PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Wally was hoisted from his Berkshire Museum home and onto a flatbed Friday morning to take a trip to his birthplace in New York for some freshening up.
The 1,200-pound Stegosaurus sculpture is a favorite feature of the local museum and has stood guard near its entrance since 1997. Created by Louis Paul Jonas Studios in Hudson, N.Y., Wally spent his first 30 years at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Cleveland commissioned a twin, "Steggie II," to take his place from the original casts.
Wearing a mask just in case, the fiberglass Wally was carefully lifted by Berkshire Crane and Logistics onto a trailer for the 40-mile trek back to the Hudson studio for some much-needed repairs of his 50-year-old body. He's expected to stay in quarantine for most of the summer before returning to the museum in the fall.
A number of people — keeping careful social distancing — took pictures or watched from their cars on the cold, rainy morning.
The museum posted Wally's journey on its Facebook page so people could catch a glimpse of him driving by. Banners that read "Thank you for doing your part to make COVID-19 extinct" were attached to both sides of his 26-foot-long body.
"We hope that catching a glimpse of Wally in the wild provides a brief respite for everyone who comes out to see him. It’s not every day that a Stegosaurus roams the Berkshires," Executive Director Jeff Rodgers wrote in announcing the trip. "Wally will be missed, but we are happy he will be receiving a much-needed restoration so that our community can enjoy him for many years to come."
Wally is only the second sculpture made from the mold created for the Sinclair Dinoland pavilion at the New York World's Fair in 1964-1965. Dinoland was sponsored by the Sinclair Oil Corp., known for its green brontosaurus logo. Jonas is known for his work on natural history exhibits and worked with paleontologists to craft the Dinoland sculptures that later ended up in museums around the country. Another of Wally's brothers is at the Quarry Visitor Center in Dinosaur National Monument in Utah.
When he arrived in Pittsfield in 1997, a contest was held to name him. The museum chose Levi Bissell's suggestion of Wally because of the Stegosaurus' walnut-sized brain.
This is Wally's second return to the Jonas studio, where he was reconditioned in 1997 before being placed on the museum's front lawn on South Street. The museum is currently closed to the public during the novel coronavirus pandemic but hopes to reopen in May.
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Berkshire United Way to Massachusetts: Early-Learning Educators Need Better Wages
By Katherine von Haefen Guest Column
As reported in iBerkshires, state education officials met with Western Massachusetts childcare and early education advocates at Berkshire Community College recently. I had the opportunity to share the following testimony on behalf of Berkshire United Way and our community partners.
Early childhood education provides tremendous benefits to our region. High-quality child care dramatically influences brain development and the future health and success for children in school and life, as well as provides a safe and secure space for our youngest community members so their parents or caregivers can work and provide for their families.
Berkshire United Way has invested in improving early childhood development opportunities in the Berkshires for decades. We fund high-quality nonprofit child-care centers that provide slots for income-constrained families. We also support the sector by co-hosting monthly child-care director meetings to work on shared challenges and collectively propose solutions. We advocate for early childhood education and have a great partner in this work, state Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier.
Staffing is a key component of high-quality care. The research shows that skilled and consistent educators in a classroom create long-lasting change for children. However, wages are stagnant and frequently do not provide educators with basic financial stability. We often hear that educators have left the field because they are unable to make their finances work. Wages need to improve to better reflect the expertise and indelible impact teachers have in the field.
When we look specifically at our region, our data is concerning.
As Berkshire County emerges from the pandemic, we are struggling with transportation, affordable housing and lack of mental health resources, much like the rest of the state. We are also seeing a rise in economically challenged households.
After nearly 10 years of decline, Berkshire County has experienced a significant jump in income inequality, now exceeding the state and national trends and far above comparable counties, according to the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission. Over half of our population are "economically challenged," meaning they are working but struggling to make ends meet. A single parent with a school-aged child needs between $70,000 and $80,000 in income and public benefits just to meet their basic needs.
A large limb from a 32-foot sugar maple in the park fell next to the fountain area over the weekend. Caution tape and traffic barrels now surround the aftermath.
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The last estimate for construction was overly optimistic because, at the time, it was unclear how long obtaining the two easements would take, Town Manager Thomas Hutcheson said.
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Full cost estimates have not been completed but based on recent repairs made to the Clapp Park splash pad, it is estimated to cost between $350,000 and $450,000.
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King Kone had a soft opening at the end of the week, offering the frozen treats on a "pay what you will" basis while employees perfected the craft.
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