This is Franklin Matters podcast #21. The second of six podcasts to replay the information session on underage drinking. The session was organized by the group W.A.S.T."E".D and held at Franklin High School Tuesday December 2, 2008.
Bill Phillips, Director of New Beginnings tells his part of the story in this segment.
Time: 24 minutes, 46 seconds
MP3 File
Session Notes
This podcast for Franklin Matters continues the special production capturing the information session on underage drinking sponsored by WASTED and held at Franklin High School Tuesday evening, Dec 2.
If you were unable to attend, this series of podcasts will enable you to listen to the presentations and discussion that took place.
In the first part, we listened as FHS Principal Pam Gould introduces the problem, the formation of the WASTED group and outlined the presentations for the evening including the presentation by students from Marushka Waters’ class.
In this second part, we’ll listen to Principal Gould as she introduces William (Bill) Phillips, Director of New Beginnings. A comprehensive wellness education program.
Bill talks about his background and experience as a counselor for underage drinking and substance abuse.
Listen carefully!
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This podcast has been a public service provided to my fellow citizens of Franklin, MA
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.blogspot.com/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The musical intro and closing is from the Podsafe Music Network
Jon Schmidt - Powerful Exhilarating Piano Music
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
FM #20 - WASTED 12/2/08 - Part 1
This is Franklin Matters podcast #20. The first of several podcasts to replay the information session on underage drinking. The session was organized by the group W.A.S.T."E".D and held at Franklin High School Tuesday December 2, 2008.
Time: 23 minutes, 10 seconds
MP3 File
Session Notes
This podcast for Franklin Matters will a special production capturing the information session on underage drinking sponsored by W.A.S.T."E".D and held at Franklin High School Tuesday evening, Dec 2, 2008.
If you were unable to attend, this series of podcasts will enable you to listen to the presentations and discussion that took place.
In this first part, we listen as FHS Principal Pam Gould introduces the problem, the formation of the WASTED group and outlines the presentations for the evening.
We’ll then listen to the presentation by students from Marushka Waters’ class.
The slide show that served as the backdrop for the presentation can be found here.
For me, there are two key quotes to remember. Both come from student voices at the end of this presentation. One is hard to hear as the student did not have the microphone to talk into, the second is more clearly heard. Both of which I have transcribed as follows:
1 – How come in Health class they teach us not to drink but they don’t teach us what to do in situations where people are drinking?
2 – Everyone of these stories you heard were written by someone on the stage. No one read their own monologue to protect their identities but we all wanted to share our stories because they’re real.
Listen carefully!
-------------
This podcast has been a public service provided to my fellow citizens of Franklin, MA
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.blogspot.com/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The musical intro and closing is from the Podsafe Music Network
Jon Schmidt - Powerful Exhilarating Piano Music
Time: 23 minutes, 10 seconds
MP3 File
Session Notes
This podcast for Franklin Matters will a special production capturing the information session on underage drinking sponsored by W.A.S.T."E".D and held at Franklin High School Tuesday evening, Dec 2, 2008.
If you were unable to attend, this series of podcasts will enable you to listen to the presentations and discussion that took place.
In this first part, we listen as FHS Principal Pam Gould introduces the problem, the formation of the WASTED group and outlines the presentations for the evening.
We’ll then listen to the presentation by students from Marushka Waters’ class.
The slide show that served as the backdrop for the presentation can be found here.
For me, there are two key quotes to remember. Both come from student voices at the end of this presentation. One is hard to hear as the student did not have the microphone to talk into, the second is more clearly heard. Both of which I have transcribed as follows:
1 – How come in Health class they teach us not to drink but they don’t teach us what to do in situations where people are drinking?
2 – Everyone of these stories you heard were written by someone on the stage. No one read their own monologue to protect their identities but we all wanted to share our stories because they’re real.
Listen carefully!
