Latest News
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Early morning fire claims Orchard Valley house in Amherst with no one home
AMHERST — An Orchard Valley home was destroyed, and a cat living at the residence likely killed, by an early Saturday morning fire, with the initial attack by firefighters compromised by a fire hydrant covered in snow and ice and frozen shut, and a second fire hydrant only working after being forced into operation.
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Photos: Winter comes to life with Fire & Ice Festival in Amherst
Most Read
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Editors Picks
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Sports
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UMass basketball: Minutemen drop 4th game in a row in blowout loss to George Washington
It feels like an eternity ago that the UMass men’s basketball team was in the mix for a second consecutive double bye in the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament. Back on Feb. 4, the Minutemen gave away a late lead to Saint Louis with third place in the conference on the line. They beat La Salle the very next game, but have since dropped four in a row – losing by an average margin of 18.5 points.
Opinion
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Guest column: Applause for calling out ‘evil’
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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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Going green: Window World of Western Massachusetts branches out with new insulation service
BELCHERTOWN — Window World of Western Massachusetts has a long history of providing quality windows and doors, but the business only provides one piece in the whole picture of home improvement — until now.
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Arts & Life
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‘We called each other hermanas’: Colleagues remember beloved UMass voice professor, Paulina Stark
Paulina Stark, a professor emerita of voice at the University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1985 to 2005, died earlier this month at the age of 88.
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Obituaries
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[IMAGE]Linda A. Punska Hatfield, MA - Linda Ann Punska, 77, of Hatfield, passed away at home surrounded by her loving family on Thursday, February 20, 2025, after a long illness. She was born in Northampton on June 14, 1947, to the late ... remainder of obit for Linda A. Punska
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Northampton, MA - Stanley J Kochapski passed away February 20, 2025. He was a lifelong Northampton resident, born September 5, 1934, the son of the late Joseph and Mary (Haczynski) Kochapski. After graduating from Northampton High Scho... remainder of obit for Stanley Kochapski Sr.
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NORTHAMPTON, MA - Gary Joseph Kmetz, 61, passed away peacefully on Saturday February 22, 2025. Gary was born in Northampton, the son of the late Lewis and Florence (Rogers) Kmetz. Gary grew up in Florence and graduated from Northampton ... remainder of obit for Gary J. Kmetz
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Hatfield, MA - Phyllis Lillian Redfern Muccino, 95 of Hatfield, passed away peacefully on February 6, 2025 in Agawam. She was born on January 22, 1930 in Providence, Rhode Island. She graduated from the Forsyth School of Dental Hygiene ... remainder of obit for Phyllis Muccino