Commissioner Tom Nolan, 76, a fixture in Bethlehem Township government for the past three decades, passed away Sept. 25. He suffered from an aggressive form of leukemia and had been absent from the past several meetings.

“He was dedicated and always had Bethlehem Township’s best interests at heart,” said Hanover Township Manager Jay Finnigan, who served with Nolan on the county gaming board.

“We will remember him well,” added John Diacogiannis, who chairs Hanover Township’s board of supervisors. He started last week’s meeting with a moment of silence in remembrance of Nolan.

Nolan served as a commissioner for 21 years and planning commissioner for 26 years. In his long career of public service, he was a member of the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission, NorCo Gaming Board, Two Rivers Council of Governments and Bethlehem Area Public Library Board of Trustees.

He was also an annual Musikfest volunteer and actually took one of the worst jobs – manning the port-a-johns.

He graduated from the University of Scranton in 1963 with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, and worked for Bethlehem Steel Corp. After retiring, he worked for Lehigh Heavy Forge as a project engineer.

He is survived by wife Diane, daughters Erin and Bethany and at least one grandchild.

Nolan was first appointed commissioner in 1985 and elected in 1987. Republican Robert Birk beat Nolan by a few votes in 1991. So Nolan switched from Democrat to Republican and toppled Birk in 2003 by 13 votes. He was re-elected in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

During his years as a commissioner, Nolan was an advocate for the Bethlehem Area Public Library, Community Center and the township’s youth sports organization, known as the Bulldogs. He supported Housenick Park, restoration of the Archibald Johnston mansion and opposed the dissolution of a committee that brainstormed different uses for the mansion. He opposed the development of an active senior community next to Green Pond Marsh, which has been designated by the Audubon Society as an Important Bird Area. He was also a strong advocate of storm water management, and consistently backed proposals to study ways to mitigate flash flooding.

He tangled frequently with Board President Michael Hudak, who was often the yin to Nolan’s yang. Though they argued, they seemed to have a grudging respect for each other.

Aside from Hudak, the only commissioner on Bethlehem Township’s board with any institutional knowledge, was Nolan.

The board has 30 days to appoint someone to succeed Nolan in Ward #1.