Order your Rain barrel today, pick it up at the DPW in May

"Order your rain barrel today!

Residents can order rain barrels through the Great American Rain Barrel website: https://buff.ly/2FsqtRM  or   https://www.greatamericanrainbarrel.com/

Ordering deadline is May 9 and the pickup will be at the Franklin DPW on May 18,2022" 

A rain barrel is one of the credits for the forth coming storm water utility fee.
https://www.franklinma.gov/stormwater-division/pages/rain-barrels

Order your Rain barrel today, pick it up at the DPW in May

FHS Cheerleaders take National Title!; Theater group heads to Regionals

"National Champions!!! Hockomock, Regional, State and now - National Champions!!! Congratulations to the Best Cheer Team in the country!!!"

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/FHSSports/status/1505618908321038346

FHS Cheerleaders take National Title

"FHSTC is onto Regionals! Feeling grateful to be recognized as a Top 3 school, and punching our ticket to Regionals."

"BIG shout out to our All-Star Awards in: scenic design (Kaiti), costume design (Heidi, Ren, Will), sound design (Matt),

Ensemble work for the Rock Creatures (Heidi, Millie, Amanda, Colin, Will, Shea, Alex, Ava, Jake, Patrick), and an acting award for Simon, who played Don. "

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/FranklinHSDrama/status/1505538540167471113

and from https://twitter.com/FranklinHSDrama/status/1505538542298087424

FHSTC is onto Regionals

FHS DECA Students take multiple awards

"Drew Mahoney ('22), Maxwell Voellmicke ('22), Sameen Shaik ('22)- ICDC Qualifiers- Financial Operations Research! Thank you "

 https://twitter.com/FranklinMA_DECA/status/1505326662837313548

"Brendan McCormick ('22), Timothy O'Keefe ('22), Evan Raider ('22)- Top 10 Business Operations Research! 2021 ICDC Qualifiers, 1st Place Districts 2022! Leadership, Character, Consistency. Any team/organization would be well served to include these 3!"

https://twitter.com/FranklinMA_DECA/status/1505323199080316928

"Nihara Lijan (‘23) ICDC Qualifier- Innovation Plan! Shout out to Mr. Bobrowsky on the collab! The power of cross-curricular project based learning on full display!"

https://twitter.com/FranklinMA_DECA/status/1504257957009178624

"Thank you FHS teachers! This experience and level of achievement doesn't happen without your support! "

https://twitter.com/FranklinMA_DECA/status/1504232979035529216

 

Thank you FHS teachers! This experience and level of achievement doesn't happen without your support!

Register O’Donnell Commemorates Women’s History Month on QATV (video)

Norfolk County Register of Deeds, William P. O’Donnell, appeared on a segment broadcast by Quincy Access Television commemorating Women’s History Month and recognizing a number of distinguished women, both past and present, with ties to Norfolk County.
 
“There are numerous prominent woman with ties to Norfolk County”, noted the Register, “ranging from first lady Abigail Adams, the wife and mother of two presidents, who was born in Weymouth and buried in Quincy, to lesser known but important figures such as Katherine Lee Bates, a nineteenth century Wellesley resident, who, inspired by the beauty she observed from the top of Pike’s Peak, wrote the lyrics to “America the Beautiful”.

Some of the other women mentioned by Register O’Donnell in the segment include historic figures like Deborah Sampson from Sharon, who fought and was wounded in the American Revolutionary War, Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan, both from Wrentham, whose story has been chronicled in books and in the 1962 movie, “The Miracle Worker”, Harriet Hemenway from Canton, who co-founded the Massachusetts Audubon Society in 1896, Dr. Helen Cleary, the first woman to be elected to the Town of Norfolk’s Board of Selectmen and the actress Lee Remick from Quincy, an Academy Award nominee in 1962.

Norfolk County is also birthplace of a number of contemporary women such as the astronaut, Sunita Williams, a 1983 graduate of Needham High School, who has performed the most spacewalks by a woman, National Public Radio’s Audie Cornish, Mindy Kaling, the writer and actress best known for the television series “The Office” and of course, Needham’s own Aly Raisman, the winner of several Olympic medals in women’s gymnastics and the recipient of the Arthur Ashe Courage Award.

“I appreciate Mark Crosby and the folks at Quincy Access Television providing me the opportunity to honor the contributions and accomplishments of women from the communities in Norfolk County that have had a positive impact in our lives”, stated Register O’Donnell.

