Franklin Food Pantry News - June 2021

"I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June." Lucy Maud Montgomery

Relieving hunger. Nourishing lives. "I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June." Lucy Maud Montgomery Tina's Take What's going on at the Pantry?? Happy June! The days are growing longer, the sun is finally coming out and we are seeing the light at the end of a very long tunnel. This year certainly brought out the best in our community and we are so grateful to all of you for your support. Through all of the storms, cloudy days and now sunshine, The Pantry has been there for our neighbors and will continue to serve our community.  During the past year we changed the way we served our neighbors without changing what we did: providing healthy food and support. Learn what happened at The Pantry during the Covid-19 Pandemic: What changed? When our doors had to physically close to our neighbors, we rapidly switched to a twice a week curbside pick-up. Our neighbors received a choice of three proteins, fresh produce, (often from Franklin's own community gardens,) dairy, a bag of shelf stable goods and a special bag of food designed just for kids. Instead of monthly scheduled times, neighbors could come weekly. We added new programs such as Home Delivery and kids bags for families.  We developed new supply chain methods, providing over 30% more fruits and vegetables to our neighbors despite discontinuation of many partner programs.  We reinvented roles for our volunteers such as filling bags, calling neighbors, delivering to homes and contactless distribution, keeping volunteers safe. We shifted our larger fundraisers to virtual events, including a reimagined Party for The Pantry, an online Empty Bowls event and auction as well as a virtual Turkey Trot. What stayed the same? We continued to see the spirit of our community shine through in support of our neighbors - your generosity was unparalleled! We still connected with our neighbors to not only provide food but to offer support or just share a friendly face (even if it was masked). We delivered weekend backpacks to 57 Franklin school children weekly to give them meals and snacks over the weekend. We purchased a new building at 138 East Central Street, but for now we are staying at our current location while we finalize plans and launch our Capital Campaign. We held our annual Thanksgiving and December holiday distribution serving over 200 hundred families for each. We undertook strategic visioning and shifted staff and Board members into positions that capitalized on their expertise while addressing the changing needs of our community. While there may be different titles with the names, the same dedicated people are running The Pantry and working hard for our neighbors. The need for The Pantry did not change – it grew. Compared to 2019, we served 18% more households, with a 36% increase in number of children served. While we don't always know what will happen, this year taught us one thing: the need for compassion will never change. Thank you for sharing your compassion at unprecedented levels this year. We are honored to work with you every day to assist our neighbors.  Have a wonderful summer! Tina Powderly Executive Director, Franklin Food Pantry Empty Bowls! Thank you to everyone who came out to our reimagined Empty Bowls event on June 10 at the Franklin High School. This event was the product of months of work by the FHS Empty Bowls club led by Brenna Johnson. Club members created one of kind ceramic bowls to symbolize that somewhere, someone's bowl is empty. Thank you to our sponsors: Grove Street Auto Repair, QRGA and Times Up, Inc. for their support of this event. Club members, alumni and community members also made beautiful unique items for the online auction. The auction is still open and is running until June 21. Take a look and bid today! Community Gardens Thanks to Jen Kuse and her 17 volunteers, our neighbors receive bags of freshly picked organic vegetables straight from our community gardens! Already this year our neighbors have had fresh butter lettuce, swiss chard, romaine, spinach, chives and more. We can't wait to see what comes next! Thank you to everyone who makes this program a success including the Franklin Federated Church, New England Chapel, Kim Mu Chow for their bed donations and to NETA for having a volunteer day to clean up the butterfly garden.  Bid on the auction!  Annual Appeal Watch your mailboxes because this year's annual appeal is on its way to you. The annual appeal highlights the many ways the community helped us during the Pandemic, and more importantly introduces you to some of the neighbors you helped. Visit our website to read the full annual appeal or make a donation. Donate to our Annual Appeal Holiday Distribution We are very excited to add an extra holiday distribution this year to help our neighbors celebrate July 4th!  Neighbors will receive a bag full of items for a traditional cookout and fun goodies sure to add a smile. Special thanks to Shaw's, The Daddario/Jardine family and MRN for their donations to the bags.  Project Envoy After launching their successful restaurant program, Project Envoy returns this summer to the Franklin Farmers Market. Look for their table sharing facts about food insecurity, The Franklin Food Pantry and recipes for cooking with fresh vegetables. They will also collect donations that go directly to The Franklin Food Pantry. Project Envoy is made up of members from The Interfaith Council Food Security Team representing: St. Mary's Parish, St. John's Episcopal, Temple Etz Chaim, the First Universalist Society in Franklin, the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, and the Franklin Federated Church. Our facility is generously donated by Rockland Trust. We are located at 43 West Central Street, Franklin MA, on Route 140 in the Rockland Trust parking lot, across the street from the fire station.

