News Notes: Blood drive scrapped due to planned protest

An interfaith blood drive that had been scheduled for September 7 (today) at Canton Police headquarters was canceled by organizers earlier this week after they learned about a protest that was being planned by supporters of Karen Read. Canton Police Chief Helena Rafferty issued a statement expressing her disappointment over the event’s cancellation. “All blood drives are life-saving events, but this annual drive was especially meaningful for two reasons: First, it has been done in partnership with our houses of worship in remembering those lost on 9/11, and second, it was also occurring during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month at a time there is a shortage of blood for these patients and so many others,” said Rafferty.

CPD usually hosts the blood drive four times a year in partnership with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, but Rafferty said it is unlikely that the department will be hosting any event like this for the foreseeable future. She urged any resident who is interested in giving blood to check out the blood drive calendar at dana-farber.org for information about other upcoming blood drives in the area. The DFCI/Brigham & Women’s Blood Mobile was due to visit Foxboro YMCA tomorrow, September 8, and will be in Quincy at 26 Coddington Street on Friday, September 15.

SB chair interested in crisis management idea

Commenting on the ideas he received from residents during last week’s “Canton Moving Forward” agenda item, Select Board Chair Tom Theodore said he liked the suggestion of hiring an independent, third-party crisis management firm to help the board address concerns related to the Karen Read murder trial and strengthen communication channels with the public.

Theodore said he would present the idea to his fellow board members for discussion at their next meeting on Tuesday, September 12, at the new starting time of 7 p.m. Theodore said Town Administrator Charles Doody is reviewing Select Board administrative codes and ethics requirements for all members and it will be discussed at a future meeting.

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Posted by Mike Berger on Sep 7 2023. Filed under News, Police & Fire, Town Government. Both comments and pings are currently closed.