Cathy "Cat" Cercone Miller will be sworn in as the first woman mayor of Struthers Saturday. She is succeeding Terry Stocker, who says he'll help her as she transitions into her new leader role.

STRUTHERS — Catherine Cercone Miller always knew she wanted to come home and be mayor.

Voters knew they wanted that, too, and she was elected in November with 60 percent of the vote, making her the first female elected mayor in Struthers.

“Everything that I’ve went through in life has led me to this point,” Miller said.

Born and raised in Struthers, Miller graduated high school in 2001, then attended Capital University in Columbus where she earned a degree in psychology in 2005.

Upon her return home, Miller, 37, worked as a grant writer, eventually accepting a position as secretary for city Prosector John Zomoida in 2014.

She said she was up front from the beginning that her intentions included being mayor of Struthers one day.

“We have to make this the best place we possibly can for our kids, my kids, my kids’ friends, the community,” she said.

Miller’s sense of hometown pride was borne from a love her father had of Struthers.

” I’ve always felt some sort of responsibility to the city, to the people, because I know how proud of (Struthers) my father was,” Miller said.

Pride is a way of life in Struthers: “It’s almost like a family. Brothers and sisters, cousins, will fight all the time, but if someone messes with your family, you stick together,” she said.

The city she calls home has people who have never moved outside the city limits, but the community welcomes new people, too. “We claim everybody,” she said.

Although Miller was born and raised in Struthers, she moved away only to come back to raise her family on the same street she lived — Brandon Avenue.

Going through the campaign wasn’t without its challenges, but Miller credits the community with helping her and her team get through it.

“Our support was unwavering,” she said. “We had all the right people backing us from the very beginning.”

People are “excited” to see what Miller sets out to accomplish, knowing she is ready to continue work that Terry Stocker, her predecessor, began during his 12 years as mayor.

Miller wants to continue focusing on blight by working on a registration for landlords within Struthers.

“That’s definitely something we have to take care of going forward, because if we don’t… It’s going to get worse,” Miller said.

“Absent landlords” are nearly impossible to reach, Miller said. A registry would make it easier to get hold of them when needed, she added.

Although she doesn’t have experience as a councilwoman, Miller said her time with the prosecutor’s office has afforded her opportunities to see how each department in Struthers works.

“I see every aspect of the city. I see a lot of things council members don’t see,” Miller said.

That being said, Miller has an idea to help get everyone on the same page, “to work together as Struthers does.”

Moving forward in the coming weeks, she plans on having meetings with every city employee individually “so they know they are a part of something big.”

Miller is resigning from her position as secretary to focus full-time on her mayoral duties, which is technically a part-time position, she said.

“It’s going to be hard because he’s the best boss,” Miller said of Zomoida.

While Miller gets acquainted with a new routine, she said she is grateful Stocker has been supportive, offering to help her transition as seamlessly as possible.

“He’s had open arms,” she said.

Miller is going to still be “cheering very, very loudly” from the sidelines for her kids, Bradley Jr. and Anthony. “I know I have to do a better job now that I’m mayor, but I can’t get thrown out of games,” she said, laughing.

Going forward, Miller wants Struthers to be excited about this new chapter. “All we did was win an election, and everyone’s so excited,” she said. “I want them to be excited about what we do and the progress we make.”

afox@tribtoday.com