Contact:
Jessica Weirauch
Michigan Municipal League
[email protected], 734-669-6311

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 16, 2024

Ann Arbor, Mich. — The Michigan Municipal League membership elected five new League Board of Trustees members to join the 2024–25 board during its annual business meeting held at the 2024 Convention on Mackinac Island. 

The new members are Bridgman City Manager Juan E. Ganum, Berkley Councilmember Dennis Hennen, Zeeland Mayor Kevin Klynstra, Marquette City Manager Karen Kovacs and Ferndale Mayor Raylon Leaks-May. The Board of Trustees also selected Sault Ste. Marie Mayor Don Gerrie to serve as board president and Lapeer Mayor Pro Tem Joshua Atwood as vice president.  

• Ganum has over 25 years of experience in local government. He served as the community development director for the City of Niles 1998–2015 and has since served as city manager for the city of Bridgman. Juan graduated from Michigan State University in 1995 with a bachelor’s degree in urban and regional planning and earned his master’s in public administration from Western Michigan University in 2007. He currently serves as the chair of the Michigan Municipal Executives’ Ethics Committee, is on the board of MML Workers’ Compensation Fund and is a member of a variety of committees and boards in Berrien County. Ganun believes that engaged residents hold the keys to meaningful and lasting change in Michigan’s cities, townships and villages.  

  “It’s a tremendous privilege to be a member of the Board of Trustees for the Michigan Municipal League to support the organization’s essential advocacy work on behalf of local cities and villages across the state of Michigan,” said Ganum. “I’m eager to advance the League’s Core Legislative Principles, which were just adopted by the board.” 

• Dennis Hennen serves on the Berkley City Council and was first elected in 2017. His focus is on ensuring constituents are kept informed and their voices are heard. He has received his Master Citizen Planner Certification, serves on the Michigan Municipal League’s Municipal Services Committee and is vice president of the Elected Officials Academy. He is a senior software engineer for Mercury Banking. Hennen supports many local community organizations, and he and his wife, Jennifer, are active members of their church. 

  “It’s truly an honor to represent Berkley and contribute to shaping the future of the League,” said Hennen. “This opportunity also brings valuable networking, education, and learning to our community—helping us become even stronger and better.” 

• Mayor Kevin Klynstra has been a resident of Zeeland his whole life. He was elected to the city council in 1995. He decided to run for mayor in 2011 after he retired from the Postal Service and has served in that position ever since. Following his win in the November 2023 election, he is now serving his seventh consecutive two-year term. He previously served on the MAM Board for six years. 

  “The League has always been very helpful for the city of Zeeland, and I’m happy to help continue that for all the cities across the state,” said Klynstra.  

• Karen Kovacs has served as city manager for the City of Marquette since June 2021. Kovacs previously served in municipal government roles for the city of Milan, including city administrator 2019–2021 and finance director and treasurer for four years. She also worked at Plante Moran as a government accounting consultant. Kovacs is a graduate of Oakland University with her bachelor’s degree in accounting and a minor in applied technology in business.  

  “It’s a great honor for me and my community to act as representation from the U.P., with our rural communities—and the vibrancy they bring to the natural resources perspective—and also our urban centers,” said Kovacs.  

• Raylon Leaks-May moved to Ferndale over 30 years ago. She previously served on Ferndale’s Board of Education, and that experience led her to run for city council. She became Ferndale’s first Black councilwoman when she won the seat in the 2015 election. During her tenure with the community, Ferndale was designated a Michigan Communities for a Lifetime. She has championed efforts toward affordable and accessible housing and many DEI efforts in the community. She is proud to be a part of the community’s historic moment in electing her as its first Black mayor in November 2023.  

  “I was appointed to the board previously to serve a partial term, but to be nominated for a full term means a lot because it allows me to continue to collaborate with wonderful elected officials on ways in which to bring better resources and services to our communities,” said Leaks-May.  

They join the other volunteers who remain on the board: Wayland Mayor Jennifer Antel, Greenville City Manager George M. Bosanic, Troy Councilmember Rebecca Chamberlain-Creanga, Kentwood Mayor Stephen Kepley, Harper Woods Mayor Valerie Kindle, Farmington Mayor Joe LaRussa, Rogers City Mayor Scott McLennan, Grandville Councilmember Joshua Meringa, Pontiac Deputy Mayor Khalfani Stephens, Hastings Mayor David J. Tossava, Grand Rapids City Manager Mark Washington, Detroit Director of Government Affairs Stephanie Grimes Washington and Lake Isabella Village Manger Tim Wolff.   

The League’s Executive Director and CEO Dan Gilmartin thanked the outgoing trustees for their service: Monrow Mayor Robert E. Clark, L’Anse Village Manager Robert LaFave, Mason City Manager Deborah Stuart and Holland City Manager Keith Van Beek.  

For additional information, contact the League’s Jessica Weirauch, Director, Marketing and Communications, at 734-669-6311 or [email protected].   

Michigan Municipal League is dedicated to making Michigan’s communities better by thoughtfully innovating programs, energetically connecting ideas and people, actively serving members with resources and services and passionately inspiring positive change for Michigan’s greatest centers of potential: its communities. The League advocates on behalf of its member communities in Lansing, Washington, D.C. and the courts; provides educational opportunities for elected and appointed municipal officials and assists municipal leaders in administering services to their communities through League programs and services. Learn more at mml.org. 

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