Cornwall creates fund for hurricane victims in Asheville

CORNWALL — In response Hurricane Helene’s destruction in and around Asheville, North Carolina, Cornwall’s Transfer Station crew has created a fundraising effort.

Crewmember Will Berry proposed the idea to the Board of Selectmen at a meeting Oct. 15. He said the victims need assistance in the areas of food, water, shelter and clothing, but the most effective way to help is to send money.

He identified a grassroots organization called Beloved Asheville that had made a significant impact on those affected. Through a network of volunteers and host families in the area, support is provided on the ground to those who need it most.

BOS got on board with the initiative and offered to help organize and distribute the donations.

First Selectman Gordon Ridgway suggested kick-starting the fund with $1,000 from the town’s Can and Bottle Fund. The motion passed unanimously.

Donations will be collected at Town Hall and the Transfer Station. Checks should be made out to the Town of Cornwall with “Aid to Asheville” in the memo.

Donors will be acknowledged for their contribution. Call the Selectmen’s Office at (860) 672-4959 for more information.

Knotweed

Japanese knotweed has been found growing at the Transfer Station. A roughly 300-foot patch is located at the site of the old land fill, and further back is another growth of approximately the same size.

“It’s a pretty nasty weed that spreads easily and grows fast,” said Berry. “We really have to be aggressive with it for about two years.”

Berry proposed treating the knotweed with Glyphosate herbicide and cutting the stalks until it is eradicated. BOS voted to approve the treatment plan.

Equipment needed for the work includes a spot sprayer ($149), 2.5 gallons of 41% Glyphosate ($75) and protective gear ($100).

Berry will renew his herbicide/pesticide applicator license this winter. The spraying is expected to begin next June.

Latest News

All are welcome at The Mahaiwe

Paquito D’Rivera performs at the Mahaiwe in Great Barrington on April 5.

Geandy Pavon

Natalia Bernal is the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center’s education and community engagement manager and is, in her own words, “the one who makes sure that Mahaiwe events are accessible to all.”

The Mahaiwe’s community engagement program is rooted in the belief that the performing arts should be for everyone. “We are committed to establishing and growing partnerships with neighboring community and arts organizations to develop pathways for overcoming social and practical barriers,” Bernal explained. “Immigrants, people of color, communities with low income, those who have traditionally been underserved in the performing arts, should feel welcomed at the Mahaiwe.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Living with the things you love:
a conversation with Mary Randolph Carter
Mary Randolph Carter teaches us to surround ourselves with what matters to live happily ever after.
Carter Berg

There is magic in a home filled with the things we love, and Mary Randolph Carter, affectionately known as “Carter,” has spent a lifetime embracing that magic. Her latest book, “Live with the Things You Love … and You’ll Live Happily Ever After,” is about storytelling, joy, and honoring life’s poetry through the objects we keep.

“This is my tenth book,” Carter said. “At the root of each is my love of collecting, the thrill of the hunt, and living surrounded by things that conjure up family, friends, and memories.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Beloved classic film ‘The Red Shoes’ comes to the big screen for Triplex benefit
Provided

On Saturday, April 5, at 3 p.m., The Triplex Cinema in Great Barrington and Jacob’s Pillow, the dance festival in Becket, Massachusetts, are presenting a special benefit screening of the cinematic masterpiece, “The Red Shoes,” followed by a discussion and Q&A. Featuring guest speakers Norton Owen, director of preservation at Jacob’s Pillow, and dance historian Lynn Garafola, the event is a fundraiser for The Triplex.

“We’re pitching in, as it were, because we like to help our neighbors,” said Norton. “They (The Triplex) approached us with the idea, wanting some input if they were going to do a dance film. I thought of Lynn as the perfect person also to include in this because of her knowledge of The Ballets Russes and the book that she wrote about Diaghilev. There is so much in this film, even though it’s fictional, that derives from the Ballets Russes.” Garafola, the leading expert on the Ballets Russes under Serge Diaghilev, 1909–1929, the most influential company in twentieth-century theatrical dance, said, “We see glimpses of that Russian émigré tradition, performances we don’t see much of today. The film captures the artifice of ballet, from the behind-the-scenes world of dressers and conductors to the sheer passion of the audience.”

Keep ReadingShow less