3. Discussion Only Items
A. Space Needs Sub Committee Report and Modular Rubric
I need to hear the report presentation to see if questions that come to mind when trying to make sense of the documents are answered.
Providing accurate and timely information about what matters in Franklin, MA since 2007. * Working in collaboration with Franklin TV and Radio (wfpr.fm) since October 2019 *
A. Space Needs Sub Committee Report and Modular Rubric
Hoping to inform and encourage awareness among Massachusetts residents, a nonpartisan research group has launched a Web site where people can click around and see specific line items in the state budget, track overall spending and gather other related information.
"The idea is to improve transparency so that anyone in the state can see clearly what we're doing through government," said Noah Berger, executive director of the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center.
Visitors to browser.massbudget.org can study how much money lawmakers have decided to spend on roads, bridges, education, public safety and other areas of government over the past 10 years.
"People really should have the ability to see how much is being spent on each of those things and be involved in debates about the quality of services that they want and that they're getting in their communities," Berger saidRead the full article in the Milford Daily News here
Do you know a friend or family member who is struggling in this economy? A recent USDA report shows that more than 200,000 households in Massachusetts lack consistent access to adequate amounts of nutritious food. Here at the Franklin Food Pantry, we distributed over 45,000 lbs of food to more than 1,000 clients since October 1, 2009 (averaging 62 lbs per household per month). We have seen our number of regular clients increase by 28%.
During the holiday season, we were able to feed more families, children and seniors thanks to our generous community, who donated more than 25,000 lbs of food and more than 200 monetary donations. We believe our donations increased this year due to our new central location – Thank you Rockland Trust! We are fortunate that more than 74 volunteers joined us to help us sort, check dates and stock our shelves with these community donations. To help us accommodate such generosity, CVS volunteers helped us build shelves and makeover our storage room (a “move that bus” moment was shared by all!).
We were able to accomplish all of the above during a very difficult economic period that we know will continue into 2010. Unemployment remains high and there are many people still struggling to secure enough nutritious food to feed their families.
Good food nourishes the body and the spirit. With regular, nutritious meals, we are free to grow, to think, to smile, to live. In 2010, we will expand our capacity to provide our clients with a wide range of opportunities for gaining access to local, fresh, nutritious food. We are excited to announce our partnership with Tangerini’s Farm in Millis (139 Spring St) to offer fresh produce to clients from June through October. Please visit http://www.tangerinisfarm.com/ to learn more about our Food to Share CSA program and consider making a donation to help make fresh and local produce accessible to everyone. We are grateful to our volunteer Heather for working with Laura Tangerini to help us create this exciting local program!
We hope to learn with you, our community, the many elements of nutrition, food systems, local resources and to explore the questions, “What is food?” and “Where does our food come from?”
Volunteers and food donations are always welcome.
Thank you for making a difference.
"We wanted to have something other than grants to give back, show, and make a visual acknowledgement (with a reception) and to bring people together and truly thank them," Welsh said.
She said a majority of the recipients were present, including Concerts on the Common, Franklin Performing Arts Company, Franklin Historical Museum and the Fourth of July Celebration committee, among others.
Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting, state Sen. Karen Spilka, D-Ashland, Massachusetts Cultural Council Program Coordinator Tara Ahmed and Craig Carey, an aide for Rep. James Vallee, D-Franklin, spoke of their support for the council, Welsh said.
"There was a lot of representation from the Town Council, School Committee members, local government and state government," she said. "It was just great."Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here
1. Budget to Actual
2. Demand for Arbitration
5th Graders: Madison Harrington, Kendyl Ryan, Joseph Sarno, Daniel Wasnewsky.
4th Graders: Jake Noviello, Cameron Riu, Kevin Sassaman, Camille Fischer.
3rd Graders: Nitin Chaudhury, Riley Downing, Arun Kavishwar, Cade Ryan.
A. Space Needs Sub Committee Report and Modular Rubric
B. Budget Discussion
A. I recommend approval of the 2010-2011 School Calendar with the change discussed.
B. I recommend adoption of the Secretaries Contract for July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2013 as detailed.
C. I recommend approval of the field trip request for Keller 5th Grade class to visit Roger Williams Zoo in Providence, RI on May 7, 2010 as detailed.
D. I recommend acceptance of a check for $250.00 from the Alliance for Climate Education for the FHS for supplemental curriculum materials.
E. I recommend approval of the RMS Adventure Club’s recurring trip to Mt. Monadnock, Jaffrey, NH for May 15, 2010 as detailed.
Food/harvest obtained from the raised beds should be used at the sites for foods/meals and a portion of the food grown/produced will be donated to those Franklin community members with limited access to fresh produce via the Franklin Food Pantry.What will be planted?
Currently planning to have a gardener to work with each site to determine the crops to be planted, a planting schedule, regular maintenance plans, and harvest. The hope would be that the gardeners would work with the sites to help meet their needs, but also to communicate with other site gardeners to share ideas and knowledge.When will the raised beds be constructed?
The plan is to coordinate this with Earth Day on April 17th. Each bed location will be a building site. The building materials to be delivered to each site a couple of days prior.Where will be the raised beds be located?
If you are part of one of the sites where a bed will be located, there should be a contact person with information. Otherwise show up at theNote: This information did change on 4/14/10. The original "training" site was going to be the ECDC, it is now going to be next door at the Senior Center.ECDCSenior Center for 9:00 AM. TheECDCSenior Center will serve as the "training" site for all groups. After the first raised bed is constructed, folks can return to each of their sites to construct their own.
Almost two years after her diagnosis, the Franklin woman will walk for MS on Sunday to raise money for what she describes as a curable disease.
"I think there is a cure in my future, in my lifetime," Dwyer said. "The more money there is for research, the more we can figure out what causes this - and cure it."
Even at 84, the Franklin resident helped out wherever she was needed - right up until her one-year battle with cancer ended Tuesday.
"She just would always do what needed to be done ... whatever she got involved in, she did to her fullest," said Lodi's oldest son, Ruston of Newton.
The existing 55-year-old factory had been added to over the years, but its size makes for tight working quarters and its infrastructure is barely passing its health inspections.
"It's passing code, but it's not going to do that forever," Sister Mariann Garrity said.
Garrity said one reason for construction is the walls, which have a bumpy surface and cannot be washed - creating a sanitary issue.
"The most important reason we are building a larger candy factory is that we'd like to expand our production," she said. "The building now is too tight space-wise to be able to do that."