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December 6, 2024: Issue 23

Offering hope and help to those impacted by opioid misuse in

Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region.

UPCOMING EVENTS

See what's happening at OTF this month.

COVID-19 RESOURCES

Explore OTF's COVID-19 Resource Guide.

MASSACHUSETTS SUBSTANCE USE HELPLINE

Hope is here. Get help.

413Cares
Resources for Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region. Click here.

NQCC'S RESOURCES

Resources and upcoming events in the North Quabbin Region.

Click here.

CONNECTIONS #85

Find local resources in this issue.

Emergency Services Resources for Unhoused Individuals

The PACES CONNECTION

Click here for resources.

Grayken Center for Addiction

Training & Technical Assistance

Click here to view and/or register for trainings.

GCC Community Engagement and Workshop Events

Click here to view and/or register for trainings.

Rural SUD Info Center

Click here for resources.

“If you choose not to find joy in the snow, you will have less joy in your life but still the same amount of snow.”

~Christopher Robin

UPCOMING OTF EVENTS and TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES



Overdose Prevention & Narcan Training facilitated by Tapestry


December 12, 2024

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM


Register here

Nitazenes And Other Drug Trends with Dr. Traci Green, Director of the Opioid Policy Research Collaborative, Brandeis


December 18, 2024

1:00 PM - 2:30 PM


Register here.

Community Legal Aid's Disability Rights Project with Attorney Katie Madison


December 19, 2024

2:00 PM - 3:00 PM


Register here.



Resources for Karen's article on

Winter Wellness can be found below:


The Recovery Academy: Winter Mental Health Tips for Those in Recovery


Crisis & Trauma Resource Institute: How to Practice Winter Wellness


The Dunes East Hampton: How the Winter Blues Affects Addiction


Terrain Natural Medicine: Ground Throughout the Winter Months


Out in the Nature: How to Ground Yourself in the Nature in Winter


Apogee: Winter Wellbeing


Herren Wellness: The Importance of Gratitude in Recovery



Wonderfully Winter -

Tips for Wellness 


Winter delights some of us, but for many others, it can be a difficult time. As the days grow shorter and the winter chill sets in, people can experience shifts in mental health related to depression and social isolation, for example. Yet, there are ways to sustain our winter wellness, which is especially important for those on the path to recovery from substance abuse. Here are twelve ways we can not just survive but even thrive during winter. 

1. Think differently about winter

How we think about things affects how we experience them. What is your wintertime mindset? Reflect on the words you use and how they shape your thinking and emotions. Are you “stuck at home” or “safe at home”? Is it a bitter, cold day or a sparkling, sunny day? What things can you enjoy in winter that are not possible at other times? The shades of blue on the snow, diamond-like frost crystals and icicles, skating, sledding . . . the list goes on! 


2. Practice hygge

What would winter be like if we adopted the Danish concept of hygge (pronounced “hue-guh”)? Hygge is “a word used to acknowledge a special moment or feeling, alone or with others, at home or out, ordinary or extraordinary but always cozy, charming or special.” Similar to the wintertime mindset, hygge includes actively cultivating those special moments or feelings. One way to practice this concept is to make simple rituals out of everyday events, such as using a special cup for your coffee and lighting a candle. 

3. Establish routines

A consistent routine fosters stability, can positively impact mood, and can help adapt to the winter. Create a daily schedule that includes regular sleep patterns, meal times, and exercise. Established routines can be adjusted for the season – for example, if you already have a regular family fun night, use that time to bake gingerbread cookies or learn to skate. New routines can also be added, such as having a hot drink before bedtime, soup at every meal, a hot bath at night, etc. Make your favorite comfort food every Friday night, or have a weekly “food discovery night” where you see how many different versions of mac and cheese you can make. Nutrition and routines are a winning combination! 


4. Maximize Natural Light Exposure

Exposure to natural or artificial light can help alleviate seasonal affective disorder (SAD) symptoms and low energy in winter. Open curtains during the day, spend time outdoors and consider investing in a light therapy box. Not getting enough sunlight can disrupt your body’s internal clock and lead to depression. A low mood or a lack of motivation is a common symptom of depression. These symptoms can complicate the addiction recovery process and may even result in a return to substance use. Spending more time outdoors or investing in light therapy lamps often helps people get more sunlight exposure. 


