Gwen Ashley Joins Jefferson's Board of Aldermen

By Joel Frady

The town of Jefferson celebrated a historic moment on Monday, Jan. 26, when lifelong Jefferson resident

Gwen Ashley took the oath of office to join the town's board of alderman. Town Manager Cathy Howell administered the oath at Jefferson Town Hall shortly after 7 p.m., making Ashley the first female board member in the history of Jefferson.

Mayor Dana Tugman, who pointed out that the first female alderman was being sworn in by the town's first female town manager, welcomed Ashley to the board.

"I hope you enjoy your time here," he said after Ashley took the oath. After the meeting, he added that Ashley has "served on all sorts of committees for the improvement and beautification of Jefferson.

"She's been an important part of Jefferson for a long, long time, way back farther than I go," Tugman continued. "She'll be a good addition to the board."

Howell said she has been working with Ashley since she joined the town's staff in 1989.

"I've worked with her on [the planning board] and I've worked with her at Yadkin Valley Bank, and I think she's a big asset to Jefferson," said Howell. "She really knows what's going on in this community and what the community needs."

Howell added that Ashley's experience on the planning board brings experience on zoning issues, which may be useful because "some of the board [of alderman] members have never been in the planning stages of something."

The appointment to the Jefferson Board of Alderman was especially nice for Ashley, who ran for a position on the board in November 2008 and lost by only 10 votes. But, when board member Max Yates resigned at the town's December 2008 meeting because he was moving out of Jefferson, Ashley was ready to pick up the slack.

"I'm just interested in the town," said Ashley, who served on the town's planning board for 22 years in addition to being the president of the Museum of Ashe County History and serving on the foundation board for Ashe Services for Aging.

Ashley said that the board "felt like I was a logical choice because I had shown interest in running" when Yates resigned, but added that she was excited.

"I love the town of Jefferson," she said. "I'm anxious to be a part of this board. We've got a wonderful board of alderman and a wonderful town government."

Because Ashley was appointed to the board, however, she is only currently serving out the rest of Yates' term, which ends in November.

After she took the oath on Monday, Ashley took her seat on the board for the remainder of the meeting. In her first vote regarding town policy, she voted to approve a motion to make bow-and-arrows legal in the town and to approve an urban hunting season for deer.

The Jefferson Board of Aldermen meets on the fourth Monday of every month at 7 p.m. Their next meeting will be held on Feb. 23 at Jefferson Town Hall. To find out more about the town of Jefferson, call (336) 846-9368.