Today we’ve got two stories from the week and a recommendation to watch a special interview.

Subscribe now

ICYMI, here are our two stories from the past week.

First, we profiled the 3rd and 4th generation in Housatonic’s plumbing family, the Brazie’s.

Second, our peek inside Lila Berle’s lamb farm, thanks to contributor Hannah Van Sickle, was poignantly and accidentally timely, as Ms. Berle passed away this week at 89.

Read more

Happy Wednesday!

Today I’ve got two internal items to share and two new stories up for you, one a profile of a 4th generation Houstonic family business, and Hannah Van Sickle takes us inside Lila’s Mountain Farm for lambing season.

First…..

Subscribe now

THE VILLAGE GREEN IS HIRING!

Share THIS JOB DESCRIPTION for a Social Media Associate with your social media-savvy young people.

OUR 1ST LIVE EVENT IS APRIL 22: INFORMATIONAL PANEL ABOUT THE GREAT BARRINGTON TOWN WARRANT

Sheela Clary will moderate a free information session for people who would like to learn about the key town warrant items and get questions answered before town meeting.

BARRINGTON HALL (THE OLD CRISSEY FARM)

6:30 PM - 8 PM

FREE

Panelists are Michael Wise, Sara Parker and Bill Cooke, speaking on their own behalf and not representing any committee or entity.

Please RSVP here to this event if you know you’ll be attending so we can get a headcount, and share this opportunity with your friends and neighbo…

Read more

Thank you for being here. If you appreciate this new news outlet for South Berkshire County, please share it with your people and encourage them to subscribe, subscribe, subscribe!

Subscribe now

Our week in review is below, but first,

Happy Easter and Passover to celebrants, and in honor of the holidays we’re sharing some wise words from the sermons of two local clergy.

As a society, as a whole world, we’re off the map, embarking into new realms that have only barely relevant prologues. When it comes to technology, when it comes ecology, when it comes to human physiology, when it comes to human reproduction, we’re off the map. Whatever has been in history as regards almost every aspect of our lives comes to nearly nothing as we embark into what’s new and what largely we’ve made.

For all this, I think we suffer what’s come to called future shock. This is a phrase Neil Postman first used…

Read more

Subscribe now

1) National chain Chick-Fil-A is coming to Great Barrington, according to sources familiar with the plans.

2) Tickets for Shire Stories’ next event are on sale now!

“Rescue” will be the theme at Barrington Hall on April 28th!

Get your $5 tickets today.

This is a put-your-name-in-the-hat event, with the first 10 names pulled telling a five-minute story of rescue.

3) Contributor Robbi Hartt takes us inside a new community tradition in New Marlborough, the Second Sunday Potluck.

Read more

Subscribe now

Given the square footage constraints of the site, the outlet will operate as a drive-thru-only location. Groundbreaking is expected in early May, with a projected opening date of November 12, 2026.

In its announcement, Chick-fil-A’s Northeast regional development director called Great Barrington “a natural fit” for the brand, citing seasonal visitor volume, proximity to Tanglewood and other cultural destinations, and what he described as “a community that shares our commitment to quality, hospitality, and purpose-driven dining solutions.”

In an even more surprising development, the chain will not be going it alone.

Josh Irwin, owner…

Read more

Hello and welcome to week 2 from The Village Green!

Thank you for joining, and please share, share, share with your networks.

Subscribe now

In Village Green news, we are going to go to a twice-monthly publishing schedule for our podcast From the Gazebo, so stay tuned for lots more from Erik Bruun and me, along with guests!

We have our first live event coming up on April 22 at Barrington Hall, an informational panel discussion of the town warrant for Great Barrington. More information coming on this event in the next week.

Also at Barrington Hall, please..

SAVE THE DATE FOR RESCUE, AN UNFILTERED STORY SLAM ON APRIL 28TH!

Tickets available soon from Barrington Hall.

Please reach out to 413villagegreen@gmail.com with ideas, especially locally relevant contributions to our news and opinion output. We’re looking to expand our coverage.

Read more

BERKSHIRE HILLS REGIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT

2025 AP TEST RESULTS FOR MONUMENT MOUNTAIN HIGH SCHOOL PLACE IT 12TH IN THE STATE

At the March 26th meeting of the Berkshire Hills Regional School District School Committee, Director of Teaching and Learning Colin Shebar presented AP results from 2025 — and he had very good news.

Monument Mountain Regional High School ranked 1st in the county and 12th on the statewide list for Advanced Placement achievement, with 95% of students earning a passing score of 3, 4, or 5.

Subscribe now

"It's just amazing how our students performed and how their teachers supported them in getting there," Shebar said. "Big congratulations. It's highlighting that we're doing great work. Especially as we have such tough conversations about the budget, it's always great to lift up our successes."

Read more

With Taconic High School in Pittsfield reporting a waitlist for fall enrollment, we’re republishing this piece on excellence in vocational education and why it matters — originally posted last summer on the Substack for the Center for Educational Progress.

The post-World War II economic boom was the heyday for vocational education. Commonly associated with shop class, voc-ed, now rebranded “career and technical education” (CTE), involves training for careers in the skilled trades as opposed to academic preparation for a four-year college. In the 1950s and 60s, voc-ed enjoyed high participation rates among students, huge demand for skilled workers, bipartisan political support, and training partnerships with labor unions. It also benefited from the widespread cultural acceptance of a non-college pathway to middle-class life. A factory job was a good job, and “good…

Read more

It has been a busy 72 hours since officially launching The Village Green, and I wanted to share a quick update on our progress.

Since launching, 194 of you have signed up to join and 10% of you have stepped up as paid subscribers.

Seems there’s a hunger for hyperlocal coverage! Thank you for proving that local, independent journalism matters here.

Here’s a mid-week digest.

Subscribe now

A Note to Our Readers: If you find these updates valuable, please consider forwarding this to a neighbor and upgrading to a paid subscription. Your support ensures that we will continue to expand and improve our coverage and pay our contributors.

MASON LIBRARY HOLDING FREE TECH HOUR

Jimmy Hall Sr. is an AmeriCorps volunteer whose new title, as of November, is Digital Navigator. Grant funding for his work is through the Massachusetts Broadband Institute at the MassTech Collaborative under the Municipal Digital Equity Implementation Program, through Massachusetts ARPA State Fiscal Recovery Funds. Hal…

Read more

Subscribe now

(Reader Contest: Business or nonpprofit shoutout of your choice in next week’s digest to the first reader who can correctly identify the stretch of South Berkshire County road shown in the above photo. Leave guesses in the comments.)

Welcome!

The Village Green is an independent news publication based in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. We dig deeper than the headlines, embrace complexity, and write for everyone who calls this place home.

Fresh takes. Deep roots.

*

As we launch, we will be publishing 2-4 original stories per week along with a monthly podcast called “From the Gazebo” and reposts — called Pass It On — from other outlets.

We’ll also be hosting periodic live events, with the first on April 22nd at Barrington Hall.

This is a FREE informational panel for Great Barrington residents to discuss the upcoming Town Warrant with Town Moderator Michael Wise, Housatonic Improvement Committee Chair Sara Parker, Finance Committee member Milena Cerna, and Selectman Ben…

Read more

HOUSATONIC:

Berkshire Grown’s Winter Farmers Market brought out the crowds to the Housy Dome on Saturday, March 21.

Read more