The Goshen Town Council will officially say goodbye to resigned councilman Bill McMaster in its meeting tonight, as they appoint a new member to take his place.

Goshen Mayor Jack Waller said he could not say whom the council will choose until the meeting, but they likely are all on board with the same candidate.

Waller said the new council member will take oath Thursday night and serve in the meeting that night.

Several have approached asking for the position, Waller said, but the nominations will officially come before the council tonight at 6:30 p.m.

McMaster, who was appointed himself last term after councilman Carter Sanders resigned mid-term, said his reason for leaving was strictly medical.

“I had a medical procedure on Jan. 26, and the doctors explained to me I had less than a 10-percent chance,” said McMaster, who is recovering from his procedure well. “So I chose to resign since I had a fair opinion I would not be able to continue.”

But, it was not a decision McMaster said came easy for him, when he announced it Jan. 8.

“It was something I had to think about quite a bit,” McMaster said.

And as McMaster’s era ends, those who formerly served with him said he will not go without having left a mark on the town.

“He always had something to bring to the table,” said Sammy Cope, who was the only other councilmember to be reelected in the Nov. 4 election besides McMaster. “He was good to work with, and what made him good was he had some good ideas, and he was a good listener.”

Cope said McMaster was the grant writer for the council, and that expertise, in particular, is one he said McMaster excelled in.

“That was his expertise. He’s really going to be missed,” Cope said.