Mayor Benie Platt

Bernie Platt has been active in our community for the past 40 years. He served as Mayor of Cherry Hill Township from 1979 to 1980 as well as Deputy Mayor from 1976 to 1979 and Councilman from 1980 to 1985. He has served as a member of the Cherry Hill Township Site Plan and Review Board, the Economic Development Committee, Emergency Medical Services Chairman, and organizer of the Save A Life fund drive, which benefited the former Cherry Hill Ambulance Squad. Recently he served as a member of the Camden County Board of Chosen Freeholders, the governing body of Camden County, from 1996-1998.

Since 1977, Bernie has been a member of the Cherry Hill business community. Platt Memorial Chapels, Inc. is a family owned and operated full service funeral home. Bernie's professional affiliations include the West Jersey Funeral Directors Association and the New Jersey State Funeral Directors Association.

Bernie has a long record of service throughout Southern New Jersey. He is a member of many civic and community organizations. Bernie is most proud of his family. He and his wife, Judy, raised their four children in Cherry Hill. The Platts have eight grandchildren. Bernie and Harry were America's first father and son mayors to serve in adjoining towns. Their unique relationship was featured in People Magazine.

John Amato

First elected in 1983, Council Vice President Amato is the longest serving councilperson in the history of Cherry Hill Township. A licensed public accountant, Amato is an administrator for Rutgers University's LEAP Academy, a magnet school serving the City of Camden, New Jersey. He is a graduate of Rutgers and holds a Master's degree from Kean College. John is active in the Sons of Italy and is former Board President of the Camden County Vocational Schools. He is a Eucharistic minister and lector at the Queen of Heaven Roman Catholic Church and also serves on the board of the Y.A.L.E. (Young Adolescent Learning Environment) School for children with special needs. Mr. Amato and his wife, Marion, have two daughters, Rosemary and Irena, and two grandchildren, Michael and Francesca. Every December, John plays Santa Claus for a number of charitable organizations and at Cherry Hill Mall. Councilman Amato has lived in Cherry Hill's Erlton neighborhood since 1963.

Dennis Garbowski

Councilman Garbowski was appointed to Council on February 27, 2006 to fill the unexpired term of Councilwoman Pamela Rosen Lampitt, who resigned in January 2006. A resident of the Township's Hinchman neighborhood, Mr. Garbowski is the embodiment of Cherry Hill's heritage of hard work and community service. For nearly 20 years, Dennis has been a member of the Carpenters Local Union No. 393- serving as a Senior Council Representative and as an Executive Board Member. Dennis has also served the residents of the Township as a member of the Planning Board since 2003, during which time the Board oversaw the planning of the Garden State Park redevelopment project.

Sara Lipsett

Sara Lipsett is a resident of the Downs Farms neighborhood where she lives with her husband Jack and their two daughters, Annie and Jane. She has lived in Cherry Hill since 1998 and has been an active and involved member of the community, serving on the Cherry Hill Zoning Board and as a member of the Cherry Hill Historical Commission. As a member of the Executive Board of the Horace Mann PTA, Sara has been committed to keeping Cherry Hill’s schools excellent and has worked hard to involve parents of young children and new residents in the PTA and the Cherry Hill community. As a member of council, she will be a voice for these same groups as well as all Cherry Hill residents who want to keep Cherry Hill the best community in South Jersey.