New Recreation Director Appointed In Westfield

WESTFIELD, NJ — A new Recreation Director has been named in Westfield, as current Director Don Bogardus is retiring at the end of December after a 30-year municipal recreation career.

The town has named Megan Schaffer as the new director. Schaffer will oversee the daily operations of the Westfield Recreation Department, including all recreation programming and Memorial Pool.

According to the town's announcement, Schaffer will manage the department’s year-round and seasonal staff and work closely with the Recreation Commission.

"Megan brings diverse and valuable experience to this position – as a Recreation Director, a Division 1 college athlete, and a coach – and I am confident she will be an asset to our incredible Recreation Department," Mayor Shelley Brindle said. "I am grateful to Don
Bogardus for his many contributions, and wish him well in his retirement."

Schaffer has a decade of "diverse experience" working in municipal recreation, covering a wide range of responsibilities. Most recently, she served as the Paramus Director of Recreation and Assistant Recreation Director where she oversaw all facility and field scheduling, recreation program development, department budgeting, grant proposals, and staffing.

Prior to her positions in Paramus, Schaffer worked in the Bloomfield Recreation Department for five years and served as the Assistant Coach of the Rutgers Softball Team.

She was also a standout high school softball player who received All State and County honors and led Bloomfield High School to a Sectional Championship. She then went on to continue her softball career at the collegiate level, playing for both St. Peters University, and Manhattan College.

Schaffer is a graduate of Bloomfield College, as well as a Certified Recreation Administrator, a Certified Rutgers S.A.F.E.T.Y Clinician and a Certified Aquatics Facility Operator.

She is also actively involved in recreation industry organizations, including serving as the Vice President for the NJ Commission for Recreation for Individuals with Disabilities, as well as an ongoing member of the New Jersey Recreation and Parks Association.

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