After 36 years of leadership, Jean Raymond leaves her mark on Edinburg 

From grant writing to literal bridge building, Edinburg’s longest-serving supervisor reflects on decades of service to town

By Wendy Liberatore, Times Union

EDINBURG — Saying “it was time,” the town’s longest-tenured leader and Saratoga County’s longest-serving female supervisor, Jean Raymond, retired on Thursday afternoon.

Jean Raymond delivered the news last week at a meeting of the Town Board.

“I served just short of 37 years,” the 81-year-old Republican said on Friday morning. “My kids have been after me for quite some time. … My birthday was Wednesday and I gave myself a present.”

Bob Anderson, a retired county Department of Public Works employee, was named to replace Raymond.

“He’s been in Edinburg a long time,” Raymond said. “He’s very competent. He’s very enthusiastic. He’s a good guy and he will bring a new perspective. It’s been an amicable transition.”

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Elected in 1987, Raymond was tireless in her grant writing that helped bring in the money to revamp the town. She secured five federal Housing and Urban Development grants to help those on the Great Sacandaga Lake update their homes with indoor plumbing, furnaces, roofs and electrical service. She delivered on a promise to get cable TV to the area and she was also responsible for building the $1 million town hall. Prior to construction, officials worked out of their homes. Town hall opened in 2005. 

She also wrote and won a $1.7 million grant from the state’s Bridge-NY Program to fund bridge repair work on Fox Hill Road and Military Road.

But she will be most remembered for securing the funds to rebuild the $46 million Batchellerville Bridge — the span that links the communities around the northern end of Sacandaga Lake. She described the effort as a “slog” and “her life work.”

She said she knew it was time to retire when the town was hit by a tornado and remnants of a hurricane in July. Dealing with the damage left her no time to enjoy the summer.

“Things were going well,” she said. “But then when we had the storms, I thought, I don’t want to do this anymore.”

With a great-grandchild on the way, she decided to spend time with her family, time which was limited by the responsibility of the job.

Originally from Stamford, Conn., Raymond discovered Edinburg on a visit there in 1975. She soon built a summer home and moved up to the area permanently. For 10 years, she ran the town’s four-corner store, Fuller’s. 

When she heard that Town Supervisor Marshall Robinson was not seeking reelection, she decided to run. She thought it would be a part time, but quickly learned it was a full-time responsibility. Still, she said she loved it and in 2019, said she would only step down when it was no longer fun. 

Over the years, she has been admired by her fellow county supervisors who called her “The Queen of Saratoga County,” describing her variously as a mentor, a jewel, and a class act. She also stood up for the other women in the male-dominated board of supervisors meeting room, regardless of their political affiliations.

“Yeah, I would tell them to knock it off if they were disrespectful,” she said.

The Daily Gazette reported Raymond’s retirement earlier Friday.

And despite being a lifelong Republican, she doesn’t like party politics and believes public servants must set it aside.

“You can’t play politics,” she said. “Once you are elected, you represent everyone.”

And she is proud of her record doing that.

“We modernized the town,” she said.  “We’ve come a long way, baby.”