Ben Hillman
Ben Hillman is a film maker, designer, author and illustrator who loves subatomic particles and Betty Boop. After obsessing for years about the evils of mass manipulation, Ben decided to do it himself by forming Ben Hillman & Company – realizing his boyhood dream of messing with the minds of the general public (as well as making films and writing and illustrating books). Ben lives in the beautiful Berkshire hills of Massachusetts with his wife Amy and daughter Maizy. He is a member of the Sheffield Tree Project and the Antarctican Society.
Ben Sosne
Ben Sosne is the Executive Director of the Berkshire Innovation Center, which serves as a catalyst to spark innovation and sustainable growth of technology-focused companies in our region. Sosne, a Berkshire County native, is a 1998 graduate of Monument Mountain Regional High School, and holds a BA from Columbia University and a JD from the Elizabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. Prior to returning to the Berkshires in 2015 to focus on regional economic development, he spent seven years as a Principal Court Attorney for the New York State Appellate Division, Second Department, in Brooklyn. He resides in Williamstown with his wife Amy and their school aged children, Jack, Ruby and Henry.
Benjamin Daire
Benjamin Daire, born and trained in France, has been head chef at Alta since 2011. Before coming to Alta, he worked in Paris for the renowned Chef Michel Rostang (Michelin two stars) and also in Aix en Provence for equally renowned Chef Jean Marc Banzo (also Michelin two stars.) He is delighted to be collaborating with Alta’s passionate restaurateurs Aurelien Telle and Stephan Ferioli. At Alta, these three pride themselves on providing not only delicious food and wine, but exceptional service as well. Their inspired Mediterranean cuisine is always fresh, and their extensive wine list features selections from around the world, not to mention 24 delicious wines by the glass.
Benjamin Lamb
Ben Lamb is the Director of Economic Development at 1Berkshire, the regional economic development and marketing and tourism organization for the Berkshires. He lives in North Adams with his wife, two kids, and a Golden Retriever. Ben recently concluded his service of four terms as a City Councilor in North Adams, is the Vice Chair of the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition, is on the board of the North Adams Partnership and the North Adams Chamber of Commerce, and is co-founder and director of the NAMAzing Initiative, a community group committed to growing and sharing the lovability of North Adams. Ben holds a B.A. from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, and an M.A. from the College of Saint Rose. He is currently conducting dissertation research to complete his PhD in Higher Education from the University of Nebraska Lincoln, focusing on how experiences during college influence recent graduates’ decisions to remain in the rural college community.
Berkshire Women's Action Group
In the summer of 2017, Jennifer Clark, Anni Crofut, Wendy Kleinman, Marcia Arland and Marj Wexler, comprising the Environment Committee of the Berkshire Women’s Action Group, met to discuss how we could make a difference. Together we saw the movie “A Plastic Ocean,” and we decided to show it again in Great Barrington. To pay for the rights to show the movie, we collected bottles and cans at the Egremont Transfer Station and redeemed them. A plan was taking shape. We agreed that the most egregious of all single-use plastics was the plastic water bottle. We talked with merchants who would be affected, especially small merchants who worried about the loss of revenue in the summer months. We talked with Great Barrington officials, high school students, and other environmental groups. We found that we had a lot of support, and we proceeded to create an article for the town warrant. We presented our work, and the bylaw was approved at two Town Meetings during the summer of 2018.
Bernard A. Drew
Bernard A. Drew, his wife, Donna, and daughters have lived in Great Barrington since 1977. He is a newspaper editor and columnist and the author of local Berkshire histories including books about Great Barrington, Monument Mountain, Lake Buel, Beartown, the Knox Trail and, nearing completion, 18th and 19th century waterpowered industry on the Housatonic River. He likes to explore the woods and find the unexpected in plain sight.
Beth Carlson
Beth Carlson is an artist, activist, and one of four producers of the Oldtone Roots Music Festival. She may be contacted at catchmyspark@gmail.com.
Bob Fizzolio
Once upon a time Bob Fizzolio wrote jokes for a living then lost his sense of humor in the great recession. A significant dose of therapy and several years spent with parrots have helped a bit. If you don’t think Bob’s funny he won’t hold it against you.
