■Live animals are featured in the Huntington Lion’s Club creche, which has been set up in Russell this Christmas season. Children and their parents delight in the donkey and sheep featured in the traditional manger scene.
■Early last week an intramural basketball playoff game at the University of Massachusetts degenerated into a 15-minute brawl between white and black players. It began when a white and a black from opposing teams started fighting at the conclusion of the game. Their teams, one all-black, the other predominantly white, joined the fray. Subsequently, other individuals in Boyden Gymnasium entered the battle.
■The Valley Community Development Corp. and Smith College last week marked the beginning of renovations to an 18-apartment building on New South Street. The project is expected to be completed by the end of next year. It will offer eight three-bedroom and 10 one-bedroom apartments.
■The Tin Man of Route 112 in Goshen has received a heart transplant of red glass and stainless steel. The Tin Man has been a fixture in Goshen since 1952 at various businesses and in various conditions. It now stands sentry, its long arms crooked upward at the elbows, outside the Good Time Stove Co.
■The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority is rolling out 28 new fuel-efficient buses — including 10 diesel-electric hybrids — and changing the color scheme of its entire fleet to match the colors of the University of Massachusetts. “We wanted a more futuristic look,” said Administrator Mary MacInnes. And, she said, the color change was a deliberate nod to UMass. “The campus makes up a nice proportion of our ridership.”
■For her community efforts, innovative thinking, and assistance to the department and the community, Ashfield police officer Diane Wilder has been named the western Massachusetts “Officer of the Year.” The annual Richard G. Wereneski Award is presented by the Western Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association.