After 130 years, a woman has been elected to Rugby’s City Council. Sue Steinke has been chosen to sit on the council, of which she is very proud.

“Ultimately, it’s not about gender, it’s about serving the citizens of Rugby and serving them well,” Steinke said. “That being said, I am pleased that we have now passed this threshold of electing a womanI am honored to hold that position.”

Steinke, an active member of the community, feels that her background allows her to bring a broad base to the job. Steinke is the owner of A H Steinke & Co. and the Rugby Motor Vehicle Branch office, as well as financial manager for North Central Printing and financial manager for seven out of the 11 weekly newspapers printed there. She grew up as a farm girl and also farmed with her husband for many years before renting her land to a neighboring farmer. Steinke also serves as the President of Friends of the Lyric. “All of these endeavors gives me a varied background to approach this new office of city council woman,” Steinke said.

Excited for this stage of her life, Steinke said, “It just felt like the right fit. As great as Rugby is, we can always be greater and do better. I look forward to working with my co-council members to accomplish this.”

Steinke hopes that other women in the community will want to run for council positions after this. “When you look at Rugby, there’s a lot of women who own and run businesses and contribute a lot to the community, so I would hope that other women would consider running as well,” she said.

A firm believer in this community and what it can do, Steinke wants to thank everyone for their support and trust. “I have seen firsthand, working through the Lyric, what a community can do when they pull together and the change they can make with positive outcomes in that community,” she said. “I’ve had a lot of great feedback on my election, and I think it will be great. Thank you to the voters of the 4th ward for helping me make history!”