Benwood Mayor Ed Kuca Sent Off With Love
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BENWOOD -- After spending more than half his life serving Benwood's city and residents in various capacities, Mayor Ed Kuca Jr. is retiring from public life at the end of the month after serving for 43 years.
Kuca, 73, did not seek re-election in this year's race, with Councilman Walter Yates succeeding him as mayor on July 1.
On Thursday, Benwood officials, employees and friends came to the city park to celebrate their mayor's retirement. Longtime police chief and friend, Frank Longwell, spoke highly of Kuca's work throughout his career and the things that the city accomplished in that time.
"With a great council and the mayor, we were able to achieve a lot of things," Longwell said. "The playground wasn't here before Mayor Kuca. The swimming pool wasn't redone. The flag wasn't up yet. The water plant wasn't operational. The flood wall wasn't operating. City's wages were substandard, but now we're above-average. Mayor, we've done a lot, and I hate to see you go, but if anyone deserves to retire, it's you.
"One time, there was a flood, and the mayor and I, and a bunch of other good people, went down. It was my little daughter's birthday party -- I wasn't there. It was his mother's birthday -- he wasn't there. We were at the end of a four-inch fire hose. There's been countless times where we put the city over family. I know you love the city like I do."
Kuca was also presented with a certificate of recognition from Sen. Joe Manchin, who has known Kuca since they were kids.
"Put simply, there is no greater achievement than to be in the position to give back to the community you love," Manchin stated in the proclamation. "Ed and I even played football against each other in high school in the '60s. … West Virginians have an exceptional can-do spirit, a neighborly love that is unrelenting, and we are grounded by the same core principle – to help others be the best they can be. That is Mayor Kuca's legacy as a community leader."
City Clerk Judy Hunt recalled one of her fondest memories of Kuca -- when she'd dropped and broken an angel used for a Nativity set, and Kuca spent the time to restore it. Hunt also presented Kuca with a glass ornament from the city.
Kuca had been mayor since 2003, but his service to Benwood dates back to 1977, when he was appointed by council to serve on the Benwood Park Board. He served on that board until 1988 and was president of the board for seven years. In 1988, he was elected to city council in the 1st Ward, which he served for 15 years. In 2003, Kuca became acting mayor, before being elected to the office the following month, a capacity he served in for the next 17 years.
Over his career as mayor, Kuca said he was happy to see many projects completed, such as the city's large American flag, the various improvements to the city pool and park, and the completion of the flood wall bracing against the Ohio river. In addition, he said he was proud to have completed a list of the mayors Benwood has had over its history, the photos and names of whom adorn the walls of the city building -- which was also renovated under Kuca's tenure.
Kuca lamented that the one thing he was unable to see come to fruition as mayor was the demolition of the Bellaire Bridge, which still hangs overhead in center Benwood.
"That's my only disappointment. I never got to see that come down, but hopefully sometime it does before anyone gets hurt," he said.
While Kuca won't lead Benwood anymore, he said he plans to spend the rest of his life in the city he loves, but now with more time to spend with his daughter, who lives in Atlanta. While he won't be moving south, he'll have more freedom to take long weekends or extended trips to visit her. He also expressed love for his wife, Gerry, who supported him throughout his entire political career.
"I always will live in Benwood," he said Thursday. "Benwood is the city that I love."