Wik is supervisor, White joins board
Submitted Photos Tom Wik, left, was sworn in as the new Sheridan Town Supervisor at the board’s regular August meeting. His wife, Mary, is pictured holding the Bible as he took his oath of office.
Joe White is shown while taking his oath of office to officially become a Sheridan Town Councilman. His wife, Kathy, held the Bible as he was sworn in by Town Justice Jonathan Szumigala.
Submitted Photos Tom Wik, left, was sworn in as the new Sheridan Town Supervisor at the board’s regular August meeting. His wife, Mary, is pictured holding the Bible as he took his oath of office.
Joe White is shown while taking his oath of office to officially become a Sheridan Town Councilman. His wife, Kathy, held the Bible as he was sworn in by Town Justice Jonathan Szumigala.
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SHERIDAN -- The town has found itself a supervisor, as a member of the Town Board stepped up to assume the role at a recent meeting.
Tom Wik was recently appointed as supervisor for the remainder of the year. Wik was officially sworn in at the August monthly meeting of the Town Board, as his wife, Mary, held the Bible he placed his hand over during his oath of office.
"I was honored to be appointed as Supervisor," Wik said. He has served on the Town Board since 2017.
Wik will serve the rest of the year as supervisor, then will appear on the ballot this fall for the two years that remained on the term of former Supervisor John Walker II, who died in June. Deputy Supervisor Richard Feinen had been serving as acting Supervisor from the time of Walker's death until Wik's appointment.
Wik, an engineer, has many years of experience in local government prior to his time in Sheridan. He previously lived in Amherst, where he served his local government in various roles for over 30 years. He also worked with the Erie County Water Authority for 10 years.
"Basically, I'm interested in good government and running the town as efficiently as possible, keeping taxes low," Wik said.
A registered Republican, Wik has lived in Sheridan for approximately seven years now, and has been on the Town Board for nearly all of his time since calling the town home. When asked, Wik cited his experience in government and knowledge as an engineer as assets he can bring to the role.
"I want to be responsive and responsible to the residents of the town," Wik said.
To fill Wik's spot on the Town Board, Joe White was appointed as a board member. White also took his oath of office at the August monthly meeting of the Town Board, and like Wik, his wife, Kathy, held the Bible for him as he was sworn in.
A veteran of the U.S. Army who served his country for 28 years, White was on various committees while in the military. He served in the Army infantry division and also worked for the Department of Treasury.
"I'm kind of used to service, so to speak," White joked.
A native of Dunkirk, White, 79, has lived in Sheridan since 2003. He and his wife, Kathy, moved back to Western New York from Louisiana after he finished his time in the Army.
"Having been all over the world and having dealt with different folks from different backgrounds, I know people pretty well, and I've always gotten along with everybody," White said. "But I understand that sometimes you're not going to please 100 percent of the people 100 percent of the time."
After Walker's death in June, not many candidates came forward with a desire to fill the open spot on the board. White stated that to his knowledge, only he and Susan Bigler expressed interest in the seat.
"There didn't seem to be many people that were going to step forward, so I figured I'm retired from the Army ... I live in the town, I'm going to do my part to help out," White said.
White described himself as a fiscal conservative. He plans to take the responsibility of managing taxpayer funds very seriously.
"I'm of the opinion that it's not my money that we're going to spend, it's your money. I'm going to be very judicious about spending money," White said. "People work hard around here; I'm not going to spend their money unless it's an absolute necessity."
Wik said of the new dynamic of the board, "I think we'll work great together."
The Sheridan Town Board meets at 7 p.m. every second Wednesday of each month at the Sheridan Town Hall.