To view the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds video segment, go to the following link:
https://youtu.be/xSwPZMqZnm8
 
To learn more about the history of Norfolk County and other Registry of Deeds events and initiatives, like us at facebook.com/NorfolkDeeds or follow us on twitter.com/NorfolkDeeds and/or Instagram.com/NorfolkDeeds.

The Norfolk County Registry of Deeds is located at 649 High Street in Dedham.  The Registry is a resource for homeowners, title examiners, mortgage lenders, municipalities and others with a need for secure, accurate, accessible land record information.  All land record research information can be found on the Registry’s website www.norfolkdeeds.org.  Residents in need of assistance can contact the Registry of Deeds Customer Service Center via telephone at (781) 461-6101, or email us at registerodonnell@norfolkdeeds.org. 

Interview Preparation session - MCOA 50+ Program

50+ Job Seekers in MA Statewide Networking Groups

This free program is available through a grant from the Massachusetts Councils on Aging (MCOA) and the Executive Office of Elder Affairs

Session 10: Interview Preparation

Tuesday March 22^nd: 10 am – 12 pm

Congratulations, you've been invited to an interview! What do you do next? Prepare! And prepare. And prepare.

But, how?

Join facilitator Melody Beach, as she discusses all things interview-related, with an emphasis on what you should do before the interview.

 

Why you need to know about this: The interview is the landing that follows all the mental and physical gymnastics of your job-search. Perfect the interview landing and your chance of landing the job goes way up!

 

Start your journey towards self-realization, reinvention and transformation with our virtual sessions - delivered via Zoom.

New to the program? Registration is Required: https://50plusjobseekers.org/outreach/registration/

For more information contact Denise Magnett: 50plusjobseekersadmin@mcoaonline.com

/mock

Four different promo formats are attached.

Please post them, print them, or share them with anybody who could benefit by attending.

This prep session will be followed in two weeks by a practice/mock interview session.

--

Thanks!

Ed Lawrence

Download a copy of the flyer ->  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e-TtDFXsX60UpJ3ne-qAwHnvF4RjKlVX/view?usp=sharing

Interview Preparation session - MCOA 50+ Program

Milford Daily News: Franklin Food Pantry completes purchase of new home

"For decades, Edwin's gift store was a staple in Franklin, becoming a community landmark and the go-to place for unique gifts.

Now the former Edwin's will take on a new life, this time providing the staples -- and more -- to residents who find themselves struggling to put food on the table and pay the bills.

After sitting vacant for about four years, Edwin's will become the new home of the rapidly expanding Franklin Food Pantry. The 4,992-square-foot building at 341 W. Central St. was recently sold to the pantry by SVN Parsons Commercial Group, Boston for $950,000. "

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)

https://www.milforddailynews.com/story/country-gazette/2022/03/17/former-franklin-gift-shop-become-home-franklin-food-pantry/7048019001/

Disclosure: I volunteer for the Franklin Food Pantry Capital Campaign committee which will be coordinating efforts to raise funds to pay for the mortgage and establish support for ongoing operations of the Food Pantry to support our neighbors.

Communications Director Laura Often (left) and Executive Director Tina Powderly (right) in front of Edwin's the new home of the Food Pantry - specific timeline remains TBD (Heather McCarron photo)

MA topics recap - pilot payments, infrastructure funding, land preservation, and remote meeting access

“It’s about fairness. It’s about how do you want to participate in this city that you get city services from: police, fire, public works. I think you should share in those costs.”

So spoke Boston’s late former mayor, Thomas Menino, back in 2010, when talking about nonprofit universities and hospitals—”eds and meds” in popular parlance—and their community responsibilities.

House Bill 3080 (Senate Bill 1874) authored by Erika Uyterhoeven of Somerville and cosponsored by 19 fellow state legislators, would finally realize Menino’s vision and empower cities to set common rates. Under the legislation, cities could require  payments of up to 25 percent of commercial property tax rates for nonprofits with over $15 million in property and could include provisions for in-kind community benefit contributions in lieu of cash."

Continue reading the article online ->

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/opinion/pilot-payments-should-be-standardized-statewide/

"EFFORTS TO REPLACE  the MBTA’s entire Green Line trolley fleet, a statewide move toward electric vehicle adoption, and projects to make infrastructure more resilient in the face of climate change impacts would all get a boost under a $9.7 billion bond bill Gov. Charlie Baker outlined on Thursday.

