Can drive going on now to benefit Red Cross of Berkshire County

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. – Now through the end of February, people all over Berkshire County are encouraged to collect recyclable cans and plastic bottles to benefit Services for the Armed Forces and Their Families at your American Red Cross of Berkshire County.

“The economy is tough right now,” said Kathleen Phillips, Executive Director of the Berkshire Red Cross, “and we wanted to find an easy way for people to help out that didn’t necessarily require them to reach for their wallets.”

Residents are asked to collect as many recyclable cans and plastic bottles as possible and then either:

· deliver them to your Red Cross Office at 480 West Street in Pittsfield or

· take them to a can and bottle processing center (at your local supermarket or beverage store) and then mail the receipt or the proceeds to your Red Cross Office at 480 West Street in Pittsfield, 01201with the name of the store written on the back of receipts.

“The neat thing about this promotion,” Phillips added, “is that recycling is great for the whole world and now it helps the Red Cross too.”

All proceeds support Services for the Armed Forces and Their Families at your American Red Cross of Berkshire County. For more details, please call (413) 442-1506.

The American Red Cross is where people mobilize to help their neighbors – across the street, across the country and across the world – in emergencies. The Red Cross helps thousands of U.S. service members separated from their families by military duty stay connected. Each year, in communities large and small, victims of some 70,000 disasters turn to neighbors familiar and new – the nearly 1 million volunteers and 35,000 employees of the Red Cross. Through almost 900 locally supported chapters, more than 15 million people gain the skills they need to prepare for and respond to emergencies in their homes, communities and world. Some 4 million people give blood – the gift of life - through the Red Cross, making it the largest supplier of blood and blood products in the United States. As part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, a global network of 181 national societies, the Red Cross helps restore hope and dignity to the world's most vulnerable people. An average of 91 cents of every dollar the Red Cross spends is invested in humanitarian services and programs. The Red Cross is not a government agency; it relies on donations of time, money, and blood to do its work. The American National Red Cross is headquartered in Washington, Gail J. McGovern is President and CEO, and Bonnie McElveen-Hunter is Chairman of the Board of Governors.
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Pittsfield Council Passes $232.7M Budget

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The City Council unanimously approved a $232.7 million budget for the upcoming fiscal year. 

It is a modest, almost 2.9 percent increase from FY26. 

"I do want to give the community kind of a heads up as we move forward on budgets. What we see coming out of the federal government that's trickling down to the states, it's going to be harder and harder for us as a community to meet our needs under the Proposition 2 1/2," Councilor at Large Alisa Costa said. 

"We're going to have challenges, as we've seen communities across the state trying to override the Proposition 2 1/2, because we have dwindling amounts of money coming from the state and federal government." 

She pointed out that, at the same time, utility bills are going up for both residents and the city, as are the costs of pavement and other items. 

The amended budget of $232,777,720, down from the $232,782,090 originally proposed, includes cuts to the Department of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and the restoration of funds for councilors to attend the annual Massachusetts Municipal Association conference. 

The Pittsfield Public Schools' $86,855,061 budget includes $68,886,061 in state Chapter 70 funding and $18 million from the city. With $345,000 in school choice and Richmond tuition revenues, it totals $87,200,061 and is an approximately $300,000 increase from the Pittsfield Public Schools' FY26 budget of $86.9 million. 

The district's budget will fund 13 schools, as Morningside Community School will retire in the fall, and includes the middle school restructuring. 

Councilors also approved the use of $2 million in certified free cash to reduce the tax rate, and appropriated $450,551 for parking-related expenditures. 

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