Albany mayor dies unexpectedly

By Melinda L. Lucas

Rodney Alexander, Albany’s mayor for the past five years, suffered what is believed to be a brain aneurysm last week and died less than 24 hours later in a Dallas hospital.

Alexander, 51, collapsed at his home late Monday night, Dec. 30 and was transported by ambulance to Abilene, then care-flighted to UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.

According to his son, Cody Alexander, the family opted not to request an autopsy, but doctors thought that an aneurysm was probably the cause of death.

The longtime local resident took office in May 2015, running unopposed for all three of his two-year terms.

“I don’t think most people realize what a good mayor Rodney was,” said city manager Billy Holson. “Everything he ever presented to me was well thought out and something he felt would benefit the community in some way.”

Holson commented that Alexander didn’t run for office with any particular “agenda” in mind.

“I wish every person who ever ran for any board had that kind of attitude,” said Holson. “He and I may not have agreed on everything, but I was okay with that, because he wanted to improve this town and make things better for its citizens, and I always knew that.”

From one of his first projects – helping to establish a community garden – to making sure that a cemetery pavilion was constructed, and more recently, working to see a senior citizen center created, the mayor wasn’t looking to profit from his undertakings, Holson emphasized. Through his construction company, Alexander was able to keep the funding of some of those projects at a minimum for the city, the city manager said.

“We were friends before he became mayor, but we became really good friends during the time he served, and I doubt that many mayors and city managers can say that,” Holson said. “I always knew that we were moving forward.”

Council member Susan Montgomery agreed that Alexander had Albany’s best interests at heart.

“Rodney was very practical but also had vision for this community,” she said. “He was easy to work with, and at the same time wasn’t afraid to express his views.”

She added that she never saw Alexander deviate from his primary plan to improve Albany.

“I don’t think that a lot of people realized how much time he spent doing this job he didn’t get paid for,” she said. “And unless you came to a council meeting or two, you couldn’t truly appreciate how good he was at what he did.”

Montgomery will serve as mayor pro tem until the office is filled, whether by election or appointment.

“Rodney is going to be missed a lot more than most people realize,” said Holson. “What he brought to the table for the city is going to be hard to replace.”

An account has been set up at First National Bank to help Alexander’s family offset medical and other expenses.