5. Practice Grounding and Connect with Nature

Grounding is an ancient practice that involves connecting your body to the earth's surface. Research has shown a decrease in inflammation, improved sleep and blood flow, better energy, and general well-being in those who are regularly in contact with the earth. It’s as simple as going outside barefoot for even just 3-5 minutes and stepping in the dirt, snow, or wet grass and setting a timer and soaking it up. You can also place your hands on the earth 1-2 times per day for a couple of minutes. 


Here are some other ideas to connect with nature in general: Make a snow angel, allow snowflakes to land on your face when it’s snowing, touch the water in a lake or stream and notice how it feels, touch something cold like ice or snow, and then warm your hands again. Wear wool socks. Light a fire and sit in front of it, feeling its warmth. Get physical exercise by walking on a nature trail. Hug a tree and notice how it smells. Drink hot chocolate and feel how it warms you inside. Observe wildlife, such as birds or animal tracks, in the snow. 


6. Connect socially

Make relationships a priority and focus on positive time together. Attention to your relationships can be a lifetime benefit. Bundle up and go for a walk with a friend. Start a snail mail circle – one person sends a letter, the recipient adds to it and sends it to the next person, they add to it and send it on, and so on, until it returns to the original sender. Include physical objects such as photos, feathers, scraps of cloth, or whatever might have meaning for those in the circle. Put away the screens and get out the cards and board games for a fun time at home with your family.


7. Validate your feelings and needs

If you’re having a tough day, acknowledge it and give yourself some comfort. Snuggle up with a warm blanket and a hot drink. Watch cheesy movies if that’s what you need.

8. Move your body

Cold weather and shorter days often mean less physical activity. Exercise plays a significant role in addiction recovery, boosting mood and reducing stress. Staying active, even in small ways, is crucial for your physical and mental health during these months. If you are able, even a short walk in the fresh air will be good for your body, mind, and spirit. Play outside – make a snow angel, have a snowball fight, or decorate outdoor trees. Doing indoor exercises is one way to keep active without dealing with the cold weather, including online exercise classes or even just stretching, which can energize and uplift you. 

9. Tackle Boredom

Winter can often make it more difficult to be active outside, resulting in boredom. Dealing with the feelings of boredom is a well-known trigger for returning to use of substances. Spending additional time on hobbies or engaging in more fulfilling activities is thought to be critical to beating the winter blues in general and preventing addiction relapse. Finding new interests can also provide a fresh perspective and additional motivation to stay on the road to a full recovery. 


10. Practice mindfulness

Our brains constantly chatter away - planning, designing, thinking about what we will do, what we have done. This is normal! The idea of mindfulness is to be present and attentive to our thoughts and actions in the moment. One way to bring us into the moment is the 5,4,3,1 countdown for anxiety. Look around you and notice:

5 things you can see: The sky, the trees, the window, your colleague, your mouse

4 things you can physically feel: Your hands, your feet on the ground, the table, your mug

3 things you can hear: The wind blowing, birds singing, the whirr of your laptop

2 things you can smell: Coffee, soap

1 thing you can taste: a mint, your drink

This exercise helps you shift your attention from whatever makes you tense to your surroundings in the present.


11. Engage in Wellbeing in the Workplace

Have well-being conversations with your manager or team, take a break, refresh your space with a plant or a new colorful mug, have a cup of coffee with someone, and say something kind and encouraging to a colleague. Making time for team bonding activities can increase motivation, create better working relationships, and ultimately increase productivity, all of which improve wellness. Engage in team games, creative activities, and outdoor recreation, or enjoy a simple team lunch or dinner. 


12. Practice Gratitude

Actively practicing gratitude fosters a mindset of positive thinking, and this can greatly improve mental and physical health. Being grateful helps us focus on the good and gives us energy and confidence. This, in turn, leads to a healthier recovery – creating a beautiful cycle.

