Remembering Former Arlington Mayor and City Councilman Elzie Odom

Published on November 17, 2025

By Susan Schrock, Office of Communications

Today, the City of Arlington pauses to reflect on the life and contributions of Elzie Odom, who was Arlington’s first Black mayor and selflessly served his community in numerous volunteer and leadership roles.

Mr. Odom, who died on Nov. 17, championed for economic strength, opportunities for youth, improved transportation and mobility, inclusion in City boards and commissions and other important community issues during his 14 years as elected official in Arlington. He was 96.

With solemn respect of Mr. Odom’s life and legacy, the City of Arlington flag will remain at half-staff at city facilities and all of Arlington’s lighted gateway monuments, including the towers in front of City Hall, will be kept dark. The Arlington City Council will also hold a moment of silence at its evening meeting on Nov. 18.

"Today, as we lower our flags, we honor a life that was nothing short of monumental,” Arlington Mayor Jim Ross said. “Elzie Odom was more than a dedicated servant; he was the embodiment of the Arlington spirit. He was a trailblazer who fundamentally changed our city's landscape, not just through transportation and infrastructure improvements and keeping vital employers like General Motors and the Rangers in town, but by championing the idea that every single person in Arlington deserved a seat at the table.”

Born on May 10, 1929, Mr. Odom grew up in the freedom colony of Shankleville and attended Prairie View A&M University before beginning his career with the U.S. Postal Service. In his memoir, “Counting My Blessings,” Mr. Odom recounted his long career as a postal worker and community leader, which included being the first African American to be elected school board member in Orange County, Texas, and the first African American to be named U.S. Postal Inspector in Texas and the fifth in the nation.

Mr. Odom retired after two decades from the United States Postal Inspection Service in 1987 and launched a bid for public office in Arlington, where he lived with his wife Ruby and their two children, the Honorable Dr. Barbara Odom-Wesley and the Rev. Elzie Odom Jr. He was first elected to the Arlington City Council in 1990 after serving on the Planning and Zoning Commission. Mr. Odom was elected mayor in 1997, a year when he noted that Black residents made up only about 8% of the city’s population and the total minority population was only about 14%.

“There was a lot of hype about my being the first African American on the council but after I was sworn in and the work started, I was no different from anyone else,” Mr. Odom wrote in his memoir. “All my life I was taught that all people are the same and should be treated the same.”

On the Arlington City Council, Mr. Odom worked on redistricting, transportation and mobility issues, infrastructure improvements and economic development initiatives. This included the City’s successful bids to keep the Texas Rangers Baseball Club, now celebrating its 53rd year, and General Motors assembly plant, now celebrating its 71st year, in Arlington.

Mr. Odom’s many accomplishments as mayor included advocating for Arlington youth, supporting programs for seniors and residents with disabilities, paying the City’s contribution to the construction of The Ballpark in Arlington (now Choctaw Stadium) off nearly 10 years ahead of schedule, and creating a voter-approved street maintenance sales program. As former mayor, Mr. Odom joined city leaders in successfully championing the Dallas Cowboys to move to Arlington.

In addition to being a long-time member and deacon of the Mount Olive Baptist Church, Mr. Odom’s community service in Arlington also included the Rotary Club, Big Brothers and Big Sisters, the Boys and Girls Clubs and representing the City of Arlington on the Texas Municipal League, North Central Texas Council of Governments, Tarrant County Housing Partnership, Working Connection and State Attorney General’s Municipal Advisory Committee.

Dr. Barbara Odom Wesley, who serves as the Arlington City Council District 8 at-large representative, said she was inspired to lead a life of public service by her parents.

“I was taught that service is the price you pay for the space you occupy. So, my public service is deep respect and honor for my dad, who blazed the trail,” Dr. Odom-Wesley said.  

In his memoir, Mr. Odom said he looked back on his service in Arlington with “thanksgiving and pride.”

“I marvel when I think about my humble beginnings in Shankleville and the wonderful examples of Christian living I experienced and how God took that and gave me such a full and wonderful life,” Mr. Odom wrote. “It has been one blessing after another all my life.”

In 1999, the City of Arlington dedicated the Elzie Odom Athletic Center, which opened at 1601 N.E. Green Oaks Blvd. near River Legacy Parks East, in his honor. A number of scholarships have also been established for youth as a legacy to Mr. Odom’s service.

Former Mayor Richard Greene said Mr. Odom, who he has remained in touch with since serving on City Council together in 1990s, would be fondly remembered for his leadership and the positive changes for the Arlington community he made over the years.  

“In the ceremonial passing of the gavel on the occasion of his taking the oath of office as the city’s new mayor in 1997, I knew I had placed it into the hands of a very special man who would honor and serve the people of our city from a sincere heart and with compassion for others,” Greene wrote in a column in 2020. That was the year that The University of Texas at Arlington’s Special Collections at UTA Libraries made dozens of scrapbooks, personal letters, historical city documents and other memorabilia from Mr. Odom’s life available to the public.