nbCC Marks 40 Years, Honors Northern Berkshire Hero Awardee

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Northern Berkshire Community Coalition (nbCC) will celebrate its 40th Anniversary on Thursday, June 18th, from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m with a formal dinner and celebratory dance party at GreylockWORKS.

The celebration will mark the launch of nbCC's first Capital Campaign — One Community, One Coalition — raising funds for a permanent Northern Berkshire community center at 192 State Street, North Adams, where our next 40 years begin.

This year's Northern Berkshire Hero Award will be presented to Jonathan Swartz. Jonathan is being recognized for his extensive civic engagement and extraordinary support of Berkshire organizations, nonprofits, and businesses.

In his own words: "I discovered that the best way to be active as an adult in the Berkshires was to find things I was interested in and just show up.  I decided the best way to do this was giving back and philanthropy."

Swartz's commitment to community service began at a young age in Sparkill, NY. As a teenager, he found his voice at local town board meetings, a journey that led him to pivotal mentors like Rockland County Legislator Ed Clark and teacher Carl Wright. These early influences instilled in him a foundational belief that "all politics are local," stated a press release.

RSVP's are requested by June 8, 2026. Tickets for the event range from $35-175/person or can be purchased by the table. Sponsorship opportunities are still available.

Event sponsors: Diamond Sponsor Greylock Federal Credit Union, Ruby Sponsor Berkshire Health Systems, and Sapphire Sponsor NBT Bank.

Catering provided by Bounti-Fare. Registration is available online or by calling the Coalition at 413-663-7588. Registration link:https://bit.ly/nbCCturns40th

$175 - VIP tickets include: cocktail & hors d'oeuvres hour, VIP special gift, dinner, dessert & dancing

$100 - Dinner & Dancing tickets include: dinner, dessert & dancing

$35 - Dessert & Dancing tickets include: dessert table & dancing

McCann Committee Gets First Look at $17M Renovation Progress

By Jack GuerinoiBerkshires Staff
05:50AM / Monday, October 12, 2026

The project is in the home stretch with roofing and some windows and doors still to be installed. Superintendent James Brosnan also pointed above to HVAC improvements in the Guidance Office. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The McCann School Committee got a first look at the final stretch of a $17 million overhaul aimed at making the 64-year-old vocational school safer, quieter and more energy-efficient.

After a brief School Committee meeting Thursday, Superintendent James Brosnan led the members through the school, highlighting some of the changes made in the 64-year-old building.

"Just seeing this gives you a magnitude of the amount of work that goes on," he said.

The upgrades are being funded through the Massachusetts School Building Authority's Accelerated Repair Program and the Northern Berkshire Vocational School District's member towns.

Work was supposed to be completed before the start of the school year, but weather and the removal of materials caused a delay.

The tour was all indoors, and Brosnan told a disappointed committee that he was hesitant to take them onto the roof at night, but said the new roof is near 80 percent down.

"We have another 10, and 10 percent of that missing 20 is in the AVB [air and vapor barrier] and removal phase," Brosnan said. "That particular area is across the front, down the post-secondary ... we are going to pick up from guidance. So we have that plan going through next week. Fingers crossed, within two weeks we will have that piece down."

He said the roof has been built up and insulated for more efficiency.