DeSoto Mayor Curtistene S. McCowan has died from lung cancer just three weeks after publicly disclosing her illness.
Re-elected just last year, McCowan was first elected in 2016, becoming the first woman to serve as DeSoto mayor.
Before her term as mayor, McCowan was a city council member and held several positions on DeSoto's economic development board. She founded "Concerned DeSoto Citizens" and was active in the organization for 31 years alongside her husband.
She was the first African-American elected to public office when she won a seat on the DeSoto Independent School District Board of Trustees in 1990. She served as president for two of the six years on the board. In January 2007 a middle school was named after her, according to NBCDFW.com
Late last month, reports say she contacted her doctor, saying she was having difficulty breathing. At first it was believed to be pneumonia until tests verified it was cancer.
As news of her death spread, tributes poured in from elected leaders like State Senator Royce West, Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson and Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.
Mayor McCowan was 72 years-old.
