A Static Jack Says Goodbye, The First Lady Has a Birthday

Westfielders are out, about and continuing to be up to many things. From a band member leaving behind Westfield for the Rhode Island coast to a pair of inventing teens, residents are keeping up the activity that is the cornerstone of About Town.

GOODBYE WESTFIELD, HELLO NEWPORT

Spencer Kimmins spent the last year traveling the country in an old van, crashing at people's homes, getting free meals and playing as part of the Static Jacks. He's trading that life in to go to school in the land of yachts, people sipping mimosas on verandas and the use of summer as a verb.

Kimmins bid farewell to the Westfield based band this week to resume his college career at Salve Regina University in Newport, RI, where he took off a year to play with the band. He said it's a decision that he did not take lightly but one he had to make this week or face not heading back to Salve Regina.

"Three days ago I had to make a decision continue doing the band or go back to the school I had started to love," Kimmins said Wednesday. "It's not that I didn't like being in the band, but part of me felt it wasn't the life for me."

Kimmins saw the Static Jacks through a variety of successes, including an MTV deal which saw the band's music played to highlight the dramas on The Hills and The City. Looking to major in marketing and find other interests, Kimmins has no regrets of his time as a Static Jack.

"I loved it. Being on the road in a really crappy van takes a toll," he said. "It is fun living at the bottom and sleeping at other people's houses. You are not traveling to sightsee, you are traveling to play music and get paid for it. I loved every second of it. I am very proud to say I took a year of my young adulthood to try being in a rock band."

A PROUD MOTHER

Kimmins' mother, Councilwoman Vicki Kimmins, has been a strong supporter of the Static Jacks for the last year, promoting the band at every opportunity. Now that her son has moved on to a new chapter in his life, Kimmins said she'll be there to support him.

"This was an extremely difficult decision for Spencer, but I am proud of and support his commitment to continue on with his college education," she said. "He will always be a Static Jack in his heart"

BUYING THE NEW DESIGN

After sending their kids off with teachers on the first day of school, Jefferson parents swarmed the gym for some coffee, crumb cake and gossip. Amid all of that, many hit up the PTO table to stock up on Jefferson swag for the year. According to PTO volunteers, the most popular item…….the newly designed school magnet. The magnet was redesigned this summer to update a design that had been used for most of the last decade.

ENTREPRENEURIAL TEENS

Charles Cary, a 2009 Westfield High alum, and Cheryl Wu, a WHS senior, have struck out to create a new business that they see as helping people research better going forward. The duo has created Notes for Later, a web program which will save website addresses to reference for future use and help take notes of sites being used for research.

"Notes for Later takes notes faster than pen and paper and stores them in your email," said Cary, a student at the University of Chicago. "The address of the site you've been using and any content you've highlighted is saved to your email with a click of the mouse."

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MRS. SKIBITSKY!

A fly on the wall let About Town know that today is Debbie Skibitsky's birthday! We wish the town's first lady a happy birthday with her husband, Andy, and children Drew, Hope, Shane and Troy.