Letter: Thank You for Supporting 'Get BArT Smart'

To the Editor:

On Saturday, April 6, Berkshire Arts & Technology (BART) Charter Public School hosted our annual "Get BART Smart" fundraiser — and raised $29,769 (net) for the school's college preparatory and extra-curricular programs! Over 110 people attended and participated in our signature team trivia game. A huge "thank you" to all who attended and made it a great evening!

This night would not have been possible without the support of over a hundred local organizations and businesses.

We are extremely thankful to our Salutation Sponsor, Adams Community Bank! Thank you for being the Head of the Class.

Our High Honor Roll sponsors: MountainOne Bank, Aladco Linen Services, Cord Master Engineering, Haddad Auto Group, and Nocher Realty all played an important part in the evening's success.

The list above doesn't include 90-plus additional local businesses that generously donated goods and services to the event for auction items and prizes, or supported the event at the "Sponsor" level.

BART serves over 365 students in Grades 6-12 from all over Berkshire County. Businesses from all corners of the Berkshires helped support our students through their generous sponsorships and donations.

Finally, many thanks to the trustees, faculty, staff, volunteers and others who contributed their time, money, and effort to make this event happen. Their dedication to the BART community, most importantly our students, is truly inspiring.

Sincerely,

Catherine McKeen
Williamstown, Mass. 

McKeen is a member of the school's board of trustees. 

Cheshire Town Meeting Oks Budgets, Debates Potential Prop 2 1/2 Override

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
10:12PM / Monday, June 08, 2026

Moderator Carol Francesconi, left, and Anne Marie Furey were presented flowers in memory of the Rev. William Furey, their brother and husband, respectively. The town report was dedicated to him. 

CHESHIRE, Mass. — Town meeting on Monday approved all 35 articles on the annual meeting warrant, including a total spending for fiscal 2027 of more than $8.5 million. 

 

Some 77 of the town's more than 2,500 registered voters filled the Cheshire Community House meeting room, debating on a number of articles during the meeting that lasted nearly three hours

 

The town dedicated its annual report to the Rev. William David Furey, longtime pastor of First Baptist Church and more recently Berkshire Union Chapel in Lanesborough. Furey died last year at age 77.

 

His wife, Anne Marie Furey, and his sister, Town Moderator Carol Francesconi, were presented with a bouquet of flowers in tribute to him. 

 

He was an exemplary member of the community who left a lasting impression in each and every life that he touched, said Town Clerk Whitney Flynn. 

 

Voters approved several warrant articles that make up an operating budget of $3,840,314 for fiscal 2027. Of this amount, $1,642,481 is allocated for the general government budget, which was approved after clarification of a few questions.

 

One item was the administrative assistant's salary. Prior to the annual meeting, the town eliminated the executive assistant salary of $54,309 in favor of a part-time administrative assistant salary of $27,155, to reduce costs considering the financial constraint the town is in.