Cooley Dickinson to mark overdose day by planting 978 flags
NORTHAMPTON — Cooley Dickinson Hospital will host its first Purple Flag Ceremony on Monday, Aug. 31, in recognition of International Overdose Awareness Day.
Hospital employees and community members will gather at 10 a.m. on the hospital’s front lawn where 978 purple flags will be placed to raise awareness and combat the stigma associated with substance use disorders.
Cooley Dickinson Hospital serves those in recovery with personalized care and community partnerships to reach people in recovery where they are. The city of Northampton also recently donated three Naloxboxes to the hospital in an effort to reduce opioid overdose fatalities and spread awareness.
Each purple flag will represent one life lost to a confirmed or estimated opioid-related overdose death among Massachusetts residents in 2025. According to data from the Mass Department of Public Health, this is the first time since 2023 that there have been fewer than 1,000 opioid-related deaths in the commonwealth.
“We often hear about overdoses as individual tragedies. But when we see them represented together — as in the sea of purple flags on a portion of the hospital’s front lawn — we can begin to grasp the staggering scope of the loss and the profound impact on families, friends, and entire communities,” said Kevin Whitney, CDH president and chief operating officer.
Whitney will moderate a short program featuring clinicians who work with people experiencing substance use disorder.
Each Naloxbox donated by the city to the hospital through the Drug Addiction Recovery Team (DART) and Hampshire HOPE contains pre-packaged, single-use doses of naloxone nasal spray, a mask to administer CPR, as well as information on how to dispense naloxone. One Naloxbox has been installed in each of the public restrooms in the Emergency Department, and another is located just outside of the Emergency Department entrance.
Cooley Dickinson seeks to help people experiencing substance use disorder in a variety of ways. The hospital has signed agreements with local bridge clinics, which are outpatient settings that provide rapid initiation of medications for opioid use disorder and enhanced hospital protocols for treatment. Additional specialized programs include A Positive Place and New Beginnings, which respectively provide care for those living with HIV, and new moms in recovery.
Author to discuss book on Mickey Mantle
NORTHAMPTON — Author Rob Weir will discuss his new book on baseball legend Mickey Mantle Wednesday, Aug. 26, at 2 p.m. in the Community Room at the Northampton Police Department, 29 Center St.
Weir, who holds a doctorate in American social history, examines Mantle’s rise to fame, his struggles in retirement and the enduring popularity of his memorabilia in the book, “7 Swings at 7.”
The building and restrooms are accessible, and public transportation and metered parking are available nearby. Northampton Neighbors members can arrange rides through the group’s email listserve at NNlistserve@northamptonneighbors.org.
Eversource donates $28K to United Way
NORTHAMPTON — United Way of the Franklin & Hampshire Region has received a $28,000 donation from Eversource Energy and the Eversource Foundation to support health, education and financial stability services for local families.
The gift is part of $2.6 million donated over the past year by Eversource employees and the Eversource Foundation to United Way organizations across Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, including more than $1.2 million raised during the company’s six-week employee and retiree fundraising campaign.
“This generous support … helps enable our important work to empower people and families throughout our communities despite the challenges they face,” said Geoff Naunheim, president and CEO of United Way of the Franklin & Hampshire Region.
For more information or to donate, visit uw-fh.org or call 413-584-3962.
FBI Boston warns of new messaging apps scam
BOSTON — The FBI’s Boston Division is warning the public about a new scam in which callers spoof the agency’s phone number and pressure victims into moving conversations to encrypted messaging apps.
According to the FBI, the scam typically begins with a call from someone posing as a bank representative who tells the victim their information was used to open an account to purchase illegal firearms. The victim is then transferred to a supposed FBI agent investigating the fraud.
After the call is inexplicably disconnected, victims report receiving a return call that appears to come from FBI Boston’s main line, 857-386-2000. The caller provides a fake name and badge number and may direct the victim to continue the conversation on an encrypted app, telling them not to share the communication with anyone.
The FBI said the calls are fraudulent and that the agency will never call or email private citizens to demand payment, threaten arrest, request personal information or ask them to communicate via an encrypted application.
“Scammers are utilizing fear, urgency, and increasingly sophisticated tactics — including spoofing trusted phone numbers — to push people into acting before they can think it through,” said Ted E. Docks, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston Division. “If you get an unexpected call from someone claiming to be the FBI or any law enforcement