Northern Berkshire United Way: 1970s Has Its Ups and Downs
The Northern Berkshire United Way sets its highest goal yet in 1979, and the first time going over $200,000.
That number was announced that the organizations "fifth" annual meeting in 1974, marking the time since Adams had joined, and counting the funds raised by the North Adams Community Chest and the North Adams and Adams United Funds and Northern Berkshire United Fund.
The report that year was dedicated to past 24 volunteer campaign chairs, of whom 17 were still in the area and three — Russell Lanoue, George Higgins and G. Churchill Francis — had since died.
The amount of money raised seemed significant for the time, but the united fund found itself struggling in the early '70s as the economy dipped and its the need for its services grew.
The campaign in 1970 saw an ambitious goal of $184,952 to support 16 agencies, with Northern Berkshire Child Care as the latest addition. The drive kicked off that goal at the Midway with Chair George Bateman, but it reached only 80 percent of its goal by the end.
Batemen said it might not be a financial success but "I believe it was a spiritual success" because of the hard work and enthusiasm of so many drive volunteers.
But President Henry Pierpan said there would be allocation cuts for 1971 despite "a substantial sum" voted from reserve funds.
The downturn in manufacturing was accelerating, with 300 to 400 employees let go from Sprague Electric in North Adams and a 15 percent cut in the General Cable workforce. More than 400 workers were cut loose from General Electric in Pittsfield and the Rochester Paper Co. in Adams froze wages.
The "sagging economy" was apparent with the state Commerce Department opening an office in North Adams and articles appearing in the North Adams Transcript about finding food and clothing. The unemployment rate climbed to more than 10 percent compared to 3.5 in 1967.
As the campaign in 1971 drew close, the Transcript editorialized that "it would be a difficult undertaking at any time to persuade the people of this area to dip into their pockets and come up with $168,624. It's an even more formidable task now at a time of severe economic distress affecting so many in this region. ...
"The need is greater this year than ever before."
The fund would fail to meet its goals over the next few years despite lowering its targets and the continued enthusiasm of its volunteers.
The fund stuck to some old standbys in advertising, pointing to how its organizations helped the communities. Support the Boy Scouts so kids "won't
trying marijuana on a street corner," stated one article about Scouts cleaning windshields in parking lots, and leaving donation cards "so that you may see your way clear to give your fair share to the Northern Berkshire United Community Fund."
It also began to promote its own poster children, such as Daryl T. Cavaca, to highlight how the new daycare center allowed his widowed mother to continue working at a nursing home, and gave him activities and a role model in his teacher.
The "soft sell" advertising eschewed the business leaders and put the spotlight on volunteers such as Rita Moreau, office manager of England Bros. who'd been involved for the 20 years she'd been at the store (when it was Boston Store) and had 100 percent participation.
"I've never met a tightwad in all the years I've been doing this," she said.
The United Fund's U symbol also makes its appearance with a sign created by McCann Technical School students to mark the donation levels.
And a successful Charity Snowball was held for several years at the brand-new Sheraton North Adams Inn to benefit both the fund and Williamstown Community Chest, which was having its own problems raising money.
Donald Thurston, president of Northern Berkshire Broadcasting, in giving 1971's keynote at the Eagles Hall, advised volunteers to "tell the good story. Don't sell the gloom."
Two years later, still missing the goal, President Donald Millberry said, "we must make it very obvious to everyone that the dollars given in the '50s and '60s cannot possibly support the programs of the '70s."
The times were gloomy but the fund was able to help some other campaigns get off the ground. It used reserves to give $2,500 to support Adams Ambulances' fundraising for a new $14,000 ambulance and gave $3,000 to start a youth shelter in Pittsfield. And it was critical to the formation of the Monument Square Day Care Center by using $9,000 in reserve funds to match a grant for the pilot program.
NBCUS also provided matching grants toward transportation for elders and grants and a loan to keep the Help Line functioning.
Even as the fund failed to reach its stated goal, the amount raised did increase each year — as did the goals. The few days of fund raising had become a couple weeks, to a couple months and now the fund was counting donations coming in up the annual meeting in the winter.
Cheshire would join in 1976, bringing its residents working in Pittsfield with it, and the boards of the fund and the Williamstown Community Chest would begin coordinating in their allocations to shared agencies.
At its 40th anniversary, six of the nine original agencies were still being supported by the fund: YMCA, Salvation Army, Red Cross, Boy Scouts, Visiting Nurses and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
A dark-haired Tip O'Neil speaks at the organization's 40th anniversary.
President John "Jack" Dempsey said while the name as changed, "the idea of giving remains unchanged. ... we have never lost sight of its real purpose — to work for better lives in a better community."
The new contributors in the industrial sector weren't enough to overcome the losses from other areas, and the unemployment rate had spiked to more than 13 percent during October and November of 1976. The nearly $12,000 deficit forced to the agency to divert $5,000 from its dwindling reserves.
In 1977, the organization would join the National United Way, set a goal of $188,856 and finally exceed that number. Executive Director Edith Schubnel had her sights set on making it to $192,221 with a "second drive."
It was perhaps a sign of better days coming, as in 1979 the fund drive would break $200,000 for the first time, bringing in $209,182 by mid-November. Part of that increase was the implementation of a United Way program at Pfizer in Adams, which upped its contributions to match its employees by two-thirds.
Hoosac Savings Bank would mark its 22nd consecutive year of 100 percent participation, Randy Trabold of the Transcript would be honored with a plaque for promoting the annual drive and Schubnel would announce her retirement next April.
"It's the people who make the United Way go," Schubnel told the Transcript. "The people who are committed to the United Way in an effort to make the community a better place to live."
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