Herd takes over as Speers mayor
By TAYLOR BROWN
tbrown@yourmvi.com
Timothy Herd knows he has big shoes to fill, but he believes he’s up to the challenge.
Accompanied by his wife, Carrie, Herd was sworn in Tuesday as the new mayor of Speers by Magisterial District Judge Eric Porter in Charleroi.
Herd will fill the vacancy left by the sudden death of Mayor Bill Lee, 75, who passed away Dec. 18 from COVID-19.
Lee had served as the borough’s mayor for more than 20 years.
After a brief search for interested candidates to take over the position, Speers Council President Curt Rice said three qualified applicants interviewed for the job last week.
On Monday, council unanimously appointed Herd, a long-time borough resident.
“All three were fantastic, gave good interviews and had strong points,” Rice said. “But the thing with Tim was, he just retired and he has the time.
“Honestly, he was a lot like Bill (Lee). He was a salesman, he knew how to talk to people and council thought he would be the person to help us the most.”
While Herd has lived in the borough for the past 40 years, he has never been in the political scene.
“I have been a resident here for 40 years,” Herd said. “I thought it was time to give something back to my community.”
To read the rest of the story, please see a copy of Wednesday’s Mon Valley Independent, call 724-314-0035 to subscribe or subscribe to our online edition at http://monvalleyindependent.com.
