YOU'RE Invited!! Cultural Volunteer & FY25 Grant Recipient Reception - March 13 at 7 PM

A Night of Gratitude – Honoring Franklin's Cultural Volunteers & Grant Recipients

Thursday, March 13  7 - 8:30 PM | Dean College | Guidrey Center, Paula Rooney Student Center RSVP here! Dear Franklin Community, We invite you to an evening of celebration, appreciation, and connection—where we come together to honor the people who make Franklin's cultural heartbeat so strong. This special night is dedicated to you—our incredible volunteers, artists, and supporters—who pour passion, time, and creativity into making Franklin a vibrant place to live, work, and visit. We will recognize our FY2025 grant recipients, whose work continues to inspire and enrich our community. And we are honored to celebrate a group of outstanding cultural volunteers whose dedication has made a lasting impact on Franklin's arts and culture: Amy Adams – Franklin Cultural District Sarah Cronin – Franklin Cultural Council Lauren Kloos & Roger Trahan – Franklin Farmers' Market Brenna Johnson – Franklin High School Ceramics Instructor & Empty Bowls Coordinator with the Franklin Food Pantry This event is free and open to all, and we would love to celebrate with as many of you as possible. We can't wait to share this evening of gratitude, laughter, and community with you. Thank you for being part of Franklin's creative story! Town of Franklin Franklin Culture District | 355 East Central Street | Franklin, MA 02038 US

Use of Opioid Settlement Funds to bring Art Pharmacy to Franklin "another first of many"

FM #1396 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1396 in the series. 

This session of the radio show shares the Art Pharmacy Community Conversation held at THE BLACK BOX on March 5, 2025. Cory Shea, Director of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy opened the event with 3 panelists who made brief presentations and then participated in a Q&A session.

Panelists:

• Michael Bobbitt, Mass Cultural Council

• Emily Devlin, Art Pharmacy

• Amy Friguiletti, Deputy Town Administrator

The Q&A session of this is not shared, the audio quality was not sufficient.

The presentation portion of the event runs about 35 minutes, so let’s listen to overview of Art Pharmacy and how the Town of Franklin will be the first community to use their Opioid Settlement funds to  use this Audio link -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1396-art-pharmacy-community-comversation-03-05-25/

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** Presentation by Michael Bobbitt -> https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_g76jrwROR3wWehzLD5mDxrWk3zhk8Uo/view?usp=drive_link

Mass Cultural Council press release on Art Pharmacy -> https://massculturalcouncil.org/blog/introducing-the-first-statewide-social-prescribing-solution-in-the-u-s/ 

Mass Cultural Council -> https://massculturalcouncil.org/ 

Michael Bobbit -> https://massculturalcouncil.org/about/staff/michael-j-bobbitt-bio/ 

** Presentation by Emily Devlin -> https://drive.google.com/file/d/1yFFjIH-x0lHx53F8MMwxatqg_JoDJ35F/view?usp=drive_link

Art Pharmacy ->  https://www.artpharmacy.co/ 

Emily Devlin -> https://www.artpharmacy.co/about 

** Town of Franklin ->  https://www.franklinma.gov/ 

Amy Friguilett -> https://www.franklinma.gov/159/Administrator 

Cory Shea -> https://www.franklinma.gov/916/Arts-Culture-and-the-Creative-Economy

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We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.  

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.

 

How can you help?

• If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors

• If you don't like something here, please let me know

• And if you have interest in reporting on meetings or events, please reach out. We’ll share and show you what and how we do what we do

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/ or www.franklin.news/

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana"  c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.

I hope you enjoy!

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You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

Use of Opioid Settlement Funds to bring Art Pharmacy to Franklin "another first of many"

You're Invited! #ThinkFranklinFirst (2/26), Community Conversation (3/5) FY2025 Grant recipients (3/13)

Community Conversations + A Celebration!

Springing into Arts & Culture

Department of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy Think Franklin First Gift Card Program Art Pharmacy in Franklin Franklin Cultural Volunteer & Grant Recipient Reception Call for Artists

FEBRUARY 26TH | 7 PM DEAN BANK By attending this event, you'll discover how your business can become a participating merchant, the benefits of joining the program, and how to maximize your exposure to local consumers. Don't miss this opportunity to connect with fellow business owners and contribute to the growth of Franklin's local economy. Click here for more info + to RSVP

