Mid-Ohio Valley leaders react to Boley’s retirement
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PARKERSBURG - Local officials wished state Sen. Donna Boley well Thursday upon learning of her retirement.
Wood County Commission President Blair Couch called her "the epitome of a public servant." "She served with great distinction and a willingness to work with the other party when she was in the minority," he said. "I think the greatest thing she did was she stayed connected to her constituents and she attended meetings, events and was a part of many things over the course of 40 years. She showed what an elected official should do. I will certainly miss her and her service. We are thankful for her hard work and dedication to her constituents."
Fellow Commissioner Jimmy Colombo worked with Boley when he was mayor of Parkersburg as well.
"Donna Boley has always done her best to help the voters of the counties that she represents," Colombo said. "She has always been open for discussion and has had periodic meetings with people in the area to get their feedback. ... She will be missed."
Parkersburg Mayor Tom Joyce said Boley was always "fair and accommodating" to him as a constituent before he was mayor.
"Donna has been a wonderful public servant," Joyce said. "She is a lovely person, and her kindness is beyond measure."
Boley represented the 3rd Senate District for more than 40 years. It includes Wood, Wirt, Ritchie and her home of Pleasants County. Prior to redistricting it covered a portion of Roane County instead of Ritchie.
"She has been a really good person to work with," Wirt County Commissioner Bob Gunnoe said. "We will look forward to working with whoever her replacement will be."
Gunnoe credited Boley with helping to get funding for the volunteer fire department and other organizations as well as other needs in the area.
In Pleasants County, Commission President Jay Powell called Boley "a tremendous friend to the Pleasants County Commission and to many county commissions throughout the state.
"Sen. Boley was always available to advocate, connect and encourage the state capitol leaders to support any project our commission was pursuing," he said. "She will be greatly missed and is greatly appreciated for her decades of professionalism and advocacy for our communities."
State Sen. Mike Azinger, R-Wood, said it has been an honor serving with Boley since 2016.
"She is a legend in this state," he said. "As a senator, she would do just about anything that needed to be done to help the people of the 3rd District. That might be the most remarkable thing about her, even more so than the fact she has held the record for being the longest serving state Senator."
Azinger said Boley had a lot of institutional knowledge regarding the state and its various departments that allowed her to be able to get problems worked on and fixed.
Her longevity in the Senate was an amazing feat by any measure, he said. There was a time when Boley was the only Republican in the state Senate, compared to now where there are only a couple of Democrats.
"It is not an easy gig sometimes," Azinger said. "She always enjoyed the respect and reverence of the other senators in our morning caucus meetings just because of how long she has been down there and all she has done as a state senator and all the history she has seen and the stories she would tell from years ago."
Azinger also credited Boley's husband Jack, who passed away over eight years ago, with always traveling with her throughout the district attending events and meeting with people.
Wood County Circuit Court Judge J.D. Beane was a Democratic member of the West Virginia House of Delegates from 1991 until he was appointed to the bench in December 2006. He said he has the utmost respect for Boley and wishes her well in her new chapter.
"She certainly gave a lot of her life to public service, and I'm glad to be able to call her a friend," Beane said. "It's sad to see her leave because she did such a good job, but I certainly understand it may be that time in her life when she needs to focus on other things."
Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.
Brett Dunlap can be reached at bdunlap@newsandsentinel.com.