Wednesday, December 18, 2013

A Few Important Upcoming Meeting Dates

Franklin Downtown Partnership
General Meeting
Thursday, January 9th-8:30 AM
Dean College Campus Center-Golder Room
Coffee will be served


Hearing on 150 Emmons Street Property/Old Municipal Building
Discussions on what the community would like to see developed on this site
Tuesday, January 21st-7:00 PM
Town Hall-Training Room


Zoning Workshop
Wednesday, January 29th-7:00 PM
Town Hall-Training Room


Have a nice Holiday...hope to see you all in January!

Record Breaking '12 Days' Wraps Up This Week

The Franklin Food Elves' "12 Days of Donating" will be ending this week.

Thank you to everyone who participated.  The Food Elves collected a record 6,750 pounds of donations this year so far.  This is 2,550 pounds more than last year!

The Food Elves are hoping to add another 100 pounds to the total by the
end of this week…. so please stop by one of the participating businesses
by Thursday if you still have donations.  Red Bins can be found at: 
  • Dean Bank
  • Dean College
  • DCU
  • Downtown Partnership
  • Emma's Quilt Cupboard
  • Jane's Frames
  • Murphy Business
  • Pour Richards

You can also mail or drop off check donations to the Food Pantry directly.

Have a very Merry Holiday Season!

The Franklin Downtown Partnership
The Franklin Food Elves


Tuesday, December 17, 2013

January General Meeting

Mark your calendars!

FDP General Meeting
Thursday, January 9, 2014
8:30 a.m.
Dean College Campus Center, Golder Room

Coffee will be served and important downtown updates will be discussed.

All members are encouraged to attend.


Monday, December 9, 2013

12 Days of Donating Going On Now

The Franklin Food Elves is partnering once again with the Franklin Downtown Partnership to support the Franklin Food Pantry.  Please stop by one of the participating businesses with your donations and help the elves reach their goal.  You can also drop off checks to the pantry by December 14th.



Food Elves Coming to Your Neighborhood This December

The enterprising and energetic Franklin Food Elves soon will be canvassing neighborhoods all around Franklin collecting goods during the “12 Days of Donating” campaign to benefit the Franklin Food Pantry. From December 1 to December 12, citizens can donate items in their own neighborhoods or at local participating businesses to help neighbors in need.

The Food Elves is a charitable community service group made up of more than 60 students ranging from elementary through high school. For the past two years they have joined forces with the Franklin Downtown Partnership to operate the “12 Days of Donating” campaign with great success. This year the Elves aim to beat last year’s record-breaking collection drive by raising more than $5,700 and 4,200 pounds of goods.

“The people who live and work in Franklin have been so generous that our ’12 Days of Donating’ campaign helped the Food Pantry give out about 17,000 meals to families last winter,” says Cameron Piana, Food Elves co-founder. “This town’s support has been awesome and we hope we can do more this year.”

According to the Food Pantry, about 600 households are registered to use Pantry services. This year’s need will be even greater due to a decrease in SNAP benefits in November. Health and hygiene items are not covered by those benefits and are a particular need

“The Food Elves truly bring out the magic of the holidays,” says Erin Lynch, Food Pantry director of development. “These amazing kids organize and implement one of the biggest drives of the entire year for the pantry. Their ’12 Days of Donating’ campaign provides thousands of pounds of food for those who need it. At the same time it fuels this community with what we all need: inspiration, hope and a shining example of the impact young people can make when they work together.”

In early December, Food Elves will notify their neighbors about the collection campaign, including what items can be collected and the collection dates. Residents simply place bags of goods at their mailboxes on the designated pickup day and the Elves will do the rest. Collection dates will be Saturday, December 7, Sunday, December 8, or Saturday, December 14.

In case there’s no Elf in your neighborhood, it is still easy to donate. The Elves have placed bright red collection bins at participating Downtown Partnership member businesses. If the Elves meet their goal of collecting more than 1,200 pounds of goods, each business has pledged to donate $200. You can drop off donations at the Food Pantry, 43 West Central St., and designate them for the “12 Days of Donating” drive.

