Hecker underwent a change in leadership Tuesday evening as the community said farewell to a mayor who’s served in village government for nearly two decades, welcoming his young and hopeful successor.

Having not sought re-election this year, Charles Kujawski  handed over his gavel and the title of village president to former village trustee Aaron Eckart at the Hecker Village Board meeting Tuesday night.

Kujawski spoke with the Republic-Times to discuss how he found himself serving his hometown and what his experience was like as the community’s leader.

Born and raised in Hecker, Kujawski said he was among the last class to attend St. Augustine Catholic Grade School before the church turned that space into a parish center.

He later graduated from Gibault Catholic High School in 2001 before studying at Ranken Technical College, and he summarized his career noting that he’s worked at Ameren Missouri since 2014.

Back in 2006, he decided to pursue a position as village trustee in what he recalled as a decently competitive race, with five candidates vying for three open seats.

As he won, he served his full term and was re-elected in 2009 but found himself appointed to the position of acting village president, though he would prove to hold the title more permanently for the next 16 years.

Kujawski recalled that he became interested in getting involved in Hecker’s government simply as a way of giving back, as he’s long been interested in contributing to and serving the village.

“Why not help your community?” Kujawski said. “And there were a few things before that. Some storms had come through. I helped people collect limbs and stuff like that… Somebody on the board said ‘Hey, why don’t you get involved?’ So I did.”

Looking back on his time as village president, Kujawski emphasized the fact he wore many hats in the position, overseeing a wide variety of village activity given the small size of the community.

He spoke about the operational aspects of work at Hecker Village Hall, maintaining the sewer and other village infrastructure as well as getting hold of a grant for the sewer plant.

While his predecessor and the village board then were able to establish a park in the village, his administration was able to get a grant and establish the vital amenity of a restroom there.

Further renovations can also be seen at Village Hall and with the addition of a playground.

Hecker also saw expansion through three annexations under Kujawski, the first benefitting the water system, the second getting farmland developed for a new Dollar General location and the third to the north adding a collection of houses.

Kujawski also noted the village festivities he’s had a hand in. The most notable of these would likely be the village’s 125th birthday, though he expressed a passion for helping to re-establish some of the traditions the village lost over the years – namely the Halloween festivities and the visit from Santa traveling around the village.

“These are things that had died that I remember as a small child and then we were able to bring them back,” Kujawski said.

On his decision to not seek re-election, Kujawski said the timing was right as he’s eager to be more involved with his family as his kids get increasingly active.

He’s also happy to have a well-prepared successor with Eckart, allowing him to focus on other responsibilities like his position as assistant chief with the Hecker Fire Department.

“That just kind of timed well with the fact that I’m becoming more and more involved with my family,” Kujawski said. “Him being interested and doing it about the same time that I’m getting busy with all this stuff, that’s part of it… I want to be involved more with my family and at the same time more involved with my other civic duties.”

Speaking more on his time as village president at the Tuesday meeting, Kujawski emphasized he’ll continue to be a familiar face in Hecker.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Kujawski said. “Hecker is gonna be home for us for a long time.”

Eckart expressed his appreciation for Kujawski at the meeting, offering praise for the growth and success the village has seen with his support.

At 21 years old, Eckart is among the youngest leaders Hecker – and likely other communities in and around Monroe County – has ever seen, though he’s hardly inexperienced as he takes on the mantle of village president.

Likewise a lifelong Hecker resident, he graduated from Waterloo High School and earned his degree in business administration from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville this past December.

Eckart has been impressively active as a young entrepreneur, owning and operating a landscape contracting business for the past three years.

His time on the village board began in 2021, where he began serving as a trustee with a particular focus on the street committee, though, as he said, he worked closely with Kujawski on a number of matters like business outreach and community development as well.

Eckart has further been involved in the Dollar General subdivision expansion, annexing new property around the village, organizing Hecker’s 125th anniversary celebration and the village’s growth in general.

He also noted his involvement on the Monroe County Economic Development Board and his time with the Hecker Community Center and Hecker Sportsman Club.

On his heavy involvement in the community, Eckart remarked he’s had those values instilled in him ever since he was a kid.

“From a very young age, I’ve had a strong family background set by my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles,” Eckart said. “I’ve followed in their footsteps helping out the different community organizations that we have in Hecker. I’ve been involved in that stuff from a very young age. I’ve been regularly attending the board meetings since I was 12 or so.”

Speaking about his interest in pursuing the village president position, Eckart simply said he felt prepared for it given his time on the board.

“With my time as a village trustee, I felt I was prepared to have that background and experience before immediately jumping into the mayor position,” Eckart said.

Eckart also spoke about his thoughts on taking on the position at such a young age.

“Being a young person involved in the community, I think it’s a really great thing to be involved in,” Eckart said. “There’s a lot of things you can contribute to, and there’s definitely a need among community organizations throughout the entire county that are looking for young people to step up into these roles that have been placed before us.”

Sworn in to the position Tuesday evening, Eckart spoke highly about the village’s past and hopefully about the village’s future.

“Charlie Kujawski and the board have done an excellent job over the past 20 years,” Eckart said. “I feel like they’ve managed everything exceptionally well… Really maintaining what our previous administration, Charlie and the board have done, has been something to look up to, and I just hope to continue to make infrastructure improvements, work on expanding the village slowly and bringing new businesses and maintaining the business relationships that we already have.”