Nearly two months after he first hinted at plans to file a new transportation bond bill, Baker offered an initial glimpse at a proposal the head of the MBTA expects will play a “catalytic role” to maximize money headed to Massachusetts under a new federal infrastructure law.

Once filed, the legislation will kick off debate over years of investments in the state’s pothole-dotted roads and bridges, aging public transit, and infrastructure ill-equipped to withstand the brunt of climate change."

Continue reading the article online ->

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/transportation/baker-proposes-9-7b-infrastructure-bond-bill/

"WE OFTEN THINK  of floods, hurricanes, snowstorms and the like as threats to our normal way of life, but the COVID pandemic has shown us a unique threat that affects everyone in a very different way — isolation and inability to gather together.  What brought many of us through the last few years was the availability of nearby open spaces for outdoor passive recreation.  As much as we need to plan for 100-year floods, we also need to plan for 100-year pandemics.  Enter the Public Lands Preservation Act.

Massachusetts has a wonderful collection of State Parks with a huge variety of sites and activities along with Mass Audubon, The Trustees, The Trust for Public Land, and many local and regional private land trusts.  Most of the publicly owned open spaces are nominally protected in perpetuity under Article 97 of the Commonwealth Constitution.  However, the protection can be removed by a two-thirds vote of each branch of the Legislature.  Forty to fifty laws are enacted every legislative session removing protection from parcels protected “in perpetuity.”  How can we prevent this erosion of public land?  Enter the Public Lands Preservation Act."

Continue reading the article online ->

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/opinion/protecting-the-states-protected-lands/

"THE DARKNESS OF the pandemic brought a surprise element of transparency to government, and a range of groups, including those representing individuals with disabilities, this week are calling on the Governor’s Council to resume online streaming of meetings where elected officials vet judicial candidates.

“In the case of government entities based in Boston, like the Governor’s Council, live streaming enables people to tune in from every corner of the state; discontinuing remote access is devastating for regional equity,” eight groups wrote in a letter Thursday that was sent to the eight-member council and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, who chairs council meetings where Gov. Charlie Baker’s judicial nominees are considered. “Remote access is the latest instance of universal design — alongside curb cuts, elevators, closed captioning, audiobooks, and other features — that began as accommodations and expanded to universal popularity. Like these innovations and others emerging during the pandemic, remote access to public meetings should become a permanent feature.”

Continue reading the article online ->

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/state-government/groups-call-for-making-online-meeting-access-permanent/

 

MA issues recap - pilot payments, infrastructure funding, land preservation, and remote meeting access

Franklin TV and wfpr.fm schedule for Monday, Mar 21, 2022

•  wfpr.fm or 102.9 on the FM dial = Monday

9 AM 12 PM and 6 PM Talkin’ the Blues – Jim Derick & Todd Monjur
2 hours of awesome blues music, info, interviews

11 AM 2 PM and 8 PM A More Perfect Union – with Dr. Michael Walker-Jones,
Representative Jeff Roy and Dr. Natalia Linos

• Franklin All Access TV - Our Public Access Channel (Comcast 8, Verizon 26) = MONDAY

