September 22, 2005

Village Council turned to the head of Friends Care Community to fill a short vacancy on the five-member board.

At their meeting on Monday, Council members voted 4–0 to appoint Jeff Singleton to Council, replacing Council president Tony Arnett, who, during the meeting, handed in his resignation, effective Sept. 30. Council members Mary J. Alexander, Jocelyn Hardman, Bruce Rickenbach and Denise Swinger voted for Singleton’s appointment; Arnett abstained.

Singleton will serve the remainder of Arnett’s term, which expires after the Nov. 8 election, when three people will be elected to Council. Singleton, who is not a candidate in the Council campaign, will be sworn in at Council’s next meeting, on Oct. 3.

Arnett is moving out of town at the end of the month.

Singleton has been the administrator of Friends Care Community since 1993 and has served on several boards in Yellow Springs, including Community Resources, the local community improvement corporation, and the Chamber of Commerce. He has a bachelor of business administration degree from the University of Cincinnati and has degrees from George Washington and the Southern Ohio Junior College of Business.

Arnett said that Singleton’s background at Friends Care would be helpful as Council searches for a new Village manager.

Council members had discussed the pending vacancy during two previous meetings in executive session, but never announced how they intended to find Arnett’s replacement.

Last spring Singleton was one of five Yellow Springers who applied to fill a vacancy on Council created by the resignation of George Pitstick. Rickenbach was appointed at that time.

Arnett said that it seemed “most appropriate” for Council to look again at the pool of candidates from last spring.

On Tuesday morning, Singleton said that Arnett asked him if he were willing to join Council.

Singleton said he agreed to serve on Council because it is the right thing to do. Suggesting that he might sound “Pollyannaish,” he said, “I think there comes a point in an organization’s life and a community’s life when it’s time to step up.”

He said he’ll be able to add stability to Council and try to add his “2 cents” to Council’s discussions. “Whatever little help I can offer in three meetings, I will do my best to provide that,” he said.

Singleton agreed that he could help provide insight to the manager’s search, calling it the “biggest issue on the table for the next couple of months.”

Singleton and his wife, Barbara, have been married 25 years and have lived in Yellow Springs for 12. They have two daughters, Autumn Joy and Brooke Marie.

Contact: rmihalek@ysnews.com