Mayor & City Council - City of Lewes, Delaware

MAYOR:

James L. Ford, III (Mayor)

Mayor Ford has been a resident of Lewes since 1976. In addition to being the Mayor of Lewes, he owns his own building contracting business, specializing in historic restoration. His wife, Teresa, is the owner of Kids’ Ketch on Second Street in Lewes.  The Fords have two children, Jacob and Maren. Mayor Ford graduated from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor’s Degree in Biological Sciences. His hobbies are outdoor activities and he and his wife enjoy traveling.

Mayor Ford was appointed to the Lewes Planning Commission in 1987, elected to City Council 1992, appointed Deputy Mayor in 1998 and became Mayor in 2004. He is a member of the National League of Cities; serving on the Crime Prevention & Public Safety Committee, Small Cities Committee, and Small Cities Steering Committee. He is President of the Delaware League of Local Governments; serving on the League's Executive and Legislative Committees and the Council on Police Training. Mayor Ford is also a member of the Sea Grant Advisory Council and Delaware Economic Development Committee. He serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Greater Lewes Foundation, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Lewes Historical Society, and as a member of the Fort Miles Historical Association, Overfalls Maritime Museum Foundation, Delaware River & Bay Lighthouse Association, Lewes Chamber of Commerce and is an Honorary member of the Lewes Fire Department.

CITY COUNCIL PERSONS:

Stephanie Tsantes (Deputy Mayor)

Ms. Tsantes has been a member of Lewes City Council since May 1999 and currently serves as Deputy Mayor and Treasurer.  She has been a resident of Lewes since 1994. Ms. Tsantes received her Bachelor of Arts from Mount Holyoke College in 1988, and her Law Degree from Widener University, School of Law in 1993. She is a member of the Delaware Bar and is currently an Assistant Public Defender for the State of Delaware. Ms. Tsantes served as Deputy Attorney General for the State of Delaware from April 1994 until April 2004.

Theodore W. Becker

Mr. Becker has been a member of the City Council since May 2004. He is currently a managing partner of Stewart Becker Properties in Lewes.  He has worked as a program manager for the Division of Delaware’s Office of Special Education; the U.S. Department of Education; and served in the U.S. Army and U.S. Army Reserves from 1978-1996. Mr. Becker has a Bachelor of Science Degree from Ohio State University in occupational therapy and attended George Washington University where he studied public administration.

Barbara W. Vaughan

Ms. Vaughan was elected to the City Council in May 2004.  She has lived in Lewes since 1992, where she has taught history courses at the University of Delaware, Academy of Lifelong Learning. She has served on the Board and as President of the Lewes Homeowners Association; a member of the Board of the Lewes Historical Society; a member and secretary of the Lewes Pedestrian Safety Review Committee and an Ad-Hoc member of the Lewes Historic Preservation Commission.  Prior to moving to Lewes, she was the Director of Admission at the Key School in Annapolis, Maryland and served as Director of Human Resources at Anne Arundel Community College in Arnold, Maryland.  Ms. Vaughan received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Allegheny College.

Victor Letonoff

Mr. Letonoff was elected to City Council in May 2007. He has been a resident of Lewes since 1984. Mr. Letonoff graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and served in the United States Army for 35 years. He received a Masters Degree from the University of Texas in Austin and attended the United States Army War College at Carlisle Barracks. He earned a Certificate from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia and attended the Ecole Des Beaux Artes in Paris. In recent years, Colonel Letonoff has served on the Lewes Drug Alcohol Abuse Council, the Committee that developed Lewes' Core Values, the Task Force to improve Cape Henlopen schools and the Commercial Architectural Review Council. Mr. Letonoff currently works as a fine artist in his studio in Lewes.