Community Legal Aid Kicks Off Berkshire County Access to Justice Campaign

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Community Legal Aid is kicking off its annual Berkshire County Access to Justice Campaign, which seeks to bring legal help to residents in the county facing a variety of civil legal problems. 
 
Over the last year, Community Legal Aid's staff of attorneys and paralegals helped more than 700 Berkshire County elderly and low-income clients last year, impacting an estimated 1,750 residents trying to avoid homelessness, seeking safety from violence, and others fighting for life's necessities. Through its subsidiary, the Central West Justice Center, it also helps refugees seeking humanitarian-based immigration relief. 
 
For more than a decade, the legal community of Berkshire County has banded together through the Berkshire County Access to Justice Campaign to raise funds and awareness to support Community Legal Aid. Last year, the campaign raised over $20,000. This year, the goal is to raise $25,000.
 
Jennifer Breen, Esq., an attorney with the North Adams law firm of Donovan, O'Connor & Dodig, LLP is this year's Berkshire County Access to Justice Committee Chair. 
 
"I hope members of the legal community and others will join me in supporting the Berkshire County Access to Justice Campaign for Community Legal Aid, our local civil legal aid provider," Attorney Breen said. "Community Legal Aid assures fairness for all in the justice system, regardless of how much money they have. The Berkshire County Access to Justice Campaign embodies the principle that 'justice for all' applies to everyone, not just those who can afford it."
 
Anyone who wishes to support the work of Community Legal Aid can find more information or make a donation at www.communitylegal.org.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

BVNA Nurses Raise Funds for Berkshire Bounty

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Massachusetts Nursing Association members of the Berkshire Visiting Nurses Association raised $650 to help with food insecurity in Berkshire County.
 
The nurses and health-care professionals of BVNA have given back to the community every holiday season for the last three years. The first year, they adopted a large family, raised money, bought, wrapped and delivered the gifts for the family. Last year, they sold raffle tickets and the money raised went to the charitable cause of the winner. 
 
This year, with food insecurity as a rising issue, they chose to give to Berkshire Bounty in Great Barrington.
 
They sold raffle tickets for a drawing to win one of two items: A lottery ticket tree or a gift certificate tree, each worth $100. They will be giving the organization the donation this month.
 
Berkshire Bounty seeks to improve food security in the county through food donations from retailers and local farms; supplemental purchases of healthy foods; distribution to food sites and home deliveries; and collaborating with partners to address emergencies and improve the food system. 
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