Brief thoughts on some of the events making news
from around Franklin County and the North Quabbin area:
Love of community can be demonstrated in a number of ways. There are those people who are in elected or appointed office on municipal boards and school committees. Or there are people who volunteer in other ways on nonprofits. And then there are residents who take it upon themselves to try to keep the community looking good. Javier Rivera is one of those folks.
The Greenfield resident, who after noticing trash at the bottom of Bank Row, took matters into his own hands and cleaned it up. “This is our town — we’ve got to look out for it,” he said while filling trash bags with discarded clothing, sheets and other stuff. “If we’re all willing to lend a hand, we’ll be OK,” Rivera said. That’s the kind of individual pride and action that others should note and emulate.
We found it surprising to learn that Northfield Mount Hermon School’s child care center has been operating on the school’s former campus in Northfield, even though the rest of the school had moved to the Gill campus more than 10 years ago. During this time, the child center has been leasing the building, most recently from the National Christian Foundation. But that separation is ending with the opening of the Bolger Center for Early Childhood Education, which brings the center back into the fold — one that will strengthen the connections with the rest of the school community. That’s good news for everyone.
The move by Montague officials to try to get a portion of Turners Falls designated as a cultural district by the state makes sense. The idea behind the designation is that it will attract more artists, grant projects and tourists to the area. While the town previously was turned down for such designation because the district was deemed too large, this time the town has developed more compact area, one that runs along Avenue A and Third Street with particular cultural landmarks, including the Shea Theater, Carnegie Library, Great Falls Discover Center and the Canalside Rail Trail. As Suzanne LoManto, director of Turners Falls RiverCulture, said, “it’s important that downtown should have everything that people need, and that should include arts and culture.” We agree.
Franklin County Relay for Life held its community kickoff event on Saturday. While we think that most people who take part in the relay don’t need to be energized — fundraising for the fight against cancer is a strong part of the county’s fabric — it does serve as a reminder that before we know it, the June relay will be here.