march 2017, volume xxxi, number 7 nbcc holds q&a … · coalition march 2017, volume xxxi,...
TRANSCRIPT
CoalitionMarch 2017, Volume XXXI, Number 7
An update from
Inside the March Issue
Housing/Homelessness Q&A Session .........................2
The Mystery of Kimchi! ............................................3
UNITY/nBn News ..................................................4
The Family Place/Mass in Motion ............................5
Thanks, Friends! ......................................................6
Coalition Calendar/NBIAI Update ..........................7
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
news
1) What is the % of renters in Berkshire County? North Adams? Adams? Williamstown?
Berk. County: 33% N. Adams: 48% Adams: 41% Williamstown:33%
2) What is the % of renters that are rent burdened in Berkshire County? 56% of renters have rents that are more than 30% of their monthly income
3) What is the % of homeowners that are mortgage burdened in Berkshire County?
35% of homeowners have mortgages that are more than 30% of their monthly income
4) What is the number of subsidized units and percentage of subsidized units in North Adams? Adams? Williamstown?
NA has 873 units or 13.1% Adams has 324 units or 7.5% Williamstown has 167 units or 5.5%
5) What is the largest housing subsidy in the United States? $90 billion dollars for mortgage interest and real estate tax deductions
[90% of which goes to households making over $100,000) vs. $50 billion dollars for rental assistance programs
6) In 2016, how many foreclosure petitions were filed in Berkshire County? North Adams? Adams? Williamstown?
Berk.County: 290 North Adams: 44 Adams: 21 Williamstown: 4
7) How many individuals and families did Louison House provide shelter for in 2016?
88 individuals and families were supported in 2016
Northern Berkshire Housing/Homelessness Quiz
When the February forum planning committee initially met to deter-mine the focus of the Housing/Homelessness forum, they quickly re-alized that they all had more questions than answers and felt that this forum would be a great time for everyone to get the facts about the state of housing and homelessness in Northern Berkshire. The forum began with a quiz for the 75 community members who gathered for the Q&A session. The quiz revealed some surprising data (sample of questions at right).What do the answers to these questions tell us?
North Adams includes the most renters in north county. One reason for this is because it also has the highest number of subsidized units. Ironically though, there is still not enough, and there is cur-rently a potential 3 to 5 year wait time. Also, there can be a percep-tion that too much money is spent on subsidized or low income housing, when in fact, more money is spent to higher income home-owners through mortgage and real estate tax deductions. Housing policies and laws favor people homeowners with higher incomes.
With 56% of renters in Berkshire County rent burdened and 29% of renters severely rent burdened, a great number of Berkshire County residents are in dire straits and are at risk of housing insecu-rity and homelessness. There are also many families who are just one negative life event away from facing homelessness.
Homeowners can also be at risk. 35% of home owners are mort-gage burdened and this number is rising as a significant number of older residents on fixed incomes who have remortgaged their homes. There is also the extreme challenge that homeowners face when they lose their homes: mortgages are often lower than current market rents.
It was heard during the forum, that most local housing services give priority to families, causing a gap in services for single homeless men. The Louison House has some drop-in beds, but there is a need for more money to expand. Brad Gordon of Berkshire County Re-gional Housing Authority urged us to call our state representatives to request more funding for local services, which rely on state funding.
Local non-housing organizations often do not know how to help people who are homeless and need a plan to deal with people who are homeless. Al Nelson from the Friendship Center Food Pantry expressed a need for an action group that comes up with a pathway to help those who are homeless. Following the forum, nbCC sent out a survey to see if people were interested in getting involved. Re-sults showed that several people are ready to form an action group. Christa Collier of the Northern Berkshire United Way has taken the lead to organize this group with the first meeting on March 13 at 12:15 at nbCC.
To learn more, nbCC has prepared a fact sheet that you can view at http://bit.ly/nbcchousingfacts. You will find ways that you can get more involved, find housing/homelessness resources, answers to additional housing questions, and other information that might be helpful.
nbCC Holds Q&A Session about Housing/Homelessness
p Brad Gordon presents a housing quiz at the February forum.
