Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott, Wife Cassandra Take on Population Decline | News, Sports,

Photo Provided – Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott and his wife, Cassandra, welcomed the birth of their son, Harrison Reed Elliott, this past week.

WHEELING — Mayor Glenn Elliott Jr. and his wife, Cassandra, welcomed their first child to the world this past week.

Harrison Reed Elliott was born at 11:05 a.m. Thursday, weighing a healthy 7 pounds, 10 ounces.

While the stork delivers new bundles of joy to couples in the Ohio Valley every day, it is an unusual circumstance in the scope of Wheeling’s history to have a sitting mayor establish a new family while in office. When asked about the notion that the birth of his son may be deemed newsworthy by some local people, he was somewhat skeptical, but jokingly suggested that the angle of any news story should probably focus on his dedication to fight the area’s population decline.

“Cassandra and I are absolutely thrilled to bring Harrison into the world as one of Wheeling’s newest residents,” he said. “And we are very much looking forward to this next chapter in our lives.”

Public interest in “Wheeling’s First Family” aside, the mayor noted that his family is one of many in the Friendly City that live here, plan to stay here, are invested in the community and believe in the promise of a bright future for the next generation of residents.

After decades of witnessing an exodus from the Ohio Valley of young people in search of better opportunities, many people who call the Ohio Valley “home” are beginning to notice that the trend is showing signs of a reversal as more young adults seem to be staying in the valley or returning to the area after graduating from college.

“The number one reason I ran for mayor was a desire to make Wheeling a place where every young person can find a path to pursue his or her dreams — without leaving,” Elliott said. “And while a lot of our work on city council involves addressing issues in the ‘here and now,’ the most important part of what we do involves tilling the soil and planting seeds for future generations to harvest. It involves instilling hope for a better tomorrow.”

Now truly seeing the city from a perspective as a parent, the mayor said he hopes the Elliotts exemplify a Wheeling family that champions that belief.

“For the first time, Cassandra and I will have a living, breathing embodiment of that hope sharing our home,” he said. “It is both exhilarating and daunting. But our hearts are filled with joy with thoughts of what Harrison and the Wheeling of his lifetime will become.”