Community Outdoor Menorah Lighting and Shabbat Service - Dec 27

Please join us for our family Shabbat Hanukkah service and community menorah lighting.

Be sure to bring your menorah and candles to add to the "glow!" This is a great celebration, complete with latkes! Please consider bringing a sweet treat for the Oneg!

Celebrate Hanukkah as a community with your Temple family. This is a great event for everyone, including families with young children!

Temple Etz Chaim   https://temple-etzchaim.org/
900 Washington St, Franklin
Dec 27, 7:00 PM

Community Outdoor Menorah Lighting and Shabbat Service - Dec 27

Music 4 Kids is looking for help putting on a concert

"If you'd like to help organize a fundraising concert in Franklin for mid-February, please get in touch! 

We need performers, auction items, and sponsors. Looking for several volunteers to help December - February. 

Potential for employment with Music4Kids in the future. Perfect gig for stay at home parents, college students, or anyone who is interested in helping children have access to music!"

www.music4kids.org 

Music 4 Kids is looking for help putting on a concert

In the News: RMV analysis update, Senate District primary date not defined yet

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

"The House Transportation Committee chairman said last week that key players in the Baker administration should have noticed the Registry of Motor Vehicles was falling behind on public safety-related tasks while it focused on reducing customer wait times, but conceded that investigators may never get a clear answer on who knew what.

Rep. William Straus, who previously criticized a “war on wait times” at the RMV, told WGBH’s “Greater Boston” that extensive interview notes from an outside audit firm reveal a significant focus on customer service at the Registry before a fatal crash in June prompted re-evaluation of thousands of warnings that should have resulted in license suspensions.

Gov. Charlie Baker and his administration have denied that they shifted staff from back-end departments that manage violation notices to front-facing service tasks, but Straus alleged Wednesday that argument is “simply not true.”

“Positions were left unfilled in critical areas and vacancies were only filled, from the information we’ve developed, in these branch offices because, again, the focus was only customer service,” Straus said during the interview."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20191208/straus-registry-backlog-should-have-been-known

"The confrontation over when to schedule a special election for an open Senate seat has spilled outside the Senate chamber walls.

Gov. Charlie Baker last week endorsed Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr’s plan to avoid a general election on the same day as the presidential primary, and Secretary of State William Galvin accused Republicans of attempting “voter suppression.”

For three days last week, Democratic and Republican Senate leaders were unable to broker an agreement over when voters will choose a new senator in the Plymouth and Barnstable District to replace Viriato “Vinny” deMacedo, a Republican who resigned at the end of November.

With the delay continuing, the implications of the ticking clock are unclear. Galvin said his office looks to set special elections 12 to 14 weeks in advance, but cautioned that there is no “magic number” after which the March 3 presidential primary would no longer be a viable date for the Senate."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20191208/baker-backs-tarr-in-senate-election-spat

Franklin, MA: Office of Campaign and Political Finance Meeting - December 11 - 6:00 PM

December 11 - Office of Campaign and Political Finance (OCPF) Meeting


The State Office of Campaign and Political Finance will make a presentation in the Council Chambers (2nd floor of the Municipal Building).


For more about the State Office of Campaign and Political Finance  https://www.ocpf.us/

Franklin, MA: OCPF Meeting December 11 - 6:00 PM

Franklin Public Library Closed Monday, December 16 Through Wednesday, December 18

Franklin Public Library Closed Monday, December 16 Through Wednesday, December 18

The Franklin Public Library will be closed on Monday, December 16 through Wednesday, December 18, 2019 for the cleaning of its brick hallways on the first floor. 

All fines will be waived on materials returned during that week. Items on the hold shelf will be made available for pickup for an additional three days. Museum passes reserved for those dates may be picked up by Sunday, December 15th. 

For more information, please contact Library Director Felcia Oti at 508-520-4941 or foti@franklinma.gov .

brick hallway on the first floor at the entrance

The number of potential MA 2020 Ballot questions now down to 8

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

"Ballot questions related to electoral reform, beer and wine sales, automotive repairs and more are on track to go before voters in 2020 after supporters cleared a major signature-gathering threshold by Wednesday’s deadline.

Eight campaigns pushing for changes to state law or constitutional amendments submitted signatures from registered voters to Secretary of State William Galvin by the end of the business day on Wednesday, according to Galvin’s office.

It was not immediately clear how many of those will clear the threshold of 80,239 certified signatures required to advance, a key hurdle toward appearing on the ballot next November, but supporters of questions about ranked-choice voting, right to repair, nursing home funding and sales of beer and wine in food stores each said they submitted a sufficient amount.

This cycle’s ballot push officially ended Wednesday for proposed constitutional amendments to restore voting rights to incarcerated Massachusetts felons and rewrite the state constitution to remove language that has been interpreted as a right to an abortion for those who qualify for MassHealth. Although both campaigns submitted signatures, neither collected enough, according to organizers."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20191206/ballot-questions-in-galvins-hands

"In 1918, the voters of the Commonwealth approved an amendment to the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, stating that “Legislative power shall continue to be vested in the general court; but the people reserve to themselves the popular initiative, which is the power of a specified number of voters to submit constitutional amendments and laws to the people for approval or rejection; and the popular referendum, which is the power of a specified number of voters to submit laws, enacted by the general court, to the people for their ratification or rejection.”

 
For stats on ballot questions going back to 1919 which is the first election after the MA Constitutional amendment that enabled the ballot question process
https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elebalm/balmresults.html

To view the MA Election calendar (month by month)
https://www.sec.state.ma.us/CalendarWeb/Pages/MonthWeekCalendar.aspx

MyFM 101.3 Wins Coveted “Station of the Year” Award

“I was absolutely stunned. This is the equivalent of winning the Super Bowl or the World Series, so I was in complete shock when they announced we had won the Station of the Year Award for a record 9th time. I can’t say enough about my staff, our listeners, fans and followers, and all the local partners we’ve developed over the years” said Tom McAuliffe, owner of MyFM Media, as he accepted the 2019 Massachusetts Broadcasters Association’s Station of the Year Award. “

And to think we also won awards for Outstanding Public Service Campaign for our work with Ben Speaks, and our Summer School promotion with Dean College was also recognized. This certainly proves that our Multi-Media efforts over the past few years are resonating with our listeners and community partners. People expect to be able to access what they want, where they want, and when they want it, and My FM is fulfilling that need,” McAuliffe added.

"The Station of the Year Award is the one award that every station strives to win. It's the most cherished station award the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association presents,” explained Jordan Walton, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association. “My FM 101.3 truly epitomizes what LOCAL radio, and service to the community is all about, and we're proud to salute them with this honor for a record 9th time.”

“The Station of the Year” award is presented annually by the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association to the most outstanding radio station in the Commonwealth, and is open to all of the more than 180 radio stations.

The “Station of the Year” award is given to the top station in Massachusetts that exemplifies overall excellence in all phases of operation. The judges, members of the Iowa Broadcasters Association, cited MyFM 101.3 had experienced extraordinary growth of audience, client base, but most importantly, MyFM was providing exceptional service to their listeners, community officials, and local organizations.

To put this award into perspective, the television “Station of the Year” for 2019 was WCVB, Channel 5 Boston, considered by many to be the finest TV station in the United States. You can see the prestige that this award grants MyFM 101.3.

About MyFM 101.3  https://myfm1013.com/

My FM 101.3 and WMRC 1490AM has been on the air since 1956, making it one of the oldest, continuously locally owned and operated radio stations in Massachusetts.

MyFM 101.3 Wins Coveted “Station of the Year” Award

https://youtu.be/P-y_cgvVG4Q