FISH of Franklin has gone back to its mission – helping Franklin residents get to their medical appointments – but of late, the need has been higher than the ability to meet it. Current requirements to use FISH for a ride include:

• all clients must be fully vaccinated and finished with the two-week waiting period following vaccination in order to receive a ride;

• all drivers will also need to be fully vaccinated and finished with the two-week waiting period;

• drivers and clients will be required to wear masks;

• clients must be able to walk and to enter and exit vehicles and doctors’ offices without assistance.

Originally founded in England, the Franklin chapter of FISH was created in 1973 after a meeting of townspeople at the Federated Church. It is a non-profit organization run completely by volunteers. People give their time to either drive or answer telephone calls. They schedule and arrange for drivers to transport clients to and from appointments. They have driven as far as Boston and Providence, and locations in between such as Milford, Upton, Walpole, Wellesley and Norwood Hospital.  

The name comes from the ichthus - the ancient Greek symbol used by early Christians. In those early times, the fish symbol was a secret sign for a safe haven.

The organization’s number of volunteers has dwindled in the past year, and so the organization could use several more hands. Volunteers are needed to drive and to help with the phone lines.

“We don’t have a live phone line,” says Oliveira, “We have a line where people who need a ride leave a message.” Every week day, Monday through Friday, a volunteer checks the phone line to see if someone has requested a ride. If there are requests, they try to arrange the ride from available transportation volunteers. Each volunteer, whether a driver or a phone volunteer, is asked to contribute one day each month.

Oliveira adds, “Every week, there’s also a coordinator who keeps an eye on everything that’s going on to make sure there’s communication between one volunteer and the next and to assist the volunteers as needed.”

Those requesting rides can request up to two rides to medical appointments per month, and the names of all those requesting rides are kept confidential. 

If you are interested in volunteering for FISH, call Chris at (508) 553-3023. 

If you are a Franklin resident who needs a ride to a medical appointment, call FISH at 

(508) 528-2121.