During her two terms serving Ward 1 on the Hastings City Council, Tina Folch’s voice always was heard.
Folch chimed in on every agenda item and fought hard for projects near and dear to her and her constituents. She was honored at the council meeting Monday, March 4. Her final day as a member of the Hastings City Council was Monday, May 11. The council two weeks ago chose DawnMarie Vihrachoff to fill out the remainder of Folch’s term, which runs through the end of the year. The seat will be on the ballot on Nov. 5 with candidates filing for candidacy this summer.
Along with Lisa Leifeld, Folch was the longest-serving member of the city council. The two were first elected in 2016. Folch was presented with a commemorative picture of Hastings City Hall to remember her time in service to the community. She has plans to marry and move out of the city.
Mayor Mary Fasbender credited the work Folch has done for her constituents.
“You’ve been such a wonderful advocate for your ward,” said Fasbender. “I’m not saying goodbye, but I just want to thank you for everything you’ve done, and you will continue to do with your life in your new community. I know you’re not going to just sit there. You will become active in whatever you choose to do. We just would like to wish you the best, and I appreciate everything you’ve done and being a voice on the council for seven years and three months.”
Leifeld recalled when she and Folch got on the council and what she’s meant for Hastings.
“She ran an amazing campaign. She’s so dedicated to what she does,” said Leifeld. “I for one have learned too much from you in the last 7-1/2 years. So many phone calls. ‘Can you explain this? ‘What do you think about this?’ You know, she’s probably one of the most well-read individuals I know, and I’m not even certain that she slept in the last 7-1/2 years. I’m always amazed at your passion, your ideas, your commitment to those ideas and your drive to want to get those ideas. Love it or hate it, but things move slowly here and watching you continue to push the envelope for what you truly need, whether it was the people of your ward or the entire community.”
Folch has been bringing up issues regarding PFAS contamination for years, and Hastings is being forced to tackle that head on now.
“I can think of the conversations over the last seven years. We heard a lot of ‘Well, let’s wait and see.’ And you were constantly saying this is something that’s happened, this has happened. We have to do something. And now here we all are, and it’s happening. So, Tina’s crystal ball was right all those years,” said Leifeld. “I’m a better councilmember for having had this relationship with you. I just really hope your new neighborhood knows who is moving in. You’re going to find your home there, and you’re going to fall in love with people there, and then you’re just going to have to help them just like you hopped on the bus here.”
Jen Fox said Folch was an incredible mentor for her since she nudged Fox to run for city council.
“She would tell me this is how you should speak up. This is how you can be a voice for our community. You are so passionate about lifting people up around you,” Fox told Folch. “Thank you for bringing me here today. Thank you for your passion.”
Folch said it’s been an honor to serve in Hastings.
“This community has been my home most of my life. I think that there are many of us who were raised here, graduated from high school and then as young adults, find our way back home and raise our own children and have families here. Hastings is a big, small town, and we have a strong sense of community,” she said. “When I first ran for city council in 2015, I wanted to serve our community because I saw an opportunity for improvement. And in the past eight years, we have accomplished a great deal. But it’s taken a lot of tenacity to see the biggest successes cross the finish line.”
She thanked her family and city staff for their “high level of professionalism that they bring and the commitment that they have to serving our residents.”
“We are nothing without them,” she said. “I’d like to thank Mayor Paul Hicks, Mayor Fasbender and all the other councilmembers who have served with me. Although we most definitely have not agreed on everything, it is through our different views and our civil discourse that we have become better.”
