Two veteran educators – one a recent candidate for state Secretary of State and the other a high-profile civil rights activist and former hospital board chairman – are in the running to fill the unexpected vacancy in the District 7 seat on Orangeburg County Council.

Cheryl Footman, who ran for statewide office in the 2006 general election, and Willie B. Owens, the outspoken former chairman of the Regional Medical Center board of trustees, will face off in Tuesday’s special Democratic primary.

Although no Republican filed for the District 7 seat, Larry Jumper did file as a petition candidate before the deadline. Should the signatures on Jumper’s petition be validated by county election officials later in the week, a special general election will be held between the winner of the Democratic primary and Jumper on April 17.

John Rickenbacker, the Democratic chairman of County Council for 12 years, resigned in December from the District 7 seat he’d held since 1984. The former councilman had been re-elected to a four-year term in the November general election without opposition. He pleaded guilty to federal charges of taking bribes from an undercover FBI agent in exchange for supporting the sale of the RMC.

Hospital financial issues have dominated Orangeburg County Council sessions for well over a year.

“I’m definitely for keeping the RMC a public entity owned by Orangeburg and Calhoun counties,” said Owens. “The county had asked the hospital for money and we gave $7.4 million for Orangeburg and Calhoun counties. The hospital should not be in the business of supporting the county. The county should be supporting the hospital. ... The RMC Board has done an exceptional job.”

If elected, Owens says he intends to work with council to move forward and to pass a motion to take any consideration of selling the hospital off the table.

“I’m not going to get in a fight. I think we can go back and pick up the pieces,” he said. “I want council to come out in opposition of any plan to sell the hospital. I’ll ask for a vote to take that off the table.”

Footman, however, is noncommittal on the issue.

“My concern is for the people to look into it more closely. It’s a delicate issue that needs a strong County Council and compassionate County Council to resolve the issues,” she said. “I’ll make a statement on that once I get into the position and evaluate both sides.”

District 7 includes all of the Ward 4 and Sub 2 precincts, as well as portions of Ward 1, Ward 2, Ward 5, Ward 6, Ward 9, Sub 1, Sub 3, Brookdale, Four Holes, Jamison and Whittaker. Of the 9,001 registered voters, 7,678 or 85.3 percent are black; 1,270 are white; and, 53 are designated “other.”

The following is a look at the two candidates:

n Cheryl Footman

“I feel Orangeburg needs a person for all the people. I just want to use my skills and talent to bring the (county) up. I have some ideas and plans,” said Footman of her decision to seek the council seat.

“I have a pretty good background in education,” she said. “I can offer some solutions to bring education up and make decisions about every aspect of the community, from taking care of different issues the community has to making decisions on what we do with taxes and offset some of the costs of education.”

A computer science teacher, Footman suggests that council could use technology to improve communication.

“I’d set up a television network for the community so we can communicate and know what’s going on,” she said. “Also, I’d have a production in the classrooms and young people could become involved in the network.”

Although the school districts are run by autonomous school boards, not County Council, Footman says her experience as a teacher could benefit the county in many ways.

“As an educator, I’ll use what I have in whatever aspect to help out, even if it doesn’t reflect the duties of the position,” she said.

Grant-writing is another one of the skills Footman says she can offer.

If elected, Footman proposes that more funds be made available to take care of issues that are ongoing in the community.

“I’d highlight things like domestic violence and implement recreation,” she said. “I’ll go in there and try to spin off ideas of the other council members to help some of those projects come to life. The Industrial Park, I’d help that become bigger and better for the community. Zoning is another issue to be dealt with and paving and street lights will bring the community up and make Orangeburg a better place altogether.”

Footman said “When it comes to spousal abuse, Orangeburg is one of the highest ranking counties in the state. ... Abuse upon women must stop here and must stop now, starting with this election.”

She also favors improving infrastructure, fire protection and the conditions of the poor. In addition, “I would like to see every senior citizen’s needs accounted for. ... We must honor and respect our senior citizens in Christ,” she said.

Citing her educational background and experience as qualifications, Footman says she’s a person concerned about service for all the people.

“I’ve worked hard for goals I set in my life and I’d work hard for goals I’d set for the community to just enhance the community ... and make life easier,” she said.

A native of Charleston and a 30-year resident of Orangeburg, Footman has a doctorate in education administration, as well as a bachelor’s degree in business administration, a master’s degree in education and special education and an education specialist degree in education administration, all from South Carolina State University. She is a computer science and technology teacher at Orangeburg School District Four.

Also, Footman serves as minister of music at Bethel AME Church in Branchville. She has two children.

n Willie B. Owens

Although he no longer serves the NAACP in any official capacity, Owens is a lifetime member who has been at the forefront of local civil rights issues, including the fight for single-member voting districts, for the last 40 years. This, however, is the first time he has sought public office himself.

“Having been dealing with County Council, in terms of having minority representation, I thought it was incumbent upon me to run to maintain the momentum that was established by John Rickenbacker,” he said. “There are a lot of things on the table I want to help move County Council forward on. I’m thoroughly familiar with the issues – the penny tax, the quest for economic development, the Lake Marion Regional Water Agency.”

If elected, Owens says he’d like to see additional recreation facilities for the youth in the county and a spec building out at the John W. Matthews Industrial Park to attract more development.

He calls for collaboration with municipalities to seek grants that “will provide for a better quality of life for our rural areas, while minimizing the tax burden on our citizens ... definitely keep taxes down.”

“We need a joint effort in preventing violence with the county sheriff’s department,” and the city of Orangeburg’s Department of Public Safety and the community to improve the quality of life, he said.

While Rickenbacker had raised concerns about RMC employee benefits, Owens says that was one of the first issues he addressed when he joined the board.

“I’d like to see more improvements for every hospital employee,” he said. “I will not back away from that. They should have good benefits like everyone else.”

Over 40 years of working with the public, including economic development efforts, are good qualifications, Owens says.

“I know the people across the county,” he said. “I’m familiar with their needs.”

A native of Branchville and a resident of Orangeburg for more than 50 years, Owens has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural education and a master’s degree in education from South Carolina State University and an education specialist degree from The Citadel. Following his retirement as principal of Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School, he worked at Voorhees College, first as assistant vice president for academic affairs, and then as dean of student development. After serving as an assistant vice president at Claflin University, he has been employed since 2001 at Voorhees as director of the S.C. Regional Community Development Corporation.

In addition to serving on the RMC board, he was also on the Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College Board for 20 years. He and his wife have two sons.

T&D Government Writer Tucker Lyon can be reached at tlyon@timesanddemocrat.com or by calling 803-533-5545. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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