Thrasher ends tenure as Westmoreland commissioner
Jul. 31—Gina Cerilli Thrasher's title will remain the same.
In her next role, Thrasher will serve as a commissioner on the state's Workers' Compensation Appeals Board when she starts her new job Tuesday.
Her more than seven years as a member of Westmoreland County's Board of Commissioners ended Monday.
"It's bittersweet to leave my colleagues here. We accomplished a lot in the last seven and a half years," Thrasher said. "The first term was a lot of public events, ribbon cuttings, school visits and nursing homes, senior centers — which I absolutely loved — then after three months of my second term, we were all kind of stuck at home and went through covid together and how we were able to navigate that. There's a lot of differences between the two terms but both of them were rewarding, and I'm proud of everything we were able to accomplish."
Ted Kopas, who served a decade in office before he was ousted in 2019, was appointed by Westmoreland County's 11 Common Pleas judges to complete the remaining five months of Thrasher's term. He will be sworn into office at 10 a.m. Tuesday and attend his first public meeting later that day.
Thrasher finished her tenure as county commissioner by attending a monthly prison board meeting Monday morning. She was sworn in to her new job later in the afternoon by Common Pleas Judge Chris Scherer.
Thrasher announced in February she would not seek a third term in office. In late June, she was appointed by Gov. Josh Shapiro and confirmed by the state Senate to serve on the appeals board.
It's a job Thrasher said she is ready to take on.
She completed law school just before she took office in 2015 and started working part time for a Pittsburgh law firm in 2018. She gave birth to her first child, a son, in November.
"I knew I wanted to be able to practice law. I wanted to be able to do that on a full-time basis. With a baby at home, I loved my job as a county commissioner, but it's evenings, weekends, it's 24/7 on call, so this was a perfect fit for me as a new mom and as an attorney to take on this role," Thrasher said.
Her time as commissioner spanned a brief political resurgence for Democrats as she and Kopas formed a Democratic majority during her first term in office and she served as board chairwoman. She became a minority commissioner in 2020 after Kopas was defeated in his reelection bid and Republicans took over as the board majority.
Thrasher cited accomplishments such as improvements made at Westmoreland Manor, the county-owned nursing home, as well as efforts undertaken by county government to help stem what was a significant opioid addiction epidemic when she took office.
Thrasher said she will steer clear of politics as she assumes her new role, which prohibits her from making any endorsements in the upcoming commissioner election. In that race, Kopas and Scottdale resident Sydney Hovis, along with Republican incumbents Sean Kertes and Doug Chew, are seeking three seats on the board.
Following the prison board meeting, commissioners and other elected officials acknowledged Thrasher's career change.
"I want to thank Commissioner Gina Cerilli Thrasher for 7 1/2 years, almost to the day, of service to Westmoreland County. It's been a pleasure," said Chew, chairman of the county's prison board.
Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Rich by email at rcholodofsky@triblive.com or via Twitter .
