Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event for Framingham Residents

 

Have waste you need to dispose of this spring? Mark your calendars because next month the Town of Framingham Solid Waste Division is sponsoring a drop-off day.

Bring your hazardous waste items to McCarthy Elementary (8 Flagg Drive) on Saturday, April 12, between the hours of 9am-1pm.

This event is at no cost, but you must be a Framingham resident (you will need to show your license.) Be sure to double check the flyer above to see what kind of items are acceptable.

If you have any questions, contact the Solid Waste Division by phone at 508-532-6001 or by e-mail at recycling@framinghamma.gov.

Do genealogy research using Heritage Quest Online

Curious about your roots?

Did you know we offer an e-Resource dedicated to genealogy? Get started today with our database: Heritage Quest Online.

All patrons are welcome to use the site on any of the library computers; additionally, Framingham card-holders can access the database from home.

What can you do on Heritage Quest?

• Search the Census:

• Complete set of U.S. Federal Census records from 1790-1940. (Many of the years are indexed and searchable, but otherwise you can browse the full set of census images by year, state, and county/town, and scroll until you find what you are looking for. For instructions on how to best search the database, click on "Help" in the upper right-hand corner.)
• Click here to access the Census "Getting Started" guide

• Search Books:

• People, Places, or Publications in over 28,000 histories

• Search the PERSI™ Archive:
• Subject index covering 6,600 genealogy and local history periodicals in English and French, between 1800-2009
• Over 2.3 million article citations

• Search Revolutionary War:
• Selected records of an estimated 80,000 pension and bounty-land-warrant application files, mainly between the years 1800-1900
• Files belong to the Records of the Veteran Administration

• Search Freedman's Bank:
• Records from the Freedman's Savings and Trust Company (banking institution established in 1965 for freed slaves)
• Includes names of depositors, dates of entries, places of birth, residencies, ages, names of employers, wives & husbands, family members, etc., between the years 1865-1974
  

• Search U.S. Serial Set:
• House and Senate documents and reports from 1789-1969
• Includes Private Relief Actions, Memorials, and Petitions of the U.S. Congress

If you need any help, stop by the Reference Desk and we can show you how to log-on. You can also e-mail us at fplmail6@minlib.net or call us at 508-532-5570 x4361.

Free Tax Help

Are you looking for some help with your taxes, but don't want to pay a fee? Here are some local options for getting free tax help:
SMOC (South Middlesex Opportunity Council), Framingham

Located at 300 Howard St. in Framingham, the Opportunity Center offers free tax help, by appointment only. Call 508-620-2300 for information.

Callahan Senior Center

AARP Tax Counselors will be at Callahan Center (535 Union Ave., Framingham) to assist seniors with filing their taxes. They are available on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from mid-February through mid-April. This program is designed for people who meet the following guidelines: single with annual income of $40,000 or under, OR  married joint filing with annual income of up to $60,000. No complex tax returns can be completed by AARP Tax Counselors. Appointments are required; call the Callahan Center at 508-532-5980 to schedule a time. There is no charge for this service, however donations to the Friends of Callahan are welcomed. The center is open Tue 1:00PM-4:00PM, Thu 2:00PM-4:00PM, and Fri 1:00PM-4:00PM. 

 

Natick Community-Senior Center

Help is offered for people of all ages, not just seniors. IRS trained and certified tax volunteers are available by appointment only help with federal and state income tax forms, through April 15th. While there is no charge for this service, donations to the "Natick Council On Aging" are always appreciated. For more information call the Natick Human Service & Council On Aging at (508) 647-6540.

Want help but have no time for appointments?

TurboTax (www.turbotax.com) allows you to file Federal returns for free online and includes access to tax professionals for questions by phone. State returns can be done for an additional cost. And H&R Block (http://www.hrblock.com/) allows free online filing of Federal returns and includes live chat with tax professionals.

In addition, you may be able to file your taxes electronically for free using the IRS website for federal taxes, and the Massachusetts Department of Revenue website for state taxes. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has free online filing and fillable forms (depending on income) for federal returns (http://www.irs.gov/uac/Free-File:-Do-Your-Federal-Taxes-for-Free). State returns can be filed online at https://wfb.dor.state.ma.us/webfile/wsi/Index.aspx. You must meet certain criteria to be able to file electronically.

Literary Criticism

In search of literary criticism to complete assignments for your English class? The library offers a number of databases you can search, accessible from home with your library card number, or at the library on one of our computers.

