Welcome to
Canton Township, Ohio
Keith Hochadel- President
Keith was appointed and sworn in February 1, 2022 to fill the void left when Trustee Bill Mittas unexpectedly passed away. He will complete the remainder of the term through December 31, 2023. While this is Keith’s initial role in government, he has extensive experience in working with local and state government systems and officials during his professional career. Keith was named Executive Director of Men’s Challenge, a faith based Job Readiness and case management in Stark County in December 2021. He has over 25 years of experience in the behavioral health field including leading CommQuest Services for 10 years as its CEO.
Keith and his wife Sarah, a Canton South graduate, are parents to a son and daughter who attend Canton Local schools and a married son who lives with his wife in Cuyahoga Falls where they are both nurses.
Prior to becoming Executive Director of Men’s Challenge, Keith played key leadership roles not only at CommQuest Services but also served on the Ohio Council of Behavioral Health and Family Services Board of Trustees, as a member of the Ohio Alliance of Recovery Providers where he developed relationships with local and state leaders. Keith is a licensed professional clinical counselor with a supervision designation. He graduated from Malone University’s Masters of Clinical Mental Health Counseling program and gained his bachelor’s degree at Ohio Northern University. Keith also graduated from the Canton Chamber, Leadership Stark County 31st Signature Program. He currently is also a non-attorney member of the Stark County Bar Grievance Committee.
Keith believes that is essential to be active within the community in which he works, lives and worships. He currently serves as an Elder at North Industry Christian Church, a Board Member of Bridge Point Community Services and trustee and former coach with Canton South Youth Baseball. Keith looks forward to serving the residents and businesses of Canton Township in his role as Township Trustee.
Mark Shaffer - Vice President
Mark has been serving Canton Township as a Trustee since 2017 having been elected twice (2018-2025) and appointed one year (2017) after Bill Smith was elected Stark County Commissioner. In addition to Canton Township public service, Mark completed his third elected term (2018-2023) as Stark County Township Association President, which is a position voted on by all elected officials across Stark County’s 17 townships.
Mark and his wife, Hather, are proud Canton South graduates and are parents of two sons and one daughter and reside in Mark’s childhood home.
Mark brings to the township 28 years of proven leadership and management experience having been promoted through a wide variety of operations management roles at Charter Communications, with current responsibility for Charter's North Canton site. Mark obtained his B.A., Business Management, from Walsh University, graduating with Summa Cum Laude distinction and as a member of Sigma Beta Delta International Honor Society for Business Management and Administration. Mark also graduated from the Canton Chamber, Leadership Stark County 19th Signature Program class as well as Leadership Stark County’s Government Academy.
Mark is very active and involved in the community, including serving a multiple year term on the Leadership Stark County Board of Trustees, is a member of Canton South/Sandy Valley Rotary, past member of Canton Rotary, previously served on the Stark State College area employer Technology Advisory Board, past member of ystark! Young Professionals having served on the Professional Development Committee as well as the Northeast Ohio CEO Lunch and Learn Executive Committee, actively volunteers inside of Canton Local Schools, has sponsored youth baseball teams, as well as helping coordinate/lead multiple years of Charter Communications give back efforts within the local community.
Christopher Nichols- Member
First elected as a Canton Township Trustee in 2001, Chris is honored to have been re-elected five times by the residents of Canton Township. During his time as Trustee, Chris has also served as the Past-President of the Stark County Township Association, represented Canton Township on the Stark County Regional Planning Commission and was appointed by former Ohio Governor Robert Taft to the Clean Ohio Council, as the representative for all of Ohio’s 1,308 townships. While on the Clean Ohio Council, he was involved in the awarding of over $120 million in grants to help clean up and redevelop Ohio’s Brownfields.
Chris and his wife Tiffany have 6 children, from middle school through adulthood, and reside in Canton South.
Chris is a Canton South graduate and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Malone University. After serving in a number of management positions in the telecommunications industry, Chris currently works as the Director of Management and Budget for the Stark County Commissioners, is the Administrator for the Stark Council of Governments and is a Board Member and Vice-Chair of Visit Canton, the Stark County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.
Staying active in his community, Chris has spent many years serving as the public address announcer for the Canton South Football and Basketball teams and the Malone University Football and Basketball teams. He is a member of the First Lutheran Church of Canton, the Canton South Rotary, serving as the President-Elect for 2023-2024, a graduate of the 19th class of Leadership Stark County and was named one of Stark County’s “Twenty Under 40!” in 2010.
Chris enjoys serving as your Canton Township Trustee and the opportunities it provides to meet new people and help them through the maze of government. He looks forward to working with you to continue making Canton Township a Proud Family Community.
John Ring- Fiscal Officer
John and his wife Donna chose Canton Township 25 years ago to establish their business, buy a home and raise a family. John and Donna are very appreciative of the business success that they have achieved due to the support of our community. They believe in giving back and have been committed to our community and school district by supporting various organizations, events and fundraisers.
John and Donna have two children both graduates of Canton South High School. Kent graduated from Kent State University and is employed by the US House of Representatives in Washington D.C. as a Legislative Correspondent. Calista is currently attending The Ohio State University. John's two older sons, Brent, a Chemical Engineer, and Derek a white water rafting guide and self-employed wood worker, both spent many summers of their youth in Canton Township. John and Donna have four grandchildren, Isaac, Brooklyn, Willow and Hazel.
After graduating from Ohio University, John spent several years in the food service industry in restaurant management, training and then distributor sales. He began working in financial services in 1999 and specifically in mortgage lending in 2003. John manages the mortgage department of a local credit union. He is a graduate of Leadership Stark County's Government Academy, a current member and past President of the Canton South Rotary Club and served on the Canton Township Board of Zoning Appeals and Zoning Commission. John has served on several non-profit board of directors. He served for several years as an Assistant Scoutmaster in Troop 203 North Industry and Troop 38 East Sparta.
John is deeply honored to have been elected as Fiscal Officer. He is committed to honoring the trust and faith that our residents have placed in him by ensuring that our Fiscal Office is well run, accountable and transparent. He looks forward to being in the office working with the township staff and trustees ensuring that township finances, budgets and records are precise and well managed. He will also be evaluating current practices and making improvements or updates where needed.
John is available to you at any time. Feel free to contact him with questions or concerns. If he does not have an immediate answer or explanation, he is committed to doing the follow up research and getting back to you promptly.