Berkshire County
As of 2022, there were 6,774 veterans living in Berkshire County, including 430 women veterans. This page includes local event listings and directories of veterans’ services; VA clinics; community behavioral health centers; peer recovery support centers; elder services; posts and auxiliaries; peer recovery meetings; and veteran owned businesses, along with census, veteran homelessness, VA spending, and public health data for Berkshire County.
All events in Berkshire County are tagged #western-mass and #berkshires. When you submit events, include the relevant tags and the name of the town in the event listing so they show up in the relevant calendars.
Executive Office of Veterans’ Services
The mission of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Veterans’ Services (EOVS) is to act as the primary advocate on behalf of all the Commonwealth’s veterans. The Office provides outreach and support through various programs.
EOVS offers assistance to eligible veterans and their surviving spouses through the MassVets Financial Benefits Program. Veterans may use the Mass Vet Benefit Calculator to see what they may qualify for and contact their local veterans’ services office below to apply.
VA Central Western Massachusetts
Veterans in Berkshire County are served by the VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System with one clinic located in Pittsfield. Anyone who has served in the military is encouraged to apply to determine their eligibility and Priority Group. Some veterans are exempt from co-pays due to their VA rating, income, or special eligibility factors.
Community Behavioral Health Centers
Community Behavioral Health Centers (CBHCs) are one-stop shops for mental health and substance use services and treatment. The network includes one center in Berkshire County in Pittsfield offering immediate, confidential care for mental health and substance use needs. CBHCs are open daily for walk-ins, routine appointments, and crisis care, including Mobile Crisis Intervention.
Massachusetts Behavioral Health Help Line
CBHCs are closely connected to the Massachusetts Behavioral Health Help Line (BHHL). The BHHL is a 24/7 clinical hotline staffed by trained behavioral health providers and peer coaches who offer clinical assessment, treatment referrals, and crisis triage services. Staff directly connect callers with the nearest CBHC when appropriate.
Peer Recovery Support Centers
Peer Recovery Support Centers (PRSC) in Massachusetts are free accessible peer-led spaces that provide individuals in recovery from substance use, as well as their family members and loved ones, an opportunity to offer and receive human connection, community inclusion, peer support, and access to non-clinical resources. There are three centers in Berkshire County located in North Adams, Pittsfield, and Great Barrington.
Massachusetts Overdose Prevention Helpline
The Massachusetts Overdose Prevention Helpline is staffed by a dedicated team of harm reductionists and people with lived and living experience with overdose. The hotline is not a recovery or treatment helpline; it connects people using drugs with trained operators who can call for help in case of overdose. It is available to anyone at risk of overdose.
Elder Services of Berkshire County
Aging Services Access Points (ASAPs) are private, non-profit agencies established under MGL Chapter 19A. ASAPs provide direct and protective services, including information and referrals; interdisciplinary case management; intake and assessment; developing, implementing, and monitoring service plans; reassessing needs; and investigating reports of elder abuse and neglect.
MassOptions is a service of the Executive Office of Health & Human Services (EOHHS) that can also help older adults, people with disabilities, and family members or caregivers identify aging and disability services and connect to those that can meet their needs. Call (800) 243-4636 or click here to complete a referral.
Berkshire County Veterans Posts & Auxiliaries
The Veterans Posts and Auxiliaries directory includes information about the VFW, American Legion, and AMVETS Posts, Marine Corps League Detachments, and VVA and DAV Chapters based in cities and towns in Berkshire County.
Posts
Auxiliaries
Twelve-Step Recovery Meetings in Berkshire County
Twelve-step recovery programs meet online and in public settings to guide individuals in their recovery and generally have a general spiritual foundation, encouraging participants to look to a higher power, however they define it. The directory below links to 12-step programs by city/town.
Veteran Owned Businesses in Berkshire County
This Veteran Owned Businesses directory is based on publicly available information and listings of veteran owned businesses in Berkshire County. Click here to submit a business or update information.
Veterans in Berkshire County
If you serve veterans and are trying to learn more about their demographics, you can explore the most recent ACS 5-year estimates from Census Reporter for cities and towns in Berkshire County at the links below. Based on the ACS 5-year estimates, there were 6,774 veterans living in Berkshire County as of 2022, including 430 women.
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You can explore the most recent American Community Survey census data specific to Berkshire County veterans with interactive maps and tables via Census Reporter, such as by age, gender, and veteran status, median incomes, service era, and service-connected disability based on data at the city and town and county level with 5-year estimates (most reliable).
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In October 2023, the US Census Bureau released the most recent 2022 data from the Annual Business Survey, which includes information at the state level on veteran-owned businesses within:
Company Summaries and Characteristics of Businesses tables by industry, sex, ethnicity, race, and veteran status and Characteristics of Business Owners tables by Service-Disabled and Other Veteran Characteristics.
Module Business Characteristics tables by industry, sex, ethnicity, race, and veteran status, including Effect of Coronavirus on Business Sales, Level of Operations During Coronavirus Pandemic, Level of Operations During Coronavirus Pandemic, and Outstanding Debt.
Information referencing veterans by age, disability, and poverty status below is only available at the county level for Berkshire County with 1-year estimates (most current), which was used for the charts below. Around 12.6 percent of veterans in Berkshire County fell below the poverty line (729 veterans) of which over 60.1 percent had a disability (438 veterans).
Based on the 2022 ACS 1-year estimates, around 2,052 veterans in Berkshire County had a disability. Based on 5-year estimates, there are 1,227 veterans with a disability considered by VA to be service-connected in Berkshire County.
At least 86 percent of these veterans were receiving VA compensation benefits based on their rating (1,056 veterans).
Whether or not a veteran has time during a “wartime” service era determines in part whether a veteran (or their survivor) is potentially eligible for the VA pension. Very low income wartime veterans over age 65 may be eligible for the pension whether or not they have a qualifying disability. Veterans with service in the Vietnam, Korea, and World War II eras are over age 65.
Veteran Homelessness in Berkshire County
HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC) Program is designed to promote community-wide commitment to the goal of ending homelessness. The Massachusetts CoC includes 12 regional CoCs, including the Three County CoC (covering Berkshire, Franklin, and Hampshire Counties).
During the last week of January, CoC’s count all of the homeless people reported by service providers and counted by local police and volunteer groups on the streets. In 2023, veterans made up around 3.4 percent of the homeless population in Massachusetts, up from 2.2 percent in 2022.
From 2022 to 2023, the number of homeless veterans increased from 534 to 545, including 70 women, who made up 12.8 percent of homeless veterans counted. The number of homeless veterans increased by less than 3 percent overall, with a 23 percent increase for women veterans.
VA Spending in Berkshire County
According to the GDX Report, VA spending in Suffolk County increased from $65.4 million in fiscal year 2021 to $75 million in fiscal year 2023 and included:
$38.5 million on medical care for 2,044 unique patients in 2023 ($18,826 per patient), compared to $32.8 million for 2,244 unique patients in 2021 ($14,617 per patient);
$34.5 million in VA compensation and pension benefit payments in 2023, compared to $30.1 million in 2021; and
$1.7 million for education benefits and vocational rehabilitation and employment services, compared to $1.8 million in 2021.
Berkshire County Public Health Data
The U.S. Center for Disease Control’s Suicide Prevention Strategies for Communities support the implementation of a public health approach that uses data to drive decision-making. Massachusetts does not publish comprehensive data surrounding the deaths of service members and veterans. The chart below includes toxicology data for suicide deaths overall in Berkshire County.