7:59 am Mass Department of Public Health: CO-VID 19

8:00 am SAFE Coalition: Kyle Brodeur

9:00 am Concerts on the Common: David Penza & Backyard Swagger

12:00 pm Brook'n'Cookin: Scones

12:30 pm Sandhya: Donuts

1:00 pm Cooking Thyme: Appetizers

1:30 pm Pizzapalooza: Margherita Pizza

2:00 pm New England Candlepins: Summer 2018 Show 5

3:00 pm Candlepin New Generation: Show 3

3:30 pm Physician Focus: Unequal Treatment: Disparities in Health Care

4:00 pm Battleship Cove: Inside The History Pt. 8

4:30 pm Extended Play Sessions: Season 10 Show 4 - Dicenso Clark

5:30 pm Senior Connection: Kitchen Gadgets Pt. 2

6:00 pm Veterans' Call: Veterans' Treatment

7:30 pm Frank Presents: Greg Dowd

8:30 pm The Black Box: Electric Youth 2022

• Franklin Pride TV - Our Educational Channel (Comcast 96, Verizon 28) = MONDAY

7:00 am Public School Event: Lifelong Winter Music 2021

8:30 am Public School Event: Concert Hour Day 2

10:30 am Public School Concert: MICCA Showcase Pt. 1 03-14-18

1:30 pm Battleship Cove: Inside The History Pt. 8

2:00 pm SAFE Coalition: Kyle Brodeur

3:00 pm FHS Boys Varsity Hockey: v Hingham 03-08-22

5:00 pm FHS Girls Varsity Hockey: v Andover 03-04-22

6:30 pm U. S. Army: Jazz Ambassadors 04-01-19

8:00 pm FHS Varsity Swimming v King Philip 01-19-22

• Franklin Town Hall TV - Our Government Channel (Comcast 11, Verizon 29) = MONDAY

8:00 am Planning Board: 02-28-22

11:00 am MPAC: Franklin For All 03-07-22

2:00 pm Planning Board: 02-28-22

5:00 pm Economic Development: 03-02-22

Get this week's program guide for Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) online  http://franklin.tv/programguide.pdf  

Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm)

Shamrock Walk for Refugees raises over $7,000 on a foggy morning (photo essay)

Lead by members of the Franklin Neighborhood Support Team, about 100 people gathered to walk (and run) around the Franklin High School track Saturday morning.

Shamrock Walk for Refugees

registration for the non-competitive walk, conversations were encouraged

sponsor listing for the Shamrock Walk for Refugees

The Shamrock Walk for Refugees raised over $7,000 to help support the Afghan family now living in Franklin. Multiple vendors provided gifts for the raffle.

Adam Calvert thanked those participating and the sponsors

group photo before starting the walk/run

Donations are still accepted through the website https://walkforrefugees.org/

at the start of the walk

Listen to the recording of my conversation with Jerika Lowry and Adam Calvert about the organization creation and support being provided by the Neighborhood Support Team for the local Afghan family
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2022/02/inside-shamrock-walk-for-refugees.html

Additional photos can be found in one album

https://photos.app.goo.gl/UKJiv7iwZiPzngwd9

Empty Bowls fund raising dinner scheduled for May 19

"Save the DATE! Empty Bowls cannot wait to host its annual fundraiser for the first time in TWO years. Let's do this Franklin!"

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/johnsonb_ms/status/1504844524882903053 

When: May 19, 2022 from 6 PM to 8 PM
Where: FHS cafeteria

  

Empty Bowls fund raising dinner scheduled for May 19

Franklin.TV: Our Normal Returneth?

by Pete Fasciano, Executive Director 03/20/2022

After two years of COVID we are working on reopening our studio. I say ‘working on’ for a number of reasons. Topmost? Things are not simply what they were in 2019. We are entering a new time. This new time demands new thinking.

We are facing more technical changes, and with those, more operational changes. We also have to carefully consider how our staff (God bless ‘em.) can best balance a more flexible work schedule that now includes WFH. With our studio shuttered, they responded in time of COVID-crisis to get out there and cover as many live civic, school and sports events as possible. That meant working many more random nights and weekends. They made it happen without missing a beat.

We geared up, building small, portable TV control systems as ‘Flypaks’ that enable us to originate live from wherever with minimal setup effort. Our systems were also designed to be Zoom-friendly. We installed new systems in Town Chambers for effortless Zoom integration there as well.

Our radio operation became totally remote, with up to a dozen volunteers working, conducting guest interviews and producing programs from home via Zoom.

Now we’re headed back the other way, technically. We’re opening up studios that have been shuttered for the most part. But, they won’t be the same. They also must be Zoom-enabled. Our new normal brings new expectations. We also have to enable Zoom in the FHS auditorium, a very large venue with its own challenges.

The beginning of the pandemic forced us into technical overdrive for months in order to meet the challenges of TV and radio production in 2020.

Now, at the end of the pandemic in 2022 (hopefully) we need to rework our studios, our gear and production skills to integrate Zoom on demand – whenever, wherever. We also plan to work on integrating radio and TV programming where possible. Life in 2019 B.C. (Before COVID) feels like quaint ancient history.  Now, in 2022 A.D. (After Disaster) our lives are filled with change.

The only constant in life – is change. - Heraclitus

Do we simply succumb to it, or – do we master it? 

And – as always –
Thank you for listening to wfpr●fm. 
And, thank you for watching. 