Bob Goepfert
Bob Goepfert has been an arts writer and critic covering the Berkshires and Albany area for over 30 years. He has written for the Troy Record, the Saratogian and the former Knickerbocker News. His reviews can be heard on public radio at WAMC. In 2014, he was, for the third year in a row, named by Metroland as the area's Best Arts Writer. He is an award winning theater director and was the executive director of the Palace Theatre in Albany from 1988-2002.
Bob Gray
Bob Gray has lived in Great Barrington most of his life. He was an English teacher and Department Chairman at Monument Mountain Regional High School for 25 years. He has written for publication in various newspapers and literary journals as well as a book on life in the Berkshires.
Bob Luhmann
Bob Luhmann has worked in the food industry my entire adult life. He began in 1970 by working at various restaurants and hotels on Cape Cod, in Boston and Vermont until 1978 when his family bought the Captain Linnell House restaurant in Orleans on Cape Cod, where he was executive chef until 1988. While at the Captain Linnell House, the United States’ interest in food exploded and Luhmann became an early proponent of the New American Cuisine. During that time, the restaurant was awarded highest ratings in reviews from a number of publications including the Boston Herald and the Boston Globe, and a number of Luhmann’s recipes were published in Gourmet magazine. In 1989 he moved to the Berkshires and became the opening executive chef at Kimball Farms Life Care in Lenox. He transitioned to director of dining and nutrition soon after arriving and held that position for 11 years. After almost 20 years running food services in various retirement communities, Luhmann changed pace and became the food manager at Nejaime’s Wine and Cheese in Stockbridge for a number of years before beginning semi-retirement as a cheesemonger, running wine tastings and generally spouting blarney at Guido’s Fresh Marketplace in Pittsfield. It was during that time he began writing occasional food columns for the Berkshire Eagle. He lives in Pittsfield and enjoy cooking at home for friends and family, foraging while hiking and listening to live music whenever he can with his partner, Lois, and any friends able to join them.
Bobby Houston
Bobby Houston is an Academy Award winning documentary filmmaker who retired to Great Barrington in 2005. Then he started fixing old buildings and he can't seem to stop. Together with his partner Eric Shamie, they have Hauswork Design, and are currently redeveloping the Dolby Florists site for retiree co-housing.
Brigitte Ruthman
Sandisfield resident Brigitte Ruthman is a farmer and a reporter for the Republican-American newspaper in Waterbury, Connecticut.
Bruce Lambert
Bruce Lambert is a mostly retired reporter, having worked at the New York Times for 22 years, Newsday for 17 years, and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle for 5 years. He lives in Hempstead, N.Y. He was also a union leader at all three papers.
Bruce Moore and Michael Alper
Michael Alper and Bruce Moore have lived in Great Barrington and worked in the surrounding area for 5 years and have collaborated on design for renovations and new construction since 1993, focusing on a variety of residential scale projects. Bruce, a registered architect in Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut with over twenty years experience in corporate, commercial, and residential architecture and interiors, has traditionally led the business and technical sides of the projects, while Michael, who has over twenty years of experience as an interior and retail designer, has focused on the visual aspects of the project work. As partners in Red House Design (redhousedesign.com), we employ a collaborative work style and varied design aesthetic that platforms directly from our clients' needs, budgets and aspirations with an emphasis on sustainable and energy efficient building materials and practices.
Cara Becker
Cara Becker moved to Great Barrington in 2009 with her husband Chris and their three children from Long Island, N.Y. Cara graduated from Adelphi University with a BS in Business Administration. Cara has been very active in the town and local school since arriving in the Berkshires.
Carl Stewart
A former federal prosecutor, Carl Stewart, a resident of Alford, is chairman of the Southern Berkshire Regional School Committee. He is also a current member of Alford Finance Committee, and for 19 years was a member and chair of Alford Planning Board.
Carli Scolforo
Carli Scolforo is a Pittsfield, Mass. native. She is a 2021 Siena College graduate with bylines in Paste Magazine and Spindle Magazine. Since moving back to the Berkshires, she has assumed the role of General Manager at Berkshire Busk! in Great Barrington and runs a digital marketing company out of Pittsfield.
Carole Murko
Carole Murko is an interior decorator. As principal of Boulderwood Design Group, she undertakes projects that range from simple color consulting to kitchen and bath design on through to full project management. When she isn’t running around sourcing amazing products for her clients, she can be found sharing food stories and recipes on her website www.heirloommeals.com.
