Franklin Matters

Friday, April 3, 2009

"people are really hungry for information and facts"

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 03, 2009 @ 12:36 AM

FRANKLIN —

A focus group of 10 residents last night called a report on municipal finances produced by the long-range fiscal planning unbiased, "scary," and an "eye-opener."

Fiscal Planning Committee members invited a cross-section of the public to give feedback on their report to ensure it is accessible, relevant, and provided all the elements residents want examined. The group included several seniors, a teacher, a small-business owner, and parents.

They all said they found the report informative, and told committee Vice Chairman Doug Hardesty, who ran the meeting, that the report made them want to go out and clear up some misconceptions among friends and others who believe the town is spending its money unwisely.

People need to read the report to get a true picture, the group told Hardesty.

"It's very eye-opening," said Eric Polito, who owns EcoSystems Pest Management in Franklin and Hanover.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Focus Group Collection

Part 1- Financial Planning Committee - Focus group - Part ...

Part 2 - Financial Planning Committee - Focus Group - Part ...

Insights -Inside the Focus Groups

Financial Planning Committee 4/2/09

FYI - Tonight's meeting will not be covered by my "live reporting". This session is specifically for a focus group to provide some feedback on the report. I have been asked by the committee to take notes and record the conversation. Not all the committee members will be present. My notes and the recording will enable them to review what transpired during the session.

I will publish my notes when I send them to the committee so that you will all be able to review what happened. The publishing will be delayed and not "live reported" so that I can concentrate on taking good notes. I don't want to be distracted by publishing at the same time.

"community that comes together with the fundamental objective of agreeing with itself"

.. As you may know, there is a conductor of staggering talent who has been hailed as the next Leonard Bernstein. His name is Gustavo Dudamel and he has toured the United States and Europe with the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra to ecstatic reviews. He joins the Los Angeles Philharmonic as their Music Director in the fall. Here’s what matters to us today: this young conductor has a passion for music education because he knows its true power to alter the course of young lives. He was brought up in Venezuela in the extraordinary music education system that I mentioned earlier called El Sistema.
Imagine what can be accomplished if we support the arts, engage ‘at risk’ youth and help them succeed in school and in their lives. For ‘underserved’ families, indeed for all families, participation in music and the arts can help people reclaim and achieve the American Dream.

From the TED Blog

And the performance:

Enjoy!

"the committee has raised more than half"

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 01, 2009 @ 10:16 PM

FRANKLIN —

For the past six weeks, three Franklin High School seniors have spent their lunchtime walking from table to table with a poster board showing Franklin's fallen soldiers, and a big bucket to collect cash to build a monument to honor them.

Thanks to their efforts, and a whole bunch of quarters and dollar bills from their peers, the trio has collected $700 to put toward a new veterans monument honoring fallen heroes from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, said Veterans Agent Robert Fahey, who is chairman of the Monument Committee.

"It restores your faith in the American youth. The spirit of patriotism at Franklin High is alive and well - it absolutely is," said Fahey, a World War II veteran.

Read the article in the Milford Daily News here

"We are doing the best we can"

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 01, 2009 @ 11:42 PM

FRANKLIN —

With two members absent, Town Council postponed a decision on spending $1 million in free cash on capital projects, though councilors expressed support for the plan.

Council Vice Chairwoman Deborah Bartlett asked Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting whether the council could use the money on something else, and what would happen if it did so.

Nutting said departments would fall behind in repairing or replacing old and unsafe equipment, and the backlog of needed items would grow.

For example, he said, emergency workers need reliable defibrillators - one of the items on the capital plan - to save lives, and the School Department needs to replace two 9-year-old vans to safely transport students with special needs.

Read the article in the Milford Daily News here