Search Results

Keyword search: MA

The UMass hockey team nearly pulled off a last-second comeback in its 3-2 loss to Merrimack on Friday at Lawler Rink.

By RYAN AMES

SPRINGFIELD — Makayla Tatro needed one basket to surpass 1,000 career points after one quarter of the Smith Voc girls basketball team’s game against Pioneer Valley Christian Academy on Friday.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A deficit in the revolving fund that covers costs associated with the Amherst-Pelham Regional Schools’ athletics program could be addressed by eliminating certain sports, according to school leaders, even as the Regional School Committee is likely to be asked to make a $175,000 transfer to the account before the end of June.

By THE REV. ANDREA AYVAZIAN

Maybe you made some New Year’s resolutions a few weeks ago. Maybe you have adhered to them faithfully. Or maybe they are getting a bit frayed at the edges, modified, or abandoned.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — The Town Council is not ready to endorse proposals brought forward last fall to build a $30 million fire station for South Amherst at the former Hickory Ridge golf course, and to have new Department of Public Works buildings constructed at multiple sites for a cost of $35 million.

By MUSBAH SHAHEEN

It’s too early in the new year to read another doomsday plaint from letter writer Rutherford Platt about Picture Main Street [“The last First Night Northampton?” Jan. 6].  There are many of us in Northampton who welcome a downtown that will meet the future, despite the implementation challenges ahead.

Since Oct. 7, 2023, those of us who grieve the horrors and atrocities of that day have been, well, scared to speak up. What are we afraid of?

Just wondering if it bothers others that the predominant descriptor for “intelligence” has now become “artificial.” I suppose it shouldn’t be surprising in a time when opinions trump genuine knowledge or understanding.

By COLIN A. YOUNG

BOSTON — Drawing from Massachusetts history while also peeking into the future, Gov. Maura Healey on Thursday night took stock of the state’s strengths and challenges in a speech that focused more on following through on past work than on announcing new initiatives.

By CAROLYN BROWN

One of the most prosperous individuals in early Southampton was Ichabod Strong, who dammed the Manhan River and established a sawmill there in the early 1730s; that mill complex, once known as the Strong’s Mills complex, now part of the Lockville Historic District. Strong, who was described in a genealogy book as “a man of stirring business qualities of character” and “best of all, a remarkably godly man,” also built four farmhouses in the area, which his sons and grandsons inherited. One of those farmhouses, part of the National Register of Historic Places, is on the market right now.

By MICKEY RATHBUN

Although Emily Dickinson is now considered one of America’s greatest poets, during her lifetime she was better known for her horticultural skills, as Dickinson scholar Judith Farr has observed. From a young age Dickinson was fascinated by the natural world. She enjoyed helping her mother in the gardens that she kept both at the Dickinson Homestead and the house the Dickinson family lived in for several years on North Pleasant Street where Ren’s Mobil Station now stands. During her year at Mary Lyon’s Female Seminary (1847-48), now Mount Holyoke College, she studied botany and made an extensive herbarium, a collection of pressed flowers and plants from the local area, that eventually contained more than 400 specimens. A family friend is said to have commented, “Emily had an uncanny knack of making even the frailest growing things flourish.”

By JACOB NELSON

Some restaurants are once-in-a-while places. Maybe they’re a bit fancy. Maybe their menu is a bit one-dimensional. Maybe they’re great for grabbing a sandwich to-go between meetings, or a sit-down Sunday morning brunch while your parents are in town, but not both.

By CAROLYN BROWN

Marigold Theater in Easthampton now has its own cafe.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Amherst’s efforts to ensure there is housing for people of all income levels, including through a revised housing production plan and various rezoning initiatives, is underway.

By Bob Katzen

GOVERNOR SIGNS SEVERAL BILLS: Gov. Maura Healey signed several bills into law last week including:

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

The announcement of a proposed ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas has drawn a wide array of reactions from local organizations, activists and politicians in the Pioneer Valley and the commonwealth, many of whom have been protesting or closely following the events since the war’s beginning in October 2023.

By RYAN AMES

Six points in the Hockey East standings are up for grabs this weekend in the UMass hockey team’s upcoming home and home series against Merrimack.

By ANNE DIETRICH

As we step into a new political era with Monday’s inauguration of Donald Trump, many wonder how his administration’s environmental policies will shape our future. With proposed rollbacks on climate agreements and renewable energy projects, those of us in the Pioneer Valley who cherish nature may feel uncertain and anxious. But beyond just affecting nature, the new president’s policies also impact leisure activities, recreation, and sport. As a sports lover, I am concerned about President Trump’s (lack of) environmental agenda. If you care about sports — from community games to professional leagues — there are things we all can do to protect this favorite pastime.

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

CHESTERFIELD — Not many 20-year-olds aspire to launch their own nonprofit to support businesses in a developing nation. But then Forrest McSweeney isn’t like most 20-year-olds.

By RUSS VERNON-JONES

The U.S. is the wealthiest country in the world. Our economy has been tremendously productive and our total wealth has grown dramatically. Yet millions of people in the U.S. don’t have enough to eat; millions lack adequate homes; and millions still lack health insurance. We seem unable to adequately fund our schools or to find the funds to address the climate crisis.