WESTFIELD, NJ — The Westfield Foundation honored town resident and longtime volunteer Darielle Walsh with a tree dedication at Foundation Park on Friday, June 14.
Walsh has been an active member of the Westfield community for more 40 years. She has been a member of the Westfield Town Council. She spent nine years serving on the Westfield Board of Education (three as president), 13 years on the Westfield Municipal Planning Board (two as vice president) and more than 30 years on the board of directors at the Westfield Area YMCA.
She has been a member of the Optimist Club of Westfield, the Westfield Rotary Club, the Westfield Education Fund, and is a former trustee of the Westfield United Fund and Westfield Foundation. Walsh was an elementary school teacher and served as Westfield High School PTSO president.
Walsh was a member and president of the Junior Women’s Club and Westfield Service League, secretary of the Westfield Main-Street Program, served on the Downtown Westfield Committee Board of Directors, and WCTV 36 Advisory Board. She has been a member of the Greater Westfield Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors since 2013, and served four years as board president and secretary.
She has won numerous awards since 2000 for her work in Westfield.
“She is a wealth of professionalism, philanthropy and knowledge that we count on in making decisions in the community,” said Katie Curran Darcy, executive director of the Westfield Foundation.
The Westfield Foundation dedicated a flowering dogwood tree at Foundation Park on South Avenue to Walsh. A plaque placed next to the tree reads “In Recognition Of Her Dedication And Service To The Citizens Of Westfield, We Honor Darielle Walsh, Presented By The Westfield Foundation.”
“It has been a privilege to be involved with so many dedicated volunteers and outstanding nonprofit organizations that do so much for individuals,” Walsh said at the ceremony. “Service organizations and volunteers are an important part of life in the communities they serve. Their tireless, hard work contributes to the fabric of the community.”
She also took time in her speech to thank her fellow board members, volunteers and staff of the foundation, along with her family.
The ceremony was attended by members of the community, including current and former Westfield Foundation members, Mayor Shelley Brindle, Walsh’s husband Michael, her two sons and some of her five grandchildren.
“Is there anything that this resident volunteer doesn’t do?” Mayor Brindle asked. “It’s a real pleasure and privilege to be here today to honor you. I can think of no better attribute than a tree in your honor because you have planted so many roots for so many things in our community. This is just such a fitting tribute to you.”
The dedication was made possible by The Westfield Foundation, whose mission is rooted in promoting the betterment of the town and enriching the quality of life for all of its citizens. The foundation contributed to the creation of Foundation Park and funded numerous other projects in Westfield including, recently, an outdoor patio at the Westfield Memorial Library, accessibility improvements to some of the playgrounds, a van for the Westfield Community Center Association and improvements to the Westfield Service League Thrift Shop and the technology classroom at Westfield High School.
