Village faces battles at the polls

Two square off for Village President job; six run for three Trustee posts

By Dee Longfellow

For The Independent

With Bensenville Village President Frank Soto resigning his position for a position in state government, the seat is left open with two candidates vying for the top spot. They are Henry Wesseler and Frank DeSimone.

Wesseler grew up in Bensenville and graduated from Fenton High School and later served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He is a Master Mason/Shriner and also is a member of American Legion Post 1205.

Wesseler believes that families are the foundation of a community and as Trustee he works to ensure that our school districts receive every cent of tax revenue due from the O’Hare Expansion Program. He has worked with Village President Soto to set transparent and equitable criteria for TIFs so that schools are not jeopardized by the use of the measure.

Wesseler has served on the Bensenville Park District Board of Commissioners from 2005 through 2009, where his business expertise proved to be a valuable asset in his service.

Currently employed as a Public Service Representative for the Illinois Secretary of State office, Wesseler believes that government should be run with the same kind of efficiencies and professionalism. As a Trustee, Wesseler feels he brought fiscal responsibility and accountability to Village operations.

He is a parishioner and former Church Council member at St. Alexis. He currently serves as an Usher and Lector.

The other name on the ballot vying for Village President is Frank DeSimone.

Frank DeSimone has spent his career in law enforcement and feels he is familiar with government operations at all levels. A detective with a neighboring community, DeSimone knows how critical it is to have a good relationship between local government and its residents.

DeSimone uses his management and law enforcement experience to be a voice for Bensenville residents, demanding an open budget process, disciplined spending, and a commitment to lowering taxes.

A Bensenville resident for the past 13 years, DeSimone is married to wife Lisa and has two children. He coaches for the BBAA and helps obtain sponsorship’s for their athletic programs. He is the President of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 170 and raises money to purchase toys to be distributed at local hospitals and organizes Santa visits to schools.

Two persons running for Village Clerk are Amanda J. Mendoza and Nancy Quinn.

Residents can vote for three out of six candidates for Village Trustee, who are David J. Majeski, Sergiusz “Sergio” Zgrzebski, Joseph Pisano, Ann Franz, McLane “Mac” Lomax, and Armando Perez.

There are four people on the ballot to serve on the Bensenville Community Public Library District. Voters will choose no more than two from among the following: Sandra Granger, Anthony Sumner, Susan Diamond, and Kathleen Quinn.

There is no candidate who has stepped forward to serve an unexpired two-year term on the Library Board.

At the Bensenville Park District, Nancy Gibbs is running unopposed for Park Commissioner. At School district 2 in Bensenville there are three persons running for three slots. They are: Alexander Stitgen, Christian Constante, and Susan M. Vitellaro.

Addison Township

The candidates for Addison Township include:

Township Supervisor (vote for 1)

Dennis M. Reboletti

Rochelle Corso

Township Clerk (vote for 1)

Pamela Joy Moretti

Robert A. Peickert

Township Assessor (vote for 1)

Christopher T. Kain

No Candidate

Township Highway Commissioner (vote for 1)

Donald Richard Holod

Michael K. O’Hara

Township Trustee (vote for not more than 4):

Matthew Joseph Lozich

Mark Joseph Nowak

Diana Lynn Kosmach

Konstantinos “Gus” Leventis

Shirley Swanson

Paula Masilotti

JoAnn Landstrom Pelikan

Richard Accomando