Town Chair
Mary Knipper
Phone: (262) 206-1728
Email: [email protected]
Committees:
Fire & Rescue, Lake, Plan, Public Works, Emergency Government Management Team, and ETZ (Extra Territorial Zoning).
Mary moved from Massachusetts to Illinois in 1965 and was a registered nurse in Massachusetts and Illinois. Pursued her passion for the environment by using her science background, accepting a position as a Chemical and Microbiology Laboratory analyst for National Environmental Testing Inc. in Illinois for 15 years and in that role, became the Project Manager for the Illinois Superfund Hazardous Waste Program. She then served 9 years as a consulting Senior Clinical Research Associate with Abbott Laboratories in the HIV/AIDS drug development program.
Mary has served as Past President, co-founder of the Walworth County Lakes Association; past-President of Wisconsin Lakes, the 3rd arm of the Wisconsin Lakes Partnership; in 2019, she was appointed by Governor Evers to Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, SEWRPC. representing Walworth County.
John and Mary have owned their home on Delavan Lake since 1974, and moved to Wisconsin permanently in 1998. She was appointed to the Town Board in 2020, and elected for a 2 year term in 2021.
Mary believes that the Town has strong and experienced leadership in each department, and her goal is to support their combined efforts to grow and build a safe, responsive and inclusive community for residents, visitors and existing and new business opportunities.
Town Supervisor
Bill Thummel
Phone: (262) 325-5064
Email: [email protected]
Committees:
Administrative, Finance, Fire & Rescue, and Emergency Government Management.
After earning an undergraduate degree in Biology in his home state of Texas, Bill served as an Officer in the U.S. Army for five years. After service duty, Bill obtained a graduate degree in Finance and Operations before becoming Plant Manager for a petrochemical company in upstate New York. Following this, Bill worked at commercial real estate company, JLL, for 30 years, at various times serving as Chief Operating Office for the Americas, Chief Executive Officer of Latin/South America, and primary client contact for Bank of America, HSBC, P&G, and Intel. Bill retired in 2017.
Bill is passionate about continuing to improve the health and safety of the citizens of the Town of Delavan as well as further improving the health of our Delavan Lake. Currently, Bill is the President of the Delavan Lake Improvement Association, Secretary/Treasurer of the Delavan Friends of the Park, and Chief Client Officer for Whitney Technologies Inc. Bill and his partner, Mary, have resided in the Town since 2008.
Town Supervisor
Hugh Charvat
Phone: (262) 233-6104
Email: [email protected]
Committees:
Park & Tourism, Police & Water Safety, Plan, Public Works, and ETZ (Extra Territorial Zoning).
After earning a Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Hugh spent his working career as a global operating executive and has been a multi-time CEO with businesses that serve the automotive, heavy-duty truck, power sports, aerospace, and marine markets.
Hugh has been on several for profit and non-profit boards during his career. Today he sits on two-for profit and one non-profit board and is an Operating Partner for a Private Equity firm out of New York. Growing up in Fond du Lac, WI on Lake Winnebago instilled a passion for Wisconsin and being on, in, or around a lake.
Hugh is a passionate gear head and enjoys working on cars, boats, and motorcycles. He is an active member of the Sport Car Club of America and the American Motorcycle Association. Hugh and his wife, Lori, have been members of the Delavan community since 2015.
Town Supervisor
Ben Nixdorf
Phone: (773) 301-6296
Email: [email protected]
Committees:
Finance, Lake, and Police & Water Safety.
After earning a double major in Finance and Risk Management at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Ben worked on CME and CBOE trading floors trading options for a large private company named CTC. Ben quickly became head of floor operations up until 2020 where he transitioned to a newly made role of Head of Equity Order Desk where he works with customer orders directly from the banks. Ben grew up in Eau Claire and has been on Lake Delavan with his wife, Chrissy, and two kids for the past 10 years. Three years ago, he moved his family here full time.
Ben is an avid outdoor enthusiast and you can usually find him spending time on our lake or in the surrounding woods. Ben’s background and unbiased stance enables him to continue to make the Town of Delavan a better place for everyone to live and visit, yet be very meticulous to the details and bottom line. He currently serves on the board of the Delavan Lake Improvement Association and the Delavan Lake Yacht Club.