Baldwin council candidates want to foster strong sense of community

Baldwin Borough Council candidates want to see more recreation in the community and an increased focus on public safety.

Four candidates will appear on the Democratic ballot, seeking a party nomination for one of three, four-year seats. Candidates on the Democratic ballot include James Behers, Denise Maiden, Erin M. Brown and Patty Boyer.

Rebecca A. Conley is the only candidate seeking the Republican nomination for one of the three open four-year seats on borough council.

Behers, 70, a 45-year resident who has served on Baldwin council for eight years, says he strives to be upfront with residents and do what he says he’s going to.

“I love being able to help and do anything I can, especially for the senior citizens,” he said.

He also is a big proponent of the borough’s public safety, serving as chairman of council’s public safety committee.

The retired Port Authority worker lives with his wife Diana, who serves as the borough’s deputy tax collector and treasurer. They have two grown children.

Maiden, 65, a 43-year resident of Baldwin who raised her three children in the community, says she’s passionate about the borough.

Now retired from her job at a publisher that produced economics journals, Maiden said she has the time to dedicate to council. She hopes to use the problem-solving skills she honed on the job as well as her ability to help people understand the perspectives of others.

“I miss the challenge,” she said. “If I get a chance to give back, I’m going to take it.”

A grandmother of six, Maiden lives with her husband Thomas.

Brown, 41, a registered nurse and mother of four, wants to see more parks and recreation programs in Baldwin. She’d like to see things like a borough-organized Easter egg hunt, summer recreation program for the kids and more community events.

“I don’t think in Baldwin we do enough,” said Brown, a 1995 Baldwin High School graduate who lives in the borough with her husband Don and four children. “I would just love to see us start up more community things.”

The 16-year Baldwin resident grew up in Whitehall before moving to Florida for seven years.

Boyer, 64, retired three years ago from the secretary job she held in the Baldwin-Whitehall School District for 22 years. Now, she has the time to give back to her community, she said.

Last year, she joined the Baldwin Independent Fire Co. No. 1 as a volunteer administrative member.

If elected to council, she would like to use her experience as a union officer for 15 years with the PSEA. She wants to help with the fire departments, keep the parks safe and hire an event coordinator to organize events and promote the community.

The 37-year Baldwin resident’s daughter and son-in-law now live in the borough and are raising their family in the community.

“I want to put Baldwin big on the map,” she said. “I just love it here.”