Lenox Garden Club grants
Lenox— The Lenox Garden Club has chosen two Berkshire County organizations to receive its annual grant awards. The grants, each amounting to $5,000, will go to the youth educational organizations Greenagers, in South Egremont, and Roots Rising, in Pittsfield.
The Greenagers grant will help fund its summer youth farm program, which encourages area teenagers to develop agricultural and gardening skills. With Lenox Garden Club support, program participants will be paid as they learn to grow and harvest produce at Greenagers’s April Hill Education and Conservation Center in South Egremont. The participants will learn about soil health, composting, pollinator-friendly garden design, and no-till farming techniques. They will also help to distribute the fresh produce at a local food pantry and team up with middle schoolers to prepare farm-fresh lunches.
The grant to Roots Rising, will help fund an automated climate and water control system in Roots Rising’s energy-efficient high-tunnel greenhouse, a 90’ x 30’ structure that protects seedlings and plants in the ground from adverse weather, thus extending the growing season. The tunnel will be located at Roots Rising’s Farm and Education Center, which is under development on Barker Road in Pittsfield. Roots Rising’s spring and summer programs pay local teens to learn to steward thriving, resilient ecosystems while helping produce affordable fresh produce for local residents facing food insecurity.
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Greylock food pantries grants
Pittsfield— With food insecurity continuing to rise, Greylock Federal Credit Union has allocated a special $50,000 donation to support local food pantries, including Berkshire Bounty, Berkshire Food Project, Berkshire Community College Campus Cupboard, Berkshire Dream Center, People’s Pantry, and Pittsfield Community Food Pantry.
Berkshire Bounty, BCC’s Campus Cupboard, and People’s Pantry all focus on distribution of rescued, locally sourced and donated foods. Other selected organizations help to alleviate social isolation through varied meal offerings. Berkshire Food Project serves hot meals five days a week, and Pittsfield Community Food Pantry offers grab-and-go meals from their food pantry kitchen. Berkshire Dream Center has a restaurant-style soup kitchen, as well as a market and mobile food pantry.
“I am so grateful to receive this grant from Greylock. The Berkshire Food Project has recently experienced an increase in numbers similar to last fall,” said Matthew Alcombright, MDiv., Executive Director at Berkshire Food Project (BFP). “We rely on community support and sponsorship to continue our 40-year tradition of providing a no-cost, no-questions-asked, homemade-from-scratch lunch, five days a week to combat food insecurity and social isolation in our community.”
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Berkshire Agricultural Ventures grant
Great Barrington— Berkshire Agricultural Ventures has received a $242,000 planning grant under the USDA’s Regional Food System Partnerships Program, one of only seven organizations nationwide to be awarded a 2026 grant.
The grant will support a regionally significant project focused on expanding local food sales/purchasing opportunities for area farmers and public and private institutions including schools, colleges, hospitals, and prisons, spanning the Berkshire-Taconic region of Berkshire County, Litchfield County, Conn.; and Columbia and Dutchess counties, N.Y.
“Every meal served in our schools, hospitals, and prisons is more than just food on a plate – it’s a chance to strengthen our local economy, support family farms, and build a healthier future. By aligning our efforts across three states, this project creates a rare opportunity to move beyond state-level fragmentation and build a unified, thriving food economy that benefits our farmers and our communities alike, ” said BAV Local Food Systems Program Manager Jake Levin, who is leading the project.
Titled “Farm to Institution Value Chain Expansion in the Berkshire-Taconic Region,” BAV’s project will identify key gaps, needs, and opportunities related to strengthening farm-to-institution relationships and activities across our region. Over the next two years, BAV and partners will conduct interviews with area farmers, institutional food purchasers, distributors, food hubs, and other stakeholders to better understand existing and needed infrastructure, capacity, partnerships, and policies for this work. The project also will involve other information-gathering and analysis of factors that impact farm-to-institution connections in our area.
