North Adams Public Schools -

Upcoming programming at the North Adams Public Library.

Congrats to all who were sworn in over the weekend, including the Mayor, City Councilors, and School Committee Members, Cody Chamberlain, Tara Jacobs, and Alyssa Tomkowicz! Thanks for all you do to serve our community. North Adams Public Schools looks forward to working with all of you!

This afternoon, Drury High School hosted Crew Olympics. There were flags and fun had by all!

Colegrove's having fun during Spirit Week! They even had a special visit from JiJi and an elf!

Colegrove staff partnered with their PTG to host their annual Winter Fest last night. Here are some photos of their band and chorus students performing at the event. Thanks to everyone who participated! A good time was had by all!

Food and meal resources: The Food Bank of Western MA has a SNAP Outreach team and they help with applications: https://www.foodbankwma.org/get-help/snap-outreach-enrollment/. To reach the enrollment team by phone at (413) 992-6204. SNAP outreach flyer: https://www.mass.gov/doc/snap-outreach-flyer-english/download HIP outreach flyer https://www.mass.gov/doc/english-healthy-incentives-program-hip-flyer/download CHP operates a Food For All program offering bags of groceries for their clients. Here is the link to the resources countywide: https://chpberkshires.org/family/food-for-all/. In partnership with Berkshire Grown and the Mass. Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR), CHP operates a mobile farm stand, which travels to CHP practice locations each week loaded with food grown by local farmers. Patients and clients are welcome to stop in on pickup days and grab a bag filled with produce from local Berkshire farmers who participate in the MDAR program. For North Adams: 2nd and 4th Mondays of the month | 1-2:30 PM CHP North Adams Family Medical and Dental 71 Hospital Avenue, North Adams Link to Food Pantries and Meal Sites in Berkshire County: https://5il.co/2aw0c

North Adams Mobile Food Bank Friday, 12/15 11am to noon Brien Center Parking Lot (American Legion Drive). Please note that parking is limited at the American Legion. If the lot is at capacity, please come back and see us anytime before noon. In the event of inclement weather, we will send out updates through social media. The Food Bank also has a line that people can call to check on the status of the mobiles 413-419-0079. The community is also invited to join Berkshire Food Project for their holiday meal on Wednesday, December 20 from 11:30 – 2 at the Berkshire Food Project, 134 Main St (entrance on Summer St). They will be serving turkey, ham, plenty of sides and holiday cookies. All are welcome for a no-cost meal and holiday cheer!

2024 Western Mass Family Leadership Series The series is for family caregivers who are interested in learning about leadership and advocacy, creating a vision, policy making, and self-care, as well as being a networking opportunity. See flyer for details.

Brayton Elementary School Book Fair December 11 - 15 This year's Book Fair at Bryton Elementary School is going to be epic! More Books. More Choices. More Fun. Start exploring together on our school's Book Fair homepage!

2024 Williams College Winter Basketball Clinic through Special Olympics MA Basketball clinic for athletes ages 5 through 18 at Williams College. Both Traditional Athletes and Unified Partners are welcome! A traditional athlete is an individual diagnosed with an intellectual disability. A Unified Partner is an individual not diagnosed with an intellectual disability. The program will run on Sunday mornings from 11 am to 12:30 pm in the Chandler Gymnasium on the following dates: January 7th, January 14th and January 21st. Register here: https://www.specialolympicsma.org/play-sports/find-sports-programs-near-you?*=williams If you do not receive a confirmation email after registering, please contact Ops@SpecialOlympicsMA.org

Upcoming programming by the Family Center

Housing Resource & Rental Assistance guides from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development English: https://5il.co/2adqh Spanish: https://5il.co/2adqg Chinese (simplifies): https://5il.co/2adqf

"Lights of the Future" LumiNAMA Created and curated by Drury High School, Foundations of Art students Art students in grades 9-12 created slab-rolled clay luminaries carved with simple images of a few of their favorite things. We are honored to be a part of this event and learned about the application process for art shows, creating slab ceramics, curating and installing art. We encourage everyone to view the wonderful window exhibits as part of LumiNAMA and vote for their favorites at https://www.luminama.com/voting!

College Meet and Greet with Williams College and Berkshire Community College Saturday, December 9th, 1 – 2:30 pm Berkshire Athenaeum Attendees will learn what each school has to offer and how to start applying. Michael Byrns, Admission Counselor at Williams College, will provide some insight on how to write a successful college essay and how to think about the storytelling components of the college application. No registration required. Prospective students and their families are welcome! Email vanessa@pittsfieldlibrary.org with questions.

Make your voice heard: Family Volunteers Needed! Join our district Family Leadership Team (FLT) 1. Offer input on district initiatives 2. Discuss topics such as home visiting, attendance processes, and communication protocols Interested? Email familysupports@napsk12.org or call 413-412-1106. Looking forward to you joining us!

Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (dcr) is hosting an Adaptive Skating Games event on 1/4, 2/15, and 3/14 from 11:30 am - 1:00 pm at the Vietnam Veterans Skating Rink. Registration is required. See flyer for details.

Pamela Schwartz, Western MA Network to End Homelessness, shared the attached flyers below that summarize the available resources through the Emergency Assistance program for family shelter. English: https://5il.co/29ph2 Spanish: https://5il.co/29ph3 Haitian Creole: https://5il.co/29ph4 Additional Resources Applying for EA Shelter: https://www.mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-ea-emergency-family-shelter DESE Guidance on Supporting Homeless Students During the State of Emergency (8/24/23) Emergency Shelter Fact Sheet & FAQ (September 2023) MA Emergency Assistance Family Shelter Resources and Data

Free Family Skate Day Hosted by nbCC See flyer for details.

The next Safe Neighborhoods event will be at Greylock Elementary on November 29th from 5-7 pm. 5-5:30 pm Dinner (pizza!) 5:30-6:30 pm Talk Saves Lives presentation by Annie Pecor and Linda Wooten, Berkshire Coaltion for Suicide Prevention For kids: basketball with SRO Mirante from 5:30-7pm Events are open to all! *The last event in the series will be on Dec. 6th at Colegrove Elementary with a presentation by the North Adams Fire Department Fire Safety Education team.

This Gratitude Tree was developed for students and staff at Brayton Elementary School to help them remember what they are thankful for this Thanksgiving Season. As part of social-emotional learning, students helped cut and paste leaves on the tree and together, made this beautiful display. A special thanks to the students, faculty, and staff who made this happen!