Carole Owens
A resident of Stockbridge, Carole Owens is the author of seven books, three newspaper columns, and numerous feature articles. As a local historian, Owens was named Scholar in Residence by the Massachusetts Council on the Humanities. She pens the Stockbridge Updates newsletter.
Caroline Wheeler
Caroline Wheeler is a writer, activist and a humanitarian. She is the Founder and Director of Sisters for Peace; a grassroots, 501c3 giving community that has a mission to empower women and girls, especially those living in impoverished conditions. Sisters for Peace has rallied to do volunteer work and supports local & global organizations.
Carolyn and Eli Newberger
Carolyn Newberger is an artist, child psychologist, and musician (flute and jazz washboard) whose deep concerns for people and their lives drive her work. Her drawings, paintings and collage have achieved recognition and awards in juried and solo exhibitions. Carolyn went to Sarah Lawrence College and received her doctorate from Harvard, after two years in Burkina Faso with the Peace Corps. As a psychologist, Carolyn developed an influential theory of parental consciousness that continues to frame family studies and efforts to prevent child abuse. Her research and teaching at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital, and her ability clearly and soundly to address such subjects as parental discipline, sexual abuse, and domestic violence, attract respect and notice by clinicians and media alike. Called often as an expert on television news, she appeared twice on the Oprah Winfrey show and has published widely in both the scientific and popular press. Carolyn’s art is represented by Galatea Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts and she performs regularly on jazz washboard with Eli and the Hot Six. To learn more about Carolyn and to view her art, visit her website at www.carolynnewberger.com. After Yale College, where he was a Scholar of the House in music theory, Eli Newberger received his M.D. from Yale Medical School. He went from Peace Corps service in Burkina Faso, West Africa, to pediatric training at Boston Children’s Hospital, where over 30 years he founded and directed the Child Protection and Family Development Programs. In addition to eight books and more than 100 articles in the medical field, he applied techniques of musical analysis to the development of jazz piano style, reporting his findings in the Journal of Jazz Studies and Annual Review of Jazz Studies. Newberger’s book on strengthening the characters of boys and men, “The Men They Will Become” (Da Capo Books) appeared along with a jazz CD of the same title with pianist, Butch Thompson, and banjo/vocalist Jimmy Mazzy (Stomp Off Records). An active performer on piano and tuba, Newberger cofounded the New Black Eagle Jazz Band in 1970 and played piano and tuba with them for 31 years. With over 40 recordings to his credit, he won three national readers’ polls for best jazz tuba player. All of Newberger’s past musical publications and reviews, many medical articles, and numerous lectures and musical performances, may be found on his website. ( www.elinewberger.com ) Eli & The Hot Six, an all-star traditional jazz band, released its CD, "Contemporary Classic Jazz," ( https://www.cdbaby.com/elithehotsix ) at a sold-out concert, noted in the Boston Globe, at Scullers Jazz Club on Boston in 2015. The Hot Six are renowned in the Northeast for their heartfelt and virtuosic interpretations of the jazz age songbook: Bob Winter, the Boston Pops pianist, Bo Winiker, trumpet, bandleader, and frequent Boston Pops Conductor, Jimmy Mazzy, banjo and vocals, Ted Casher, clarinet and saxes, Herb Gardner, trombone, and Bob Tamagni, professor of percussion at Berklee College of Music. Eli's 75th birthday celebration at Scullers featured an All-Gershwin program, noted with a pictorial article in the Boston Globe (https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/2015/12/28/tuba-hand-acclaimed-physician-eli-newberger-delights-his-first-passion/Bw3NRBiZpquTRTH3wtGXlK/story.html )with Carolyn Newberger featured as guest washboard wizard.
Carolyn Newberger
After an academic career in psychology at Harvard Medical School, Carolyn Newberger moved to the Berkshires and established a second career as an artist and writer. She writes and illustrates music and dance reviews for The Berkshire Edge, often in collaboration with her husband, Eli Newberger, and records in paintings and prose the treasures and insights that she discovers in the Berkshires forest.
