What's happening in Franklin, MA: Thursday, August 20, 2026 ???

Thursday, August 20

Franklin Lions Clothing Drive active through Aug 22   https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/07/the-franklin-lions-conducting-clothing.html

9:00am Fallen Hero: Edward C. Dailey (Veterans Walkway, Franklin Town Common)

3:00pm FREE Choking Response Training (Franklin Fire Department)

5:00pm Open House - New Well 7-7A PFAS Treatment Facility (21 Elizabeth Ave)

6:00pm IEP/504 Caregiver Support Group at SAFE (SAFE Coalition) 

7:00pm BEN 4 Franklin Mtg (Franklin TV and Radio)

For additional details on Library events -> https://www.franklinma.gov/942/Calendar-of-Events

For additional details on Senior Center events ->   

https://www.franklinma.gov/DocumentCenter/View/9890

***  Town Meetings today ***

Town Council Monthly Office Hours

Thursday, August 20 Time: 8:30 AM

No agenda for this informal discussion

250th Anniversary Celebration Events Subcommittee Meeting

Thursday, August 20 Time: 7:00 PM

https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08202026-2462 

ZBA Meeting - No Meeting

Thursday, August 20

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Find the full Community event calendar https://bit.ly/FranklinCommunityCalendar

If you have an event to add to the calendar, you can use the form to submit it for publication: https://bit.ly/Submit2Calendar

The Town meeting calendar is found https://www.franklinma.gov/Calendar.aspx

The School district calendar is found https://franklinpublicschooldistrictma.sites.thrillshare.com/o/fpsd/page/school-calendar

Reminder: Open House for Franklin's New Well 7-7A PFAS Treatment Facility - August 20

The Town of Franklin's Water and Sewer Division of the DPW invites residents to tour the new Well 7-7A PFAS Treatment Facility during a community Open House on Thursday, August 20, from 5 to 7 PM, located at 21 Elizabeth Avenue.

The new facility was built to remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from drinking water and is designed to produce up to 580,000 gallons of treated drinking water per day while meeting Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) drinking water standards. The project also included upgrades to the site's existing treatment buildings, helping ensure Franklin continues to provide safe, reliable drinking water to the community.

During the Open House, visitors will have the opportunity to:

• Tour the new treatment facility.
• Learn how PFAS treatment works using granular activated carbon (GAC).
• Meet members of Franklin's Public Works and Water Operations team.
• Discover how the Town is investing in the long-term reliability and quality of Franklin's drinking water supply.

The event is free and open to the public. Whether you're interested in learning more about Franklin's water system or seeing the new facility firsthand, all are welcome to attend.

Shared from - https://www.franklinma.gov/m/newsflash/home/detail/180

On Earth Day, Coalition Renews Calls for Safe Drinking Water Protections for Private Well Owners

Private Well Owners

In observance of Earth Day, the Coalition for Safe Drinking Water is urging lawmakers to advance legislation that would, for the first time, establish statewide water quality standards for over half a million Massachusetts residents who rely on private wells.

The Coalition, a grassroots group led by RCAP Solutions and supported by The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts, has been advocating for the legislation, which would expand a financial assistance program to remediate wells affected by harmful contaminants in drinking water supplies such as “forever chemicals” like PFAS, as well as arsenic, uranium and other harmful substances.

Many people who discover contaminants in their wells resort to drinking bottled water, which is expensive and harmful to the environment as a large amount of this plastic waste ends up in landfills.

“Earth Day is about honoring the beauty and power of nature as well about protecting people from the damage that has already been done to our environment,” said Brian Scales, President & CEO of RCAP Solutions.  “We cannot ignore that thousands of families in Massachusetts may be drinking contaminated water that can cause both short- and long-term health impacts.  Pending legislation supports a path to learning what is in their water and remediating where needed.”

The bills (H.900 and S.585) are co-sponsored by Sen. Jamie Eldridge (D-Marlborough), Rep. Natalie Blais (D-Sunderland) and Rep. Meg Kilcoyne (D-Clinton), and have drawn support from nearly 20 legislators.  The legislation would address a regional equity issue because areas with public water systems have access to water that is regularly tested, treated and maintained.

“Every resident in Massachusetts deserves access to safe and clean drinking water, regardless of where they live or how their water is sourced,” said Rep. Kilcoyne.  “Establishing statewide standards for private wells is a crucial step toward health equity, environmental protection, and supporting our rural communities.  I’m proud to support this legislation and to stand with the Coalition for Safe Drinking Water in advocating for this long-overdue public health safeguard.”

RCAP Solutions’ Private Well Program to Protect Public Health, funded by The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts, conducted over 500 water quality tests of private wells across several Massachusetts communities from 2020 to 2022, finding that about a third of the wells contained levels of contaminants higher than state health standards or suggesting potential health risks.

“I own a private drinking water well and benefited greatly from participating in the Private Well Program to Protect Public Health,” said Arthur Allen, who lives in the Town of Princeton.  “Our water test and well inspection found contaminants in the water and deficiencies in the well that we had to have corrected.  I fully support this legislation and hope it becomes law in Massachusetts.”

A study by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) is underway to make recommendations for a statewide program to ensure that drinking water from private wells is safe to consume.  It is expected to be completed this summer.

For more information about the legislation and the Coalition for Safe Drinking Water, please visit
www.whatsinyourwellwater.org.


About RCAP Solutions

RCAP Solutions is an integrated community development corporation working with a multi-faceted suite of services in communities throughout the northeastern part of the U.S. and the Caribbean.  Established in 1969 (as Rural Housing Improvement), RCAP Solutions has supported the power and potential of communities for over half a century as strategists of community-wide well-being.  Our mission is to foster personal and public self-reliance and improve the quality of life for individuals, families, and the communities in which they live.  For more information, visit: www.rcapsolutions.org.

About The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts

The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts is dedicated to improving the health of those who live or work in Central Massachusetts, with particular emphasis on vulnerable populations and unmet needs.  Through its unique and impactful approach to grantmaking, The Health Foundation supports community-identified health issues, with health defined broadly to include social determinants of health and with a focus on promoting health equity.  As a health conversion foundation launched in 1999 following the sale of the not-for-profit HMO Central Massachusetts Health Care Inc.  The Health Foundation’s grants have totaled over $59 million to more than 230 unique organizations over its history.  For more information, visit www.thfcm.org.