Franklin Food Panty | 43 WEST CENTRAL STREET, Franklin, MA 02038 Sent by loften@franklinfoodpantry.org powered by Try email marketing for free today!

St Mary's update - good news, bad news

Dear Parishioners and friends of Saint Mary Parish, 

Some weeks it is a delight to write a letter to all of you because the letter’s content is all good news. Unfortunately this week I have two disappointing stories to tell you about in our Town and Parish. I also have good news too, but I must begin with the bad news.  

We are all now well aware of the anti-Semitic graffiti which was drawn in the boys’ bathroom in our Town high school.  I applaud our Superintendent, the Principal and the School Administration, the Educators and Staff of our high school who have taken a loud and public stand against this act. Anti-Semitism is learned behavior and is an evil. It usually starts small and grows and grows. That is why it is best to strongly condemn this act right now. The student(s) who were involved in this and all of the other students of our school now have an opportunity to learn about bias, ignorance and prejudice. Perhaps even the adult community can reflect upon these issues in our lives and the example we offer our young people in our daily lives. Our Town community seeks to be a good and safe community and in many ways this goal is achieved. There is, however, always the work that must be done to keep our community a wonderful and welcoming town which means bias, prejudice and hate must be rooted out when they are small and start to show in our Town and lives. 

Last Thursday afternoon, approximately 8 days ago, someone(s) broke into our school building in the late afternoon and vandalized the inside. Tens of thousands of dollars of damage was done by the intruders(s). Clearly this marks a sad event for our Parish and also our Town. The vandalism was malicious in nature. Our Police Department has responded and is now investigating all of this. Clearly the malicious nature and the extent of damage make this a serious crime. Because of some of the vandalism and damage, our Fire Department also responded; the fire alarm were triggered by some of the vandalism.  We are blessed to have such dedicated and caring emergency personnel in Police and Fire Departments. I thank them on behalf of all of us for their special help.

Continue reading the update from St Mary's on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/1441147276190269/posts/2640699579568360/

St Mary's update - good news, bad news

Franklin's Event Outlook: Jun 18 - Jun 24, 2021

Another weekend is upon us. Stop at the Library book sale before finding good food and other items at the Farmers Market on the Town Common. The Library Youth Services will have a theme based craft each Friday from 3:30 to 4:30.

Two musical performances to choose from this weekend. The FHS performance of "Bright Star" or the performance of  "Electric Youth 2021" at THE BLACK BOX.

Friday, June 18
"Hedgehog Needs a Hug" (story walk)
Empty Bowls - Virtual Silent Auction
1:00pm - Book sale (at Library)

2:00pm - Farmers Market
6:00pm - Broadway in Franklin (Video on Demand)
7:30pm - Electric Youth and the Boston Show Band
8:00pm - FHS Theatre: Bright Star - Concert Version

Saturday, June 19
"Hedgehog Needs a Hug" (story walk)
Empty Bowls - Virtual Silent Auction
Juneteenth
6:00pm - Broadway in Franklin (Video on Demand)
7:30pm - Electric Youth and the Boston Show Band
8:00pm - FHS Theatre: Bright Star - Concert Version

Sunday, June 20
"Hedgehog Needs a Hug" (story walk)
Empty Bowls - Virtual Silent Auction
Father's Day
6:00pm - Broadway in Franklin (Video on Demand)

Monday, June 21
"Hedgehog Needs a Hug" (story walk)
Empty Bowls - Virtual Silent Auction
6:00pm - Broadway in Franklin (Video on Demand)

