Message From Shorewood Village Manager Rebecca Ewald

SHOREWOOD, WI — "It takes a village," Shorewood's Village Manager Rebecca Ewald said in a message to the public, when referring to the job the village staff has done serving the community and running elections amid the new coronavirus pandemic.

"I am so impressed with their ability to adapt to whatever issues they encountered and train a whole new workforce to execute the election," Ewald said in the message.

Here's the message in its entirety:

A special message from Village Manager Rebecca Ewald

As I begin to reflect on the last month as an organization, there is one word that continually comes to my head: proud. Our staff has stepped up in one of the most challenging moments of our lifetimes, demonstrating extraordinary courage, passion, and cooperation to serve the Shorewood community. An organization’s strengths and weaknesses are emphasized during moments of conflict and uncertainty, and I believe the threat of COVID-19 illustrates our ability to problem solve and work together.

Never before have we seen pandemic circumstances surrounding an election. The lack of poll workers unable to work due to high risk concerns, the push for thousands of mailed absentee ballots, and the uncertainty about the election happening within 24 hours of opening the polls were just some of the major challenges we faced. Despite these challenges, Village Clerk Sara Bruckman and Customer Services Manager / Deputy Clerk Diane DeWindt-Hall showcased amazing leadership and composure. I am so impressed with their ability to adapt to whatever issues they encountered and train a whole new workforce to execute the election. Customer Service staff Ann Krechel and Teri Repins worked tireless hours with hardly any breaks responding to resident questions and processing thousands of absentee ballots. Planning Director Bart Griepentrog literally had to become a chief election inspector with only a few hours of training, and he stepped up to the plate to do a marvelous job.

And then there were the countless residents of Shorewood who worked the polls on Tuesday to ensure a safe, well run election. Please extend a hearty thank you to your neighbors in our community and additional Village staff who made this day possible for all of us to exercise our right to vote:

Wards 1-4: Sharon Grinker, Sam Nemanich, Angla Stancato, Kate Strattner, Elizabeth Jonas, McKenzie Edmonds, Rebecca Ewald, Andrew Gordon, Janet Krelein, Cathy Lathrop, Devin Powers, Gary Powers, Bob Woyak, Joan Champion, Ann McKaig, Heide Piehler, Emily Vieyra, Michal Woll, Bob Wilkinson

Wards 5-8: Jill Dittrich, Hayley Johnson, Lisa Quintero, John Calvin Curran, Jennifer Anderson, Justin Burris, Noah Kaufman, Tony McCoy, Linda Presto, William Ross, Nathan Anderson, Rachel Collins, Josh Knox, Anne Heinrich, Eve Detwiler, Nattinger Kinsey, Renee Edelstein, Judith Winn, Rhys Davies, Alexander Goltz, Sydney Sanchez, Beth Hengst, Sue Kelley

Wards 9-12: Heather Cook-Elliott, Mary Therese Guzniczak, Kathryn Hall, Kathleen Rollins, Nala Mallett, Leann Prentki, Nathan Bayer, Chelsea Cross, Carolyn Curran, Crystal Kopydlowski, Donald Lee, Victoria Ross, Barbara Weber, Paul Zovic, Nathan Brain, Ella Curran, Leslie Gutierrez, Leah Ilenfeld, Susan Lyles, Elizabeth Price, Milda Steinbrecher