Letter: I Do Not Apologize For Being Out of Order

To the Editor:

I do not apologize for being "out of order" at a recent Dalton Select Board meeting, as it is a right and a responsibility for citizens to criticize their government when it makes a bad decision. In this case, I and several other town residents objected to the lack of transparency by our Selectmen regarding the sale of a parcel of town land, deciding to accept a bid $20,000 lower than the highest bid. The public still deserves a satisfactory explanation.

At a subsequent Select Board meeting, Chairman Bishop added to the mistake by threatening to shut down any meeting in which the public is "out of order" and that police would be used for enforcement. Is that what our Police Department is for? Censoring questions? Preventing dissent? Does anyone else think that inappropriate use of police is part of a disturbing national trend?

This action raises some additional serious questions. Who does the board think they are serving? Why is transparency so threatening to them? How many other bad decisions have they made of which we may be unaware? Are they being good stewards of our town resources while our tax rate is among the highest in the Berkshires?

Henry Rose, MD
Dalton, Mass. 

Striking Out Cancer in Berkshires Holds Sunday Party Before June 27 Games

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires.com Sports
10:53AM / Monday, June 15, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. – Striking out Cancer in the Berkshires has been bringing smiles for half a decade.

 

This year, it also is bringing Smiley.

 

A day of community baseball and softball games that act as a fund-raiser for the Jimmy Fund is the brainchild of Joe DiCicco, who has expanded the event’s footprint over the years and seen a steady growth in money raised as a result.

 

This year’s games are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on June 27 on Buddy Pellerin Field at Clapp Park.

 

But the festivities begin this Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Sideline Saloon on Fenn Street, where DiCicco invites families to come down, free of charge, to take photos with a Boston Red Sox World Series Trophy and meet Boston mascot Wally the Green Monster and Smiley, the mascot of the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox.

 

“It’s just a little way to give back to the community to start the week,” DiCicco said. “Last year, we had the trophy for the first time, and they want to bring it back, so that’s a good thing. Wally is different, and so is Smiley.”

 

What has not changed is DiCicco’s dedication to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s Jimmy Fund, inspired by Einar Gustafson, a child who beat cancer with the help of Dr. Sidney Farber in 1948 and shared his story with the world under the name Jimmy to protect his anonymity.