Koka Booth
American politician (1932–2023)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Koka Edward Booth Jr. (August 12, 1932 – October 23, 2023) was a former mayor of Cary, North Carolina. He served as mayor between 1987 and 1999.[1] He is the namesake of Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Cary.
August 12, 1932
Koka Booth | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Cary, North Carolina | |
| In office 1987–1999 | |
| Preceded by | Harold D. Ritter |
| Succeeded by | Glen Lang |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Koka Edward Booth Jr. August 12, 1932 |
| Died | October 23, 2023 (aged 91) |
Early life
Booth was born on August 12, 1932 in Kenova, West Virginia.[2] He was one of seven children born to Koka Edward Booth Sr. and Susan Ann Booth.[2] After he graduated from Ceredo-Kenova High School in 1950, his family moved to Rocky Mount, North Carolina.[3][4] There, he worked with his brother at the Carolina Machinery & Supply Company as a service engineer.[5][3][4] He graduated from the Dodge School of Transmissioneering in May 1953.[5]
Career
Booth was a coal miner in Kenova.[6] Eventually, he owned a share of a coal mine, which he sold at a profit.[6]
He worked at Aeroglide Corporation in the Research Triangle Park in North Carolina from 1971 until 1993.[7][8] He worked in the communications department at SAS Institute in Cary, North Carolina from 1993 until 2007.[7][9]
Booth was appointed to fill a vacancy in the Cary town council in 1978.[8] He was then elected to the town council, serving on it for 22 years.[10][8] He was Cary's 34th mayor, serving for twelve years between 1987 and 1999.[11][8] While Booth was mayor, Cary experienced economic growth fueled by technology companies like IBM and SAS.[6] He facilitated paving roads and constructing a water treatment plant.[9] He helped bring a YMCA and a conferenced center to Cary and established Fred G. Bond Metro Park.[8] Near the end of his tenure, Booth commissioned architects to design what became the Amphitheatre at Regency Park; it opened in 2000.[12] In 2004, the amphitheatre was renamed the Koka Booth Amphitheatre in his honor.[13][14]
Personal life
Booth met his wife, Blanche Estelle Wilkens, while living in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.[15][4] They married on November 27, 1954.[4] The couple had two sons.[6] They moved to Raleigh, North Carolina in 1955 and, then, to Kenova, West Virginia.[16][9] While working for a coal mine, Booth injured his face and required plastic surgery.[9] The family returned to Raleigh and moved to Cary in 1971.[3][9] Booth felt that his sons would have no future in West Virginia and was attracted by the reputation of Cary High School's band.[9][6]
Booth had a stroke in 2004, which required eighteen months of physical therapy and later brought on dementia.[3][9] Booth died on October 10, 2023 in Cary.[1] Flags around Cary were flown at half-mast for twelve days, symbolizing the twelve years that he was mayor.[1][8]