BELCHERTOWN – The newest elected member of town government did not even vote for himself.
Andrew Drawec, who received three write-in votes for a three-year seat on the Board of Health, said Tuesday that “it was a bit of a surprise” to learn that he had won a contest he had not entered. He does not know who voted for him.
There were no candidates on the May 16 ballot to replace Gail Gramarossa who did not seek reelection.
The annual town election drew 179 voters, which is 1.84 percent of the electorate.
There were no contested races this year and other than the open seat on the Board of Health, incumbents filled other posts. Select Board members William Barnett and George “Archie” Archible were returned to office for three-year terms with 146 votes and 143 votes respectively.
Similarly, School Committee member Myndi Bogdanovich, Planning Board member Daniel Beaudette, Assessor Raymond Goff and another Board of Health member, Gary Racicot, were all reelected unopposed.
Drawec, 23, graduated last year from Western New England University and works as an accountant in Springfield. His hobbies are biking and hiking.
Drawec said he has a long-standing interest in politics, attends most Town Meetings and has thought of serving in local government, though a seat on the Board of Health is not necessarily the first office he would have thought of seeking.
“It is going to be a learning opportunity,” he said. “I’m going to see the issues that come up, research them and (make decisions) to the best of my ability,” he said.
Drawec described himself as a fiscal conservative.
Drawec said he has not yet met his fellow board members but he is looking forward to getting started in his new position. “I’d like to do something for my community, serve the town and make Belchertown a better place to live,” he added.
By a unanimous vote at its regular Monday night meeting, the Select Board chose George “Archie” Archible, who was recently elected to his third term, to take over the chairmanship from Ronald Aponte.
Board members also voted to make Brenda Aldrich the vice chairwoman and Nicholas O’Connor the clerk.
Jason Spellacy, owner of Vehicle Ventures, a used car dealership in Chicopee, is opening up shop at 147 Bay Road in Belchertown.
The new dealership, just down the hill from the Roadhouse Restaurant, will have up to 30 cars on the lot. He will neighbor an inspection station and a salvage yard.
“It makes sense to have a dealership in that area,” Spellacy said Monday night soon after receiving approval by the Select Board for a Class II dealer’s license.
Spellacy said he specializes in selling cars under $10,000. “We do financing for good credit and bad credit, so we can help people out that way if they’ve had some issues, so they can get some wheels.”
There will be activities spanning three days to mark Memorial Day.
On Saturday, The American Legion will sell poppies at Belchertown businesses from 8 a.m. to noon.
On Sunday, the Belchertown Veterans Council, with the Friends of the Quabbin and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, will hold memorial services at Quabbin Park Cemetery beginning at 10:30 a.m.
And Monday’s activities will start with a salute to veterans at 8:30 a.m. at South Cemetery. The annual Belchertown Memorial Day Parade will step off from Town Hall at 10 a.m. ending at the town common. The guest speaker will be retired Corp. John F. Hurley Jr. of the U.S. Marine Corps.
Eric Goldscheider can be reached at eric.goldscheider@gmail.com.