With the deadline for submitting nominating petitions passing on April 6, it appears as though the Town of Fountain Hills will have an uncontested council election in 2020.

There is still time for people interested in qualifying as a write-in candidate; the deadline for that is June 25.

With the mayor’s seat expiring with this term, only incumbent Mayor Ginny Dickey filed paperwork by the deadline. Also, there are currently just three qualified candidates for the three council seats with expiring terms. Those seats are currently held by Councilman Dennis Brown, Councilwoman Sherry Leckrone and Councilman Art Tolis. Only Tolis showed interest in re-election but did not return nominating petitions by the deadline.

The three council candidates filing by deadline include Gerry Friedel, Sharron “Blue” Grzybowski and Peggy McMahon. Friedel and Grzybowski have run for council previously, but have not held office. McMahon is new to local politics.

Mayor Ginny Dickey

Ginny Dickey chose Fountain Hills as her hometown in 1983. Born and raised in New York, she followed her parents who had fallen in love with this desert community in the ‘70s. Her four siblings relocated to Arizona, creating a foundation that spans generations.

Dickey’s family includes husband, Jim, three sons, Jim’s son and daughter, spouses and nine grandchildren.

Dickey holds a math degree from Tufts University and was employed in related positions here, in Vermont and New Hampshire.

She was an Arizona State Senate staffer and an assistant director at ADEQ. After retiring, she worked with the U.S. Attorney’s Office as a neighborhood liaison.

Inducted into the Lower Verde Valley Hall of Fame in 2010, she participated in strategic planning, served on the school board, the arts council and as treasurer for the theater board and more, earning the theater’s 2009 Founders Award. She’s been active in several statewide groups.

Dickey was a Councilwoman for eight years, co-chairing the Centennial Committee and sitting on the MAG Domestic Violence Council until 2014. Elected mayor in 2018, she serves on the MAG Regional Council, attends GPEC mayors and supervisors meetings, serves on a public safety subcommittee and with regional and local groups in the course of her municipal responsibilities.

Gerry Friedel

Gerry Friedel has been a full-time Fountain Hills resident for six years and a property owner for 30 years. His professional qualifications include 39 years in the banking industry with 22 years as a loan officer and 17 years as a financial planner.

Friedel has a BA in bank management/finance from North Central College in Naperville, Ill., and a Certificate in Financial Planning from Loyola Business School in Chicago. He has worked with clients from all walks of life as well as small businesses, helping them to achieve their financial goals.

Friedel is originally from Glen Ellyn, Ill., where he served on the board of directors for the YMCA for 10 years. He currently serves on the Strategic Planning Advisory Commission for the Town of Fountain Hills. He is also a member of the Fountain Hills Sons of the American Legion and Precinct and State Committeeman for LD23.

As a former triathlete, Friedel enjoys swimming, cycling, running and has competed in over 100 races including Fountain Hills’ first half marathon in 2016. Friedel and his wife, Barb, enjoy participating in the town’s community events and shopping and dining locally.

Friedel believes his solid background in financial management will provide a fresh look at solutions for Fountain Hills. He believes in fiscal responsibility, accountability and transparency. Friedel looks forward to the opportunity to represent and listen to residents to shape the future of Fountain Hills.

Sharron Grzybowski

Sharron Grzybowski said she is running for Town Council to break up the logjam of politics. Grzybowski said she vows to lead by listening and transparency – to set politics aside and do what’s best for the Town of Fountain Hills.

To her role on the Town Council she wants to bring a vast and varied experience from the insurance and financial industries, as a family business owner, and in her dedication to community service.

Grzybowski has lived in four states and worked in insurance underwriting and compliance as well as a neighborhood bank. She left the corporate world to run her own businesses. Her biggest business venture was a fitness center she co-owned with Scott, her husband, a retired Navy veteran. Scott currently holds a senior position in an international IT firm.

Grzybowski has been a Scentsy Consultant for 10 years. She and her husband own the Vendor Venue on the Avenue of the Fountains.

She graduated from the Fountain Hills Leadership Academy, Class 4. She volunteers as range officer for Women of Steel, a firearm club; is a precinct committee person; and serves on the Fountain Hills Community Services Advisory Commission. She’s on the FH Celebrates 50 Committee, the FH Leadership Academy and EVIT Business Accelerator Boards. In 2019, she was named the Community Services Volunteer of the Year and this year was nominated for the Arizona Parks and Recreation Association Outstanding Volunteer of the Year.

It is as a member of the Community Services Advisory Commission that Grzybowski said she witnessed firsthand the value — the necessity, really — of community involvement. Her work on the commission inspired her to find ways to make a greater commitment. That’s why she is running for Town Council.

Grzybowski describes herself as “passionate, tenacious and thorough, and also caring and compassionate, seeking both sides of any issue.” She said for her, politics is non-partisan, an enthusiastic engagement that strives to create solutions that work for everyone. She not only thinks outside the box, she bursts the box open to all manner of ideas and solutions.

As a Fountain Hills home and business owner, Grzybowski said she is committed to representing citizens, her friends and neighbors, on the next Town Council.

Peggy McMahon

Peggy McMahon relocated from California to Fountain Hills in 2001. She loves Fountain Hills and all that it has to offer. She was born in New York, the fourth of 11 kids.

While the family frequently moved, McMahon spent the majority of her life in California. Almost every summer the family went hiking, camping and fly-fishing in Lake Tahoe.

She enjoys golf and what she describes as “the magnificent Fountain Hills desert landscape and fantastic sunsets.”

She has participated in several PF Chang’s Rock n’ Roll Half Marathons from Phoenix to Portland, along with various other marathons around Arizona.

McMahon holds a Juris Doctorate and spent 35 years in law firms assisting clients with their complex estate planning and administering multi-million dollar trust and probates. She also served as a VP Trust and Estate Tax Officer for JPMorgan in Scottsdale and Chicago, and with the Maricopa County Public Fiduciary as a Fiduciary, licensed by the Supreme Court of Arizona.

McMahon enjoys volunteering for good causes and has served in many different volunteer positions with Hospice of the Valley, Homeward Bound, Fountain Hills Arts & Crafts Fair, the Volunteer Expo and other local community events. She is also involved with Friends in the Hills Women’s Group, Fountain Hills Women’s Club, the Fountain Hills Stitchers of Hope (making clothes for children in third world countries) and various local women business owners associations.

McMahon says family is very important to her. Her son, Matthew, is an award-winning Head Brewer for a new brewery in Milwaukee, Wis. Her husband, Dave, has three sons – Bart, a product development and marketing manager with a robotics company in Southern California, Robb, a managing partner and attorney specializing in white collar crime in Northern California, and Matt, a mechanical engineer for Industry Chilliers, Seattle, Wash.

“We have five beautiful grandchildren,” McMahon said.

As a councilmember, McMahon said she looks forward to utilizing her legal experience, JD, listening skills and problem solving capabilities for the greater good of the community.

“I will be your advocate at the town table for today, tomorrow and future generations,” she said. “(I) will be your voice and vision at the town table for today, tomorrow and future generations.”