Thornton Township trustee Christopher Gonzalez dies
Two-term Thornton Township Trustee Christopher Gonzalez has died, Township Clerk Casey Nesbit confirmed on April 7.
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Two-term Thornton Township Trustee Christopher Gonzalez has died, Township Clerk Casey Nesbit confirmed on April 7.
Nesbit said township Supervisor Napoleon Harris plans to release a statement about Gonzalez’s death after his family members have had time to communicate among one another.
At the time of his death, Gonzalez was serving his second term as Thornton Township trustee. Gonzalez is known for his opposition to Thornton Township Supervisor Tiffany Henyard while serving as trustee in 2023 and 2024.
Former Township Trustee Stephanie Wiedeman briefly served alongside Gonzalez during the end of the Henyard administration. She described Gonzalez as a patient, calm, and forgiving person. She said having him on the board made a difficult situation more bearable.
“We had some good laughs,” Wiedeman said. “Chris will be missed by a lot of people. He helped a lot of people.”
Gonzalez worked for Thornton Township before he was trustee, according to his online biography, making contributions in Senior Services, Special Services, and Transportation. He was twice elected as Thornton Township Assessor, serving from 2005-2013.
Gonzalez was first elected Thornton Township trustee in April 2021, serving in the administration of Supervisor Frank Zuccarelli. Less than a year later, in January 2022, Zuccarelli died while in office.
In March 2022, Gonzalez nominated Henyard as Zuccarelli’s successor and voted with the rest of the Thornton Township trustees to appoint her to that position.
Henyard’s behavior became more erratic, and township residents began to question her administration. By summer 2024, Gonzalez began to publicly distance himself from Henyard and push back against her agenda at township board meetings.
For his reelection campaign in 2025, Gonzalez joined Harris’ slate, all of whom were elected and took office in May 2025. Gonzalez voted in unanimity with the supervisor and the other trustees on every matter before the board.
Most recently, Gonzalez worked with Trustee Byron Stanley to create the Men’s Health Matters ongoing initiative for township residents, which hosted a kickoff event in November 2025.
According to Wiedeman, Gonzalez leaves behind four children.
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