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Taking the OathBY JULIE S. TERRYPHOTOS ASHLEY GALLAHER QUINN

Katrina Keith was sworn in as the new mayor of Ironton Dec. 1, 2015. Born and raised in Ironton, Keith holds the

distinction of being its first female mayor. She graduated from Ironton High School and attained a degree in business administration from Ohio University Southern. Her life story includes a time when she was divorced and raising a young son on her own, when she had to receive public assistance to make ends meet. She turned her life around with a good education, hard work, an unshakable faith, a winning personality and a commitment to serving her community.

About getting into politics: “I had no interest in politics. But about five

years ago, I got a strong feeling about running for office, and there was a group encouraging me. In the midst of this five-year period, my husband’s job was relocated to Columbus, Ohio, so I traveled on the weekends for three years. My daughter was in middle school at that time. I had every intention of landing a job in Columbus and relocating, but then my mom was diagnosed with cancer, so I also was concerned about her. I put my job search on hold. In the meantime, my mother-in-law was diagnosed with cancer, so I also took care of her. I juggled basketball, volleyball, my job, and caregiving while volunteering in the community and at church. It was crazy. But you know, I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I was involved in everything coming and going around Ironton. I had a platform and a base to run. When my husband said, ‘It’s OK, go for it,’ that’s when I decided to campaign for mayor. I would never have done it without his support. Family first.”

On being Ironton’s first female mayor: “I didn’t even think about that until later

when people brought it up. It is an honor to offer something to my community and be among a group of great women leaders working and volunteering here. Look at the young women behind us. It’s a huge responsibility. There are girls looking up and thinking, ‘If she can do it, I can do it, too.’ And here’s someone like me, who was really down on her luck at one time, collecting government benefits just to survive. To be at that point, and then to claw my way up, and now to be able to hold this position, it means everything to me.”

From Public Assistance to Public Service:

The Unexpected Life of Ironton Mayor Katrina Keith

About Katrina:• Marriedyoung,movedwithherhusband

to Athens, Ohio, where he had a football scholarship with Ohio University

• Divorced,returnedhometoIrontonasasingle mother of a 2-year-old son

• First job out of college was with theAshland Alliance

• Remarried in 1996 to Tony Keith. They have a blended family that includes his sons T.J. and Teran, her son Major, and theirchildtogetherD’Laynie.

• Worked at Ashland Main Street from2000 to 2003, Junior Achievement from 2003 to 2006 and Hospice of Huntington from 2006 to 2008

• Joined the City of Ironton in 2008 as a benefits specialist

• Co-chairsIrontonaLive• Very involved in her church, Church of

the King, where she occasionally teaches Bible study classes and assists with the women’s group

• Has been reading “The Leadership Styleof Jesus” by Michael Youssef

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On leadership:“I’m a firm believer that if you’re going to

complain about something, you should bring a solution to it. Get involved and help make a difference.

“I consider myself a strong leader and a coach. I want my department heads to have the information and tools they need, but I want them to do their jobs and grow professionally. Everybody has gifts and talents. Everybody has a purpose.”

Making changes in Ironton: “We’re restructuring to make services flow

more efficiently and effectively. We want to use taxpayer dollars wisely. We’re going to implement the ‘Lean’ process. We’re getting rid of waste and learning to operate better. We’re looking to save time and resources, to leverage technology and get more done.

“We’re establishing one- and four-year goals and making a wish list for long term. You have to have a plan to stay on track.

“We’re focusing on downtown renovation. We’ll help property owners with façade improvements and try to recruit businesses to set up in empty buildings. We’re looking at the possibility of upper-story housing units downtown – encouraging young professionals to move downtown where you can live, work and play.

“We want to focus on events and tourism. We have the new farmers market downtown and the summer concert series, the annual Memorial Day Parade, the Gus Mackerbasketballtournament,RallyontheRiver,andlast year we hosted the Taste of Ironton event. We had a tent and booths for local restaurants

to sell their foods. We planned for 300 and 1,500 people showed up!”

On diversity:“The African American population is only

about 2 percent in Lawrence County, but it’s important. I’ve worked with a diversity group in the city. We need to come together and show the positives of each other’s culture. We need to communicate better.

“My husband Tony is African American. We’ve had totally different life experiences. Being able to keep a relationship like that together and raise four kids (laughs) has been interesting. It’s made me who I am, developed my character. When we see things going on in the nation today, Tony and I have our own opinions about it, and we try to understand each other.”

Advice to others:“If you want something bad enough, and

you’re willing to work for it and sacrifice for it, you can make it. That’s what America is about. That’s the American dream.”

If you want something bad enough, and you’re

willing to work for it and sacrifice for it, you

can make it. That’s what America is about. That’s

the American dream.– Katrina Keith

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