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Justin Seese, 19, Ashville’s new mayor, is congratulated on Wednesday by his grandmother, Laverne Passanita – a former Ashville mayor – and Cambria County Commissioner P.J. Stevens, above. Below, Seese chats with Judge Timothy Creany. John Rucosky
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John Rucosky
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Young mayor follows grandmother’s footsteps
EBENSBURG — The new mayor of Ashville may be young – he’s only 19 – but he says that he’s eager to work for borough improvements while realizing that money is tight for the small community of about 280 residents.
Justin Seese, one might say, is following in the footsteps of his grandmother, 75-year-old Laverne Passanita, who was Ashville’s mayor for 12 years in the 1960s and 1970s.
In addition, both Laverne and her husband, Joseph , formerly served on Borough Council - she for 12 years, and he for 25.
On Wednesday, Seese, a Democrat, was sworn into office by Cambria County Judge Timothy Creany in a brief ceremony at the courthouse as Laerne watched.
Creany said that the event is one of the nicer duties he gets to perform as a jurist.
“This is unique, not only passing down generation to generation but also your age – you’ve got to be one of the youngest mayors in Pennsylvania,” Creany said.
It’s not a state record, Courtney Accurti, spokeswoman for the state Boroughs Association, said.
In the 6 1/2 years she’s been with the state group, “we’ve had a number of both council and mayoral positions filled with people between the ages of 18 and 20. It’s not common, but it does happen, and it’s exciting to hear that somebody of that age is interested in their community,” Accurti said.
In the area, at least two young people in recent years have been elected. Tyler Trimbath, at the age of 19, was elected to a two-year term on the Portage Area school board in 2005, and Aaron Tedjeske, at the age of 20, was elected to Windber Borough Council in 2001.
Seese said that in becoming mayor, “I’ll be learning as I go. I'd like to get some grant money for the borough, particularly for the streets (improvements).”
He’s also interested in whether the borough would be able to have expanded police service. Currently, he said, Ashville has a part-time police chief and a part-time police officer.
Seese, who was 18 when he ran in the primary election, also won a council seat, but decided to accept the mayor’s seat. He works as a laborer at J-Lok in Cresson and is the father of a
2-year-old son, Ayden Allen Seese. He said that he and his fiancee, Katie Young, plan to marry and live in Ashville.
“It’s a quiet town and a good place to raise a family,” he said. “I have no desire to relocate.”
His interest in helping his town began at the age of 8 when Seese began following his grandfather – then a volunteer firefighter – to the fire hall, Laverne recalled.
Seese is a member of the Ashville Volunteer Fire Company. He joined as a junior firefighter at the age of 14.
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