Top 10 Beacon moments
If you know me well, you know there’s nothing I love more than a good list.
To mark the end of my (nearly) two years at The Berkshire Beacon, I’ve made a list of my top 10 Beacon-related moments:
10. Tanglewood, 2012-2013: Sprawling out on the lawn at Tanglewood is an integral part of living in The Berkshires during the summer. My first Tanglewood concert was James Taylor’s Independence Day performance last year, and it was certainly memorable.
9. Lenox Public Schools strategic planning process, 2013: In the course of my time here, I regularly attended school committee meetings for six of the county’s public school districts, including Lenox.
Sure, not every meeting is a compelling way to spend two (or three or four) hours of your time, but if you stick with it, you never know what you’ll pick up on at those meetings.
Early this year, the Lenox School Committee began its strategic planning process (and it continues through the next few months).
In regularly attending those school committee meetings, I paid specific attention to the mention of the strategic planning subcommittee’s work, eventually discovering some of the possible outcomes the district might pursue, including a merger with Lee (and/or other area schools/districts) and no longer participating in school choice.
8. Superintendent searches, spring 2013: Covering the superintendent search processes in Pittsfield, Lee and the Southern Berkshire Regional School District (SBRSD) may have been a bit tedious at times, but it was also fascinating to see how the candidates (four in the SBRSD, three in Pittsfield, two in Lee) responded to the different questions.
7. Berkshire International Film Festival (BIFF), May-June 2013: There can be definite perks to being a journalist, including getting in for free to events like this year’s BIFF.
Of particular note was the closing night screening of Frances Ha (which I loved), with writer-director Noah Baumbach and writer-actress Greta Gerwig in attendance to discuss the film.
6. Berkshire Movie Show, spring-summer 2013: For a few glorious months (before all three of us moved on to new jobs in new towns), Beacon reporter Bera Dunau, Berkshire Eagle reporter Adam Poulisse and I hit the airwaves on 104.3 FM, the Berkshire Talking Chronicle, to share our thoughts on the latest movies to hit theaters, rental kiosks and Netflix.
5. Wednesday evenings at the Heritage, 2012-2013: Most weeks, after we sent the paper off to the printer, Assistant Editor Kameron Spaulding, Bera and I found ourselves frequenting the Olde Heritage Tavern in Lenox.
In addition to partaking in some delicious food (cajun sweet potato fries for the win) and, yes, an alcoholic beverage or two, we would discuss the week’s stories and what was to come, including some off-the-record tidbits we’d gleaned throughout the week.
4. Interviewing Olympia Dukakis, July 2012: Interviewing Ms. Dukakis, as a fan of her work (especially Moonstruck) and someone who was looking with great anticipation to Shakespeare and Company’s production of The Tempest, was great.
Not only did she discuss tidbits of her life, she spoke of her connection to the work and previous adaptations of it. Much like my interview of Hitchcock blonde Tippi Hedren a year prior in St. Louis, it is an experience I won’t forget.
Regularly attending the opening night performances at S&Co. in general will definitely be one thing that sticks out in my mind about my time in The Berkshires.
3. New England Newspaper and Press Association (NENPA) conference in Boston, Feb. 2012: Having only been in The Berkshires for three months, it was a great bonding experience for me to have with my coworkers. Let’s just say what happens in Boston stays in Boston.
2. The great debate, Oct. 31, 2012: The Berkshire Beacon was the only paper to host a debate between William “Smitty” Pignatelli and Scott Laugenour.
It was moderated by Kameron, Bera served on the panel, and Beacon Editor and Publisher George C. Jordan III gave opening remarks. I covered it and was right there in the front row alongside the rest of the editorial staff. It was definitely a moment of pride.
1. The people, 2011-2013: More than any meeting or event or story in particular, I’ve enjoyed getting to know the people I’ve worked with, inside and outside of The Beacon.
To all my colleagues, sources and anyone who’s been reading my stories in the paper, thank you so much for helping to make these last two years such an interesting ride. I will never forget my time here.
Posted by Catherine M. Krummey
on August 1, 2013. Filed under Opinion.
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