Williamson Wins, Despite Disclosing Mental Illness
By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
Nov. 10, 2002
PLEASANT HILL -- Almost four months ago, Terri Williamson, a longtime council member, stunned a large crowd who gathered for a heated meeting by saying that she "was about to commit political suicide."
She went on to disclose her difficult battle with "severe clinical depression," induced by the death of close friends and relatives over a short period a few years ago.
Williamson, 60, was making a point during a City Council meeting in July, where worried residents had met to express their fears over a proposed mental health rehabilitation center.
The incumbent councilwoman wanted to emphasize that she fit the criteria of a mentally ill person but wasn't a threat to anyone. Such an admission could have derailed many political careers.
But 113 days later, Williamson was elected to her fifth straight council term in Pleasant Hill, a growing suburb of 32,957 that refuses to let her go. Despite a lackluster campaign, the former mayor finished second Tuesday in a field of six candidates. She collected 2,961 votes, or 21.1 percent.
Planning Commissioner Michael Harris, who raised the most money in the campaign, was the top vote-getter with 3,175, or 22.7 percent. Harris, 60, was endorsed by the three-person council slate of Suzanne Angeli, Chuck Escover and Mayor David Durant.
Incumbent Councilwoman Kim Brandt, Williamson's longtime slow-growth ally, decided not to run. Without Brandt, the re-worked council has left Williamson feeling sort of stranded.
But Harris, an associate dean and optometry professor at UC Berkeley, said his council endorsements do not necessarily tether him to a political alliance. "I don't view myself as a member of a coalition," he said. "I ran my campaign as an independent, and I intend to remain that way."
Williamson, elected in 1985, ran a campaign that never seemed to get off the ground. In her bid for re-election, she raised only $895, compared with $11,632 for Harris. "Damn near none," she said when asked about her campaign effort.
She never bothered to print new campaign signs, instead recycling some from four years ago. "We found 36 of my old signs in someone's attic."
In addition, she was willing to risk her political career during the July 15 council meeting, during which she made her depression public.
"I just felt that I had to say that because I needed to diffuse their fears," said Williamson, who lives in the Poets' Corner neighborhood where the mental health center is being proposed. "I needed to let them know that there are all kinds of us walking wounded out there," she said.
"And we aren't dangerous -- I'll probably be on medication for the rest of my life."
Williamson, a garden expert at Home Depot in Emeryville, said losing her close loved ones altered the chemistry of her brain, allowing the depression to linger. "But as long as I take my happy pills, I'm OK," she laughed, in her trademark rasp.
In any case, her depression will not affect her ability to serve the city of Pleasant Hill, she said.
"I have become pretty reclusive. And It's good for me to be working and to be on the City Council," she said. "It gets my mind focused on other things. "And I do like solving problems -- it just absolutely makes my day to be able to unravel a problem and come up with something that functions well enough to fix it. That's my real strength."
Contra Costa Newspapers
Nov. 10, 2002
PLEASANT HILL -- Almost four months ago, Terri Williamson, a longtime council member, stunned a large crowd who gathered for a heated meeting by saying that she "was about to commit political suicide."
She went on to disclose her difficult battle with "severe clinical depression," induced by the death of close friends and relatives over a short period a few years ago.
Williamson, 60, was making a point during a City Council meeting in July, where worried residents had met to express their fears over a proposed mental health rehabilitation center.
The incumbent councilwoman wanted to emphasize that she fit the criteria of a mentally ill person but wasn't a threat to anyone. Such an admission could have derailed many political careers.
But 113 days later, Williamson was elected to her fifth straight council term in Pleasant Hill, a growing suburb of 32,957 that refuses to let her go. Despite a lackluster campaign, the former mayor finished second Tuesday in a field of six candidates. She collected 2,961 votes, or 21.1 percent.
Planning Commissioner Michael Harris, who raised the most money in the campaign, was the top vote-getter with 3,175, or 22.7 percent. Harris, 60, was endorsed by the three-person council slate of Suzanne Angeli, Chuck Escover and Mayor David Durant.
Incumbent Councilwoman Kim Brandt, Williamson's longtime slow-growth ally, decided not to run. Without Brandt, the re-worked council has left Williamson feeling sort of stranded.
But Harris, an associate dean and optometry professor at UC Berkeley, said his council endorsements do not necessarily tether him to a political alliance. "I don't view myself as a member of a coalition," he said. "I ran my campaign as an independent, and I intend to remain that way."
Williamson, elected in 1985, ran a campaign that never seemed to get off the ground. In her bid for re-election, she raised only $895, compared with $11,632 for Harris. "Damn near none," she said when asked about her campaign effort.
She never bothered to print new campaign signs, instead recycling some from four years ago. "We found 36 of my old signs in someone's attic."
In addition, she was willing to risk her political career during the July 15 council meeting, during which she made her depression public.
"I just felt that I had to say that because I needed to diffuse their fears," said Williamson, who lives in the Poets' Corner neighborhood where the mental health center is being proposed. "I needed to let them know that there are all kinds of us walking wounded out there," she said.
"And we aren't dangerous -- I'll probably be on medication for the rest of my life."
Williamson, a garden expert at Home Depot in Emeryville, said losing her close loved ones altered the chemistry of her brain, allowing the depression to linger. "But as long as I take my happy pills, I'm OK," she laughed, in her trademark rasp.
In any case, her depression will not affect her ability to serve the city of Pleasant Hill, she said.
"I have become pretty reclusive. And It's good for me to be working and to be on the City Council," she said. "It gets my mind focused on other things. "And I do like solving problems -- it just absolutely makes my day to be able to unravel a problem and come up with something that functions well enough to fix it. That's my real strength."
posted by Corey at 3:20 PM
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