“It’s a meditative walk"

From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:

"For many, welcoming the new year involves noise, parties and lots of revelry. The First Universalist Society in Franklin, though, offered a more tranquil way to contemplate 2018 on Sunday evening: a labyrinth walk.

The event, said organizer Judy Swaim, is a tradition at the church - it has been held there every New Year’s Eve for the past 11 years or so. 

“It was part of our services this morning, so that was new and kind of fun,” she said. “We get calls about it from all over Massachusetts. People read about it in the paper and want to participate.” 

Labyrinths, she said, date back thousands of years and can be found all around the world, having seemingly developed independently in multiple civilizations."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20180101/first-universalist-in-franklin-welcomes-new-year-with-labyrinth-walk

the outdoor labyrinth walk at FUSF on a warmer day

Annual Report 2017: Franklin Community Cable Access (Franklin.TV and WFPR.FM)

The Annual Report is compiled and published each year to be ready for voters to obtain at the November election. A PDF copy is also posted online and available for viewing our downloading. I'll highlight some key sections from the current report over the next week or so.

The following is a text representation of the printed pages 77-79 (actually 84-86 of 264)



"ANNUAL REPORT OF THE FRANKLIN COMMUNITY CABLE ACCESS, INC.

for Our Operating Year 2016 dba Franklin.TV (www.franklin.tv)

Franklin.TV is an IRS 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation.

We operate the local access TV studios for Franklin. We produce local TV programs on three channels:

• Franklin All Access TV = Our Public Access Channel (Comcast 8, Verizon 26).
• Franklin Pride TV = Our Educational Channel (Comcast 96, Verizon 28).
• Franklin Town Hall TV = Our Government Channel (Comcast 11, Verizon 29).

We are Franklin’s local TV channels on Comcast and Verizon, but we do not provide cable TV service.

Background
The Town of Franklin is the Local Franchise Authority (LFA) that maintains agreements with Comcast and Verizon. Franklin.TV’s funding comes from a 4.8%
access fee that cable subscribers pay per the LFA agreements. Thus, F.TV is not funded by taxes. We operate at no cost to the town of Franklin. F.TV pays a PILOT fee (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) to the Town of Franklin by agreement. We are the first nonprofit organization that pays for town services.

As an IRS 501(c)(3) charitable organization we also may receive grants and donations from contributors.

Local Programming Produced in 2016
During our 2016 operating year we generated:

• 217 Public Access Programs
• 95 School/Sports Programs
• 19 School/Civic Events Programs
• 96 Government Meetings

427 Locally Produced Programs

All of these programs were produced, recorded and edited by our staff on behalf of Franklin residents, organizations, agencies and local government.

Our extensive production support reaches beyond the customary charter of other public access studios to lend equipment and provide technical training. This additional commitment of professional support enables us to provide a broader range of programs

Community Bulletin Board Service
In addition to programming, Franklin.TV offers free community announcements on our Bulletin Board for all three P/E/G channels. Nonprofit organizations who wish to promote their meetings, special events and activities are welcome to contact us.

Our Studios and Offices
We have five thousand square feet that houses two video studios (a large drive-in access studio and an interview studio), two audio recording rooms, four digital video editing/effects systems, and our offices. We also have general purpose Community Meeting Space available – free to qualified nonprofit groups and service organizations for occasional meetings. Our facility accommodates up to 30 people.

A Broadcasting Opportunity, WFPR-FM
In February of 2014, Franklin.TV was awarded a construction permit by the FCC for a 100 Watt, noncommercial educational FM radio station. WFPR, (Franklin Public Radio) broadcasting on 102.9 FM. After completing approvals and clearances for our new radio tower located at the top of Forge Hill, Franklin Public Radio began broadcast operations and went on the air for the first time at 10:29 AM on February 2nd 2017. Our WFPR tower is also home to Franklin’s Police and Fire Radio Communications systems. The town relocated their services this spring, saving the cost of renting antenna space on a nearby cellular tower.

