Board of Water Works adds new members

The Board of Water Works (BOWW) recently added three new members: Jennifer Fust-Rutherford, Greg Dearing, and William E. Summers IV. They replace Craig Willman, Creighton Mershon, and Tierra Kavanaugh Wayne (Wayne left the Board in 2019 and passed away in April 2020).

A Louisville native, Summers IV served as Deputy Mayor for Louisville Metro for 21 years. His distinguished career also included being the Executive Vice President for Greater Louisville Inc. and serving on the Metro Chamber of Commerce. Currently, he serves on the Central Bank of Jefferson County Board, Kentucky Economic Development Partnership Board, and the Louisville Zoo Foundation Board. Summers IV is also a veteran of the U.S. Army. Summers IV and his wife of 54 years, Paulette, have three children and seven grandchildren.

Fust-Rutherford is currently Director of Gift Planning at the Community Foundation of Louisville, where she has been for two years. Prior to this role, she practiced law with a civil litigation firm in Louisville for 18 years. Fust-Rutherford is a graduate of Indiana University and Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville. The Fisherville, KY native was counsel for the Friends of the Waterfront for 10 years and continues to serve on their advisory committee. She and her husband, Oliver, have three sons.

After 22 years of service, Dearing retired as a sergeant with the Louisville Division of Fire. After his retirement, he served in County Judge Executive David Armstrong’s administration working on labor issues. Currently, the Louisville native is the General Manager at 600 West Main, LLC, a unique collaborative of lawyers and other legal services. Recently, Dearing concluded an eight-year tenure as a member of the Kentucky Fire Commission, which is responsible for the professional development of the volunteer and career firefighters of Kentucky. He is currently the President/Trustee of the Louisville Firefighters Pension Fund and President of the Louisville Federation of Retired Firefighters. Dearing and his wife of nearly 50 years, Connie, have one daughter.

BOWW is the seven-member, bi-partisan governing body for Louisville Water. The mayor serves as ex-officio and appoints the remaining six members for staggered four-year terms. The Board meets monthly at the Louisville Water’s corporate offices, usually at 11:00 a.m. on the third Tuesday of the month. Since April, meetings moved to a virtual format because of the coronavirus pandemic. For more information on the BOWW (include link to webpage), including meeting minutes, visit LouisvilleWater.com/About-Us.

Caption: The picture is of the new members at an orientation session with President & CEO Spencer Bruce.