Does Northampton County Council Need a Salesman?

It needs something, and a thirty-year veteran of aluminum sales has offered his services. Because he's a salesman, I'll let Republican John Breidinger speak for himself.

"I am submitting this letter to declare my interest in appointment to the vacancy on the Northampton County Council. I do this with great humility and understanding that J will never replace Wayne Grube as a public servant Coach Grube was a one in a million person of integrity, perseverance, and grit, and no one will do the job as he did. I could only try to emulate his sense of duty and his giving nature to serve the people of Northampton County.


"My credentials for the job include ten years on the Easton Area School Board, member of the board of directors of the Nazareth YMCA, Varsity E Club, Visiting Nurse Association of Easton, Phi Gamma Delta fraternity at Lafayette College, and the Wilson Area Partners in Education Foundation. I also coached midget football and baseball in Texas, Palmer, and Forks during the 1 970s and 1 990s. I have lived in Northampton County for 45 of my 53 years. My family and I lived in Kentucky and Texas for eight years from 1977 through 1984, during which time we gained an appreciation of our home area as well as a perspective of how other parts of the country function and govern themselves.

"Starting with the Easton Area School Board, 1 learned quickly how to get things done in a public setting while efficiently and effectively serving the taxpayers of the Easton Area School District. While a registered Republican, I operated on the school board in a non partisan way. I would operate on the County Council in the same way. (My main advisors when running for the board and while on the board included Democrats such as the late Walter Peters of Nazareth, Representative Richard Grucela, and former District attorney Charles Spaziani). My goals were always to serve the taxpayers, the students, and the employees of the district. I was determined to represent my constituents^ regardless of region, and to be an advocate of parents with children in school (at the time only one of the eight members of the board had children in school.) I also was determined to show taxpayers what they were paying for as well as the value they were getting for their tax money. Also in this capacity I worked in negotiations with the teacher's unions of the district as well as the Career Institute of Technology. I was involved in employee grievances and student expulsions, as well as major decisions regarding policy, budget, and relationships with the other districts in the county in addition to other educational j entities., including the Northampton Community College, the Intermediate Unit, and the Easton Public Library.

"As a Director on the boards of the Y, VNA, Varsity E, and Wilson foundation, I was involved in the budgeting and personnel process as well as fund raising and public relations aspects. As a member of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity house association, I worked with the students, faculty, and administration of Lafayette College, getting a much better understanding of the college I attended as an undergraduate. This experience was very helpful while I was on the school board, as Lafayette has a major impact on the school district tax base as well as the traditional Thanksgiving Day football game with Phillipsburg. In sending two student athletes to Lehigh, I also was exposed to the "other side" and all its positive attributes.

"My family has also broadened its horizons over the last four years. In 2004 we moved from Palmer Township to Bethlehem Township after my children graduated from Lehigh (of all places). Since moving, my wife and I have discovered the wonders of Bethlehem and this part of the county. While I have not taken an active role, I have attended meetings of the Bethlehem Township commissioners as well as the Bethlehem Area School Board. I was pleased to learn that we all have some of the same issues and have dedicated people who are constantly try to solve them. As a county councilperson I would be pleased to expand that knowledge base while drawing on my past relationships with taxpayers in the Palmer and Easton area.

"My career as a sales manager selling aluminum foil allows me to manage my schedule to attend meetings and visit county sites. I would welcome the opportunity to serve the people of Northampton County. However, should Mrs. Grube be appointed and accept the position of her late husband, I would withdraw my application."