“I have thoroughly enjoyed serving in the city, both as mayor and previously as council member and certainly as state legislator. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it,” said Lehner, 75, who said it’s time to give younger people a chance to step up.
Although she will not hold political office, Lehner said there are still a lot of issues and needs in the greater community, particularly those affecting children and the poor.
“I don’t think any of us can afford to walk away from some of these public issues, and I don’t intend to. I just won’t do it as mayor, but I will serve as called and where I think I can make a difference,” Lehner said.
Elected mayor in November 2021, Lehner returned to the Kettering City Council where she was an at-large councilwoman from 1998-2008.
She succeeded her longtime friend Don Patterson, the city’s longest-serving mayor who spent 16 years in the role. They were both first elected to council seats in 1997 and served together for 10 years.
“Peggy was impactful on everything she did,” said Patterson, who added that he was honored to have served with her.
During their shared time, the city of Kettering experienced a growth in population with new and expanded businesses to provide jobs for residents and the revenue needed to benefit the community.
“We had a shared vision of what needed to be done,” Patterson said.
Returning to familiar surroundings as mayor, the issues facing the city were not. She provided leadership as the city navigated COVID-related health issues and the impact of the work-from-home trend.
In the Ohio Statehouse, Lehner served for 12 years in Ohio House of Representatives and the Ohio Senate, where she led the education committee.
As a state senator, the Republican in 2015 unveiled a bipartisan bill to overhaul Ohio’s charter school system to bring more accountability and background checks. She also co-sponsored a bill requiring schools to notify parents within two hours if a child doesn’t show up for school.
“Peggy is the definition of a true public servant. She leads with heart, cares deeply about others, and has dedicated her career to improving and saving the lives of children through her work in education and health care,” said U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio. “Tina and I wish her and Jim all the best in a well-earned retirement.”
Lehner said her first introduction to public issues was on the Ohio Ethics Commission, where she served from 1991-97.
Before that, the mother of five children and grandmother of 14, including a grandson who died in October 2021 in a rowing accident, was president of Ohio Right to Life from 1984-88 and active at St. Albert the Great Catholic Church, where she served on the parish council from 1984-87.
She credits Husted among others for encouraging her to run for Kettering City Council.
She followed Husted to the Ohio Statehouse, where she was elected first to the House seat he vacated, then to his former Senate seat.
After her election to the Ohio House, Lehner was in a unique situation when she was appointed to the Ohio Senate to fill out the last month of Jeff Jacobson’s “lame duck” session before she assumed her House seat. Husted was House speaker so he was not able to fill his new seat early.
She quit following his political path because he went up too high, she joked, serving as Ohio’s secretary of state and lieutenant governor before his appointment to the U.S. Senate to fill Vice President JD Vance’s seat.
As she is winding down her public role, Lehner said the political climate is worrisome and that she is concerned it will deter people from stepping forward.
“It’s my sincerest hope that good people will continue to run for these public offices,” she said. “We shape our own lives and we shape our own communities. And if we fail to do that, then I’m just fearful of the quality of communities we will have. So I really really encourage people to get involved and be part of finding solutions instead of creating problems.”
Three seek mayor’s post
Kyle Boze, a Fairmont High School teacher, and councilmen Bob Scott and Bryan Suddith have pulled petitions to run in the mayor’s race, according to the Montgomery County Board of Elections website.
Only Boze’s petitions have been filed and certified, records show.
The filing deadline is Aug. 21 for the Nov. 4 general election.
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