Gratitude is also the antidote to negative thinking that reduces hope and happiness. Gratitude, when practiced daily, enhances hope, increases physical and mental well-being, and helps overcome the more difficult times we all face. Ways to nurture gratitude include taking moments out of your day to actively think about things that you are grateful for; writing down at least five things you are grateful for daily; doing things for others such as volunteering for a cause you care about or spending time with someone less fortunate than you to get some perspective or spend time with animals and children, who are naturally more grateful and can help you live in the present moment. 


Sustaining wellness during the winter requires some attention and different strategies, but it can be done. Winter doesn’t have to be a time of unhappiness and stress. Instead, we can take charge of our winter wellness and actively seek the beauty of this season. 


Karen Carmona

Program Associate

Opioid Task Force of Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region

OTF Members in the News

"Authority Works to Expand Housing Options"

Greenfield Recorder (11/xx/24)

 In his first few months at the helm of the Greenfield Housing Authority, Executive Director Jack Redman is working to expand affordable and accessible housing.


Redman, who spent the last 17 years working in low-income housing management — the last seven years of which as the senior manager of public housing and Section 8 for the Northampton Housing Authority — is now in charge of overseeing the approximately 114 two-to-five-bedroom homes that the Greenfield Housing Authority operates. He was hired to serve following the departure of his predecessor, Thomas Guerino, who was hired in 2020.


In his new role, Redman applied for Community Preservation Act funding to start the Greenfield Housing Authority Security Deposit and Rental Assistance Fund and make renovations at the 1 Elm Terrace Winslow Building.


“It would help our voucher participants be able to stay competitive in the search for housing,” Redman said. “[Tenants] often struggle to utilize the rent vouchers we issue, because they may not have first, last and security; whereas a typical non-low income renter may have savings and may be more competitive when going into the private market, which is very, very competitive in this area.”


As of May 2023, individuals earning an annual income of less than $53,000, two-family households earning less than $63,800, and three-family households making less than $71,750 qualify for a rental voucher. According to the U.S. Census, the median household income in Greenfield was $53,149 in 2022.


Under Redman’s leadership, the Massachusetts Housing Partnership awarded the Greenfield Housing Authority $35,000 to plan the development of a five-story housing structure at 300 Conway St. Greenfield Housing Associates Inc., for which Redman also serves as executive director, has contributed roughly $40,000 toward the construction project.


Redman said Massachusetts Housing Partnership leaders have already toured the Conway Street site and the Greenfield Housing Authority is already seeking additional CPA funds for the planned development. Alongside an effort to build more affordable housing, Redman said that through the use of voucher programs, landlord education seminars and grant funds, he hopes to expand the city’s Section 8 — or government subsidized — housing stock.


“We’re working on next steps for that [project] and we are excited to continue down the path of creating housing here in Greenfield, which there’s such a great need for,” Redman said. “Our Section 8 expansion is something that myself and the team is working very hard on. We’ve already come up with the baseline for the education program, and we’ll be starting to advertise our first meeting for December.”


Housing Greenfield Coordinator Susan Worgaftik has previously estimated that another 600 to 1,000 housing units are needed to support the city’s current population.


“Overall, accessible housing for the disabled

is going to be, and has always been, a great need throughout Massachusetts and throughout the housing world,” Redman said. “As I look at our existing land, I want to work with development partners in the area, work with the [Franklin County Regional Housing & Redevelopment Authority] to try to assist that population. That is a very difficult need to fill and a great one.”  (RECORDER PHOTO)

"Addiction, Mental Health Rehab Comes to City"

Greenfield Recorder (11/30/24)

The regional human services organization Behavioral Health Network Inc. has begun a new 16-bed addiction and mental health rehabilitation program for women at its Kenwood Street location.


“Recovery is never a one-size-fits all approach,” BHN Senior Vice President Rose Evans said in a statement. “We are committed to providing each person with a tailored treatment plan that empowers them to achieve long-term stability and success in all areas of life.”


Northern Star, which BHN Senior Vice President Katherine Mague referred to as an “enhanced residential treatment program,” supports women who are challenged by both mental health issues and substance abuse over a two-to-three-month period with counseling, group therapy and peer support.


