Northern Berkshire Neighborlies Awarded

North Adams Police personnel were recognized for saving the life of woman who's airway was completely block by administering the Heimlich maneuver. See more photos here.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Northern Berkshire Neighbors program of the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition held its Spring Neighborlies Community Recognition Award Ceremony at Congregation Beth Israel on Wednesday, May 13.

Friends, family and many supporters gathered to honor and congratulate individuals and groups in the Northern Berkshire communities whose acts of kindness and volunteer efforts have made a significant difference in the lives of their neighbors and the community.

Northern Berkshire Community Coalition staff and Mayor Richard Alcombright presented Neighborlies to the following recipients:

Business/Agency Support: Bethany Dixon, BHS/BMC, Robert Campanile, Tammy Daniels, Berkshire Eagle, WUPE FM, Mike Garland, Jason and Elizabeth from Parlor Cafe, Tommy Rotolo, Dolores St. Pierre, Florida Baptist Church, Northern Berkshire Community Coalition, Walmart, Big Y, Stop and Shop, Wild Oats Market, Price Chopper, 1st Baptist Church, St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church, New Hope United Methodist Church, Mary Spitzer Center, Wild Stone Farm, Many Forks Farm, St. Johns Episcopal Church, Storey Publishing.

Community Health and Wellness: Officer Ben Austin, Nancy Bullett, Mike Deep, Wendy Dubis, MCLA Facilities Department, Jennifer Kimball, Mary Ann King, Gail Lacosse, Edward Lacosse, Jeremy Levesque, Paul Markland, Jen Munoz, Steve Rondeau, David Sacco, Jessica Sweeney, Colleen Taylor, Pat Tremblay, Jack and Susy Wadsworth, Bigs Waterman, Sergeant Jason Wood.

Healey, Driscoll Talk Transportation Funding, Municipal Empowerment

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
05:56PM / Friday, January 24, 2025

The governor talks about a transportation bond bill filed Friday and its benefits for cities and towns.

BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll were greeted with applause by municipal leaders on Friday as they touted $8 billion in transportation funding over the next decade and an additional $100 million in Chapter 90 road funds. 

 

Those were just a few of the initiatives to aid cities and towns, they said, and were based what they were hearing from local government

 

"We also proposed what, $2 1/2 billion the other day in higher education through investment in campuses across 29 communities statewide," the governor said. 

 

"Really excited about that and with those projects, by the way, as you're talking to people, you can remind them that that's 140,000 construction jobs in your communities."

 

The governor and Driscoll were speaking to the annual Massachusetts Municipal Association's conference. Branded as Connect 351, the gathering of appointed and elected municipal leaders heard from speakers, spoke with vendors in the trade show, attended workshops and held their annual business meeting this year at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

 

Healey and Driscoll followed a keynote address by Suneel Gupta, author, entrepreneur and host of television series "Business Class," on reducing stress and boosting energy, and welcomes from MMA Executive Director Adam Chapdelaine, outgoing MMA President and Waltham councilor John McLaughlin, and from Boston Mayor Michelle Wu via her chief of staff Tiffany Chu.

 

"We know that local communities are really the foundation of civic life, of democracy. We invented that here in Massachusetts, many, many years ago, and that continues to this day," said Healey. "It's something that we're proud of. We respect, and as state leaders, we respect the prerogative, the leadership, the economy, the responsibility of our local governments and those who lead them, so you'll always have champions in us."