"When we show love and respect for each other we make the world a better place”

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

"With the first candle on the Town Common menorah lit, residents celebrated the first night of Hanukkah on Sunday evening. 

Close to 30 people headed downtown to celebrate in song and dance with Chabad Rabbi Mendy Kivman and his family. 

Kivman, who works at the Chabad House Jewish Community Center in Milford, said the meaning behind the first night of Hanukkah is to show the world that one little light has the power to rid the world of darkness. 

“One candle can push away a lot of darkness,” he said."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20181203/franklin-celebrates-first-night-of-hanukkah

Town Common menorah

"report any observations of eagles that are suspected or known to have nests"

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

"The number of bald eagles nesting in Massachusetts appears to be steadily growing amid three decades of efforts to re-establish a natural population of the nation’s animal here. 

State wildlife officials announced last week that they identified 76 territorial pairs of bald eagles this nesting season, up from 68 pairs last year and the 59 pairs counted in 2016. 

From those 76 nests this year, MassWildlife said 65 chicks hatched and survived to fly. Forty-five of the chicks were “banded with silver federal bands and color-coded state bands,” MassWildlife said. 

Bald eagles disappeared from Massachusetts around the turn of the 20th century, with the last known nesting attempt taking place in Sandwich in 1905, MassWildlife said. Upon discovering that some eagles were spending winters in the Quabbin Reservoir area in the early 1980s, MassWildlife and others began restoration efforts."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://franklin.wickedlocal.com/news/20181203/bald-eagle-population-rebounding-with-state-help

photo via Division of Fisheries and Wildlife

Visit the MA Division of Fisheries and Wildlife for more about the eagles
https://www.mass.gov/news/bald-eagle-numbers-on-the-rise

LET'S LAUGH TODAY in Franklin is on Wednesday, December 12

Trade all your holiday stress for laughter on Wednesday, December 12 from 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM at the Meetinghouse of the First Universalist Society in Franklin, 262 Chestnut Street, Franklin. 

LET'S LAUGH TODAY in
Franklin is on Weds, Dec 12

Come and enjoy this unique exercise of guided laughter exercises combined with gentle breathing that brings more oxygen to the body's cells. This oxygen boost gives enhanced vitality, energy and a feeling of real well-being. Any age and any level of physical ability can participate in this uplifting experience! 

New laughers are always welcomed! $5 donation to the church, $10 maximum per family. Please bring your water bottle because laughing can be dehydrating. 

LET'S LAUGH TODAY

Led by Certified Laughter Yoga Teachers, Linda and Bill Hamaker. www.letslaughtoday.com.  

If you have any questions, just call them at 508-660-2223 or e-mail billandlinda@letslaughtoday.com.

FSPA Holiday Showcase - Dec 11

The annual Holiday Showcase performed by the students of the Franklin School for the Performing Arts will be held on Tuesday, December 11 at 7:00 p.m. at THE BLACK BOX. 

The showcase will feature Next Step junior dance ensemble, CenterStage senior dance ensemble, the FSPA Glee Club, Broadway Lads, Lite Brites, BLT2, Broadway Light, Broadway Ladies, and Broadway Bound musical theatre ensembles, and the FSPA Dance Company.

FSPA Holiday Showcase - Dec 11

Students will perform holiday classics as well as contemporary favorites. Later this spring, CenterStage, Broadway Bound, Broadway Light, and Broadway Ladies will travel to Walt Disney World in Florida to perform and take workshops with Disney performing artists.

Tickets for the FSPA Holiday Showcase are available at the door or by calling 508-528-8668.

Franklin Library: Renaissance V Brass Quintet Holiday Concert, Thursday, Dec 6

Get in the holiday spirit with the Renaissance V Brass Quintet! The holiday program will consist of music of the season dating from the 15th century to today including many well-known Christmas and holiday classics. This performance is free and open to the public.

Franklin Library: Renaissance V Brass Quintet Holiday Concert, Thursday, Dec 6

This was shared from the Town of Franklin Library page
https://www.franklinma.gov/franklin-public-library/bulletins/renaissance-v-brass-quintet-holiday-concert

Southern Rail at OCC Coffeehouse on Saturday, Dec. 8

Southern Rail's Bluegrass Christmas concert is back by popular demand. Their mix of Christmas, Gospel, and Traditional Bluegrass is just the thing to usher in a season of joy and celebration.