2 NorthernBerkshireCommunityCoalition,61MainStreetSuite218,NorthAdamsMA01247•(413)663-7588•www.nbccoalition.org
March 2017Coalition NewsImproving the quality of life for people in Northern Berkshire by organizing, supporting, and empowering the community.
To submit announcements to the Coalition E-zine:
The Coalition E-zine is a weekly e-blast published every Thursday and contains announcements from Northern Berkshire agencies and organizations. Submissions must be received by 9:00 a.m. Tuesday morning to be considered for inclusion in that week’s issue. All submissions are subject to editing and should be 50 words or less. All events related to Northern Berkshire community public health will be considered for publication. Banner ads are available for your fundraising events. For more information, please call 663-7588, or to submit an announcement, please email [email protected].
Our Mission“Dedicated to improving the
quality of life for people in Northern Berkshire by organizing, supporting, and empowering the community.”In pursuit of this mission, we place particular emphasis on the following:• Strengthening neighborhoods and com-
munity life• Preventing alcohol/substance abuse• Fostering economic development•Mitigating poverty• Supporting positive youth development•Building bridges between residents and
service agencies
Coalition SupportersPublic Sources•MA Dept. of Children & Families/EOHHS•MA Cultural Council•MA Department of Public Health •MA Department of Public Health,
Bureau of Substance Abuse Services•Mass Service Alliance
Foundation Supporters •Fund for North Adams
Local Support •Contributions from our many
individual supporters
The Coalition is a member agency of the Northern Berkshire United Way and the Williamstown Community Chest.
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
Topic for March’s Teen-Led Forum: Stress, Anxiety and SchoolIt is that time of year again when teenagers of the UNITY Youth Leadership Program (YLP) are offered the reins of the monthly forum to present a topic they find pertinent to their lives in the Northern Berkshires. These young leaders truly value the opportunity to have their voice heard and to be able to explore a topic of their choice with a room full of adults. In order to accommodate school staff schedules, we’ve re-scheduled this forum to Friday, March 24th, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. at the MCLA Science Center, room 121. The youth of YLP, which includes teenagers ages 14 to 19 from 4 different area high schools, will lead a discussion on the stress and anxiety experienced by youth in high schools, and potential ways to alleviate these experiences.
Here’s what to expect:
•Heardescriptionoftheday-to-dayexpectationsofyoungpeopleinhighschool,andthestress and anxiety inherent in their experiences.
•Joinaconversationaboutthestressorsexperiencedinhighschoolandpotentialwaystoalleviate these stressors.
•Learnaboutpre-existingmethodsofstressreductionforsimilarpopulationsinschoolsworld-wide, and ideas on how to adapt these methods to meet the specific needs of
Northern Berkshire Youth, from their perspective.
We look to community members from all walks of life for this important Coalition meeting. The first half of the forum will be devoted to introduc-tions and announcements and please bring your flyers for distribution. For more info about this forum, contact Tim Shiebler at nbCC, (413) 663-7588.
Please note: The organizers of the Friendship Center Food Pantry ask
friends who attend the nbCC forums throughout the year to please bring a healthy non-perishable food item for donation.
NBYC Seeks Youth to Take Social Media Use SurveyThe Northern Berkshire Youth Collaborative (NBYC) has been working diligently to get as many students and young adults as possible to take our social media survey. The survey will close on March 8th.
Once we have all of our surveys together, we plan on sitting down and analyzing the data. From there, we are going to begin to brainstorm how to use our findings to make comprehensive materials and workshops to start helping to educate the community on safe social media use!
Teens, please visit http://bit.ly/nbycsurvey
to take the short survey. Parents, please share this with teens you know.
The collaborative will meet again on March 8th at noon in the nbCC conference room. Any and all individuals involved in youth development work, child care, educa-tion, or anyone who has a vested interest in the youth of our community are invited to attend our next meeting and to get involved with the collaborative. Please contact Tim Shiebler at 413-662-7588, ext. 15 or e-mail at [email protected].
-Carrisa Sacherski
NorthernBerkshireCommunityCoalition,61MainStreet,Suite218,NorthAdamsMA01247•(413)663-7588•www.nbccoalition.org 3
March 2017Improving the quality of life for people in Northern Berkshire by organizing, supporting, and empowering the community.
