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OSHA issued an inspection report on Aug. 3 absolving the organization of fault.

OSHA: Jacob's Pillow Won't Be Cited for 2025 Employee Death

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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BECKET, Mass.— The Occupational Safety and Health Administration determined that Jacob's Pillow is not responsible for the fatal workplace accident that occurred one year ago

OSHA found no violation of workplace safety and health standards related to the incident, and no citations or penalties were issued. 

On Aug. 1, 2025, 40-year-old Kathryn "Kat" Sirico of Rochester, N.Y., and another employee were moving staging platforms across the property on a dolly when it began to lose control on a sloped area.  Sirico attempted to regain control of the dolly but tripped and fell.  The dolly ran over Sirico, and the platforms fell, landing on them. 

Bystanders attempted life-saving measures, which were unsuccessful. 

OSHA issued an inspection report on Aug. 3 absolving the organization of fault.  The Berkshire Edge obtained and posted the report

On March 6, the determination was communicated in a letter, presumably addressed to Sirico's family, but the addressee is redacted. 

"OSHA has completed its inspection of Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival Inc. and determined that no violation of safety and health standards occurred related to the incident; therefore, no citations or proposed penalties were issued," Acting Area Director Stephanie Smulligan-Maldanis wrote. 

The OSHA report explains that employees were moving Masonite staging on a rolling cart down an incline near the Doris Duke Theatre; the cart began speeding away, and the two employees tried to slow it down by grabbing the cart; it then turned sideways and flipped over. 

Sirico was crushed by the heavy rolling cart. 


The Masonite boards were about 4 feet wide and eight feet tall, and a quarter-inch thick.  About 32 of the boards were being transported on the cart at the time of the accident, weighing more than 1,400 pounds. 

They covered existing staging when equipment was used to keep the floor from being damaged, and according to the OSHA report, were at the recommendation of contractors Allgerone Construction, who built the Doris Duke theater a few months prior. 

Sirico, working as the production manager, was a seasonal worker who began in April of 2025, supervised up to eight people in technical work, and had put in a high volume of hours in the weeks leading up, potentially working 12- 15-hour days, six days per week, the report stated. 

A February communication from OSHA, presumably to Sirico's family but the addressee is redacted, invited them to a Workers Memorial Day event in April in Washington, DC. 

"Each of our fallen workers are so much more than a number or an incident," it reads. 

"They are our fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, children, spouses, and more. They are those that completed your family." 



 


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Pryor & Peacock's Whimsical Furniture Environmentally Friendly

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
 

The company uses digital printing to create the upholstery fabric, saving water and saving vintage furniture from ending up in landfills.

STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. — A unique furniture store has popped up on Elm Street this month.

Mom-and-daughter store Pryor & Peacock is hosting the pop-up storefront from Aug. 13 to Aug. 25 at 6 Elm. The New Marlborough business is co-founded by Rosalina Wright and Luca Shapiro, who is also the creative director. 

Their online shop was created in 2024 but they wanted people to see the pieces in person, so they're renting the space for a limited time before a long-term tenant moves in.

The store sources prints to create unique fabrics and reimagines vintage and antique furniture acquired at auctions, local shops, and online.

"We source prints from all over the world that date from the late 1600s up through mid-20th century, and Luca turns those prints into fabric by manipulating them, scanning them, oftentimes has to add or subtract things, and then we manufacture the fabric using only digital printing, which is very environmentally friendly, unlike traditional textile printing," Wright said.

Upholstering the furniture can take weeks of work. Shapiro looks for the perfect design for each piece and, if need be, uses Adobe Photoshop to extend the art work to fit or enhance the print.

"One of the most difficult parts comes in marrying the fabric to a piece of furniture because we only use antique and vintage frames also to be earth friendly, and they're also more beautiful and durable than new furniture," Wright said. "So the image has to go with the furniture, so that takes a lot of work."

One of Pryor & Peacock's missions is to be environmentally friendly. Digital printing doesn't use the same amount of water as traditional textile productions do nor does it contaminate water with ink according to their website.

Not only are they saving water, but they are saving furniture from going into the landfill while also using more durable furniture that doesn't break as easily as current pieces. They started their business to create something unique and to help the environment together.

"It's creating something nobody else is doing. People can't continue to buy throwaway furniture. Six percent of American landfills is furniture, and digital printing not only opens up the possibility of being able to put unique images on a piece of furniture, but it also is, as I said, environmentally friendly. So, for us, the excitement is to take an old East Lake settee that somebody's going to store in their barn and forget about, and make it something completely new and surprising," Wright said.

They hope their furniture helps bring a pop of fun to someone's home.

"We think our furniture is very whimsical and surprising, and most furniture today is oatmeal colored couches and gray neutral chairs, and it's boring," she said.

The two named their business after their mothers' maiden names to honor them and believe the name reflects their pieces.

Shapiro works in interior design outside of the business and the two liked working together and thought it would be great to start a business together. Shapiro says they can work well together and that her and her mother, Wright, has flipped houses before and have the same eye for design.

"So it's very easy for us to work together. When we see something, generally we agree on whether it works or doesn't work on a piece. We agree on the color schemes and that sort of thing. So it's very fun and fulfilling to work together," Shapiro said. 

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