Franny Osman

Franny Osman is an Acton News Initiative founding editor and author.
A collage of four pictures, each with two people. Clockwise from bottom: - Two men, one wearing an Acton FD fleece, the other wearing an 18th century red jacket, knickers, and a tri-corner hat. - A couple wearing street clothes. - Another couple wearing street clothes. - A pair of people wearing street clothes, but from the 18th Century. The man is wearing a red jacket with brass buttons, the woman wears a dress, apron, and straw bonnet.

Veterans honored on town common

November 17, 2024
by
Veteran Services Director James MacRae and Chair of the Acton Public Ceremonies and Celebrations Committee Gail Sawyer led the 2024 Veterans Day Ceremony on the Town Common. The program, taped by Acton TV, included speeches, the laying of wreaths, a three volley salute by the Acton Minutemen, and…
Read More
Plaque on a brick wall with a picture of Marion Stoddart over an image of kayakers on the Nashua River. The plaque also includes the following quote, "All you need to do to make a difference in the world is commit and you will find a way." A brief history of Stoddarts work and a note indicating that Marion Stoddart Building of the Groton Dunstable Regional Middle School was namedon May 22, 2024.

Celebrating Marion Stoddart and the Nashua River cleanup

November 2, 2024
by
Two hundred movers, shakers, and river-lovers gathered in the auditorium of the newly renamed Marion Stoddart Building at the Groton-Dunstable Middle School on Friday, October 25, to celebrate Stoddart’s legacy, watch Susan Edwards’ film about her, “Marion Stoddart: The Work of 1000,” and hear from Stoddart herself. A…
Read More

Best ’fest ever

October 4, 2024
by
West Acton business owners have celebrated Oktoberfest for a couple of decades* and this year’s event was as large and lively as ever. Participants of all ages found activities to draw them in. “I think it was the best attendance we’ve had so far,” said organizer Annette Lochrie,…
Read More
Four kayaks (and six kayakers) on a sunny pond.

Live it up at Disability Pride event at Dunn Pond State Park

July 12, 2024
by
Every summer, longtime independent living and transportation advocate Lisa Franklin encourages fellow Acton residents to join the annual Disability Pride event, or ADA Day, hosted by the Mass. State Independent Living Council at Dunn Pond State Park in Gardner. Franklin, a thirty-plus year stroke survivor, recalls a member…
Read More
A line drawing with a sailboat pulled up on the shore, the setting sun in the background, and two peope walking towards the sailboat.

Acton Exchange takes a vacation

June 21, 2024
by
The Acton Exchange editorial team is taking a week off. Today’s issue will be the last one in June. The next issue will be published around July 5. We hope you had and have good celebrations on Juneteenth and July 4. Send us your pictures and stories! This…
Read More
Two women pose proudly. The mom is smiling broadly and the daughter has her arm over her mother's shoulders. She's wearing the Minuteman blue and gold cap and gown.

High School Graduations, 2024

June 14, 2024
and
AB High School Class of 2024 graduation goes off without a hitch Students, families and friends gathered on Leary Field on June 7 to celebrate the 407 member Acton-Boxborough Regional High School graduating class of 2024. Principal Joanie Dean recognized graduating students for their resiliency, compassion and positivity,…
Read More
A police detective and a woman stand near a large stack of sealed boxes. The officer is opening one box that has been moved to a desk.

Hand Recount Confirms Override Passage

May 24, 2024
by
On Tuesday morning, May 21, in Room 204 of Town Hall, Acton Town staff and volunteers gathered to recount the votes of the April 30 Town Election, specifically for question 1 about the tax levy override, as the results of the original balloting were close (3191 yeses (49.94%),…
Read More
Graphic with headshots of multcultural presenters at the Ask Me Fair with text: Meet us at the Ask Me Fair. Presented by Sargent Memorial Library, Open Door Theater, Think Outside The Vox and Acton Boxborough United Way. What would you ask us? Friday May 31 Session for Families 4-5:30 pm and Session for Adults 6-7:30 at Sargent Memorial Library 427 Mass Ave. Boxborough Register at boxlib.org

Ask Me Fair encourages curiosity

May 24, 2024
by
Open Door Theater President Sam Gould conceived of an event called the “Ask Me Fair” in 2019, to combat some of the personal antisemitism, ableism and racism that her family and friends experienced in our community. “There is so much othering that occurs in our community and, frankly,…
Read More
A printed booklet from the Secretary of State that contains the rules for election recounts.

UPDATED: May 21 recount of override vote

May 16, 2024
by
UPDATE May 21, 2024: The recount of the override vote occurred as scheduled on May 21. The final tally following the hand count was Yes: 3205 and No: 3161 and Blank: 41, for a total of 6407 ballots. Following a very close ballot vote on April 30 on…
Read More
A multi-colored sky shows behind houses and trees.

Eyes on the (solar) storm

May 16, 2024
and
In the May 11 issue of the Acton Exchange, we asked for your photos and stories about from last weekend’s rare local view of the aurora borealis. Lauren Rosenzweig caught the lights on camera on Marshall Path in north Acton, though her experience was the same as many.…
Read More
The sky with the northern lights in full bloom. The sky is purple and green with a few stars showing.

Did you see the northern lights this weekend?

May 7, 2024
by
Acton night owls are enjoying a rare view of the aurora borealis, or northern lights, this weekend thanks to a geomagnetic storm resulting from an unusually large sunspot . The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) wrote on their website, “For many people, the aurora is a beautiful…
Read More

Other Town Meeting articles

May 7, 2024
andand
Article 1 – Choose town officers On the first night of Town Meeting, the Town Moderator split choosing town officers into two parts, to ensure that the budget articles were discussed and voted on in a timely manner. Part one included all of the uncontested positions, which was…
Read More
1 2 3

Donate

Help support the cost of bringing accurate, relevant news to the Acton community.

Subscribe

Sign up to receive a weekly email newsletter providing links to our new articles.

Categories

Look here to access all articles in your areas of interest.