Coalition News
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
Board of Directors2016-2017
KRIS MALONEY, PresidentHuman Resources, Williams College
COURTNEY SHAPIRO-VAN DUSEN, Vice President
Adams Community Bank
DEB KUSHNET, TreasurerGreylock Federal Credit Union
SUZY HELME, ClerkBusiness Owner, Shima
North Adams Office of Tourism
CRAIG BARD, Executive CommitteeCommunity Resident
STEVE GREEN, Executive CommitteeCommunity Resident
AL NELSON, Executive CommitteeCommunity Resident
SARA LaLUMIA, Finance CommitteeProfessor of Economics, Williams College
JEN CIVELLOMarketing Director, BFAIR
LYNDA FIELDCommunity Resident
ERICA GIRGENTIAdams Council on Aging
LAURIE LAMARREVP of the Revenue CycleBerkshire Health Systems
BEN LAMBAsst. Director for Student Organizations
and Involvement, Williams College
CHRISTINE NAUGHTONDirector of Alumni Relations and
Development, MCLA
GAIL OBERSTSocial Worker, BFAIR
DAN RANDALLPastor, New Hope United Methodist Church
RICH TASKINAttorney at Law
411 in the 413 Youth Conference is Approaching!
What is Kimchi? And Why is it a Mystery?
The conference is less than six weeks away! On April 6th, the annual 411 in the 413 Youth Conference is taking place at Hancock Shaker Village. With over thirty individual workshops available, students from Berkshire County high schools will be able to experi-ence a wide variety of exciting opportunities. From discovering your inner artist, to stress and anxiety reduction, to building chemical rockets, there is truly a workshop for every-body! The attendees will have the chance to experience three distinct workshops through-out the day.
The conference will feature Ty Allen Jacksonasakeynotespeaker,anempoweringlocal author who has rapidly gained critical acclaim for his children’s books featuring childrenofcolor.WhenJackson’ssonaskedhim why there were so few children’s books featuring characters who looked like he did, Jacksonsoughttofillthatvoidbycreatingaline of children’s stories featuring prominent characters of color. Years later, he has re-ceived praise from the Obamas, been awarded theMartinLutherKingJr.CharacterofCon-tent Award, and has made a living sharing his inspirational story across the country. Ty will be offering a workshop entitled “You are Your
Greatest Asset”. This year’s conference may likely feature
the largest group of attending students that have ever been at the 411 in the 413. This is an exciting opportunity for high school students in Berkshire County to network, learn, and grow with students they may not otherwise come in contact with. If you are a youth interested in attending this year’s conference, please talk to your teachers and administrators and let them know you would like to be one of the 10 students in atten-dance from your school.
-Tim Shiebler
p Last year, students discover their inner artist at Hancock Shaker Village.
Kimchi is a fermented blend of cabbage, chili peppers, garlic, scallions, and other spices that can take on salty, sour, and/or spicy flavors, depending on the recipe used. What are the health benefits of eating kimchi? “Kimchi is rich in vitamins A and C, and due to its fermentation process is also rich in beneficial gut-boosting lactobacilli bacteria. Many are not aware that your gut houses about 85 percent of your immune system. This is in large part due to the 100 trillion bacteria that live in your gut. Over the past several years, research has revealed that microbes of all kinds — bacteria, fungi, and even viruses — play instrumental roles in the functioning of your body. For example, beneficial bacteria found in fermented foods have been shown to:•Counteractinflammationandcontrolthe
growth of disease-causing bacteria •Producevitamins,aminoacids,absorb
minerals, and eliminate toxins•Controlasthmaandreduceriskofallergies
•Benefityourmoodandmentalhealth•Impactyourweight
If you are interested in kimchi, here is a great way learn how to make it in a fun social setting and walk away with a free jar for youtosampleathome!JoinusforaFREEFermented Foods Workshop at the UNO Community Center 5-6 pm March 14th. Reg-istration is required. -Bret Beattie
Unlock the Mystery of KIMCHI!
