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Seven women have served on Union County Board of Commissioners in 157 years, speaker says
Summary
A speaker at a Union County Board of Commissioners meeting said only seven women have served on the board since its founding, highlighted the county’s first woman commissioner Ruth Helms (elected 1982), and urged more women to run for office. The remarks also referenced a 2014 student homelessness crisis and a missing sibling policy.
At a meeting of the Union County Board of Commissioners, a staff member said only seven women have served on the board since it was established 157 years ago and highlighted the county’s first woman commissioner, Ruth Helms, who was elected in 1982.
The speaker said those women helped shape county services and policies. "Those perspectives have helped shape the services, programs, and policies that have made a lasting impact on our community," the staff member said, citing areas including schools, public safety, infrastructure and economic development.
The remarks named current commissioners Melissa Merrill (chair) and Christina Helms, noting Christina Helms shares a last name with the county’s first woman commissioner but is not related. The speaker also mentioned Kim Rogers, saying she was elected as a county commissioner in 2008.
The speaker recounted responding to a county crisis in 2014, saying "almost 6,000 students were out of their homes and there was no sibling policy in place," and that that experience prompted a desire to help. The comment was offered as personal recollection during the remarks and not tied to a formal board action.
Addressing barriers that can deter women from running, the speaker said women are often told they lack time because of family or work obligations and urged prospective candidates to run anyway: "You can be from whatever walk of life that you are. If you've got a fire in you ... do it." The speaker added, "Women are very strong and we're a force to be reckoned with."
No formal motions or votes on policy were recorded in the portion of the meeting that addressed the history and role of women on the board; the remarks were delivered as part of the meeting record rather than tied to an agenda item with an outcome.
Speakers during this portion of the meeting emphasized encouragement and mentorship as paths to increase representation on the Board of Commissioners and called attention to past policy gaps affecting students and families.
