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WEATHER TONIGHT Partly cloudy. Low of 49.
The Westfield News Serving Westfield, Southwick, and the surrounding Hilltowns
www.thewestfieldnews.com VOL. 84 NO. 273
“The illiterate of the future will not be the person who cannot read. It will be the person who does not know how to learn.” — ALVIN TOFFLER
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2015
Reach Out and Read volunteers ROAR into elementary schools By AMY PORTER Correspondent WESTFIELD – On Thursday, 81 volunteers from the community, local businesses and retirees visited all six elementary schools in Westfield to read aloud to students in the pre-k through third grades as part of the ROAR (Reach Out and Read) program. This is the fourteenth year that the event has been held, sponsored by a grant from the Shurtleff Children’s Services in Westfield. Tina Macy, volunteer coordinator for the Westfield Public Schools, said this is her second ROAR event since starting in January. She had to recruit a lot of new readers this fall to fill all the slots.
Westfield resident Anne Faunce reads to to first graders in Sandy O'Conner's class at Russell Elementary School as a part of the Reach Out and Read (ROAR) event on Thursday.
Westfield resident Maryann Tanski reads to third graders in Kim DiSessa’s class at Russell Elemetnary as part of ROAR Thursday. (Photo by Amy Porter) “It was nice to see people jumping in and getting excited about it,” Macy said. Two of the new readers at Russell Elementary School came from First Niagara Bank. Westfield resident Anne Faunce, who is a manager for the Southwick and Feeding Hills branches, read Those Pesky Rabbits by Clara Flood to Sandy O’Connor’s first grade class. Before starting the book, Faunce asked the children what they like about stories. The answers included having a quiet time, and animals with “human characteristics.” Faunce told the students she likes reading because it can take you away to another place, like “watching a movie in my head.” Those Pesky Rabbits is about a bear who enjoyed his solitude before a family of rabbits moved in next door. After initially shooing them away, the bear warmed up to the rabbits and they became good friends. Following the reading, the book was given to the school library as part of the Shurtleff Children’s Services Grant. In all, 98 books were donated to the schools this time. Westfield resident Maryann Tanski, a branch manager in the Southwick office of First Niagara Bank, read The Adventures of Beekle by Dan Santat to Kim DiSessa’s See ROAR, Page 3
(Photo by Amy Porter)
Donate food and get a grilled cheese at the Skyline Hop Shop By HOPE E. TREMBLAY Staff Writer SOUTHWICK – As people everywhere begin finalizing their plans for a Thanksgiving dinner with family, others are trying to feed their family day to day. To help make ends meet, the Skyline Hop Shop, located at 707 College Highway in the Westfield River Brewery barn, is collecting donations for Southwick’s Our Community Food Pantry. Skyline Hop Shop owners Lisa Pac and Dan Osella were looking for a way to give back. Since they provide the food for the Westfield River Brewery, the pair decided that collecting donations of non-perishable food items made perfect sense. “And everyone who donates will receive a free grilled cheese sandwich,” said Pac. Osella, the chef at Skyline, is known for
75 cents
Knapik takes state post By DAN MORIARTY Staff Writer WESTFIELD – Mayor Daniel M. Knapik will resign his post Monday to begin his new duties at the State Department of Energy Resources, meaning that Mayor-elect Brian P. Sullivan will be sworn in as acting mayor nearly two months before he takes the official oath of office in January. Sullivan will continue to serve as the City Council President until January. Ironically, Knapik will also be taking that oath of office in January as he begins his latest tenure as an At-large City Councilor. Prior to being elected mayor, Knapik served four terms as the Ward 2 Council representative. Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources Commissioner Judith Judson announced this morning that Knapik, a three time mayor of Westfield, will serve as the Director of Green Communities. MAYOR DANIEL “We are excited to have M. KNAPIK Dan Knapik join the Department as the Director of our Green Communities Division,” said Judson. “His years of municipal leadership will be a great asset as we work with every city and town to address their energy needs.” The Green Communities Division, a division within the DOER, works closely wills all 351 cities and towns in the Commonwealth to find clean energy solutions that reduce long-term energy costs and strengthen local economies. The Green Communities Division provides communities with technical assistance and financial support for municipal initiatives to improve energy efficiency and increase the use of renewable energy in public buildings, facilities and school. Knapik, as mayor, oversaw a $40 million energy-conservation investment in municipal building and schools, replacing outdated boilers and furnaces with energy efficient system which greatly reduced the city’s energy footprint. “I would like to thank Secretary Beaton and Commissioner Judson for the opportunity to lead the nationally recognized See Knapik, Page 3
SOUTHWICK FOOD PANTRY his grilled cheese and using the freshest local ingredients whenever possible. Giving food to those who donate seemed like a great way to thank the community, said Pac, as well as introduce people to the simple, yet delicious, menu at Skyline. “We just really want to help those in need,” said Pac. The food drive is taking place through Nov. 20, and Pac said they will have a toy drive for the holidays, then resume food collections
in January. Our Community Food Pantry serves Southwick, Tolland and Granville. The Pantry is located at 220 College Highway. Donations can be made at Skyline Hop Shop during business hours: noon to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday. They are closed Monday and Tuesday.
BRIAN SULLIVAN
104th supports Air Force weapons school
F-15 EAGLES FROM THE 104TH
By MAJ. MARY HARRINGTON Public Affairs Chief, 104th Fighter Wing WESTFIELD – Our most successful life achievements are collaborative… success is scarcely ever the result of one effort. Together, we combine our greatest skills and determinations to attain the ultimate accomplishments. This fact of life is quite evident at the USAF Weapons School’s Weapons Instructor Courses (WICs) at Nellis AFB, “home of the fighter pilot.” The USAF Weapons School’s WICs provide graduate-level training to tacticians, ensuring cutting-edge training and full-spectrum preparation for land, air, cyber and space battle. The five-month program includes about 400 hours of academics, combined with arduous combat training missions. Support for each WIC is provided by military units throughout the country, with the Air National Guard taking an increasingly larger role. “Air National Guard support for the USAF Weapons School bridges the gap between Weapons School requirements and active duty sortie generation capacity. The continued support allows the USAF Weapons School to produce the number and quality of Weapons Officers
the USAF so desperately needs. This is a shining example of Total Force Integration done right. The USAF is more lethal because of the maintenance and operations support delivered by the ANG and AF Reserve here at Nellis,” said Lt. Col. Jeffrey Cannon, a deputy commandant at the USAF Weapons School. Currently, 114 members of the 104th Fighter Wing from Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield, Mass. are deployed to support the USAF Weapons School for two weeks. The mighty F-15 Eagles will simulate adversaries in the air. During the upcoming “Core II” phase of training, students focus on “integration academics” and hands-on mission planning exercises. Integration academics include everything from offensive-counter air, defensive-counter air, suppression-of-enemy air defenses, electronic warfare, low-observable strike as well as nuclear, space and cyber warfare. The Weapons School trains USAF airmen to be the world’s best across the total spectrum of air, space, and cyber warfare. There are two Weapons School classes per year lasting five months each. Each class graduates 120 students across all weapons systems in the USAF See 104th, Page 3