Latest News
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Facing $2.1M in cuts, Belchertown schools looking at staff layoffs, elimination of extracurriculars, closing of school
BELCHERTOWN — Weeks after learning the Belchertown school budget is $2.1 million short of funding level services, the School Committee is contemplating staff layoffs and reductions, cuts of extracurricular activities — including sports and performing arts — and closing Cold Spring School.
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Business of video games: Digital Development Management has found success helping game developers find larger audience
NORTHAMPTON — Joe Minton knows that video games are serious business.
Most Read
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Editors Picks
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Sports
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High Schools: Smith Academy boys basketball falls to Community Charter School of Cambridge, 65-55, in D5 prelims (PHOTOS)
HATFIELD — Nothing was going the No. 26 Smith Academy boys basketball team’s way through nearly three quarters of play in its MIAA Division 5 preliminary round matchup with No. 39 Community Charter School of Cambridge. And when a Cougars player banked in a 3-pointer from the top of they key to give the visitors their largest lead of the game at 45-31 late in the third frame, the mountain seemed almost too steep to climb.
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Opinion
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Guest columnist Donald Joralemon: The cost of being the Ugly American
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Your Daily Puzzles
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An approachable redesign to a classic. Explore our "hints."
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A quick daily flip. Finally, someone cracked the code on digital jigsaw puzzles.
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Chess but with chaos: Every day is a unique, wacky board.
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Word search but as a strategy game. Clearing the board feels really good.
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Align the letters in just the right way to spell a word. And then more words.
Business
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PiNZ closes for good at Hampshire Mall, citing declining foot traffic
HADLEY — PiNZ, a business featuring an eight-lane bowling alley, more than 40 arcade games and a restaurant and bar with seating for about 150 people, has closed at Hampshire Mall, 367 Russell St.
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Arts & Life
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Speaking of Nature: The hawks are not happy: The snow and ice are creating a big problem for the big birds
If there has been any theme to this winter it has been the cold. For the first time in years the temperatures have dropped below freezing and generally remained there for weeks on end. Back when I was a kid, my father used to make a skating rink in the back of our house where we would spend endless hours playing hockey. My father even put spotlights in the bedroom windows so that we could play outside at night. On particularly cold nights, my mother would insist that the faces of her children were slathered with copious amounts of Johnson’s baby cream so that we didn’t freeze solid. Those were the days.
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Obituaries
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Belchertown, MA - Shirley Ann (Carlson) Duga, 89 years old of Belchertown, passed into eternal life at home with her family on February 20, 2025. Born on May 17, 1935, to Gustav and Isabele (Nelson) Carlson, Shirley was raised in Hardwi... remainder of obit for Shirley Duga
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Easthampton, MA - Logan K. McFadden, age 44, passed away suddenly on November 27, 2024, after a courageous battle with Crohn's disease. Logan was deeply loved and will be missed by friends, family, and their sweet dog, Murphy. Born ... remainder of obit for Logan Mcfadden
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Leeds, MA - On February 22, 2025, Kim Gare Bierwert, beloved husband, father, friend, and swimming and diving coach passed away suddenly at Cooley Dickinson Hospital. Kim was born in Northampton, MA to Donald Vincent Bierwert and Jessie... remainder of obit for Kim Bierwert
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Pelham, MA - George S. Greenstein, 84, of Pelham, Massachusetts, passed away peacefully after a brief illness on February 20, 2025. A distinguished astrophysicist and retired professor of astronomy at Amherst College, he was also a belo... remainder of obit for George S. Greenstein