Ariel Doggett on Supportive Day Care at the Senior Center - 12/20/22 (audio)

FM #696 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 696 in the series. 

This session of the radio show shares my conversation with Ariel Doggett. Ariel is currently the Supportive Day Coordinator for the Franklin Senior Center. Ariel and I recorded this in her office at the Senior Center. 

We talk about the Respite and Supportive Day program returned in person in September and is looking to expand by a couple of more members for now. 

The recording runs about 17 minutes, so let’s listen to my conversation with Ariel.

Audio file -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-695-ariel-doggett-on-supportive-day-care-at-the-senior-center-12-20-22

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Franklin Senior Center https://www.franklinma.gov/fsc

Senior Center Connections newsletter  https://www.franklinma.gov/franklin-senior-center/pages/connection-newsletter

Supportive Day program “The Sunshine Club”

https://www.franklinma.gov/franklin-senior-center/pages/sunshine-club 

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The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana"  c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.

I hope you enjoy!

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Ariel Doggett on Supportive Day Care at the Senior Center

Recap: Senior Center new Director and Deputy introduced to Council on Aging (audio)

Recap:

• Town Administrator Jamie Hellen introduced the new Senior Center Director Danielle Hopkins and Deputy Director Christina LaRose to Council on Aging
• First day was yesterday and they are back so that is good. Christina to primarily handle day to day, Danielle to focus on personnel, long term planning Lots to do
• Posted for chef and deputy chef, not likely to fulfill until late Feb/Mar so cafe will be down for a period. Looking to bring back and improve things when they do
• Assessment of programs which are working and should continue, which are not and maybe stop; survey to gather input on wants/needs
• Redefine the role of the Council, had not been part of the program process before, would like to be more than 'rubber stamp' approval; next COA meeting to look into the COA scope, mission, etc. Need to have full COA membership involved
• Friends of Franklin Elders would like accounting for what they have provided and look to help as things go forward
• "best meeting since I've been on the board"

Meeting agenda =>   https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/agendas/untitled_document.pdf

Link to Council on Aging (including membership) -> https://www.franklinma.gov/council-aging

Audio file ->  https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-697-fsc-council-on-aging-01-11-22

• Ready for live reporting of the #coa0111 Council on Aging meeting about to begin
• Town administrator Jamie Hellen arrives and meeting commences. Introduces new Senior Center director Danielle Hopkins. Deputy director Christina LaRoche also introduced. They provide their background #coa0111
• Correction LaRose not LaRoche #coa0111
• Round of intros of attendees, only folks on Zoom had appeared to be nefarious folks and removed. #coa0111
• Deputy director added to senior center to bring alignment with other town Dept. Had been gradually building budget with part-time resources #coa0111
• Christina to primarily handle day to day, Danielle to focus on personnel, long term planning, etc #coa0111 Yesterday was first day on job, so getting a feel for it
• Job posted yesterday for chef and kitchen manager. Will take time to fulfill role. #coa0111 cleaning was done, broken furniture taken care of, additional inspection of equipment while 'down time' is here.
• Desire for better accounting on the ins/outs. Likely not reopening until later Feb/Mar. Kitchen folks had not been part of the tax work off program, looking for better volunteer structure. #coa0111 pandemic is major factor for cafe operations
• Tri-county maybe more formally helping to support the food service, how about the public schools? They already serve the students with 10 kitchens, this could be "1" more. At leverage where possible the ops program they have with weekend backpack for students ...
• Seniors have food needs on the weekend also. #coa0111 had been only 'rubber stamping' ops, would like to be more involved in programming, and then communications, and plans for execution. COA is rather loose.
• Some things work, some things not so well, there are a lot of opinions; need to survey and assess to plan accordingly. Statement on COA read, motion to redefine at next meeting, second, passes (not sure of #) #coa0111
• New office will work with COA to determine agenda, gets posted to Town page, and then shared via all channels. GATRA is only one of many topics that can use help in getting the word out. Some use phone, internet, computer, others don't #coa0111
• Printed copies made available at stores, etc. Where possible and made aware of. #coa0111 Friends needs feedback on gifts to Senior Center, provided gift cards at Christmas for distribution. Who got them? Tri-county did print work for COA, newsletter etc.
• Friends have more than $49k to help support operations. Annual fund raising generally gets $25k (+/-). Need to do labels for this year's mailing. #coa0111 "best meeting since I've been on the board"
• Need all members engaged in the scope discussion at the next meeting #coa0111 reinforce the sign in process to ensure better counts
• Motion to adjourn, second, passes #coa0111

Recap: Senior Center new Director and Deputy introduced to Council on Aging (audio)

Recap: School Committee hears about (1) special education program, (2) daily challenges of pandemic, and approves trip to US Special Olympics

Quick Recap:

• The major portion of the meeting was spent on special education and student services in support of the 17% of the district students needing such services. Always a cost factor for the budget, the costs are rising but the number of students receiving such services is holding steady.
• Great background info for this new Committee (and for the public) on how services are provided, how the in district programs help to reduce costs. Specific details on exactly how much were not available at this session but will be for the up coming budget cycle.
• The update on the COVID-19 pandemic and the struggle it is continuing to provide the schools and their operations was staggering.
• The capital budget was approved and it now moves forward to a discussion with Finance Committee before going to the Town Council for approval.
• The budget adjustment to the current year budget was approved.
• FHS Unified basketball team trip to US Special Olympics was approved. This is the first MA team to represent the state at this event. No cost to district, supporters group prepared to cover any incidental expenses for the individuals if needed.
• Entered Executive Session to address three items and (fortunately) while the agenda posted initially said they would return to open session, they did announce they wouldn't.

