Community Corner

🌱 Patch AM: Westfield Honors Jim Gildea For 25 Years As Town Administrator

Also, don't miss Closing Reception and Artist Demonstration - Celebrate Julie Harris's Measured Tenderness Exhibition on the Westfield…

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Greetings Westfield! We're your go-to source for what's happening in town. Read on to get plugged in! ☕️️

In today's newsletter:

  • Westfield celebrates Jim Gildea's 25 years leading Town Hall
  • How did Westfield residents lose more than $37,000 to fraud?
  • What's behind the latest arrests in Westfield's weekly police blotter?

Also on today's calendar: Closing Reception and Artist Demonstration - Celebrate Julie Harris's Measured Tenderness Exhibition and 7 more events.

Today's riddle: What is full of holes but still holds water? 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

  • Friday: Pleasant with periods of sun, with a high of 79 and low of 66 degrees.
  • Saturday: Humid with rain at times, temps: high: 75, low: 67.
  • Sunday: A shower and t-storm; humid, with a high of 83 and low of 62 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Westfield Honors Jim Gildea For 25 Years As Town Administrator (patch.com) — Westfield residents are celebrating Town Administrator Jim Gildea's 25 years in the role, recognizing his deep roots in the community and decades of service at Town Hall. Mayor Jeremy Berman praised Gildea's unmatched institutional knowledge, steady leadership through crises and projects, and his reputation as one of New Jersey's top municipal administrators. Gildea, a Westfield High School graduate who began working for the town as a lifeguard, expressed gratitude but downplayed the attention.
   

2. Police: Westfield Residents Reported Losing Thousands to Fraud Last Week (tapinto.net) — Westfield police are investigating several recent fraud cases in which residents lost tens of thousands of dollars through check theft, fake utility payment schemes, and unauthorized bank transfers. Another resident reported long-term identity misuse involving her home address on official documents. The department's report underscores how aggressively scammers are targeting locals' finances right now.
   

3. Man Tampers With Flock Camera, Charged In Westfield: Blotter (patch.com) — Westfield's latest police blotter details several recent arrests tied to local and regional warrants, including people turning themselves in at Westfield Police Headquarters. Officers also handled a long-running identity issue involving a West Broad Street address and a bank-fraud-related arrest processed in town. Residents can see how local police are addressing ongoing enforcement and fraud concerns.
   

4. A summer of research and teaching with Scribe Video Center (upenn.edu) — A University of Pennsylvania student from Westfield spent her summer in West Philadelphia helping kids research jazz history and community stories through Scribe Video Center. Her 10-week internship blended teaching, archival research, and oral history projects focused on North Philadelphia neighborhoods, showing how humanities skills translate into real-world community media work and local history festivals.
   

📸 Around Westfield

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💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • Residents and Staff Members Collaborate at Lantern Hill —Elizabeth Fabiano Read on Patch
  • Love, Local: How One Westfield Couple Built Their Wedding Around Their Community —Antonietta LaVecchia Read on Patch
  • Scotch Plains - Fanwood Public Schools posted a job opening for Substitute Custodians - Various Shifts (2026-2027 School Year) in Scotch Plains. Apply here.
  • Soccer Shots posted a job opening for Youth Soccer Coach- Preschool Aged Children in Cranford. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Westfield here.

Ok Westfield! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: A sponge (Thank you Netty W. for sending it in!)
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Submit it here!

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