Koka Booth
Koka Booth | |
|---|---|
| Mayor of Cary, North Carolina | |
| In office 1987–1999 | |
| Preceded by | Harold D. Ritter |
| Succeeded by | Glen Lang |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Koko Edward Booth Jr. August 12, 1932 Kenova, West Virginia, US |
| Died | October 23, 2023 (aged 91) Cary, North Carolina, US |
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.
Early life
[edit]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
[edit]He 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] Booth worked in the communications department at SAS Institute from 1993 until 2007.[7][9]
He was appointed to fill a vacancy in the town council of Cary, North Carolina, in 1978.[8] Booth was then elected to Cary's town council and served 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 helped bring a YMCA and 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 at Regency Park was renamed the Koka Booth Amphitheatre in his honor.[13][14]
Personal life
[edit]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 at work and required plastic surgery.[9] They 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]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Koka Booth, former Cary Mayor, has died". ABC11 Raleigh-Durham. 2023-10-10. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ a b "Koka Booth Obituary - Cary, NC". Dignity Memorial. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ a b c d Nagem, Sarah (2014-08-06). "Koka Booth, Cary's former Big-Growth Mayor, Looks Back". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. pp. A1, A5. Retrieved 2025-06-26 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d "Blanche Wilkins and Koka Booth Jr. Married in Double Ring Ceremony in First Baptish Church". Rocky Mount Telegram. 1954-11-28. p. 17. Retrieved 2025-06-26 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Koka E. Booth Jr. Finishes Course". Rocky Mount Telegram. 1953-05-15. p. 9. Retrieved 2025-06-26 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e "Cary History: Former Cary Mayor Koka Booth". Cary Citizen. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ a b Johnson, Kristen (October 11, 2023). "Former Cary Mayor Koka Booth, who championed town's growth, dies at 91". News & Observer.
- ^ a b c d e f Johnson, Kristen (2023-10-12). "Former Cary Mayor Koka Booth Dies at 91". The Herald-Sun. Durham, North Carolina. pp. A10. Retrieved 2025-06-26 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f "Koka Booth and Peggy Van Scoyoc, conducted by Oral History Interview with Koka Booth, July 6, 2004. Interview K-0648. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)". docsouth.unc.edu. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ WRAL (2023-10-10). "Koka Booth, mayor who oversaw Cary's booming growth, dies". WRAL.com. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ "Koka Booth, former mayor and champion of Cary's growth, has died". CBS17.com. 2023-10-10. Archived from the original on 2023-12-08. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ Architecture: The AIA Journal. American Institute of Architects. 2002. p. 64.
- ^ Saylor, Teri (2025-05-01). "25 Years of Koka Booth Amphitheatre". Wake Living. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ Gibson, Dale (May 10, 2004). "Cary theater to bear name of former mayor". Triangle Business Journal. Retrieved 2025-06-25.
- ^ Booth (1954-09-12). "Marriage of Wilkins". Rocky Mount Telegram. p. 31. Retrieved 2025-06-26 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Mrs. Booth Honored at Going-Away-Party". Rocky Mount Telegram. 1955-10-03. p. 7. Retrieved 2025-06-26 – via Newspapers.com.