Pitcairn mayoral race pits 20-year-old challenger against 81-year-old incumbent

Margaret “Betsy” Stevick’s phone never seems to stop ringing.

And the octogenarian mayor of Pitcairn never seems to stop moving.

At 81, she’s running for reelection to another four-year term in the May 18 primary.

Her opponent in the Democratic primary is 20-year-old Mika Petrosky, who also grew up in Pitcairn. Petrosky is an IT technician, professional event photographer and third-year psychology student at CCAC Boyce. If Petrosky wins, she will be the youngest mayor in Pennsylvania.

“There were just some things throughout the town that I saw and thought that if no one else was going to step up to change them that I could,” said Petrosky, explaining why she decided to run for mayor at an age when many are still deciding what direction their life should take.

Stevick, who still possesses a teacher’s sternness, is facing a challenge from someone young enough to be her granddaughter. Or great-granddaughter, for that matter. She was born and raised in Pitcairn.

An elementary teacher in the Woodland Hills School District for three decades, she has served as the borough’s mayor for 24 years and counting. At an age when a lot of people are retired and taking it easy on a beach or a golf course, Stevick has decided to stay on the job for as long as the people of Pitcairn will have her.

On a recent Monday morning Stevick interrupted an interview because she had a pound cake that was ready to come out of her oven. She was baking it for one of the borough police officers.

“I have an officer, a part-timer, that had severe headaches and she was having trouble lifting her arm. They found she had a cyst and they had to operate. But she’s home and improving and she loves this pound cake,” said Stevick.

In the past, Stevick has run as a Republican and won, but this time she is running as a Democrat — a shrewd move based on the fact that registered Democrats throughout Allegheny County outnumber Republicans two-to-one. Stevick said she has a lot of support among Democrats and this will make it easier for them to vote for her.

“I love this town and I know I can help it and I am helping. It’s become my life. It’s very rewarding. It keeps me going.”

Generation gap

In its early 20th-century heyday, Pitcairn was the site of large railroad yards and shops that employed nearly 10,000 men. Today, the population of this borough 15 miles east of Pittsburgh is just over 3,000. less than half of what it was in the 1940s.

Petrosky says Pitcairn needs a mayor that embraces technology and diversity, something she feels is lacking when it comes to the borough’s current leadership.

“Pitcairn has issues with race and that’s one of the big reasons why I wanted to run for mayor,” said Petrosky. “Our town has a large population of people who aren’t white. I can bring a fresher mindset since I’m a lot younger (than Stevick). I have a completely different perspective than a lot of the people who are currently on council. I can nurture relationships and bring the town together.”

One of the current Pitcairn council members is Mika’s mother, Lisa Petrosky, who said among her daughter’s attributes is that she is very approachable.

“We started a group called ‘Neighbor to Neighbor’ where we wanted people to get out and get to know their neighbors. She was very passionate about that, as well as the Black Lives Matter movement in the community and getting speakers and connecting,” said Lisa Petrosky. “She’s very good at networking. When she decides to do something, she’s 100% in.”

Mika Petrosky believes there is a lack of interaction between Pitcairn government and its citizens, particularly because council meetings currently are not streamed online, and the council doesn’t have its own website. She said with her technology skills, she can change that.

Stevick, however, doesn’t see it as a problem. She said that if citizens want access to their government, they can simply show up at the council meetings.

While Petrosky encourages people to reach out to her on her Facebook page, Stevick doesn’t have one. Her home phone number is listed and she would prefer that people call her with their concerns. And they do.

“I answer all my phone calls. I answer them as quickly as I can and I’m very accessible,” said Stevick. “I think as an elected official you have to be. They’ll call and complain sometimes and that’s OK because that’s part of the job. They call me a lot when they need an answer to something.”

If at all possible, Stevick will take matters into her own hands … literally. Someone once called her to complain about a dead rat in their yard. They wanted it removed. So, Stevick went over to the house and picked it up. It’s her way of getting things done.

People in Pitcairn also know where she lives.

“One woman was out of gas across the street and knocked on my door and asked for money,” said Stevick. “So, I helped her out.”

Linda Grant, who taught with Stevick at Woodland Hills, called her one of the hardest-working people she knows.

“She has tremendous energy. I wish I had half of the energy that she has. If people ask her for help on something, she will always try to help them,” said Grant. “I’ve been at her home many times when the phone has rung and sometimes it’s someone from the community who is desperate for a ride to the doctor’s office. She picks them up and makes sure they get to their doctor’s appointment.

“I remember there was a gentleman in the community who needed a wheelchair. She raised funds to get him one.”

Tension in the race

As the race for mayor in Pitcairn has worn on, some tension has developed.

Petrosky’s family has accused Stevick of trying to keep Mika off the ballot. However, Stevick said that wasn’t exactly the case.

According to the incumbent mayor, Mika Petrosky did not properly file her financial report when she submitted her ballot application because she did not sign her name and put the date on the financial statement. So, Stevick challenged it.

“If I have to do it, then she does too,” said Stevick. “The challenge would not have been accepted if it was a false challenge. (Petrosky) said she didn’t understand and the judge allowed her to amend it and it was accepted.”

Petrosky, meanwhile, believes that police-community relations in Pitcairn could be drastically improved.

I would want to work with the police officers more and be able to get out there and do ride-alongs or walk a beat with one of the officers,” said Petrosky. “I don’t think (Stevick) currently does any ride-alongs where she would actually be able to see what our police do.

“I would like to try something like a junior council or create some way that the police can interact more with the children. That’s the big thing. I want the kids in our town to feel safe. There are definitely situations where something might be happening at home and they don’t feel like they have anyone to talk to.”

Petrosky said she would also like to see more Pitcairn residents working as police officers in the borough. But Stevick said requiring residency in Pitcairn is impractical since seven of the 10 officer positions are part-time.

Stevick said she has a good relationship with police chief Scott Farally, and points to the monthly Uniform Crime Reports that she files with the state as evidence that policing in Pitcairn has been effective.

“According to those reports, that we are required to send to Harrisburg, crime is down in the last two years,” she said. “We don’t have brawls and we don’t have racial problems outright. We are diverse, we are harmonious. We have a lot of nationalities here, Hispanics, Asians, Moroccans. We have Blacks and whites and I don’t see that as a big issue.”

And so the Pitcairn mayor’s race comes down to a battle between two women who have different ideas about dealing with issues in the community and bridging a generational divide. The question for voters is which generation should lead the way for the next four years?