Mague said BHN staff will create individualized treatment plans for women seeking help at the 21 Kenwood St. location. Services offered at the facility include diagnostic evaluations and referrals for medications for opioid use disorder. The program also includes aftercare planning to ensure participants have the resources they need to maintain their recovery after returning to their communities. Mague said the new program aims to fill a need among women in Franklin County that was previously only available in Hampden County. The service was available for Franklin County men, however.


“Across the Pioneer Valley, we’ve made adjustments over the years with which programs are in which locations, based on the demand,” Mague recounted. “For many years, we had a detox level of care, which is a medically moderated, intensive in-patient [clinic] up in Greenfield at the Franklin Recovery Center. But we found that people in the Franklin County area weren’t really needing that level of care very much, so we were bussing people from Springfield up to Greenfield.” However, trends shifted, she explained, and BHN shifted its services to reflect that change.


“We found that there were a number of women from Franklin County who needed this enhanced residential rehabilitation service level of care,” Mague said of more recent trends. “Because we didn't have that in Franklin County, we were bussing those women down to Springfield.” Northern Star supports women who face both mental health issues and substance abuse challenges — issues that Mague said often go hand-in-hand, but, historically, have been treated separately. The program is available to women ages 18 and older. BHN offers a range of addiction recovery services across western Massachusetts that include inpatient acute treatment, clinical stabilization services, residential recovery homes, transitional support services, outpatient

treatment, recovery coaching and alcohol education for drivers through the Massachusetts Impaired Driving Program.


“It’s really wonderful to have this level of care ... because it really does acknowledge and recognize that people very often experience both. They either have a mental health condition that they’re medicating with substances, or with substance use and misuse, they have subsequent mental health challenges,” Mague said of Northern Star. “We can now serve women with mental health and substance use treatment who need residential care in Franklin County. … Now they don’t have to go down to Springfield.” 

(STAFF PHOTO/PAUL FRANZ)

Congratulations to Franklin County Sheriff's Office

Each year the Massachusetts Sheriffs’ Association President and Executive Director chooses an honoree as the recipient of the Sheriff Michael J. Ashe Jr. Award. This year, the prestigious award was presented to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office in recognition of their innovative excellence in the delivery of compassionate care within the arena of substance use disorder treatment. As a mentor site for agencies both regionally and nationally, the office has inspired countless others toward the critical value of incorporating sustainable treatment environments within the criminal justice domain.

UPCOMING OTF COMMITTEE & WORKGROUP MEETINGS

Virtual: Treatment & Recovery Committee

December 6, 2024

10:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Zoom details here.


Virtual: Emergency Services for Unhoused Individuals Task Force

December 9, 2024

9:30 AM - 10:45 AM

Zoom details here.


Hybrid: Sexual Exploitation & Trafficking Workgroup

December 9, 2024

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Franklin County Reentry Center

106 Main Street, Greenfield

Zoom details here.


Virtual: Education & Prevention Committee

December 10, 2024

9:30 AM - 11:00 AM

Zoom details here.


Virtual: CAM Workgroup

December 10, 2024

11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Zoom details here.


Virtual: Methadone Workgroup

December 12, 2024

3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Zoom details here.

.

Virtual: Housing & Workforce Development Committee

December 13, 2024

10:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Zoom details here.


Virtual: Building a Resilient Community Workgroup

December 18, 2024

11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Zoom details here.


Virtual: Harm Reduction Workgroup

January 8, 2025

11:00 AM - 12:00 Noon

Zoom details here.


Hybrid: Public Safety & Justice Committee

February 3, 2025

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Franklin County Reentry Center

106 Main Street, Greenfield

Zoom details here.



Consult our website or Facebook Page for updates. Please email us with any questions!

FEATURED EVENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

CONNECT: Post-Opioid Overdose Outreach Services

Support & Resources After the HEALing Communities Study

Learn more at HealTogetherMA.org

Save The Dates: April 16 & 17, 2025

Together For Hope: Shaping the Future of Addiction Care

Click here to be notified when registration opens or to receive updates.

Time Sensitive Announcements

Stone Soup Cafe Gluten-Free Holiday Bake Sale

Sundays Through December 22 Fill Al's Truck

December 6 & 7 The Drag Family in Home for the Holigays!

