By MICHAEL HIRSCH

Special to The Press

The first order of business at South Whitehall Township’s inaugural meeting of the new year was installation of newly elected officials.

Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas Judge Anna-Kristie M. Marks gave the oath of office to David M. Kennedy, Monica Hodges and Brad Osborne.

Diane Kelly was sworn in as president of the board.

Commissioner David Kennedy spoke first:

“I would just like to make a couple quick comments on behalf of Brad [Osborne] and Monica [Hodges],” Kennedy said. “I want to thank Judge Marks for coming this evening.

“I have met so many people, hundreds and hundreds of doors I’ve knocked on and there’s so many people I want to thank and, I know I will miss people ... John Shea and his wife, Dave Burke. Brad and his wife were out working. Monica and her husband.

“And I want to thank the fire departments. They were helpful. Primarily though, I want to thank my wife who allowed me to do this.

“I have to be a little crazy but I’m looking forward to the opportunity, and to thank my son for coming up from Philadelphia.

“But there’s one thing which I really want to say, There’s a guy who put this whole thing together for me. I want to thank Jacob Roth who is here tonight with his girlfriend.

“He’s a Penn State student. He’s got an internship in Washington, D.C., starting tomorrow.

“Jacob, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you did. So I’m looking forward to serving the South Whitehall township community for the next four years. Thank you very much.”

Monica Hodges next addressed the audience:

“In 1956, a father fled his beloved country to escape communism and oppression in search of his dream of freedom and democracy,” Hodges said. “And today, only one generation later, he would be so proud that his daughter is exemplifying that dream.

“Today, I stand humbly before you as your newly elected commissioner. Thank you to my community for placing your trust in me. Thank you to those who supported, encouraged and walk beside me.

“It is an honor to serve you and I will always work hard for you. I will always prioritize you and serve you with respect, humility, honesty and gratitude.

“And it is an honor to serve with you and all of you. Thank you so much.”

Brad Osborne then spoke:

“I would just like first of all to thank my wife for allowing me to do this. It’s a sacrifice really, all elected officials know it’s not just them, it’s their family,” Osborne said. “I’d also like to thank everyone for their support, not only of me, but of our sitting commissioners - Commissioner [Monica] Hodges, Commissioner [David] Kennedy in this current election. In the past election, Commissioner [Diane] Kelly and Commissioner [Michael] Wolk.

“All of us together will make you proud. We will make you happy that you placed your trust in us and we will do what you put us in office to do. “Thank you”

Commissioners’ president Diane Kelly was last to address the audience:

“I want to just take a moment to thank my fellow Commissioners for nominating me as your board president. I am humbled by your confidence in me. We as elected officials must remember why we are here. Our duty is to represent each and every citizen. Whether you voted for us or not. When making decisions, we must be mindful to do what is best for our entire community. When this board deliberates on township matters, we may not always agree but we must be respectful in our debate to the public. Please hold us accountable as your representatives. We need to hear from you. Whether it be constructive criticism or praise. I believe that our local government works best when our community is involved. So thank you all for being here. And we look forward to working together to serve this great community. Thank you.”

Moving on to other matters, Senior Vice President of Affiliated Chambers Ashley Lorah and Coordinator of the Affiliated Chambers Hayden Rinde from the Greater Lehigh Chamber of Commerce spoke.

They welcomed the three new commissioners and Rinde discussed the fall fest, which was one of the first projects she worked on in partnership with South Whitehall Township.

She explained the Chamber gives grants to benefit local nonprofits such as the Parkland C.A.R.E.S. food pantry, and the fire companies.

Lorah said the Chamber’s mission is to connect businesses with the community.

They are happy to liaison with that and help the police department with the annual National Night Out celebration.