North Belle Vernon: Sokol resigns from council

By ERIC SEIVERLING

eseiverling@yourmvi.com

Members of North Belle Vernon Borough Council received a surprise Tuesday.

At their meeting at the North Belle Vernon VFD Social Hall, long-time councilman R.J. Sokol announced his resignation from his posts as a council member and parks and recreation chairman.

Sokol’s resignation from council is effective Feb. 8, and his resignation from the parks and recreation board takes effect Thursday.

Sokol cited his health as the main reason for his decision.

“I am now at the point where my asthma has grown worse over the years as I have aged,” he said. “My knees are now full of arthritis and have been worsened from the work accident I had. Physically, I am no longer in a position to carry on my daily cleaning and minor repairs of the (North Belle Vernon Community Bank) park.”

A retired production supervisor at Eastman Chemical Plant in Monongahela, Sokol served on council from 1992 to 2007 and again from 2014 until his present term.

Sokol said the North Belle Vernon Community Bank Park project was an important accomplishment for him.

“I feel fortunate that I was able to be part of a Valley-wide team that has turned the North Belle Vernon drug-infested, vandalized, run-down, outdated park into the top family outdoor all-inclusive recreational facility located in the Mon Valley and help keep our true symbol of small-town U.S.A. alive,” he said. “The North Belle Vernon Community Bank Park has been the major player in turning the borough of North Belle Vernon from a struggling Valley town into a solid, ever-growing community even though we are land-locked.”

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