Longtime Wilmington City Councilwoman Loretta Walsh died overnight Tuesday after weeks of failing health that prompted the 30-year city council member to retire from her post earlier this month.
City Council early Wednesday sent out an internal memo alerting members to the 73-year-old’s passing, which comes less than a week after the legislative body celebrated the former councilwoman’s longtime career at a recent council meeting.
“She was a pillar in the community. If you didn’t know anybody else on that ballot, you knew Loretta Walsh,” said Councilperson Zanthia Oliver. “She dedicated her life to the city of Wilmington. She brought a wealth of knowledge to City Council. She was a dear friend to me and a mentor. She will be missed.”
Oliver first remembers interacting with Walsh when she would be campaigning in the neighborhood knocking on doors. Oliver and Walsh were friends well before Oliver was elected to the 3rd Council District, the councilperson said. Oliver’s brother, Norman Oliver, previously served on council.
Mayor Mike Purzycki extended condolences to Walsh’s family, friends and supporters, expressing appreciation for the community coming together last week to wish her well in retirement.
“Residents throughout Wilmington had the opportunity on the occasion of her retirement to tell Loretta they appreciated how she always fought for them and the city of Wilmington,” Purzycki said in an emailed statement. “Now, sadly, we will come together to mourn her passing and celebrate a life devoted to her supportive family and to her beloved city.”
In late September, Walsh announced she would be retiring from her at-large City Council position.
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The Wilmington resident has struggled with health issues in recent years, and fended off concerns that it would prevent her from fulfilling her duties as councilperson in 2020 when she was successfully reelected to the post that year.
Walsh was first elected to City Council in 1985, serving as an at-large council member through 1997. She returned to office in 2004 and has remained since then. Walsh also served as the council’s president pro tempore in 2017.
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Walsh most recently served as chairperson of the council’s Public Safety Committee, which has become a critical facilitator of dialogue on reforming the city police department and public safety in Wilmington, having extensive law enforcement experience prior to her election to City Council. Oliver, who is vice-chair of the committee, has led the committee in Walsh’s absence.
Walsh was chief deputy for the New Castle County Sheriff’s office for 28 years, retiring from the position in 2009. She previously worked as an agency representative for the Delaware Council on Crime and Justice as well as an executive assistant for the sheriff’s office in the mid-1970s.
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