CB Wismar
CB Wismar is a writer and Creative Director who has written for film and television as well as both print and electronic media. He created events and experiences for Fortune 500 companies for over 30 years including TIME’s 75th Anniversary, the Xerox “drupa” Pavillion, 8 ASTA World Travel Congresses and nine Life@50+ events for AARP. He has created and scripted major events for United Way Worldwide, America’s Promise, MCI, ExxonMobil and Conoco-Phillips. Twice a finalist for the Academy Award in the short subjects category, his scripts have been nominated three times for EMMY Awards.
Cecele Kraus
A psychotherapist for thirty-five years, Cecele Kraus listened with ear and heart to the stories of others. Over the past fifteen years, she has turned to her own stories as well, remembering details and writing poems and short prose pieces. She has authored three poetry chapbooks: Dreaming Barranquilla (Troy Bookmakers), Tuscaloosa Bypass (Finishing Line Press), and Harmonica (Liquid Light Press). Writing about her husband has helped in the grieving process since his death in late 2017. Cecele lives in Copake, New York.
Charlie Ferris
Charles Ferris has been a practicing attorney in Massachusetts and New York for 35 years. After graduating from St. John’s School of Law he served as a law clerk to the Justices of the New York Supreme Court. He then served as a Litigation Associate in the New York City offices of Weil Gotshal & Manges, where he represented major corporations, banks and brokerage companies in complex lawsuits throughout the United States. Following that position he served as Assistant General Counsel to Bank Hapoalim where he was responsible for a large portfolio of commercial loan transactions and in-house litigation and labor law matters. He then served as Assistant General Counsel to Sotheby’s and Sotheby’s International Realty, before opening his own practice in Berkshire County in 1993. He obtained a Masters of Law (LL.M.) from New York University, and has been an Adjunct Professor of Law at New York School of Law and Western New England School of Law. He has served as a member of Great Barrington Rotary since 1995, and has been a member of its Board of Directors, and Scholarship Committee for more than 10 years. He was a founding member, and former Chairman of The Eagle Fund, which raises money for grants that foster academic excellence and enhanced educational experiences in the Southern Berkshire School District. He also served for many years as a Grant Committee member of the Janet Fund, a privately endowed fund which provided funds for projects in the Southern Berkshire School District. Since 2008 he has served as counsel to, and been a member of the Board of Directors of Berkshire Pulse, a not-for-profit corporation in Great Barrington which provides dance and performing arts classes for children and adults.
Charlie Flynn
Charles Flynn is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a degree in Geology and Sage Graduate School in Troy, NY where he received his Master of Science in Special Education. He is a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Navy where for the majority of his career, Charlie served in leadership roles in engineering, electronics management, tactical analysis and command and control positions. He authored several major training, data collection, and evaluation manuals that were instrumental in improving training and job readiness throughout the seagoing Navy. He was a member of the Secretary of the Navy’s Naval Research Advisory Committee tasked to examine the impact of advancing technologies on Fleet Exercise Reconstruction and Analysis. He served on numerous Navy destroyers and frigates completing his career and retiring from the Naval Service in 1994. Mr. Flynn’s qualifications included Marine Chief Engineer (Gas Turbine), Destroyer Combat Systems Officer, Tactical Action Officer, Command At Sea. In 1995, Mr. Flynn entered the teaching profession where he could share his extensive background in Science and Engineering with students, especially those with special needs. He served in teaching roles at Southern Berkshire Regional School District and then moved to the Lee School District where he served as the Technology Administrator. Mr. Flynn retired from the Lee School District earlier this year. When he retired he held Educational Administrator Certifications up to Superintendent level. Mr. Flynn has been a member of the Southern Berkshire Regional School District School Committee for the past 6.5 years and also served as a Selectman in the Town of Egremont for the past 4.5 years. Charlie lives in Egremont with his wife of 44 years, Dorothy (Dakin) Flynn.
