News
“Water, water everywhere”: Mass. program helps towns prepare for climate change
Over 20 municipal leaders from all over Western Mass attended an April 24 meeting with state environmental officials to discuss a state grant program that will help communities all over the Commonwealth to prepare for their unique climate change needs. Katie...
May 1 will be final Valley Gives Day as organizers shift to year-round strategy
Valley Gives Day, the day in which Pioneer Valley residents are encouraged to support local nonprofit organizations, will likely be happening for the last time on Tuesday, May 1. Springfield-based nonprofit Community Foundation of Western Mass has run the event since...
Valley made sex toys fill gaps in the market
Over the past 20 years, people have begun to care more and more about what goes into their bodies. Most think about this in terms of the food they eat, but for customers of Oh My Sensuality Shop in Northampton, the same can be said for sex toys. “Most companies have...
Editorial: Listening to people from ‘coal country’ our best chance to change minds
Smith College hosted a fascinating speaker earlier this month who addressed a topic that’s been on my mind for several months leading up to the 2018 midterms: communicating and collaborating with people in what’s called “Trump country.” Without their help, we’re all...
Letters to the editor: King Sarno overstepping his royal office
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our letters to the editor page. Here you’ll find reader comments on Advocate articles and other news. We collect readers’ opinions from emails, letters, Facebook comments, and comments to valleyadvocate.com. Want to get in on this? Email...
Father of Parkland shooting victim recalls son through art in Springfield
When the hammer first punched through the drywall people flinched. The crowd was silent as Manuel Oliver began to destroy parts of the art he had just created, mirroring the destruction of his son’s life in the Parkland, Florida, school shooting. Oliver, the father of...
Valley Advocate Readers’ Poll 2018 winners announced!
We are excited to announce the 2018 Valley Advocate Readers’ Poll winners! The categories and winners are available to view here. Thank you to all of our incredible local businesses, and of course to The Valley Advocate readers that vote! Congratulations! ...
Puerto Rican families living in Western Mass could lose housing after April 20
For the past four and a half months, Rosa Ortiz has been living with her 14-year-old son at hotels in West Springfield after her home of Toa Alta, Puerto Rico, was devastated by Hurricane Maria nearly seven months ago. But now, their temporary housing is in jeopardy...
Bizarro Briefs: No Singing Zone Ahead
Dutch residents formed a chorus of opposition to a newly installed “singing road” earlier this month, prompting the road to be shut down after only one day of use. Workers had installed strips that act like rumble strips on 490 feet of road near the village of Jelsum,...
Bank bails on Mass cannabis businesses
April 20 (4/20) can be an auspicious day for cannabis-related businesses. But this year, some of them will see their bank accounts abruptly closed. Citizens Bank, based in Providence, Rhode Island, informed an unknown number of customers with connections to the...
Western Mass Women’s Fund to honor Northampton Chief Jody Kasper
Northampton Police Chief Jody Kasper will be honored on June 4, 2018, with the She Changes the World award from the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts (WFWM). “We are excited to spotlight Chief Kasper as a leader who is breaking barriers and who serves as a great...
Massachusetts readies for legal fight over ‘Student Loan Bill of Rights’
State legislators hope to create a “Student Bill of Rights,” which passed in the state Senate on April 11 and aims at granting better protections for students in disputes with loan service companies. There’s one catch though: the federal government...
Springfield police union pickets Sarno following contract negotiation breakdowns
Sarno repeatedly calls himself a “law and order mayor,” but for Springfield’s police union president, his recent decision to leave the bargaining table speaks louder than his words. “The fair thing to say is that we judge people on how they treat us,” said Joseph...
Spring Arts Preview in Western Mass
When spring blooms burst forth, you’ll want to rove the Pioneer Valley looking for fantastic things to see and do. We’ve pulled together some of the best events happening in the area April through June. 4/14: Radically interconnected There’s a plethora of arts events...
UMass unions take contract demands to trustees
The University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees meet at UMass Amherst once a year, and this year, on April 6, they were met by union employees from all over the state demanding “respect and fair contracts.” “Our belts are as tight as they’re going to get,” said Eve...
Russian-born undocumented immigrant gets sanctuary in Northampton church amid supportive community
Irida Kakhtiranova faced discrimination in her home in the Ural region of Russia due to her same-sex relationship with the woman she loved. In 2003, she left to come to the United States. Fifteen years later, she is married to U.S born man and has three children, but...
