Photo by Sebastián González de León y León
On the evening of March 19, Megan Zemaitis noticed dozens of missed calls on her phone, but she could not answer.
“I was coaching a flag football game, and I’m on the sidelines, like actively screaming at my girls,” Zemaitis said. “I look, and it’s my dad. He will not stop calling me.”
She replied with “Dad, I’m coaching!”
“You won!” he said.
It didn’t hit her right away that she had won the mayoral election in Kenneth City. The election results showed Zemaitis won against former Kenneth City Mayor Robert Howell.
She said the girl’s flag football game took all of her attention at the time.
“My players were like, ‘Did we hear that, right?’ Like, ‘are you the mayor now?’,” Zemaitis said.
Unfortunately, her team lost the game, but they were supportive of their coach’s win.
“We all celebrated together a little bit afterwards,” she said. “And my team made me feel good. So that was nice. Being able to take the time to… let it settle.”
That same night, The Gabber Newspaper called Zemaitis about her victory.
“I’m excited to get in there and hopefully make those changes that our town really needs,” she said after the game.
On April 11, Town Attorney Ralf Brookes swore in Zemaitis as mayor at the Kenneth City Town Council meeting. She became the fourth female Kenneth City mayor. Zemaitis also made Kenneth City history by being the Town’s first openly gay mayor.
Read more about Kenneth City’s search for a new Town Manager, and money and budget discussions from the July 12 Town Council meeting.
Who is Megan Zemaitis?
Zemaitis lives in Kenneth City with her wife, Megan. Together, they are “Megan and Megan.” The two married five years ago after meeting through a dating app. While her wife is from Tallahassee, Zemaitis has been a Kenneth City resident for decades.
Born in Queens, New York, she and her family relocated to Florida when she was 5 years old.
“Pretty much like the entire family all made the move from New York to Florida. The aunts, uncles, my grandparents, you know, everybody, we all moved together,” Zemaitis said. “I absolutely loved growing up in this community.”
At a younger age, she knew she wanted to buy a house and start a family in Kenneth City.
“I think it’s really funny, but my dream house growing up, like my favorite house in Kenneth City, is now the house that I own,” she said. “I’ve come full circle, and I’m living out my childhood dreams in the house that I wanted to live [in].”
A Past and Future in Kenneth City
In the early 2000s, Zemaitis’ mother, Teresa, was a part of the town council. Later on, Teresa became mayor and served from 2009 to 2015. Since Zemaitis’ youth, she wanted to serve her town, too.
“Honestly, I feel like it’s been a bucket list goal of mine,” Zemaitis said. “Since I was little, ‘I’m going to be mayor like my mom’.”
Now, she is the second Zemaitis to serve as the mayor of Kenneth City.
“I grew up participating,” she said. “I remember picking out the park equipment for James V. Ernst Park. Giving my mom all my opinions on what playground equipment looks fun, providing that child perspective.”
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Council Member Megan Zemaitis
Zemaitis started her public service as a council member in March of 2020. She told The Gabber Newspaper that she didn’t want to dive headfirst into a mayoral position.
“I needed to get my feet wet a little bit… learn firsthand,” she said.
Since the age of 16, she’s had leadership roles and manager positions. Zemaitis credits those past opportunities with her ability to do her job today.
“I think that does translate into politics, because we are a small town, and it does really take all of us to accomplish something, and we don’t have maybe all of the resources that, you know, our neighboring communities do,” she said.
Zemaitis said her mom prepared her for her own position with the Town today.
“I loved attending all of the meetings, and I loved watching her take phone calls or work on her grants,” Zemaitis said. “I think I just learned a lot that way, too.”
She notoriously keeps the public informed with Kenneth City’s affairs through her Facebook page.
“During my last term as council member, I just felt like this town really needs some change and some progress and reaching for the future here and catching up at the 21st century,” Zemaitis said. “I just figured I was the right person to help take this town there.”
Photo courtesy of Megan Zemaitis
Mayor Megan Zemaitis
Evidently, Zemaitis is a decisive mayor. Not long after swearing in as mayor, Zemaitis motioned to terminate former Town Manager Lacy LaFave. In another meeting, she kicked off the process to find a replacement.
Along with that, she is quite aware of the public’s perception of Kenneth City.
“We’ve had so many reputations over the years,” she said. “I think I just want people to be like, ‘Wow, this is a nice community’.”
Additionally, Zemaitis said she already started working toward her vision for the Town. She told The Gabber Newspaper she has a beautification project in the works as well as new signs.
“I’m also focusing on that ice cream cone at the corner of 58 and 54th,” Zemaitis said.
While beautification is important, Zemaitis also believes having more clarity regarding the town’s boundaries is a priority.
“Those houses that you can see, those are not Kenneth City. Weird, right?” she said in reference to homes across the street from the Community Center that are outside of the town.
Furthermore, she wants more noticeable town borders. She explained how she hopes for a “clear distinction, like, ‘Yes, I am in Kenneth City now’.”
Zemaitis told The Gabber Newspaper that she hopes Kenneth City residents think she is doing a good job as mayor.
“I never had any agendas or I guess I always do what’s best for our residents, our community, our council,” Zemaitis said.
Megan Zemaitis: More Than a Town Politician
Zemaitis isn’t only involved in town politics. She works as a training and implementation manager for an Australian tech company. In addition, she coaches the boy’s and girl’s swimming teams at Dixie Hollins High School and the girl’s flag football team.
“I really like riding my motorcycle,” Zemaitis said. “I like playing video games. I like going kayaking. I enjoy swimming just for me, too; not only like coaching or swimming competitively, just hanging out in the pool, floating. It’s probably some of my favorite things.”
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