Join us for a FREE
Fermented Foods
Workshop TuesdayMarch 14th
5-6 pmUNO Community Center
157 River Street
North Adams
nb Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
No need to bring anything! All ingredients, kitchen supplies, and mason jars will be provided. Leave with your own jar!
BONUS! Learn the origin, culture, and health benefits of Kimchi, find out why
Koreans say “Kimchi” instead of “cheese” when they get their picture taken, and
why Koreans on average consume 40 lbs. each year of this favorite condiment!
Sponsored by the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition and the Berkshire Partnership for Health. Space and materials are limited. If interested, please RSVP by
contacting Bret Beattie at (413) 663-7588, ext. 28 or [email protected]
4 NorthernBerkshireCommunityCoalition,61MainStreetSuite218,NorthAdamsMA01247•(413)663-7588•www.nbccoalition.org
TWW Mid-Season ShowcaseTeen Writing Workshop has been plagued in recent weeks, by a spate of Tuesday evening snowstorms. Missing three out of four workshop sessions put a damper on our spirits, but made it that much better to get together and write when the snow finally cleared! We had to move our mid-year showcase to the 28th of February, at Gallery 51. Lots of friends and family joined us that evening!
On top of working on performance pieces for the showcase, the group has also been hard at work creating written pieces to be included in the end of year publication, Somewhere Between. The collection is a collaborative effort, combining works of fiction and poetry from all of the participants in the program. The journal is a point of pride for the Teen Writing Workshop. It is a unique opportunity to have work published alongside the works of peers. Be on the lookout this spring for the 2016-17 version of Somewhere Between, and get a copy for your coffee table!
It’s not too late to join the Teen Writing Workshop! We still have lots planned for this year, including a visit to MASS MoCA for a workshop session in the Nick Cave UNTIL exhibit, the end of year celebration and performance, and the chance to have work put into Somewhere Between. Teen Writing Workshop is also an excellent opportunity to expand your creative prowess amongst a supportive group of peers and mentors. Please contact Tim Shiebler at 413-663-7588 ext. 15, or email him at [email protected].
Fun for All at the UNO Valentine’s Day PartyOn February 11th, UNO hosted a Valentine’s Day Party for the community. The event was well attended and complete with enough sweets to keep the kids energized for a week. Participants made cards for families and friends, hats to wear throughout the day, decorated cookies, and ate ice cream sundaes. Kids even had theopportunitytopinthelipsonMrs.Valentine!Everyonewasawinner at UNO and all left with a fun prize and goodie bag.
Don’t miss out on these fun events and programs at UNO. Stop in or visit our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/UNOCommCenter) for information on our current programs like4-HWackySTEMClub,CrafternoonFriday’s,ortheAfter-School Program. Stay tuned for more fun things to come.
Come hang out with us for “Crafternoon” Fridays at the UNO Community Center. Simply drop in on Fridays from 12pm-4pm to work on your own projects alongside other creative individuals. If you don’t currently have a project that you are working on, come participate in ongoing arts and crafts projects at UNO, or just stop in for good conversation, coffee/tea and snacks. All skill levels are encouraged to attend, from beginners to those more experienced. Those who are experienced are encouraged to help teach others a new craft. Call or email Geoff Pawlowski at (413) 663-7588 ext. 22 or [email protected] for more information.
Friday’s @ UNO 157 River St., North Adams
12-4pm (Drop In)
FREE
Light snacks and refreshments provided.
A great opportunity to socialize and network among other creative individuals while you work on your craft projects. Bring everything you will need.
If you don’t currently have a project that you are working on, there will be monthly
projects facilitated by a UNO Steering Committee Member. Some materials will be provided.
Contact Geoff at (413) 663-7588 Ext-22, with any questions.
p UNITY’s Teen Writing Workshop held their mid-season performance and gave our teen writers a chance to share their creativity and hard work with the community. It was an awe-inspiring evening and we are very proud of our teens. See more photos at http://bit.ly/tww2017mid.