Editorial: Find someone else to pick on, Mayor Sarno
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno spent the better part of the past two weeks railing against a Springfield church for offering sanctuary to an undocumented Peruvian woman and her two American children. Immigrant Gisella Collazo’s cause was taken up by the Pioneer...
Back Talk: Hurrah for ranked choice voting!
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our letters to the editor page. Here you’ll find reader comments on Advocate articles and other news. We collect readers’ opinions from emails, letters, Facebook comments, and comments to valleyadvocate.com. Want to get in on this? Email...
Wellness: PCOS, affecting fertility and appearance, quietly plagues many reproductive-age women
“I was the fat girl complaining about back pain,” said Becca Minardi, 24, of Longmeadow about the early symptoms of her polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). Diagnosed just six months ago, Minardi feels as though doctors didn’t take her seriously before her diagnosis....
Valley Advocate Podcast: Tahirah Amatul-Wadud discusses her historic candidacy for Congress
A woman, an African American, and a Muslim, Tahirah Amatul-Wadud’s candidacy for the First Congressional District of Massachusetts makes her a first for the district in a couple respects. But for her, the campaign is about representing interests of the people of...
Inspection of Springfield church offering sanctuary to undocumented woman finds building habitable
South Congregational Church in Springfield, which is offering sanctuary to an undocumented Peruvian woman and her two American-born children, has passed the minimum requirements for an inspection by the city with only minor violations. Mayor Domenic Sarno sent out an...
Bizarro Briefs: Dog Doesn’t Bite Man
In 2016, dogs bit human postal service workers a total of 156 times in Colorado. But that shouldn’t deter any prospective mail carriers. A recent study shows that the number went down in 2017 … to 132 times. Nationwide, the number of dog bites to postal...
Progress and backlash highlighted in Springfield MLK assassination 50th anniversary commemoration
On a rainy Wednesday afternoon in Springfield, NAACP president Bishop Talbert Swan, Mayor Domenic Sarno, a host of interfaith clergy, and a roomful of citizens gathered to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s April 3 “Mountaintop”...
Congressional challenger Amatul-Wadud says Neal’s seniority won’t help his district
Tahirah Amatul-Wadud, a Democratic primary challenger to longtime Congressman Richard Neal, is attacking her opponent from an unlikely angle — his seniority. Neal, a Springfield Democrat who has served in the House since 1989, would likely be appointed chairman of the...
Easthampton-based singer-songwriter Seth Glier takes home three Independent Music Awards
Easthampton-based folk pop multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter Seth Glier won three Independent Music Awards on March 31 during the 16th annual awards ceremony at Lincoln Center in New York City. Glier, an Emmy nominated musician, took home awards for best...
Holyoke Public School bus drivers irked over contract change
When Holyoke Public Schools (HPS) announced in March that they will be changing their special education transportation contract from minibuses to vans, Anna Gonzales was concerned for her son’s well-being. Gonzales, who lives in Holyoke, has three children who have...
Local anchor Dave Madsen says former boss Sinclair Broadcast Group has put its anchors in ‘horrible position’
Longtime broadcast journalist and news anchor Dave Madsen, of Western Mass News, is criticizing his former boss, Sinclair Broadcast Group, following its decision to require its anchors to read promos decrying “fake stories” from national news outlets, a...
Workers Center hoping to deliver 1,000 letters supporting undocumented immigrant Lucio Perez to ICE
The Pioneer Valley Workers Center plans to hand deliver 1,000 letters from Western Massachusetts residents in support of Lucio Perez, an undocumented immigrant receiving sanctuary in Amherst, to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office in Hartford on...
Northampton principal says accused peeping janitor passed background check
Following the arrest of a Northampton High School janitor on charges of taking photos of people in a girl’s bathroom, Principal Bryan Lombardi is defending the school’s hiring practices. Lombardi said there had been no way to screen out Michael J. Kremensky, 22, of...
Valley Advocate Podcast: Solomon Goldstein-Rose on why he dumped the Democratic party
First elected as a Democrat in 2016, 24-year-old Solomon Goldstein-Rose of Amherst replaced longtime Amherst Rep. Ellen Story in a crowded primary after Story retired. Now some Democrats are criticizing his decision to leave the party and run as an unenrolled...
