not only does the EcoVillage align with keeping the beauty of Adams intact, it is also innovative, attractive, and creates a revenue stream that we have not seen the likes of in Adams. We were impressed by the developer's presentation, and hope other community members will turn out for future outreach sessions.

It is our turn to embrace growth in innovative programs and projects. It is our turn to share in the creative economy and tourism. Shame on us if we are not one voice in that support. We have vetted all the details of the Greylock Glen projects together and will continue to do so with the same goal in mind: To grow our town in a thoughtful manner, while maintaining the quality of life that we all enjoy. This town belongs to all of us.

Erin Mucci & David Bissaillon
co-chairs ProAdams
Carol Cushenette
Adams Finance Committee chair

MCLA Graduates Told to Make the World Worthy of Them

By Tammy Daniels iBerkshires Staff
05:27PM / Saturday, May 16, 2026

Keynote speaker Michael Bobbitt was awarded an honorary doctor of fine arts. He told the graduates to make the world worthy of them. See more photos here.  

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Amsler Campus Center gym erupted in cheers on Saturday as 193 members of class of 2026 turned their tassels.

 

The graduates of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' 127th commencement were sent off with the charge of "don't stop now" to make the world a better place.  

 

You are Trailblazers, keynote speaker Michael Bobbitt reminded them, and a "trailblazer is not simply someone who walks a path. A trailblazer makes one, but blazing a trail does not happen alone. Every trailblazer is carrying tools made by somebody else. Every trailblazer is guided by stars they did not create. Every trailblazer stands on grounds shaped by ancestors, teachers, workers, neighbors, friends, and strangers."

 

Trailblazing takes communal courage, he said, and they needed to love people, build with people, argue with people, and find the people who make them braver and kinder at the same time.

 

"The future will not be saved by isolated geniuses, it will be saved by networks of people willing to practice courage together. The future belongs not to the loudest, not to the richest, not to the most certain, but to the most adaptive, the most creative, the most courageous, the most willing to learn."

 

Bobbitt was recently named CEO of Opera American after nearly five years leading the Massachusetts Cultural Council. He stressed the importance of art to the graduates, and noted that opera is not the only art form facing challenges in this world. 

 

"Every field is asking, who are we for now? What do we, what value do we create?" he said. "What do we stop pretending is fine. This is not just an arts question, that is a healthcare question, a climate question, a technology question, a community question, a higher education question, a democracy question, a life question. ...