-------------
This podcast has been a public service provided to my fellow citizens of Franklin, MA
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.blogspot.com/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The musical intro and closing is from the Podsafe Music Network
Jon Schmidt - Powerful Exhilarating Piano Music
"saved the town about $25,000"
GHS
FRANKLIN —
Emergency repairs to a partially collapsed culvert on Lincoln Street are slated for completion by Dec. 12, said Brutus Cantoreggi, director of the town's Department of Public Works.
The culvert was severely compromised after heavy rains in early August, Cantoreggi said.
The damaged culvert posed a potentially major hazard to cars and pedestrians on Lincoln Street, which is a main road connecting Franklin and Medway, Cantoreggi said.
"Everybody today must get a prize"
GHS
FRANKLIN —
What are we teaching kids about life?
There are a few things that must be clearly understood today. The rise and fall of our economic system depends on what we teach our children.
If we do not assume our roles as adults, teachers and mentors and teach a few absolutes, we are setting ourselves up for generations of failure on the world stage. First, greed is bad. Second, the inability to defer gratification is bad. Third, in life, somebody wins and somebody loses at different times. Fourth, to win with grace is good. Fifth, to lose with grace may be better. Sixth, laziness is bad. Seventh, there is a social contract to care for all members of society and to respect their equality as members of the human race.
Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
In the News - stabilization fund, bridge closure
Town Council may set up infrastructure stabilization fund
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Bridge in troubled water
Town Council - Agenda - 12/3/08
December 3, 2008
7:00 PM
A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS
D. CITIZEN COMMENTS
E. APPOINTMENTS
F. HEARINGS -
Zoning Bylaw Amendment 08-628: Chapter 185-Nonconforming Uses and Structures – Public Hearing 7:10
G. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS – Annual Alcohol License Renewals
H. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS
I. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS
J. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
K. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT
L. OLD BUSINESS
M. NEW BUSINESS
N. COUNCIL COMMENTS
O. EXECUTIVE SESSION – Negotiations, Litigation, Real Property, as May Be Required
P. ADJOURN
7:00 PM
A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS
D. CITIZEN COMMENTS
E. APPOINTMENTS
F. HEARINGS -
Zoning Bylaw Amendment 08-628: Chapter 185-Nonconforming Uses and Structures – Public Hearing 7:10
G. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS – Annual Alcohol License Renewals
H. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS
I. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS
J. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
- Resolution 08-81: 2009 Town Council Meeting Schedule
- Resolution 08-82: Legal Notices
- Resolution 08-83: Establishment of Municipal Infrastructure/Facilities Improvement Stabilization Fund
- Resolution 08-84: Appropriation: Municipal Infrastructure/Facilities Improvement Stabilization Fund
K. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT
L. OLD BUSINESS
M. NEW BUSINESS
N. COUNCIL COMMENTS
O. EXECUTIVE SESSION – Negotiations, Litigation, Real Property, as May Be Required
P. ADJOURN
Please don't litter - Franklin matters!
I have written previously of the bottles and cans I pick up on my weekend walks around Franklin here.
One possible explanation for such alcohol related litter could be the teenage drinking that appears to be prevalent in the area.
If you are concerned about the teenage alcohol problem, then come to the WASTED meeting tonight at Franklin High School, 7:00 PM.
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Monday, December 1, 2008
MBTA-Forge Pkwy Bridge Closure
TOWN OF FRANKLIN
Message sent - 12/1/2008
MBTA-Forge Pkwy Bridge Closure
Hello. This is the Franklin Police Department calling with an important message from Deputy Chief Semerjian. We want to advise the citizens and businesses in town of a significant traffic pattern change. Effective tomorrow, December 2 2008, the old wooden bridge on W Central Street, near the MBTA station, will close permanently.
Traffic to the MBTA lower lot and residences up to the bridge will flow as usual.
Traffic northbound of the bridge, including Garelick Farms and the MBTA upper lot, will be accessed using the Route 140 Bypass Bridge.
