June 25, 2021

The Westfield Democrats have today called on local Republican candidates to reject a “push poll” that was widely circulated throughout the Town this week, which disseminated misleading information to voters about Mayor Brindle under the guise of a legitimate poll.

 According to the American Association for Public Opinion Research, a push poll is not a poll at all, but rather a form of negative campaigning that is disguised as a political poll. “Push polls” are actually political telemarketing, disguised as research that aims to persuade large numbers of voters and affect election outcomes, rather than measure opinions.

 “The Westfield Democrats will continue to talk about the issues that matter to Westfield’s residents; focus on the progress we’ve made in moving the Town forward like never before; and clearly communicate all of the good things we seek to accomplish in the years to come. What we will not do is engage in the type of Trumpian, unscrupulous campaign tactics that the Westfield Republicans have apparently now resorted to,” said Rupa Motwani, Chairperson of the Westfield Democratic Committee. “I would expect a slate of candidates who claim that ‘root(ing) out divisive politics from local government’ is central to their campaign would be quick to denounce this ‘poll’ and the Republican operatives who are behind it.”  

According to Westfield Mayor Shelley Brindle, “Our Westfield Together team will focus on the issues, and we will campaign like the friends and neighbors we are, with a positive and inclusive vision for our community. We expect our friends, neighbors, and former colleagues to hold themselves to higher standards.”

When I ran for office four years ago, I said would focus on ensuring our town’s government met the needs of all residents regardless of where you lived, your age, how many years you have lived in town, who you knew or your political affiliation. To me, we are all Westfield residents interested in moving our town forward.

One group of residents Mayor Brindle and I quickly discovered felt left out by previous administrations was Westfield’s seniors. We knew it was critical to engage seniors and listen to their needs if we were going to make Westfield a successful community for young families to come to raise their families but also a place where grandparents could live close to their grandchildren. I quickly learned that approximately 15% of Westfield 30,000 residents are aged 65+ and that Ward 3 is the home to Westfield Senior Housing, a complex of two buildings off Boynton Avenue that consists of 303 apartments for seniors. This totals up to 4,500 seniors living in Westfield and likely more than a thousand seniors living in Ward 3 alone.

When the Mayor asked me to launch an effort focusing on seniors, I jumped at the opportunity to make a difference for this large group of residents.

I approached this goal the same way I approached rejuvenating the Green Team. First, I sought volunteers among Westfield residents who shared a passion for issues affecting seniors and/or had expertise in this area. To my delight but not to my surprise, eight volunteers stepped up immediately to form the Mayor’s Senior Advisory Council in March 2018, which is now known as Lifelong Westfield and has 12 members.

Since our first meeting, this talented group of volunteers – made up of seniors who have never volunteered before, high school students who have never participated in government before and adults of varying ages in between has gone above and beyond for Westfield’s seniors to help them more successfully age in place and have a voice in the town’s government.

I am incredibly proud of the impact this group has had and proud of my role as their Council Liaison, ensuring that they get the support they need from the Westfield Town Council to fulfill their mission. Some of their accomplishments include:

• Building a sense of community among Westfield Seniors, especially during COVID, that now includes sending out weekly emails, quarterly newsletters, and a weekly online chat.
• Launching an online calendar that lists events for seniors occurring in our community across at least a dozen organizations.
• Holding dozens of events for Westfield seniors including activity fairs, walking safety presentations, scam-prevention webinars and even a COVID Vaccination Fact vs Fiction presentation with local doctors.
• Going out of their way to meet the needs of seniors, including picking up storm debris, taking seniors to get vaccinated, and calling them regularly to check on their well-being.

As Council Liaison, I participate in all meetings, offer strategic input, and help with many of the group’s events, while occasionally leading some efforts too like the Westfield 300 Milestone Awards. I realized that the Westfield 300 celebration provided Lifelong Westfield a great opportunity to honor residents, businesses and even pets who have achieved amazing milestones here in town. And by doing so, we discovered the oldest living resident in Westfield (Silveo Colletti, aged 101), the greatest number of children raised in Westfield (Elizabeth Avis with 10), the longest active business in town (the Westfield Leader for 130 years), and even the oldest dog (Carole Payton’s dog Kelly who was 17).