NorthernBerkshireCommunityCoalition,61MainStreet,Suite218,NorthAdamsMA01247•(413)663-7588•www.nbccoalition.org 5
North Berkshire Mass in Motion
10 Minute Vegetable Quinoa “Fried Rice” Cook time: 10 mins, 4 servingsIngredients• 1tablespoontoastedsesameoil• 1-2garlicgloves,minced• 3-4cupscookedquinoa,chilled• 1(16oz)bagorganicfrozenveggies,anyvariety• 2largeorganiceggs• 2-3tablespoonsgluten-freesoysauce• ½teaspoongroundgingerDirection s• Heattheoilandgarlicinalargeskilletorwokovermedium-highheat,stirringuntilfragrantabout30seconds.
• Addquinoaandveggiesandcookuntilstartingtosoftenandcoatedinflavoring,about2minutes.Pushthismixturetothesideofthepanandcrackbotheggsdirectlyintothehotskillet.Scramblewithaforkuntilcookedthrough.Stirintoquinoa-veggiemixture.
• Poursoysauceoverpan,sprinklewithgingerandtosstocombine,cookingforanotherminuteortwountilniceandhot.Tasteandadjustseasoningsaccordingly.Serveimmediatelyandenjoy!
Family Place Working on Fun Summer Events for Families!For the first time in a long time, the Berkshires were able to enjoy a white winter. We hope that everyone stayed safe and was able to get out with your family and take advantage of fun winter activities. Heading into March, The Family Place is planning a lot of great events for families to enjoy this summer.
Within the past year, The Family Place has seen an increasing in-terest in one-on-one parent education classes. Although The Family Place staff enjoys working very hard on meeting the needs of parents, individually, it is also very important that parents in our community communicate with one another and support each other. Starting in March, our parent education classes will be offered as groups. Parents will now have an opportunity to meet one another, as well as build supportive relationships, share challenges and successes. Upcoming programs:• The Family Connection is a parent support group that gives
parents a place to come, grab a cup of coffee and talk with other parents who share similar experiences of parenting. This group is held every 4th Wednesday of each month from 6:30-8pm at the UNO Community Center. For more info, call 413-663-7588.
• Grandparents Raising Grandchildren group continues to meet every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month from 5:30-7:30pm at The Family Place. If you are a grandparent who is actively raising your grandchildren and would like to meet other grandparents raising their grandchildren in a safe and confidential place this is the group for you. Dinner is provided, child care provided upon request. Call Donna Senecal at The Family Place for more info.
•24/7 Dad group is back!!!! Collaborating with the Berkshire County Sheriff’s Department, Frank Busener will be facilitating this group every Thursday starting February 23rd from 1-2pm at the UNO Community Center and will run for 12 weeks.
Happy Frozen Food Month! March is National frozen food month. This is the time of year in New Englandwhenpurchasingfrozenfruitandvegetablesisahealthyop-tion. When fresh fruits and vegetables are out of season, they can be quite expensive, tasteless and end up losing many nutrients as they are picked and shipped across the states. Frozen fruits and vegetables have been picked when ripe and frozen immediately to preserve the nutrients. Frozen fruits and vegetables have the biggest bang for your buck when it comes to your health and your wallet.
As a side note, Wildstone Farm in Pownal, Vermont, offers a winter CSA (Community Shared Agriculture) option, which is a wonderful,healthy,localoptionforvegetablesduringtheNewEng-land winter months. This opportunity is available for sign up during the fall months. The North Adams Farmers Market is also running their first ever winter market, on the first Saturday of every month at the American Legion. A nice local option for fruits and vegetables during the winter. Be on the look out for the Know Your Farmer Know Your Food event in March to learn more about local options in the winter and summer, talk to local farmers and sample foods. This is a free event.
Tips for frozen fruits and vegetables:•Steamormicrowaveratherthanboilyourproducetominimize
the loss of water-soluble vitamins.
•Readthelabel.Mostfrozenvegetablesandfruitsaresalt-andsugar-free, but not all, so if you are limiting those ingredients in your diet, make sure you know what you’re getting.
Frozen fruits and vegetables can be a quick way to boost your daily servings. You can use them in smoothies, stir-fries, or casse-roles. Here is a delicious sample recipe using frozen vegetables.
