By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
Three members of City Council who faced no opposition during a decidedly low-key May municipal election were sworn in to new terms Thursday in a ceremony that included prominent roles for their family members.
Mary Tighe, Jack Gibson and J.B. Feeley all thanked their families and the voters for their support while also pledging to continue to collaborate with Mayor Leonard Desiderio’s administration to run Sea Isle City’s municipal government.
As part of the annual reorganization meeting, Gibson was unanimously appointed Council president, a post that is traditionally held for 12 months and rotates among the members of the governing body. The president conducts the meetings, oversees the agenda and acts as chief spokesperson for Council.
“I thank God at my age to be up here and still able to serve,” the 87-year-old Gibson told the audience.
Administering the oath of office to Gibson was his 82-year-old brother, L. Anthony Gibson, a retired New Jersey Superior Court judge. Following the swearing in ceremony, Anthony Gibson made heartfelt remarks about his older brother.
“Jack has been my hero for over three-quarters of a century,” he said.
Tighe and Feeley’s families also played a major part of the ceremony, standing next to them as they were sworn in by City Clerk Shannon Romano. Their family members included Tighe’s mother, Marie Tighe, and Feeley’s wife, Eva.
“I think she truly enjoys me getting out a couple of days a week,” Feeley joked of his wife’s feelings about his Council duties.
In other remarks, Feeley extended his gratitude to his running mates as well as the two other Council members, William Kehner and Frank Edwardi.
“Their advice on Council was insurmountable,” Feeley said.
Feeley also praised Romano for her efforts in helping to oversee the city government during the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“What she did was above and beyond the call,” he said.
Gibson also complimented the “talented” group of professionals who comprise the city’s government. He said he was looking forward to continuing his relationship with the Council members and administration.
“We work in harmony, and it’s been a pleasure to work with them,” Gibson said.
Tighe also emphasized that she enjoys serving with her fellow Council members and the administration.
Council members serve four-year terms and are chosen at-large in a nonpartisan municipal election. Gibson, Tighe and Feeley ran on a unified ticket in May that ignored party affiliation.
Feeley has been the leader of the local Democratic Party for 40 years, while Tighe and Gibson are Republicans.
Tighe, Gibson and Feeley also ran on the same ticket when they faced no opposition during the 2017 election. In what was his first election then, Feeley became the first Democrat to join Council since Sea Isle began the Mayor-Council form of government in 2007.
Sea Isle’s elections are usually devoid of any vitriol or drama because the incumbents routinely run without opposition. There have been no challengers for any of the Council or mayoral races dating back to at least the 2015 election.
In thanking voters for their support, Tighe, Gibson and Feeley said they hoped May’s uncontested election was a show of confidence in their leadership.
“It wasn’t much of a competition, but we appreciate that the voters had confidence in us and voted us back in,” Tighe said.
Tighe, 51, is one of the five original Council members who were elected when Sea Isle switched from a Commission-style form of government to the Mayor-Council format in 2007. She is the assistant director of nursing for the Cape May County Health Department in her full-time job.
She has been elected five times and May’s race was the fourth in a row where she was unopposed.
Gibson, who served in the state Assembly for 12 years but lost his seat when seeking re-election in 2005, won his first term on Sea Isle Council in 2013. He is a semi-retired civil engineer.
Feeley, 72, formerly served in a number of appointed positions over the years, including the Sea Isle Planning Board and as chairman of the Cape May County Board of Elections.
He retired in 2014 from his position as senior project development officer at the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, a state agency that uses Atlantic City casino revenue for housing and economic development projects.
