You might call Joe Sehlhorst a true "man about town." He seems to be everywhere. Sehlhorst earlier this month added one more line to his hometown resume when he joined Bluffton council on Jan. 9.
He credits his family as a major reason that he sought the office, but we all know it's lots more than that.
"My great uncles, Bob, Gene and Jim Benroth always took pride in Bluffton. I knew it was home and I wanted to get involved," he said. "Politics in Bluffton is more of a town pride thing."
Sehlhorst ran unopposed for the seat vacated by long-time council member Jerry Cupples, who decided not to run in November.
The new council member has high hopes for Bluffton's future. "We need to sell the town - show other communities our success and be the leader for future growth," he said.
Sehlhorst's background is "Bluffton." He is a 1996 Bluffton High School and 2001 Bluffton University graduate. As a business administration, finance and marketing major, he continued his education after college and holds a master's of marketing from the University of Phoenix.
He is treasurer of the Bluffton University Alumni Association. He is also an independent agent for Primerica Financial Services.
The new council member hopes that Bluffton's council will work with the chamber, churches and community organizations in getting things accomplished in the next four years. "Let's find a common bond and work toward a common goal," he said.
With a strong finance background, he said that he realizes the village budget will need to be watched carefully. "You always need to be in your budget. You need to spend wisely. Where you spend needs to be toward a future growth," he said. "I think we've survived the worst of times. We have a lot of momentum and we can't be stagnant."
Speaking of Bluffton's retail district Sehlhorst says we need to continue to work to maintain a full downtown.
"One of the areas I hope we focus on in the next four years is our village parks. They need a lot of attention. I hope we can get some volunteers to help maintain them," he said. "I also hope to make a strong push to maintain our street program. We need to keep our streets in good shape," he said.
How's the best way to voice village concerns to Sehlhorst? "I'm kind of an 'everywhere' persons. I'm accessible," he said.
A case in point for his accessibility: This interview took place in Common Grounds, where Phil Zimmerly admits Joe is one of his more frequent customers. During the interview, Sehlhorst tipped off the Icon about Onalee Shepler's back-to-back 300 bowling games, which took place the night before.
