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Pignatelli Kicks Off Re-election Campaign
By Andy McKeever, iBerkshires Staff
03:11AM / Thursday, September 01, 2016
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Muddy Brook Elementary School pupil Jada McKie read a card she made for Pignatelli and endorsed him with her vote.



William 'Smitty' Pignatelli is embarking on his eighth campaign for House of Representatives.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — In front of a crowd of who's who of the Berkshires, fifth-grader Jada McKie took to the microphone.
 
"Massachusetts has the greatest state representative of all and it is I, Smitty Pignatelli," McKie exclaimed, getting the crowd roaring with laughter at her impression of the 4th Berkshire District representative.
 
She read a birthday card she drew for William "Smitty" Pignatelli that  says, "You are the most kind person I have ever met. Massachusetts is very lucky to have a state representative like you. Love, Jada. You have my vote."
 
McKie's exclamation and card exemplified the feelings Tuesday night at the Country Club of Pittsfield where Pignatelli held a reception to kick off yet another campaign for office. This is his eighth run for 4th Berkshires seat in the House of Representative and, even though he is unopposed, he continued his traditional campaign event. 
 
"Raising money is the worst part of my job. I hate it. I do one event a year and I don't even want to call it a fundraiser. I call it a friendraiser. That's what each and every one of you are," Pignatelli said. 
 
The fundraiser drew an array of elected officials, candidates for other offices, business and cultural leaders, all totaling more than 200 people. Mick Callahan remembers 14 years ago when the first kickoff was held for Pignatelli and while there were a lot fewer people, there was tremendous energy behind that first run. While this year there isn't a challenge for the seat, Callahan said the work Pignatelli is doing in the State House is vitally important to the county. 
 
"I think he's creating something, it's a new phenomenon, for all of us. Why don't we be a little proactive in government and why don't we be less reactive? Why don't we start to advance some new thoughts? Let's talk about working together. The Berkshires have lost population. We have lost some of our large employers. And we've lost some opportunities along with those loses," Callahan said. 
 
"In the Berkshires, it is a little bit like losing weight. You have to get used to your new size. I would submit to you that a proactive approach to legislation and government and community relations is at the forefront of Smitty's mind."
 
Callahan said Pignatelli has served with "dignity and a great base of knowledge" in his proactive work in keeping a countywide view on everything he does.  
 
"We're facing some challenging times. Mickey [Callahan] talked about our shrinking population. I've made a big push for shared service. I think there is an opportunity to provide sustainability not only for our communities but our county if we start talking to our neighbors. Instead of 21 fiefdoms we call towns, why can't we start sharing some services?" Pignatelli said.
 
Pignatelli convinced 17 towns in Berkshire County to sign agreements to share services — from inspection offices to schools working closely together, the Lenox Democrat has been working toward breaking down boundary lines.
 
"We are shrinking. We are losing some of our economic base. But we are gaining a new economic base. The opportunities for small home-based businesses are real. People can work out of their homes. We don't need bricks and mortar or big smokestacks that we had in yesteryear. The 4,000 people who worked in the paper mills in Lee alone are gone and they are probably not coming back. But we need to make sure the Onyx Paper, the last remaining remnant of the paper industry in the Berkshires, is strong employing 100 good quality, high-paying jobs in the Berkshires. They need the tools and the opportunity to move forward," Pignatelli said.
 
Pignatelli said his work needs to be focused on helping the small businesses that exist in the Berkshires. Whether that be the Chamberland Group or Iredale Cosmetics, he said a new commercial base is growing and the state needs to support them.
 
"Too many times in the Berkshires we want to see the next General Electric employ 1,000 people. I'm not sure it is going to happen and I'm not going to wait for it to happen. But, the Chamberland Group, Iredale Cosmetics, little businesses like that are popping up all over the Berkshires," Pignatelli said.
 
He said while SABIC may be leaving with 300 jobs, "General Dynamics is doing OK. They could hire 200 engineers today if we can find them. Our collective job is to find them. We need to train them. We need to educate them. We need to provide them with opportunities to come to the Berkshires or stay in the Berkshires."
 
One way is by ensuring broadband is expanded. Pignatelli calls it "embarrassing" that there are still towns without high-speed internet. Yet, there is movement. Mount Washington is installing fiber optic lines. Charter is expanding in West Stockbridge — as well as in Lanesborough and Hinsdale. 
 
"The opportunities we need for all of the businesses. It is not communicating with people from one end of the county to the other. It is communicating with folks in other states and other countries. It has to be as quickly as that. We can't want any longer, it is too fast paced," Pignatelli said.
 
Another large part of the economy is the cultural venues. Executive Director of the Massachusetts Cultural Council Anita Walker said when her organization faced being cut in the governor's budget, she could count on Pignatelli to restore it. 
 

Massachusetts Cultural Council Executive Director Anita Walker praised Pignatelli's work in restoring the agency's state funding.
"Smitty did an amazing thing for those of us who care about arts and culture in Massachusetts. He took the lead at a moment when the agency whose sole purpose is to support all of the wonderful cultural organizations that all of you enjoy here in the Berkshires, when our budget was literally decimated. We looked at the state house and said who can we call on to rally the troops, to turn this around, and make our budget whole again? And only one name came to mind and it was Smitty Pignatelli," Walker said.
 
The organization spent that money, which the legislature allocated, on cultural venues like the Norman Rockwell Museum, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, Shakespeare & Company, Barrington Stage and an array of other Berkshire organizations she rattled off. 
 
"The Berkshires are really the quintessential center hub of the universe when it comes to arts and culture and we know that and Smitty knows that," Walker said. 
 
Walker said the job of a Legislature is "grueling and time consuming" but Pignatelli does it because he cares about his district. She brought up Pignatelli modeling as a child for the Norman Rockwell painting "Boy Astronaut." That image reflects a time when people saw politicians with "hope, we saw confidence, and we saw optimism," she said. The space race was a time when the country was challenged.
 
"That was a picture not just of Smitty and not just of the nation's space program. That was a picture of hope, confidence, and optimism," Walker said. "That's what goes to the state house every single day. Of the 200 legislators, there is one that goes by only one name and that's Smitty."
 
Pignatelli says he tries every day to help at least one person. His hope is to help the Berkshires create every opportunity for everybody, especially the young like McKie.
 
"This young lady is going to do wonderful things. She's a special young lady. She's got a rock star family," Pignatelli said.
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