Our new club president, Melissa Baxter, had the pleasure of meeting the new Mayor of the Borough of West Chester Lillian DeBaptiste, when the mayor was our recent guest speaker.

Mayor DeBaptiste is the daughter of former mayor, Clifford DeBaptiste, who at age 98, has been a member of our club for 49 years!

 

Mayor DeBaptiste said she hadn’t really thought about running for office until about two years ago, when she felt she had something to offer, her ABCD list: Arts, Balance, Clean and Green, and Diversity. She was sworn in exactly 20 years to the day after her father was sworn in as mayor! “It’s been an amazing, you might even say 'divine' journey,” she said. ”I’ve enjoyed the job for the past eight months,” she added, explaining that she has helped open stores with ribbon cuttings, interviewed and hired four outstanding new police officers in conjunction with Police  Chief Jim Moreland,  and even performed the wedding of a couple she knows!

In addition to discussing her duties, she spent several minutes praising our club. "West Chester aligns well with Rotary in seeking peace, service above self, and being involved internationally as well as locally.”

 

She commented on the many activities of the borough, most recently the first Porchfest with the Green Team, which involved about 40 neighborhood bands who provided a plethora of music. “We have a lot going on," she said, listing nearly a dozen activities upcoming, and/or returning to the borough, such as the Halloween and Christmas parades, and our Rotary Chili Cook-off.

 

She closed her remarks by saying, “Thank you for being such a caring group – reaching out to the entire community.”