Upon meeting South Orange Village President Alex Torpey, something immediately catches my eye. It's not his 5 o'clock shadow, his tossed hair, his attire that says, "I mean business but I also like to go out for a beer once in awhile," or the fact his mayoral office looks more like a storage unit.

It's his socks.

I question him about his socks, which are decorated in a Christmas theme with trees and ornaments laced into the stitching. He chuckles and admits that they don't really match with the rest of his attire, but wants to keep spirits high among the staff as well as make the the work environment less serious and more relaxed.

Torpey himself is in good spirits. Elected Village President on May 11 of this year, the 23 year-old is wise beyond his years; from his days at Hampshire College where he spent 14 months writing a book on the study of the drinking age and alcohol policy to using the advances of social media to successfully run his campaign and win, Torpey brings a fresh look to political strategy.

Growing up in South Orange, his choice to become Village President of his hometown made sense. While he took a stab at journalism in college, Torpey felt as though he wasn't making enough of an impact with just writing. He wanted to actually go out and solve the problems a community was facing.

"Being involved in various things growing up and seeing the direction the town was going in..there were a couple things i wanted to add to this process," he said. "We have a great municipal workforce, a board of trustees that has a lot of great experience, and a former Village president that brought a lot to the table, but to me there was a vacuum of getting residents involved with the government, the marketing and promoting of the town, using technology to connect people and provide feedback, and just for the efficiency of operations here.

For his campaign, Torpey used various social media like Facebook and Twitter to spread his message around town. In the beginning, he began fundraising through email and Facebook, then slowly working his way to virtual door knocking, where he would use Facebook to find South Orange residents, contact them with his information, and try to call them on the phone.

After town meetings, Torpey uses his Facebook to post video updates of himself in which he discusses what topics came up during the meeting. He also uses to Twitter to let residents know of events he's attending in town or what events are presently occurring.

"I think people want that from their elected officials now. There's so much distrust in national government and everyone involved," he said. "To see someone's photos -- there are photos of me that certainly aren't photogenic or flattering, but hey, that's alright; it happens to everybody. But people can see that and the TV shows I watch and my updates, which are half about policy and half my personal life."

While serving as Village President, Torpey attends John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan, volunteers as an EMT at the local rescue squad and runs his own web design/media consulting business, all while trying to improve downtown South Orange and fill vacant storefronts.

When asked if he has any free time to be a 23-year-old, he says he tries to squeeze things in here and there. "There are a couple great bars in town and it's great going out with my friends," he said. "You end up running into residents with issues they're upset about and that's always tough."

"The social life has taken a bit of nose dive because of this," says Torpey, "but I'm hoping things start to balance out in the next couple of months."

Although he imagines he'll have a family one day, he's not in any rush.

"I imagine at some point I will have a family, but right now this is taking up about 200% of my mental capacity," laughs the Village President. "I'll get those things done one day."

Mike Madden concludes his internship with the Essex County Patch sites this week. His summer experiences have included covering the Columbia High School graduation; watching and reporting on World Cup soccer at Bunny's with the CHS soccer team; covering the Jill Sobule/Juicebox house concert; and profiling Alex Torpey. Good luck Mike in the coming school year!