Make a Shamrock Card!!Here is a simple but fun activity to do with your children as the rainy days begin to give us a lot of beautiful spring flow-ers! What you will need:• Green construction paper• White paper• Green paint• Medium sized paint brushes• Scissors• Markers• Glue*Have each child paint the inside of their hands with green paint. Place hand on white paper and repeat 4 times each. On a separate white sheet, paint a green stem for your shamrock. Let dry. When dry, cut out and glue on green construction paper in the shape of a Shamrock. Cut out stem and glue to complete your shamrock. When done, write a lucky message!!!!
6 NorthernBerkshireCommunityCoalition,61MainStreetSuite218,NorthAdamsMA01247•(413)663-7588•www.nbccoalition.org
March 2017Coalition NewsImproving the quality of life for people in Northern Berkshire by organizing, supporting, and empowering the community.
2016-----------------------------
ChampionJack & Susy Wadsworth
AdvocatesGene & Justyna CarlsonArlon & Anne Nelson
LeadersEllen BernsteinSteve Green & Sue WalkerSherwood & Carol GuernseyRobert & Helen Hardman Family FundJames & Joan HunterJohn & Deborah MacDonald
GuardiansBerkshire Children & Families Mary Jo CarpenterSusan GoldJames Whittum
BenefactorsRobert & Barbara BashevkinLinda BeckerCaroline BurchChris & Eleanor Derby-KilfoyleMark Gold & Ellen KennedyBruce & Judith GrinnellJoseph & Carol ManningSteven MillerKathy MorrisFrances RobertsJohn Thoman & Lee VenoliaWilliams College Women’s Hockey Ephs
BoostersKate AnnichiaricoAl Bashevkin & Nancy PearlmanBeck’s PrintingAngelo BerasiBerkshire Photovoltaic ServicesMark & Nurit BermanBFAIRSteve & Polly BirrellKevin Boisjolie & Fran BerasiRonald & Cynthia Bosley
BrewhahaDuncan & Susan BrownDavid & Wende CarverDaniel & Sally ConnertonStuart & Susan CramptonEdward Damon, Jr.David Dethier & Nancy NylenThomas & Ellen EnnisMichele EthierManuel & Shirley FinkelsteinPaul GittermanMarion GrillonPatrick HernandezRobert & Beverly Hertzig Adam HindsJohn HydeDick Lamb & Holly TaylorLandmark Credit UnionLouis & Shirley LescarbeauLittle’s HSC Pharmacy/SurgimedJames Mahon & Paula ConsoliniJohn & Kristine MaloneyAl & Nancy MardenPaul W. MarinoJohn NotsleyDavid & Susan NoyesWilliam & Gail OberstEdward & Carol Oshinsky Bernie Pinsonneault & Dianne CutilloDeb RosselliMaynard SeiderMildred ShapiroAnthony & Maggie SiracusaSamuel & Elizabeth SmithSusan SmithJames Stakenas & Paula CardinalJoe & Marilyn TruskowskiWilliam & Mary WhitmanHerb WilkinsonHoward & Deborah WinebergBill & Adrienne Wootters
AssociatesRobert & Carolyn BehrSusan BirnsSam & Marilyn BittmanWilliam & Lisa BlackmerLiz BolandPatrice Bolgen
Roger & Julia BoltonSharon BoydStanley & Maralyn Brown Andrew & Sue BudzJennifer CivelloAndrew & Andrea DanylukAnne DeGersdorffGreylock Community ClubPamela HawkinsHarry & Marjorie HornNicholas HruchHoward Itzkowitz & Wendy JamesStafania JacobLawrence & Hulda JowettRoberta LambIra & Fran LapidusNancy McIntirePeter Murphy & Audrey ThierRichard Oberfield, M.D.Bo & Katherine PeabodyMarcia SarroufLauren StevensEdwin & Jane StuebnerJonathan SwartzIrving TanzmanJean VankinJoyce Wrend
SupportersJohn K. AkersBernice AlcombrightJudith AldenJohn & Jane AllenJoseph & Kathy ArabiaAlma BenedettiBerkshire MillsEdward & Joanna BirosFred & Margaret BozekRalph Bradburd & Zelda SternAdriana BrownLaura BrownAnn CainAmanda ChilsonEdward & Anne Conroy Mark & Karen DaigleShirley DavisMarilyn DeRosaMarie HarpinPaul & Doris HutchinsonWilliam & Marianne Judge
Thanks Friends! You’ve Made a Positive Impact Right in Your Own Community!Since it’s inception, nbCC has been a crucial link between those in need and those who can help. With your assistance, we can continue to provide Northern Berkshire residents the tools needed to improve their lives and their neighborhoods. We understand that not everyone is able to make a financial contribution, but we also want you to know that no amount is too small to be helpful. Thank you for all you do to support nbCC!
