Franklin Food Pantry Celebrates National Volunteer Month

April is National Volunteer Month, a special time to recognize the invaluable contributions of volunteers. The Franklin Food Pantry kicked off this important month by hosting its annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon, which celebrates the incredible impact volunteers have on the organization and the Franklin community. 

 

The luncheon held on April 3, 2025, was made possible by G&C Plumbing and Heating who sponsored the event, and New England Chapel who provided the space. Elizabeth’s Bagels, The Rome Restaurant, Starbucks on E Central St., Twist Bakery & Cafe, and volunteer bakers provided food, paper goods, desserts, and more. Paul Vicario Studio beautifully captured the event through photography.

Each week, more than 120 individuals volunteer their time at the Franklin Food Pantry making it possible to deliver essential food assistance and service programs to over 850 households in Franklin. Their efforts support vital initiatives such as in-person and walk-in shopping, curbside pickup, mobile pantries at three Franklin locations, Kids’ Snack Bags, the Weekend Backpack Program, holiday meal packages, the Community Gardens Program, and many more. In 2024 alone, Franklin Food Pantry volunteers collectively contributed over 12,000 hours of their time and talent.

Distinguished guests who attended to show their appreciation included Massachusetts State Senator Becca Rausch, State Representative Jeff Roy, Franklin Deputy Town Administrator Amy Frigulietti, Franklin Town Councilor Cobi Frongillo, Superintendent of Franklin Public Schools Lucas Giguere, and Director of Franklin Senior Center Sarah Amaral.  

Senator Becca Rausch addressed the volunteers, stating, “Your work is irreplaceable. Volunteers keep The Pantry’s warehouse full, the shelves stocked, and the operation running smoothly. You pack the backpacks, load the mobile pantry, and assist shoppers. Every hour you spend is a labor of love. And there is so much love supporting this organization and uplifting the people it serves.”

State Representative Jeff Roy presented the 2024 President’s Volunteer Service Award to 39 exceptional volunteers whose service has significantly impacted the Franklin community and serves as an inspiration to others. 

 

The Gold Award, recognizing over 500 volunteer hours in the past year, was presented to Amber Baur. The Silver Award, for 250 to 499 volunteer hours, was awarded to David Bascom, Vicki Coates, Diane Daddario, Suzanne Gendreau, and Kym Pruitt. 

 

The Bronze Award, for 100 to 249 volunteer hours, was presented to Dominic Agostino, Jim Barton, Colleen Bond, Teresa Burr, Erika Cummings, Dave Custer, Mary Anne Dean, Kim DeCrescenzo, Robert Doyle, Rachel Flum, Kathy Ginley, Angela Draper, Karen Giuliano, Richard Guiliano, Oona Harrington, Jonathan Haddad, Jeanne Hummel, Martin Kaufman, Jen Kuse, Kathy Lesica, Christine Lovell, Carol Malachowski, Ann Maloney, Felecia McKenney, Gary Nassoiy, Donna O’Neill, Joseph O'Koren, C. Lynn Rizzolo, Maureen Sabolinski, Nancy Schoen, Pamela Spicer, Debra Stiffler, and Lawrence Verney.

“We are deeply grateful for the extraordinary contributions of our volunteer team,” said Tina Powderly, Executive Director, Franklin Food Pantry. "Every hour they give, always with a smile, has a profound impact on our client. They are the driving force behind our ability to offer a diverse array of essential programs with dignity, and we are deeply grateful."

The Franklin Food Pantry will continue to celebrate the volunteers throughout April including special social media posts thanking volunteers and highlighting the important role they play at The Pantry.

For more information on the Franklin Food Pantry, or receiving food assistance, please visit the Franklin Food Pantry website at www.franklinfoodpantry.org.

About the Franklin Food Pantry, Inc.

The Franklin Food Pantry, Inc. offers supplemental food assistance, household necessities, and resource referrals to more than 1,800 individuals per year. The Pantry relies on donations and grants to purchase items and pay for daily operations, and partnerships with The Greater Boston Food Bank, Spoonfuls, and local grocery stores to achieve greater buying power and lower costs.

Programs include In-person Shopping, Curbside Pick-up, Emergency Food Bags, Mobile Pantries, Home Delivery, Kids’ Snack Bags, Weekend Backpacks, Holiday Meals, and the SNAP match at Franklin Farmers Market. The Pantry is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization in good standing in Massachusetts, recognized by Charity Navigator as a Four-Star Charity, and awarded GuideStar’s Platinum Transparency ranking. The Pantry is located at 341 W Central St. in Franklin, MA on Route 140. Please visit www.franklinfoodpantry.org for more information.

