By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
The members of the Wyoming City Council openly admitted they had a tough decision between two potential candidates for the city’s open council seat but by the end of last night’s special meeting, the council made the unanimous decision to appoint business owner Sheldon DeKryger.
DeKryger will fill the 1st Ward Commission seat vacated by Bill Ver Hulst due to his resignation earlier this month. The appointment is through November when the seat is up for election.
“Looking over the resumes we received here, I said to my wife, we can’t go wrong with either one of them,” said Mayor Pro Ten Sam Bolt during discussions on the candidates, which were DeKryger and business owner and 18-year Wyoming resident Jennifer Franson.
Regardless of who was selected, Council member Dan Burrill said during the meeting, he hoped that both would continue to stay involved in the community.
DeKryger and his family have lived in Wyoming since 1995. He has three children attending Tri Unity Christian School, where he has been a board member for the past five years and was the building site coordinator for a recent addition at the school located on Wilson Avenue. He has one son attending Western Michigan University. He is a member of Resurrection Life Church, where he serves as a deacon and has been involved in the Powerhouse Ministry, an inner city Sunday school program that would set up at different sites in Wyoming, Kentwood, and the Grand Rapids area providing Bible lessons for local children.
DeKryger has a degree in economics from Calvin College and he currently owns and manages a residential building company that is based in Wyoming. According to DeKryger he got into construction due to his father-in-law and has enjoyed the field. He has served on the city’s Construction Board of Appeals for the last nine years.
He will serve out the remainder of the term which expires this fall at which time he plans to run for the seat.
“This is something that I have been taking about and my wife and I have gone back and remember a conversation I had with a person from six years ago,” DeKryger said during the his interview at the special meeting. “…we were talking about the city council back then and I don’t even know what seat it was for, but it was ‘hey, have you ever thought about running for City Council’ and it planted a seed and it is something that I’ve always wanted to do.
“I knew there was going to be opportunities this year so at that point I filed my paperwork. I was going to run this fall in the November election and the reason that I am here today is things got speed up and if I am running in November there is no reason I shouldn’t be sitting at this table hoping you guys will listen to me and try to get this appointment.”
DeKryger currently is the only candidate who has filed for the 1st Ward seat for the upcoming election. That area covers most of the eastern edge of the city which is Clyde Park Avenue to Eastern Avenue north of 36th Street and from Burlingame Avenue to Eastern Avenue south of 36th Street.
Beside’s the 1st Ward seat, two council member-at-large seats, currently held by Kent Vanderwood and Sam Bolt, and the mayor’s seat, currently held by Jack Poll, are up for election. Vanderwood, Bolt and Poll said they all plan to run for re-election for their current positions.
Those interested in running for any of the council or mayor seats need to file with the Wyoming City’s clerk office by 4 p.m. April 24. The clerk’s office is located in the Wyoming City Hall, 1155 28th St. SW. Candidate packets are available at the front desk.
