Berkshire Humane Participating in Special Adoption Event

04:00PM / Tuesday, August 20, 2024Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The MSPCA-Angell and its Massachusetts Animal Shelter Support (MASS) coalition partners are holding special adoption events throughout late August and early September for a wide variety of species in order to free up much needed space in shelters throughout the state.

This includes the Berkshire Humane Society.

"These plans have been in the works for a while now, but were thrown off by Tropical Storm Debby," explained Mike Keiley, MSPCA-Angell vice president of animal protection, who pointed to the organization's transport of two dozen dogs from South Carolina on August 7.

The MSPCA-Angell is also expected to take in two additional transports of dogs from South Carolina, which are scheduled to arrive just ahead of the first of the coalition's trio of events—a fee-waived adoptathon for all dogs aged one and older—August 19 through August 25.

"Our own population of dogs is increasing, and we know that our coalition partners also have plenty of great dogs in their care that need a little boost," he added. "That's why we're starting with a special dog adoption event, even while our other coalition work gets underway, like behavior outreach and increasing veterinary resources in the Springfield area."

All four of the MSPCA's shelters in Boston, Methuen, Salem, and Centerville on Cape Cod will be waiving adoption fees for all dogs aged one and older, as well as coalition partners Worcester Animal Rescue League (WARL), Berkshire Humane Society, Dakin Humane Society, and Thomas J. O'Connor Animal Control and Adoption Center (TJO).

The organizations collectively hope to rehome at least 200 dogs during the seven-day event. Hours vary by location. More information may be found at mspca.org/feewaived.

Following the dog adoptathon, the MSPCA and other shelters will hold special cat and small animal adoptathons.

Felineanomanon: a Special Cat Adoption Event begins August 26 and runs through August 30. Some cats will be available to adopt fee-free, including older cats, those with special medical or behavioral needs, working cats, and those with more particular personalities that are searching for hard-to-find home lifestyles.

Tags: Berkshire Humane Society,

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Tina Packer, Founder of Shakespeare & Company, Dies at 87

Staff Reports 06:51PM / Saturday, January 10, 2026

LENOX, Mass. — The doyenne of Shakespeare's plays, Tina Packer, died Friday at the age of 87.

Shakespeare & Company, which Packer co-founded in 1978, made the announcement Saturday on its Facebook page.

"It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Tina Packer, Shakespeare & Company's founding artistic director and acclaimed director, actor, writer, and teacher," the company said on its post and in a press release.

Packer, who retired a the theater company's artistic director in 2009, had directed all of Shakespeare's plays, some several times, acted in eight of them, and taught the whole canon at more than 30 colleges, including Harvard. She continued to direct, teach, and advocate for the company until her passing.

At Columbia University, she taught in the master of business administration program for four years, resulting in the publication of "Power Plays: Shakespeare's Lessons in Leadership and Management with Deming Professor John Whitney" for Simon and Schuster. For Scholastic, she wrote "Tales from Shakespeare," a children's book and recipient of the Parent's Gold Medal Award.

Most recently her book "Women of Will" was published by Knopf and she had been performing "Women of Will" with Nigel Gore, in New York, Mexico, England, The Hague, China, and across the United States. She's the recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees, including the Commonwealth Award.

"Our hearts are heavy with the passing of Tina Packer, a fiery force of nature with an indomitable spirit," said Artistic Director Allyn Burrows. "Tina affected everyone she encountered with her warmth, generosity, wit, and insatiable curiosity. She delighted in people's stories, and reached into their hearts with tender humanity. The world was her stage, and she furthered the Berkshires as a destination for the imagination.

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