Franklin Matters

Friday, November 30, 2012

Holiday Stroll - Photo essay

The bargain of the day was the Christmas wreaths being sold by the Friends of Franklin to benefit the Franklin Food Pantry.

At $5, they wreaths were moving quickly. This one is already hanging on my front door! (For the very observant, yes, I did change the photo. The wreath by daylight looked so much better than in the night view I originally had here.)

The Mount St. Charles Handbell Choir performed and explained their process at Dean Bank

The Franklin Art Center was alight and welcoming!

A great holiday idea is the Franklin Calendar. Available at the Franklin Art Center $15. Each month displays a different work of art in and around Franklin.

The downtown was busy with families and a festive spirit in the cool evening air.

At the Franklin Historical Museum, Mrs Claus had a circle of young folks listening with great attention. Everyone leaving her area left with big smiles!

Alan Procknow, a senior majoring in History at Dean College, presented on Franklin's role in the Industrial Revolution. A link to the presentation document will be added here.

It was a good night be in and around downtown Franklin. There were other places I could have stopped but time was short and there was so much to do! Albeit cool, the weather was good and the moon rose brightly over Franklin.

Thanks to the Franklin Downtown Partnership, all their helpers and sponsors for this wonderful evening.

"It’s mostly the guts of the school"

The next priority in line of sight for the Franklin school district facilities needs is the Davis Thayer Elementary School.

The project has been on the town’s agenda for at least a few years, he said, but other concerns pushed the renovations aside.

"It was on the radar screen, but the high school just dominated the discussion over the past few years," he said. "Now it’s time to address the Davis Thayer issue."

Superintendent Maureen Sabolinski said the school, constructed in 1924, was designed with a different era in mind.

"It just wasn’t built for the educational expectations of the 21st century," Sabolinski said.

In the News: NuStyle, Schofield Dr

Franklin's 'brownfield' referenced is the former NuStyle property on Grove St.

Using gold to turn the region's brownfields into green

by Laura Krantz/Daily News staff

Cops help with Schofield Drive fire in Franklin

by Matt Tota/Daily News staff

Voices of Franklin: How many ounces of Franklin's medicated municipal tap water to ingest daily?

Dear Health Board members:

In light of your decision last year to continue fluoridating Franklin inhabitants through the public water supply, medical best practice principles require that you provide residents with dosage information.

As you are aware, recent studies have shown, and federal health officials have warned, that ingesting too much fluoride poses various health risks, ranging from fluorosis of the teeth and bones to impaired brain development in children. Therefore it is necessary now for responsible Franklin parents to begin carefully monitoring and controlling the amount of municipal tap water that is being ingested by the children for hydration and through cooking.

We have already contacted state and federal health officials for this important information but they will not say how much fluoridated tap water is safe to consume because fluoridation is ordered by local officials, not state or federal. According to MA General Law Chapter 111, you are 100% responsible for the drugging of our water and therefore are responsible for publishing the dosage recommendations.

Please advise as soon as possible: How many ounces of municipal tap water per day are optimal? By optimal, we mean the number of ounces that will both provide your program's intended benefits and also not expose Franklin's inhabitants to the growing list of fluoridation's side effects. Please specify your recommended daily ounces for adults, children, infants, and those on dialysis.

Thank you in advance.

Rich Aucoin
www.FranklinFluorideCouncil.com