Diane Browning is the village of North Syracuse Deputy Mayor. Browning was appointed to the Board of Trustees four years ago and in the next election was elected in to finish out the remaining year of the term. After the election, Browning was appointed Senior Advocate to the village as well as Deputy Mayor.
“My life is pretty much an open book,” Browning said. “If you know me, you know me.”
As Senior Advocate Browning says that her main responsibility is being there for North Syracuse’s senior citizens. Browning aids seniors with anything from helping them fill out applications, notifying them about eligibility for different state and county programs that are available to them to making sure they have rides to the supermarket.
When citizens began coming to Browning three years ago with travel issues, she approached the situation proactively. Today, compliments of the Central New York Regional Transportation Authority and P&C, the village’s senior citizens no longer have to worry about transportation. Centro Bus Service has been made available through the two companies at no cost to the seniors every Tuesday.
The bus transports everyone to the P&C located at Pitcher Hill.
The buses go to the Pitcher Hill Apartments, Maloney Manor, Malta Manor and Centerville Court, all senior housing units, between 11:30 a.m. and noon on Tuesdays. The buses leave P&C between 1 and 1:30 p.m. depending on which housing unit you hail from.
Senior programs now available from the village of North Syracuse range from tax relief, healthcare, form assistance, state park passes, and community discounts to employment.
If you are unable to purchase smoke detectors and alarms, calling Diane can lead you in the right direction, a program for this specific situation is overseen by Browning. Cell phones are also now available to seniors for emergency purposes. There is no charge for the donated phones that may only be used to call 911.
Another problem facing the area is senior housing according to Browning.
“A lot of times their kids come in and wonder if they are able to stay in their homes and ask about senior housing availability,” she said. “We need senior housing badly, all of them currently have two to three year wait lists.”
As Deputy Mayor, Browning only wants to help the village.
“Hopefully I’m helping a little bit with the load to the mayor,” she said. “I like being there for the community, serving the people of North Syracuse and being part of making decisions for the community.”
In June of 2009 Browning does not intend on running for her position in the election. So when she was asked what she would do with the downtime, she responded.
“I don’t know, that’s a long time away and a lot could happen between now and then,” Browning said. “I will have to do something, I cant sit down and watch TV.”
So what is it about North Syracuse that Browning loves?
“I love the small town atmosphere, it’s just a small community that you get to know your neighbors,” she said. “I’m delighted that there’s more businesses showing an interest in the area, we need them and welcome them.”
In her off-time Browning enjoys spending time with her family and reading. She also likes working on things like the Plank Road Chamber of Commerce golf tournament, the Spring Festival (coming May 26) and the spaghetti dinners.
“It eats up a lot of my personal time but it does because I allow it to and I like it to,” Browning said.
So what’s next?
“My life is pretty much an open book,” she said. “If you know me, you know me.”
Fun Facts about Diane Browning
Q: If you could eat lunch with three people dead or alive, who would they be?
A: My husband, Dr. Phil and Brad Pitt.
Q: What’s your favorite type of music?
A: Symphony music.
Q: What’s your dream car?
A: Hummer
Q: Where would you live if given the choice?
A: Aruba.
Q: What’s your favorite color?
A: Beige.
Q: Who’s your favorite super-hero?
A: Spider-Man.
Q: If you could change the face on any form American currency who would it be and why?
A: I wouldn’t want to change any of the faces.
