Latest news with #JackieFrancisco
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Top stories: 'Real Housewives' and Fall River; Somerset voters OK fluoride ban
As we kick off a new week, let's take a look back at the week that was. Top stories this past week included: A meeting with leaders at the MBTA to discuss ongoing problems with the South Coast Rail project has been rescheduled to June 5, due to the weather this past week. It was originally scheduled for May 22. Freetown Lakeville Middle School principal Jackie Francisco will run 31 miles on Memorial Day to honor fallen Navy SEAL Tyler Trahan, a Freetown native. These Memorial Day events are planned in Greater Fall River. Bethann Faunce was sworn in as the first female chief of Fall River's EMS department. Westport's Owen Boudria was named the Massachusetts Basketball Coaches Association Division 5 Player of the Year. The Diman Bengals girls outdoor track and field team completed an undefeated season, winning the Mayflower Athletic Conference championship. The 2025 season has been a remarkable ride for the Diman boys tennis team. Bristol Aggie valedictorian Sarah Ashley is also a three-sport captain. The Nueva Vista Dual Language Program at Viveiros Elementary School in Fall River is expanding to include fourth grade. Fall River's Axis Bats has been a major hit for 18 years. Here's how the bat-maker does it. Looking for some things to do this weekend? Where you can make plans. Are you looking for a new best friend? Adopt, donate or volunteer at these local animal shelters. Have a local adventure this summer: Campgrounds in Southeastern Mass. to explore. Thanks to a collaboration between Tiverton Farmers Market and Sakonnet Vineyard, there's going to be a new farmers market around this summer! Here's what you can find at the Sakonnet Green Market. More than 500 residents of Fall River, New Bedford, Somerset and Swansea living in affordable housing are getting internet upgrades due to a state grant program. The twelfth annual Wine, Cheese, and Chocolate Festival is coming up soon at the Westport Fairgrounds. What to know. Thinking about going, or going back to college this fall? Bristol Community College is holding an open house. Folks awaiting the return of two Little Compton eateries — which were slated for a revival under new ownership — may have to wait a bit longer. Pamela Huizenga, who took the reins at Simmons Café and Market in 2023 and The Barn Restaurant earlier this year, announced May 20 that she would not be moving forward with her plans to renovate and reopen the neighboring historic businesses. Berry Hill Farm in Westport is under new ownership by Carissa and Adam Davenport, and the young couple has big plans for the place, including opening up for berry-picking this summer. Azorean singer/songwriter and Netflix star Romeu Bairos is going to be performing in Fall River. What to know. The latest Greater Fall River real estate report, featuring a three-family home in Fall River that sold for $820,000. Each unit of the house on Hanover Street offers three bedrooms with the potential for a fourth, large kitchens, and cozy living rooms. Check out this property, as well as other recent top-sellers. These were the most read stories of the week on The show is called the 'Real Housewives of Rhode Island," but could it be filming in Fall River? If speculation is true, Fall River might be getting some of the spotlight. Speaking of "Real Housewives," Danielle Cabral of "Real Housewives of New Jersey" is visiting Fall River next month for a special event. 'Real Housewives': Could 'Real Housewives of RI' film in Fall River? Potential cast members have local ties At Somerset Town Meeting on May 19, voters spoke out on 48 articles. Most passed, including bans on homeless encampments and fluoride in drinking water. Here are the results from Somerset Town Meeting. Town Meeting results: Somerset voters OK bans on fluoride and homeless camps: Get the full Town Meeting results The search for Fall River's next city administrator continues, and should conclude in the coming weeks. It's a role that has been vacant since Seth Aitken resigned the position in late February. Mayor Paul Coogan said he plans to 'make a decision' in the next couple of weeks, and that an announcement may be made 'very soon.' What we know, as of this writing. Coogan: Fall River close to hiring a new city chief with 'inner workings' of the city Developers may now find it easier to fit more apartment units in a lot in Fall River's designated A-2 apartment zoning districts, as new zoning rules have loosened the requirements for apartment development. Herald News Reporter Emily Scherny has the story. Housing: Fall River changes rules to allow smaller, denser apartments. The goal: Cheaper housing The former William Connell Elementary School on Plymouth Avenue in Fall River, a dilapidated property considered one of the most at-risk buildings in the city, is up for sale. It comes with a hefty price tag: the asking price is $1.55 million. Learn more about the property. Real estate: One of Fall River's 5 most at-risk buildings is for sale. Would you pay $1.55M for it? This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Top stories: Could 'Real Housewives of RI' film in Fall River?
