Little did she know that her education in business would come in handy in working for her hometown. For almost 10 years, Nicole has become a major partner in the government operations in the town of Wilmington. Her job roles are that of a budget officer and clerk to the town supervisor, and she is the one that writes the checks. This has made her pretty popular with fellow town employees, especially on pay day.

Having lived in Wilmington as a teenager, she recalls hanging out with her cousin Sheree Lawrence Taylor where their primary transportation of all things Wilmington was their bikes. Traveling and adventures around town were by “pedal power” and not going too far from home. Otherwise, the full force of a parent’s dismay would fall upon the girls.

Nicole is fortunate to have a lot of relatives in the area. Her family has some cool history to our town. Her great-grandmother Gebo operated Wilmington’s only switchboard back in the day. The building is directly across from the Little Super Market. That location served as Wilmington’s communication hub as well as a gas station operated by her great-grandparents.

The Wilmington connection does not stop with her great-grandparents. On the other side of her family, her grandmother Ellen Paret worked for the town of Wilmington on the Green Thumb program. For many years her grandmother would help with just about anything asked of her at the town offices. Ellen’s attention to detail and her take-charge demeanor must have been passed down to Nicole as she exhibits much of her Gram Ellen’s traits.

As with many Wilmington youth, Nicole worked at Santa’s Workshop as a teenager. Her job assignments were the Candy Shop and Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard. The job must have prepared her for future tasks of assisting with organizing the annual Wilmington Children’s Christmas Celebration. This is a big event held for Wilmington youth at the North Pole every Christmas season.

It doesn’t stop with just the Christmas Celebration. Nicole is also responsible for organizing the popular summer concert series held on the banks of the West Branch of the AuSable River at the Wilmington Town Beach.

Nicole has two children and two grandchildren. When chatting about any of her family, a clear pride is present as she engages in conversation about their daily lives. Nicole is married to Steve Forbes, who operates Wilmington’s Parkside Supply. The two of them are heavily involved with their Forbes Racing project.

Nicole brings a unique connection to the operations of the town of Wilmington. Her life experiences in our community has totally made her part of our “Wilmington Way,” and we are very fortunate to have her as part of our town organization.

(Roy Holzer is the supervisor for the town of Wilmington.)