Lifelong Ellenville resident and current Village Trustee Ray Younger (D) has spent his life serving Ellenville in one way or another. Before his current stint in this position, Younger served Ellenville as a Village Trustee in the late 1980s, and then served two terms as the village’s mayor. Younger and his wife Denise have served as pastors of the New Testament Church of Jesus Christ in Ellenville since 1990. He has also worked for New York State as a correction officer for the past twenty years, and regularly works as a substitute teacher for the Ellenville School District. Additionally, Younger is currently on track to earn his bachelor’s from Empire State College.
Now running for reelection to the position he’s held for the last four years, Younger believes that the key to a successful trustee is the ability to listen to your constituents.

“Over the years that I’ve been involved with local government, with local politics, there are times when you may not be able to accomplish what they want done,” says Younger. “But at least if you are willing to hear what they are saying, and if you are willing to give them a voice, and let them have their opinion, that goes a long way. That means a lot to them…. I believe that this administration really has taken the time to hear the voice of the people, and it’s noted in our village board meetings, where the public have opportunity to address the board, as well as when this administration goes out into the pubic, into the communities, on our village walks prior to the start of our board meetings.”

Among the current administration’s accomplishments, Younger cites their active seeking of federal and state funding to try to bring money to help Ellenville’s businesses, such as the Main Street funding project. Younger also supported youth programs, and supported the Village Board’s decisions to devote funds to summer recreation programs through the Police Athletic League (PAL) and the Ellenville Wawarsing Youth Commission.

“You may hear often that there’s nothing for the kids to do here, but I beg to differ,” says Younger. “We spend a lot of money on summer recreation programs, certain programs through PAL that operate throughout the year, the Ellenville-Wawarsing Youth Commission, and in conjunction with the activities that the school may have, I think that there are quite a few activities that our youth can be involved in. And certainly, our effort has really gone out to try and bring in a broad spectrum of programs for our youth. Can we do more? There’s always room for improvement, but right now I think we have really concentrated on making sure that our summer programs and our programs throughout the year are good for our youth and working for them.”

“I think that my longevity in local government is a plus for me,” says Younger of why he should get the voters’ support.

“I’ve been mayor, I’ve been village trustee, I’m open to other ideas, I’m open to other suggestions, I’m open to involving local residents and our voters in the decision makings of our village….I know the area, I know the people, I know the needs of this village, I know the concerns that the people have, and we are striving to make things better for this community. I’m no ‘Johhny-come-lately’ to the scene — I’ve been here, I’ve been involved, I’ve been committed to what I’ve been involved in, and I think that’s a plus for me. People know that I’m sincere, people know that I’m honest, and know that I have integrity, and that whatever I say, I’m going to stick to that…People can trust that if I say something, I’m going to try my best to make that happen.”