Scofield

The Winnebago City Council has turned to experience rather than a newcomer to politics to fill a vacant seat.

Holly Stauffer, who served on the council from 1998-2003, was selected after she and Stacy Huntington Scofield were interviewed for the job at a special meeting Tuesday night.

Stauffer will be sworn in at the July council meeting and will serve the remainder of the term that will expire Dec. 31, 2010.

A third candidate, Steve Willett of Minneapolis, withdrew his name Tues-day morning after learning he was not eligible to serve on the council because he was not a resident of the city 30 days prior to being interviewed.

Stauffer has lived in the city for 20 years and says she wanted to get back into politics to see what can be done.

Stauffer

Stauffer called her time on the council, “a whole, new eye-widening experience.”

She listed her work on the pool committee, street and police departments as qualifications to serve on the council.

“I’m not afraid to voice my opinion or be open to other opinions and listen to what the public has to say,” Stauffer says.

Scofield is originally from Blue Earth and graduated from high school in 1991. She and her husband moved to Winnebago about three years ago after living in Texas and New Mexico.

During the interview, Scofield told the council she wants the position because she has new ideas and perspective to offer.

“I think it will not only be enriching for me, but I think I can bring a little injection of new blood to the council,” she says. “With my background in women’s studies, I’m able to see perspectives that maybe others don’t always consider.”

Scofield says working 10 years in her father’s barbershop in Blue Earth and sales and retail managerial positions have helped her learn how to deal with the public.

She also has done a lot of volunteer work and been involved in social causes. Scofield is currently attending Minnesota State University, Mankato to earn her master’s degree in literature.

“I work really well as a team player. I am a champion of the underdog. I speak for those people,” says Scofield.

Community pride and looking for ways to improve the city, like the charter school, are strengths that Scofield sees.

For more of this story, see this week’s Register.