By Rita Cook
Correspondent
Texas Metro News
Hornbuckle with Mayor Curtistene Smith McCowan (c) Credit: IPL
DESOTO – There are certain people who light up a room whenever they enter.
Former DeSoto Mayor Curtistene McCowan was one of those people.
It seems impossible that she has been gone now for five years.
McCowan died Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020, at age of 72, after battling lung cancer.
I had the honor of writing the obituary for Focus Daily News after her death. Reading it again this week brought back memories of my being a bit intimidated to meet her for some reason. Likely because she was not only DeSoto’s Mayor, but the city’s first woman mayor, and she had a middle school and park named after her.
When I met her my fears vanished because McCowan knew how to make everyone feel comfortable.
Over the years I got to know her even better and her heart was always open.
She inspired me and we built a relationship that continued to grow. While most politicians do not particularly like media, she was so transparent she never had anything to hide.
In her passing I realized what an impact she made on my life.
Not only my life though, but many of those who had the honor of knowing her.
Credit: Rita Cook
Former State Representative and DeSoto Mayor Carl Sherman said of McCowan regarding the fifth anniversary of her death “Mayor McCowan was a dear friend and sister to me. She was a very insightful and experienced policymaker who had a great understanding of how thoughtful policies impact communities. I love her and miss her. She and our first, First Gentleman of DeSoto, Leon McCowan represented the city well. Rest In Power.”
DeSoto Police Chief Joe Costa remembered working with McCowan “It was a pleasure to work with Mayor Curtistine McCowan. She cared so much for the city of DeSoto and supported the first responders as she knew all that was needed to keep the citizens safe. She had a vision that she would see domestic violence eradicated in DeSoto and so the Domestic Violence Advisory Committee was formed. I am proud to say that I was the Chief of Police during the time that Curtistine McCowan was our Mayor in DeSoto.”
Councilmember Denise Valentine Credit: Courtesy Denise Valentine
Denise Valentine who served on the City Council with McCowan and was also Mayor Pro Tem said “Mayor Curtistene McCowan is certainly missed! The entire community loved and respected her leadership, humility, kindheartedness, generosity, and her advocacy. She taught by example how to cultivate healthy relationships by keeping communication clear and direct, while being delivered with kindness. A part of her still lives on in our daily lives because she planted seeds in as many of us as she could. Rest well in heaven Curtistene.”
Patricia Ledbetter who served on the Desoto City Council with McCowan and was also a Mayor Pro tem during her time said “She was a professional woman and, in my opinion, authentic is the word that comes to the forefront. Respectful and ethically firm in her beliefs. I knew she was a woman of faith. We did not always agree on every issue that came before us on the agenda, but I understood where she came from in the debate.
A month before she died, in September 2020, McCowan called me to talk about committee assignments she wanted to make sure she had in place. But she spoke with an urgency and passion to do the mayoral appointments. On the day she called — my work family had had a sudden death in the office, and she was interested in hearing about it and gave her condolences to me.
I was appointed as an interim councilmember in 2023 for six months under Mayor Rachel Proctor. What I immediately noticed was the absence of historical institutional knowledge and relationships and understanding what one council can leave with the next council and be an example of civility. I thought about how she could have mentored as she left the council and handed the “torch” to the new mayor. I personally felt a void of her presence in the council chambers.
The last time I saw Mayor McCowan was thr first day of early voting in DeSoto and on the ballot was a salary for councilmembers. It passed 60% to 40% in favor. I was not in favor of payment of councilmembers – I did not know how Mayor McCowan voted, but I know she was first in line at the Beltline location to vote. I believed in public service as a calling, that she and I agreed on. The citizens vote and I respect the outcome of elections as she did.In my opinion what was important to McCowan was the Hampton Road Redevelopment African American elected to public office in DeSoto as a DeSoto ISD trustee, and later when she became the city’s first woman mayor. In education, she championed opportunity and inclusion, helping to shape a district that lifted every student. We also partnered on community initiatives that supported families and neighborhoods across southern Dallas County. True to who she was, she left every place better than she found it. Her legacy endures—in the leaders she mentored, the policies she advanced, and in the school that bears her name, Curtistene S. McCowan Middle School and Fine Arts Academy. Five years on, I still draw strength from her courageous, grace-filled servant leadership.”
McCowan joined the DeSoto City Council in May 2012. She was the mayor of DeSoto for her first term in May 2016 and was re-elected in May 2019.
She was the first African American elected to public office in DeSoto when she won a seat on the DeSoto ISD Board of Trustees in 1990, where she served for six years, two of those years as President. She was appointed by the Texas Association of School Boards and served with them from 1990-1997. McCowan served on the Statewide Panel on Student Skills and Knowledge for the Texas Education Agency from 1993-1994. And in 2000, she was elected as the Charter President of the DeSoto ISD Education Foundation Board of Directors.
She was elected North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) Vice-President during her tenure in city politics and before running for City Council, McCowan served for five years on the DeSoto Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors. She held several positions with the DEDC Board including serving as Internal Audit Chair, Vice President, and then she was Board President for four years.
McCowan was the founder and president of Concerned DeSoto Citizens.
She had a school named after her – Curtistene S. McCowan Middle School – which opened in August 2007. In July 2021 Meadow Creek Park in DeSoto was renamed Curtistene S. McCowan Park.
She is a long time member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc and served as president of the Dallas Alumnae Chapter.
Also, during her lifetime she served as Federal Women Program Manager, Equal Employment Counselor, President of Federally Employed Women’s Dallas Area Chapter and National Training Program Chair, President of the Dallas/Ft. Worth Federal Executive Board’s Diversity Council and she planned and negotiated a Consumer Education Program in partnership with El Centro College. She was also awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award from El Centro College.
McCowan was the senior investigator for the Federal Trade Commission’s Southwest Regional Office for over 18 years. After more than 32 years of meritorious service, she retired from the federal government in 2005.
Rita Cook is a world traveler and writer/editor who specializes in writing on travel, auto, crime and politics. A correspondent for Texas Metro News, she has published 11 books and has also produced low-budget films.