Message sent - 12/1/2008
MBTA-Forge Pkwy Bridge Closure
Hello. This is the Franklin Police Department calling with an important message from Deputy Chief Semerjian. We want to advise the citizens and businesses in town of a significant traffic pattern change. Effective tomorrow, December 2 2008, the old wooden bridge on W Central Street, near the MBTA station, will close permanently.
Traffic to the MBTA lower lot and residences up to the bridge will flow as usual.
Traffic northbound of the bridge, including Garelick Farms and the MBTA upper lot, will be accessed using the Route 140 Bypass Bridge.
FINANCIAL PLANNING COMMITTEE September 4, 2008
FINANCIAL PLANNING COMMITTEE
September 4, 2008
The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm
Members present: Finance Committee Chair James Roche,
Councilors Deborah Bartlett, Steve Whalen and Shannon Zollo (arrived at 8:09pm)
Finance Committee member Rebecca Cameron,
Residents, Doug Hardesty and Gwynne Wilschek.
Members not in attendance: School Committee Members, Roberta Trahan and Matt
Kelley.
Also present were Town Administrator Jeff Nutting, and School Superintendent Wayne
Ogden and residents Jim Gianotti, Stacey Bower and Steve Sherlock.
Minutes reviewed by Committee for June 11, 2008, July 10, 2008 and August 7, 2008
Motion by Councilor Bartlett to Approve
Vote: Yes 9
No 0
Goal Discussion:
The Committee discussed:
The group discussed the budget and decided to look at large expense drivers such as
Jeff Nutting will meet with Department Heads to discuss budget and arrange for them to
meet with the Committee. (two per meeting)
The Committee also discussed cost of living percentage, inflation, health insurance. They
agreed that local government not sustainable in current mode.
Schools discussion:
Other Departments that need funding discussed:
Next meeting will have budget spreadsheets and two Department heads will attend.
Comments from visitors:
Next Meeting scheduled for September 18, 2008
Next Agenda – (tentatively)
Meeting adjourned
Respectfully,
Jeff Nutting
September 4, 2008
The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm
Members present: Finance Committee Chair James Roche,
Councilors Deborah Bartlett, Steve Whalen and Shannon Zollo (arrived at 8:09pm)
Finance Committee member Rebecca Cameron,
Residents, Doug Hardesty and Gwynne Wilschek.
Members not in attendance: School Committee Members, Roberta Trahan and Matt
Kelley.
Also present were Town Administrator Jeff Nutting, and School Superintendent Wayne
Ogden and residents Jim Gianotti, Stacey Bower and Steve Sherlock.
Minutes reviewed by Committee for June 11, 2008, July 10, 2008 and August 7, 2008
Motion by Councilor Bartlett to Approve
Vote: Yes 9
No 0
Goal Discussion:
The Committee discussed:
- Maintaining same level of service may require an override
- Override – What it is going to cost
The group discussed the budget and decided to look at large expense drivers such as
- General Government
- Education
- DPW
- Questionnaire from Jeff Nutting to Departments
Jeff Nutting will meet with Department Heads to discuss budget and arrange for them to
meet with the Committee. (two per meeting)
The Committee also discussed cost of living percentage, inflation, health insurance. They
agreed that local government not sustainable in current mode.
Schools discussion:
- School had more layoffs than other departments
- School Choice Funds
- High School Renovations
- Enrollment
- SPED
- 2-3 yr Commitment other spending
- Are fixed costs coming up
- High School trajectory is toward probation (NEASC)
- Resources into High School
Other Departments that need funding discussed:
- Police
- Fire
- Library
- DPW
Next meeting will have budget spreadsheets and two Department heads will attend.
Comments from visitors:
- Good ideas to review Department Heads budget (metric w?
- Stick with main points
- Like to see more residents involved and at meetings
- Commends Committee for efforts
Next Meeting scheduled for September 18, 2008
Next Agenda – (tentatively)
- Public Safety
- DPW and Facilities
- Fixed Costs
- Library
Meeting adjourned
Respectfully,
Jeff Nutting
FINANCIAL PLANNING COMMITTEE September 18, 2008
FINANCIAL PLANNING COMMITTEE
September 18, 2008
The meeting was called to order at 7:03 pm by Vice Chair Doug Hardesty.
