Letter: Berkshire Health Systems Celebrates Employee Month

To the Editor:

Every May, Berkshire Health Systems (BHS) celebrates Employee Appreciation Month, recognizing the dedication of our talented team of 4,000-plus employees. United by a shared mission, vision, and set of values, our integrated system provides coordinated care for patients across Berkshire County. This month, I invite you all to join me in thanking the BHS team for their work to advance health and wellness for everyone in our community.

Each facility, department, and individual member of the BHS team plays a unique and valuable role in serving the health and well-being of our region. The team at BMC, our system's community teaching hospital, drives our mission forward by delivering advanced care across a full spectrum of medical specialties, leveraging state-of-the-art technologies and surgical facilities. The BMC team proudly serves our community's most advanced healthcare needs, providing everything from orthopedic surgery and cancer care to behavioral health, general surgery, and beyond. Our community teaching hospital receives crucial local support from our Critical Access Hospitals, Fairview Hospital and North Adams Regional Hospital, which offer 24-hour emergency departments and a range of inpatient and outpatient services. Our award-winning teams in North Adams and Great Barrington provide skilled, compassionate care, helping us keep care close to home for our North and South County patients.

The dedicated staff within our hospitals depend on the support of our outpatient services — including clinics, pharmacies, and home care services that deliver crucial screenings, treatments, and education needed to help patients live healthier lives. For instance, the staff at our newly opened Lenox Urgent Care and experienced nurses who answer the Nurse Line deliver convenient care and provide timely support for minor illnesses and injuries, especially when patients' primary care providers aren't immediately available. These are just two of the many outpatient teams that provide timely and routine care to support a healthier region.

No one component of this system could exist without the support and shared mission of our employees. On behalf of the entire BHS leadership team and Board of Trustees, please join us in celebrating these individuals. We are grateful for their unwavering commitment to serving our Berkshire County community.

Darlene Rodowicz
Pittsfield, Mass. 

New Camp Is Safe Place for Children Suffering Loss to Addiction

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
06:26AM / Saturday, December 27, 2025

Last year's Happy Campers courtesy of Max Tabakin.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A new camp is offering a safe place for children who have lost a parent or guardian to addiction. 

 

Director Gayle Saks founded the nonprofit "Camp Happy Place" last year. The first camp was held in June with 14 children.

 

Saks is a licensed drug and alcohol counselor who works at the Brien Center. One of her final projects when studying was how to involve youth, and a camp came to mind. Camp had been her "happy place" growing up, and it became her dream to open her own.

 

"I keep a bucket list in my wallet, and it's right on here on this list, and I cross off things that I've accomplished," she said. "But it is the one thing on here that I knew I had to do."

 

The overnight co-ed camp is held at a summer camp in Winsted, Conn., where Saks spent her summers as a child. It is four nights and five days and completely free. Transportation is included as are many of the items needed for camping. The camp takes up to 30 children.

 

"I really don't think there's any place that exists specifically for this population. I think it's important to know, we've said this, but that it is not a therapeutic camp," Saks said.

 

She said the focus is on fun for the children, though they are able to talk to any of the volunteer and trained staff. The staff all have experience in social work, addiction and counseling, and working with children.