SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - Because women have led Sacramento’s District 3 for almost 50 years, its three living Supervisors laughingly call their board position the ‘girl’s seat.’ Susan Peters’ 2021 retirement will end that matriarchal dynasty.  A guy -- either Rich Desmond or Gregg Fishman -- will take over.

When Sandy Smoley, Muriel Johnson and Susan Peters recently convened, conversation was not so much memory lane as memorable potholes. Endless roadworks, they agreed, would be an inherited challenge for the election winner. “Something different comes up for a Supervisor every day,” notes Susan Peters. “But road deterioration will always be with us.”

Sandy Smoley made history in 1972 as the first woman elected to County government. “I struggled for an identity because no female served before me,” she recalls.  “I guess I became a role model for the women who followed.”  The former nurse is gratified her efforts for advanced firefighter training saved many lives. Thanks to Smoley’s push, all Sacramento fire trucks now carry qualified paramedics. She also lobbied for County sponsorship of the arts; its support of women’s health; its ongoing program to involve community volunteers in government.  The lone female endured disproportionate workplace scrutiny: she survived breast cancer and other health issue in a fishbowl; even her divorce was public property. “The Sacramento Bee ran a he-said-she-said report of the court proceedings,” she winces. “They wouldn’t have done that to a man. That’s why at 84, nothing can get to me. I’ve heard it all.”

After 20 years, leaving the Board was not a retirement. Governor Pete Wilson grabbed Smoley for State and Consumer Services Secretary; she later became his Secretary of Health and Human Services. “I went to bigger arenas with greater influence,” she says. “But County government was always my favorite. I saw results for every decision I made on the Board. I can still drive down streets and see bike lanes I put in, or a day care center I started.” She relished Board members’ diversity of service: “One day, I had to change my outfit five times. I started in the morning in jeans, riding on a buckboard for a parade. I ended up in evening dress, at a Crocker Art Museum gala.”

Community activist and fundraiser Muriel Johnson won the District in 1993. She pushed to begin costly revamps for Fulton Avenue and for the widening of the Watt Avenue bridge. “We added bike lanes, benches and art,” she enthuses. “We gave Watt Avenue the best-looking bridge in town.” During 1990s efforts to save McClellan Air Base, she met President Bill Clinton in Sacramento and later sat beside him for Washington DC negotiations. “He was charming and easy to talk to,” she recalls. “He let us down gently. He understood what McClellan meant to the community but he was straight with us. We gave it our all, but we just couldn’t save the base.”

Smoley was her chief mentor. “She appointed me to the Arts Commission and other committees,” recalls Johnson. “She persuaded me I could run for District 3. You only had to watch Sandy’s energy in office, and seeing was believing.” Cracking the whip for 12 years at Johnson’s side was Chief of Staff Mary Anne Dann. “If I got off track, Mary Anne quickly got me back,” approves her boss. “In 1986, my husband and I went to New York for a vacation. After two days, Mary Anne called me and commanded: get back - your District’s flooding! I came straight back to work on saving the levies.” Evening meetings sentenced the Supervisor and her husband (ENT surgeon Ernie Johnson) to years of takeout food. “He never complained,” says his spouse. “One night I found him peeling potatoes. He’d decided to teach himself to cook.”

Before retiring, she recruited banker Susan Peters to run for her seat. “In Susan, I felt I’d found the golden ring,” says Johnson. “She’s been so capable and wonderful for the District. After I stepped down, I immediately missed the job’s involvement. Being Supervisor was the cat’s pajamas – I loved knowing what was going on everywhere. “

The COVID crisis means Susan Peters will complete 16 years of service during a hot mess of civic cancelations -- her own farewell party included. Achievements will nevertheless dominate her memories. “We built three new parks using innovative ways to fund them.” she considers. “We’ve established two new PBIDs that put business in the hands of businesses.” To the relief of countless motorists, Hazel Avenue (Fair Oaks) has been widened. Peters’ co-operation with the Sheriff and DA has endowed District 3 with hands-on policing (POP and HOT teams) and a community prosecutor to indict local miscreants. Via this process, a recent slum landlord plea deal assisted Carmichael Park Foundation to the tune of $15,000.

Peters names her late husband, business entrepreneur Peter McCuen, as mentor. “He taught me so much,” she says. “Running the county is like running a business, with a $6.5 billion budget that must be balanced.” Another bouquet goes to Chief of Staff Howard Schmidt. “He’s been on my team the whole 16 years,” she says. “We think so much alike. He understands my direction and helps me get the job done.”

Glittering moments include a 2015 homecoming for three Sacramento men who saved a French train from terrorist attack.  “We worked hard to put that parade together so quickly,” she recalls. “The huge crowds that came out to celebrate heroism made it worthwhile.” During a Foothill Farms open day, Peters volunteered to help a police canine’s attack demonstration.  “Even with protective padding, my arm was numb for days,” she attests. “I advise anyone involved in a canine chase to just give up.”

Her January farewell to arms promises nostalgia.  “I’ll miss so many people,” she considers.  “But I’ll sleep better. Years of waking up – worrying about the parkway’s flooding or another deputy’s been injured on the job – it all takes its toll.”

Veterans Smoley, Johnson and Peters agree their successor will agonize for the County’s homeless problem and the economic recovery from COVID 19.  But they each have buoying advice:

Suggests pioneer Sandy Smoley: “Enjoy your service. It’s a tough job, but it’s rewarding.”

Offers Muriel Johnson: “Don’t sit downtown. Get out to the District and listen to people.”

Adds Susan Peters: “Problems aren’t solved quickly. The job’s not a sprint. It’s a marathon.”