FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 16, 2024

MEDIA CONTACT

Maria Lee, Media & Communications, maria.lee@cityoftacoma.org, (253) 591-2054

Tacoma Council Member Catherine Ushka Passes Away

TACOMA, Wash. – It is with deep sadness that the City of Tacoma mourns the passing of Council Member Catherine Ushka, who represented District 4.

Catherine Ushka was elected to the District 4 seat of the Tacoma City Council in 2017. Following her re-election to another four-year term on the City Council, she was appointed to serve as Deputy Mayor in 2022.

Deeply committed to public service, Council Member Ushka served in the U.S. Navy Reserve, deploying after September 11, 2001. She also served eight years – including three years as president – on the Tacoma Public Schools Board of Directors, and held many other community leadership roles prior to beginning her first term on the City Council in 2017. 

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of Council Member Catherine Ushka,” said Mayor Victoria Woodards. “She will be remembered by many for her works seen and unseen. Here in Tacoma, she will be especially remembered for her fierce advocacy for the Eastside and South End, her willingness to stand for those whose voices are so often left out, and putting her hands in the dirt as well as rising to the highest levels of policy to make lasting change.”

She is survived by her daughter Amelia, son Gus, father Mike, brother David and partner Marty.   

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