This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Message from the Mayor – October 2012

Monthly message from Springfield Mayor Ziad Andrew Shehady discussing OEM, Pubilc Safety, downtown Springfield, Breast Cancer Awareness Month and flu shots.

Our last September Township Committee meeting was marked by bittersweet presentations to Office of Emergency Management Coordinator John Cottage and Public Safety Director Richard Rosell. Mr. Cottage was honored on the occasion of his retirement from Springfield after more than 40 years of service to the Township. I presented Mr. Cottage with a Proclamation on behalf of the Township in recognition of his distinguished record of dedication and leadership. He also received a Joint Legislative Resolution from the State of New Jersey prepared by our legislators, Senator Tom Kean, Assemblyman Jon Bramnick and Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz. Mr. Cottage provided us with his knowledge and experience to guide the Township through emergencies, disasters, utility outages, accidents and the tragedy of September 11, 2001.

Mr. Rosell was also presented with a Proclamation thanking him for his two years of remarkable service to the Township as the Public Safety Director. Mr. Rosell was originally hired with the understanding that his assignment was temporary and limited to two years with the intent of providing guidance, leadership, experience and increased oversight and accountability to our Public Safety departments. He was instrumental to the dramatic turnaround in Springfield public safety and as a result, the community benefited from financial savings that far exceeded his cost to the Township. While his hiring was at times controversial and made to be political, his record speaks volumes and there is no doubt the decision to hire him was the best choice for Springfield. We extend our best wishes to both gentlemen and thank them profusely for their contributions to Springfield. We are proud to recognize these fine public servants for their outstanding work.

Residents are invited to attend the October 9th Township Committee meeting at 7 p.m. for a presentation led by Deputy Mayor Jerry Fernandez and to hear an update from the Springfield Business Improvement District and McManimon, Scotland & Baumann, LLC.

Find out what's happening in Springfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Springfield is going pink! I issued a Proclamation declaring October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month in Springfield. Our Fire Department has changed their uniform duty shirt to pink and the firefighters will be selling these logo shirts to raise money to benefit the American Cancer Society. The shirts will be available at Fire Headquarters and the Springfield Patriot Chamber of Commerce Festival and Car Show on October 14th.

On Monday, October 1st, I met with the Springfield Municipal Alliance for the Prevention of Drug and Alcohol Abuse. Mark your calendars – some upcoming events that were planned include Red Ribbon Week (10/22-10/28) and the Township Halloween Parade & Costume Contest (10/28).

Find out what's happening in Springfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Springfield Board of Health and the Westfield Regional Health Department have scheduled flu shot clinics for all Springfield residents on Monday, October 22nd from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Chisholm Building and a special daytime clinic for Senior Citizens on Wednesday, October 24th from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Sarah Bailey Civic Center. The charge is $10 for non-Medicare participants.

I am holding open office hours October 8th at 5 p.m., October 23rd at 6 p.m., October 25th at 10 a.m. Please e-mail me at mayor@shehady.us or call 973-797-9423 to schedule an appointment or reserve a time slot. Additionally, contact me if you would like to host coffee/tea for neighbors and have me over to speak on any issue(s) of concern to your group.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?