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SSOCIATED
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EWSPAPERS OF
M
ICHIGAN
P
AGE
5
October 3, 2013
I
NKSTER
- W
AYNE
- W
ESTLAND
Rock on
Wayne musician’s song
nominated for honors
Parents urged to enroll students
It was a big day Sept. 2 for
HunterKennedy ofWayne.
That was the day the
International Music and
Entertainment Association
announced the nominees for the
2013 awards to be presented Nov.
2 in Ashland, KY. Nominated as
Best Rock Song of the Year was
Sing to Me, a single Kennedy and
his band mates from Seven Story
Fall released inAug. 20.
Kennedy, now 21, received his
first guitar when he was 11 and
began playing almost immediate-
ly. While at Wayne Memorial High
School he decided to pursue form-
ing a band. He met a number of
musicians during the next 10
years, leading to the formation of
Seven Story Fall in 2002. The
music and the band got serious,
he said, during 2004 and bigger
shows started to come along.
The group played at numerous
festivals throughout the state and
the band was featured in several
newspapers and magazines.
Kennedy noted that a lot hap-
pened during that decade, with
band members joining and leav-
ing the group and meeting many
up and coming musicians. Seven
Story Fall was signed by the Tate
Music Group and was given the
option to release an extended
play disc with five previously
recorded songs or record seven
more at the Tate studio for a full-
length CD. The group opted for
the full-length CD released last
month.
Kennedy is the only original
member of the band left and he
saidhe is determined tomake this
full- length disc a success. "We are
finally at a point where things are
only progressing, and with the
release of this new album and
music video we hope to make an
impression this time around," the
band members said on their web-
site just prior to the release of the
album.
Obviously, that paid off with the
nomination for Best Rock Song of
theYear for SingToMe.
The mission of the IMEA
Awards is to honor and recognize
international individuals and
organizations in the music, the-
ater, and filmindustries.
Those on public assistancemust
provide verification that every
child ages 6-18 is attending school
or risk losing all benefits.
The new requirement went into
effect Oct. 1, according to Zara
Nasir, an organizer with Starfish
Family Services located in Inkster.
In a prepared statement, Nazir
noted that parents will be required
to provide a formcompleted by the
school that each child attends. She
said that parents may not know
which school their children should
attend and that the Inkster com-
munity is served by Westwood
Community Schools, Wayne-
Westland Community Schools,
Romulus Community Schools and
theTaylor School District.
She noted that childrenmust be
enrolled byOct. 1 and that children
can suffer academically if they
miss more than 18 days of school.
Chronic absence, Nasir said in the
statement, is a leading warning
sign that a student is more likely to
drop out and that attendance on
count day (Oct. 1) will help schools
receive proper funding to ensure a
better quality of educational expe-
rience.
To learn more about the new
policy of the Department of
Human Services, call (313) 792-
7700 and follow the verbal
prompts. Parents can also visit the
local Department of Human
Services office at 26355 Michigan
Ave. in Inkster for more informa-
tion and directions for compliance
with the newrules.
Nasir urged parents, guardians
and caretakers to “Bring your kids
in andwe all win.”
Former district
leader is mourned
Former Superintendent of the
Wayne Westland Community
Schools Dennis O'Neill, 78, died
peacefully in his sleep Sept. 23 at
hisFt. Myers, Flahome.
Mr. O'Neill had been living in
Florida with his wife, Charlene,
for several years. He had been
diagnosed with Parkinson's dis-
ease about four years ago.
Mr. O'Neill was born in Detroit
onDec. 30, 1954.
Mr. O'Neill was a veteran of
the U.S. Army where he served
from 1953 until 1955. He also
worked as a postal carrier and as
a custodian at Ford Motor Co.
while pursuing his education at
WayneStateUniversity.
Mr. O'Neill began his career in
education with the Wayne-
Westland district when he was
hired as a teacher at West Junior
HighSchool in 1960.
He taught at West and at John
Glenn High School and served as
an assistant principal at Wayne
Memorial High School before he
became the administrative assis-
tant to the superintendent in
1973. He was made deputy super-
intendent in 1975 and became
superintendent of schools in
1984. He retired from the top job
in the district in 1992.
Following his retirement, the
O'Neills moved from Westland to
the Irish Hills and later to
Gladwin before their move to
Florida about 10 years ago.
In addition to his wife, Mr.
O'Neill is survived by his chil-
dren, Timothy (Maura), Maureen
(Jon Schaber), Terry (Nancy),
Colleen (James) McGinnis and
DoreenMarsh; 16 grandchildren;
three brothers, and two sisters.
Funeral services took place
Sept. 28 at L.J. Griffin Funeral
Home inCantonTownship.
Memorials in his name can be
made to the Parkinson's
Foundation.
Dennis O'Neill
Hunter Kennedy
Bring your
kids in and
we all win.
”