Board Members
The Mineral County Development Authority is currently seeking to fill two vacancies on the authority board. Membership on the board is representative of the county's municipalities (usually the mayors) as well as the county commission (one county commissioner sits on the board) other areas of the county as well as business and industry, banking, community, public education and higher education, and others. The existing vacancies represent business/industry and banking or the financial community.
Anyone residing in Mineral County interested in filling those seats should write a letter expressing their interest to the Mineral County Commission at 150 Armstrong St., Keyser, WV 26726. Only those who write to the commission will be considered for the vacancy.
Governance
The Mineral County Development Authority is governed by a 15 member board appointed by the County Commission.
The Board meets monthly on the third Tuesday of each month at 8:30 am in the main conference room at the Grand Central Business Center (1 East Piedmont Street, 1 Grand Central Park, Keyser, WV 26726 (304) 788-2233)
Members and Biographies
Mona Ridder has been the Executive Director of the Mineral County Development Authority since July 2008. Previously, she was a journalist for 30 years, the last 10 as business editor of a small city daily newspaper. She also has experience in real estate sales and operation of a small business and a position with the federal government. Her interests include travel, architecture and writing. She grew up in Georgia and Tennessee and has lived in California, Minnesota, Maryland and Virginia, before settling in West Virginia, the state of a large portion of her family roots. She said she took the job with the development authority because Mineral County is her home and she wants to see new, well-paying jobs but without the crime, overcrowding and associated problems that often come with unregulated growth and development.
Board Members:
Randy Amtower
Dorrin "Butch" Armentrout is presently serving his first term as Mayor of Carpendale, West Virginia. He had previously served on the town council since Carpendale was incorporated in 1990. A graduate of Frostburg State University and a former elementary school teacher, he also served as a U. S. Army medic in Vietnam. He is a retired manager of the Maryland State Highway Office of Real Estate in Allegany, Garrett and Washington Counties having been employed there for 38 years. He and his wife Patty are the parents of three grown sons and are members of Holy Cross United Methodist Church in Carpendale.
William T. “Tom” Braithwaite is a lifelong resident of Mineral County and was recently elected to his 11th term as Elk Garden town councilman. He was a 1959 graduate of Elk Garden High School and shortly after became an employee of West Virginia Pulp & Paper. He retired from MeadWestvaco (now New Page) in 2003 as Wood Operation’s Supervisor with 44 years of service. He serves as chaplain for Elk District Volunteer Fire Company and Mineral County Firefighter’s Association. In addition to being a member of the Region 8 Planning and Development council and the Mineral County Development Authority, he is part of the Allegany/Mineral Counties Crime Solvers and Mineral County Parks and Recreation Board. He said he enjoys working with the different county and town agencies to create an awareness of the needs of the municipality of Elk Garden.
Lester “Skip” Clifford, a lifelong resident of Mineral County, is serving his first term as mayor of Piedmont, West Virginia. He graduated from Piedmont High School with the class of ’56 and worked for West Vaco (now Newpage) for 41 years; retiring in 1998. While working at West Vaco, he served as 1st vice president of union local 676. “Skip” is active in the Church of God in Christ and the Mineral County senior citizens.
Joseph M. Gratto Dr. Gratto came to Mineral County in 1987 serving as the Presidentof Potomac State College until 1994. Higher education was his second career. He servedas a Marine Officer from graduation from Lehigh University in 1958 until 1979, retiringas a lieutenant colonel. On retirement from the Marines, he enrolled at Emory Universitywhere he earned his Ph.D. Liking the lifestyle and the people of Mineral County, Dr.Gratto and his wife, Barbara, decided to stay put in Keyser, where he has been a mainstayof many organizations and a willing volunteer for community causes since he retiredfrom academia.
Ward Hill is retired but remains active as a corporate consultant in integrated master plans and schedules and proposal writing. He was previously director of Product Development, Alliant Tactical Systems Company, LLC, Alliant Techsystems Inc., a defense contractor, where he was responsible for all product design, analysis, development, quality and testing. He is actively involved in community service having been a previous member of the Mineral County Development Authority board and past president from 1997- 1999. He also has served with the West Virginia Manufacturing Extension Partnership, Upper Potomac Technology Consortium, Friends of WV Public Radio and has worked with Mineral County Schools on advisory councils and committees. He holds a doctorate from Penn State University in Engineering Science and Mechanics.
Janice LaRue, a Mineral County Commissioner, lives in Piedmont, West Virginia, and is a member of the Beta Sigma Phi Sorority. She serves on the Finance Committee of Trinity United Methodist Church in Piedmont and is an elected board member of the West Virginia State County Commission Association. “I serve on the Mineral County Development Authority because I want to be a part of the present and future development of our county as it grows. I look forward to a time that as a dedicated group we can bring the much needed jobs to Mineral County that will keep future generations here.”
Rick Linthicum graduated from Allegany High School in 1968; shortly after, he joined the US Navy. He is a graduate of US Navy “A” Supply School in Newport Rhode Island and graduated from the US Navy Counter Insurgency School, Little Creek, Virginia. While assigned to the Fiscal Division, Naval Supply Activity Da Nang, Vietnam he was in charge of appropriation billing between the Navy, Army, Air Force and Marines in the “I” Corps. He received a field promotion and letter of commendation for this work. On leaving Vietnam he was assigned to the supply ship USS Rigel where he was the Operating Target Accounting Petty Officer and instrumental in the ship receiving a Gold E for efficiency. After being discharged from the Navy in 1972, he attended Allegany Community College, and worked various construction jobs. Starting in 1973 he began a contracting business and worked at the Kelly Springfield Tire Company for four years. From 1978 to 2000, he contracted many jobs in residential housing, commercial building and churches. He has been a resident and a West Virginia employer for over 30 years. In 2000, he joined his wife Barbara in her real estate business and together they have sold property valued over $50 million in more than 500 transactions. He is still a licensed general contractor and does a few home rehabilitation projects each year.
Anne Palmer, a native of Kentucky, has been the Mineral County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director since 1995 as well as the Mineral County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau director. These organizations are dedicated to serving the community, promoting tourism and encouraging growth in business and industry in the county. Palmer said she truly enjoys her role with these organizations and believes the key to positive growth is citizen involvement.
Deborah Swick-Cruse is employed in the Communications & Marketing Department at Potomac State College of West Virginia University where she also serves as the representative to the state Advisory Council of Classified Employees. As a non-traditional student at Potomac State, she was a member of Sigma Phi Omega and in 2000, she was named to the All-West Virginia Academic Team and to the All-USA Academic Team sponsored by the USA Today Newspaper. She serves on several committees at the College and assists with some of the arrangements for Mineral County Day at the Legislature which showcases Mineral County during the Legislative session in Charleston. She lives in the Fort Ashby area. “I serve on the development authority board because I care about the people of Mineral County and about bringing new businesses and jobs to the county in order to provide better opportunities for the residents, while still preserving the natural beauty of our county.”
James Twigg
Mark Yoder is a professional engineer with a master’s degree in Civil Engineering from West Virginia University. He has worked on the design, construction and operation of water and wastewater facilities for the past 25 years. Currently he is the Utilities Division Chief for Allegany County, Md., responsible for all Allegany County water distribution, and wastewater collection and treatment systems. Mark is one of founders and current developers of the Lakewood development in Mineral County. Mark and his wife Diane have lived in Lakewood in Mineral County since 1999.