Berkshire Grown Elects New Officers and Board Members

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GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — Berkshire Grown has announced its newly elected officers and board members following its Annual Board Meeting. 
 
The new officers for 2025 include Sarah Gardner as President, Peter Platt as Vice President, Kat Hand as Treasurer, Lee Venolia as Clerk, and Nick Martinelli and Dawn Masiero as Members-at-Large.
 
Joining the Board of Trustees this year are two Berkshire residents with extensive experience in food and farming.
 
Sharon Wyrrick of Williamstown previously operated Many Forks Farm, a vegetable CSA farm in Clarksburg, from 2011 to 2024. She transitioned the farm to a land trust to ensure its future sustainability. Wyrrick has been actively involved in agricultural and food system initiatives, including the Western Massachusetts Food Bank’s Target Hunger Project and Hoosac Harvest. She has also contributed to documentary filmmaking and organized food-related events such as the "Slow Food on Film Festival" and "Cultivating Heritage, A Symposium on Agricultural Biodiversity."
 
Kate Bailey, based in Hatfield and North Egremont, has worked extensively in agriculture and food access. After gaining farming experience in California, she returned to Massachusetts in 2014 and took on roles focused on food safety and accessibility, including serving as a Produce Safety Inspector with the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources. Most recently, she managed the Berkshire Mobile Farmers Market, sourcing from local farms and overseeing market operations.
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Reps. Leigh Davis, Bud Williams Filing Legislation Honoring Freeman

SHEFFIELD, Mass. — State Reps. Leigh Davis of the 3rd Berkshire District and Bud L. Williams, of the 11th Hampden District, are filing legislation establishing Aug. 22 as Elizabeth Freeman Day of Equality, Healing, and Remembrance in the commonwealth.
 
The legislation would direct the governor to annually issue a proclamation recognizing the courageous contributions of Elizabeth Freeman, an enslaved Black woman known as Mum Bett, whose landmark freedom suit helped spark the legal end of slavery in Massachusetts.
 
"Elizabeth Freeman's story began here in the Berkshires, but its impact reached every corner of the commonwealth," said Davis. "More than two centuries later, her legacy continues to inspire us. Establishing Elizabeth Freeman Day will ensure that future generations learn not only about her extraordinary bravery, but also about the power of one person to change the course of history."
 
In 1781, Freeman, of Sheffield at the time, challenged the institution of slavery by filing suit against her enslaver, Col. John Ashley. In the landmark case Brom and Bett v. Ashley, a Berkshire County jury ruled in favor of Freeman and her fellow plaintiff, Brom, granting them their freedom. The case demonstrated the power of the Massachusetts Constitution's declaration that all people are born free and equal and helped pave the way for the Quock Walker decisions that ultimately ended slavery in the commonwealth. 
 
"Freeman's courage changed the course of history in Massachusetts," said Williams. "At a time when the odds were stacked against her, she stood up and demanded that the promises of liberty and equality contained in our Constitution apply to her as well. She risked everything to challenge an unjust system, and her victory helped lay the foundation for the end of slavery in our commonwealth. Her legacy deserves to be recognized and remembered by every resident of Massachusetts."
 
Although unable to read or write, Freeman understood the meaning of freedom and equality and took extraordinary action to secure those rights for herself and others. Her story remains one of the most powerful examples of individual courage in the face of injustice. 
 
Elizabeth Freeman Day will provide an opportunity for reflection, education, healing, and remembrance, said Williams. 
 
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