Denise Eskew Scalph, appointed at the end of 2010 upon the death of her father, Commissioner Ken Eskew, to complete his term, will seek the Democrat nomination for the New Haven District seat.

The commission appointed Scalph, a resident of Fayetteville, to serve until the 2012 election in the seat held by her father since 2003.

Prior to Scalph’s appointment to the commission seat, she served on Fayetteville town council for almost eight years. Additionally, she has been a successful retail merchant in the county seat since 1997.

“When my father Commissioner Ken Eskew passed away, I felt a deep personal loss of a mentor and friend. Many people in Fayette County also expressed the sadness of the loss of a truly dedicated man and loyal public servant,” Scalph said in a press release.

Scalph says she has been working hard for and with the people throughout Fayette County to make it an even better place to live.

Scalph says she is very proud of several accomplishments of the commission: the Weatherization Program to assist homeowners with improvements; the Dunloup Creek buy-out, providing safe housing for families that were previously located in the flood plain; the continued development of Wolf Creek Industrial Park, with additional tenants supplying local jobs; the construction of the new 911 center; the support of the local PSDs through SCBG and other funding avenues; the continued partnership with the BSA and the Summit; the beautification of the county through the Fayette County Dilapidated Properties Project; the construction of the new animal shelter and the update of the Fayette County Comprehensive Plan.

In addition to her work on the commission, Scalph currently serves Fayette County as an active member on the Farmland Protection Board, the Local Emergency Planning Commission (LEPC), Bridge Day Commission, the Coal Heritage Highway Authority and the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce.

She also represents Fayette County on the Region 4 Planning and Development Council and, on a state level, she is an executive board member of the County Commission’s Association (CCAWV) and is involved in the West Virginia Association of Counties (WVACO).

Scalph said she has been grateful to have the opportunity to work with fellow commissioners and the many other dedicated people of Fayette County.

“If I can be instrumental in helping to improve the quality of life in any way for the people of this county, it makes it all worthwhile. It is an honor and a privilege.”

Always seeing the need for a spiritual anchor, Denise and her husband Matt are active members of the Mountain View Church of God at Hilltop.