Sunday, December 24, 2023

New City Administration Sworn-in in Advance of Transition

ABOVE: City department heads take oaths of office from Mayor-elect Scott Furgeson, who had just been sworn-in moments before. Pictured, L to R: Jenny Meltzer, city attorney; Jody Branum, human resources director; Trisha Tackett, parks director; Beth Corley, public utility office manager; Derrick Byers, storm water utility director; John Kuntz, city engineer; Shane Peters, street commissioner; Doug Lutes, fire chief; Dr. Bill Dwenger, police chief; and Kevin Kredit, Water Resource Recovery Facility superintendent. All are returning to their current positions except new appointees Peters, Lutes and Dwenger. BELOW: City Councilman Mike Johnson enters council chambers to be sworn-in during yesterday’s ceremony while Councilwoman Betsy Means Davis, white jacket, returns to her seat after taking the oath of office. | photos by KRISTIAAN RAWLINGS

A new, but hardly untried, city hall administration will be ushered in Jan. 1, and an early swearing-in ceremony yesterday provided an opportunity for officials and their families to meet and greet and take photos.

“It’s a great honor to be here again, to serve the city,” Mayor-elect Scott Furgeson told approximately 100 people crowded into council chambers and the adjacent lobby where a snack table awaited.

Furgeson previously served two terms as mayor, 2004 to 2011, and has most recently been on the common council. Seven of the 10 department heads present yesterday are continuing from Mayor Tom DeBaun’s administration. The three incoming heads - Street Commissioner Shane Peters, Fire Chief Doug Lutes and Police Chief Dr. Bill Dwenger - all have significant experience in their fields.

Yesterday morning’s ceremony featured Judges R. Kent Apsley and Trent Meltzer swearing-in seven Republican council members: Kassy Wilson, First Ward; Betsy Means Davis, Second Ward; Mike Johnson, Third Ward; Linda Sanders, Fourth Ward, who was sworn-in by Judge Apsley for the sixth time given her previous experience; Thurman Adams, Fifth Ward; and Chuck Reed and Denny Harrold, at-large council members. 

Outgoing council president and Shelby County Republican Party chairman Rob Nolley oversaw the first half of the program, starting with the swearing-in of Morristown Clerk-Treasurer Morgan Stratton and concluding with re-elected City Clerk-Treasurer Scott Asher. Furgeson was then sworn-in by Judge Apsley and subsequently administered oaths to his board of public works appointees, Val Phares and Tom Reaves. He then led a group swearing-in of department heads.

Furgeson then named Nolley to a non-paid Deputy Mayor of Foreign Affairs appointment, citing Nolley’s extensive work with officials from our sister city, Shizuoka in Japan. Nolley is wrapping up 20 years on the city council.3

Although the oaths will not be effective until Jan. 1, Mayor-elect Furgeson said his entire team would be “servants of the city.”

“You guys are our boss, and we’re your employees, so we should treat you like our customers,” he told those in attendance. “We really enjoy working for you, and we’re going to continue to do the best we can to move the city forward.”

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NOTEBOOK

• WISH-TV checked out Shelbyville High School’s Lighted Holiday Forest on Friday morning. See the segment, also featuring SHS students, and read the article here. The Lighted Holiday Forest will be open sunset to 9. p.m., Friday, Dec. 29.

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This Day in Shelby County History

2013: Earlier in the week, Waldron High School honored recently retired teacher and coach Sandy Shaw during a game against Morristown. Shaw had spent 38 years at Waldron and coached a variety of sports.

2003: Southwestern 6th grade girls basketball team had defeated Morristown recently to win the Shelby County Tourney. Team members were Megan Rush, Samantha Stopes, Jordan Mings, Whitney Thomas, Maryssa Sullivan, Johanna Ridge, Jennifer Gore, Page Mitchem, Eve Dundas, Rochelle Burbrink, Kimberly Drake, Felica Streeval, Emily Jones, Abigail Duncan and Jessica Sangl.

