The Woodhaven Mayor and City Council are the elected representative body responsible for municipal policy making and administration. The role of City Council includes the following:

• Adopts and/or amends City ordinances (laws)
• Determines City policies and standards
• Determines how much money will be spent and for what purposes
• Determines the amount of City taxes to be levied
• Approves contracts and agreements
• Represents the City locally, statewide and on the federal level.

The City Council consists of 7 members, the Mayor and six Council Members, each of whom must live in the City. The Mayor is the presiding officer of the Council. In the absence or disability of the Mayor, the Mayor Pro-tem shall be the presiding officer of the Council. The Mayor shall have an equal vote in the proceedings of Council and has the right to introduce or second motions, resolutions or ordinances, but shall have no veto power. Appointed officials (City Administrator, City Clerk, City Attorney, etc.) do not have a vote.

Council Members

	Mayor Patricia A. Odette
Dr. Odette served as a City Council Member for 8 years before being elected Mayor. She is active in community affairs and can be found anywhere from reading to the children to ringing the bell for the salvation army. As an active member of Kiwanis she stays involved with all of their service projects. She is the current chairperson for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life Woodhaven/ Brownstown and led one of the largest events ever held in the City of Woodhaven in 2009. She has one daughter, Toni who is an assistant prosecutor for Wayne County. She holds 2 bachelors degrees as well as a Doctorate degree from the National College of Chiropractic. She is a Chiropractic Physician and was chosen by the Governor to oversee the Chiropractic Profession in the state of Michigan. serving both as the vice chair to the Board of Chiropractic Examiners as well as the sub disciplinary committee. As Mayor she has an open door policy and would like to continue to make the City of Woodhaven a desirable place in which to live, work, and play in. Her motto is simple, People First.

	Mayor Pro-Tem Jeffrey Harris
Mayor Pro-Tem Jeffrey Harris has lived Downriver all his life and was elected to Woodhaven City Council in November, 2007. He is a graduate of Woodhaven High School (1988). He is a veteran of the United Stated Marine Corps and graduate from Washtenaw Community College’s “Law Enforcement Certification Program”. He has been a Police Officer for the City of River Rouge for over 15 years. He is a member of Twin Oaks Christian Church in Woodhaven, a volunteer soccer referee for Downriver AYSO and a member of F. & A.M. (Lodge 511). Jeffrey and his wife Marianne (Stotler) have two daughters in the Woodhaven-Brownstown School District.

	Councilmember Dan Duderstadt
Council member Dan Duderstadt was elected to the council in November 2009. He served on the Planning Commission from January 2006 to November 2009 and served as a Woodhaven Police Reserve Officer for four years. Dan and his wife Mary (Raymond) formerly of Southgate, Michigan met in the Marine Corps and have been married 23 years. Mary is currently a Registered Nurse at Henry Ford Hospital. Dan has three children raised in Woodhaven public schools. Dan retired from the Marine Corps after 20 years of service in 1999 and has resided in Woodhaven since July of 2000. Dan has an Associate Degree from Central Texas College and is attending Madonna University in the Criminal Justice program. He is a graduate of the Reserve Police Academy at Schoolcraft College and has completed several Law Enforcement Courses at Schoolcraft, Michigan State and Findley University. He has been employed as a Security Supervisor with Ford Motor Company for the past nine years. He currently serves as the President of the Ford Veterans Network Group and is a member of the Downriver Marine Corps League and the Marine Corps Association.

	Councilmember Darrel Penix
Councilmember Darrel Penix was a previous member of City Council for five years and served on the Zoning Board of Appeals for four years. Darrel is married to Joan and they have four children, nine grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. Since retirement after 28 years with Guardian Glass in Carleton Darrel now gets a lot more of his "hobby time" in such as hunting, fishing, and golf. He is active in his church and trained for being a first responder Chaplain and is a member of the "First Responder Chaplain Association. Darrel was also recently elected to serve on the Governing Board Chapter 30,000 of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.

	Councilmember Richard Truskowski
Council member Richard Truskowski and his wife Barbara are 33 year Woodhaven residents. Together Richard and Barbara have 7 children and 13 grandchildren. Richard has retired after 30 years of employment with DTE Energy. Richard became active in the community through his involvement with Woodhaven recreation programs in the early 70’s. He continued his involvement throughout the community in various organizations and positions within those organizations. He is still active in Our Lady of the Woods ushers, Knights of Columbus, St. Vincent de Paul, Loyal Order of the Moose and the Woodhaven Seniors. Richard's political career started in 1981 when he was elected to city council. He was appointed to city council in 1993 leading him to run for and be elected to mayor in 1997. Choosing not to continue in politics but to be closer to the family the Truskowski’s moved to Canton for 5 years. Missing the city that they love and cared for, they returned to Woodhaven, he was elected to council and now is serving as council member once again. Serving his community is what he does best and enjoys. Richard has much pride in our community and is willing to work with all residents.

	Councilmember Christopher Tsakiris
Council Member Chris Tsakiris was appointed to City Council in 2004 and elected for another term in 2007 (term ending 2011). Previously, he had served on the Woodhaven Planning Commission from 2000 to 2004. He is the City’s current representative to the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Advisory Board. Tsakiris has worked in the banking industry since 1989 and is currently with National City Bank in the Downriver area, as a Public Funds officer. He graduated from Central Michigan University in 1988 and later earned a Masters degree from the University of Detroit in 1993. Tsakiris has lived in Woodhaven since 1998. His wife is a teacher.

	Councilmember Sharon Bono Beaton
Councilmember Sharon Bono-Beaton has lived Downriver all her life, and has been a Woodhaven resident for 24 years. Bono-Beaton was a volunteer in the Gibraltar School District, where her children attended school. While her children were in school, Bono- Beaton furthered her education as well, earning a bachelor's degree in elementary education and a master's degree in science, both from Eastern Michigan University. She also has been awarded a master's degree in the art of teaching from Marygrove College in Detroit and has been a teacher in the Ann Arbor public school system for 13 years. Bono- Beaton and her husband, Ambrose, have four children and three grandchildren.