Cheryl Heller
Cheryl Heller is president of the Measured Lab, which she founded to investigate the contribution design is making to human health, and founder of the design lab CommonWise. Most recently, she was Director of Design Integration and Professor of Practice in Innovation Design at Arizona State University, a joint position in the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, The Ira. A. Fulton School of Engineering and the W.P. Carey School of business. Prior to this role, she founded the first MFA program in Social Design at SVA, an experience-based program whose graduates are working as creative leaders in government, industry, healthcare, technology and global NGOs. As a strategist, she has helped businesses grow from small regional enterprises to multi-billion global market leaders, launched category-redefining divisions and products, reinvigorated moribund cultures, and designed strategies for hundreds of successful entrepreneurs. She has taught creativity to leaders and organizations around the world. Heller is a recipient of the AIGA Lifetime Medal for her contribution to the field of design and a Rockefeller Bellagio Fellow. Her book, “The Intergalactic Design Guide: Harnessing the Universal Creative Energy of Social Design,” is a manual for anyone wanting to use design to create a resilient future. Her writing has been published in the Harvard Business Review, CEO World and the Design Observer. She is the former Board Chair of PopTech and a Senior Fellow at the Babson Social Innovation Lab. She created the Ideas that Matter program for Sappi in 1999, which has since given over $16 million to designers working for the public good, and partnered with Paul Polak and the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum to create the exhibit, “Design for the Other 90%.”
Chet Delaney
Originally from the Midwest, Chet came east for school and work. He stumbled into the field of computers in the era of punched cards and room-sized mainframes. He lived for 30+ years in Hoboken, N.J., while working in the I/T and HR departments of the Federal Reserve Bank and Chase Manhattan in NYC’s financial district. He has published a number of articles in a variety of magazines and for 10 years wrote a monthly column for Data Training Magazine. In 1985 he and his wife, Genis, began renting a cabin for the summer on Prospect Lake in Egremont. They purchased the cabin in 1993 and moved to it in full-time retirement in 2008.
Chip Elitzer
Chip Elitzer lives in Great Barrington. He is Director of M&A for the Environmental Financial Consulting Group and Treasurer of the Williamstown Theatre Festival. He holds a Master in Public Affairs from Princeton.
Christin Howard
Christin Howard is a Great Barrington local and a graduate from Monument Mountain Regional High School. She is a rising junior at The Commonwealth Honors College at University of Massachusetts Amherst pursuing a bachelor’s degree in English and History with a specialty in journalism. She hopes to pursue a career in journalism after her graduation in 2018.
Christine Ward
Christine serves on the board of Great Barrington Land Conservancy to support the protection, stewardship, and enjoyment of our outstanding natural resources including Lake Mansfield, River Walk, and the Pfeiffer Arboretum. Christine supports town-wide trail development and leads guided hikes and bird walks that help to build a stronger understanding of our native habitats.
Christopher Riggleman
Christopher Riggleman has always had an eye for design and earned his degree at New York School of Interior Design (NYSID). He honed his skills while working with the influential, Architectural Digest "Top 100", New York City firm, Pembrooke & Ives. Christopher spent many years designing the most luxurious interiors from 5th Avenue to Palm Beach to the Hamptons. Additionally, he has freelanced and consulted in New York City. Christopher began his career in the restaurant industry—most notably at Chanterelle, the world-renowned French restaurant that pioneered fine dining in downtown New York City's Tribeca Neighborhood. Christopher lives in Monterey, Mass., with his husband Jonathon Loy and their dog Che. Christopher is excited to bring his design expertise to the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, and beyond.
Christopher Sprowl
Christopher Sprowl, MD, is the interim medical director for Community Health Programs in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.
Christy Heady
Christy Heady is a journalist and best-selling author of four books that has sold 500,000 copies. She currently works as a writing success coach helping authors achieve growth in their author entrepreneurial careers. To learn more, visit www.christyheady.com
Claire Rosenberg
Claire Rosenberg, MSW, LICSW is a psychotherapist in private practice in Great Barrington. Prior to opening this practice, she was on staff at the Austen Riggs Center for over 12 years. She is a graduate of the Smith College School for Social Work and trained at The Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas. She can be reached at 413–528–0700.
Claudia d'Alessandro
Long-time Berkshire County resident and photographer Claudia d'Alessandro makes her home in Great Barrington with her fiancé musician David Reed, and two cats who enjoy tangling her yarn.
Claudia Maurino
Claudia Maurino is a junior at Monument Mountain Regional High School. She has loved to write for as long as she can remember, but only recently became very interested in journalism. She has found that it's a fascinating way to explore ideas and has really enjoyed getting to know the ways it differs from the types of writing she's used to. In particular, she loves that journalism can incorporate extremely myriad topics and styles of writing all within one medium.
