Coalition turns 20, gathering strength and purpose

The Northern Berkshire Community Coalition has had a big to-do list over the last 20 years.

Clean up neighborhoods? Check.

Build new playgrounds? Check.

Give teens a place to show off their artistic endeavors? Check.

So what could possibly be left for the next 20 years?

A lot, according to Executive Director Al Bashevkin - especially in the realm of helping the Northern Berkshire community's economy thrive.

"It's kind of new ground for us," Bashevkin admitted during an interview in his downtown North Adams office Monday, three days after the organization celebrated its 20th annual meeting at the Williams Inn.

But it's important ground, he said.

As business groups and elected officials work to attract new businesses to the area, there's one question he hopes his organization can answer: "Are any people going to be able to work in these jobs?"

That's where the coalition comes into play.

In addition to maintaining all of its successful, well-received community programs, the coalition is in a unique position to be able to reach out to area residents - from elementary school-aged children to adults who need help getting a job - to help fill the need.

"We know a lot of people," Bashevkin said, adding that fields such as hospitality and tourism and health care seem poised to grow in the area. "We have a more acute understanding of what the barriers to employment are."

The first step, he said, he hopes will come soon: a $50,000 U.S. Department of Labor grant that will help the coalition refer more people to Berkshire Works, a career center that provides assistance to job seekers. In fact, on Monday, Bashevkin kept glancing at his e-mail inbox, hoping to see good news.

"It would help us begin the conversation," he said. "I keep looking to see if it's successful."

There's no arguing, though, that even if this particular grant falls through, the coalition has been successful in its first 20 years.

More than 200 people attended the annual meeting Friday to listen to nothing but praise for the coalition and to see it in action, with poetry readings and songs and dances from young people involved in its UNITY program.

North Adams Mayor John Barrett III recalled Bashevkin proposing the coalition to him 20 years ago, when the area was struggling with high unemployment and low morale.

Bashevkin, Barrett said, was bubbling as he talked about his idea for a group that could help.

And 20 years and many successes later, that spirit has remained.

"He has the same enthusiasm today as he did 20 years ago," Barrett said. "I thank him for those 20 years."

Keynote speaker H. Mark Smith of the Massachusetts Cultural Council said the coalition has brought "a sense of hope" back to the region.

"That's a rare commodity these days," Smith said. "There's an honesty and realism that there's tough problems out there. Without that hope, all the rest of it is for naught."

The embodiment of that hope has been Sue and Alex Daugherty, who were honored with the Northern Berkshire Heroes Award at the luncheon.

Alex Daugherty said the work he and his wife have done has not been work at all.

"It's been a labor of love," he said. "It's easy to do the work we do because we know the people here truly appreciate it."

The couple received a standing ovation from the large crowd - a crowd that no way resembled the coalition's humble beginnings.

Longtime volunteer Bev Goodell recalled its first annual meeting, a "very quiet little meeting" with only a handful of people at the Appalachian Bean Cafe.

The Appalachian Bean is closed now (replaced on Main Street by the Cup & Saucer). As a testament to its strength, the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition remains open.

"It has just grown," said Goodell, who forecasts even more success. "They'll help keep this community alive and viable."