Council appoints Hebel to Position No. 5 vacancy
- Aug 27
- 6 min read
August 28, 2025
By: Katherine Trowbridge
On Wednesday, August 20, Connell City Council took to executive session, yet again, to discuss candidates and potential appointment to the council vacancy first announced on August 6.
As the meeting reconveined, Mayor Lee Barrow asked the four applicants for Council Position No. 5 to share with the council. All but one were present in the room.
First up was Patrice Hebel, who is also on the General Election Ballot as a candidate for Connell City Council Position 2. As Hebel shared, she had previously run for the now vacant position, which was won by Preston Hart.
Hebel is the manager of the M&M Motel and also owns her own travel business. She shared that since her previous opponent has retired, “I would like to take his place.”
When asked what she has done to prepare for the role of councilmember, Hebel stated she has watched every meeting for the last few months. “I’ve been here, I've seen none of my other opponents here…I enjoy what’s going on in this town. I enjoy the town, and I am here for this city. I want to see growth and new opportunity,” Hebel shared.
As far as why she’d like to serve on council she stated, “Because I’ve seen some things that should have been changed and things that should have been acknowledged and new growth should have been here that got bypassed and overseen.”
Hebel is involved with the community serving on the chamber board, fall festival, and participating in many activities including WinterFest.
Michelle (Shelly) Welch is also on the General Election Ballot running for Council Position No. 3. She expressed, “I’m running because I want to see change in Connell. I want to see more of the community become cohesive. I want to see the kids be more of a part of the community… I would like to be involved in our community.”
Welch is putting this into action by organizing a car show that will involve the youth of the community, to take place August 30.
She also shared that she has leadership skills and “would be a good candidate.” She is currently in a managerial position at the Department of Corrections, having been there since 2016 and she would like to see more of Coyote Ridge involved in the community.
Welch didn’t believe herself to be biased or judgemental stating she likes to “find resources and look at facts before making decisions.”
Mitch Parks is bilingual (a talent he displayed). Parks stated, “I’m thankful for an opportunity to see if I’m a good fit, see if the city will have me.”
While Parks was not born and raised in Connell, coming to the community about seven years ago, he shared that this is the longest he and his family have lived in one place.
While he now serves as a Spanish teacher at the Warden School District, Parks has experience in the corporate world and served in negotiations with some big companies, often where resources were limited. He is also involved with English as a Second Language (ESL) and helping that demographic, which is a big part of the community here as well.
“What I hope you’ll find persuasive is I’m in the solutions business, whether that’s a kid who can’t read and they’re in tenth grade because they just snuck into the country from El Salvador…, or if it’s because we lost federal funding. I’m prepared for that,” he said, “I’m a change agent…I’m prepared to do the work and read every part of proposals. I don’t take shortcuts, unless I’m walking my dog and it starts to rain.”
Parks added that he doesn’t have any political ambitions and just wants to “make Connell a better place for our boys.” He has an eighth and fourth grader and wants them to have opportunities he didn’t have. He sees a lot of people talking out there, and he said he is also a big talker but added, “I want to be part of the solutions that are going to benefit people long after I go on.”
Parker Dolezal, joined by phone and wasn’t present due to a family emergency. He shared, “My family is always a top priority on stuff and honestly, that’s a big part of why I’d like to be on city council.”
Dolezal, a mathematics teacher at Connell High School, has grown up his whole life in this community. He has three children he would also like to raise up in this community.
He added, “I would like to keep it a great city and do anything I can do to help improve it.”
Mayor Barrow expressed that there were four very qualified candidates and the council had a good discussion on everyone, pros and cons and so on.
The Mayor stated, “I appreciate all the candidates for putting in for this. It’s not an easy thing to be on city council or city government.”
At the August 6 meeting, it was determined that council would open the vacancy up to the public for applications giving them less than a week to apply. Parks was the only one of the candidates to address the timeline sharing, “From the general public side, this feels a little rushed, so I'll give you my best effort.” Also in the audience was former Mayoral Candidate, Irineo Salas, dropping off the ballot in the Primary Election. Salas told the Graphic, he really didn’t hear about the opportunity to apply for council or have time to do so when it opened up.
Before the council could proceed, council member Hart had to make his resignation from Council Position No. 5 official. Hart expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to be on council stating that his reason for moving was family related. But, he would love to remain on council and serve the Connell community, if laws would allow it.
“I just want to thank everybody that voted for me, supported me, or didn’t, right through this process. But as of today I formally have to resign based on stipulation, the fact that I don’t live in Connell.”
Hart shared that he is confident that whoever the council selects to replace him is “going to be credible, like was stated, all the candidates that filed for my job had a lot more pros than cons. It does take courage to put in for it, and you got my grace for applying, so thank you.”
Mayor Barrow asked the council for a motion to which Pat Barrera moved to place Mitch Parks into the position. Her motion failed due to the lack of a second. Then, Joe Escalera spoke up, stating it was not an “emotion thing, it’s a fairness thing” as he moved to place Patrice Hebel into the position. He added, “Yes, I understand he’s [Parks] highly qualified, those kind of people we need and so- but I think in all fairness she’s been here many times, and I believe she needs a chance to get on it and now she has the opportunity.” The motion was seconded by Shelly Harper and passed with a three to one vote with Barrera opposed and Hart, no longer with voting power, abstained. All council members were present for the meeting.
Mayor Barrow did slightly address one concern, as Hebel is on the General Election Ballot, if she were to be elected to that Position, the council will have to refill this Position at that time. In the meantime, Hebel will be sworn in at the September 3 council meeting to fill the remaining two years for Position No. 5. At that time the position will go to the vote of the people.
Hebel later shared with the Graphic, “I am truly honored to have been selected by the city council to serve in this new role. I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the council members for placing their trust and confidence in me. I look forward to working collaboratively with city leaders, community members, and local organizations to continue building on the progress already made. My goal is to serve with integrity, transparency, and dedication to ensure that our community continues to thrive.”
She added, “Thank you again to the council for this opportunity—I am excited to get to work and serve our city with pride.”
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