There were smiles all around when three Lawrence Township Council members were sworn into office for four year terms and a new mayor was selected at the council’s reorganization meeting on Jan. 1 at the Lawrence Township Municipal Building.
Cathleen Lewis was sworn into office for her third term, when Michael Powers was sworn into office for his fourth term.
The two were joined by John Ryan, who was appointed to fill out an unexpired term and who then won a full term in the November general election.
All are Democrats.
The Lawrence Township Police Department’s honor guard marched into the township council meeting chambers, followed by Lewis, Powers and Ryan. The three council members-elect took their seats on the dais, awaiting their formal swearing-in.
Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson swore in Lewis, and Assemblyman Anthony Verrelli swore in Ryan. Mercer County Surrogate Diane Gerofsky gave the oath of office to Powers.
Once the newly-constituted Lawrence Township Council members took their seats on the dais, it was time to select one of their own to serve a two-year term in the ceremonial post of mayor.
The mayor presides over the council meetings and signs documents, but has little day-to-day responsibility.
Outgoing Mayor Christopher Bobbitt nominated council member Jim Kownacki to the ceremonial post. Kownacki served as mayor from 2012-13.
Bobbitt described Kownacki as a “strong, dedicated public servant. He is not one who looks for the limelight. At the Memorial Day parade and Veterans Day, he is always there, but he doesn’t take the spotlight.”
“One of the things that I admire about him is that he is humble, but he is a strong person. [Kownacki] will tell it like he means it. He will say his peace. He always says, ‘We’ll get through it, we’ll figure it out and do what’s best for the township,'” Bobbitt said.
The motion to elect Kownacki as mayor was unanimously approved.
With his hand on the Bible and his wife and granddaughter at his side, Kownacki was sworn into office as mayor by Colonel Robert E. Watson.
Mayor Kownacki thanked Bobbitt, Lewis, Powers and Ryan for giving him the chance to serve as mayor for the next two years.
“Some of those things they said about me – don’t believe it,” Kownacki said as the audience chuckled.
“There is a lot happening in Lawrence Township,” Kownacki said. There are some things in the works, but it is too soon to talk about them, he said.
Lawrence Township is one of the best places to live, he said. It is a better town today than it was yesterday, and his goal is to make it a better town tomorrow than it is today.
“I know we can do it as a team,” Kownacki said.
In his first official act as mayor, he swore the township’s three volunteer fire company fire chiefs into office – Ken Kandrac of the Slackwood Volunteer Fire Co., Wayne Hannon Jr. of the Lawrence Road Fire Co. and Ray Nagy of the Lawrenceville Fire Co.
As is the custom during the Lawrence Township Council reorganization meeting, each council member was given a chance to make some comments.
In his remarks, Powers congratulated Kownacki. He said the new mayor is a man who speaks from the heart. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and brings that military discipline with him wherever he goes.
“I know you’ll do a good job,” Powers said.
Powers also complimented Bobbitt, the former mayor, whose focus during his two-year term was on sustainability. Lawrence Township earned silver status from Sustainable Jersey last year, which was due in large part to Bobbitt, he said.
Turning to Lewis and Ryan, Powers said he is looking forward to working with them – and Bobbitt and Kownacki – as a team to move Lawrence Township forward.
Lewis thanked the voters for their faith in her, and also thanked her family for their support and understanding of why it is important to invest in public service.
Lewis said that she and her husband chose to raise their family in Lawrence Township because of the diversity they found in the town – diversity of thought, of religion, of economics, of sexual orientation and of race.
“Too many times over the last year, we have had to declare that hate has no home here. As a community, we know that we value our differences and will stand up for our neighbors,” Lewis said.
“Today, I am recommitting myself not just to respecting and encouraging diversity, but to find ways to understand my neighbors’ perspective. I am asking each of you to join me,” she added.
A couple of weeks ago, she spoke to her daughter’s third grade class about what it’s like to be an elected official and about the responsibility of citizenship.
“I told them the most important part of the job is to listen, to act in the best interests of the whole and not just yourself, and to be honest. I promise to listen, find common ground and to be open and transparent with our residents,” Lewis said.
Ryan thanked his family and supporters, and said it is an honor and a privilege to serve on the Lawrence Township Council.
“I promise to do my very best. We are moving Lawrence Township in the right direction. I promise to work hard for all of the residents,” Ryan said.
Bobbitt, who had flown home on a red-eye flight from San Francisco, said he knows he is having a “great vacation” when it gets to the point that he wants to “go home. Lawrence Township is my home now.”
Addressing the council members, Bobbitt said he is looking forward to working with them. He said he appreciates their collegiality. They each offer a different perspective, which helps the council to do “some amazing things,” he said.
“Let’s get to work,” Bobbitt said.
