Hellertown Borough Council members welcomed a familiar face into their ranks at the Oct. 3 meeting, as Planning Commissioner Liz Thompson was chosen and sworn in by Mayor David Heintzelman on the same evening.

The process began when two candidates for recently-resigned former council Vice President Gil Stauffer’s seat appeared before the board: Thompson and William “Bill” R. Rowe, III.

Rowe, a compliance officer for Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., joined via Zoom, as he was traveling home from a Cincinnati, Ohio event with the Elevate Foundation, a Lehigh Valley-based community development organization of which he serves on the board of directors.

Despite his Bethlehem childhood, Rowe said he’s been a Hellertown resident for “close to 20 years” and is family with Bechdolt’s Orchards on Leithsville Road. “The community [here] is woven into the fabric of my being,” he said.

Councilors then interviewed Rowe, asking whether he’d attended any other council meetings over the prior calendar year, which he said he hadn’t. Additionally, regarding a “philosophy on taxes,” he answered that he’d prefer to “be creative [and] find different revenue sources,” rather than raise taxes on Hellertown residents.

Thompson – appointed to the commission’s vacancy in September 2021 – attended the meeting in person. The retired U.S. Marine Corps Sergeant has worked as a senior product deliverymManager for Material, a consultancy agency headquartered in California, beginning in July. She also operates Balanced Warriors, a no-cost yoga program for veterans.

In answering the same questions as Rowe, Thompson said that along with her duties as planning commissioner over the past year, she’s attended every council meeting either in-person or virtually, except for one.

Thompson called taxes and government spending “a means to an end,” adding that while the municipal level especially calls for “fiscal responsibility,” some spending will be necessary to “keep Hellertown moving into the future.”

Ultimately, the council chose Thompson via a unanimous roll call vote to fulfill Stauffer’s term, which expires in Dec. 2023. Following her formal appointment, she was sworn in immediately by Mayor David Heintzelman.

Heintzelman performed another induction preceding Thompson’s appointment, as Jonathon Delmore became the Dewey Fire Company’s new Assistant Fire Chief. The son of former Fire Chief Rick Delmore, Jonathon was promoted to fire captain in 2019

In other news, Heintzelman continued to promote the upcoming Spirit Parade, scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 23. He reminded attendees of the gathering to follow at Dimmick Park, celebrating the borough’s 150th anniversary of incorporation, featuring a live band, food and vendors.

Additionally, the council voted to accept the resignation of Zoning Hearing Board member Larry Sutton, whose term ends this December. Council President Thomas Rieger suggested interested parties submit their applications before the next meeting, which is two days before the ZHB’s October session.