Litchfield Alderperson Ray Kellenberger Resigns, Citing Vision Issues

Article Summary: Ward 4 Alderperson Ray Kellenberger resigned from the Litchfield City Council effective Aug. 6, 2026, telling the city in a letter read aloud by Mayor Jacob Fleming that vision problems have left him unable to perform the job. Fleming said he will interview interested residents before appointing a replacement.

Ward 4 Vacancy Key Points:

Kellenberger’s resignation letter cites vision issues and thanks “the people who elected me to office for the past 14 years.”

Fleming asked interested residents to email the city and the mayor, and said he intends to conduct interviews before making an appointment.

Ward 4 is now represented by a single alderperson, Bob Garcia, who read Kellenberger’s agenda item at the meeting.

LITCHFIELD — The Litchfield City Council opened its Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026, meeting a member short, as Mayor Jacob Fleming read aloud a resignation letter from Ward 4 Alderperson Ray Kellenberger.

Kellenberger was recorded absent at roll call. Fleming then read the letter into the record.

“It is with great sadness and disappointment that I must resign my post as your fourth ward alder person,” the letter read. “I can no longer fill the requirements to do my job properly due to vision issues. I would like to thank the city administration, department heads, alder persons, and the people who elected me to office for the past 14 years. As of this day, I respectfully resign as the fourth ward alder person.”

Fleming said Kellenberger “really is having some pretty bad vision issues” and told the room the departing alderperson had put in 13 years of service — a figure that does not match the 14 years cited in the letter.

The mayor credited Kellenberger with a significant role in the Veterans Wall Memorial and described him as heavily involved in the local veterans community and a veteran himself. “Ray Kellenberger has done a wonderful job,” Fleming said, before asking those present for a round of applause.

Filling the Seat

Under the process Fleming described, the appointment is his to make. He said he had done the same thing once before, when his own election as mayor left a Ward 4 seat open.

“Last time we did this, when I was elected mayor, I vacated my place and picked someone to take my place,” Fleming said.

The mayor asked residents interested in the seat to contact him directly. “Anyone who’s interested — the public, if you’re interested in being a part of this and making change — please email me, please reach out,” he said. “I’m going to try and do some interviews and get to know people that want to be involved, because this really is a thankless job. I also want to let you know what you’re getting into.”

Fleming set no deadline for applications and named no timeline for an appointment. No candidates were identified at the meeting.

The vacancy leaves Ward 4 with one of its two seats filled. Later in the meeting, when the council reached the first economic development item on the agenda, Fleming asked Alderperson Bob Garcia to read the motion in Kellenberger’s place, telling him, “being as you’re in Ward 4, would you mind reading that for Alderperson Kellenberger.”

The council conducted the rest of its business with seven members present — Alderpersons Marilyn Sisson, Sara Zumwalt, Dwayne Gerl, Robbin Huffman, Joshua Hughes, Garcia and Bert Holloway — and every roll call recorded in the official minutes reflects those seven votes.

Litchfield’s council seats are filled two per ward across four wards, with aldermanic terms running two years and the offices of mayor and city clerk on four-year cycles.

Fleming closed the item by returning to Kellenberger’s tenure. “They have big shoes to fill, because Ray has been doing this a long time,” he said, “and we’re going to miss them.”