Dueling Pianos Fundraiser to Support Pediatric Development Center

Print Story | Email Story
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Pediatric Development Center (PDC) will host a Dueling Pianos Fundraiser to raise money for programs that support more than 700 families across South and Central Berkshire County.
 
The event features the high-energy entertainment of Howl2Go. Two pianists will take the stage to play crowd favorites, take song requests.
 
Guests will enjoy complimentary appetizers, a 50/50 raffle, and a mystery bag pull, where $20 gets you a bottle of wine or gift card valued at $20 or more.
 
"All of the funds raised help us continue providing free Early Intervention services to local families," said Kate Tucci, executive director of PDC. "Our work ensures that babies and toddlers with developmental needs get the support they deserve right here in their own community."
 
PDC is the only organization in South and Central Berkshire County providing Early Intervention services for children from birth to age three. The team of developmental specialists, therapists, and social workers partners with families to help children reach important milestones through play-based learning and family-centered care all at no cost to families.
 
The Dueling Pianos Fundraiser will take place on Thursday, Nov. 13 at 6 pm at the Berkshire Hills Country Club, 500 Benedict Road (doors open at 5:30 pm). Tickets are $40 per person or $400 for a table of 8 (table of 8 includes a complimentary drink).
 
To learn more or purchase tickets, visit www.pediatricdevelopmentcenter.org.
 
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Berkshire NAACP Uses Douglass' Words to Set Tone for Juneteenth Festival

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires.com Sports
PITTSFIELD, Mass. – As many Americans get ready to celebrate the nation’s 250th “birthday,” Juneteenth stands as a reminder of the original sin that characterized the country’s first century and the painful legacy that persists well into its third.
 
The Berkshire County Branch of the NAACP put that message front and center at Sunday’s Juneteenth celebration at Durant Park, providing attendees with an inter-generational community reading of Frederick Douglass’ landmark speech, “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?”
 
In it, Douglass, who escaped slavery at age 20 and went on to be one of the great orators of his day, offers a no holds barred critique of the antebellum United States, exposing the hypocrisy of a nation that celebrated its freedom from England while enslaving more than 3 million of its own people.
 
A member of the NAACP Berkshire County Branch Executive Committee said that Douglass’ message, first delivered in Rochester, N.Y., on July 5, 1850, is still pertinent today.
 
“Even after the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment, Black people had to fight for freedom, the right to vote, the right to be citizens, right to own property, everything, and so we are facing those challenges still today,” said Frances Jones-Sneed, PhD., an emeritus professor of history at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.
 
“I think his words back at that point in time are still relevant today, and that’s the reason why all over the country, people are reading that speech.”
 
On Sunday afternoon, Jones-Sneed took the first turn at the microphone, reading from the opening passages of Douglass’ speech, when he laid the groundwork by reminding his audience of the true revolutionary spirit of 1776.
 
View Full Story

More Pittsfield Stories