Mayor Melanie Kebler, Bend
Her Own Wings
Melanie Kebler grew up in Bend, graduating from Bend High, and returned to her hometown in 2018 after attending the University of Michigan and Lewis and Clark Law School. Kebler was elected as the City of Bend’s Mayor in 2022, having first been elected to the City Council in 2020. During her time on Council, Bend has approved nearly 1,000 new affordable homes, invested millions of one-time state and federal funds into solving homelessness in collaboration with Deschutes County, and won significant federal grants for transportation infrastructure that will reconnect the community in...
info_outline
Mayor Remy Drabkin, McMinnville
Her Own Wings
Mayor Remy Drabkin of McMinnville, Oregon has dedicated over 12 years to public service. She is the first woman, first Jew and first queer-identified person to hold the Mayorship. Remy served two terms on the McMinnville City Council and two terms on the Planning Commision before being appointed and then elected Mayor. Remy was pivotal in establishing the Affordable Housing Commission, and the city’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) Advisory Committee. As a housing advocate, Remy has brought forward policy resulting in thousands of nights of overnight shelter and projects that...
info_outline
Councilor Briae Lewis, Corvallis
Her Own Wings
Originally from Maryland/DC, Briae moved to Oregon in 2019 and ironically did not get into politics until the 2020 election cycle and Black Lives Matter. After that, Briae decided to run for office and was elected in 2022 as the first openly gay black woman on the Corvallis City Council where she serves as liaison to the Historic Resources Commission, the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Policy Advisory Board, the Home Opportunity Planning Equity (HOPE), and the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition.
info_outline
Mayor Susan Wahlke, Lincoln City
Her Own Wings
Susan Wahlke was first elected in 2014 to the Lincoln City City Council. She later was elected fulfill the previous mayor’s term. In 2022, she was elected to a full 4-year term as Mayor. Susan is a 30-year resident of north Lincoln County. Born in Tacoma, Washington and having moved to Oregon in the 5th grade, she considers herself a native Pacific Northwesterner. After graduating from the University of Oregon with a degree in Elementary Education, she moved to Stuttgart, Germany where she substitute-taught in Department of Defense Schools. After three years in Europe, she was able to drive...
info_outline
Councilor Cynthia Jacobi, Newport
Her Own Wings
First appointed to the Newport City Council for a two-year term in 2018, Cynthia then won her seat in 2020. She is currently running unopposed for another four-year term. Cynthia reflects on the fact that the City has spent six years investing in her education about the city. She wants to give back as it takes a while to learn to ask the right questions. She never thought she would be in an elected position, but friends urged her on. She says, “So, I went for it, surprising myself most of all.” Cynthia has observed that the conversation changes when more women are in policy-making roles....
info_outline
Mayor Cec Koontz, Monmouth
Her Own Wings
Cec grew up in Salem, but has been a member of the Monmouth-Independence community for over 40 years. She has volunteered with organizations from the cooperative preschool to the Chamber of Commerce, to the Monmouth-Independence Community Foundation, where she has served on the Board since 2001 (with almost 20 years as its treasurer). Currently, Cec works as the Director of Finance & Operations for the Central School District and just completed 10 years of service on the Board of Trustees of Western Oregon University. She has served in both appointed and elected positions in the City of...
info_outline
Re-Broadcast: Mayor Denyse McGriff, Oregon City
Her Own Wings
Oregon City Mayor Denyse McGriff has extensive experience in government. She was the Principal Planner for the city from 1988 to 1996. Now retired, she has has worked for a number of local governments, including the Lane Council of Governments, Columbia County, City of Tillamook, Deschutes County, City of Oregon City and rounded out her career at the Portland Development Commission. Her public service career was multifaceted with an emphasis on historic preservation/conservation, adaptive reuse and land use planning. Denyse was first appointed to fill a vacant seat on the Commission in...
info_outline
Re-Broadcast: Councilor Tita Montero, Seaside
Her Own Wings
As an adult living in Seattle, Shoreline and Mukilteo, WA, Tita considered herself apolitical. She researched candidates and issues and voted but she had no thoughts of being involved in local government. But, when she moved to Seaside in 2002, she started attending city council meetings, as well as commission, committee and board meetings because she thought that’s what a responsible citizen should do. Within a couple of years she was elected to the board of the downtown development association and became the Chamber President. In 2004 she led a group which sued city hall for the right of...
info_outline
Re-Broadcast: Mayor Jessica Engelke, North Bend
Her Own Wings
Mayor Engelke was elected by her community to serve the City of North Bend as Mayor in November 2022 and was the first female mayor. Her current term expires in November of 2024. Mayor Engelke had served previously as a North Bend Council Member after being elected as mayor in November 2018. Jessica Engelke is a longtime North Bend resident invested in making our community a better place. She is a tenured Business Professor at Southwestern Oregon Community College and teaches a variety of business classes. Jessica is very active in the community, besides her volunteer position as...
info_outline
Re-Broadcast: Councilor Kori Rodley, Springfield
Her Own Wings
Kori Rodley is a lifelong Oregonian who was elected to the Springfield City Council in 2019 and she is the first out lesbian to serve on the council. Currently, she serves as chair of the Springfield Economic Development Agency (SEDA), chair of the Lane County Human Services Commission, and as a voting member of the League of Oregon Cities General Government Policy Committee. Her past service has included Springfield Utility Board budget committee and the 4J school district Equity Committee. In her day job she works with Lane County Developmental Disabilities Services. Kori and her spouse,...
info_outlineOregon City Mayor Denyse McGriff has extensive experience in government. She was the Principal Planner for the city from 1988 to 1996. Now retired, she has has worked for a number of local governments, including the Lane Council of Governments, Columbia County, City of Tillamook, Deschutes County, City of Oregon City and rounded out her career at the Portland Development Commission. Her public service career was multifaceted with an emphasis on historic preservation/conservation, adaptive reuse and land use planning.
Denyse was first appointed to fill a vacant seat on the Commission in 2019, and then won a four-year term in 2020. She was elected to complete Mayor Lyles Smith’s term in August of 2022 before winning a full term in the next election. As the first woman of color to be elected mayor in Oregon City, she continues to champion a government and community where everyone has a voice. She has been active in the League of Oregon Cities DEI and the founding of the People of Color Caucus.
She is active in several organizations and efforts in the Portland metro area such as the Oregon City Planning Commission, the Clackamas Heritage Council, McLoughlin Memorial Association, 1000 Friends of Oregon, Bosco-Milligan Foundation/Architectural Heritage Center, National Trust for Historic Preservation among many others. In 2013, she was awarded the Ruth McBride Powers Memorial Award for Service. The award notes the following: “Denyse’s passion for preservation and love for her community is very evident. No matter what hat Denyse has worn over the years, she continuously pushes everybody she meets to try a little harder and aim a little higher”- Vicki Yates, Oregon City Historic Review Board member. In addition, in 2018, she was a member of the Rose Farm Management Committee who received the Ruth McBride Powers Memorial Award for their service.
Denyse grew up in a military family and gained an appreciation for the small older communities adjacent to the bases. She arrived in Oregon in 1975 to attend graduate school at the University of Oregon and went on to graduate with degrees in Political Science (MS) and Urban and Regional Planning (MURP). While at the University of Oregon, Denyse had a work study job with the Bureau of Governmental Research and Service/League of Oregon Cities. She has now come full circle!