Additional photos courtesy by Paul Vicario can be found  https://drive.google.com/file/d/10UOhEl1q-1RFpORzZ99XeUSSWFOfUbkA/view?usp=drive_link

Top Row (L to R): Franklin Deputy Town Administrator Amy Frigulietti, State Representative Jeff Roy; Bottom Row (L to R): Franklin Food Pantry Board Chair, Amber Baur, Senator Becca Rausch, Pantry Volunteer Bob Doyle, and Franklin Town Councilor Cobi Frongillo

Rausch Report: Bills Meet the Sorting Hat 🎩 (March 2025)

Rausch Report: Bills Meet the Sorting Hat  (March 2025)

Dear Neighbor,

I hope you're having a happy Women's History Month! In what's become an annual tradition, all month long I've been recognizing outstanding women from across the district in a social media series celebrating these often-unsung leaders. (Click or read more about these women below.)

Speaking of amazing women from our district, I watched live as Sunita Williams, a NASA astronaut, science educator, and Needham native, splashed down into the Gulf of Mexico and was greeted by a pod of dolphins! Her perseverance through her eight-day-turned-nine-month mission on the International Space Station has inspired many, and her safe return has brought great relief and rejoicing. Welcome home, Suni!

March has been lively at the State House. We welcomed farmers, fishermen, and foresters for Agriculture Day, when the Great Hall is transformed into a smorgasbord of local food samples and knowledge. I hosted a panel for Massachusetts Civics Learning Week, hearing from students about the significant impact of Civics Education Trust Fund grants. As Senate Chair of the Environmental Committee, I also co-hosted a Green Budget Briefing with House Chair Christine Barber and environmental advocacy organizations to discuss our state's environmental agencies' vital work stewarding our incredible natural resources.

Last month, legislators received their committee assignments; this month, bills were assigned to committees based on their subject matter, with the House and Senate Clerks' offices serving as switchyard and sorting hat. The committees I chair, the Joint Committees on Environment and Natural Resources and Municipalities and Regional Government, have received 324 and 178 bills, respectively. That number is sure to grow, and I look forward to reviewing and hearing testimony on all 500+ bills.   

Read on in this month's Rausch Report for legislative updates, a glimpse into the amazing women from our district who we recognized throughout this Women's History Month, a snapshot of events I attended, information and updates on upcoming town elections, and more.

For real-time updates, please follow me on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram. If you are a constituent and need assistance, please don't hesitate to call me and my team at (617) 722-1555, email me at becca.rausch@masenate.gov, or attend upcoming office hours. We are here to help.     

Yours in service,  

 

Senator Becca Rausch  

Continue reading the Rausch Report online -> 

https://mailchi.mp/masenate/monthlynewsletter-18246370

Rose Turco receives recognition as part of Women's History Month

Rose Turco receives recognition

via Senator Becca Rausch: 

Today we celebrate Women’s History Month by recognizing Rose Turco of Franklin!  

Rose was a beloved Franklin school teacher of 40 years and served as Vice Principal and Chair of the Math Department of Franklin High School. Rose has devoted herself to projects that honor Franklin’s veterans, including the Memorial Street Sign Project and the Veterans Memorial Walkway.  

Her efforts have helped create lasting tributes to those who have selflessly served our country. She is an active member of the Franklin Veterans’ Council and served on the Frances Eddy King scholarship committee.  

Thank you, Rose!

#mapoli #WHM2025 #womenshistorymonth

Shared from -> https://www.facebook.com/share/19znERa1J8/

New School and Youth Program Immunization Data Maps Reveal Statewide Holes in Community Immunity

More than 20% of K-12 schools failed to report any vaccination rate data to the Department of Public Health for 2023-24; Rausch’s Community Immunity Act provides systemic infectious disease prevention solutions

As the Trump Administration withholds billions in federal funds for scientific research, including potentially hundreds of millions of dollars for Boston Children’s Hospital that would have funded its vaccine work and other efforts, and responsible and worried parents aim to vaccinate their children against measles ahead of schedule due to the ongoing outbreak, State Senator Becca Rausch (D-Needham) today released new data visualization maps showing significantly missing data and a stark lack of sufficient community-based immunity protections against the spread of measles and other infectious yet vaccine-preventable diseases across Massachusetts. 

Crafted by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) using vaccination data published by the Department of Public Health (DPH), the maps show an average of 21% of K-12 schools that failed to report any vaccination rate data to DPH whatsoever for the 2023-24 school year. That nonreporting rate jumps to 41% for early education programs. 