To me, Lifelong Westfield is a great example of the governing philosophy that I, and the entire Westfield Together team, have followed which is to make sure our administration and town government meets the needs of all residents and leverages its talented citizens to make a positive impact on our town. I look forward to continuing this approach for the next four years and to earning your vote on Nov. 2.

Lastly, if you are a senior living in Westfield and not a member of Lifelong Westfield, please contact me by email at [email protected] or call me at 917-589-1197 so I can add you to our mailing list.

Thank you!

This story originally appeared in TAPWestfield on May 24, 2021

Westfield High School students were at the farmers market in Downtown Westfield Saturday to help get the word out about the Westfield Mental Health Council's CAKE Crumb Trail.

To reinforce the commitment to being a stigma-free community, the CAKE Crumb Trail invites residents and visitors to participate in a self-guided tour of the downtown area with stops designed to highlight the importance of compassion, acceptance, kindness and empathy as part of an ongoing focus on mental wellness and behavioral health.

For full details and a guide map, visit westfieldnj.gov/mentalhealthevents.

This candidate statement originally appeared May 17, 2021 in TAPintoWestfield and Westfield Leader on May 13, 2021.

As a girl from Brooklyn, I am not a nature girl. To be honest I prefer asphalt and concrete to grass. I do not often take time to “stop and smell the roses.” But 2020 happened, and nothing was the same. My calendar, always full in quarter-inch increments was suddenly wide open, untouched, and forgotten. Confined in my home, with my family like all the other families in this town, in this state, we watched the world from the inside out.

I remember the moment when the parks were allowed to open, and it felt like a portal appeared. Suddenly, I was at Tamaques, not because I had a flag football game but because I had time to take a daily walk with my husband and even ride a bike for the first time in years. I love this park. I have loved it from the sidelines, but now I was not a spectator I was a part of it. And I was seeing things differently without the rush of the children in their opposing colors, the blur of a ball, and the cheering of the parents. I was not seeing the park in action. I was seeing it at rest.

This candidate statement originally appeared in TAPinto Westfield and the Westfield Leader on May 13.

“Holy Crow David, the men from the DPW are here, and they are fixing the potholes on our street. David, you are a Man of Action. Couldn’t have asked for more. I truly appreciate your help. YOU GOT MY VOTE! And my husbands too! You are the best. An appreciative member of the Third Ward.”

This was originally published May 6, 2021 in the Westfield Leader

WESTFIELD – The Town of Westfield will recognize Mental Health Awareness Month throughout May by launching The CAKE Crumb Trail — a free, month-long, outdoor event for
participants of all ages organized by the Westfield Mental Health Council.

The CAKE Crumb Trail invites residents and visitors to participate in a
self-guided tour of the downtown area with stops designed to highlight Westfield’s commitment to being a stigma-free and inclusive community.

This article originally appeared in TAPinto Westfield on May 7, 2021.

The Free Market, Earth Day Fair, Plastic Toys Cleaning and Food Waste Recycling – what do all these events and programs held in the past two weeks have in common? They are led by the work of our amazing volunteer Westfield Green Team.

I am very proud to serve as the Council Liaison to the Green Team and to help lead this motivated group of volunteers who have dedicated their time and energy to make Westfield “greener”—at no cost to taxpayers—during the past three and a half years.

Councilwoman Habgood joined with volunteers on Sunday, May 2, 2021 to help clean up Brightwood Park. 

"It is really great to be out here, especially with so many volunteers...and we are finally getting to get to the parts of the park that are not well-traversed and trying to clean up this area: the glass and the other trash out of the way so we can make it safer and more accessible for everyone in town," said Councilwoman Habgood.