Tuesday, June 22
"Hedgehog Needs a Hug" (story walk)
9:00am - wfpr.fm: Pamela Hines – Jazz Journey
12:00pm - wfpr.fm: Pamela Hines – Jazz Journey
6:00pm - wfpr.fm: Pamela Hines – Jazz Journey
6:00pm - Broadway in Franklin (Video on Demand)

Wednesday, June 23
"Hedgehog Needs a Hug" (story walk)
10:00am - wfpr.fm: "The Wonderful World of Wine" – Mark/ Kim
1:00pm - wfpr.fm: "The Wonderful World of Wine" – Mark/Kim
6:00pm - Broadway in Franklin (Video on Demand)
7:00pm - wfpr.fm: "The Wonderful World of Wine" – Mark/Kim
7:30pm - Let’s Laugh Today is Free on ZOOM!

Thursday, June 24
"Hedgehog Needs a Hug" (story walk)
10:00am - wfpr.fm: "Frank’s Music" – Frank Falvey
11:00am - wfpr.fm: "Talkin’ the Blues" – Jim/Todd
1:00pm - wfpr.fm: "Frank’s Music" – Frank Falvey
2:00pm - wfpr.fm: "Talkin’ the Blues" – Jim/Todd
6:00pm - Broadway in Franklin (Video on Demand)
7:00pm - wfpr.fm: "Frank’s Music" – Frank Falvey
8:00pm - wfpr.fm: "Talkin' the Blues!" - Jim/Todd

Find the full calendar  https://www.franklinmatters.org/p/blog-page.html

If you have an event to add to the calendar, you can use the form to submit it for publication:  https://forms.gle/oPdi8X3ZbHHyrHzo6

The Town meeting calendar is found  https://www.franklinma.gov/calendar

The School district meeting calendar is found   https://www.franklinps.net/calendar-by-event-type/26

 

Community Calendar

Recap: Community Preservation Committee votes 9-0 to approve 'right of first refusal' option 1 to purchase Maple Hill

Quick Recap:

• The Community Preservation Committee listened to the overview of the right of first refusal presentation previously provided to the Town Council and Finance Committee.
• Clarification on the CPA funds of conservatively $1.3M per year expected of which about $200k/year would be used for this purchase. This still leaves about $1.1M for other uses and helps our commitment of 10% for open space (per CPA requirements)
• There will be a longer term plan for the development of the property for recreation space. The Town staff had not yet put the plan together in the short time for this approval process. They are working on it and it will be presented later for discussion and approval. Where the funds come from (operations or CPA) remains to be determined
• Public access and parking one of the key questions to be addressed. Currently, there is no access to the property from Maple St, limited access is from the neighboring areas. How much parking and where is a key question. 

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As with most meetings in this pandemic period, I took my notes via Twitter during the meeting reporting in real-time via the virtual session.
 

Photos captured during the meeting, shared via Twitter can be found in one album https://photos.app.goo.gl/faxfnWxyioZYWiVx6

The Twitter hashtag can be found online  #cpc0617
https://twitter.com/hashtag/cpc0617?src=hashtag_click

• 3rd of the series of public hearings on the Maple Hill 'right of first refusal' coming up at 5 PM with the scheduled Community Preservation Committee meeting. They do need to recommend for the TC 2 take action. Agenda doc/Zoom info -> https://franklinma.gov/community-preservation-committee/events/330126 #cpc0617
  
• Meeting opens, Minutes for approval, second, passes 9-0 Discussion on committee tour of places where requests may be applied for. #cpc0617
  
• Tour with sign up sheet for Sep seems to be consensus. #cpc0617 likely to be open house for sites at same time. Next up, right of first refusal for Maple Hill property.
  
