VA Boston will be conducting COVID-19 Vaccine Clinics to Veterans, spouses, caregivers, CHAMPVA recipients and Veterans who are not enrolled in the VA Healthcare System this Saturday, April 17th, at the Franklin Senior Center.
Please help us spread the word.
Pre-register at bit.ly/vaccineva
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| COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic in Franklin for veterans - April 17 |
From State Representative Jeff Roy's newsletter:
The Next Generation Climate Roadmap bill, which overhauls the state’s climate laws, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, advances the clean energy industry, and prioritizes and protects environmental justice communities was signed into law on March 26, 2021.
You can learn more about this landmark legislation by clicking here. You can view Rep. Roy’s floor remarks on the bill by clicking on the video below.
YouTube video link = https://youtu.be/ATUwnGlO-Sw
State Rep Roy's legislature page: https://malegislature.gov/People/Profile/JNR1
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| Board of Health, Economic Development Subcommittee meetings scheduled before the Town Council meeting Wednesday, Apr 14 |
The Greater Franklin Node of 350 Massachusetts will meet this week, Thursday, April 15, at 7:00 PM.
Here is the Zoom link: Join on Zoom
Residents of Franklin and nearby cities and towns are welcome to attend.
Meeting Agenda: While we are seeing positive developments at both the State House and the White House, we need to keep up the pressure on our legislators to sponsor and support key bills; we'll discuss related 350 Mass efforts. We are also planning statewide and local activities to implement our 2021/2022 campaigns to achieve the Green New Deal in housing and construction, transportation, and green energy (particularly solar). We want to collaborate with groups and individuals from the region who share the same concerns, so all our cities and towns can benefit. Please join us to learn and contribute.
350 Massachusetts for a Better Future (https://350mass.betterfutureproject.org/) is building a powerful statewide social movement to confront the climate crisis, hold our politicians accountable and undermine the destructive influence of the fossil fuel industry. Our name comes from 350 parts per million, the safe level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
350 Mass is made up of several local volunteer-led chapters we call “nodes” around the state that carry out both municipal-level and statewide campaigns, coordinated by a Statewide Steering Team (SST). The Greater Franklin Node includes Franklin and close to twenty nearby communities. We meet on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month, at 7:00 pm.
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| Meeting Notice, 350 Mass Greater Franklin Node - Apr 15 = 7:00 PM |
note, others may have participated but were either not acknowledged during the audio or spoke during the audio recording and hence missed in these notes.
An excerpt from Senate President Karen Spilka's remarks to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, April 13, 2021:
"I have been particularly struck by the statistics on the devastating effects COVID-19 has had on women in the workplace. Before the pandemic, women in Massachusetts were participating in the workforce at increasing rates, surpassing the national rate by 2019 – but the pandemic has brought women back to where they were after the 2009 recession. In fact, the percentage of women participating in the U.S. labor market in October 2020 was the lowest since 1988.
It is clear to me that if we wish to have a full and equitable recovery, we must take a close look at the factors that affect women’s employment, at every level and in every sector, and one clear factor that we must address is caregiving. In the same way that we learned to diversify our sectors after the last recession, we are now learning that we must support and strengthen the caregiving sector in Massachusetts so that we can support working families across the Commonwealth.
Almost exactly one year ago today, I appeared before this Chamber, in what was your first ever virtual forum, if you can believe it, and declared that childcare was as important to our infrastructure as roads and bridges in getting people back to work. The struggles of the past year have borne this out, which is why I have pushed the Legislature to begin to address the need for childcare, including providing for emergency childcare for essential workers, increasing rates for early education providers, and dedicating $40 million for a new reserve to cover parent fees for those receiving subsidized childcare. We also established the Early Education and Care Economic Review Commission to review childcare funding and make recommendations on policy changes to expand access.
With the promise of over $500 million in federal funding through the American Rescue Plan, we are well-poised to make more strides in making childcare more accessible and affordable, and I look forward to working with all of you to dedicate our best thinking towards tackling this problem, both in the public and private sectors.
But childcare is just one piece of what many are calling a “caregiving crisis”–a storm that has been brewing on our horizon for a few years, but which COVID-19 has turned into a full-blown tsunami. Many people, mostly women, who work in non-caregiving professions, but are sandwiched between aging parents and growing children, have dropped out of the workforce in alarming numbers to care for those who rely on them, while too many Black and brown women who work in caregiving professions have been crushed by the job losses of the economic downturn, with devastating results for their families and communities. As we all feel the squeeze of this caregiving crisis, is it any surprise that we are facing a mental health crisis as well?
But this is Massachusetts, my friends, and I know we can do better. "
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| "a rare opportunity—and a responsibility—to reimagine the path towards what I call “back to better”" |
"It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to Karl E. Backlund Sr, who left this world for his next big adventure on April third at the age of 78.
Karl E. Backlund Sr
A native of West Wrentham, Karl led a storied life with strong connections to his local community. He was many things, a member of the American Legion, a Boy scout leader, a talented woodworker, a collector, a fisherman, but most importantly a husband, father, grandfather, and good friend. After graduating from King Philip High School, he served his country proudly as a member of the United States Army before marrying his wife Sandra and raising their three kids: Karl, Kirk and Kim.
Karl was a wealth of knowledge and was never afraid to speak his mind. He lived his life on his own terms, always stubbornly committed to making sure things were done the "right" way. Although his approach could be intense, those who worked with him and for him gained from the experience. A generous man, Karl welcomed all who came to his door and was always willing to help both friends and strangers."
