East Lyme — In a ceremony with speeches highlighting service and cooperation, First Selectman Mark Nickerson was sworn in Monday afternoon to his first full term in office.

The inauguration ceremony at the community center also served to recognize the beginning of terms for 26 other officials, both incumbents and newcomers, on the town's boards and commissions.

In his inaugural address, Nickerson, who completed the remainder of former First Selectman Paul Formica's term after Formica joined the General Assembly in January, said that party politics have no place in town government.

"Our motto should always be East Lyme first," he said.

Nickerson said the people who live in East Lyme, who are there to help one another, are what makes the town special.

Looking ahead, Nickerson said the town will have "tough decisions" to consider, from the elementary schools project to a potential new police station.

He said the decisions will be made with due diligence, and he addressed the need to cut back and find efficiencies in the town's budget.

Formica, the ceremony's featured speaker, spoke about the importance of cooperation in state and local politics. He said East Lyme and other towns have a history of putting "process and people ahead of politics."

"We solve problems together because we know the solutions are better when we do," said Formica, a state senator who represents the 20th District.

Deb Fountain, the president of the Niantic Rotary Club and the founder of the "Power of Together," a club that donated more than $45,000 to charity, underscored the efforts within the community to help others.

"We are very blessed in this town to have so many who are willing to put service before self," she said.

Father Anthony Dinoto gave a benediction, and former town clerk Esther Williams presided over the ceremony as the emcee.

Town Clerk Lesley Blais administered the oath of office to the elected officials in attendance. 

During the ceremony, Nickerson thanked the town's employees and his campaign staff and praised his wife, Marlene, and their two sons, Ryan and Andrew.

Nickerson recognized the public service of officials who have completed their current terms: Steve Kelley and Steve Carpenteri of the Board of Finance; Joan Schwartz of the Board of Assessment Appeals; and Robert Kupis, Pamela Rowe, and Joseph Arcarese of the Board of Education.

Nickerson presented Robert Wilson with a proclamation thanking him for his dedication and selflessness in serving 18 years as a selectman and four years as a Board of Education member.

The proclamation declared Tuesday as "Rob Wilson Day" in East Lyme, and Wilson received a standing ovation.

Veterans were applauded at the ceremony, which took place on Pearl Harbor Day.  

On Monday evening, the Board of Education voted at its meeting to appoint John Kleinhans and William Derry to fill the seats on the school board vacated by Kupis and Arcarese, who recently resigned.

Kleinhans is a 2008 graduate of East Lyme High School and the managing director of Octagon Strategy Group who previously served as the executive director of the Connecticut Republican Party.

Derry, a technology and engineering teacher at Lyme-Old Lyme High School, ran this November for a spot on the Board of Education. He lost the election by six votes to Barbara Senges and waived his right to a recount. 

k.drelich@theday.com

Twitter: @KimberlyDrelich