There was an overflow crowd for the Bigfoot talk, with people coming from Vermont and around Western Mass.
DALTON, Mass. — The library's "Bigfoot! In The Northeast" event last week was a success, attracting more than 60 people from all over the county.
The Vogel brothers, Eric and Tim, presented and answered questions about their almost 20 years of experience and investigations into bigfoot, or sasquatch, a hairy folklore creature said to inhabit dense forested areas.
"The Dalton library is simply located in a great area, the environment, the Appalachian Mountain ecosystems, productive farmland, streams, rivers, and wilderness areas," Tim Vogel said.
"Locally, it checks all the boxes and has enormous potential for providing what a bigfoot's needs are, for something that large."
People filled the main floor and looked down on the discussion from balcony on the mezzanine. The audience was respectful and attentive, and many of them were believers and had many questions, Tim Vogel said.
"It was pleasantly surprising to have that many people interested in the topic enough to drive to Dalton, traveling from out of town to listen and possibly participate in a subject not typically talked about, openly, anyway," he said.
The Vogels retired from outdoor education and now do research and investigations of Bigfoot as the Cobble Mountain Critter Project in Russell, which raises funds for outdoor programs for youth.
The event exceeded its scheduled time as participants from various regions, including Vermont, spilled into the library's parking lot and continued the discussion on bigfoot in their communities, Vogel said.
Library Director Janet Forest said when she looked out into the audience, she saw many new faces, which is not a common occurrence.
"Anytime you get new people to come into the library, it is a win," she said.
The audience was diverse, welcoming, and fun, full of believers and skeptics, Forest said.
"The atmosphere was light, it was fun. People were engaged with the topic of Bigfoot. We had many people discussing and sharing their own stories before the talk even started," Vogel said.
"They were eager to hear our story, they were there to get information, and we provided as much as we could through our almost two decades of experience. We believe it was well received, and at the end of the night, everybody enjoyed their time."
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Toys for Tots Bringing Presents to Thousands of Kids This Year
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
Volunteers organize toys by age and gender in the House of Corrections storage facility.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Plenty of toys are on their way to children this holiday season thanks to Toys for Tots.
Christopher Keegan has coordinated the local toy drive for the Berkshire Chapter of the Marine Corps Reserve since 2015 and said he has seen the need rise every year, last year helping more than 6,000 kids.
"This is 11 years I've been doing it, and the need has gone up every year. It's gone up every year, and I anticipate it going up even more this year," Keegan said.
On Thursday, the Berkshire County House of Corrections storage facility was overflowing with toys making it the county's very own Santa's workshop.
Keegan said Berkshire County always shows up with toys or donations.
"This county is outstanding when it comes to charity. They rally around stuff. They're very giving, they're very generous, and they've been tremendous in this effort, the toys for pride effort, since I've been doing it, our goal is to honor every request, and we've always reached that goal," he said.
Keegan's team is about 20 to 25 volunteers who sort out toys based on age and gender. This week, the crew started collecting from the 230 or so boxes set out around the county on Oct. 1.
"The two age groups that are probably more difficult — there's a newborn to 2s, boys and girls, and 11 to 14, boys and girls. Those are the two challenging ages where we need to focus our attention on a little bit more," he said.
Toys For Tots has about 30 participating schools and agencies that sign up families and individuals who need help putting gifts under the tree. Keegan takes requests right up until the last minute on Christmas.
"We can go out shopping for Christmas. I had sent my daughter out Christmas Eve morning. Hey, we need X amount of toys and stuff, but the requests are still rolling in from individuals, and I don't say no, we'll make it work however we can," he said.
Community members help to raise money or bring in unopened and unused toys. Capeless Elementary student Thomas St. John recently raised $1,000 selling hot chocolate and used the money to buy toys for the drive.
"It's amazing how much it's grown and how broad it is, how many people who were involved," Keegan said.
On Saturday, Live 95.9 personalities Bryan Slater and Marjo Catalano of "Slater and Marjo in the Morning" will host a Toys for Tots challenge at The Hot Dog Ranch and Proprietor's Lodge. Keegan said they have been very supportive of the drive and that they were able to collect more than 3,000 toys for the drive last year.
Volunteer Debbie Melle has been volunteering with Toys for Tots in the county for about five years and said people really showed up to give this year.
"I absolutely love it. It's what we always say. It's organized chaos, but it's rewarding. And what I actually this year, I'm so surprised, because the amount that the community has given us, and you can see that when you see these pictures, that you've taken, this is probably the most toys we've ever gotten," she said. "So I don't know if people just feel like this is a time to give and they're just going above and beyond, but I'm blown away. This year we can barely walk down the aisles for how much, how many toys are here. It's wonderful."
On Thursday, the Berkshire County House of Corrections storage facility was overflowing with toys making it the county's very own Santa's workshop.
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