Mayor McCaw To Resign

PRESCOTT - Prescott Mayor Libby McCaw is step- ping down from her post after more than six years and the council members will miss her.

"She's been excellent and I'm really going to miss her," said Councilwoman Darlene DeCoria. "I have a lot of respect for her. I've always looked up to her."

McCaw said she let the council know a couple of months ago that she needed to resign because of family obligations. She will remain in Prescott and will often be in Walla Walla taking care of her mother.

"I finally figured out life doesn't turn out the way I plan it," McCaw said. "It wasn't an easy decision."

Upon hearing about Mc- Caw's impending resignation, DeCoria sent a letter to the council saying she would like to step up to the plate and act as mayor pro-tem. The council approved the appointment at its last meeting. McCaw said she doesn't yet know when she will formally resign, but it will likely be early in September.

"She's an open-minded per- son," McCaw said of DeCoria. "I think she will be a good fit."

McCaw, now 64, has served the city of Prescott for 6.5 years as mayor and was on the coun- cil for one four-year term.

Born in a small town in East- ern Montana, McCaw made her way to Walla Walla in the mid- 1970s and finally to Prescott in 1994 to live on her husband's family farm.

She said moving from Walla Walla to Prescott wasn't a big, tough change for her.

"I grew up in a really small town and I always enjoyed that," she said.

She's now retired, but until the age of 62 McCaw worked in Walla Walla as an advocate for the elderly and the disabled, and as a case manager for seniors.

McCaw said running for a city council post in Prescott was an easy idea for her.

"It just kind of came as a natural thing," she said. "It was a way to get involved in the community."

When the Presbyterian Church in Prescott was still open, she was an active mem- ber. She is still part of the Prescott Community Club and the Prescott Lions Club. Liv- ing in a small town such as Prescott, people would have to go out of their way to not be ac- tive community members, she said with a laugh. According to the 2010 census, there are just 318 Prescott residents.

"I'm just trying to be a friend," McCaw said. "It's hard not to be a member of the community when it's small like this."

And after four years on the council, there was no doubt in her mind that she would next be running for mayor.

"I thought I'd try it," she said.

She ran against Matt Tunnell and didn't win by a landslide, but "it was enough to do the job," she said.

In her position as mayor, McCaw is most proud of her work to help open the Prescott Public Library, and working together with the community on the cemetery and city clean-up days.

"The work couldn't have been done without community involvement," she said.

She gained many skills through her career that helped her in her mayoral position. First, her work taught her to listen to both sides of every issue and to not respond without thinking on it.

Also, she places high priority on gathering all of the facts.

"Sometimes that's not a popular approach, but that's mine," McCaw said.

This approach to business makes Councilman Doug Venn believe she has been a real asset to the community.

"She's done a good job," he said. "She's a steady hand on the pillar."

DeCoria has the same, thoughtful approach to city business and that's part of the reason why she will be a great mayor, McCaw said. DeCoria has been responsible and in her position and she really participates in council activities and business, Mc- Caw added.

DeCoria said she wants to be mayor because it's a new experience. She's still in her first year on the council, but she's learning quickly how to run a city, she said.

DeCoria has lived in Prescott for 25 years and is a retired nurse who worked at local nursing homes and at the Walla Walla Veteran's Affairs Medical Center.

"I'm not a big talker, but I'll get things done," she said.

Venn agreed that DeCoria is willing to learn and he be- lieves she will do well filling McCaw's shoes.

As for McCaw, she said when community and council members get upset that she's leaving, she gives them a simple answer.

"I'm not going," McCaw said. "I'm just not mayor. I'm still planning to be part of the community."