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22 of the graduates were from Berkshire County and nearby communities.
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Miss Hall's School Graduates 46

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This year's Commencement Remarks were delivered by award-winning author Mary Pope Osborne
PITTSFIELD — Forty-six students, including 22 students from Berkshire County and nearby communities, graduated on Sunday, June 2, during Miss Hall's School's 126th Commencement.
 
The ceremony took place under a large tent behind the Elizabeth Gatchell Klein Arts Center on the School's Holmes Road campus and was shared worldwide via Hudl.
 
Hosted by Miss Hall's Head of School Julia Heaton, the ceremony included remarks from Senior Class President Naomi Hopkins, of Rabun County, Georgia; School President Iva Knezevic, of Belgrade, Serbia; School Vice President Hanna Heaton Wellenstein, of Pittsfield; and Miss Hall's School Board of Trustees President Nancy Gustafson Ault, Class of 1973.
 
This year's Commencement Remarks were delivered by award-winning author Mary Pope Osborne, who was introduced by 2024 Miss Hall's graduates Lila and Zadie Juska, of Great Barrington. Mary is the author of many award-winning children's books.
 
Local graduates are Brianna Babcock, of Pittsfield; Kate Butler, of Pittsfield; Malena Carraro, of Stockbridge; Molly Casey, of Lee; Ella Cohen, of Great Barrington; Leora Cook-Dubin, of Pittsfield; Margaret (Margot) Dionne, of New Lebanon, N.Y.; Honey Fields, of New Marlborough; Sophie Gentleman, of Lenox; Ruby Hauck, of South Lee; Hanna Heaton Wellenstein, of Pittsfield; Isabella Hennessey, of Lenox; Lila Juska, of Great Barrington; Zadie Juska, of Great Barrington; Revan (Revvie) MacQueen, of Lenox; Juliana Mills, of Pittsfield; Alida (Hypnos) Perri, of Pittsfield; Kyla Rosales-Gore, of Great Barrington; Ella Tawes, of Williamstown; Madeline Tillem, of Lenox; Sophia Tillem, of Lenox; and Elise Tyler, of Lenox.
 
The following awards were also bestowed on members of the Class of 2024:
 
• Joseph F. Buerger Memorial School Spirit Cup: Kate Butler, of Pittsfield, and Naomi Hopkins, of Rabun County, Georgia
 
• Margaret Witherspoon Award: Iva Knezevic, of Belgrade, Serbia
 
• Christine Fuller Holland '33 Service Prize: Welmerly Maria, of Methuen, Massachusetts
 
• Faculty Commendation Award: Molly Casey, of Lee
 
• Meus Honor Stat Keys Awarded for MHS Core Competencies: 
 
Vision: Sutra Chakma, of Khagrachari, Bangladesh, and Naomi Hopkins, of Rabun County, Georgia
 
Voice: Hanna Heaton Wellenstein, of Pittsfield, and Oumou Sidibe, of Bamako, Mali
 
Interpersonal Efficacy: Naomi Wager, of Cooperstown, N.Y., and Jiaying (Lily) Yao, of Shenzhen, China
 
Gumption: Leora Cook-Dubin, of Pittsfield, and Kyla Rosales-Gore, of Great Barrington
 
• Sylvia “Rusty” Shethar Everdell '38 Prize: Kate Butler, of Pittsfield
 
• Paul C. Cabot, Jr. History Prize: Sophie Gentleman, of Lenox
 
• Senior Prize in Engineering and Tech Innovation: Isabella Hennessey, of Lenox
 
• Iive Rouse Science Award: Iva Knezevic, of Belgrade, Serbia
 
• James K. Ervin Mathematics Prize: Hanna Heaton Wellenstein, of Pittsfield
 
• Horizons Award: Welmerly Maria, of Methuen, Massachusetts
 
• English for Speakers of Other Languages Award: Ayako Ogawa, of Tokyo, Japan
 
• Mansfield E. Pickett Latin Prize: Leora Cook-Dubin, of Pittsfield
 
• Spanish Award: Ella Tawes, of Williamstown
 
• Monique Jalbert French Prize: Nathania Williams-Jack, of Brooklyn, N.Y.
 
• Virginia Breene Wickwire '67 Reading Prize: Madeline Tillem, of Lenox
 
• Doris E. Pitman English Prize: Naomi Hopkins, of Rabun County, Georgia
 
• Photography Award: Honey Fields, of New Marlborough
 
• Susanna McCreath Music Prize: Jiaying (Lily) Yao, of Shenzhen, China
 
• Angela Kalischer Theater Performance Prize: Sutra Chakma, of Khagrachari, Bangladesh
 
• Angela Kalischer Technical Theater Prize: Molly Casey, of Lee
 
• Ceramics Award: Revvie MacQueen, of Lenox
 
• Elizabeth Gatchell Klein Studio Art Prize: Xiang Meng, of Shanghai, China

Tags: graduation 2024,   miss halls school,   

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Pittsfield Housing Project Adds 37 Supportive Units and Collective Hope

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— A new chapter in local efforts to combat housing insecurity officially began as community leaders and residents gathered at The First on to celebrate a major expansion of supportive housing in the city.

The ribbon was cut on Thursday Dec. 19, on nearly 40 supportive permanent housing units; nine at The First, located within the Zion Lutheran Church, and 28 on West Housatonic Street.  The Housing Resource Center, funded by Pittsfield's American Rescue Plan Act dollars, hosted a celebration for a project that is named for its rarity: The First. 

"What got us here today is the power of community working in partnership and with a shared purpose," Hearthway CEO Eileen Peltier said. 

In addition to the 28 studio units at 111 West Housatonic Street and nine units in the rear of the church building, the Housing Resource Center will be open seven days a week with two lounges, a classroom, a laundry room, a bathroom, and lockers. 

Erin Forbush, ServiceNet's director of shelter and housing, challenged attendees to transform the space in the basement of Zion Lutheran Church into a community center.  It is planned to operate from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. year-round.

"I get calls from folks that want to help out, and our shelters just aren't the right spaces to be able to do that. The First will be that space that we can all come together and work for the betterment of our community," Forbush said. 

"…I am a true believer that things evolve, and things here will evolve with the people that are utilizing it." 

Earlier that day, Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Ed Augustus joined Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll and her team in Housatonic to announce $33.5 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funding, $5.45 million to Berkshire County. 

He said it was ambitious to take on these two projects at once, but it will move the needle.  The EOHLC contributed more than $7.8 million in subsidies and $3.4 million in low-income housing tax credit equity for the West Housatonic Street build, and $1.6 million in ARPA funds for the First Street apartments.

"We're trying to get people out of shelter and off the streets, but we know there are a lot of people who are couch surfing, who are living in their cars, who are one paycheck away from being homeless themselves," Augustus said. 

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