Remembering Judy Durham: Shreveport’s First Female CAO

SHREVEPORT, LA - I have some sad news to report for Shreveport residents today. We have lost someone who blazed trails for women across north Louisiana.

Judy Gallagher Durham passed away last night after a brief illness. Judy was someone I looked up to. When I moved to Shreveport in 1984, she was someone I could always count on to help me get the information I needed for a story.

She started out as a grant writer for the city but in the 80's was appointed Executive Assistant to Shreveport Mayor John Hussey. Hussey named her Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of the city in 1988.

She was the first woman in such a high profile leadership role in city government. She was the first female CAO in Shreveport. At age 38, she was the youngest CAO in the state of Louisiana. She helped Mayor Hussey oversee a $333 million budget.

Current Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux says "Judy Durham was an excellent CAO and a friend. She worked well with the Council and Department heads to move the city forward."

After her time was up at city hall, she moved into hospital administration at the Schumpert (now Christus) group, eventually becoming the Administrator of Huckabay Hospital in Coushatta, Louisiana. She later returned to government, taking over as Caddo Parish Administrator in 1993.

Durham was 73 and is survived by her son Patrick Netherton and daughter Amy Augustine Dittman and husband Jacob Dittman of Carrollton, Texas along with two grandchildren, Hannah Dittman and Will Dittman.

Durham graduated from Byrd High School and got a degree in economics from the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now Louisiana-Lafayette).

Judy served at a time well before cell phones and email, so as a reporter, you dealt with her directly. She was always open and honest and if she didn't know the answer to your questions, she would find out.

She was always working. I would see her at a council meeting in the afternoon and out at a function for the city in the evening. I really don't know when she slept.

But the thing I most remember about Judy was how funny she was. If I was covering a government meeting and Judy was involved, I knew I would be laughing. She could turn something very mundane and tedious into something you wanted to smile about. And her smile. Oh man, she could light up a room. The glass was always half full when you were around Judy.

Patrick Netherton says this about his mother:

Mom was the smartest, sharpest, toughest, fairest, kindest and most dedicated person we know. She shattered glass ceilings in government, she strove to create equitable opportunities for everyone and she never met a problem she couldn’t outwork. She was simply an amazing person who left a trailblazing legacy for women everywhere.

If you would like to make a contribution in her honor, the family requests you donate to the fight against Alzheimer’s and dementia or to a charity of your choice.