MILLSTONE – A township committeeman in Millstone Township will serve as mayor for the first time during his tenure on the governing body.
Gary Dorfman was elected mayor for a one-year term by his fellow committee members at the Township Committee’s reorganization meeting on Jan. 3. Under Millstone’s form of government, the mayor is not directly elected by the public and is selected by the members of the governing body to serve a one-year term.
After incumbents Michael Kuczinski and Fiore Masci, who served as mayor and deputy mayor, respectively, in 2017, were sworn in to begin serving new three-year terms, Kuczinski made a motion for Dorfman to serve as mayor. Committeewoman Nancy Grbelja, Kuczinski, Masci and Dorfman voted yes. Committeeman Bob Kinsey was not present.
Republicans hold a 5-0 majority on the committee.
Dorfman joined the committee in 2010 and will be serving as mayor for the first time.
“You start thinking about the people you have to thank, you think about the people who are involved in your life to help you get to this point and you think about the people you are going to rely upon [while preparing a speech],” Dorfman said. “And many of them are all here today.
“I’m very fortunate to be joined today by my family, my wife, my kids, all here. My kids are getting older, so we don’t have a lot of time together anymore, but when we do it’s great and I’m privileged and honored they are here today.
“To accept this responsibility, I’m honored in every way to serve our community and to serve all those within the community I now know,” he continued. “And for those who I don’t [know] yet, hopefully someday soon.
“I have been fortunate to work alongside some really qualified, experienced, well-meaning people. … Former Mayor Mike [Kuczinski], I have had the opportunity to work with more closely this past year and who I have seen do a tremendous job, and my starting point is largely the behaviors and processes of those who have come before me.
“Some little things have changed, but as a whole, we work very effectively as a group. Nancy has many years of experience as mayor. And Fiore, who I have known for 15 years and I know is not only an incredibly capable person, but someone who is just also a natural leader, a bridge builder and analytical.
“Together, we have all worked together very closely and very well, also with Committeeman Kinsey, who can’t be here tonight, who we all owe a tremendous debt of gratitude for what he has helped do for our community in helping get our finances in order,” Dorfman said. “I’m thankful to all of you.
“I look to my right and we have some of our key township employees and personnel,” he said. “Maria Dellasala, who serves as our township administrator, really the glue that holds it all together, and she is supported by a group of awesome department heads, [deputy clerk] Kathleen Hart [and] Annette [Murphy], our CFO. These are folks who wake up and are genuinely interested in doing what is best for our community, what best serves our citizens, and I’m thankful for them.
“There are [also] experts who we rely upon for guidance, our township attorneys, engineers, the auditors, the specialists on various boards and commissions, and it’s from those people who we seek guidance and we hear their expertise, and then we have to determine our course of action. So it’s those people who help outline to us our strategies and options when we face challenges and we have got some great folks we rely upon.”
Grbelja was elected to serve as deputy mayor for 2018. Having joined in 2004, Grbelja is the longest-serving member of the governing body. She has served as mayor nine times, including eight consecutive years from 2006-13.
Masci described Grbelja as someone who “tells you what it is. And I mean that in a good way. Unfortunately, people who do our job today, we get mislabeled and miscategorized, but the fact of the matter is there was no misunderstanding. You knew where you stood when somebody talked to you. And most people have an appreciation for that honesty.
“Passion, selfless and dedicated – I will use them all again because they are words that describe [Grbelja] as a person and why you have been really good for this town,” he said.