Looking for writings on a contemporary author? Try Contemporary Literary Criticism Select.

Search by author and read full-text essays on your computer.

Besides criticism, entries also include biographical backgrounds, listings of main works by the author, and sources for further information.

Essays also include MLA citations attached at the bottom of each record, which can easily be copied and pasted into your Works Cited page.

Other databases we offer include:

• Literature Resource Center- "Find up-to-date biographical information, overviews, full-text literary criticism and reviews on more than 130,000 writers in all disciplines, from all time periods and from around the world. The optional MLA International Bibliography module adds citations for hundreds of thousands of books, articles and dissertations from 1926 to the present, linked to full text where available."

• Novels for Students- "Provides critical overviews of novels from various cultures and time periods. Includes discussions of plot, characters, themes and structure as well as the work's cultural and historical significance."

• Poetry for Students- "Features discussion and analysis of poems of all time periods, nations, and cultures. Provides an overview of the poem and discussion of its principal themes, images, form and construction."

If you need any help accessing the databases, e-mail us at fplmail6@minlib.net, call us at 508-532-5570 x4361, or stop by in person on the second floor.

Tax Forms Update

Federal and state tax forms are now here at the library. However, the instruction books for the 1040, 1040-A and 1040-EZ forms will not arrive before mid-February, according to the IRS.

All federal forms and instructions are available to you at the IRS website, www.irs.gov. Printing at the library is 20 cents per page.

Feel free call us before you visit, to be sure that we have the forms that you would like.

Mango Premiere

Our language-learning database, Mango, has just had an update! If you are not familiar with Mango, it is an online resource that teaches languages. Start with a brand new language you've always wanted to learn, or polish up a language you are already familiar with by taking a placement test to skip past the introductory lessons and go on to advanced level learning.

Available languages include:

Foreign language courses for English speakers: Arabic (Levantine), Arabic (MSA), Armenian, Azerbaijani, Bengali, Chinese (Cantonese), Chinese (Mandarin), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dutch, Farsi, Finnish, French, French (Canadian), German, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hawaiian, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Kazakh, Korean, Latin, Malay, Malayalam, Norwegian, Pashto, Pirate, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Scottish Gaelic, Serbian, Slovak, Spanish (Latin American), Spanish (Spain), Swahili, Swedish, Tagalog, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Yiddish

English Courses for: Arabic Speakers (Egyptian), Arabic Speakers (MSA), Armenian Speakers, Chinese Speakers (Cantonese), Chinese Speakers (Mandarin), French Speakers, German Speakers, Greek Speakers, Italian Speakers, Japanese Speakers, Korean Speakers, Polish Speakers, Portuguese Speakers (Brazilian), Russian Speakers, Spanish Speakers (Latin American), Turkish Speakers, Vietnamese Speakers

Other Languages: Latin, Greek (Koine), Greek (Ancient), Biblical Hebrew

Framingham residents can access the database from home with their card numbers, but anyone can use Mango within the library- just don't forget your headphones. (If you do forget, never fear, we still have you covered. We sell headphones for $2 at the Circulation Desk.) You can also continue your lessons on-the-go by downloading the Mango app on your phones and tablets.

What's new with Mango Premiere?  Now you can learn languages through film! Browse the available offerings and either watch the movie of your choice with subtitles, or choose "Engage Mode" for a closer look at scene dialogue. Learn vocabulary, phrases, culture and grammar all while enjoying a new film.

For more information on Mango, click here to see our webpage.

If you have any questions, contact us! Reference staff is here to help. Stop by the second floor, or:
E-mail us: fplmail6@minlib.net
Call us: 508-532-5570 x4361

Happy learning.

Bridging Cultures Bookshelf: Muslim Journeys

Come have a look at our new Bridging Cultures: Muslim Journeys display, on loan to us from Framingham State!

According to Whittemore Library:
"The Bridging Cultures Bookshelf: Muslim Journeys is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities and was made available through a grant provided to the Whittemore Library.
The 25 books and 4 DVDs included on the Muslim Journeys Bookshelf have been carefully selected to present the American public with new and diverse perspectives on the people, places, histories, beliefs, practices and cultures of Muslims in the United States and around the world.
The books listed here are divided into six themes, each of which focuses on a different perspective in Muslim life."

For a complete list and description of items in the display, please click here to see Whittemore's guide to the collection.

 Stop by the second floor, right by the Reference Desk, to have a look!