Among the schools and programs that did report vaccination data to DPH, as can be seen on the maps, a concerningly high number lack adequate community immunity against vaccine-preventable diseases, including 21% of kindergartens with insufficient protection against measles, 34% of middle schools with insufficient protection against whooping cough, and 37 early education programs with insufficient protection against polio, more than double the number from the previous school year. Adding concern is the geographic overlay among nonreporting programs and programs with high rates of under- or unimmunized children. 

Community Immunity Act

The worrisome data goes beyond what the maps can even hold. From early education to colleges, DPH is missing vaccination data from nearly 2,000 schools and programs. Among the reporting K-12 schools and early education programs, 1,100 enrolled at least five percent of students who were missing at least one vaccine but did not have an immunization exemption on file, representing nearly half the reporting schools and programs in the state. Almost 400 schools, programs, and colleges enrolled students with no vaccination records whatsoever.  

“It is embarrassing and dangerous that five years after the onset of COVID, we still have not fixed the serious problems in our state’s immunization infrastructure laws,” said Senator Becca Rausch. “We have a United States Health and Human Services Secretary who can barely bring himself to even mention measles vaccination in the midst of a measles outbreak, and in the same breath spewed medical misinformation. If we hope to make any advancements at all in protecting people’s health and safety, it will only happen at the state level. We have obvious, systemic flaws in Massachusetts that require system-focused solutions, which is exactly what my Community Immunity Act provides. There is no good reason to continue failing our children, families, medically vulnerable neighbors, and communities by failing to pass this bill into law.” 

Current state statutory law governing immunization requirements and exemptions for early education programs, schools, and summer camps is incomplete and confusing, yielding disparate implementation and serious public health gaps. Rausch’s Community Immunity Act supports student and public health by ensuring statewide data collection, improving the availability and accessibility of that data for Massachusetts residents, centralizing and standardizing medical and religious exemption processes and protocols, and engaging and informing communities during conditions of elevated risk of infectious disease. The legislation has been endorsed by many medical professionals and organizations representing doctors, nurses, school personnel, social workers, and individuals with disabilities.  

“The first principle in addressing public health challenges is to have good data,” said Marc Draisen, Executive Director of MAPC. “Local public health professionals are at the front lines in our cities and towns every day.  They need standardized and complete data to understand vaccination rates throughout the Commonwealth. This data will help them to deliver services more effectively and build stronger community relationships. It will help public health staff, parents, and schools to make the very best choices for our kids and our communities.” 

“Vaccines play a critical role in keeping our communities healthy,” said Mass General Brigham, which has endorsed the Community Immunity Act. “We encourage patients to speak with health professionals about the benefits of vaccines in order to make informed decisions that not only protect themselves but those community members who are at increased risk for severe disease. More comprehensive public reporting to DPH would be a helpful tool for communities to better understand the risk factors of certain communicable infectious diseases.” 

“As a pediatric rheumatologist who treats children with autoimmune diseases, my patients are immunocompromised and rely on their communities to help keep them safe from infectious diseases,” said Dr. Mindy Lo, MD, PhD, Attending Physician at Boston Children's Hospital. “Concerned parents ask me about how to protect their kids from the outbreaks we are hearing about in the news. The reality is that in many parts of the state, we do not have adequate data to inform them about these risks. The Community Immunity Act aims to change that by providing more transparent vaccination data consistent reporting requirements, and I wholeheartedly endorse this bill in support of my patients.” 

“With the federal government recklessly providing a platform to normalize anti-vaccine rhetoric and long-debunked myths about their safety and efficacy, we should be preparing for the fallout health officials are anticipating nationwide,” said American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Massachusetts President Jessica Tang. “In other states, we're seeing the spread of vaccine-preventable infectious diseases, particularly amongst school aged children, and the first death from a disease that has been eradicated for over a decade. We need a comprehensive system in place to provide families with the information they need to make informed decisions regarding their health and wellness, to equip communities with the tools to engage in meaningful outreach, and to bring about a truly standardized approach to religious and medical exemptions. If there was ever a time for the state to make sure we have the infrastructure to track and prevent infectious diseases, it’s now.” 

“As a school nurse in Massachusetts, as well as a mother and grandmother, I support the passage of the Community Immunity Bill for several reasons,” said Cathryn Hampson, MSN, RN, NCSN. “First, it does not remove the right of a parent to choose a religious exemption but rather transfers the responsibility for reviewing and processing exemption documents from camps and schools to the public health department. No longer will school and camp nurses have to sift through notes and scraps of paper (or napkins with peanut butter smears!) trying to decide if it meets the requirements for a religious exemption. Those documents will be submitted to DPH and DPH will provide a certificate of exemption. It also fills in the gaps and removes conflicting components of current regulations, clarifying vaccination requirements, defining reporting expectations, and providing a better understanding of our vaccination status throughout the state. These are critical if we want to continue to ensure the health and safety of our children.”   

