As many of you heard, last week tragedy struck a beautiful family of three in Pittsfield, and are looking for ways to help. On January 30th, Shaloon was walking her daughter Lucia to a nearby bus stop on West St. when they were struck by a motor vehicle. Shaloon took the brunt of the impact, putting herself in harms way to save Lucia’s life. Shaloon suffered life threatening trauma to the head and did not survive, although and her family donated her organs to those in need. The Berkshire Dream Center, a non-profit in Pittsfield has organized an online fundraiser to help the dad and daughter find permanent housing.  Our Berkshire REALTOR Housing Fund Trustees voted to make a donation to assist, but also wanted to share the need in case any Realtor knows of possible rental options.  If so, please reach out directly to Katelynn Miner, Founder & Executive Director of Berkshire Dream Center at 413-522-3495 or berkshiredreamcenter@gmail.com.   Their story:

Peterson, Shaloon and their beautiful 3yr old daughter Lucia, found their home in Pittsfield in a family shelter. Originally from Haiti, they wanted a better life for their family, and after a long journey, they made it. 5 months ago, the family found a welcoming place here in Pittsfield.  Peterson has no family here other than their beautiful daughter. Thanks to the help of Pittsfield Police Officer Ansy “AJ” Jumeau and BMC nurse’s aid Elsie, communication with Peterson, whose primary language is Creole, helped make this tragic and unimaginable incident a little less stressful to navigate.  Members of the hospital nursing staff who have been present through this, officers from the Pittsfield Police Department, along with other community members, would like to help Peterson financially as they came here with limited support and stability. The end goal is to give Peterson the ability to find an apartment he and Lucia can call their own. The Berkshire Dream Center is proud to help by utilizing our online fundraising platform to get the word out. If you have the ability to help and would like to donate, any amount would be a blessing!