December 6 - 8 2024 AOTV Auction

December 6 - 8 Jingle Fest 2024

December 6 & 13 Story Time

December 6-8 and 13-14 Welcoming Winter Wonderland

December 7 Holiday Bazaar

December 7 Pack the Paddy Wagon & Pictures with Santa

December 7 Greenfield Farmers' Market Winter Market

December 7 Drop-In Makerspace Paper Snowflakes

December 7 Booklace Workshop

December 7 The Amazing Race: Jingle Fest Edition

December 7 Stone Soup Cafe Menu

December 7 Pictures with Santa

December 9 Greenfield Healing Clinic

December 10 RML READS Adult Book Club

December 11 Local Author Talk with Elaine Harootunian Reardon

December 12 Overdose Prevention & Narcan Training

Register Here

December 12 & 19 Practical Magic Series With Kaia

December 13 Gingerbread House Contest

December 13 It's a Wonderful Night in Turners Falls

Annual Downtown Holiday Event - It's a Wonderful Night in Turners Falls


Shops are open until 8pm along Avenue A and Third Street.

SANTA arrives at Spinner Park (Avenue A and Fourth Street) to collect the letters from the magic mailbox at 6:30pm!

KIDS' ACTIVITY: Create a Winter Bird feeder. The Gift Shop is OPEN. Great Falls Discovery Center, 2 Avenue A, 4-8PM.

Film screening of the classic meeting at Great Falls Harvest, on a loop from 5-9pm

Free roasted chestnuts!

OPEN HOUSE at Hired Hand Signs, 34 Third St., 4-8pm


December 13 Brick House Open House

December 13 Tandem Jump "It's a Wonderful Life"

December 13 & 14 Wendell Holiday Craft Fair

December 13-15 Welcome Yule

December 14 North Quabbin Midnight Madness

December 14 Millers Falls Magic

MILLERS FALLS MAGIC - in downtown Millers Falls hosted by the Montague Community Improvement Association (MFCIA) with support from downtown business owners,


Montague Public Libraries and RiverCulture.

HOLIDAY WREATH MAKING WORKSHOP

Miller Falls Library, 23 Bridge St., 1:30-3:30PM

$10 donation appreciated. Materials Provided! Sponsored by MIFA and Montague Public Libraries. https://montaguepubliclibraries.org/


PUB GENERAL HOLIDAY POP UP

27 East Main Street, 9am-6PM

We’re a shop in Millers Falls supporting local! 40+ local vendors! Artisans, gifts, vintage, etc. Gifts by local artisans include holiday décor, vintage, quilting and fabric arts, local honey and maple products, cookies, chocolates, pickles and jams. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61553000663655


CHAOS CORNER, Toddler Indoor Playground

26 E Main Street, 1-3pm

Cookies and Playtime with Santa

Regular Priced Admission required for entrance: $10.50 per child plus $5 for attending adult. Includes a chance to win a raffle prize! https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61563416205727


ELDRITCH GOODS

26 Bridge Street, 10AM-5PM

“I sell antique, vintage, used, and junk items, including art, furniture, glassware, cookware, games and tools. I also stock any kind of vintage media and ephemera including comics, magazines, LP's, photographs, postcards, newspapers and books. I have a smattering of clothing, jewelry, and oddball items. I also stock a healthy bunch of marbles of all kinds, handmade and machine-made, old and new.”


ELEMENT BREWING POP-UP SHOP

16 Bridge Street, 1-6PM

Holiday Sip & Shop: We are bringing together art, science, and beer by gathering a handful of local artisans for all of your holiday shopping needs. The best part is that you can grab a pint of beer or a specialty cocktail to enjoy while you mingle with these talented artists! Vendors: Wild Ash Designs, Creatures Who Craft, Teatimes, Sweet E Naturally Crafted Soap, Sandy's Blue Bird Houses, Darcy Dyes, Art By Miss K. Live music: Solo guitarist Gabe Jay playing from 1:30 - 3:30pm. https://www.facebook.com/events/929674158509409


And don't forget to stop by for a meal at a local bar or restaurant:


