September is Library Card Sign-up Month in Pittsfield

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — During the month of September, residents can show  their Berkshire Athenaeum library card at participating local businesses for discounts and freebies.
 
Those in need of a library card can sign up or renew at the Berkshire Athenaeum. When doing this, patrons will also receive a raffle ticket for a $50 Downtown Pittsfield Gift Card or a free Friends of the Berkshire Athenaeum membership.
 
Participating businesses include:
  • 413 Shirts
  • Ayelada
  • Berkshire Art Center
  • Berkshire Fitness & Wellness Center
  • Berkshire Music School
  • Berkshire Thistle 'n Thorn Floral
  • Garden Blossoms Florist
  • Hot Harry's Burritos
  • Hot Plate Brewing Co.
  • Mana Crypt Gaming Center
  • Marie's North Street Eatery & Gallery
  • Nene's Deco
  • On Pointe Barre & Fitness
  • Sally Tiska Rice Art Studio
  • Solarium Plant Shop (Opening this September!)
  • WANDER Berkshires
 
This promotion is a collaboration with Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. and is made possible through the contributions of the Friends of the Berkshire Athenaeum. 
 
A brochure listing the discounts offered is available at Athenaeum service desks and online at www.downtownpittsfield.com and www.pittsfieldlibrary.org
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Parole Granted to Pittsfield Man Sentenced for Killing Toddler Son

Staff Reports
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A city man serving a life sentence for killing his 2-year-old son 43 years ago has been granted parole. 
 
According to the Boston Globe, the Parole Board on Monday voted to release Richard N. Mayes Jr., 78, to a halfway house.
 
Mayes was charged with beating his son to death in 1983 when he wouldn't eat. The child, Lawrence Richon, had received blows to his head, body, arms and legs. Mayes also told police he'd hit his son four times with a plastic baseball bat. 
 
According to media reports at the time, Mayes tried to resuscitate Lawrence when he later collapsed and cried to police that he did it when arrested. 
 
The boy was taken by life flight to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, where he died from blood clots in his head. 
 
Mayes was found guilty of second-degree murder by a Superior Court jury and sentenced to life in state prison.
 
According to the Globe, Mayes had been denied parole five times previously but told the board he had been sober for three decades and had not had a disciplinary report in a dozen years. 
 
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