1Berkshire Awarded FY25 Regional Economic Development Organization Grant

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — 1Berkshire announced that it is the recipient of a $210,000 Regional Economic Development Organization (REDO) grant from the Massachusetts Office of Business Development through the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Economic Development.
 
This grant will directly support the ongoing capacity of 1Berkshire, allowing it to provide a breadth of free resources, opportunities, and support for businesses "from the spark of an idea, to passing the torch." 
 
The annual REDO grant is a competitive program that the 11 legislatively-designated REDO agencies across the Commonwealth are eligible to apply for. The $210,000 awarded to 1Berkshire this year represents the second-largest award of all eligible awardees. 
 
Included among the programs and resources made possible by this vital support are: 
  • Providing 150-200 one-on-one business consultations each year that provide tailored support and guidance to entrepreneurs and businesses at every stage in their development.
  • Ongoing implementation and stewardship of the Berkshire Blueprint 2.0, the region's 10-year sustained economic development imperative. Including working with all six of the primary economic clusters, addressing housing, workforce, transportation, technology access, and other cross-cutting issues, and further cultivating a strong business and entrepreneurial support ecosystem.
  • Organizing high-impact site visits that convene local, state, federal, and private-sector partners to address and catalyze around critical projects and opportunities.
  • Collaboration capacity to work with key regional efforts and programs such as EforAll Berkshire County, Berkshire Funding Focus, the Berkshire Tech Impact Collaborative, and the Berkshire Brownfields Committee.
  • Specific tactical support to municipalities seeking guidance and resources to support development, businesses, and ecosystem-building efforts.
  • Coordination and conducting of technical assistance cohorts to provide strategic and impactful support directly to businesses, organizations, and individuals to help them start, grow, and sustain their businesses.
  • Development, launch, and operation of programs and collaborations such as Entrepreneurial Meetups, the Berkshire Immigrant Entrepreneur Support Program, the Business Succession and Transition Program, and the Berkshire Economic Recovery Program.
  • Convening and management of the Berkshire Economic Development Practitioners Group to maintain strong collaborations, collective action, and ongoing shared information and awareness with regional and state partners. 
  • Maintenance, enhancement, and promotion of the jobs thing as a critical pipeline for workforce retention and recruitment for Berkshire County employers and job seekers.
  • Management and leveraging of a regional clearinghouse of available commercial development sites to help potential businesses and industries identify, vet, and start, expand or relocate in the region.
"The capacity that the REDO grant provides us will continue to ensure that we can sustain our diverse portfolio of current offerings and resources, and allows us to remain agile and adaptive to the needs of the business community and economic ecosystem of the Berkshires," said Ben Lamb, 1Berkshire Vice President of Economic Development. 
 

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Companion Corner: Cali and Kyzer at The Berkshire Humane Society

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There's a bonded dog pair awaiting a new family at the Berkshire Humane Society.

Kyzer and Cali are both poodles. Kyzer is the male and is 7 years old, a quite a bit bigger than his sister Cali, who is a miniature of Kyzer and 8 years old.

Canine adoption counselor Rhonda Cyr introduced us to the two.

"They came from a household that couldn't hold on to them, and it sounds like they may have been abandoned by their previous owner with somebody else, and so they came to us looking for a new home," she said.

The two love to be around you and snuggle. But both are very happy dogs.

"Kyzer is 7 years old, and his personality is that he kind of wants to be in everything. He's very loving, very snuggly, as you can tell. And Callie here, she's 8 years old, and she is kind of like the life of the party," said Cyr. "She wants to tell you everything about her day, and she's a little bit of a little ham."

The two are considered seniors and really like soft treats as Cali just had a few teeth removed and Kyzer has a tooth procedure coming up.

"Currently, they really like soft treats, because they are both on the senior side of things. So they have had some dental work, so they are really in need of something softer. They are not big chewers at this age, really, their main focus right now is just really socializing and cuddling," Cyr said.

The two would love a quiet home with someone who wants to snuggle. They shouldn't go to a home with bigger dogs but if you have a dog, you can bring them in for a visitation with the poodles to see if they will get along. Cats will be fine and the preference is for older and more responsible children so that the pups don't get hurt, as they are senior citizens.

"The perfect home for them would be a quiet home that's not too active. Like I said, they're very social, so they could handle some visitors," she said. "They're very friendly, but I don't think that they would really enjoy any other dogs in the home."

Poodles need to be regularly groomed, and the prospective adopter will have to keep an eye on their health. Kyzer has a heart murmur that needs to be monitored. This doesn't mean he is in bad health, as he could live a perfectly normal life, but he will need to be checked by a veterinary specialist routinely.

"Ideally, he would go to a home that could provide further health care with a specialist in cardiac care. And you know, he could very well live out the rest of his life comfortably and happy," Cyr said. "We just don't have all that information at the moment, but I think that you know the way he's going right now. He's got a good spirit, and he seems to be pretty happy."

The shelter is hoping the to get them a home for the holidays.

"We would love to get them a home in time for the holidays. They've been here since the eighth of November, and they're really, really looking as much as the staff loves them here, we're really looking to get them into a home and somewhere nice and cozy so they can spend the rest of their life together," she said.

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