WHISTLE STOP CAFE: 29 E. Main Street

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063483733587


MILLERS PUB: 25 E. Main Street

Fresh pressed burgers from Whitney Hill Farm, wings. Fresh cut fries, Haddock and Scallops+ Daily Specials. KARAOKE with Dirty Johnny at 9pm.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100054272060061


NORTH VILLAGE SMOKEHOUSE: Federal Street

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063640937572

December 14 Wreath Making Workshop

December 15 Happy Ho Ho Ho

December 17 *SAVE THE DATE" Three County CoC Annual Meting

December 18 Nitazenes And Other Drug Trends with Dr. Traci Green

Click Here to Register

December 18 A Dramatic Reading of Charles Dickens'

A Christmas Carol

December 18 Folded Paper Luminaries

December 19 Community Legal Aid's Disability Rights Project with Attorney Katie Madison

Register here.

December 19 Winter Traditions Make & Take Bazaar

December 20 Cookie Decorating!

December 21 Gingerbread Houses

December 21 Five Village Santa Tour

December 22 Fright Before Christmas

Beginning January 7 - Nurturing Fathers 13-Week Virtual Class

January 30, February 6 & February 13 Touchpoints Training

Febuary 6 Ski United

MONTHLY WORKSHOP CALENDRS AND WEEKLY STANDING MEETINGS/EVENTS

December at The Art Garden

December at Community Action Family Center

December Events at the Erving Senior Center

December Programs at Franklin County Reentry Center

December Programs - Great Falls Discovery Center

December Montague Public Library Programs

Fall Hours at NQRC

December Riverculture (Montague) Holiday Event Calendar

December at Salasin Project

December at the Shea

December Events at Sunderland Public Library

December Union 28 Community Network for Children Program Calendar

SNAP Application Assistance

Always Open! Community Labyrinth in Greenfield

What's Happening at The NQRC

RECOVER Project Groups At a Glance

Weekdays All Recovery Meeting at The RECOVER Project

Monday/Wednesday/Friday

The Community Closet at The Franklin County Reentry Center

Monday - Friday

Movement Group with North Quabbin Recovery Center Peer Leaders

Mondays Breathwork Detox-Guided Group Adventure

Mondays North Quabbin Patch Parents' Council

Mondays Breaking Barriers at the Franklin County Reentry Center

Mondays Art Guild Meetings

Mondays Advanced Manufacturing Info Sessions

Monday Drug Court Alumni Group - North Quabbin

Mondays Community Yoga at Wildflower Alliance

Mondays at FCSO Reentry Center - Recovery Through Creativity

Mondays CNC Playgroup at the Erving Public Library

Second Mondays of the Month - North Quabbin B.R.A.V.E. Task Force Meetings

Mondays Alternatives to Suicide Group

2nd and 4th Mondays Parenting Together at the Brick House

Third Monday Alphabet & Allies

Third Monday Parenting With Pride

Mondays and Thursdays Hygiene Supplies Pick Up at the Brick House

Mondays and Thursdays The Brick House Food Pantry

Tuesdays All Recovery Meeting and Drop In Recovery Coach Support

Tuesdays Nurturing Program for Families in Recovery

Tuesdays Peer-Led Grief and Loss Circle

Every Other Tuesday - Housing Support Drop In Hours

First Tuesday - Dads' Group at Valuing Our Children

Tuesday Tea Time & Community Resource Drop-In

Tuesdays North Quabbin Recovery Center Coffee Hour

Tuesdays Greenfield Suicide Loss Group

First Tuesday - P.A.R.T. Task Force

Tuesdays Drop-In Knitting & Sewing Sessions

2nd Tuesdays New Member Orientation at the RECOVER Project

Tuesday & Thursdays Weekly Reentry Groups

Tuesday Men's Anger Management Group

Wednesday Women's Anger Management Group

Wednesdays - Wendell Library Playgroup with Sylvia

Wednesdays - Playgroup at the Leverett Library with Gillian

Wednesdays HEROES Study Hub at GCC

First Wednesday of the month Gentle Yoga and Breathwork with Jennifer

Whatever Wednesday's on the Second Wednesday of every month

Free Food - Every Third Wednesday

Last Wednesdays of Every month Office Hours With An Attorney

First & Third Thursdays Parent Support Group

Thursdays Dungeons and Dragons

Thursdays Mens Group in the RPX

Thursdays Coffee Hour at the Brick House

Thursdays Beyond Trauma Group in Spanish

Second Thursdays -Peer Grief Support After Overdose Death

Fridays FreeWrite of Franklin County

Friday Writing Group at the RP

First Friday of Every Month: Open Mic at the RP

Every Friday - The Garden Path

MassHealth Navigation Support

First Friday of the month 9am-12pm and Third Friday of the month 1pm - 3pm

Every First & Third Friday Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Support Group

