There are lots of events in and around Berkshire County this weekend including festivals, fundraisers, and more.
Editor's Pick
Lee Founders Weekend
Friday, Sept. 19 through Sunday, Sept. 21
Nearly 250 years ago, the town of Lee was founded and this weekend community members will celebrate the rich history and vibrant spirit of its founders.
The three-day festival features a variety of activities including parades, live music, food vendors, fireworks, and more.
It kicks off Friday with a Lee Historical Society Cemetery Talk at Fairmont Cemetery at 10 a.m. followed by the beloved Taste of Lee event. From 5 to 9 p.m. Main Street is closed to make room for live music, hay wagon rides, race car displays, Irish dancers, and food from local restaurants and eateries.
The fun continues on Saturday with several activities including the founders hometown parade, an Antique Fire Truck Show, the Lee Lions Founders Weekend Car Show, live music, food, and more.
Finally, on Sunday, the festivities conclude with yoga, raffles, cornhole tournament, food, vendors, live music, and its new dog parade.
The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art is hosting its annual Fresh Grass Festival. Thousands are expected to be in the city during the three-day event.
There will be live music throughout the grounds and at Joe's Field including performances by Greensky Bluegrass, Old Crow Medicine Show, Alison Brown, and many more.
There will also be plenty of vendors on site selling merchandise, food, and drinks. A three-day adult pass is $213; see more on ticket prices and performance lineup here.
RiverFest
Main Street, Cummington
Friday, Sept. 19, and Saturday, Sept. 20
The Cummington Cultural District is inviting people to celebrate the wild and scenic Westfield River that runs through the heart of the town.
The event features hands-on activities led by artists, scientists, and humanists, focusing on themes related to the river, climate change, and ecosystems. Festivities include workshops, walks, guided movement, performances, and public artworks.
New England's biggest fair runs through the end of the month. The fair features goods from all six New England states, specialty days, crafts, demonstrations, activities, agriculture, horse shows, and more.
Tickets range from $20 and $12 a day to full passes and group admissions. Special performances priced separately.
Rock band Circle of Stone will be celebrating its release of its new album after taking a hiatus in the mid-2000s.
The band released a limited extended play in 1995, gaining radio attention and becoming prominent in the late '90s and early 2000s, filling venues with a mixture of their original material and assortment of rock and hard rock covers.
Tickets range from $20 to 25. More information here.
A Taste of Ireland
The Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield
Time: 7:30 p.m.
After a successful Off-Broadway debut and international tour the "A Taste of Ireland—The Irish Music & Dance Sensation" is returning to the Berkshires.
The performance features world-class performers from "Riverdance" and "Lord of the Dance," showcasing a blend of traditional Irish culture with modern elements.
DJ Pup Daddy will be spinning tunes for this musical bingo event featuring 75 popular songs from a mix of boy bands like NSYNC, KNOTB and Backstreet Boys and hair bands such as Poison, Whitesnake and Def Leppard.
There is no fee to play with three chances to win Bluebird gift cards for Single, Double, and Blackout SPINDLEs.
There will be a game of musical bingo to raise funds to support A Walk to End Alzheimer's. Tickets are $25 per person, including 2 bingo cards; extra cards for $5 each. Tickets available now at Adams Community Bank Branches.
Pink Floyd tribute band Retro Floyd will be performing tunes by the rock band. They have been described as "Vocal Floyd" because they are the only band where every member sings at least one lead vocal, or many lead vocals.
Tickets range from $25 to $30. More information here.
Pickle Festival
The Apple Barn, Bennington Vt.
Time: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Celebrate all things pickle and the harvest season at The Apple Barn's Pickle Festival, featuring pickle-themed snack, live music, the "Big Dill" pickle competition, a 4H Fun Zone, a mini cider donut eating contest, a free photo booth, and more.
There will also be a special appearance by its pickle mascot, Sir Pickleton.
Smash the Stigma
Great Barrington Town Hall
Time: noon to 3 p.m.
South County Recovery Center will have a community based, family-friendly event, to raise awareness of people affected by substance use in South Berkshire County.
The event will highlight available resources and create connections to reduce stigma associated with substance use disorder and recovery.
Gaze at Berkshire County's fall foliage on Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum speedliner featuring the two classic Budd Rail diesel cars, New Haven 41 and Baltimore and Ohio 1960.
Tickets range from $13 to $28. More information here.
Rock the Pantry
The Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield
Time: 7 p.m.
Pittsfield's South Community Food Pantry is having its first-ever benefit concert, celebrating the musical talent of the Berkshires while raising support for those in need.
The stage will come alive with performances by local performances including The Wanda Houston Band, Billy Keane, Jackson DuCharme, and more.
Comedians Richie Byrne, Mark Riccadonna, and Ashley Gutermuth will be performing.