As a key outcome, BAV will develop a strategic plan to support and strengthen farm-to-institution partnerships in the Berkshire-Taconic region. This plan will help guide efforts by multiple groups to enhance local food purchasing by our regional institutions and increase sales opportunities and stability for local farmers – supporting a longer-term goal of creating a more resilient and equitable regional food system.
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BCC Trades Academy investment
Pittsfield— Berkshire Community College (BCC) welcomed U.S. Representative Richard Neal to campus to highlight a $995,000 federal investment in the BCC Trades Academy.
“As Massachusetts’s first community college, Berkshire Community College has set the standard for accessible, high-quality education for more than six decades. That is why I was proud to secure this funding to invest in the Trades Academy, a program that will prepare students with the skills today’s employers demand,” said Congressman Richard E. Neal. “I want to thank President Kennedy and the entire BCC community who have been great stewards of this mission and tireless advocates on behalf of their students. Workforce development is critically important to our economy, and it’s institutions like BCC that will give our students the real-world experience needed to succeed in a competitive, ever-changing workforce.”
Linda Clairmont, Executive Director of Workforce and Community Education at BCC, highlighted how the funding will support the continued growth of the BCC Trades Academy and expand access to hands-on training aligned with regional workforce demands.
“We are thrilled to receive this investment to advance the BCC Trades Academy for our community and county,” said Linda Clairmont, Executive Director of Workforce and Community Education. “In partnership with local employers, technical schools, and community leaders, the Academy will help train the skilled trades workforce our region urgently needs.”
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MountainOne awards nonprofits
North Adams— MountainOne is proud to announce that in the first quarter of 2026, it invested more than $160,000 in donations and sponsorships to nonprofit organizations, supporting initiatives focused on youth development, economic opportunity, health and wellness, and community connection.
Organizations recently supported by MountainOne include Berkshire Running Foundation,, Lever Inc., Hillcrest Educational Foundation, The Brien Center, 18 Degrees/Kids 4 Harmony, Community Access to the Arts, Berkshire Pride, Berkshire Food Project, Images Cinema, Pine Cobble School, Northern Berkshire Habitat for Humanity, Berkshire International Film Festival, Berkshire United Way, Northern Berkshire United Way, Berkshire Arts & Technology Charter Public School, Baseball in the Berkshires, National Alliance on Mental Illness, and more.
“These organizations are doing the kind of work that changes lives, often in ways that go unseen,” said Brenda Petell, Vice President, Community Engagement Officer at MountainOne. “We’re honored to stand alongside them and support efforts that bring hope, opportunity, and connection to so many across our communities.”
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Lee Bank Foundation awards nonprofits
Lee— The Lee Bank Foundation has awarded $55,000 in its first grant cycle of 2026 to support thirteen Berkshire-based nonprofit organizations, continuing Lee Bank’s long-standing commitment to community reinvestment.
The recipients in this grant cycle are: AdLib, Berkshire Community Diaper Project, Berkshire Film & Media Collaborative, Berkshire Humane Society, Berkshire Innovation Center, Hilltown Village, Lee Youth Association, Literacy Network of South Berkshire, Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Arts, Momentum Ag, Railroad Street Youth Project, and The Mount.
Grant awards in this cycle ranged from $500 to $10,000 and will support initiatives aligned with the Foundation’s core focus areas, including education, food security, economic development, health and human services, and workforce development. Nonprofit organizations interested in applying for the next round of funding, can do so online by June 1st.
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Jewish Women’s Foundation grants
Berkshire— The Jewish Women’s Foundation of the Berkshires is soliciting grant proposals from nonprofit organizations for specific projects or programs that further its mission of tikkun olam, which translates to: repairing the world.
Dedicated to addressing critical needs in the Berkshire community and supporting social action to create a more just and equitable society, the Foundation’s mission if to providing local organizations with funds to help with: addressing the basic needs of those they serve by providing food, clothing, shelter; empowering youth and young adults; and promote client self-sufficiency by providing such services as literacy training and legal aid.
Jewish as well as non-Jewish 501(C)3 nonprofits are invited to apply for grants up to $7,500 online by May 31st.