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
31-mile Memorial Day run to honor Tyler Trahan, Freetown Navy SEAL killed in Iraq
On Memorial Day, Jackie Francisco will run 31 miles solo from Bourne to Freetown to honor Tyler Trahan, 22, who lost his life April 30, 2009, while conducting combat operations serving in Iraq in the U.S. Navy in support of operation Iraqi Freedom. Francisco, the principal at Freetown Lakeville Middle School since last September and former Fall River K through 12 director of fine arts, lives in Freetown, the same town where Trahan attended middle school. As a runner she often runs by the Tyler J. Trahan Memorial Rotary in East Freetown and thinks of him and his sacrifice. He died two days short of his 23rd birthday. "I've been very aware of the community and would run by the rotary every time and think of Tyler because the rotary is dedicated to him, and he had lived right down the street from my house," she said. "I've run by his street hundreds of times and there's a connection that brought back memories of him and his sacrifice." To honor his sacrifice, Francisco met with his mother, Maureen Trahan, over the winter to plan an event that would help students in town raise awareness about a local hero who lost his life in support and protection of their freedom as Americans. They talked for hours and ultimately Francisco suggested that she run 31 miles, the equivalent of a 50K, from his memorial circle in Freetown on Memorial Day, Sunday, May 25. The Tyler J. Trahan Memorial Rotary, located at the intersection of County, Chace and Mason roads, was dedicated in his honor in 2013. Petty Officer Second Class Tyler J. Trahan, a 2004 graduate of Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School, was an explosive ordnance disposal technician with a Navy Seals team that had deployed to Iraq. He enlisted in the Navy in 2006 after attending the Massachusetts Maritime Academy for one year. Trahan, a Freetown native, was killed in 2009 by a roadside bomb in Iraq's Al Anbar Province, his father, Jean Pierre Trahan, told the Standard Times at the time of his death. Francisco will run solo from his gravesite in the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne starting at 6 a.m. Sunday, May 25, to Tyler's Circle in his memory and to honor his sacrifice. A flag holding ceremony will be held at the rotary at noon when the run is complete. The Trahan family will also be there. Francisco's husband, John Nelson, will be her chief navigator and support crew along the 31-mile route from Bourne to Freetown, a role he regularly takes on while she runs. She said he too, is honored to participate as someone who is 100% behind America's veterans. Tyler Trahan: Area remembers Freetown serviceman killed in Iraq She said the Freetown Police Department and Freetown Fire Department will also show their respect for Trahan, some out there along the route. They have also expressed their gratitude to her for taking the time to honor his memory. "It will be a time to bring him home, so to speak," she said. She wants her students to understand there are many different ways to honor veterans such as tidying up the cemetery or helping out at veterans' events, putting flags out in their yard or helping raise and lower the flag at their school. Francisco said she wants to let students know there are many ways to show respect as Americans. Tyler Trahan: Family, friends keep fallen soldier's memory alive with charitable event Some students will be at Tyler's Circle holding American flags, and some will help with a beautification project honoring those who lost their lives in war, and other students will work on planting flowers around American flags next week. She said it's an honor for the eight-grade students who have worked on civics projects in class, members of the cross country team and other eighth graders to stand up and hold the flags. Standard-Times staff writer Kathryn Gallerani can be reached at kgallerani@ Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times today. This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Freetown Principal Jackie Francisco Memorial Day run honors Tyler Trahan
