I was going to write about city taxes, budget, and debt this week, and I even had some snappy simple graphs to share with you, but that seems insignificant compared to the tragic news we’ve seen today. I can’t imagine what those children, their teachers, and their families went through today. My thoughts and prayers go out to our neighbors in Connecticut.
Until today, I was having a great week and was thinking about all the good things we have going on. I’ve been working on plans for an Eagle Ceremony to recognize the achievements of four great young men from Westfield. I’d been looking back at what they’ve done over the last few years, and it’s rather amazing. These guys, and their friends and families, have donated hundreds and hundreds of hours and quite a bit of money to our community and our non-profits. If you look around town, you’ll find dozens of examples of Boy Scout service projects that have improved our community and helped non-profit organizations. Thank you to all of the Scouts in Westfield and special congratulations go out to Liam Flaherty, Sean Kennedy, Matt Perreault, and Christian Knapp!
I also would like to recognize another major act of goodness that happened this week. On Tuesday, you, your friends, and your neighbors donated over one million dollars to local non-profit organizations during the Valley Gives campaign. These donations will help tens of thousands of people in Western Mass. I was able to help several organizations, and based on emails and Facebook postings I know many of you helped as well. Thank you very much.
Also on Tuesday, New York held the 121212 Concert and Campaign to benefit our neighbors in New York and New Jersey who were affected by Storm Sandy. The event raised tens of millions of dollars. I hope you were all able to see the show – I was an amazing collection of music superstars.
Today we heard a wonderful story of giving during the Chamber of Commerce breakfast. The message was simple: for everything you earn, spend some, save some, and use some to help others – a very fitting message for this time in our lives. I believe everyone has capacity to help our community in some way, and my challenge to you, as you prepare your New Year’s resolutions, is to figure out what you can do to help others and/or make this a better community. A few hours of service, or a few dollars here and there really can make a huge difference.
I wish you all a wonderful holiday season and a happy, healthy, & prosperous New Year.
Dave Flaherty, City Councilor
PS. I’ll be back to taxes, budgets, and debt in the coming months.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not the staff, editor, or publisher of the Westfield News.
