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Sheila Alvarado

Commissioner Alvarado

Sheila is married to Carlos and together they are raising their children Eli and Aleiza to be engaged and responsible citizens of society.  She is a first-generation college graduate and proud to have attended the Allentown School District, where her children are currently students.

She was born in Puerto Rico and moved to Allentown with her parents. She has lived in Lehigh County for over 20 years.  She earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration, with a concentration in office systems from the University of Puerto Rico.  She moved back to Allentown in 2010, where she decided to dedicate her work to the community in which she was raised.

She will work to protect the very important services for our seniors, children and all the families of Lehigh County.  She will work to bridge the gap between government and citizens to create trust by sharing information directly with constituents.

Sheila has experience in the customer service field, community engagement, and in the non-profit sector and currently works in state government.  She is a Legislative Assistant to State Representative and Majority Chairman of the Education Committee, Peter Schweyer.  In her role she manages constituent inquiries, outreach events and communications.  Sheila is a member of the LANta Board of Directors where she serves as a community advocate regarding public transportation.  She is very active in her children’s education and serves on the parent advisory council to the Superintendent for the Allentown School District because she believes that our children’s educational success begins at home and spills into the schools.

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Ron W. Beitler

Commissioner BeitlerRon W. Beitler was elected to the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners in 2021 after serving as a Lower Macungie Commissioner for 8-years, the last 4 as board President. He is a lifelong resident of the area, graduate of Emmaus High School and proud State System of Higher Education Alumni earning a Bachelor’s Degree from Slippery Rock University in 2005.

Ron's focus in local government for nearly a decade has been land use planning, farmland & open space preservation, environmental stewardship, keeping taxes sustainably low and government transparency. During Ron's time in Lower Macungie the Board of Commissioners undertook and implemented a historic open space preservation program, won multiple Lehigh Valley Planning Commission awards, participated in a multi municipal comprehensive plan update and dramatically re-envisioned its zoning code to encourage economic growth within a smart growth framework. Ron served as a municipal member of the Lehigh County Farmland Preservation Board for 4 years. 

In his professional life, Ron is co-owner of two local small businesses. His second and most recent venture was opening Rising River Brewing Co. a brewery in a refurbished 120 year old barn in 2021. He's a past Lehigh Valley Business 40 under 40 honoree and has served on non-profit boards. 

Ron resides in the Village of East Texas neighborhood of Lower Mac with his 5 year old daughter Cecilia. When he has free time he travels, plays basketball, drums and goes to concerts. Ron is very proud to represent Lehigh County District 2 which includes Alburtis Borough, Lower Macungie, Upper Macungie and South Whitehall Townships.  

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Geoff Brace

Commissioner Brace

Commissioner Geoff Brace was elected to the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners in 2013.  He is married to Sara Jane, a Northern Lehigh graduate and Allentown school teacher.  Together they are raising their son, Isaac as active members of the community.

Commissioner Brace’s legislative efforts have included a focus on a strong regional economy with jobs that pay a living wage.  This includes strengthening the safety net that provides for seniors at Cedarbrook nursing home, human services for children and youth, mental health, intellectual disabilities and the homeless.  He has worked with other Commissioners to eliminate pay-to-play politics and supports campaign finance reform which ends the influence of big campaign dollars and special interests. Geoff also fights for a safe environment, raising concerns about lead poisoning in homes, protecting our natural resources, safeguarding our water supplies from run off through the Lehigh Conservation District and through strong support of expanded farmland preservation. He served as Chair of the Board of Commissioners 2021-2023 and Vice Chair in 2018.  

Geoff is a Lehigh County native.  As a teenager, his first job was mowing lawns by renting his Dad’s lawnmower.  Commissioner Brace also worked on a farm, mentored youth and has given a great deal of his time to the community as a volunteer. He has volunteered on Allentown Zoning Hearing Board, with efforts of the Old Allentown Preservation Association, Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley and the Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce, coached youth soccer and basketball, and served in local, regional, and national leadership of the United Church of Christ.

Commissioner Brace is Legislative Assistant to State Representative Mike Schlossberg, where he oversees legislation, policy and communication.  Geoff has developed extensive experience in community and economic development, having worked for the Pennsylvania Downtown Center, Kutztown Community Partnership, Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce and the West Chester Business Improvement District.  He uses these experiences to benefit Lehigh County and promote vibrant communities.

Geoff is a Parkland graduate, holds a bachelor’s degree from Ursinus College and a master’s degree from Lehigh University.  

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Zach Cole-Borghi

Commissioner Cole-Borghi

  Profile information coming soon.

