Patience Sewell Latting
Smart, sharp, savvy, spirited, and service-oriented. These words and just about every positive adjective one can imagine describe the woman behind the municipal government legacy of Patience Latting.
This humble lady from Texhoma blazed a path in public service for women and minorities throughout the country as she dedicated her considerable talents and energy to "the public good." Whether it was applying her graduate degree to redistricting the Oklahoma Legislature after the 1960 census, or as an active member of the Parent-Teacher Association, Patience Latting used her gentleness and unflinching resolve for "the public good."
"Faithful to her duty," is an apt phrase for Patience. This was evidenced in her near-perfect attendance record over 12 years on the Oklahoma Municipal League Board of Directors, and in her unfaltering dedication to making Oklahoma City's government one based on equal access, citizen participation and accountability to the people.
From the first woman elected to the Oklahoma City Council to the first woman elected as Mayor of any major American City, to three terms as Mayor, she became a role model for accountability among public officials everywhere.
During her 16 years on the City Council, including 12 as Mayor, she brought about significant change in the method used to select architects and engineers. She saw the first woman appointed as a City Department Head and helped to develop opportunities for greater citizen participation through the Neighborhood Development and Conservation Center.
Mayor Latting was a leader in gaining federal funds for the construction of the McGee Creek Reservoir as a water supply for central Oklahoma. As the local MAPS projects near completion, they are built upon the foundations of projects she influenced and nurtured, including the Myriad Gardens, the Crystal Bridge, and the Galleria site.
Patience is one of the few Oklahoma municipal officials inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.
Her legacy is evidenced today through the greatly enhanced number of women and minorities in elected and appointed leadership roles in municipal government throughout the nation.