Submitted
John Ankrom is announcing his intention to enter the 2016 Democratic primary and challenge for the seat in the Pickaway County Commissioners office currently held by Brian Stewart.
Coming off a successful four-year stint as the City of Circleville Service Director, Ankrom hopes to build upon the momentum created and extend it county-wide.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my four years in the service director’s chair, but my vision for our county extends beyond Circleville,” Ankrom said. “We are uniquely positioned in Pickaway County with abundant natural resources and quality people, adjacent to a prosperous metropolitan Columbus region. Growth is coming to us, and I want it to be a positive for our residents. That will require engaged, creative leadership in the Commissioner’s office.”
Ankrom is a life-long Pickaway County resident and graduated from Circleville High School in 1974. He received a degree in architecture from the University of Cincinnati in 1980, became a registered architect in 1982 and returned to Circleville in 1985 to open his own architectural firm and raise a family.
He and his wife, Teresa, have three grown children, Sean, Katy and Ben, and a granddaughter, Rosie.
Ankrom has been heavily involved in community service in addition to completing over 1,500 architectural projects in the area over the last 30 years, building houses and developing property. He has served as a deacon and trustee of the Presbyterian Church in Circleville and served as president of the Circleville City School Foundation, Churches United for Senior Housing and Circleville Athletic Boosters.
He recently completed terms on the Circleville Planning Commission and the executive board of the Ohio Public Works Commission – District 17. He is a member of the Board of Directors of The Savings Bank, a position held since 2002.
“My experiences have all helped to shape me into a person uniquely qualified to lead this county,” Ankrom said. “My family, including my father Ralph, who is a former township trustee and county commissioner, my mother Rosemary, my sisters, Joyce Lutz, Patty Truex and Betsy Richards, who are all educators, all share a deep love and loyalty to Pickaway County and its quality of life. I want to protect that for the next generation, while taking advantage of opportunities that come our way. I will be a hands-on, involved leader in designing our future.”
This article originally appeared on The Pickaway News Journal