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Jeffrey Dutt

 Lehigh County Commissioner, Jeffrey Dutt, was appointed to the board in November 2020 to represent District 5 in the county.    He is a lifelong citizen of Lehigh County, graduating from Whitehall High School in 1986.  He went on to earn his Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from Mansfield University in 1990.  He then earned his Master’s Degree in Special Education from Lehigh University in 1993.

Commissioner Dutt has dedicated his professional life to serving his community.  He has been a Special Education and History teacher in the Allentown School District, at both William Allen and Louis E. Dieruff High Schools.  He has been a teacher in the district for the past 18 years.  He has also served his hometown of Whitehall by being elected to the Board of Commissioners in 2015.  While serving his community, he helped start a senior center in the township in 2016 and served on many different committees, including secretary for the Veterans Memorial Committee, the MacArthur 75 Committee, as well as the Heritage Day Committee.

Commissioner Dutt will continue to work for farmland and historic preservation, fiscal responsibility, and develop solutions to the unique issues faced in our county today. 

He has lived in Emmaus since 2019.  He met his wife, Nancy, in 1990, and they have been married for the past 27 years.

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Dan Hartzell

Commissioner Hazell

Democrat Dan Hartzell is a commissioner at-large who took office in January 2016.

He retired in September 2014 after more than 38 years as a reporter and columnist for The Morning Call newspaper in Allentown. Dan wrote the 'Road Warrior' question-and-answer column on traffic and transportation issues during his last 12 years at the paper.

A lifelong Lehigh Valley resident, Dan is a Whitehall High School alumnus and a 1973 Kutztown University graduate with a B.A. in English.

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Jon Irons

Jon Irons

Jon Irons was elected to the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners in 2023 representing the county at-large. He lives in Bethlehem with his wife Allison and his little dog Dingo. 

Jon was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador and was adopted by a family living outside Chicago where he grew up. He completed a bachelors in Anthropology at Butler University in Indianapolis in 2009, and then earned a masters in Anthropology at the University of British Columbia in 2012. Jon has worked in education for more than 10 years. He was the Student Activities Director at a private high school in California. He was the Teen Center Director at the Boys and Girls Club of Allentown and then worked as a case manager at Whitehall Coplay Middle School. Since 2021 he has been the Manager of Data and Evaluation for Communities in Schools of Eastern PA where he oversees training, continuous improvement, reporting, and data analytics for more than 40 school sites across Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Chester counties.

Jon moved to Lehigh County in 2017, and immediately joined the fight for racial justice, fair education funding, and ending mass incarceration. As a member of the Allentown Coalition for Economic Dignity, he collected signatures and supported the development of an inclusionary zoning ordinance in the City of Allentown. As a member leader of Lehigh Valley Stands Up, Jon organized for public safety reforms, housing justice, and led their political team by endorsing several winning local and state candidates in the area. With the Working Families Party, he helped organize ballot initiatives to end the use of solitary confinement in Lehigh County Jail and to create a dedicated mental health emergency response team in Allentown. In 2022, Jon was elected as a precinct committee person for the Lehigh County Democratic Committee where he sits on the executive board representing District 3. 

Outside of his professional and political work, Jon is an avid hobbyist. He plays flute (since 3rd grade), guitar, accordion, and is teaching himself the piano. He is an accomplished event and documentary photographer and is passionate about bird watching, cycling, and audiobooks.

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Antonio A. Pineda

Commissioner PinedaAntonio Pineda was elected Lehigh County Commissioner in 2021, representing District 1. He is a lifelong resident of Lehigh County and a graduate of  Whitehall High School. Antonio attended Columbia University, where he earned his degree in Earth and Environmental Engineering, and currently works locally in the cement industry for Buzzi Unicem USA.
As a Lehigh County Commissioner, Antonio serves on the Administrative and Human Resources, Finance, Governance, and Human Services committees. He is the board liaison to the Wildlands Conservancy and the Lehigh Valley Zoological Society.
Antonio has a passion for volunteering and giving back to his community in any way he can. He is the Vice President of the Whitehall Active Community Center, which provides services to the local senior citizen community. Also, Antonio serves on the Whitehall Township Environmental Advisory Council and is a member of the Rotary Club of Slatington.  In addition, Antonio has volunteered his time with the Whitehall-Coplay Middle School Science Olympiad team and previously served as a football coach at Louis E. Dieruff High School.

Antonio married his wife, Carrie, in 2019, and they reside in Whitehall Township

    

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April Riddick

                                     Profile Information coming soon.