Election 2015: Bethel Selectmen Candidate Profiles

Information is provided by the Republican and Democratic Town Committee’s websites.

Will Duff [R] for First Selectman

• Will Duff, married to his wife, Daria Duff, is a lifelong Bethel resident. Will has served on numerous boards and commissions, including the past four years on the Board of Education. In addition to serving 10 years as a Sheriff for the State of Connecticut, has also served on the Bethel Board of Selectmen, Tax Review, Public Utilities Commission and as Town Constable. Will co-authored the Town Ethics Code and was instrumental as a Selectman to give the people of Bethel their first tax freeze.As First Selectman, Will’s vision is to reduce the size of Bethel’s government, promote transparency, and increase the tax basis, offsetting and stabilizing residential taxes. He also will complete road and infrastructure projects on time and on budget. William Duff Republican Candidate for First Selectman is the fourth generation of his family to call Bethel home. Son of Mike and Sylvia Duff and the brother of 6 siblings he has been a friend to us all. Acting on a long time passion for politics Will was first elected to the Board of Tax Review in 1993 and in 1995 was elected to the Board of Selectman, where despite being the only Republican on the board he was able to persuade his Democrat colleagues to pass a budget that gave Bethel its First Tax freeze. Working in a bi-partisan fashion to get results, he co-authored Bethel’s Ethics Code. He is currently a member of the Board of Education and co-chair of the Outreach Committee.

Paul Szatkowski [R] for Selectman

• Paul Szatkowski and his wife, Diana, are 39-year residents of Bethel. Paul is a retired executive from the biomedical industry in which he has management experience in the areas of business development, product development, and marketing. Paul has been a member of the Board of Selectmen for the past 10 years, and previously served the town as the alternate member of the Housatonic Resource Recovery Authority and Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials. He is a former member of the Permanent Building Committee, Chairman of the Ad-Hoc Bethel Middle School Building Committee, and Vice-Chairman of the Ad-Hoc Berry School Building and the Ad-Hoc Bethel High School Building Committees, and a member of the Charter Revision Commission. Paul formerly served as Vice Chairman of the Bethel Republican Town Committee.

Matthew Knickerbocker [D] for First Selectman

• Matthew Knickerbocker and his wife Adrienne moved to Bethel from Michigan in 1979. He has been active in civic life in Bethel as a volunteer coach with the Parks and Recreation department and with the Bethel Jaycees, where he served as President from 1994-1995. In 1999 Matt was elected to the Board of Education and was a member for ten years, serving seven years as chairman. Matt brings a wealth of experience from over 35 years of private sector corporate management and 6 years of public sector management. His background includes business administration, communications, human resources, general management, labor negotiations, finance and law. Since his election to the position of First Selectman in 2009, significant achievements include securing grant funding for the renovation of Reynolds Ridge, Bethel’s senior citizen housing development; securing several millions in grants to cover road construction, new sidewalk installation and energy efficient dual-fuel boilers for our schools; completion of renovations of Bethel High School and the Bethel Public Library; and a comprehensive 20 year capital improvement plan for Bethel’s public utilities. In addition to serving the Town of Bethel, Matt is an active participant in regional and state governmental activities on issues of importance to Bethel residents. He is a member of the state legislature’s MORE Commission on education and regional governance. He is the past chairman of the Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials (HVCEO), the former regional planning agency and is currently serving as chair of the newly formed Western Connecticut Council of Governments (WCCOG). Matt is also a member of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM), serving as chairman of the subcommittee on transportation. Matt holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Eastern Michigan University and is nearing completion of his Master’s degree in Public Administration. Matt and Adrienne have two adult children, both graduates of the Bethel Public School system, and two grandchildren.

Rich Straiton [D] for Selectman

• Rich Straiton has served as Selectman of the Town of Bethel since 2009, his latest role in a lifetime of involvement with the Bethel Democratic Party. He says, “I have had the honor of working side by side, with not only my parents and my brother, but with many greats such as Bill Shannon, Dave Deakin, Cliff Hurgin, Chad McCollam and Jim Mannion. They all taught me how important it is to serve your Town and the Townspeople of Bethel.” Rich served as Chairman or as a committee member of many of the Town’s major building projects over the past twenty-seven years including the construction of the Bethel Middle School and the renovations of the Clifford J. Hurgin Municipal Center, Berry School, Bethel High School and the Bethel Public Library. While Selectman, he was instrumental in finding a temporary home for the Teen Center and is working diligently to secure a permanent home for Bethel’s teens. Rich serves on the Bethel Public Utilities Commission, as an alternate on two regional commissions: the Housatonic Council of Elected Officials and Housatonic Resource Recovery Agency, and has been designated Acting First Selectman in the absence of the First Selectman. Rich is a Justice of the Peace, a Constable, and a member of the Danbury Exchange Club. He received the Bethel Schools Superintendent’s CHAMP award for his dedicated service to the Town of Bethel. Rich attends Ridgebury Congregational Church. Rich, a life-long resident of Bethel, attended Bethel elementary schools before graduating from Henry Abbot Technical School. After graduation, he joined his father’s construction business. When his father retired Rich ran the business for the next 16 years. During this period he represented the U.S. as a member of the Connecticut Army National Guard. Today, Rich is the Physical Plant Director at Bethel Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center. Rich and his wife Sharon have been married for 22 years, and have a blended family of seven children (all of whom graduated from Bethel Public Schools) eight grandchildren and one great granddaughter.