On Sunday I had the opportunity to hear a summary of what a new resident had to say about the City of Franklin. He was very impressed with the area regarding the facilities and the caring individuals who live here. He and his wife moved from Atlanta, and in most situations when he shared that information with residents he was asked why he would want to live in Franklin, and was then told about how good things were in this area prior to the flood and the big layoff.

Personally, I agree with his evaluation and believe that a continuing fascination with the past distracts from the bright future we can have if we take inventory of our resources and move forward with an eye on our potential.

There are great things in the future of Franklin. Several new programs and personalities assure that the next several years will be positive and vibrant if we as a community are involved.

The things that I am excited about in no order of importance are:

• Downtown Franklin – This includes the grants just announced for the Startup Downtown; the “We Be Jammin” on Thursdays; “The Drive-In” for autos; the Farmer’s Market on Wednesdays; and other new businesses opening in downtown.
• Franklin City Public Schools – A new superintendent, Tamara Sterling, started on June 18. This will to be a big step forward for the FCPS. Ms. Sterling brings a proven record of successfully turning around schools in need of improvement. She will make opportunities for the public to meet her and share her vision of the future so make a special effort to attend any meetings as announced.
• Verizon has committed to train 50 girls in grades 5 through 8 in a wide range of technical skills to increase the number of women in engineering, IT and other well paying jobs which currently have a low percentage of females. Our city was one of five in the nation to receive this grant.
• Paul D. Camp Community College has announced a new athletic director/baseball coach, David Mitchell. I heard him give an outline of the plans for the future of sports at PDCCC: An improved baseball field, softball coming next year and golf soon following. There will be 10 baseball games this fall and 40 in the spring. Each home game will bring over 20 team members and fans from out of the area and some from out of the state. This will be a bonus for local businesses and be a wonderful source of entertainment. Hurricane season is getting in full swing so be part of the storm surge.
• A new minister at Franklin Baptist Church promises to increase involvement of current members and additions to the membership. He brings a wonderful perspective regarding current state to a future vision and actions needed to attain goals.

The opportunities to become involved in our community are great and very rewarding. Personally, I was able to attend the Franklin High graduation exercise on June 16 and was highly impressed with the ceremony from the standpoint of organization and content. New graduates participated in a very professional manner and you could feel a mutual sense of pride and affection from administration and students.

RONALD RUSNAK is a member of the Franklin School Board. Contact him at 377-8616 or rrusnak@fcpsva.org.