#ChiefStrong
West Chester Township mourns the loss of beloved team member Aaron Wiegand, also known to the community by #ChiefStrong. Aaron passed away Dec. 26, 2023 after a long cancer journey that he openly shared with the community and with his Team West Chester family.
Aaron, 44, served as Community Development Director in West Chester overseeing planning and zoning and economic development, but even more than this, he was a cheerleader for West Chester and reminded us every day that public service should be unselfish, rewarding and fun.
“It is with a heavy heart and profound sadness that I share the news of Aaron’s passing, but it is with profound gratitude that I will remember the profound impact he had on all our lives,” said Township Administrator Larry D. Burks. “Throughout Aaron’s time with us, he brought not only expertise and vision but also warmth and kindness to every interaction.”
Aaron joined the West Chester Township team in 2015 first as economic development manager and was later promoted to lead the Community Development Department. Previously he worked alongside his dad in the family’s Mansfield construction business, for the city of Shelby and as Administrator for the Village of Lexington. He also had a long list of creative and crazy internships and jobs with stories that could keep you “in stitches” for hours.
Aaron always put family first - his beloved wife Jessica and sons Vance and Grant. But, if you knew Aaron, you were a part of his family. He cultivated a loving and supportive work environment that reached beyond each West Chester Township employee and extended to each of our families. He celebrated and grieved alongside each one of us regardless of his own struggles.
“You want to make me mad? Let me find out that you are sitting at your desk while your kid is playing a soccer game. Family first.” This is what Katy Kanelopoulos remembers Aaron saying to her. “When my daughter started her first summer job, Aaron was there to see her at her new job on her very first day,” said Katy, now serving as interim Community Development director in Aaron’s place.
“When my mom passed away, Aaron made the long drive to visit at the funeral home,” said Barbara Wilson, director of Public Information & Engagement. “He was already facing his own cancer battle by that time, but he took the time to be there. When I saw him in the crowd, I knew immediately how special he was and all the lessons he would teach us about living a life of compassion.”
Aaron was very open with his work family, and his community, about his cancer journey, sharing openly in staff meetings, offices and on social media. He didn’t shy away from the hard stuff and did not hide how he felt after six years of surgeries, chemotherapy and every type of treatment imaginable.
He faced it all heroically and with an unmatched sense of humor, while never missing a beat as a friend, husband and father. He had an amazing zest for life and quickly made West Chester Township his home, embracing our community and his neighbors with wit, heart and his own brand of bigger-than-life love.
Aaron’s West Chester family is poised to do “Aaron’s work” and continue his legacy building a community that will make him proud. As a team, West Chester will continue to be inspired by Aaron’s resilience, dedication and unwavering commitment to service.
“West Chester has asked me to step up as interim director, but Aaron is the act no one wants to follow,” Katy said. “In his final days when Aaron was too sick to come in, I texted him and told him I had been named interim director, but I could never be him. Aaron texted back – Don’t. Be Better.”
Please read Aaron’s complete obituary at https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/dayton/name/aaron-wiegand-obituary?id=53958941. Keep his family in your thoughts.