On Wednesday February 6th, Westfield Mayor Andy Skibitsky announced he would seek re-election to the office he has held since 2005 when he was appointed to the position after fellow Republican Greg McDermott resigned months before completing his term. Skibitsky had been serving as a 3rd ward councilman when his appointment to Mayor was made. Skibitsky’s four months as mayor not only anointed him the “incumbent,” it allowed the Republican Party the opportunity to fill Skibitsky’s 3rd ward seat with Darielle Walsh who also was granted the opportunity to run as an “incumbent.” Walsh would eventually lose to Democratic challenger David Haas who currently serves as one of two 3rd ward councilmen.
As reported in a November 2005 edition of the Westfield Leader newspaper, when Skibitsky won the Mayoral election in 2005, he publicly thanked his wife Debbie and family stating he appreciated the support his wife gives him to “climb the ladder.” In thanking his children, Skibitsky remarked that they hadn’t seen much of him in the previous 6 months prior to his victory. The quest for elected office will often take a candidate away from their family during long hours on the campaign (solicitation) trail and requires the support of a spouse.
TFoTM questions whether Skibitsky is done climbing the political ladder and has stopped at the rung of mayor. Also, those attending Westfield Town Council meetings during Skibitsky’s last term haven’t seen much of him either, based on his number of absences. Councilwoman JoAnn Neylan is getting a lot of time on the dais “acting” like the Mayor of Westfield in Skibitsky’s absence.
This past Saturday, Skibitsky was to solicit signatures on a petition each candidate is required to submit to run for the elected office of mayor. The number of signatures required is a percentage of the number of votes cast in the last election for mayor.
In the early spring each year, youth sports teams, charity organizations, the Girl Scouts of America, and others, solicit donations from the public to support their existence. In return, the donating individual might receive a bumper sticker, booster button, synthetic flower, or cookies. The organizations will place volunteers at the doorway of a local food store, or popular eatery with high volumes of foot traffic in the hopes of garnering a charitable contribution. Add politicians like Andy Skibitsky to the list of solicitors.
Instead of walking the neighborhoods of Westfield seeking the necessary signatures, Skibitsky decided to plop himself at a location that has a significant amount of local foot traffic between the hours of 9am and 12 noon. Instead of the politician coming to you for a coveted signature, Skibitsky wanted you to come to him.
A true marketing genius might have aligned himself with the local chapter of The Girl Scouts of America during peak solicitation hours. After signing Skibitsky’s petition, Skibitsky could hand constituents a box of “Thank You Berry Much” or “Thanks-A-Lot” cookies sold by the Girl Scouts. At least you’d be getting something, but it wouldn’t be for nothing. Just like Girl Scout cookies Skibitsky’s solicitation comes with a price tag. Girl Scout cookies sure are good and have a tendency to disappear from the cookie jar in days. Not so with Skibitsky, unlike a Thin Mint, he is expensive and will last four years whether you like him or not.
TFoTM can only hope that Mayor Skibitsky will buy his share of “Thank You Berry Much” and “Thanks-A-Lot” Girl Scout cookies. Skibitsky could learn valuable lessons from the descriptions of each cookie that appears on a Girl Scouts of America webpage.
Description of cookies recommended for Mayor Skibitsky
*Thanks-A-Lot: Whether the embossed “Thank You” is in English, French, Chinese, Swahili or Spanish, this tasty shortbread cookie with fudge on the bottom are a hit in any language. And they're also how girls learn business ethics. Through interaction with each customer and other Girl Scouts, a girl learns the importance of keeping her word, doing the right thing, and being fair. She learns the importance of doing business right. 
**Thank You Berry Much: Premium cranberries provide these hearty, white-fudge chipped cookies with a touch of tartness. They also provide the girl selling them a lesson in money management. With each sale, a girl learns how to handle money, keep records, and even track orders—activities that are essential to running a successful business.
I guess the Mayor learned from the mistakes made by Norman Grecco when he attempted to land the coveted spot of Mayor of Westfield. Remember those days with Norman greeting the commuting public at the train station. Not what I would want to see or hear before starting or finishing my hectic day.......so perhaps the Mayor had the right idea about letting the public come to him instead of the high pressure sales way of Mr. Grecco.......on the other hand, if the mayor had gone door to door he would get a first hand view of what plagues Westfield, and perhaps some strong words from the public.
ReplyDeleteI know one house the mayor wont knock on the door.....Right Greg.....LOL
ReplyDeleteThis post is very close to making no sense at all.
ReplyDelete