New Mayor, Deputy Mayor: Morris Township Resets For 2020

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, NJ - The new year has brought a series of new appointments to Morris Township and among them were new officials taking their oaths of office and new officers for the Morris Township Fire Department.

Cathy Wilson was sworn in as the first female Democratic mayor in Morris Township, succeeding Jeff Grayzel who will serve as deputy mayor.

“I am so proud of what we have accomplished in Morris Township this year. We have an incredible team between myself, Cathy, and Mark Gyorfy who have all worked hard for our residents," Grayzel said in a statement. "I feel we have made very significant progress in our town on many fronts and have set ourselves up to accomplish even more in 2020. Cathy Wilson will do a great job leading us as mayor this coming year."

Wilson, who has served on the Township Committee since 2018, is a former chair of the Morris Township Democratic Committee. Since 2015, Wilson has single handedly brought video coverage of the Morris Township Committee meetings to YouTube and Cablevision.

She is a member of the League of Women Voters, the Morris Township Seniors Club, the Washington Association, and the Morris County Historical Society. She is also a graduate of EMERGE New Jersey, a program that trains women in how to run for office and win.

Wilson is a retired educator. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Washington University, a master’s in Special Education from the University of Michigan, and a CAS in Educational Leadership from National-Louis University. In 2012 she completed another master’s in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution at Columbia University.

During her tenure on the Township Committee, Wilson has served on several standing committees. In 2018, she established Office Hours, a monthly communication opportunity for residents to meet with two Township Committee members.

In 2019, Wilson served as deputy mayor. She also chaired the two new “visionary” standing committees formed in 2019: Energy/Environment/Sustainability and Transportation and Circulation. As a member of the Planning Board, Wilson’s special interest has been to develop ways to improve communication with the public on land use issues. As a member of the Economic Development Advisory Committee (EDAC), she helped develop its new Strategic Plan.

“I have loved serving on the Township Committee these past two years. What a wonderful opportunity this has been to work with residents, staff, and my colleagues to make real progress on so many initiatives we’ve been passionate about for years." Wilson said.

‎Amalia Duarte‎, a member of the Mendham Township Committee, swore in Wilson.

"It was such an honor to administer the oath of office to you tonight as you became the new Mayor of Morris Township," Duarte said on social media. "Congratulations! Your hard work and persistence have paid off. You are a true servant leader who puts service to your community first."

Also sworn in for another term was Committee member Peter Mancuso, who was sworn in by Senator Anthony Bucco.

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