Brien Center Announces New President & CEO

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Diana L. Knaebe
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Brien Center, the leading provider of behavioral health services in Berkshire County, announces the appointment of Diana L. Knaebe as its new president and CEO effective July 1.
 
Knaebe brings more than 35 years of experience in the behavioral health-care sector, holding key leadership positions across various renowned organizations. Her impressive track record includes leading non-profit and governmental organizations and serving on the board of a national behavioral health networking organization.
 
She was president of Memorial Behavioral Health and system administrator of Behavioral Health at
Memorial Health System in Springfield, Ill. Additionally, she has held significant roles such as the state
director of the Illinois Division of Mental Health and president/CEO of Heritage Behavioral Health Center in
Decatur, Ill. 
 
Knaebe's career began as a therapist in her home state of Michigan, where she and the organizations
she led received numerous state and national awards for excellence in behavioral health. She is a graduate of San Diego State University, earning a bachelor's in psychology, and holds a master of social work degree from Western Michigan University. 
 
Current President and CEO Chris Macbeth, who announced her retirement last December, expressed confidence in Knaebe's leadership. 
 
"I am delighted to welcome Diana to the Brien Center. Our board conducted a nationwide search and Diana's extensive background in behavior health leadership will be a great help as the Brien Center continues its mission in our community," she said.
 
Linda Febles, board chair at the Brien Center, also shared her enthusiasm for Knaebe's appointment, 
 
"Diana is known for being a sound manager, an innovative leader, and a courageous change agent. She is a strong communicator who works cooperatively with various stakeholders to find common ground and reach consensus," she said. "Diana leverages her expertise in servant leadership, strategic organization development, and systems thinking to provide vision and leadership for comprehensive, effective systems."
 
Knaebe said she is "excited and honored to take this leadership role with the Brien Center. The unwavering passion and dedication of the board and staff, the longevity of your services, and your organizational pride are a testament to the high-quality, caring nature of the Brien
Center. 
 
"I am deeply impressed by the Brien Center, and my husband and I envision a fulfilling professional and
personal life enriched by the beautiful Berkshires and the remarkable community that is the Brien Center."

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Main & Mill: A Vibrant New Restaurant on Main Street

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — You can now enjoy another eatery on Main Street by well-known restaurant siblings Colleen and Sean Taylor.

Their restaurant Main & Mill opened for the first time Tuesday, bringing their vision of creating something vibrant and new to downtown North Adams.

"We have created Main & Mill to be part of our day. It's very seasonal ingredients, thoughtful cooking, beauty, beautiful presentation and dishes. And we really wanted to be part of the community, the downtown area, and start a vibrant area on this end, which has been shuttered for a while," said Colleen.

The building is owned by Ginko on Main Street LLC, which has granted 20 years exclusive possession of the property to Latent Builds as the developer. Jack and Suzy Wadsworth, behind Ginko, are development partners with Karla Rothstein and Salvatore Perry of Latent.

The bank closed in early 2021 and was purchased by Ginko late that year. Plans for the property unveiled three years ago envisioned a restaurant, retail, a park and rooftop bar. 

Colleen saw potential and said she initially wanted the building when it first went up for sale. Being good friends with Rothstein and Perry, she helped them design the kitchen and the bar before learning in March that she could lease it as a restaurant space, something she told them would be a great idea.

She said one of the most important things about the restaurant was the collaboration between Rothstein, Perry, and the Wadsworths, who put a lot of time and energy into the building.

"If Sean and I had done it, we would not be able to do what the collaboration supported. The collaboration of the three of us being able to really have that kind of money to put in down here. The design that the architecture firm that Carla and Sal own is stunning," she said. "The time and effort, everyone came together to do this in a really trusting manner."

The two wanted the restaurant to be an all-day venture, so people could eat at any point throughout the day, all week long.

"We wanted it to be open for coffee and socialization in the morning where people can meet, have their cup of coffee, have a quiche, a vegetarian quiche, or croissant or yogurt. Something intentional with their coffee," she said. "Then move into a lunchtime for the downtown business or anybody, and then go into supper, dinner, with drinks later into the evening. So have it really be open all day long, so that there wasn't a void on any particular day."

They also wanted to do something different than the other restaurants they owned.

"We didn't want to mimic any other restaurant in town. We wanted to bring something that was inspiring, something that had some familiar things that people would see, and other things that we would bring to them for them to experience," she said.

As a woman business owner, Colleen said she wanted to bring a female chef into the kitchen. 

Colleen brought on Chef Anna DeRose, who she said puts twists on a lot of her dishes.

"So we have a creme brulee, but our creme brulee is topped with marshmallow," she said. "Our creme brulee is like almost two desserts in one. It's a s'mores creme brulee. So you could have a s'mores, and you could have a creme brulee - but when you put both of them together, fireworks go off."

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