“This legislation is critical to social workers,” said Rebekah Gewirtz, Executive Director, National Association of Social Workers, MA Chapter. “By promoting herd immunity and supporting vaccination efforts, the Community Immunity Act will have a significant positive impact on the most vulnerable – small children, those with disabilities, and immunocompromised people across Massachusetts. We face serious threats to our public health at the national level, so it’s more important than ever to pass this bill at the state level, and to do so right now.” 

“Improving vaccine access and utilization supports the health of all residents of Massachusetts, in particular people with disabilities and individuals with compromised immune systems,” said Sadie Simone, MPH, Executive Director of the MetroWest Center for Independent Living. “The Community Immunity Act will accomplish this through increased data collection, streamlining exemptions for students and providing local, community level immunization rates to support public health engagement.  Developing comprehensive, local immunization data will help parents of children with disabilities make informed decisions about their child’s risk of exposure to dangerous yet preventable diseases.” 

More information about the Community Immunity Act, including high-resolution copies of the MAPC maps, can be found on Senator Rausch’s website.  

Now serving her fourth term, State Senator Becca Rausch (D-Needham) represents 11 towns that comprise the Norfolk, Worcester and Middlesex District: Bellingham, Dover, Franklin, Medfield, Milford, Millis, Needham, Norfolk, Plainville, Sherborn, and Wrentham. 

Following the DPH data link provided above, I found the Kindergarten Immunization results for Franklin schools. 

Kindergarten Immunization results for Franklin schools

Senator Rausch Tapped as Senate Chair of Environment and Local Gov. Committees

State Senator Becca Rausch has been tapped by Senate President Karen Spilka to lead not one but two policy committees that likely will see significant legislation move through their subject areas this term, including proposals directly from Governor Healey. 

Senator Rausch Tapped as Senate Chair
of Environment and Local Gov. Committees

Senator Rausch was reappointed as Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, her third consecutive term at the helm, which should receive an anticipated environmental bond bill from the Governor once filed. Senator Rausch also returns as Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government, which she led during her first term and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, thrusting the committee's work into the spotlight in order to ensure local governments could continue to function. Governor Healey has already refiled her Municipal Empowerment Act, proposing changes to local procurement rules, local taxation options, hybrid access to public meetings, and more. 

"I am deeply honored and proud to chair not one but two legislative committees for the Massachusetts Senate this term, and truly grateful to Senate President Karen Spilka for her confidence in my leadership and policy-shaping skills and experience," said Senator Becca Rausch. "The Environmental Committee's work on plastic reduction, water, wetlands, air, trees, pesticides, environmental justice, and more is critical to achieving our climate action goals, and increasingly important as the federal administration slashes the EPA's budget and turns its back on environmental protection. Likewise, the work of the Municipalities Committee impacts every town and city in the entire Commonwealth and provides a significant opportunity to empower our local government partners, improve efficiency, and enhance access to public bodies and resources. These positions carry responsibility to help mold legislation and policy that directly impact our families, businesses, and communities, and I look forward to the important work ahead." 

Rausch is one of only four Senators to chair two joint committees this session. She will also serve as Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on the Census, her second consecutive term in that position, and as a member of five additional Joint Committees: Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities; Election Laws; Revenue; State Administration and Regulatory Oversight; and Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development. 

School Committee Legislative Forum - Feb 24, 2025 (audio)

FM #1388 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1388 in the series. 

This session shares the Franklin (MA) School Committee Legislative Forum held on Monday, Feb 24, 2025. The Forum was held in the FHS Lecture Hall and broadcast via cable, Zoom, and to YouTube by Franklin TV. The audio of that recording is available here as a podcast. 

School Committee Chair Dave Callaghan was host, welcomed Superintendent Lucas Giguere who provided a briefing on the school redistricting and school budget.

Chair Callaghan turned to the legislative delegation, Senator Becca Rausch and State Representative Jeff Roy for their opening remarks before getting into some prepared questions. After the prepared questions, the audience was allowed to ask questions or make comments.

The recording runs about 1 hour & 55 minutes, so let’s listen in. Audio link -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1388-school-cmte-legislative-forum-02-24-25/

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The Franklin TV video is available for replay here -> 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuUN6giRqc0 

The agenda doc can be found -> 

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_02242025-1582 

My full set of notes taken during the meeting can be found in one PDF ->

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pX-uJFiDmOih9nE4vdq9QSr7qeGlQwQH/view?usp=drive_link 

Photos taken during the event -> 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/821vCMxw7Br6KakP8 

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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!

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School Superintendent Lucas Giguere