WFPR is a public broadcasting extension of F.TV’s media services to Franklin and surrounding towns. WFPR provides opportunities for local citizens to have a voice by producing their own radio programs or participating as volunteers to make our radio station successful as a local community resource.

Scholarships
In June, as part of our continuing commitment to Franklin students, Franklin.TV awarded two $1,000 scholarships to graduating seniors:

• Tatyana Youssef of Franklin High
• Emily Scannell of Tri-County High

Our congratulations and best wishes go out to them in their academic endeavors.

Our Charter Operations
We continue to see increasing requests from various town agencies and civic organizations to provide TV coverage for local events. We cover Franklin events that are cultural or institutional in nature and of general interest. We are always interested in training volunteers who would like to learn the craft of video production. Trained volunteers and interns work alongside our roster of freelance and staff professionals to shoot and edit the
institutional programs that we cover.

Citizen Access
Residents who produce their own access programs are the owners of these programs. As such, these producers hold their own copyright and may copy and distribute these programs freely, provided that the programs are cablecast on the Franklin system. Per our Public Access charter, we do not provide equipment for covering private or personal events or for purposes other than generating Access Programs to be shown over the Franklin cable system

Information about our weekly programming can be found on our web site: www.franklin.tv. While visiting our website, also read our informative F.A.Q. on P/E/G TV studios, their operation, history and charter. We also recommend browsing our past newsletter archives to learn more about Franklin.TV, our growth and development, and the civic events that we cover throughout the year.

Finally, in closing, “Thanks for watching!”

Respectfully submitted,

FranklinTV’s Board of Directors
Ken Norman, President
Jay Horrigan, Vice President
Wesley Rea, Treasurer
John Milot, Clerk
Anne Bergen, Pandora Carlucci, Rose Turco

Peter Fasciano,
Executive Director
Franklin.TV and wfpr.fm"

Annual Report 2017: Franklin Community Cable Access (Franklin.TV and WFPR.FM)

You can find the online copy at the Town of Franklin webpage
http://www.franklinma.gov/town-clerk/pages/annual-reports

and specifically for 2017
http://www.franklinma.gov/town-clerk/files/town-annual-report-2017-revised

Ben Franklin’s Autobiography Readathon - Jan 17

"In honor of the 312th birthday of Benjamin Franklin, the namesake of our town and founder of our library, the Franklin Public Library will be holding a “readathon” – a marathon reading of the full text of the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, first published in 1791. The book is considered a classic of American literature. According to the Library of Congress, “It was not only the first autobiography to achieve widespread popularity, but after two hundred years remains one of the most enduringly popular examples of the genre ever written.” 

Like other readathons, this one invites the public to participate! Readers are encouraged to sign up in advance for 15-minute segments. Commencing when the library opens at 9 AM on January 17, readers will share the words of Ben Franklin with anyone interested in dropping by for all or part of the event. It is expected that the reading will be completed by the time the library closes at 8 PM. Water and other refreshments will be available for readers and audience alike."

Event Timing: January 17, 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Event Address: Franklin Public Library, 118 Main St, Franklin, MA
Contact us at (508)520-4941 or kshipala@minlib.net

sign up online to read
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScm0UJMnxgiGC5BZpoUH_CWO_vZvd0hOyO5RaaSloeBAYdJZw/viewform

Ben Franklin’s Autobiography Readathon - Jan 17

Franklin gains "Green Community" status

The Baker-Polito Administration today (12/28/17) announced that an additional 25 Massachusetts cities and towns have been designated by the Department of Energy Resources (DOER) as Green Communities, committing to an ambitious renewable energy agenda to reduce energy consumption and emissions. With today’s designation, over half of the Commonwealth’s municipalities have earned their Green Communities designation and 68 percent of residents live in a Green Community. 

