53 years, 7 months, 4 days: Beloved Albany employee Mary Petty ends her career

ALBANY – They tried to wear her down when Mary Petty began her improbable 53-year, 7-month, 4-day career on May 29, 1972. After all, co-workers at the then Albany Water, Gas & Light Commission reasoned, this black woman had no right to be here working among what had heretofore been an all-white – except for custodial staff – work force.

It was a federal judge, ruling on an injunction mandating the desegregation of downtown offices, that had gotten the 19-year-old Petty the job as a customer service records clerk.

“I heard the n-word a lot, and it was months before I figured out there was a women’s lounge for employees,” Petty said Friday at a ceremony honoring the retiring director of administrative services at the now Albany Utilities authority. “I ate lunch alone until I discovered there was an African-American janitor, Stafford Smith, who ate his lunch in the boiler room.

“I ate lunch with him, used the bathroom that was in the basement, and pretty much spent my time alone.”

The stark contrast between that scared 19-year-old and the woman-in-charge Mary Petty who officially retired as the city’s longest-serving employee was on display Friday as a standing room only crowd packed the Albany Civic Center’s conference room to say farewell to a woman whose legacy will stand as a stark reminder of the lasting impact one determined individual can have on a community reluctant to change.

“Those early days left a lasting impression on me,” she said. “And, yes, it was difficult. There was a young black man who was hired a short while after me as a meter-reader, and there was so much pressure put on him that he couldn’t take it and he left the job.

“I was lonely a lot in those early years. I was raised in a neighborhood that was not mixed, and I attended segregated schools. So this was a new experience for me. But my mom taught me to be nice to people, to say ‘pleased,’ ‘thank you’ and ‘you’re welcome.’ I did become a bit of a radical for three or four years when I was 23 – I told myself this just wasn’t right – but I eventually learned to temper my emotions. I let God separate the wheat from the chaff.”

There was nothing but love for this indomitable force of nature Friday as family, co-workers, friends and elected officials came to pay their respects.

“There are only two or three people who could pack the house like this,” city Recreation & Parks Director Steven Belk, who emceed Friday’s program, said as he looked out over the gathered crowd that had come to pay respects. “But we all came to honor a legacy, a legacy built on courage, grace, perseverance and dignity.”

Carolyn Mathis, who retired from the Utilities Authority a year before Petty, said her friend and co-worker set an example for all city workers.

“Your professionalism set the bar high for those around you,” Mathis said. “And your legacy will live on.”

Petty said she saw a lot happen in the “dash” between her start and finish dates. She lost her husband when her daughters – Hillary Petty-Jackson and Heather Petty – were 2 and 5 months old. She witnessed first hand the devastation of two 500-year floods and any number of weather-related calamities. 

But she said the “full-circle” journey helped make her a strong example for her daughters as she endured what life may have thrown her way.

“As I retire today, I’m not going to focus on the beginning of the dash – May 29, 1972 – or the end of the dash – Jan. 2, 2026,” Petty said. “I’m going to dwell on the in-between, those years when there were dirt roads in Albany, the growth of new developments, the time when we used first manual and then electric typewriters because there were no computers.

“I’m going to focus on the friendships I made over the years, people who helped me understand that I am not who others think I am, I am me. I’m going to focus on my ability to look past the negative, to focus on the many people over the years who reached out to me for help.”

Well-known officials in the city of Albany’s hierarchy – Mayor Bo Dorough, City Manager Terrell Jacobs, Assistant City Managers Derrick Brown and Bruce Maples – paid tribute to Petty Friday, and the renowned Freedom Singers performed in her honor. All talked of the impact Petty had on them and on the hundreds of employees and thousands of customers whose lives she touched over the years.

“I got here early, expecting Ms. Petty to be enjoying her day, accepting congratulations,” Belk said. “What I saw, though, was Ms. Petty, working as usual, helping get things set up. That’s Ms. Petty.”

Indeed. A career that stretches beyond five decades demands such a work ethic. That’s been on display throughout her unmatched career.

“There’s been one consistent throughout my years here,” the honoree said. “Whatever went on around me, I got up in the morning and came to work.”