Column: Character was more than words to Cavanaugh

Jan. 7—"Character."

That's the first word that comes to mind when I think about Fred Cavanaugh, the former Aiken mayor who served the city from 1991 to 2015. He died Dec. 28 at the age of 86.

Cavanaugh is remembered as a true public servant, someone who put in far more hours each week than the part-time job required.

During his tenure, many notable things happened in our fair city. Under Cavanaugh's leadership, Aiken was recognized as an All-America City in 1997. He also fought for improvements all over the city.

But his Character First initiative, which was launched in the late 1990s, will be his enduring legacy. The premise was simple: teach children and adults alike about positive character traits, such as "sincerity," "forgiveness" and "discretion."

A different character trait was assigned for each month of the year, and eventually banners went up around downtown Aiken to promote the program. In 2000, the City of Aiken received the S.C. Municipal Association's highest honor for its character initiative.

Other cities around South Carolina soon caught wind of Cavanaugh's idea, and he was invited to help several become communities of character.

The Joint Women's Clubs of Aiken started the Celebration of Character awards program and also created the banner program.

Getting character education in the schools was a key component, and now the Celebration of Character program recognizes hundreds of Aiken County students each year. Since the program's inception in 2000, more than 5,000 students have been honored for their "strong moral character and good choices."

"Cooperation between the City of Aiken, public schools and the Joint Women's Clubs of Aiken has been a joy to watch," Cavanaugh once wrote.

State Rep. Bill Taylor was one of the people who spoke at a wreath-laying service for Cavanaugh. He lauded the former mayor for his role with the Boy Scouts.

"As his two boys moved through scouting, Mayor Cavanaugh took on a greater role in helping organize scouting locally," Taylor said. "He was credited with helping build back scouting in this area when it was going through a lull. Fred confided in me that scouting was the sweetest time he ever had with his sons, Alex and Brian. For his commitment to scouting, Mayor Cavanaugh was named an honorary Eagle Scout."

Lessie Price, who ran unsuccessfully against Cavanaugh in the mayoral race to replace Odell Weeks, told our reporter Matthew Christian that he embodied the character traits that he wanted to teach.

"He was about what a good person should be about," she said. "The city advanced tremendously under his leadership. He wasn't just admired in the city, he was admired throughout the state."

He was indeed. On Wednesday, S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster ordered that flags atop the state capitol be lowered to half-staff in memory of Cavanaugh for "recognition of his extraordinary legacy and lifetime of public service."

A few years ago, the 12 monthly character traits for Aiken included such words as "enthusiasm," "humility" and "determination." Those are all fine traits, and they are also words that could describe Cavanaugh.

Thanks for reading.