The 25 new Green Communities are now eligible for grants totaling $4,316,955 to complete renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in their communities. Since the program began in 2010, DOER’s Green Communities division has awarded over $65 million in grant funding to the Commonwealth’s cities and towns through designation and competitive grant rounds. 

“The Green Communities Program helps the state achieve a renewable energy portfolio, while preserving taxpayer resources,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “With over 68 percent of residents living in a green community, the program continues to be a successful model for state and local governments working together to achieve impactful progress and responsible savings.”

Continue reading the press release
https://www.mass.gov/news/baker-polito-administration-designates-25-cities-and-towns-as-green-communities


Franklin gains a grant as part of the status

Franklin

$183,020

For more about Green Communities

https://www.mass.gov/green-communities-designation-grant-program

The Green Communities brochure

https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2017/09/29/gc-brochure.pdf

For more about Green Communities

"If I could tell my seven-year-old self one thing it would be to refuse to shrink"

In a random scroll among the Twitterverse, I stumbled upon this contest. There is time to apply!

"In our continuing efforts to inspire and promote voices in girls’ and women’s sports, the Awesome Sports Project is excited to launch the Awesome Sports Writing Contest. Male and female writers of all ages and level of writing experience are welcome, but the submission must be nonfiction and about girls’ and women’s sports. The work must be previously unpublished in any form. 

The reading fee is $7 per entry, and will help us with the cost of running of the contest – please contact us if the fee is an obstacle to participation. Multiple submissions from a single writer are welcome. We also look forward to reading international submissions, but all writing must be in English. There is a 3,000-word limit, with no minimum."

More about the writing contest can be found online
https://awesomesportsproject.com/2017/11/21/2nd-annual-awesome-sports-writing-contest/

Contest details can be found here
https://awesomesportsproject.com/contest/

A recent sample of the writing posted to this site and the source of the quote
https://awesomesportsproject.com/2017/12/19/refuse-to-shrink/

"If I could tell my seven-year-old self one thing it would be to refuse to shrink"

“We arrived to find heavy fire in the attic”

From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:

"Firefighters battled both a raging blaze and sub-freezing temperatures Sunday as a fire gutted a Jordan Road house. 

A resident of the home - at 76 Jordan Road - was taken to Milford Regional Medical Center to be treated for smoke inhalation, said Fire Chief Gary McCarraher. The call first came in at 9:49 a.m. 

Passers-by Barbara Steele and Gina Harrold said they were walking through the neighborhood Sunday morning - as they do most weekends - when, after passing the crest of a hill, they saw smoke coming from the house. 

Harrold said she banged on the door and honked the horn of a vehicle in the driveway. The homeowner, she said, told the two not to call the fire department, as he had extinguished the fire. The women urged him to leave the house. They called 911."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20171231/fire-guts-home-on-jordan-road-in-franklin

fire department in action on Jordan Road

Charles River Meadowlands Initiative: Information and Children's Reading - Feb 2

To kick of 2018, the Charles River Meadowlands Initiative will be holding an information session on Feb. 2, International Wetlands Day AND Groundhog Day. We will be offering literature, information and a slideshow from 3-6 PM at the Franklin Public Library in the ground floor meeting room. Feel free to stop by and encourage anyone who might be interested to come, too. 

In ADDITION, we are co-sponsoring a reading of meteorologist Mish Michael's book, Ms. G. and Her Shadowy Road to Fame -- a children's book loosely based on the state's real life "official" Groundhog! Franklin Town Councilor Melanie Hamblen will be the guest reader at 3:30 in the Children's Room at the Library. For further information about the Ms. G. program, contact Children's Librarian Calleigh Keating (ckeating@minlib.net).

http://www.mastategroundhog.com/ms-g/ms-gs-shadowy-road-to-fame

For more about the Ms. G. book
http://www.mastategroundhog.com/ms-g/ms-gs-shadowy-road-to-fame

For more about the Charles River Meadowlands Initiative
https://www.charlesrivermeadowlands.org/