Chelsea Gaia To Speak at Ventfort Hall

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LENOX, Mass. — Chelsea Gaia, Director of Programming & Events for Ventfort Hall, will speak at Ventfort Hall on Tuesday, July 2 at 4 pm about the time Ventfort Hall operated as Festival House; an inn in the 50's where everyone was welcome. 
 
A tea will be served after her presentation.
 
According to a press release:
 
The Berkshires haven't always been so open and celebratory of diversity. In fact, it's a fairly recent development with an obscure catalyst.  During the 1950's, Ventfort Hall did not exist as the Gilded Age Museum it is today, but instead, an inclusive resort open to all who wished to stay, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or socio-economic class or status. In 1949, after realizing the lack of places welcoming to Jewish patronage, Bruno & Claire Aron transformed an abandoned Ventfort Hall into a haven and gatehouse for anyone who wanted access to Tanglewood performances or to experience the splendor of the Berkshires who may not have previously based on identity.
 
While not many tangible relics remain from the Festival House era - it is the Spirit of the decade that remains strong today in the Berkshires. Join Ventfort Hall Director of Programming & Events, Chelsea Gaia, to learn more about the Aron Family and how their dream of an inclusive Berkshires was realized through Festival House. 
 
Chelsea Gaia is the Director of Programming & Events for Ventfort Hall.
 
An avid researcher and student of life, Gaia is openly neuro-divergent and finds joy and fulfillment executing in-depth study and research in many disciplines, as well as the history of each particular study.  Among her skills, she is a native plant expert for flora of the Pacific Northwest region of North America, a stained glass restoration specialist, a visual artist, a 20-year photojournalist, a seasoned graphic designer, and a multi-disciplined application scientist. 
 
Tickets are $40 for members and with advance reservation; $45 day of; $22 for students 22 and under. Ticket pricing includes access to the mansion throughout the day of this event from 10 am to 4 pm. Reservations are strongly encouraged as seats are limited. Walk-ins accommodated as space allows. For reservations visit https://gildedage.org/pages/calendar or call us at (413) 637-3206. Please note that all tickets are nonrefundable and non-exchangeable. The historical mansion is located at 104 Walker Street in Lenox.

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Friday Front Porch Feature: A Lenox Farmhouse

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

LENOX, Mass. —  Are you looking for a single family New England farmhouse? Then this is the house for you.

Our Friday Front Porch is a weekly feature spotlighting attractive homes for sale in Berkshire County. This week, we are showcasing 500 Walker St.

This three-bedroom and two-bath home was built in 1910 and is 1,720 square feet on less than an acre. 

The house features brick and wide-board pine floors, an updated kitchen with all major appliances, a first-floor office/bedroom with three-quarter bath, three bedrooms and full bath upstairs, and a bluestone patio and retaining wall installed in 2022.

It has natural gas heat and hot water, and includes a detached garage. 

The house is on the market for $449,000 and is listed by Matt Carlino with MACCARO Real Estate.

You can find out more about this house on its listing here

*Front Porch Feature brings you an exclusive to some of the houses listed on our real estate page every week. Here we take a bit of a deeper dive into a certain house for sale and ask questions so you don't have to.

 
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