Audio recording to be available in a couple of days.

View the full Twitter thread in the embedded PDF file below or download to read from here ->  https://drive.google.com/file/d/11L35-x8AUhH3qbg3VYwNCy6pTsv4iSmP/view?usp=sharing

Note this Threadreader service makes it easier to share the Tweets including the photos within the 'stream.' For meetings where the thread has less photos, I'll copy the text but where there are photos, this is so much easier to keep it all together.

Recap: School Committee hears about (1) special education program, (2) daily challenges of pandemic, and approves trip to US Special Olympics

FHS boys basketball team posts win over North Attleboro

Via HockomockSports.com, we share the results of the FHS winter sports action on Tuesday:

Franklin, 50 @ North Attleboro, 29 – Final 
– Franklin’s lock down defense was on full display in the opening half, limiting the hosts to a single field goal to build a double-digit lead that it held for the rest of the game. The Panthers only scored 20 points in the first half against a good North Attleboro defense, but shined on the defensive end with just three points allowed over the first 16 minutes of action. North Attleboro’s offense came alive with 18 points in the third quarter but the Panthers were equal to the task, having their best offensive quarter as well with 20 points. Sophomore Andrew O’Neill hit a trio of three pointers in the opening quarter, scoring 11 of his game 17 points to help Franklin establish an early lead. O’Neill finished with five made threes while classmate Sean O’Leary added seven points in the win. Brody Rosenberg led the Rocketeers with eight points.

For other results around the Hockomock League

https://hockomocksports.com/tuesdays-schedule-scoreboard-01-11-22/

FHS Panthers

Senator Rausch: 2021 Beacon Hill Roundup (newsletter)

We achieved so much together last year, and we're just getting started.

View this email in your browser Senator Rausch State House Briefing    Part 2, Chapter 12 (January 10, 2022)    Dear friends,    I hope you had a joyful holiday season and a positive start to the new year. 2021 was certainly a challenging year for many of us. Now in the heart of the legislative session, I remain deeply committed to advancing equity, transparency, and justice through policies that keep you and your family safe during this pandemic and delivering top-notch constituent services to our district alongside my team.  In this newsletter you will find a 2021 Beacon Hill Roundup, an invitation to my 2022 Virtual Town Hall and monthly office hours, and a snapshot of upcoming community events in our district.   With the current record surge in COVID-19 cases, I strongly encourage everyone to get vaccinated and boosted if you have not yet done so, wear a mask whenever you are in a public space, practice physical distancing, and limit your social engagements to small groups, held outdoors. As always, if you or any of your loved ones in my district have fallen on hard times, please do not hesitate to reach out to my office. My office line is 617-722-1555 and my email is becca.rausch@masenate.gov. We are here to help.      Wishing you and your family strength, health, resilience, and joy throughout the year.        Yours in service,   Senator Becca Rausch     Senator Rausch's 2021 Beacon Hill Roundup I am very proud to have accomplished so much on behalf of my constituents this last year in the Senate, including a robust COVID-19 response, billions of dollars invested into our Commonwealth's communities, and advancing critically needed reforms through the legislative process on Beacon Hill.  COVID-19 Safety: My top priority has been keeping you and your family safe throughout this crisis. Last year alone, my team and I worked on over 500 constituent cases – including nearly 200 COVID-19 unemployment cases – helping individuals receive the supports they deserve, especially during these difficult times. I hosted monthly virtual office hours, senior coffees, and two youth legislative forums for middle and high schoolers in my district to remain accessible to my constituents even while physically distant.   Getting the second dose of my COVID-19 vaccine at Gillette Stadium. Thank you to all the healthcare workers for keeping us safe over the last two years!  I also worked in partnership with my legislative colleagues, frontline community organizations, and public health experts to pressure the Baker Administration to implement policies to keep our communities safe and local economy afloat through this crisis. Some of our victories included universal masking in all K-12 schools, paid time off for families and caregivers taking children to COVID-19 vaccination appointments, and implementing a COVID vaccine pre-registration system for mass vaccination sites.   This newsletter was shortened for publication here. To view the full contents, follow this link ->   https://mailchi.mp/44aace7ac384/reopeningupdate-15648360?e=0c2c9810fe  Our mailing address is: The Office of Senator Becca Rausch Massachusetts State House, Room 218 24 Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02133

Angelina Silva-Perez chosen as a 2021 Scholarship by Friends Of Franklin Library

Angelina Silva-Perez was chosen as a 2021 Scholarship recipient of the Friends Of Franklin Library / In Memory of Wilma Winters.

Angelina was awarded a check for $1000.00 at the Franklin Public Library on Saturday, January 8, 2022.

It was presented by Lisa Rein and members of the Friends of Franklin Library Committee. 

Angelina Silva-Perez (front) poses with members of the Friends

Angelina's essay including details on the scholarship process can be found in the embedded file below or at this link ->   https://drive.google.com/file/d/11OSIslOAUjHuixYOk5jwURU6SO8rz-ya/view?usp=sharing

Reminder: St. Mary's Men's Faith Formation - Jan 15

The St. Mary's Men's Faith Formation group will be starting our monthly meetings again. Our first meeting of the New Year will be January 15 from 8:45 - 9:45 am virtually via Zoom and in person.

We will be learning and discussing the topic of Prayer. We really look forward to welcoming you back or hopefully welcoming you for the first time to our group. Please email Deacon Guy (deaconguy@stmarysfranklin.org) if you are interested in the Zoom link contact information. Either way you join us – we are glad you are there. 

All Men are welcome.  https://www.stmarysfranklin.org/mens-faith-formation 

St. Mary's Church Franklin Men's Formation - Jan 15