Cannabis industry leaders gather at Hampshire College summit to widen appeal of plant
Adult-use cannabis was legalized by Massachusetts voters in 2016, but based on the number of moratoriums and bans that have passed across the state since then, it’s clear that there are still some mixed feelings about cannabis on the local level. “Like every other...
Springfield Church not Backing Down in Conflict with Mayor over Shelter of Undocumented Woman
If Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno is trying to scare the South Congregational Church, it isn’t working. The historic Springfield church at 45 Maple Street has been sheltering an undocumented Peruvian woman named Gisella, whose last name is being withheld due to her...
Drummer for ‘Black Panther’ soundtrack visits Pioneer Valley for first view of film
Black Panther smashed global box office records when it opened in February, and like any good action movie part of the magic of Black Panther is the soundtrack. While watching the movie, there’s one part of the soundtrack that you might not notice at first: the tama,...
Audio: Northampton dispatcher appears to give auto shop owner the OK to tow cars during march
Audio obtained by the Advocate from the Northampton Police Department indicates that a dispatcher from the Northampton Police Department told Jeffrey Tenczar, the owner of Greg’s Auto Repair in Northampton, that he could tow 14 vehicles from his private lot on...
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno calls on city to end tax exemption for church offering sanctuary
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno is calling for South Congregational Church to lose its tax exemption status after church officials decided to offer sanctuary to Gisella, an undocumented immigrant from Peru who came to the country in 2001 and has two children and an...
Springfield Forest Park institution Sportstuff closes after 28 years
Sportstuff on Sumner Avenue in Springfield has long been an anchor business for the curious collection of shops and restaurants that come and go in the blink of an eye at the “X.” But not for much longer; after 28 years, Springfield residents Toni and Dave Trehey are...
Advocates demand legislative action on paid family and medical leave, $15 minimum wage
For Alicia Fleming of Chicopee, getting paid family and medical leave isn’t about politics, it’s about survival. “As a single mom, paid family leave is of the utmost importance to the well being of my family,” Fleming said. Fleming told a room of about 150 people at...
Early spring holidays mean revisiting culinary traditions for many
With the last of the snow (hopefully) behind us, many people across the Pioneer Valley are looking forward to celebrating religious holidays in the early Spring. I was not raised Christian Orthodox, but I often celebrated Easter with my family with Orthodox food and...
Letters to the Editor: Hope we will listen to student gun protesters
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our letters to the editor page. Here you’ll find reader comments on Advocate articles and other news. We collect readers’ opinions from emails, letters, Facebook comments, and comments to valleyadvocate.com. Want to get in on this? Email...
Editorial: Wrinkle in Time: Just in Time
When I was nine years old, I read A Wrinkle in Time, the 1962 young adult science fiction adventure that had become an academic staple in elementary school curriculum. I was a lover of books and I was quite taken with both the plot and the characters. So much so that...
Western Mass Year of the Woman? Election could bring all-female delegation to Hampshire County
Hampshire County has the highest proportion of women of any county in the state, and yet for years has been represented in the Statehouse mostly by men. With the retirement of longtime Amherst Rep. Ellen Story in 2016, this has been especially true. But this year’s...
Owners of cars towed at Northampton gun control rally accusing business owner of political motivation
Jeffrey and Jennifer Tenczar, owners of Greg’s Auto Repair in Northampton, didn’t understand why their lot was filling up on a Saturday morning to the point that it was affecting their business until they called police about getting the vehicles towed and learned...
Gun Control Protesters Take Over Downtown Northampton in the March For Our Lives
“Enough is enough! Enough is enough!” Hundreds of voices echoed off of the brick and concrete buildings that line Northampton’s Main Street. They were the voices of adults and teenagers, gathered together and united to bring an end to gun violence in...
O Cannabis! Small Town of Erving Wrestles with Big Cannabis Question
The statewide adult-use cannabis regulations are finally in place, but for many small towns the almost-90 pages of regulations aren’t much help when it comes to actual implementation. In Erving, a town with a population of 1,800, planning board members have been...
O’ Cannabis!: An interactive map of marijuana moratoriums and bans in Pioneer Valley
Towns and cities across the commonwealth have already passed marijuana moratoriums and bans as the date that the state can issue business licenses draws closer. Below is a map of moratoriums (in yellow) and bans (in red) in the Pioneer Valley to date. Those cities and...
