The Seed Money Mayor

Ila Mae Cunningham feels a strong sense of pride as she walks down Main Street in Downey, a small agricultural town of 613 residents in eastern Idaho.

She sees fresh asphalt sparkle in the sun, the result of a downtown revitalization project. She passes a grove of pear, spruce, and pine trees in a new arboretum occupying an old vacant lot. Across the street, a new medical clinic under construction brings a smile to her face and a comforting thought that her friends and neighbors can receive quality medical care without having to drive nearly an hour to a larger town.

Nearly all around Downey, Cunningham’s magical touch can be seen. As the town’s mayor for eight years, the 71-year-old mother of four worked miracles by winning scores of grants and working together with a team of active citizens to keep Downey strong and vibrant.

“You don’t have to be elected a leader to save a community,” Cunningham says. “You just need to care.”

Cunningham grabbed the reins of city leadership in 1992 at a time when Downey was reeling from a broken-down water system, an exodus of residents, a $1 million reduction in tax base, a stagnant business climate, and the closure of a local hospital. Overall, the town was suffering from the same economic difficulties that afflict many small towns in America: rural residents moving away to find better-paying jobs and people shopping at malls and mega-stores in other towns.

Somehow, Downey had to find a new niche to stay alive. Cunningham, a Downey resident all of her adult life, had a hunch that the community’s best chance was to capitalize on the strengths of a small town surrounded by tall, majestic mountains. Downey was an attractive, safe place to live and boasted friendly people who liked to help folks. She believed the town could attract others.

“There was so much potential, and nothing had been done for quite a few years,” she says. But first, the town’s immediate problems—the broken water system, the need to attract new businesses and revitalize the downtown area—demanded attention. Also, Downey’s tax base had been shrinking, and the local coffers were dry. Cunningham counterattacked by applying for private, state, and federal grants.

It was evident more than one rabbit needed to be pulled from a hat. Fortunately for Downey, Cunningham was no stranger to hardship. The eldest of 12 children, she was born during the Great Depression in Malad City, near the Utah border.

“We grew up when times were hard,” she recalls. “All of the kids had to pitch in. My mother taught us to cook, clean, and scrub, and we had to work to earn money for school. We didn’t have much in those days. We just had to do the best we could.”

A former school district clerk and treasurer, Cunningham had a knack for finding and managing money. When she was elected mayor, she investigated a variety of funding sources. Rabbits began popping out of the hat. The town received a $372,000 grant to fix its water system. Other smaller grants were used to improve the town airport, refurbish a recreational vehicle park, and beautify the city park.

In August 1996, Cunningham received a $10,000 grant from Wal-Mart as the grand prizewinner of its American Hometown Leadership Awards. Those funds were then used as a local match that enabled Downey to receive a downtown revitalization grant of $316,394 from the federal government.

“Our mayor’s got a real nose for money,” says Karl McQuivey, a former Downey city councilman. “I don’t know where all of those grants come from. It’s incredible!”

Most recently, in late 2000, Cunningham was awarded an Ageless Heroes award from Blue Cross of Idaho. Previously, the Downey Chamber of Commerce had named her its Volunteer of the Decade.

Having forgone a third mayoral term, Cunningham now looks forward to special time with her family and grandchildren.

“Her greatest gift to the community is the hope and inspiration she left—that we don’t have to die as other small communities have,” says Downey journalist Penny Greaves, who nominated Cunningham for the Blue Cross award. “She’s left quite a legacy.”

Stephen Stuebner is a freelance writer from Boise, Idaho.

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