Borough mourns mayor
SAXONBURG — Friends and residents lined Saxonburg's Main Street Monday morning to pay tribute to the late Mayor Pamela Bauman as family members traveled to a private funeral service.
Bauman, 67, died Thursday at Butler Memorial Hospital. She had been mayor since 2013.
Previously she had been a member of the Saxonburg Borough Council in addition to serving on various boards and committees in the Saxonburg area.
Employees at Bauman's Main Street business, Mimi's Memories Antiques and Gifts, remembered her as a fountain of energy, positivity and love.
“She was full of life, every minute of every day,” said Michele Walsh, who along with other employees wore pink corsages adorned with jewelry.
“Everyone felt like her good friend, and she just made you feel good about yourself,” Walsh said.
Another employee, Alanna Neupert, said the color and the jewelry — a fashion statement called “bling” — were tributes to Bauman, who loved both.
“Everything about Pam was bling — her jewelry; her phone; the shop. She brought bling to Saxonburg,” Neupert said.Cleatus Burk, the owner of The Guilded Pear, said Bauman's love of jewelry and kind-hearted nature were on display every day at her business.“Someone would come in (to Mimi's) to sell her something. And even if she didn't want it, she would buy it,” Burk said. “She was the kindest, most generous person.”Employees said Bauman's husband, Robert, pledged to work with them to keep the business running.Judy Ferree, the owner of Hotel Saxonburg and a close friend of Bauman's, said she organized the community tribute to give people an outlet to show their love for the mayor, while giving the family room to grieve.“There were so many people that wanted to honor the family, but we wanted to respect the family's privacy,” Ferree said.
More than 50 people attended Monday's gathering, holding flowers as a small funeral procession made its way along Main Street. After the procession was out of sight, people walked the short distance to Bauman's Main Street house, where they left flowers, signs and other memorials on her lawn and gate.Ferree met Bauman about five years ago, she said, shortly after Ferree bought the hotel. The pair began as business acquaintances, sending customers back and forth between their businesses, but they quickly found common ground — their love of food, family and Saxonburg.Bauman and Ferree would go on to found Discover Saxonburg, a tourism and business organization serving the borough, and grow to be fast friends.Ferree said she had lost a “best friend and confidante,” and the borough had lost a force for good and public service.“I could tell her anything,” Ferree said.The Fox Funeral Home handled Bauman's funeral arrangements.
