NBCC Distributes Thousands of Resource Guides to North Berkshire

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The 2022 Edition of the Northern Berkshire Community Resource Guide (CRG) went to print and over 17,000 copies landed in mailboxes throughout north Berkshire County.

This mailing was possible thanks to a Rural Vaccine Equity Initiative grant from the Office of Rural Health through the Department of Public Health.

This free community resource guide offers contact information for local resources covering everything from food access and meal sites, education services, financial and family support, immigrant services, mental health and counseling services, in addition to dozens of others. The guide is updated digitally throughout the year and a new edition is published every other year. The 2022 edition includes a LBGTQIA+ Services and Support, as well as, a Vaccine Guide, both new to the CRG.

The CRG is free to the public. If you did not receive your copy in the mail, or you would like copies to distribute, printed copies of the guide can be obtained by calling our office at 413-663-7588, or by stopping by the office during regular office hours. 

A pdf version is available to download on the Coalition website, nbccoalition.org. This digital version can be found under "Resources" on the website. The 2020 Spanish version of the CRG is also available for download under the resources page. The printed 2022 Spanish edition will be ready this fall.

For more information, contact the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition at (413) 663-7588.

Cost, Access to NBCTC High Among Concerns North Berkshire Residents

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
06:15PM / Thursday, April 25, 2024

Adams Select Chair Christine Hoyt, NBCTC Executive Director David Fabiano and William Solomon, the attorney representing the four communities, talk after the session. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Public access channels should be supported and made more available to the public — and not be subject to a charge.

 

More than three dozen community members in-person and online attended the public hearing  Wednesday on public access and service from Spectrum/Charter Communications. The session at City Hall was held for residents in Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg and North Adams to express their concerns to Spectrum ahead of another 10-year contract that starts in October.

 

Listening via Zoom but not speaking was Jennifer Young, director state government affairs at Charter.

 

One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly. 

 

"I don't know if everybody else feels the same way but they have a monopoly," said Clarksburg resident David Emery. "They control everything we do because there's nobody else to go to. You're stuck with with them."

 

Public access television, like the 30-year-old Northern Berkshire Community Television, is funded by cable television companies through franchise fees, member fees, grants and contributions.

 

Spectrum is the only cable provider in the region and while residents can shift to satellite providers or streaming, Northern Berkshire Community Television is not available on those alternatives and they may not be easy for some to navigate. For instance, the Spectrum app is available on smart televisions but it doesn't include PEG, the public, educational and governmental channels provided by NBCTC.