Members present:
Councilors Deborah Bartlett and Steve Whalen, Finance Committee member Rebecca
Cameron, School Committee Members, Roberta Trahan and Matt Kelley. Residents,
Doug Hardesty and Gwynne Wilschek.
Members not in attendance: Finance Chair Jim Roche and Councilor Shannon Zollo.
Town Administrator Jeff Nutting handed out a spreadsheet of the fiscal model and
reviewed the initial assumptions.
Fire Chief McCarraher presented his model for the department. He explained that his
model is based on response time and trends in the number of times the department
responds to emergencies in a given year. The model is based on a 4% growth rate, but
currently, the trends are flat so that his proposal could be moved out a few years.
He explained the attempted regionalization of dispatch and the barriers that prevented a
successful implementation. He also discussed staffing the department both in terms of
firefighting and ambulance calls. The ambulance produces about $700,000 a year in
revenue. $125,000 is set aside for ambulance replacement and the rest is turned over to
the general fund.
Police Chief Williams discussed his request for additional staffing that would return the
department to 2000 levels. The department has been able to “hold their own” with the use
of technology and the hard work of the staff. However, demand is increasing on all
fronts. Franklin’s staffing is well below comparative communities, as well as our per
capita spending on police. On any given shift, they can be shorthanded when an
emergency arises. They do belong to a regional police group for large-scale issues but
have insufficient staff for the daily demands on the department.
He requested two additional officers in FY 10 and on additional officer the following two
years.
Meeting adjourned at 8:30 pm
September 18, 2008
The meeting was called to order at 7:03 pm by Vice Chair Doug Hardesty.
Members present:
Councilors Deborah Bartlett and Steve Whalen, Finance Committee member Rebecca
Cameron, School Committee Members, Roberta Trahan and Matt Kelley. Residents,
Doug Hardesty and Gwynne Wilschek.
Members not in attendance: Finance Chair Jim Roche and Councilor Shannon Zollo.
Town Administrator Jeff Nutting handed out a spreadsheet of the fiscal model and
reviewed the initial assumptions.
Fire Chief McCarraher presented his model for the department. He explained that his
model is based on response time and trends in the number of times the department
responds to emergencies in a given year. The model is based on a 4% growth rate, but
currently, the trends are flat so that his proposal could be moved out a few years.
He explained the attempted regionalization of dispatch and the barriers that prevented a
successful implementation. He also discussed staffing the department both in terms of
firefighting and ambulance calls. The ambulance produces about $700,000 a year in
revenue. $125,000 is set aside for ambulance replacement and the rest is turned over to
the general fund.
Police Chief Williams discussed his request for additional staffing that would return the
department to 2000 levels. The department has been able to “hold their own” with the use
of technology and the hard work of the staff. However, demand is increasing on all
fronts. Franklin’s staffing is well below comparative communities, as well as our per
capita spending on police. On any given shift, they can be shorthanded when an
emergency arises. They do belong to a regional police group for large-scale issues but
have insufficient staff for the daily demands on the department.
He requested two additional officers in FY 10 and on additional officer the following two
years.
Meeting adjourned at 8:30 pm
Take the civics quiz
Are you more knowledgeable than the average citizen? The average score for all 2,508 Americans taking the following test was 49%; college educators scored 55%. Can you do better? Questions were drawn from past ISI surveys, as well as other nationally recognized exams.
The 35 question quiz can be found here
Let me know how you did and we can compare scores.
Send an email to me (shersteve at gmail dot com) or leave a comment.
Do your teens drink?
Would you know if your teens drink?
That the local police are on the alert to watch for teen drinking given the Taylor Meyer tragedy is quite appropriate.
A traffic stop on King St Saturday evening resulted in five arrests for drinking and possession of liquor by 17 and 18 year-olds. The MetroWest Health Survey was good in detailing how pervasive drinking is amongst the teenagers.