• TA Jamie Hellen provides overview of the proposal doc shown to Town Council and finance committee #cpc0617 in case needed, you can find here https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/mai/files/_maple_hill_rofr_open_space_update.pdf 
  
• One of the open space slides #cpc0617
  
• Key slide with the three options being explained on how to buy the property. #cpc0617
  
• Key summary slide of the options with recommendation for purchase option 1 #cpc0617
  
• Motion to approve option 1, seconded. Discussion. Clarification on the CPA funds of 1.3m per year expected of which 200k/year would be used for this. Still leaves plenty for other uses and helps our commitment of 10% for open space. #cpc0617
  
• There will be a longer term plan for the development of the property for recreation space, whether the funds also come from operations or CPA remains a question to be decided. #cpc0617
  
• After discussion, roll call vote, passes 9-0. #cpc0617
  
• Motion to adjourn, passes 9-0 #cpc0617 

Audio file to be available in couple of days 

votes 9-0 to approve 'right of first refusal' option 1 to purchase Maple Hill

FHS to perform "Bright Star - Concert Version" - June 18 & 19

Our ticket sales are LIVE for Bright Star - Concert Version! Don't miss out on this exclusive, live musical performance in June 18 & 19. 

Visit the link to reserve your tickets now - https://t.co/rtXoYNv23S https://t.co/JZxNSthZO4

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/FranklinHSDrama/status/1397727844118237184

FHS Theatre Company - Our ticket sales are LIVE for Bright Star - Concert Version!

Electric Youth and the Boston Show Band -> June 18-19

Electric Youth 2021, featuring 14 super talented singer dancers, headlines a weekend at THE BLACK BOX with two different performances to enjoy on June 18 and 19.  The show features choreography by the Electric Youth Creative Team and well as Broadway's Clay Thomson and Christopher Rice.  Backed by the world class Boston Show Band, Electric Youth shows deliver high energy fun for audiences of all ages! 

Livestream and In-Person ticketing options available. 

• Click here to purchase In-Person Tickets  (https://ci.ovationtix.com/36235/production/1046671)
• Click here to purchase  Livestream tickets. (http://showtix4u.com/events/fpac)

Electric Youth and the Boston Show Band -> June 18-19

Watch "Panther News: Summer Special 2021" on YouTube

The last edition of Panther News for this school year is the "Summer Special"

Video link => https://youtu.be/7qszX7vdT0M

Library crafts for the young at heart at the Farmers Market

Via the Franklin Farmers Market 

"We have also partnered with Franklin Public Library Official Site to offer Farmers Market Fun! Join them from 3:30 - 4:30 across from the gazebo for themed events from story time, scavenger hunts, crafts and more!"

On Instagram at @fplyouthservices - https://www.instagram.com/fplyouthservices/

Shared from Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/FranklinFarmersMarketMA/posts/4313714672021817

Library crafts for the young at heart at the Farmers Market

FTC Consumer Alerts: Timeshares: Yes? No? Maybe?

Timeshares: Yes? No? Maybe? by Rosario Méndez, Attorney, Division of Consumer and Business Education, FTC If you're considering getting a timeshare this vacation season, read on. Maybe you got a flyer in the mail with pictures of sunny beaches and beautiful resort suites. Sounds great, right? But before you sign a timeshare contract, make sure you understand what you're getting into — and how to get out of it. Read more ->   https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2021/06/timeshares-yes-no-maybe?utm_source=govdelivery

FTC Consumer Alerts: Timeshares: Yes? No? Maybe?

Recap: Economic Development Subcommittee - discussion on housing plan and requirements for home based businesses

Quick Recap:

• The housing production plan was reviewed and discussed. Key among the actions is to further obtain any and all citizen input/comment by June 25 and update this draft. The revised plan would then be approved by Planning Board and Town Council before being submitted to the State for acceptance.
• Key to specific items to address the housing would be the zoning assessment. This analysis would provide an objective 3rd party view on what we have and what we could do to allow for appropriate and affordable housing
• Discussion on home based businesses. Good to boot strap a concept, Health Dept is ok with food production as long as the ServeSafe and other related food prep requirements are adhered to. The wrinkle comes with handling the sewer waste and implementation of a grease trap which can be expensive.
• The Town is not prepared for how to address this opportunity. More research is required which they will conduct during the next couple of months and bring back to Subcommittee for further discussion.