Bins can be found at these participating locations:
  • Dean Bank, 21 Main St.
  • DCU, 500 West Central St
  • Dean College, Campus Center
  • Emma’s Quilt Cupboard, 12 Main St.
  • Franklin Downtown Partnership Office, 9 East Central St.
  • Jane’s Frames, 11 East Central St.
  • Murphy Business, 15 East Central St.
  • Pour Richard’s Wine & Spirits, 14 Grove St.


     

Community Mural Project at Jane's Frames

Community Mural: A River Runs Through

At Jane’s Frames kids of all ages contributed to the 58” x 75” mural during the Franklin Downtown Strawberry Stroll and Harvest Festival. The inspiration for the work on canvas was a piece of art by David Hockney titled “Garrowby Hill,” which is on exhibit at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. About 50 people took brush in hand, dipped into acrylic paint and added their own creativity, creating a new piece entitled “A River Runs Through.”



The completed framed piece will be donated to the Franklin Food Pantry and offered to the public at an upcoming auction, with proceeds going to the Franklin Food Pantry. Details about the auction will be announced at a later date.



Through the winter the piece will travel throughout the community so as many people as possible can view it.  If you were to bid on and win the artwork but do not have a place for it, you could donate it to one of the schools, the library or another building of your choice in the community. Because of the size, the frame will be placed on the piece when it goes to its new home.



Many people enjoyed viewing the piece in the windows of Jane’s Frames during the month of November and at the Holiday Stroll on December 5th. Beginning Wednesday, December 11th, the piece will be displayed in the lobby of the Municipal Building. The schedule of schools, municipal building, banks and other businesses where “The River Runs Through” travels will be published when details are finalized.


Friday, December 6, 2013

A Festive (and Foggy) Holiday Stroll

The Franklin Downtown Partnership's 5th annual Holiday Stroll got off to a foggy but celebratory start Thursday afternoon with the traditional Tree Lighting Ceremony on the Dean College campus. Although a bit damp, the weather was mild and families flocked to downtown Franklin to listen to music, shop for gifts, visit with Santa, sample treats, decorate holiday crafts and dine with friends and family. It was the largest Holiday Stroll crowd yet! 



Many thanks go to event organizers Gregg Chalk and Roberta Trahan for organizing a terrific evening! 

Thanks also to our sponsors, who generously make this night possible:

Platinum Sponsor Big Y World Class Market


Gold Sponsors Dean Bank, Dean College, DCU and Middlesex Savings Bank


Silver Sponsors D.G. Ranieri Real Estate, Local Town Pages Franklin and Franklin Ford


Bronze Sponsors The Franklin Girl Scouts of Southeastern MA and Simon's Furniture



Platinum Sponsor Big Y World Class Market



Santa and his Elves at Bronze Sponsor Simon's Furniture

The Mount St. Charles Hand Bell Choir performed at Gold Sponsor Dean Bank





The Franklin Girl Scouts of Southestern MA, a Bronze Sponsor, helped kids create holiday crafts
a Franklin High a cappella group performed at The Cake Bar


Kids decorated crafts at the Franklin Art Center

Made-to-order wreaths were created on Main Street




Jamie Barrett entertained kids of all ages at Jane's Frames

Shoppers browsed for gifts at the Holiday Bazaar inside the Depot Plaza

Carolers hit all the right notes at the Tree Lighting at Dean College






Thursday, December 5, 2013

Holiday Stroll Happenings

Please join us downtown as we celebrate the holidays at the Holiday Stroll this afternoon!

Below is a listing of participating businesses and activities. Pick up a copy at the Tree Lighting or download and print a copy here.



2013 Holiday Stroll Happenings



Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Holiday Stroll Tomorrow

Please join us downtown for the 5th annual Holiday Stroll!