Elton C. Pody

Elton Clark Pody (December 1, 1938 - March 27, 2011) was from 1982 to 1990 the mayor of Ruston in Lincoln Parish in North Louisiana and thereafter the 20-year president of the Central Louisiana Chamber of Commerce based in Alexandria, Louisiana.
Pody was the son of Tom Henry Pody (1910-2002) and the former Fannie Mae Bearden (1915-2001) of Farmerville in Union Parish. He spent the majority of his life in the Ruston/Farmerville area. He graduated from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston.
In a civic club address in 1989 in Minden in Webster Parish, Pody called for municipalities to work together and declared local government the most cost-effective: "I believe local government is very important because it provides so much service on a daily basis." Pody said that the average family then paid $250 annually to local government but $1,700 to the state, and $4,200 to the U.S. government; therefore he considered the local contribution to more effective on a per-capita basis.
Pody often said, "Every man needs two things, God and a job", as he devoted much of his pursuits in recent decades to job creation. He attended Grace Presbyterian Church in Alexandria. To everyone he used the parting comment "Be Blessed".<ref name=obit/>

Pody died at his home in Alexandria at the age of seventy-two. Services were held at Calvary Baptist Church in Alexandria. He is interred at the Mineral Springs Baptist Church Cemetery in Dubach in Lincoln Parish.<ref nameobit/> From his marriage of nearly fifty years to the former Sherry Williamson (born 1943) of Alexandria, came three sons, Stanton Clark "Stan" Pody (born 1964) and wife Mary of Ruston, Shawn A. Pody (born 1966) and wife Kelly of Lebanon, Tennessee, Chad Patrick Pody (born 1969) and wife Angie of Ruston, and one daughter, Sondra Pody Haygood (born 1970) and husband James Gregory Haygood (born 1966) of Wichita, Kansas. He had a surviving sister, Lola Faye Pody Silmon (born 1932) of Downsville, Louisiana, and eleven grandchildren.<ref nameobit/>
Pody's memory is honored by the Louisiana State University at Alexandria Foundation through the "Elton C. Pody Scholarship Fund".<ref name=obit/>

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