Madison municipal election candidates

Madison mayoral candidates Troy Trulock ad Don Palmer.

The City of Madison 2012 general municipal election is Tuesday, Aug. 28. The mayoral candidates are Don Palmer and Troy Trulock. Six of seven City Council seats are up for election.

Don Palmer, mayoral candidate

Don Palmer came to the area in 2000, as director of the International Intermodal Center at Huntsville International Airport. Palmer is a global transportation logistics professional. He is founder and president of the International Society of Huntsville and works with Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle’s Multicultural Affairs Office to promote cultural diversity. Palmer is past president of the North Alabama International Trade Association.  He served four years on the Industrial Development Board of Madison. The Rotary Club of Greater Huntsville recognized him as Rotarian of the Year for his humanitarian work, notably in global polio eradication and fundraising. Additional information on Don Palmer is available at www.donpalmerformayor.com.

Troy Trulock, mayoral candidate

Troy Trulock retired from the Army so that his children could grow up in Madison, with a great quality of life and school system. As a successful business executive and a community leader who has helped lead several local organizations, Trulock knows that sound planning and good management are the keys to Madison’s future. As our city continues through the next phase of growth and development, he will focus on continuing to improve the quality of life so all of everyone’s children and grandchildren can live here and be as proud as he is of Madison. Up-to-date information about his campaign can be found at www.facebook.com/trulockformayor and www.trulockformayor.com.

Tim Holcombe, District 1

Councilman Tim Holcombe was elected to represent Madison’s District 1 in 2008, and his priorities include continued emphasis for the school system, business recruitment and development, continued infrastructure development, to include roads, bridges, bike lanes and sidewalks, and completion of the Bradford Creek Greenway. Tim is the Marketing Manager for the SunDrop / 7 Up Bottling Company, who distribute beverage products throughout a 12 county area of North Alabama. For more information on Holcome, visit www.madisonal.gov/directory.aspx?EID=37.

Heather Smith, District 1

Heather Smith is a social worker with Huntsville City Schools. Smith has been a resident of Madison County since 1996 and made Madison City her home in early 1998 when she and her husband Martin started their family. She has a background in the business world in both for profit and non-profit companies.  Smith holds a master’s degree from Alabama A&M University and has 20 years of experience in community service and leadership throughout the communities of Montgomery, Huntsville and Madison. She has spoken publicly on mental health issues and has been a strong advocate for children of all ages.

Steve Smith, District 2

Steve Smith was born and raised in Nashville, Tenn. He has resided in Madison for 18 years. He has over 20 years experience in transportation management, during which he dealt with budgets ranging from $500,000 to over $25 million. At one point, he was operations manager for the top profit center in the United States for a company with over 100 facilities and 20,000 employees. He has been a small business owner for the past 5 years. For more information on Smith, visit www.stevesmith-district2.com.

Devinti M. Williams, District 2

Devinti Williams is a government ethics attorney and business owner who believes in true fiscal responsibility, transparent decision-making and inclusive government. He began his career as a U.S. Army commissioned officer, and he served as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the U.S. Government. He is an active member of Union Chapel M.B. Church and has been married for over 13 years. For more information on Williams, visit www.williamsformadison.com.

Malcolm Johnson, District 3

Malcolm Johnson is a lifelong Madison resident, and he attended Madison City Schools since its inception. He is both a Bob Jones graduate and a University of Alabama in Huntsville graduate, where he majored in general business. He is proprietor of Silent Industries, a Madison small business serving the public safety sector, located in District 3. For more information on Johnson, visit www.johnsonformadison.com.

D.J. Klein, District 3

D.J. Klein moved to Madison in 1998 and graduated from Bob Jones High School. He served in the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Army Reserves, where he developed leadership skills and the ability to work effectively in a team. He holds a bachelor’s degree in management and is pursuing a master’s in business administration. For more information on Klein, visit www.klein4council.com.

Clifton Miller, District 4

Clif Miller was a U.S. Army Infantry and Logistics Officer from 1975-1995 and he retired as a Major. Miller has a bachelor’s degree in food science and technology from Alabama A&M University. He attended graduate school at the Florida Institute of Technology. He is a licensed real estate instructor and was president of Huntsville Area Association of Realtors in 2008. He has been married for 35 years and has two sons who are system analyst and defense contractors. For more information on Miller, visit www.voteclifmiller.com.

Michael T. Potter, District 4 Mike Potter completed two successful professional careers by the time he was 60. He is a 20-year U.S. Army veteran who retired in 1990 as a lieutenant colonel. As a systems engineer with the Raytheon Company, he achieved the technical level of engineering fellow before retiring in 2008. He actively supported the last two administrations in various volunteer positions. For more information on Potter, visit www.mike4madison.com.

Gerald Clark, District 6

Gerald Clark was born in Madison County and grew up on a farm, where he learned the value of hard work. He began his career at Smith Engineering in 1990, as a summer intern and then full-time after graduation until 2003. For his first project at Smith Engineering, he worked on Aldridge Creek Greenway in Huntsville. The first Publix in Alabama, at Airport Road and Whitesburg Drive, was the first project he managed. Clark joined Civil Solutions in 2003 and worked his way up to become a partner, and then sold to Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood in 2008, where he is currently employed. His work is primarily with municipal and commercial projects. For more information on Clark, visit www.geraldclarkdistrict6.com.

Larry Vannoy, District 6

Councilman Larry Vannoy was born in Blackwell, Oklahoma, to a military family. He became a Madison resident in 1986. Vannoy is a retired Colonel in the Air Force, having served 30 years. He holds a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology. He is currently employed as a targets launch director at Davidson Technologies. He was first elected to the Madison City Council in 2000. Vannoy and his wife opened and own Posh Mommy and Baby Too. For more information on Vannoy, visit www.madisonal.gov/directory.aspx?EID=42.

Sheila McFerran, District 7

A native of Dublin, Ireland, Madison and Morgan counties have been home to Sheila McFerran since 1980. Her experience includes McFerran Academy of Irish Dance founder and teacher, United Cerebral Palsy of Huntsville and Tennessee Valley director of development and community relations, U.S. Space & Rocket Center membership director, Huntsville Museum of Art development director, The Volunteer Center of Madison County president and CEO. She currently serves as director of program development for Still Serving Veterans. For more information on McFerran, visit www.sheilamcferran.com.

Ronica Ondocsin, District 7 Councilwoman Ronica Ondocsin earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering at University of Alabama in Huntsville. Ondocsin previously worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Army Space and Strategic Defense Command before leaving full-time work to spend more time raising her children. She has been serving as the President of the Madison City Council since November 2011. She currently serves as the liaison to the City’s Engineering Department, the Madison Station Historical Preservation Commission, the Madison Beautification and Tree Board, and is a member of the Human Resources Committee. For more information on Ondocsin, visit www.madisonal.gov/directory.aspx?EID=43.