After more than 18 months on the Ridgeway Town Council, Maeve McCulloch feels the experience has met, and exceeded, her expectations.
“It’s been a really great experience. I learned a lot, and I work with really awesome people” on the council. “Because I grew up going to council meetings with my mom, she was working for the City of Martinsville, so I knew how they were, and I’ve kind of always known how they were,” she said.
However, McCulloch said she didn’t expect to be treated like a grown up when she first started on council when she was 18.
“But I was, and everyone has made sure to include me and listen to me, and everyone values my opinion. So, I’d say it went better than I thought it would,” she said.
While she’s gotten a lot of attention for being in the position due to her age, McCulloch noted everyone has thus far been supportive of her political endeavors.
The now 20-year-old was elected to the council when she was just 18, making her one of the youngest politicians in the county.
McCulloch was appointed to the position to fill a vacant seat and finish out its remaining term. She was elected to a four-year term as a write in candidate during the November 2022 election.
One thing McCulloch is proud of from her time on council was the 2023 Ridgeway Christmas parade.
“I was involved with trying to get some of the Patrick & Henry” Community College (P&HCC) “athletics since I go to school here, and we got the cheer team to participate in the parade, which is the first time that we’ve ever had a college representative in our parade, which was really awesome,” she said.
McCulloch believes this is the first time P&HCC has been represented locally in a parade.
She is also proud of the increased public engagement with more people attending council meetings.
“That really didn’t have anything to do with me, but it’s great to see that people are starting to care,” she said. “Even if they’re not excited and happy, they’re more like complaining, they’re still voicing their opinions and their ideas, which is just a great thing to see,” she said.
McCulloch believes government doesn’t work without public involvement, especially since the council is comprised of elected officials.
“I mean that’s a chance for people to come and tell you how they feel, even if it’s rude and horrible, which it’s not rude and horrible, but even if it were to be it would still be an honor to hear,” she said.
One plan McCulloch is currently working on is trying to get a Virginia Love works sign placed in the town.
‘Because we currently don’t have a Love works sign, so I’m trying to get one of those. We’re still working on completely free internet for the town with” American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) “Covid relief fund. We’re trying to do that, which we’ve been working on for a while, and we’re still hoping to accomplish that,” she said.
However, as Henry County started doing the same thing, McCulloch said Ridgeway is now waiting for them to see what they do.
She also wants to have a little free library placed somewhere in town limits “because they’re all over Martinsville and Henry County and Danville too and I want to get one for our town.”
McCulloch’s political fame also isn’t just local as she was invited to speak at the Virginia Young Democrats local government panel in Roanoke.
“I got to meet other young people, I was still the youngest there, but I mean they were still younger than what you see around here and in our local governments,” she said.
As she was in a room full of young people, McCulloch said she was looked at like another young person, but not looked down on as a young person.
“Where I’m on the town council I feel like they still look at me like a young person, but there’s not an emphasis put on it like there was in that panel where I was there because I’m a young person and because I have ideas and because I’m elected,” she said.
McCulloch currently attends Radford University where she studies political science. As her address remains the same, she will still be able to serve as a council member.
“I’m planning on coming down for council meetings when I can, or like Zooming in for them. At meetings if someone can’t come physically” they can “call in. I’ve called in before and I’ve Facetimed in. Whenever Craig (O’Der Jr.) is sick he’ll Facetime in, he’ll Zoom in,” she said.
McCulloch said being able to do this is nice as it allows the council to hear everyone’s opinions even if they’re sick or unable to attend the meeting in person.
