'Can't Afford Not To': Grammy award-winning Jon Carroll celebrates release of first album in 18 years

Mill River Greenway construction underway on Williamsburg’s South Main Street after 15 years of debate

WILLIAMSBURG — After 15 years of planning, opposition, support, votes and plenty of controversy, the Mill River Greenway is now becoming a concrete reality. Work began over the past couple of weeks on the project, which involves constructing a 2.4-mile walking and bicycling path connecting the village centers of Williamsburg and Haydenville to the Mass […]

Area Briefs: Easthampton talk spotlights Cuban Alzheimer’s drug

Easthampton talk spotlights Cuban Alzheimer’s drug EASTHAMPTON — Ben Grosscup will talk about his trip to Cuba to seek treatment for his mother’s Alzheimer’s disease at the next Cuba in the Valley Films program, Monday, Nov. 2, at 7 p.m. at Luthier’s Co-op, 108 Cottage St. During a two-week trip to Havana, Grosscup met with […]

Guest columnist Mary Olberding: Violence against women is real

October is Domestic Violence Prevention Month and a grim reminder of the reality that a leading cause of death for women ages 20-44 is homicide by an intimate partner. In June, the State Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team found domestic violence homicides in Massachusetts jumped 20% to a five-year high in 2025, with an additional […]

Rock On with Joan Axelrod-Contrada: A promise that became my roadmap

I’ve always hated long and winding roads. Give me a thoroughfare with a clear view of landmarks, signposts, and traffic signals any day. Life, though, has a way of laughing at our preferences. Sooner or later, many of us end up on something closer to the road Paul McCartney wrote about in the Beatles’ 1970 song “The Long and Winding Road.” McCartney wrote the song while the Beatles were being pulled apart by business conflicts, bruised feelings, and clashing personalities. He sat at the piano and composed a melancholy tune that he sang largely on his own. Paul’s voice sounds lonely, […]

Valley Bounty: Making people smile around food

Peter Hadley delivered newspapers on horseback on weekends as a child. His family garden gave him an appreciation for fresh food and green, growing things at a young age.  Hadley’s food journey began in Amherst as a pastry chef and included stints in Boston and Cape Cod, adding experience as a restaurant owner and a […]