Byrne blends high-energy, family-friendly humor with observations. Riccadonna is a storyteller with a charismatic style that has taken him international. Gutermuth is a comedian and actor with sharp, relatable humor often drawn from her life as a military spouse.
Tickets are $20 for general seating and $35 for priority seating. More information here.
Springside Park Fall Cleanup
Springside Park, Pittsfield
Time: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Friends of Springside Park is having its annual fall clean-up. Volunteers can go to the check-in table at the North Playground, off 874 North Street. Bring your own gloves if possible, but bags, water, and instructions provided.
Greylock Photography Group Meet-Up: Greylock After Dark
Mount Greylock Visitor Center, Lanesborough
Time: 1 to 2:30 p.m.
Timothy Little, of Cape Nights Photography, will be offering one of his night photography workshops and will give a presentation of his Mount Greylock photography artworks for its Mount Greylock photography program.
New England's only stone-skipping competition is open to pros and amateurs, young and old. Free admission to watch and a small fee to compete to try and break the world record of 88 skips and win some fudge. There will be rocks to buy for skipping, stone painting, and food for purchase.
There will be yoga and a mindful nature walk led by Vicki Zacharewicz, who will encourage visitors to be mindful in an effort to reduce stress and gain inspiration from earth.
Visitors will be guided on a slow intentional journey to de-stress while connecting with nature through forest bathing, breath work, and meditation, culminating in a group sharing session.
There will be a free screening of the Berkshire Opera Festival's 10th anniversary concert at the college's K111 Theater.
The concert features some of opera's greatest hits performed by world-class artists from Berkshire Opera
Festival's previous seasons, accompanied by its orchestra and chorus.
British actor Gerald Charles Dickens, the great-great-grandson of the literary legend Charles Dickens, will be presenting his one-man theatrical performance of his ancestor's classic works in Mr. Dickens Is Coming.
Tickets are $50 per person. More information here.
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Companion Corner: Princess at Berkshire Humane Society
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There is an energetic girl waiting to find her new home at the Berkshire Humane Society.
iBerkshire's Companion Corner is a weekly series spotlighting an animal in our local shelters that is ready to find a home.
Princess is a six year old shepherd mix that has been at the shelter for just over a month.
Canine caregiver and adoption counselor Simone Olivieri told us about Princess.
"She's very social, very friendly. When you're out walking her, she just wants to go say hi to every single new person. Loves to make new friends. She's a lot of fun. She's very active. She's very spunky. She's very playful, and she's going to need a very very active family who's going to do a lot with her."
But Princess is no stranger to the shelter. She was a puppy five years ago and got adopted quickly, but now she needs a new family to take care of her.
"She was adopted out fairly quickly as a young puppy. She's been in the same home for the past five years. Unfortunately, they were moving out of state somewhere," Olivieri said. "They could not take her with them, so she ended up coming as a return to shelter, and she came back to stay with us."
Princess needs to go to a home as the only animal or with other male dogs that are her size or bigger.
"Her perfect home would be kids eight and up. No cats. No small animals. She has quite a prey drive. She could go to a home with another dog around her size or larger, preferably a male dog. She does a little bit better with male dogs, and she's looking for a home where people are home quite a bit, so that she's not left alone for too long. She has some separation anxiety," Olivieri said.
She also needs a very active home that can let her use her energy every day, as she is very rambunctious. Especially with playing with her favorite toy, the flirt pole.
"She could use a home where people are going to give her a lot of attention and more than just a few walks a day; she's going to need lots of exercise, lots of playtime, lots of mental stimulation," Olivieri said. "She likes to learn, so someone who would be willing to take her to training classes or work on some training with her, as well as hikes, getting out and about, doing new things, different things. She is very athletic. She'd excel at things like agility, some dog sports. Just someone who is really going to want to engage and do a lot of different kinds of activities with her."
Once you let her get her energy out, she is a cuddler who wouldn't mind being held like a baby from time to time.
"She's very sweet. She's very cuddly. She's very affectionate, but she is not a couch potato. She will stay on that couch with you for a little bit, and then she's ready to go off and do something else. So she's very busy. She's very active," Olivieri said. "Once all of her exercise needs are met during the day, she will settle down nicely, and she will want to be right by your side, cuddle with you at night on the couch, sleep with you."
Princess is very healthy but does experience some anxiety and is not fully potty trained and might have the occasional accident.
"She does have a little bit of anxiety, so she is on some medication for it right now," Olivieri said. "So a lot of structure, a lot of outlets, and familiarity, getting used to a new routine and everything is gonna be really good for her. I mean, she's just lovely. Like I said, she's very social. She likes to play with other dogs. She likes to meet new people."
The community was invited to come to the village for free and take part in a wide range of activities including tours, live music from Ida Mae Specker Trio and Tanglewood, demonstrations, and more. click for more