Get this week's program guide for Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) online  http://franklin.tv/programguide.pdf    

Franklin.TV: Our Normal Returneth?

This Franklin For All Discussion reveals insights on process and accessory dwelling units - 03/15/22 (audio)

FM #755 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 755 in the series. 

This session of the radio show shares my conversation with several members of the Economic Development “Plus” Committee to talk about the Franklin For All process. We recorded this via the Zoom conference bridge Mar 15, 2022.  

• Chair, Melanie Hamblen, Town Council 

• Beth Wierling, member of the Planning Board

• Cobi Frongillo, member of the Town Council

• Bruce Hunchard, chair of the Zoning Board of Appeals

 

The recording runs about 38 minutes, so let’s listen to the conversation about the Franklin For All project and process. 

Audio file -> https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-755-franklin-for-all-discussion-03-15-22

--------------

Respond to the survey by April 1 => https://mapc.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bDBzodBPnt8a5Ce  

Franklin For All Forum - March 7, 2022

• Transcript =>  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WEsjmEFESie06Bx4bAOSxhMbhpY45gsL/view?usp=sharing

• Audio recording => https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-748-franklin-for-all-forum-03-07-22

• Video recording =>  https://youtu.be/9fewoumulN4 

 

Franklin For All project page ->  https://www.mapc.org/resource-library/franklin-for-all/ 

 

--------------

We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.  

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.

 

How can you help?

• If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors

• If you don't like something here, please let me know

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/ or www.franklin.news/

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

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!

------------------

You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

 

This Franklin For All Discussion reveals insights

FHS's Red Cross Club's First Aid Kit fundraiser - Mar 25 and/or Mar 26, 2022

The FHS Red Cross Club will be partnering with Pokemoto: Hawaiian Poke, in order to raise money for first aid kit supplies.

Come by and purchase a poke bowl or some dole whip! 40% of the sales will go towards the first aid kits, which will be going to members of the Franklin community and homeless shelters in the area. 

To order online -> https://order.snackpass.co/Pokemoto-Franklin-270-Franklin-Village-Dr-60ff13ca92ea1201100d12b8

FHS's Red Cross Club's First Aid Kit fundraiser - Mar 25 and/or Mar 26, 2022

Deep drilling for geothermal: "It’s a high-risk, high-reward situation"

"Miles below ground, where pressures are intense and temperatures far exceed the boiling point of water, dense layers of super-hot rocks offer the promise of a natural, inexhaustible supply of clean energy. 

Environmentalists have long dreamed of a way to reach those depths to tap the potential geothermal energy in those rocks, but the technological and financial barriers have been too great. 

Now, officials at an MIT spinoff say they believe they’ve figured out how to drill as deep as 12 miles into the Earth’s crust, using a special laser that they say is powerful enough to blast through granite and basalt. "

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/18/science/an-effort-rid-world-fossil-fuels-an-mit-spinoff-plans-dig-deepest-holes-earth/

“By drilling deeper, hotter, and faster than ever before possible, Quaise aspires to provide abundant and reliable clean energy for all humanity"

Related article in Boston Globe
https://apps.bostonglobe.com/science/environment/climate/graphics/2022/03/deep-geothermal-drilling/

DOER stretch building codes get comments from Attorney General Healey

The comment period on the proposed stretch goals for building codes closed on Friday, Mar 18, 2022. There had been news articles reporting that Attorney General Maura Healey's office had turned down some local legislation for Brookline because the State rules did not allow them to go that far. Her office issued comments on Friday that confirmed DOER had the right to continue with the stretch goals to allow a community to go all electric.

Reporter David Abel's article in Feb on the stretch goals

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/02/08/science/significant-step-reducing-emissions-state-proposes-new-building-codes-promote-energy-efficiency/

Reporter David Abel's tweet on the comments by Healey's office:

"Attorney General Maura Healey told state officials today they have the authority to create an energy code that allows municipalities to ban the use of oil and gas in future construction projects"

AG's office comments on stretch building code goals

Shared from Twitter:  https://twitter.com/davabel/status/1504990705973972998

Article on the rejection of Brookline's local control 

https://commonwealthmagazine.org/energy/healey-again-rejects-brookline-anti-fossil-fuel-bylaws/

For more on climate issues, check out the Globe's new section (subscription may be required)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/science/environment/climate/