Cultural correspondent Bess J. M. Hochstein reports from Lenox: Hundreds of members of the Berkshire "creative class" converged on the Seven Hills Inn on Thursday, December 3, for the second annual SPARKLE, the holiday edition of Berkshire Creative‘s signature SPARK networking event. As befits the season, deal-making took a back seat to merry-making as guests compared holiday plans, bellied up to endless platters of delectables from Haven Café and Bakery, Brix Wine Bar, and Chocolate Springs, and helped themselves to swag donated by BlueQ. Both the silent auction and the chance auction found a captive audience quite literally, because chance auction winners were required to be to there to hear if their tickets were pulled from a bag and claim their prizes. Among the winners was Nancy Fitzpatrick (above with Creative Pittsfield's Megan Whilden), Berkshire Creative's chair, who was delighted to win back an item she had donated and then wished she hadn't -- a funky canister that had long been part of the decor at her now-defunct Jack's Grill. As the SPARK faded, many partygoers migrated across town to Haven Café & Bakery, where owner Shelly Williams was throwing a party in appreciation of her loyal clientele. A few still had spark enough in them to get in a dance before the evening ended.
Artist Rebecca Weinmann with Berkshire Creative's Helena Fruscio; Caity Delphia and Evan Moriarty.
Catharine Deely and Jeff Klesier; Stephanie Iverson and MASS MoCA's Katherine Myers;
Photographers Kevin Sprague and Scott Barrow.
Susan Geller and Diane Pearlman of the Berkshire Film & Media Commission; Tonio Palmer and David Crane of Excelsior Printing.
Singer Abia Tapia and Scott Edward Cole of Cafe Pomo d'Oro; Berkshire Museum's Stuart Chase and The Clark's Julie Chase.
Mission Bar + Tapas's Carrie Saldo with Nicole Garzino, president-elect of the Junior League of Berkshire County.
Shakespeare & Company's Elizabeth Aspenlieder, John Toole, and Mary Garnish of Berkshire Living; personal trainer Joanna Ezinga and Coco Black.
Haven owner Shelly Williams, who hosted the de facto after party, and her husband, Randal Williams, a yoga educator, flank Stephen Kramek.
Costume designer Arthur Oliver and interior designer Karen Beckwith; Joshua Needleman of Chocolate Springs and Annie Whalen of Bella Flora.
Bookish brothers: Simon's Rock lit professor Brendan Mathews and his brother Colin Mathews of readMedia; culinary sisters: Daire Rooney of Brix and Caitrin Rooney of Nudel.
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Matteline deVries-Dilling, founder of Lite Brite Neon, one of the evening's honoree of this year's Upstate Benefit adresses the gala from the Caboose's caboose.
- Karen Pearson. Courtesy Art Omi.
Olana senior vice president and landscape curatorMark Prezorski, president Sean Sawyer, The evenings honoree Kristin Gamble and New York State Assemblymember Didi Barrett.
- Oxygen House Photo