1993: The Shelbyville Boys Club recognized league and tourney champions at the conclusion of the basketball season. The Cheetahs had won the 5 and 6 tournament. Members of the team were A.J. Logan, Cory Simpson, Andrew Collins, Curtis Runshe, Lincoln Gardner, Stephen Barchick and Aaron Blain. Phil Blain was coach. The Cougars had won the 5 and 6 league with a 10-1 record. Members were Russell Kuhn, Shane Stout, Justin Cory, Jeramie Smith, Jordan Green, Michael Snepp, Cody Spears and Dominique Reed. Bret Green was coach.

1983: Dr. Douglas Carter, 32, had been selected chief of the W.S. Major Hospital Medical staff for 1984. He was a member of the Inlow Clinic. He and his wife, Mary, had two children, Amanda, 5, and Andrew, 2. Dr. Lucian Arata had served as chief in 1983. Other elected officers for 1984 were Dr. Wilson Dalton, Dr. Dar Muceno, Dr. Robert Inlow, Dr. James Peters and Dr. James Tower.

1973: A Shelbyville News ad from Ranch Supermarket wishing customers a Merry Christmas listed all employees: Jim Pleak, Dan Charles, Woody Woods, Paul Roberts, Karen Nay, Greg Armstrong, Bruce Banister, Russell Blocher, Pat Brinson, Karen Cox, Connie Crane, Mary Jo Ficklin, Lee Graves, Louis Helfer, Pat Knight, Scott Kuhn, Larry Lee, Margie Miller, Rick Nelson, Amy Osting, Dick Paetzold, Garnett Pierce, Bill Roberts, Myrtie Robertson, Rock Robertson, Katrina Romine, Janet Rutherford, Joe Rutherford, Rob Snyder, Diane Thornburg, Donna VanDuyn, George VanDuyn, Rob Wainscott, Paul Wood, Debbie Woods, Lois Woods, Ken Zipperian and Kent McNeely.

1963: Susan DePrez, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Morris DePrez, was named queen of the Bethel 37, International Order of Job’s Daughters. A ceremony would be held at Messick Masonic Temple.

1953: A newspaper feature highlighted Lt. Earl Trees, who had organized the school safety patrol in 1935. The patrol had grown to 78 boys who served at various city corners regardless of weather. Trees started at the department in 1935, was named assistant chief by the end of the year and was named chief in 1935. He had been “run over” on V-J Day in 1945, leading to a back injury, the paper said. He took two years off and then rejoined the department. The members of the school safety patrol were selected by the school but trained by Lt. Trees. He said that in nearly 20 years, only two former patrol boys had been in court. “He thinks that is a very good record, considering the hundreds of boys involved,” the article said. Trees supplied badges for the boys and red flags to wave down motorists. The boys’ caps were also red with “school patrol” written in white on them. During the summer, Trees was on duty at the swimming pool, watching traffic and assisting young children. Trees and his wife, Ethel (McCarty), lived at 923 Jefferson Ave. They had four daughters, Helen Longstreet, Virginia Smith, Goldie Craig and Mary Ruth Heck. They also had two grandchildren, Denny Longstreet and Peggy Heck.

1943: Several county men left for military service. They were Norman Fuchs, Leonard Buckler, Kirby Coers, Russell Comstock, Henry Sosbe, Morris “Bud” Engle, John Douglas, Raymond Hirschauer, George Douthit, Paul Dillow, Harry Wenger, Harold Alexander and Morris Branson.

1933: Civil works administrators handed out paychecks to the 670 men who had been hired during the Christmas season to make improvements to local school buildings during the holiday break. An additional 75 men would be hired after Christmas, officials said.

1923: Weather forecasters said there would be no snow on Christmas Day, with temperatures in the mid-40s.

Arrangements were made for the annual city municipal Christmas party. The SHS band would play several carols near the Christmas tree on Public Square. Boys and girls would then march to City Hall for a program of carols and gifts. Charles Major students would put on a short play and then everyone would sing “Silent Night” before gifts were distributed.