Voting politicians off the island: ranked-choice voting may be coming to Western Mass
It’s an old conundrum: vote for the person you really want or vote for the lesser of evils who has a chance to win. Some activists are trying to give Western Mass voters the chance to do both. A meeting was held on March 22 at Amherst College to discuss the potential...
Bizarro Briefs: Mike Pence’s Gay Pet Rabbit
Marlon Bundo is probably the most famous bunny in the news right now. He’s the grand-bunny of Vice President Mike Pence and Second Lady Karen Pence and he’s been a wascally wabbit this week. Karen Pence and her daughter wrote and illustrated a children’s book that...
Dar Williams Makes A Northampton Homecoming: a Q&A with the Pop Singer-Songwriter
Folk-pop super-group Cry Cry Cry, a trio consisting of acclaimed singer-songwriters Dar Williams, Lucy Kaplansky, and Richard Shindell, is heading to the Calvin Theatre in Northampton on Saturday, March 31. The band made their debut in 1998 with a self-titled release...
First-ever Cat Cafe in the Pioneer Valley Coming to Northampton Next Summer
There’s a new cafe that’ll be opening in Northampton in the summer of 2019 where you’ll be able to hang out with seven or eight lounging felines while enjoying a cup of tea. It’ll be the first of its kind in the Pioneer Valley. Cat.Fe Northampton is the...
100 percent renewables by 2050 in Massachusetts? Pittsfield activists think it’s possible
The Berkshires 100 Percent Renewable Energy Summit brought local business leaders, activists, and politicians together to discuss ways in which municipalities in the county can move towards a goal of relying on only renewable energy by 2050. This was the fifth in a...
CALENDAR: What’s Happening Tuesday, 3/20
MUSIC Faculty Concert: Voices of a New World: 7:30 p.m. Free. Jamie-Rose Guarrine, soprano and Seth Keeton, bass-baritoneNadine Shank and Laura Bolton, piano and Karl Knapp, celloBezanson Recital Hall, FAC, 151 President’s Dr., Amherst. 413-577-2154....
O Cannabis: Pot and Pets, THC a No-No but CBD Shows Promise
While the humans, are away the pets will play, but if cannabis is in the house, it could be a health risk to your furry friends. Doctor Ellie Shelburne, one of the co-owners of the Northampton Veterinary Clinic, said that cannabis is one of the top 10 toxins she...
Three Decades of Music: Q&A with Cowboy Junkies vocalist Margo Timmins
Toronto-based alternative country, blues, and folk rockers, Cowboy Junkies, creates a melancholic feeling that’s combined with a mixture of genres and a collection of rock originals, cover tunes, and traditional songs. The band is best known for its critically...
Amid school walkouts, protesters in Springfield demand meeting about urban gun violence
Local students want to meet with P. James Debney, CEO of Springfield-based gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson, in the next 30 days to create a dialogue about ways to end urban gun violence, not just mass shootings. Students from Springfield, Holyoke, and Boston...
Amherst-Pelham Regional High students march to Amherst Common demanding action on ‘semi-automatic’ guns
About 200 students assembled in front of Amherst-Pelham Regional High School at 10 a.m. on the morning of March 14. Gathered together, huddled against the cold, young activists solemnly honored the memory of the 17 victims of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School...
Young Teens Blast Gun Laws in Northampton Student Walkouts
At John F. Kennedy Middle School in Northampton, a police officer and administrator kept outsiders clear of hundreds of students gathered outside, but their words were audible in the cold, March morning. Students went up to a microphone one by one and gave the name...
Bizarro Briefs: Dude, Where’s My Car?
A 19-year-old Canadian went to catch an event at Toronto’s Rogers Centre but was forced to park his Nissan Versa in a garage several miles away from the venue and from there take a cab. But when the show was over, he couldn’t remember where the garage was....
Turners Falls Experiencing a Renaissance
It wasn’t always such a bucolic village. Turners Falls, a village in the town of Montague has undergone a renaissance during the past decade. Where there was once empty storefronts, there’s now a vibrant downtown with a plethora of restaurants, a thriving arts...
Editorial: Sunshine Week Important Now As Ever
I’ll never forget the Open Meeting Law conference I covered a few years ago in Northampton. Then State Senate President Stanley Rosenberg held the conference in March 2015 for local civic leaders and venting about the Open Meeting Law, which is in place for all of us...E-Edition
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