Southern Rail's performances are high-energy exuberant fun, with riveting harmonies, irrepressible humor and sparkling banjo, mandolin, and guitar solo work. 

Over the years, Southern Rail's recordings, featuring their prolific songwriting, have graced Bluegrass Unlimited's Top Thirty Singles Chart for a combined total of 32 months, climbing to #11. One of Southern Rail's earlier CD's, a special Bluegrass Gospel compilation entitled Glory Train, was nominated for Best Gospel Recording of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association.

Southern Rail at OCC Coffeehouse on Saturday, Dec. 8

The quartet is composed of Jim Muller, guitar and lead vocals, his wife, Sharon Horovitch, acoustic bass and harmony vocals, Rich Stillman, banjo and harmony vocals, and John Tibert, mandolin and harmony vocals. Press review quotes from Texas, California, Canada, Ireland and elsewhere include: "The best Gospel CD I've ever heard", "One of the most original and exciting groups in bluegrass", and "The vocal harmonies are exquisite and the musicianship is impeccable." See some of their videos on YouTube and on their website.

Tickets for the concert are $20 in advance and $25 at the door, available at the church office, 508-384-3110, or at www.musicatocc.org. Children 12 and under free with an adult. 

The event will be in the sanctuary of the church, accessible from the side door on Dedham St. (Route 1A). Parking is available behind the church and in the lot across the street. For more information and to be added to the mailing list, visit the website or contact Ken Graves, 508-384-8084, occmusic99@gmail.com.

UPCOMING SHOWS

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AT OCC COFFEEHOUSE (Tickets now available for all shows on website. All shows are general admission seating, so arrive early for good seats.):

• Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019, Mile Twelve, one of the outstanding bluegrass groups of the Boston area, touring worldwide.
• Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019, Don White, a must-see storyteller-comedian-author-troubadour-folk singer-songwriter. With Mike Agranoff opening.
• Saturday, March 2, 2019, Fellswater, Boston's Celtic Music Ensemble. Back by popular demand.
• Friday, April 5, 2019, TBA, popular performer to be announced in December.
• Saturday, April 27, 2019, Bill and Kate Isles, an acoustic singer/soungwriter duo based in Duluth, Minnesota. Audiences feel they are listening to stories of the own lives, told by two of their best friends.

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See website for complete OCC Coffeehouse season schedule, more details, and for ordering tickets.

In the News: hate mainstream in schools; Tri-County students visit education exhibit

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

"Hate speech and bias-motivated incidents, not all of which rise to the level of a crime, are growing at an alarming rate in public schools - and educators say the numbers only tell part of the story. 

“It is more likely that the number of actual incidents and number of students impacted are under-represented because many incidents are not reported,” said Fara Wolfson, a middle school teacher and co-chairwoman of the No Place for Hate Committee in Salem. 

In recent months, stories of hate-related incidents have spilled out of the schools and into the news. In November, a 10-year-old Muslim student at Hemenway Elementary School in Framingham received hate letters, including one threatening to kill her."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20181202/hate-mainstream-in-massachusetts-schools

"Early education students at Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School recently visited the Wonder of Learning: The Hundred Languages of Children Exhibit. The exhibit was held at Boston University Wheelock College of Education and Human Development, hosted by Wonder of Learning Boston (WOL Boston). The trip was a rare and valuable opportunity for Tri-County students to experience the exhibit, which travels throughout the country and has not been hosted in Boston for decades. 

The Hundred Languages of Children is the basis of the Reggio Emilia approach, a model of early education that originated in Reggio Emilia, Italy, in the 1940s. The Reggio philosophy views children as having one hundred languages - or one hundred ways - through which they can express themselves. The approach is considered one of the best educational systems in the world for children from birth through age five, including principles of curiosity, interaction, problem-solving, and experiential learning. (WOL Boston)."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20181202/tri-county-students-see-hundred-languages-exhibit