Sheila Cheimets¹

In March 1972, in a large voter turnout, Sheila Cheimets was elected the first woman to serve on the Board of Selectmen for the Town of Canton. Mrs. Cheimets served on the board until 1975 when she decided not to seek reelection, looking forward to a vacation on Cape Cod and tending to her garden. Looking back on her time in office Mrs. Cheimets said that she was proud of several achievements that included entering a collective purchasing agreement with other towns allowing for the purchase of goods and services at better rates and the hiring of town officials based upon their skills and abilities. The concerns expressed by the selectwoman at the end of her term that served as warning for town officials were the development of Canton’s underdeveloped land and the need for officials to represent the entire town and not certain portions of it. In March 1975 Sheila Cheimets was replaced on the Board of Selectmen by John Morgan.