Allen McCarty is moving into the next phase of his professional life, albeit rather slowly.
A week after his final meeting as a member of the Fayette County Board of Commissioners, he fell at his home and broke his hip. It was repaired surgically the next day, which meant using a walker at Christmas time but with his usual smile and a positive attitude.
So what will he do with his extra free time after leaving office?
“I’ve got a big list but I don’t know where I’m going to start with it,” he said with a laugh.
McCarty still does consulting work from time to time in the field of broadcasting, where he spent four decades working in all parts of the country. He put that experience to good use in helping the county televise its meetings, as Chairman Steve Brown pointed out at the Dec. 11 meeting.
Brown credited McCarty with spearheading the effort to get board meetings televised on cable and the recordings archived on the county’s website for future viewing. With a background in broadcasting, McCarty volunteered his time and got some of his friends to help.
“He and his buddies crawled up through the ceiling, ran wires all over the place, went through all the technical manuals and testing day after day, week after week. It’s because of him that you can see images like those on these screens projected live.”
Brown also encouraged McCarty to continue coming to meetings and giving the board feedback, something he will likely be doing as he repeatedly encouraged citizens to do at the end of most meetings during his tenure.
“I’m going to stay close by and stay involved, because next time I might run again,” he said. “You never know.”
McCarty’s interest in the future of Fayette County is reinforced by the fact that his daughter and grandchildren live in Fayetteville, along with his and his wife’s ownership of several pieces of property in the county.
“We’ve got a lot invested in this county and we want to make sure that our investment pays off,” he said. “We want to make sure Fayette County does well.”
All of McCarty’s fellow board members took time at the last meeting to congratulate him on his four years of service as they presented him with a proclamation in his honor. Brown concluded his remarks with these words:
“We appreciate your gentle, kind spirit; your willingness to work with everyone; the camaraderie you gave us. It’s just been an honor to serve with you, my friend. Thank you very much.”
McCarty, a Republican, was defeated in his reelection bid by Democrat Pota Coston in November in the first general election to be held that features voting by district rather than at-large voting.
