Palcic sworn in as new Southwest Greensburg mayor

Carol Palcic is stepping down from Southwest Greensburg council so she can take on the role of mayor in the borough.

Westmoreland County Senior Judge John Driscoll on Monday evening administered the oath of office to Palcic, who was appointed mayor by council at its Wednesday meeting.

Palcic succeeds Shaun Teacher, who resigned effective Aug. 1 because he has moved with his family to Indiana County, where his wife has accepted a position as a school principal.

Palcic joined council a little over a year ago, appointed to a seat left vacant by the death of councilman William Young. Elected to a four-year council term in November, she has served on the public safety and zoning committees.

“I’m excited to really get in and start working more with council,” Palcic said of her new mayoral role. “As a whole, council has done a great job keeping the neighborhood a nice place to live and raise families.”

To keep it that way, she said she wants to encourage residents to get more involved in the community and to be on guard against the drug trafficking that threatens towns throughout the region. “If you see something, say something,” she said.

Longtime race director of the Greensburg Turkey Trot and a volunteer for Greensburg Central Catholic High School and for such programs as the St. Vincent DePaul Food Bank, Palcic said she is realizing a long-held goal of taking part in local government now that her children are grown. In January, she began a new position as development director for the Court-Appointed Special Advocates for children of Westmoreland County, a group that provides a voice in the court system for abused and neglected children.

Palcic said she was humbled when other council members asked if she would seek the mayoral appointment, which runs through December 2019. Council approved her appointment by a 6-1 vote, with Robert Warren favoring his own bid for the office.

The borough is seeking applicants for an appointment to fill the council seat Palcic is vacating.

Teacher served as mayor from 2000 to 2008 and then took a break from the position while serving as the local fire chief, he said. He was elected to a new term as mayor in November - in a close race against council President Jeff Tabita, who opted against seeking the appointment to succeed Teacher.

“Carol is a good pick” for mayor, Teacher said. “I think things will go well.”

Teacher said he will remain a member of the fire department but, with the move out of the county, has resigned his position as Westmoreland’s hazardous materials chief.

Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jeff at 724-836-6622, jhimler@tribweb.com or via Twitter @jhimler_news.