MARCH 5TH | 12-2 PM, Black Box Theater We're thrilled to welcome Michael Bobbitt (Mass Cultural Council) & Emily Devlin (Art Pharmacy) as we explore how Art Pharmacy—a nationally recognized program—will support substance use prevention, harm reduction, treatment & recovery in our community.⁠ This is your chance to get involved and help bring this initiative to life!⁠ ⁠ 🔹 Learn how Art Pharmacy will impact Franklin⁠ 🔹 Discover partnership opportunities⁠ 🔹 Explore the role of arts in mental health & social connection⁠ Click here for more info + RSVP

MARCH 13TH | SAVE THE DATE Thursday, March 13th, 7-8:30pm | A night to honor our FY2025 grant recipients and our Franklin cultural volunteers Dean College | Guidrey Center in the Paula Rooney Student Center. Our reception is free and open to the public. Click here to RSVP

Read more on the Town of Franklin website under the Department of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy. Town of Franklin Franklin Culture District | 355 East Central Street | Franklin, MA 02038 US

You're Invited to the Community Conversation on the role of arts in supporting health & well being

The Town of Franklin is excited to welcome Michael Bobbitt, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and Emily Devlin, LICSW, Head of Strategic Partnerships & Clinical Innovation at Art Pharmacy, for a Community Conversation on how the arts can play a vital role in supporting health and well-being in Franklin.

With funding from the Town opioid settlement funds, Franklin is launching Art Pharmacy—a nationally recognized program that connects individuals to arts and cultural engagements as a tool for healing, social connection, and overall wellness. The Town is rpiloting a program in Franklin specifically for substance use prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery support.

You're Invited to the Community Conversation on the role of arts in supporting health & well being

We are seeking partners from across Franklin’s arts, culture, and social services sectors to help bring these programs to life. Whether you’re part of a cultural organization, a wellness or mental health provider, a social services agency, or a business focused on community well-being, this is an opportunity to collaborate and make a difference.

Wednesday, March 5 12 - 2 PM; At the Blackbox Theater, 15 W Central Street, Franklin, Massachusetts 02038

Join us to learn more about:

• How Art Pharmacy programs will positively impact Franklin
• Opportunities for local arts & culture organizations, social service providers, and community-focused businesses to become program partners
• The role of arts and culture in strengthening mental health, wellness, and social connection

Click here to RSVP to the conversation.

This community conversation is free and open to the public. Parking available onsite. For accessibility needs, please reach out to Cory Shea.

Hail, hail, the gang's all here; this "gang" cares about the Library and what they offer (audio)

FM #1378 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1378 in the series. 

This session shares my conversation with Felicia Oti, Director of the Franklin Public Library. We were joined by many of her staff, see the list of names below. We had our discussion virtually on Wednesday, February 5, 2025.

I opened the conversation with my recitation of “Hail, hail, the gang's all here… what the heck do we care now?”  We all care about the Franklin Public Library which is why we are here now, and are about to find out some of the breadth of services they cover.

• Felicia Oti, Library Director

• Allison Smith, Deputy Director

• Kara Naff, Circulation Supervisor

• Vicki Earls, Head of Reference 

• Mitzi Gousie, Public Services Librarian

• Caleigh Keating, Youth Services Librarian

Among the many services the Library offer are:

• Digitization of Franklin History

• US Citizenship test prep

• Subscription to Khan Academy

• Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) both a opportunity that provides training for those that volunteer , as well as a service for those with income less than 65K to file their taxes

• Decodable books for beginning readers now in the library

• Citizen science kits co-sponsored by Conservation Commission

• From Mass Cultural Council, Franklin Cultural Council & Franklin  Cultural District come grant funded programs, including a typewriter orchestra concert coming in April

The show notes include links to the Library page and to the calendar of events where registration for some of the events is required/recommended.

The recording runs about 58 minutes, so let’s listen in. Audio link -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1378-franklin-public-library-group-shares-highlights-02-05-25/

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Franklin Public Library page -> https://www.franklinma.gov/233/Franklin-Public-Library 

Event calendar -> https://www.franklinma.gov/942/Calendar-of-Events 

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)

https://franklinma.gov/313/English-for-Speakers-of-Other-Languages-

Prior recording April 2020 #248

https://www.franklinmatters.org/2020/04/fm-248-franklin-public-library-staff.html 

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We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial. 

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.

How can you help?

• If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors

• If you don't like something here, please let me know

• And if you have interest in reporting on meetings or events, please reach. We’ll share and show you what and how we do what we do

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/  or www.franklin.news 

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana"  c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.

I hope you enjoy!

------------------

You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

Hail, hail, the gang's all here; this "gang" cares about the Library and what they offer (audio)