By Dave Russell
With undoubtedly a heavy heart and a pensive click on the “send” button on Monday, a three-decade career of service to Sylva took a turn. It did not come to an end, it just took a turn.
Lynda Sossamon, Sylva’s mayor since 2015, on Tuesday announced her resignation following complications from heart surgery.
Her resignation letter is below in its entirety.
Dear Town of Sylva Citizens, Commissioners, and Staff,
It is with great regret and sadness that I must tender my resignation as Mayor of the Town of Sylva, effective January 26, 2023.
On November 14, 2022, I underwent a planned heart surgery. The surgery went well, but some serious complications arose. I am making good progress but must devote my full efforts into recovering my health. The Town of Sylva deserves the full attention of its mayor and currently, I am unable to see to town matters with the detail needed.
During my nine years as a commissioner and seven years as mayor, I have loved serving the citizens of Sylva. I am passionate about this town, its residents and businesses, and have enjoyed working with the wonderful employees of the town. As a Sylva business owner for over 33 years, I know that the citizens, businesses, and civic groups are what keeps a community vision moving forward. The Town’s employees and Board of Commissioners are imperative to implementing that vision. I leave Sylva in good and capable hands.
I am grateful for so many accomplishments made in Sylva over my 16 years of service. Some of which include the Downtown Streetscape Revitalization, becoming a part of the NC Main Street Program, Sylva’s addition to the National Register of Historic Places, the preservation of a portion of the Plott Balsams with Pinnacle Park and the Blackrock Creek Conservation Easement, and securing funding for the Allen Street Slope Failure Repair and Bryson Park Repair and upgrade. I have also enjoyed working with our surrounding municipalities, Jackson County, The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and representing our wonderful town while serving on the Boards of both the NC League of Municipalities and the NC Mayors Association.
I love Sylva and am so proud of what Sylva has accomplished. As we move forward and continue to grow, I hope that the residents of Sylva and Jackson County, continue to support the local businesses, the Town Government and its employees, and each other. Together we can continue to make Sylva the best it can be.
Again, I would like to thank the residents of Sylva for your support. Serving you as an elected official for sixteen years has been a joy. I am proud of Sylva and what we have accomplished together and look forward to what the future holds for our wonderful town.
Most sincerely,
Lynda H. Sossamon
Sossamon graduated from Western Carolina University with a degree in chemistry and additional studies in mathematics and information technology.
Sylva’s municipal affairs were not her only involvement in the town. Over the years, she was a founding member and chair of the WCU Friends of the Arts Advancements Council, on the board of Mountain Projects, the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce and the Good Samaritan free health clinic.
Her resume says she served as an actor, crew member and president of the Kudzu Players, a community theater. She was a member of the 20th Century Club, a former civic group.
Sossamon regularly reported to board members updates from the N.C. League of Municipalities. She served on the Southwestern Commission’s Transportation Advisory Committee.
Service to the town
Sossamon was first elected to the Sylva town board in 1997, serving one four-year term.
Sossamon was part of a three-person panel that recommended in 2001 that Sylva change to a manager-council style of government.
In 2003, she joined the board of the Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority and in February 2005 was elected board chair.
She returned to Sylva as a board member in 2012.
She was then elected as mayor in 2015 and served a two-year term to complete another mayor’s term before she won re-election to four-year stints in 2017 and 2021.
Sossamon and her husband, Boyd, owned local businesses for over 30 years, including Radio Shack stores in Sylva and Cashiers.
Community accolades
“Sylva is a better place because of Lynda’s service and dedication,” Sylva town Manager Paige Dowling said. “Her logic, determination and compassion made her a great leader. Her determination to get funding for the Allen Street and Bryson Park projects is what will move them forward. She really went after funding and was really persistent about looking for it at every opportunity.”
“I am thankful for the time, though short, that I was able to serve with Mayor Sossamon,” town board member Natalie Newman said. “I most of all admire her strength and passion on top of her care for this community, her commitment to government and leadership. I know those things don’t go away with her resignation so I have a feeling she will still be involved in some capacity because she truly cares about Sylva.”
Citing her decades of involvement and love for Sylva, Vice Mayor David Nestler feels for Sossamon and the timing of it all.
“Things move slowly in local government and Mayor Sossamon has been on the board and overseen a number of significant projects, and because they kind of take so long to get to fruition, she is unfortunately having to step down right at the cusp of a lot of those large projects getting started,” Nestler said.
“She is a good person, she was a good mayor and the town will miss her,” said former town board member Harold Hensley, who served four years with Sossamon.
Moving forward
While Sossamon has been out, Nestler has taken the gavel. His role is primarily ceremonial, such as running meetings and signing documents.
Nestler might choose to remain a voting member of the board instead of taking the center seat at the board table, where he would only vote in case of a 2-2 tie, which would only result if a board member were absent.
Installing someone to finish out the mayor’s term (2025) will require a board member to nominate a Sylva resident for the post, board member or not.
If approved by a vote that person would serve in Sossamon’s seat until facing election in November, with the winner going on to finish the final two years of her term.
Should a board member get the nod as mayor, filling a vacancy for the board seat won’t go as fast.
“We’re probably looking at two months because of the application process, which will all be done in public,” Dowling said. “The board will review them in public and vote in public and the person will probably be installed at the next meeting.”
