It was a little over a year ago that a motion was made to nominate Tiffany Craft as the new Mayor of ... [+]
It was unanimous: Tiffany Craft would be the new mayor of Whitesburg, Kentucky, after her husband, Mayor James Wiley Craft, died a little over a year ago. The city council's decision to have Mrs. Craft serve the remaining 16 months of her husband's term made her the first female mayor in the city's 180-year history, and the person chiefly responsible for helping her community rebound from the deadly flooding that devastated parts of eastern Kentucky last month.
"James was mayor of Whitesburg for 15 of the greatest years the town had ever experienced,"Craft said in an email interview. The idea that she would succeed him, if only briefly, wasn't in her plans, she said. “I just imagined my husband fulfilling his duties and when he was finished we would ride off into the sunset, so to speak, and do something else with our lives," Craft said. "But to actually have the title, to be sitting in this seat, something no other female has ever done, will forever be one of the greatest honors of my life."
Becoming Mayor
Craft said the feelings that came along with this honor have at times been unfathomable. "People ... [+]
Craft, the 35-year-old mayor, graduated from Pikeville College (now known as The University of Pikeville) in May 2010 with a bachelor's degree in communication and married James almost three months later. The following spring, she gave birth to their only child, Sammi Lauren Craft.
"My role until I became mayor was wife and mother," Craft said, adding that she was happy to be her husband's "support system."
That role became more demanding in Fall 2020, when James Craft was diagnosed with bladder cancer, requiring 32 radiation treatments, four immunotherapy treatments, and various other procedures over nine months.
"Never once did I leave his side," Tiffany Craft said.
Craft and her daughter treated James to a peanut butter milkshake on his 76th birthday on June 13, 2021, hours before he suffered a stroke. Sixteen days later, James died at the University of Kentucky Hospital in Lexington.
"I went from being in charge of a household of three to a community of around 2,000 people," Craft said later. "It was a much different atmosphere for me, as you can imagine."
Her lack of experience didn't keep Craft from embracing her new role. "I love my community and will do my best to see that we continue to grow and prosper," she said. "This is where my heart is."
The Flood No One Expected
Between July 25 and July 30, 2022, several thunderstorms developed and brought heavy rain, deadly ... [+]
Whitesburg and other parts of eastern Kentucky and central Appalachia were battered by thunderstorms in July that brought heavy rain, deadly flash flooding, and devastating river flooding — the worst the community had seen since 1957.
According to Craft, the flood waters rose to 22 feet and homes were completely submerged. Many people had to be rescued by their neighbors aboard watercraft, including canoes, kayaks, pontoon boats, and jet skis.
" I have never seen so many brave men and women before in my life," Craft said. "Some of the individuals doing the rescuing couldn't even swim. But they were out there trying to save people."
"No one could have been prepared for a catastrophic event of this magnitude in this area. It's ... [+]
Craft had established a command center of sorts at an office building on a hill behind city hall, where she and the town's fire chief could communicate with FEMA, the Red Cross, and water rescue teams using the only cell phone they had that would get service. "I still can't process the entirety of that day. It still feels like a nightmare. It's surreal," Craft said. "Even now, looking at all of the damage, the debris lying on the side of the roads, the empty houses that people who have spent their entire lives in walked away from, and businesses that have taken blood, sweat, and tears to see to fruition gone. I'm devastated, heartbroken, and I feel empty."
Craft said that while she does not have a complete estimate of how much is needed to help the town recover, they know it will take several million for the city to be cleaned up and rebuilt.
Whether it’s the continued efforts around repairing the damage of the recent floods or being on the ... [+]
Her Future Role
Whitesburg is scheduled to hold a mayoral election on November 8, 2022. When asked if she’d run for her own term, Craft said in an email that she hadn't anticipated "how much I would truly love this role."
After being asked many times if she would run, her answer went from no to maybe to absolutely. "My name will appear as number one on the ballot in November during the general election in the City of Whitesburg," she said.
Craft is committed to helping repair the damage from the floods and continuing her leadership; she also serves on the leadership panel of the Appalachia Center for the Arts and the Mountain Grrl Experience to raise awareness around domestic violence.
"So many people had faith in me and believed I could run this town and make great decisions, which is another great honor," Craft said. "When people believe in you so much, that's a blessing and honor of the highest regard."
