OLLI at BCC to Hold Series of Workshops on 'Big Change'

10:35AM / Thursday, May 21, 2026Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College (OLLI at BCC) will hold a workshop titled "What Now? Taking Small Steps After BIG Change" on three consecutive Fridays: May 29, June 5 and June 12, from 9:30-11:00 a.m.

The workshop is ideal for people who have recently retired or relocated and are feeling overwhelmed.

The charge to attend the workshop series, which will be held at BCC, is $35 for OLLI members and $45 for non-members. To register, visit https://berkshireolli.org/event-6632258.

According to a press release:

Are you on the other side of a big change and feeling adrift? A major life transition can be stressful and scary, but it's also an opportunity to build a new life with intention and thoughtfulness.

In this three-part workshop, life coach Janet Forest leads exercises in self-reflection, group conversation, and goal setting, so that participants can start taking small action steps. Each session will provide accountability and support as participants practice self-honesty and open their hearts and minds to new possibilities. At the end of the three weeks, each person will have a customized toolkit to create new habits and routines as they settle into their new life.

Janet Forest is a Certified Professional Life Coach and an Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner. She specializes in working with seasoned professionals who want to leverage their experience to find a career with meaning and impact and recent retirees who need support and accountability to settle into their next chapter. Forest is also the director of the Dalton Free Public Library.

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15 People Displaced in Pittsfield Home Fires

Staff Reports11:35AM / Sunday, October 11, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Fifteen people were displaced after 2-alarm home fires this weekend on Springside Avenue and Elaine Drive.

On Friday evening, the Fire Department responded to a structure fire at 209 Springside Ave., which took a four-hour battle to extinguish and resulted in a partial roof collapse. The next day, on Saturday evening, crews knocked down a fire at 121 Elaine Drive in about an hour.

The garage and part of the single-family home on Elaine Drive were gutted to the frame, along with a vehicle parked in the driveway. On Springside Avenue, the top level and porch of the multifamily were burned through.

A GoFundMe has been started for the family of the Elaine Drive home, which includes several young children. The fundraiser, with a $5,500 goal, explains they lost their home and all of their belongings. (iBerkshires.com does not confirm or endorse fundraisers; they are provided as information only.)

There were no civilian or firefighter injuries, and both incidents are under investigation. One dog was rescued on Springside Avenue.

On Oct. 10, around 6:15 p.m., PFD responded to the Springside Avenue home for a reported structure fire and saw a 2 1/2-story wood frame multifamily with a heavy blaze showing from the second-floor front porch, extending out.

The building suffered a partial roof collapse, which prolonged extinguishment. The fire was brought under control after about four hours.

“An aggressive offensive attack was mounted by first arriving crews stretching hose lines into the building as well as primary searches that proved negative. Ladders were placed around the structure to provide access as well as escape if needed. An off-duty Fire Captain had also been on scene early in the incident to help evacuate the structure and rescue a dog,” PFD wrote in a press release.

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