Jane Callaway-Tripp’s Passion for Politics Comes from Family

Long-time resident, Jane Callaway-Tripp said it all starts with her mother. Yes, there are issues with roads, water and sewer, and how the town spends its money that have gotten her aggravated in recent years and turned her into a fixture at Town Council meetings. If there is a tough question to be asked, Jane is most likely to be the one to ask it.

And that’s her obvious path to candidacy for a seat on the Town Council in the upcoming November election. But the inspiration goes back further, to her mother Naomi Wehring, who got so upset at the way the council of the late 1980s simply dismissed “little people concerns” over problems with trash collection and other bread and butter issues that she decided to run herself, launching an unconventional populist campaign that won her a seat on the town council.

“She felt that taxpayers and residents were being ignored then and I have many of those same concerns today,” Callaway-Tripp said.

Wehring made waves on the council and earned the respect of her fellow legislators – and voters “who knew they could count on her to listen,” said Callaway-Tripp,

For her part, Callaway-Tripp said she believes there is room on the council for another woman and for someone who knows the town and realizes how important it is to keep Franklin affordable. And livable. “Growing up, Franklin was a very family-friendly place, and teenagers had two movie theaters in the town and other places to be independent but at the same time safe – all of that is gone but we need to try to bring it back,” she said.

In addition to drawing inspiration from her mother, Jane said her father William was also community minded. Having served in the 82nd
airborne division, he had a great can-do attitude and was a soccer coach for many years, she said. “After a hard work week, he would be up early lining the soccer fields before the games,” she said. And it was a team effort, Naomi and William ran the registration process together, even if someone couldn’t get there until 9 pm, they still made sure to accommodate them so every child would have a chance to compete.

Callaway-Tripp ended up caring for her parents as they got older and faced health issues. Both have passed away. “Now, I am finally at a point where I can put their example into action – I am very excited to be getting on the ballot,” she said.