Berkshire Organizations Awarded SafteyWorks Grants

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BOSTON — The Healey-Driscoll Administration launched the SafetyWorks Initiative, including grant funding and free technical consultation for employers to improve safety in the workplace.
 
In Berkshire County,  Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, 18 Degrees and Berkshire County Head Start Child Development Program were awarded grants. 
 
As part of SafetyWorks, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development (EOLWD) announced $800,000 in grants to train an estimated 13,832 workers at 160 organizations across Massachusetts. The grants, administered by the Department of Industrial Accidents (DIA), aim to enhance workplace safety through training, education, and other preventative measures. SafetyWorks also features free technical consultation offered by the Department of Labor Standards for public and private sector employers.
 
"Well-trained workers are the foundation to safe workplaces," said Governor Maura Healey. "These grants are an example of our administration’s commitment to helping businesses educate thousands of workers in promoting safe work conditions."
 
Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art was awarded $5,000 to train 180 employees, 18 Degrees was awarded $6,433 to train 120 employees and Berkshire County Head Start Child Development Program was awarded $3,715 to train 46 employees.
 
The 160 grant recipients include municipalities, minority- and women-owned businesses, veterans-owned businesses, small business, and employers across industries such as manufacturing, construction, and more. This funding is made available through DIA annually. Since 1988, DIA has funded approximately $24 million to Massachusetts-based employers, helping approximately 324,000 workers and 1,693 employers throughout Massachusetts.
 
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Pittsfield Native Competing in Miss Massachusetts

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Taconic High graduate Neveah Williams is competing in the 2026 Miss Massachusetts Scholarship Competition this weekend in Worcester.

She said pageants have helped her step into her own self-confidence while helping others; her chosen community service initiative is the AYJ Fund of North Adams. 

"When I was younger, I had an issue with body image, and I thought I had to look a certain way. So, I joined pageants to try to help with my self-confidence, and I soon fell in love, and it helped me become a more well-rounded young woman," Williams said. 

"Along with it, it made me fall in love with myself and my body, no matter what I look like." 

The 2026 Miss Massachusetts Scholarship Competition is being held at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester on Friday, June 19, with finals on Saturday, June 20, at 7 each night.

Williams, holding the title of Miss Mayflower 2026, has continued her journey in pageants over the past four years and says she has truly come to learn so much about herself. 

"And have grown into, I believe, the best young woman I possibly could, because of the Miss America opportunity," she said.

A 2024 graduate of Taconic, she attends Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Boston, studying echocardiogram sonography. 

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