Heather James

WINONA LAKE — During a caucus held Tuesday, Jan. 10, Heather James was elected as the ward 4 council member for the Winona Lake Town Council.

James ran unopposed in the election. The spot was vacated by former council member Robert Swanson, who had to abdicate his position after he moved out of the district.

During the caucus, James explained she graduated from Ball State University with a degree in health science. James and her husband moved to Warsaw 16 years ago when her husband was assigned to the Indiana State post in Bremen. They were given the choice to live in four surrounding counties and chose Kosciusko County. Eight years ago they moved from Warsaw into Winona Lake.

James went on to say she and her husband have three children ages 16, 12 and 7. While James has been a stay-at-home mom with their children for the majority of their childhood, she has also been active in the community. She has served in the Greater Warsaw Cooperative Preschool board for six years. For the past two years she has served on the high school theatre booster board as a parent representative.

For the last four years she has worked in the Winona Lake community at Grace College. She began working in the advancement department and later transitioned to the position of event coordinator for the Center for Lakes and Streams at Grace College. She has recently transitioned into the position of consultant for the center’s events and now works at a local dental office.

In a letter to the precinct committee members James wrote, “As my children are growing older, I am looking for meaningful ways to become more involved with the community we chose to live in and raise our children. My husband is a current member of the Winona Lake Park Board. I feel serving as a town council member is a way to give back to the community we have worked hard to be a part of and an opportunity to give back. I feel I am a good candidate for this position because I am a community-minded person with common sense.”