The 2016/17 Friends of the Coalition (as of March 2017)
Kathy & Morgan KiersteadThomas LeonesioRichard Lescarbeau & Mary SugdenLorraine MaloneyJean MarraWilliam & Ann McLaren Kayte MillerRobert & Janice MoresiRaymond & Jeanne MoulthropRichard NetherwoodAnthony & Augusta NicastroPhilip OuimetRoberta Patten Daniel Perreault & Joyce O’BrienStephanie QuettiFranklin Risatti Joseph & Janet RoggeBarbara RondeauRon SheldonRichard TaskinGary & Sandra TatroKurt TauberHenry & Norma TomkowiczGracie VincentJames WolfeMarcia Wright Francis & Janet ZappulaSusan Zoltek
2017--------------------------------------
BoosterLinda Conway & Bridge Group Ann ScottHerb Wilkinson
AssociateAlison & James KolesarBernice ShainmanJudith SummersBrenda Thomas
SupporterJane CampbellDan Dillon
Thank You!
NorthernBerkshireCommunityCoalition,61MainStreet,Suite218,NorthAdamsMA01247•(413)663-7588•www.nbccoalition.org 7
March 2017Improving the quality of life for people in Northern Berkshire by organizing, supporting, and empowering the community.
Coalition Calendar
Friday, Mar. 17, 10:00 a.m.
No. Berk. Interfaith Action Initiative
The Northern Berkshire Interfaith Action Initiative (NBIAI) meets the third Friday of each month at 10 a.m. at the N. Adams First Baptist Church. All people of goodwill are welcome to participate. NBIAI is a group of people of faith working to-gether with others of goodwill to find ways to serve our community. For more info, contact Mark Rondeau at [email protected].
Forum Date Change!Friday, Mar. 24, 5:30p.m. MCLA Science Center,
Rm. 121
Monthly ForumJoinusforthismonth’sforumofthe nbCC where the community gathers together to discuss impor-tant issues facing its residents. See page 2 for more details.
Find us, then like us!
Go to www.facebook.com and search for
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
or enter http://on.fb.me/nBnbVo
in your browser.
See what we’re up to!
Improving the quality of life for people in Northern Berkshire by organizing, supporting, and empowering the community.
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
61 Main Street, Suite 218, North Adams, MA 01247(413) 663-7588
Find us, then like us!
Go to www.facebook.com and search for
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
or enter http://on.fb.me/nBnbVo
in your browser.
See what we’re up to!
Improving the quality of life for people in Northern Berkshire by organizing, supporting, and empowering the community.
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition
61 Main Street, Suite 218, North Adams, MA 01247(413) 663-7588
Weds., Mar. 8, 12:00 p.m.
N. Berkshire Youth Collaborative
We strongly encourage any North County based youth serving agen-cies or programs to join us monthly to discuss solutions to issues and problems facing our youth. To get on the group’s e-mail list, contact Tim Shiebler at [email protected].
30celebrating
community
Tuesday, Mar. 7 10:00 am - 11:30 am
nbCC Conference Room
Rx/Heroin Work GroupThis diverse group includes com-munity leaders, medical and mental health professionals, first respond-ers, people in active recovery, and family members who have suffered from the substance abuse disorders of loved ones. To learn more about this issue or to become part of the work group, contact Wendy Penner at [email protected].
Starting March 13Sweetwood Retirement Comm. 1611 Cold Spring. Rd. Wmst
10:00a.m.
Matter of BalanceThese are older adult falls preven-tionclasses.ParticipationisFREE.Runs every Monday and Wednes-day. For more information or to register please call 664-5057.