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As with most meetings in this pandemic period, I took my notes via Twitter during the meeting reporting in real-time via the virtual session.
 
The Twitter hashtag can be found online  #edc0616
https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Edc0616&src=typed_query 

Photos captured during the meeting can be found in one album
https://photos.app.goo.gl/AayFgpTfmSzB3Y2w9

• EDC meeting to begin soon, awaiting quorum #edc0616
  
• Without quorum, may at least open meeting and have a discussion. #fincom0616
  
• Quorum achieved (with virtual participation of Frongillo and Bissanti), EDC meeting opens at 7:09 PM. #edc0616
  
• Chair Hamblen opens meeting, reads protocol statement, #fincom0616 First item, housing production plan for discussion if needed, plan can be found https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6896/f/uploads/franklin_housing_production_plan_-_may_2021_public_draft.pdf 
  
• Feedback sought as part of the draft review process. #fincom0616
  
• Cool to be back in Municipal Bldg, Planner Amy Love provides an overview of the plan, similar to what was presented earlier in Housing Trust meeting #edc0616
  
• My notes from that (Municipal Affordable Housing Trust) meeting, for the record, can be found https://franklinmatters.org/2021/06/recap-municipal-affordable-housing.html?m=1 #edc0616
  
• Difference in accounting between apartment and residential units, all apartments count if only a smaller # are affordable; for owned residential units only the # affordable apply to the housing rate (i.e. 6 of 30, only the 6 - if apartments, 6 of 30 all 30 count) condos ->
• Condos count as owned units so only the # would count (like other owned residential, not like apartments). #edc0616 What is considered affordable for Franklin? Major issue
  
• Development costs are hire, art zoning would need to have incentives to allow the developers to make the money back that they give up making some of the units affordable. #edc0616
  
• Multiple discussion points on affordable and how to tackle it, the new housing behind Eaton Place will help but it won't be online soon (still needs funding) #edc0616
  
• Motion to move housing plan forward to planning board and to Council for approval incorporating the changes and comments #edc0616 passes 4-0 via roll call.
  
• Moving to home occupied businesses for next part of discussion. #edc0616
  
• How do you permit a bootstrap business from a home, some i.e. kitchens can pose health concerns, others may have traffic/delivery issues for neighbors. #edc0616 permit some level of production up to which they're good, beyond that next level up. ZBA may be an option
  
• In commercial areas, need to protect the sewer system, with grease traps, when blockages occur it stops things and that is not good. Title 5 systems are built for 3 or 4 bedrooms not commercial industry business. #edc0616 who acts the agent for volume?
  
• We can't use the ZBA or planning board and their temporary benevolence, if something is good, let's make it right. #edc0616 strict guidelines on food prep, zoning is the issue in the case of chocolate bars (as the talking point example)
  
• let's provide some time to research, see what others are doing, Boston is a whole different system. #edc0616 what might work, what would be some controls, there is no capacity at Charles River. we do need to consider the big picture of affordability
  
• Motion to adjourn, second, passes 4-0 via roll call #fincom0616 

Audio file to be available in a couple of days

discussion on housing plan and requirements for home based businesses

People with ALS Can Get Social Security Disability Benefits Sooner

May was Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Awareness Month. ALS is a progressive disease with no known cure. It advances rapidly and attacks the nerve cells responsible for controlling voluntary muscles. On average, 1,000 people with ALS apply for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits every year.

The ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2019 eliminates the required five-month SSDI waiting period for ALS applicants approved for benefits on or after July 23, 2020. The new law, however, does not affect our disability application or determination process.

This past month, we made the ALS claims processing even faster. Our system now automatically eliminates the five-month waiting period for ALS disability insurance claims. Previously, we had to prepare manual awards and send them to our Processing Centers for action—which took much more time. Now, we can help people with this debilitating disease in just a matter of days.

To give a real life example, a claimant with ALS recently submitted to us an online disability application. Using an electronic health exchange, we were able to collect sufficient medical evidence for the claimant and processed the claim in just two days. To learn more about how this process works, please visit our Disability Benefits Approval page (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/disability/approval.html) . 

People with ALS Can Get Social Security Disability Benefits Sooner