PITTSFIELD, Mass.— For nearly 50 years Berkshire County Head Start has been supporting children and families throughout Berkshire County 

 

It is these efforts that have earned the comprehensive early childhood program our Community Hero of the Month designation. 

 

The Community Hero of the Month is a 12-month series that honors individuals and organizations that have made a significant impact on their community. This year's sponsor is Window World of Western Massachusetts. Nominate a hero here.

 

Berkshire County Head Start is part of the national Head Start program, which this year marks its 60th anniversary. 

 

Berkshire County's chapter was established in 1976 as a preschool with education as the key, but over the decades it evolved to provide a wide range of services beyond education, including support with housing, clothing, mental health, and connections to community resources, said Lori Kays, Berkshire County Head Start board chair. 

 

"We like to say that we are so much more than just child care. It's so much more than just coming here and dropping your kids off," said Alyssa Sakowski, Berkshire County Head Start executive coordinator. 

 

"We watch our kids all day, we set goals for our families, [and] we help them with the relationships that we have with other community agencies. They really get so much more and I think that's definitely what our legacy would be." 

 

It serves 225 children across six sites in Great Barrington, Pittsfield, and North Adams. The program's legacy is visible in the generations of children and parents whose lives have been transformed. 

 

To go back to an old saying, it takes a village to raise a child and it really does, said Sue Doucette, Head Start vice chair. 

 

"Our village is Berkshire County. It's a big village, but it's important to have people with different experiences and expertise in different areas all coming together so that we can serve and do the best for our families and our children," Doucette said. 

 

Berkshire County Head Start's village consists of its families, staff, supporters, and community partners, including Berkshire United Way, the Brien Center, Pittsfield Coordinated Family and Community Engagement, the Berkshire Immigrant Center, the Berkshire Museum, and many more. 

 

Speaking through an interpreter, Miguel Munoz, a parent at Head Start, highlighted how welcoming the organization has been to the family and even inspired his wife, Karen Pulido, to begin working for the organization as a teacher assistant in a dual language classroom. 

 

Through an interpreter, Pulido said their experience at Head Start has been marvelous and she never imagined being able to become part of the community to the extent she has now. 

 

Munoz and Pulido are from Colombia and moving to the Berkshires was nerve wracking at first but they are very grateful of Head Start and the services they provided them. 

 

Pulido said she would like introduce others to a second language, the same way their family has been learning.

 

Head Start's interpreter and family engagement manager Mabeline Burgos said a hero in the community is everyone who is able to support others. 

 

"I think Head Start brings a lot of that building community relationships, especially with the children and family that we serve. It is important to have that second language, because we all come from different places," 

 

"And so it's important that that child not only is able to learn that second language, other than at home, because it provides better opportunity here in life, and able to bring that into the community to be more successful." 

 

A community hero is someone who stands out by making a real difference in the lives of families, providing them with opportunities to grow, supporting them where they are, and believing in the importance of helping others. They serve others selflessly, speakers said.

 

"A hero, to me, is someone who serves others and Berkshire County Head Start serves a lot of others, from North Adams down to Great Barrington. There are heroes in every site that we have, every classroom that we have, every office that we have, because they're all serving folks that are not themselves," Doucette said. 

 

"We do this for the good of the community, for the families, for the children. We're not doing it for ourselves. We're doing it for others.

 

Head Start is strong, innovative, and constantly finds creative solutions to challenges. The pandemic is one moment that really demonstrated that, she said. 

 

In 2020, everything shut down and organizations turned to online formatting. However, Head Start continued to work hard, to reach out to hard to reach people, such as the underserved, Doucette said. 

 

"Other than the first two weeks where we had to shut down, we kept going. This organization kept providing services, and the services became more and more needed by families who became more and more isolated," she said. 

 

As Berkshire County Head Start looks to the future, its mission remains clear: to expand services, deepen community partnerships, and continue empowering families.