Save the Date!Sat., Apr. 1
9:00am-1:00pmAmerican Legion
North Adams Winter Farmers Market
Debit/CreditCard/EBTaccepted.SNAP Dollars will be doubled! Contact 413-664-6180 or [email protected] for more info.
Visithttp://www.nbccoalition.org/calendar.html
for our complete calendar listings.
Mar. 14, 5:00p.m.UNO Community Center
Unlock the Mystery of KIMCHI
If you are interested in kimchi, here is a great way learn how to make it in a fun social setting and walk away with a free jar for youtosampleathome!Joinusfor a FREEFermentedFoodsWork-shop. Registration is required. Call Bret Beattie at (413) 663-7588.
p Congratulations to Shirley Davis and Bri Rousseau, winners of our Community Pride Challenge! Thanks for making our community a better place, you are #namazing!
NBIAI Update for MarchThe next meeting of the Northern Berkshire Interfaith Action Initiative will be held on Friday, March 17, at 10 a.m. at the First Baptist Church of North Adams.
OurfirstguestwillbeMichelleSylvester,ofMildredElley-Pittsfield Campus. (Due to illness she couldn’t attend the Febru-ary meeting, as originally scheduled) We also hope to continue and update in some form our December discussion on the impact of the new administration on local social services, interfaith rela-tions,andmore.Allarewelcometothemeeting.PleaseuseEagleStreet entrance.
In other news, the Friendship Center Food Pantry is now six years old and going strong. After reaching peak usage in 2014, our number of average weekly visits have declined somewhat. We conjecture this is partly due to an improved economy and partly due to a declining population in North Adams.
Within the past year we have begun giving out diapers to eli-gible families, due to assistance from the Berkshire Diaper Project and All Saints Church. Our rides home program, conducted by volunteer drivers and “co-pilots”, gave an amazing total of 1,312 rides in 2016 to our food pantry friends. At $7 per ride, if we used a local taxi company, this number of rides would have cost $9,184 -- an unsustainable amount.
For more information on the meeting, and some of the latest news about the Friendship Center Food Pantry, visit http://northernberkshireinterfaith.blogspot.com/ or call Mark at 413-664-0130. -Mark Rondeau
Looking to quit using tobacco, would you like the support of a group? There are Free tobacco group quit classes Thursday’s @ 11:00 a.m. April 13th – May 11th North Adams Campus of BMC in the Neighbor-hood for Health 2nd floor. To register call
U.S. Postage PaidNon-Profit Org.
Permit #35North Adams, MA
01247
PLEASE NOTE DATE, TIME
AND LOCATION CHANGE!
Join us for our monthly forum
Friday, March 24 from 5:30 to 7:30pm at
the MCLA Science Center, Room 121.
“Stress, Anxiety and School”
a forum led by our YLP Teens
See page 2 for date, time, and location.
Coalition Staff
nbCC is supported by:
Northern Berkshire Community Coalition61 Main Street, Suite 218, North Adams, MA 01247
A Note from the Director. . .
Find this newsletter online atwww.nbccoalition.org
Executive Director Amber Besaw: [email protected]
Business & Administrative StaffLiz Boland: [email protected]
Communications CoordinatorBert Lamb: [email protected]
Prevention and WellnessWendy Penner: [email protected] Bernstein: [email protected]
UNITYTim Shiebler: [email protected]
Carrisa Sacherski: [email protected]
Northern Berkshire NeighborsGlenda Matos-Carter: [email protected] Pawlowski: [email protected]
The Family PlaceChris Griffin: [email protected]
JazmyneJoy:[email protected] Senecal: [email protected]
Mass In Motion/Community Health WorkAmanda Chilson: [email protected]
Bret Beattie: [email protected]
The youth involved with the Youth Leadership Program here at the Coalition, work hard each year to bring our community the opportunity to hear their voice and listen to what they feel is most important for adults to know about the youth in our community. This is an invaluable opportunity and, I feel, is something that we cannot afford to miss. Please save the date, know the time, and be there to hear what our youth have to say!
-Amber Besaw
Please join us for our annual youth-led March forum!
5:30 – 7:30pmat the
MCLA Science CenterRm 121
See you there!