Welcome to
Canton Township, Ohio
Canton Township Elected Officials
Mark Shaffer - President
Mark has been serving Canton Township as a Trustee since 2017 having been elected three times (2018-2029) 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 30 years of proven leadership and management experience having been promoted through a wide variety of operations management roles at Charter Communications, currently serving in the role of Senior Director with overall responsibility for Charter's North Canton site location. 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 Directors, 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 personally donated time and financially supported a wide range of area organizational needs benefiting individuals in our community encompassing all ages, has secured corporate philanthropy for area organizations, and helped lead efforts in 2024 by returning the Holiday Parade while chairing the new WinterFest event committee along with a great group of community minded volunteers as well as school and township personnel.
Keith Hochadel- Vice President
Keith was appointed and sworn in February 1, 2022 to fill the void left when Trustee Bill Mittas unexpectedly passed away. 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.
John Ring- Trustee
John and his wife Donna chose Canton Township in 1996 to establish their business, buy a home and raise a family. They 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 Sr. Legislative Aide. Calista graduated from The Ohio State University and now lives in the Boston area where she is employed by TJX Companies as an Allocation Analyst. John's two older sons, Brent, a Chemical Engineer, and Derek a white-water rafting guide and self-employed woodworker, 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 retired from CSE Federal Credit Union in May of 2024.
John is deeply honored to have been elected Trustee in November 2025, having previously served as Fiscal Officer. He looks forward to working with our township's officials and staff to keep things moving forward.
Christopher Nichols- Fiscal Officer
After serving the residents of Canton Township for six terms as a Township Trustee, Chris was appointed in 2026 to fill the vacancy of Fiscal Officer, which was created by former Fiscal Officer John Ring’s election as Township Trustee.
During his time as Trustee, Chris was a Past-President of the Stark County Township Association, has represented Canton Township on the Stark County Regional Planning Commission, and was appointed by former Ohio Governor Robert Taft to the Clean Ohio Council, representing 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.
In 2024, Chris was elected by township officials from Ohio’s 1,308 townships to the Board of Directors of the Ohio Township Association. Representing Canton Township on this statewide organization provides Canton Township with a stronger voice in the development of township-related legislation.
Chris and his wife Tiffany have 6 children, from high 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 along with a minor in mathematics. After working in several management positions within the telecommunications industry, Chris currently works as the Director of Management and Budget for the Stark County Commissioners and is the Administrator for the Stark Council of Governments. In addition, Chris is a Board Member and current Board Chair of Visit Canton, the Stark County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, and is a member of the Board of the Stark Area Regional Transit Authority (SARTA).
Staying active in his community, Chris has spent many years serving as the public address announcer for Canton South’s Football and Basketball teams along with Malone University’s Football and Men’s & Women’s Basketball teams. He is a member of the First Lutheran Church of Canton, a member and Past-President of the Canton South Rotary, 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 Fiscal Officer and helping Canton Township residents better understand where and how their tax dollars are spent. He looks forward to working with you to continue making Canton Township a Proud Family Community!