From left, Greenwood City Court Judge Lewis Gregory swears in Erin Betron after she was selected in a Republican Party caucus Thursday at the Greenwood City Center.
Noah Crenshaw | Daily Journal
A local veteran and former volunteer firefighter will serve as Greenwood’s next city council member.
Erin Betron was selected to fill a vacant city council at-large seat during a Republican Party caucus at the Greenwood City Center Thursday. The seat was left vacant following the resignation of Drew Foster last month, who was selected to fill the seat in a 2022 caucus.
Six candidates ran in Thursday’s caucus: Betron, Shane Cunningham, Bob Golinksi, Steve Moan, Joel Reed and Chad Riddle. Three rounds of voting by 40 precinct committee members took place before Betron was named the winner, though she had a lead from the first ballot.
In the first round, Betron led with 15 votes, followed by Moan with 16, Golinksi with six, Reed with four, Riddle with one and Cunningham with zero. After Cunningham was eliminated, Betron received 20 votes, followed by Moan with 18, Golinksi and Reed with one and Riddle with zero.
In the third and final round, Betron won with 21 votes — the majority needed to win. Moan received 18 votes, followed by Golinksi with one. Riddle was eliminated after the second round.
Being selected in the caucus came as a surprise to Betron. She felt humbled, she said after being sworn in.
“I knew that God would put me wherever I’m supposed to be, and that’s the mindset I came in this with,” Betron said. “If this is what I’m supposed to do, then then I would win, and apparently that’s in the cards for me now.”
Betron is not originally from Greenwood but she and her husband chose the city to raise their two daughters. She retired from the U.S. Army National Guard last year and currently works at Eli Lilly and Co. in Indianapolis. She attends Emmanuel Church in Greenwood.
“Greenwood is a place I’ve always looked at as being a safe place that has amazing schools and has a lot of that small town feel with the big town amenities,” she said. “That’s really what drew me here.”
Service has always been a core value of Betron’s, and this is just another way to do it, she said. Along with serving in the military, she also is a former volunteer firefighter with the Greenwood Fire Department.
“Serving has always been a big part of who I am and what I want to do in this life, and now that I’ve hung up my hat in one area, I’m ready for the next challenge and that’s what I see this as,” she said.
As a city council member, Betron wants to be part of creating a safe environment for the city that can draw people in and make them feel Greenwood is a great place to raise their families and to bring their businesses, she said.
She also is here to listen to her constituents.
“I’m here to hear their voice and I pray to do them well,” Betron said.
Betron will serve until Dec. 31, the end of the seat’s current elected term. She has also filed to run for election to one of the three at-large city council seats in the May primary.
Caucus candidates Golinksi and Moan have also filed for at-large seats, along with incumbent Mike Campbell and newcomers Jarrett Law, Brian Moore and Ronald Palmer.