What we as a community will do about this problem to prevent additional tragedies remains to be seen.
One effort underway is WASTED, When Alcohol Starts To Effect Decisions, is being held Tuesday evening, December 2, 7:00 PM at Franklin High School.
Be there.
The teens in Franklin matter!
That the local police are on the alert to watch for teen drinking given the Taylor Meyer tragedy is quite appropriate.
A traffic stop on King St Saturday evening resulted in five arrests for drinking and possession of liquor by 17 and 18 year-olds. The MetroWest Health Survey was good in detailing how pervasive drinking is amongst the teenagers.
What we as a community will do about this problem to prevent additional tragedies remains to be seen.
One effort underway is WASTED, When Alcohol Starts To Effect Decisions, is being held Tuesday evening, December 2, 7:00 PM at Franklin High School.
Be there.
The teens in Franklin matter!
Sunday, November 30, 2008
"This is really the kickoff with Franklin"
Town officials are forging ahead with plans to renovate Franklin's aging high school building, while realizing that the economy's downturn could affect their ability to pay for the project.
The town submitted a refreshed proposal to the Massachusetts School Building Authority this month, specifying problems with the 37-year-old building and providing additional details on enrollment projections, the educational goals of a potential renovation, and past examples of the town's commitment to building maintenance.
In addition, several Franklin officials, including Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting and Town Council chairman Chris Feeley, met with the building authority's executive director, Katherine Craven, to identify Franklin's most pressing needs. Craven called the encounter "very positive."
Read the full article in the Boston Sunday Globe West section here
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"We have to be faithful to our basics"
An earsplitting clanging echoed from the stone bell tower of Mount St. Mary's Abbey in Wrentham, calling to prayer about a dozen nuns ending their morning shift in the convent's Candy House.
The sisters, wrapped in work clothes and aprons, walked down a wooded path and through a clearing as they made their silent way home. By noon, they were wearing the crisp, white robes of their contemplative Cistercian order, and had joined 40 others to chant and pray inside the abbey's airy church.
Up at 3, pray and work all day, retire at 8.
So it goes for these nuns and others in the order that for 900 years has emulated St. Benedict in relying on one's hands for daily sustenance.
Here in Wrentham, off a country lane not far from Interstate 495, that means tending a flock of sheep for wool to make blankets and growing a bounty of fresh vegetables in the summer, and, for these sisters who are rarely seen in public, making Trappistine Quality Candy - and lots of it.
Read the full article in the Boston Sunday Globe West section here
The Abbey web site can be found here
You can order candy via their online web store or make a donation via PayPal.
Postings about the Abbey's wind turbine can be found here
Whoosh Whoosh
Image via WikipediaWhat if some nuns in Wrentham decided to put up a wind turbine? And then high school officials in Worcester? And a Canton bank chairman? And pretty soon, the question wasn't where do wind farms belong, but how many windmills can we squeeze in to every last available space? That day is coming......
"Wind power is part of that," Schulte says. "It seems to be peppered all over society right now: green, green, green. Well, this is green. This is clean energy. This is 20 years of energy with no emissions. Twenty years of energy with no pollution you have to bury in the ground. I think that's all right."
.....
Remember the nuns? Their turbine -- another SED project -- is scheduled to be built this winter. And Sister Mariann Garrity, for one, can't wait for the moment she sees those pearly white blades spinning. "The wind is just something that we've let caress our faces," she says. "It was not something, up until now, that we had learned how to harness. And when we see that turbine go up, we'll know that we are using a gift of creation in a much more effective way."
It's just like the nuns pray on Sundays. Gathered together, all 50 of them, they thank the Lord for the rain and the dew, for the heat of summer and the cold of winter. They give thanks for the seas and the rivers and the beasts, wild and tame. And they give thanks, of course, for the wind blowing outside the abbey, just waiting for a turbine to spin. "All you winds," they say together, quoting from the book of Daniel, "bless the Lord."
Read the full article in the Boston Globe Magazine here
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