Franklin County is the most rural county in Massachusetts and one of the poorest. And yet, we have several health-related treasures in our midst that perhaps we take for granted. I want to remind you of both of them and encourage you to support them lest we lose them.
The first is Baker Pharmacy. Baker’s is an historic (1864), privately owned, independent drug store in Shelburne Falls complete with a full pharmacy. Those of us who live in western Franklin County depend on Baker’s to fill our prescriptions and offer the basics in medical supplies. For a small business like Baker’s to remain open as they compete with the larger national chains, we must support it. Please have your prescriptions sent there and shop there. If we don’t support Baker’s like it has supported us for over 150 years, we could lose this valuable addition to our community.
The second medical treasure is Baystate Franklin Medical Center. For most of us in Franklin County it is our local hospital and we are so grateful for it. It too needs our support, specifically the nursing staff. There are loyal, dedicated and skilled nurses working at the hospital without a contract. These union nurses need our support. They have been working without a contract since last September. They are making reasonable requests from the administration at the hospital. If the administration refuses to enter into good faith negotiations, the nurses have voted to strike.
We have to decide who we support. We care about our nurses. We need them. We count on them to care for us when we are sick; we count on them to be kind to us and tend to our needs when we are at the hospital. They are not asking for great gains. They are paid a lower rate than neighboring hospitals and they are too often short-staffed so they are requesting higher pay and safe staffing and safe patient care. We need them and now they need us. Support our hospital.
Rev. Kate Stevens
Charlemont