Wednesday, March 18, 2026

April 2026 events at Franklin Public Library

Special Events for Kids & Teens

Science Night, Wednesday, April 1 @ 5:30pm
Families! Join our awesome teen volunteers for a special science night! No registration required!

Eid Celebration, April 4 @ 1pm
Families! Join us for a special celebration of Eid, complete with crafts, music, snacks, and more! For questions/to get involved, email Caleigh at ckeating@minlib.net!

Poem Explosion, Thursday, April 16 @ 1:00pm
Calling all poets! Join us for an afternoon of creative fun as we make all kinds of poems, from cut out magazines, old book pages, and even book spines! Bring your creativity!

Music At The Blissful, Saturday, April 18 @ 10:30am
Join us for a fun, high energy music program for children and their grownups! Musician Evan Haller brings the energy to get the whole crowd up and dancing!

Local Hero Storytime, Tuesday, April 21 @10:30am
Join the library and our friends from the Franklin Fire Department for a special storytime celebrating our local heroes! Be prepared for fun and surprises!

Superhero Party, Wednesday, April 22 @10:30am
Join us for an epic superhero bash! Feel free to wear your favorite superhero outfit and join us for a series of games, crafts, and hero activities!

Stuffed Animal Sleepover, Wednesday, April 22 @6:00pm
What kind of trouble can a bunch of stuffed animals cause in an empty library? Here’s our chance to find out! Bring one of your favorite stuffed friends to the library for a cozy storytime, then leave them in our care for the evening! When you pick your friend up on Thursday, see what antics they might have caused!

BenAnna Band, Thursday, April 23 @10:30am
Join us for this super-fun, high energy, interactive music concert that is sure to have the whole family up dancing!

Ed Popielarczyk Magic Show, Friday, April 24 @10:30am
Join us as we welcome Ed Popielarczyk for a one-of-a-kind magic show that is guaranteed to leave the whole family impressed!

Rainforest Reptiles, Saturday, April 25 @10:30am
Travel with us to the different rainforests around the world and meet the critters, turtles, snakes and more that call these places home! Real, LIVE Animal Fun for All Ages!

Any updates to the schedule can be found on the Library page -

Councilor Morrongiello provides some quarterbacking insights to the March 4, 2026 meeting (audio)

FM #1689 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 1689 in the series. 


This session of the radio show shares our “Town Council Quarterbacking” with Town Councilor Max Morrongiello. We had our conversation in person at the Franklin TV & Radio Studios on Wednesday, March 11, 2026. Our conversation condensed the Town Council meeting of Wednesday, March 4, 2026.


We focus on two questions:

  • ok, what just happened? 

  • What does it mean for Franklin residents and taxpayers?

We cover the following key topics

  • Snow and Ice total at $2.1M which doesn't include the $65K from last night's double coat of salt to counter the ice. This amount will eat into the operations budget as it has already wiped out the snow/Ice stabilization amount

  • Ad-hoc subcommittee with 3 Council members will report back with community input on potential charter changes was approved by 9-0 vote

  • Appropriating Funds by Borrowing to Pay Costs of Purchasing a Fire Truck for the Fire Department was approved by 9-0 vote.

  • $20,000 from special fund for paid parking fees was authorized to pay for the system (2 years worth) and some repairs to one of the kiosks by a 9-0 vote

  • 2 zoning bylaws (Zoning Bylaw Amendment 26-948 & Zoning Bylaw Amendment 26-949) were approved to refer to the Planning Board. They will conduct their public hearing and send them back as is, or with comments for adjustments. The Council will then hold their public hearing (possibly in April) before voting on the measures. The new Planning Director Morena Zelaya made the presentation for her first appearance before the Council

  • Then they got to the goals discussion. After a lengthy discussion with some tweaks, some cuts, but mostly approval of the goals as presented the Council was able to move to accept the goals as revised at approx. 9:58, approved to waive the reading, voted to approved, and then with seconds to spare, voted to adjourn before 10:00 PM

  • Max shared his goals tracking to provide details on the survey and feedback received vs. how that played into the set of goals agreed to by the full Council 


The conversation runs about 34 minutes. Let’s listen in

Audio link -  
https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-1689-town-council-quarterbacking-with-councilor-morrongiello-03-11-26/


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


Add link to goals survey tracking

https://www.franklinmatters.org/2026/03/town-councilor-morrongiello-resident.html

The Franklin TV video is available for replay  https://youtu.be/3jkYtB5_Y3g?&t=136 


The agenda (and released documents) can be found  https://ma-franklin.civicplus.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03042026-2166 


The thread of my notes captured via Blusky can be found in PDF format - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ONzSiMKofgqw1riOlBPJyqB-Hopo3bcs/view?usp=drive_link


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


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!

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


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


Town Councilor Morrongiello: Resident Survey Goals vs. Adopted Outcomes

Submitted by Town Councilor Max Morrongiello

FHS selections for Hockomock League recognitions 2025-2026 Indoor Track & Field Season

"Congratulations to our athletes who were selected as Hockomock League MVP, All-Stars and Honorable Mentions for the 2025-2026 Indoor Track & Field Season."