We were fortunate to have Officer Darren Derby of the Pittsfield PD join us for lunch and speak on the topic of homelessness in Pittsfield. Apparently, officer Derby is the point man for the PD in this effort and is a wealth of knowledge, empathy and facts on this disturbing predicament in Pittsfield. The takeaway was that there are only approximately 50 truly homeless people in Pittsfield and these folks are victims of mental health issues and addiction. Officer Derby was careful to separate the panhandlers from the truly homeless and felt that the panhandlers were taking advantage of the generosity of the community. For those who are truly homeless, he expressed that shelters don’t work due to the restrictions imposed on those who use them. He asked the club if we could again supply the PD with “Homeless Support Bags” that contain basic sundries and toiletries. Apparently these were very well received in our past efforts.