Freeman Center Welcomes New Board Members

12:54PM / Friday, July 18, 2025Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Elizabeth Freeman Center has welcomed Myla Franklin, Laurie Gallagher, Chris MacBeth and Tess Sorrentino to its board of directors.

Franklin is a community leader and grassroots organizer with 10 years of experience in project management, advocacy and relationship building. She is currently the community lending officer at Greylock Federal Credit Union.

Gallagher is an attorney who served as senior counsel for 25 years for GE and SABIC. She has served locally as interim CEO and board chair for Berkshire United Way and as a mentor at 18 Degrees.

MacBeth has more than 35 years of experience working in social services and health care agencies 15 of which were at the Brien Center where she served as president and CEO.

Sorrentino is senior vice president and chief financial officer for Adams Community Bank. A 40 under 40 honoree, she is involved in many Berkshire non-profits, and a past Volunteer of the Year for St. Vincent de Paul Parish and Unico of Pittsfield.

"All four members bring their exceptional skills and their shared passion to advance the mission of the Elizabeth Freeman Center which for the past 50 years, has provided life changing services to survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault," according to the statement from Leslie Ioffredo, co-president of the board of directors.

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Wahconah Park Grandstand Leveled, Close to Shovel-Ready

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
04:01PM / Friday, October 23, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Wahconah Park is expected to be shovel-ready next month, with just a couple of outstanding permits remaining.

The 75-plus-year-old grandstand was deemed unsafe in 2022 and demolished at the end of the summer. Now, the space where the large structure stood has been leveled, though some accessory buildings, such as the dugouts, remain.

Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Manager James McGrath reported that the site, which "looks a lot different," will be shovel-ready in mid-November. From there, the city needs to do financial planning and sourcing.

"Again, I sound like a broken record, but it becomes a matter of identifying the funding strategy that will advance the project," McGrath told the Parks Commission on Tuesday.

In the meantime, the city hopes to return baseball to the site in 2027.

Planners determined that starting from square one is the best option with the grandstand; a $15 million design was last on the table.

McGrath reported that all but two permits approved through the Community Development Board and Zoning Board of Appeals remain. One relates to the use because stadiums are not zoned by-right in that area; Wahconah Park is considered "non-conforming" or "pre-existing," and a parking spot waiver.

He does not foresee the boards denying these permits.

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