Perseverance and the desire to serve the members of the Taunton Retirement System were definitely attributes that finally placed Fire Lieutenant Thomas “Tom” Bernier as an elected member to the Board. After four attempts at running, Bernier topped the ticket in the recently held retirement board election on December 5, 2019. With strong support from Taunton Firefighters Local 138, Bernier received 284 votes to win a three-year term that will run from 01/01/2020 thru 12/31/2022.
Bernier replaces long-serving board member Peter H. Corr who elected not to run for re-election due to poor health. The unofficial results of December 5th’s election were as follows: Bernier 284 votes, Marilyn Greene 175 votes, Michael Sylvia 111 votes, Mark Bissonnette 85 votes, Zachary Sousa 36 votes, and Richard Conti 24 votes. Says Bernier…”our pension system is a big part of our future and I will do my best to help maintain a healthy system… I would also like to thank everyone who voted for me and trust that I will make the right decisions on their behalf…”