Jimmy Waldrop has announced his bid for re-election to the District 4 seat on the Florala City Council.

Waldrop has served the past four years with Mayor Robert Williamson and council, and said he is looking forward to working with the new administration in fulfilling the promise to move Florala successfully into the future, while preserving the heritage of its past.

“I would like the voters of Florala to reflect back upon the numerous improvements this administration has made,” he said. “Not always did the council and mayor agree on all the points of view, but after the vote was taken, we were onto the next order of business with good feelings and a goal of working together for the betterment of the citizens and our community.”

Waldrop has also served as mayor pro tem.

“In this position, I have represented the city in the mayor’s absence,” he said. “I have served on numerous fact-finding committees when appointed by the mayor to represent his office.”

Waldrop said he began his Florala residency as a young adult spending my teenage years working at the Martin Theater.

After graduating from Paxton High School, Waldrop enlisted in the United States Navy, where he was deployed to Vietnam.

Following his military experience, Waldrop entered naval federal work in the department of staff civil engineering, where he achieved the rank of GS-12 supervisor engineering tech prior to retirement 37 years later.

“Although holding many jobs throughout my career, 30 years of this time was in the area of facility management, where I ran the division that managed the land, roads, runways and facilities of the master jet base, Naval Air Station Oceana, Va.,” he said.

Through those experiences, Waldrop said he feels he is fully trained and qualified to become a city leader, and will use the many years of training and experience to help Florala grow and prosper.

“My past term on the Florala council just enhanced my level of experience,” he said.

When Waldrop retired, he returned to Florala, and became active in the community and city government.

“I have always felt the responsibility to ‘give back’ to the community, which molded my life,” he said. “I have proven my civic awareness by volunteering my time for the betterment of the city and its citizens by serving as presidents of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce, board member of the Florala Historical Society, the Florala Planning and Zoning Commission, zone and code violation inspector and volunteer firefighter with the Florala Volunteer Fire Department.

Waldrop is married to Delia, and they have a daughter, Katharine, who lives in Virginia Beach, Va., with her husband, Lt. Aron Jenkins, a member of the United States Navy.