Blue umbrellas dotted the audience to defend against the sweltering sun. But despite the heat, a crowd of about 50 turned out in their Sunday best to celebrate late Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton Dean at the sprawling Montgomery Whitewater development he helped drive.
“We’re here to honor somebody who meant so much to this county but also so much to each of us individually,” Alabama Commerce Secretary Ellen McNair told the crowd of about 50 people. Dean was a champion of west Montgomery and instrumental in advocating for the project.
McNair heralded the work Dean did, much of which was behind the scenes and without recognition.
Former Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange gets a close look during a plaque dedication honoring the late Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton Dean at Montgomery Whitewater in Montgomery, Ala., on Friday June 6, 2025.
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“We miss you, Chairman Dean, but through this incredible park, we see your vision and move forward every day,” McNair said.
Brandon Dean spoke emotionally about his father and described him as his best friend.
“My dad was not into politics,” Brandon Dean said. “He was into people.”
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Former Mayor Todd Strange said that Dean was a visionary.
“You could not help but want to do the great things that Elton wanted to do,” Strange said.
County Commission Chairman Doug Singleton said that he and Dean loved each other and urged the people of Montgomery County to honor his legacy by loving each other in the same way.
Dean was elected to represent County Commission District 2 as a Democrat in 2000 and served as the commission’s chairman for more than a decade. He died in 2022.
Replicas of the plaque honoring the late Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton Dean sit in the foreground as Brandon Dean speaks in the background during the dedication of the plaque at Montgomery Whitewater in Montgomery, Ala., on Friday June 6, 2025.
Alex Gladden is the Montgomery Advertiser’s education reporter. She can be reached at agladden@gannett.com or on Twitter @gladlyalex.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Community celebrates Elton Dean’s commitment to Montgomery Whitewater