Every Second Friday Chosen Family Night

Every Third Friday: Karaoke at The RECOVER Project

Last Friday of the Month: Gardening in Recovery

RAFT Assistance

Re-entry Workforce Program

Homeshare Program with LifePath

Pathways to Advanced Manufacturing

Specialized HVAC Training

Specialized Information Technology Training

SafeSpot Virtual Overdose Spotting Hotline

CHCFC OBAT Same Day & Tele-Health Appointment Information

Free Clothes and Gear

Free English Classes

Free Meals and Essentials at Saints James and Andrews Parish Hall

Come Cook with Franklin County Community Meals Program

Family Self-Sufficiency Program Available

Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Program

Eviction Self-Help Booklets Available in Multiple Languages


MLRI has recently updated and translated some of our self-help booklets for unrepresented tenants facing eviction. While we still recommend tenants facing eviction seek legal help, we know resources are limited and many tenants have to represent themselves. We hope these booklets can be helpful to pro se tenants and their advocates.

You can see the full list of booklets below, or at MassLegalHelp. The booklets can help tenants prepare for court, outline their legal claims, and file court forms. There is also a booklet to help public housing tenants navigate the Grievance process.

Please reach out if you have any questions about the booklets and how they can be used.

What steps to take before going to court and what to bring to court.

An easy-to-use checklist that tells you what conditions violate the State Sanitary Code. You can also use the free self-help guided interview, MADE: Up To Code.

The Answer is a court form that tenants facing evictions can file with the court to outline your legal claims and tell the court your side of the story. You can also use Greater Boston Legal Services’ free self-help guided interview, MADE

How to ask the court to accept your Answer and Discovery forms late.  You can also use Greater Boston Legal Services’ free self-help guided interview, MADE.

A form with instructions for tenants facing eviction to get information to prepare for their trial.

A form with instructions for tenants in foreclosed properties to get information to prepare their case. 

A form you can file to transfer your eviction case from a District Court to a Housing Court.

How to get a new court date if you missed your court date.

If you lost your eviction trial and think you have a good case, you may appeal. This document tells you which Appeal form to use.

How to file an appeal from a case in Housing Court.

How to file an appeal from a case in District Court.

How to get time to stay in your home if you lost your case.

How to ask the court to pay for court costs. 

How to think through the terms you want in an agreement. Includes a worksheet and stipulation forms to use when you go to court. Read this booklet as webpages and watch the videos!

How to correct errors on your online court records. The Booklet includes the court form you can save to your computer, fill out, save again and print when ready.

A booklet for tenants in Mass. about the grievance process, including worksheets to help you prepare for a grievance hearing.



Update! Greenfield CSC New Hybrid Operations Change

Beginning Tuesday, 9.3.24, the Greenfield Court Service Center (CSC)services will be in-person and remote: Monday-Thursday, 8:30am-1pm; 2pm-4:30 pm, and Fridays, 8:30-1pm.


For ANY/ALL REMOTE REQUESTS, please contact the Virtual Court Service Center, M-F 9am -2pm, if you do not have an emergency. You can reach them for an intake, Monday-Friday, 9am to 2pm, by Zoom video or telephone as outlined below:


https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1615261140 or Dial (646) 828-7666. Enter the Meeting ID number 1615261140 and then press # #. 


If you have an emergency, and still need remote services, have the court department reach out directly to Greenfield CSC office by email for assistance at greenfieldcsc@jud.state.ma.us.

COMMUNITY JOB OPPORTUNITIES

Opioid Task Force of Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region www.opioidtaskforce.org

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