Godlewski, Fletcher Elected to Lake Fenton School Board

A little rain didn’t bother Larry Godlewski or Chris Fletcher.

The two Lake Fenton school board candidates stood outside in the nasty weather Tuesday, armed with umbrellas, to earn a few extra votes.

The strategy worked, as both earned seats on the Lake Fenton Board of Education.

Godlewski earned 598 votes, while Fletcher tallied 544. Incumbent David A. Foerster had 204, and former board member Carrie Dershem had 305.

Both earned four-year terms that start July 1. They will replace board Vice President John Lamb and Trustee Tammy Harbin.

Kristi Ocenasek ran unopposed and won a partial three-year term on the board.

Godlewski, 40, is an engineer at the Ford Research and Innovation Center in Dearborn. He is also the president of the Lake Fenton Little League board. He believes his engineering background qualifies him well in the area of data analysis, which he said will be vital when it comes to discerning how to manage the district’s funding.

“It feels wonderful. This was unexpected,” Godlewski said. “I had no idea of what to expect going into this. It’s the first time I’ve ever done anything like this. It’s nice to have the support of the Lake Fenton community.”

Fletcher, 38, is a director of engineering and technical service for Ironco, a steel manufacturing company.

“It means people saw us and thought we could get the job done,” said Fletcher, who lost his voice while speaking to so many voters Tuesday. “It means people believe we have character and ideas that can be helpful to the board, and I’m glad people see me in that light.”

Bodlewski and Fletcher each plans to learn the ropes before attacking the issues.

“With us both being rookies, we will have to have some training and learn the protocol and the policies,” Fletcher said.

Ocenasek, 50, is the clinic coordinator for pediatric dentistry at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She served on the Lake Fenton school board from 2004-08. She was the PTA president when her son went to West Shore Elementary, and she said this kind of community experience is important so that people “have an idea of what’s expected of board members.”