NORTH - The Aug. 10 session of North Town Council turned out to be quite a rarity. Councilman Aubrey Gleaton, for the very first time in his 50 plus years as a member of the local government, had called in sick.

"Last Monday he called and said he had a virus and the doctor recommended staying home. That was the first meeting he'd missed in 50 years," Mayor Earl Jeffcoat said. "He's been loyal and faithful for 50 years or more."

"I come down with the stomach ache," the council veteran said. "I went to the doctor and took some pain pills."

Feeling worse, Gleaton says he was diagnosed with pancreatitis and ended up in the hospital for an overnight stay.

"I told somebody about it yesterday, and she said, 'My dog had the same thing.' I'm just thankful I feel fine," he said. "But, that was the first time I'd missed."

Town government will soon have to get used to functioning without Gleaton, who is not seeking re-election to the office he has held, on and off, since the mid 1950s.

"I'm 81 years old, and it's time for somebody besides me," he said.

Over the past half a century that he's been involved in the local government, Gleaton says the town has made a lot of progress.

"In 1956, the town didn't have nothing. We didn't have nothing at all. In 1956, the town hall was over the old town jail," he said. "We've made good progress."

His interest in town government began through his father, John A. Gleaton, the owner of a local meat market. Also, his neighbor, Miles O'Riley, served as mayor from 1930 until 1945.

"He was the first mayor I remember," Gleaton said. "My daddy went to Town Council meetings every month, and I'd go with him."

Fresh out of the Army, the councilman says he decided to give politics a try.

"The first time I ran for Town Council, the first person I talked to was Mr. Harold W. Reed. I got a petition, and the first question he asked me was 'why do you want to run.' I said I wanted to help the town all I could," Gleaton said. "The man I beat was Clarence Culler, the best businessman who's ever been in North."

Gleaton recalls that Culler took the upset graciously.

"He said, 'I didn't think you could beat me, but I'm proud of you,'" Gleaton said. "I went to every person in North, black and white, and I shook hands. I was about 26 years old, and I've been on and off, right at 55 years."

The first of many mayors he served under was Warren "W.

W." Livingston.

"We had to use our heads and do a lot of thinking. We made good with what we had," Gleaton said. "In 1956, we had one policeman, and I remember when Mutt Livingston, our former mayor, was town clerk. And, we just had one maintenance man."

Retired after 40 years with the Savannah River Plant, Gleaton has high praise for the penny sales tax and government grants," that have allowed the small town to make improvements.

"We got new sewer lines and a water system. We're still not up to 100 percent of what we need," he said. "Still, we're doing the best we can with what we've got."

However, Gleaton warns that help isn't guaranteed.

"This thing of government grants and the penny money is going to get slim," he said. "We're going to have to go back to using our heads more. A lot of people don't know what it is to operate if they don't have any money. We've got to get back to the basics. If we can't afford it, we can't afford it."

In addition to serving on council for the better part of 40 years, it was during a break during the 1980s that Gleaton says he and Ray Gunter served on the first Election Commission in North.

"There was no pay, but a lot of cussing," he jokes.

Returning to council in 1990, Gleaton challenged former Mayor Neal Livingston in 1995. Then, after a two-year layoff, he won election again in 1997 and has served since then.

"I think anybody who is interested in the town should be (active). It's easy to criticize," he said. "But, we've got a good bunch of people on council now, and six are running for two seats. All of us are friends. In politics, you don't want to say too much."

Just because he will be out of politics and no longer on council, Gleaton says, doesn't mean he won't be there "to help the town in anyway I can."

"I plan on going to every council meeting they have, just as a citizen," he said.

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

You must be logged in to comment.