🏛️ Mayor Who Built Modern Marana: Ed Honea's 40-Year Legacy Ends at 77 🕊️
From postal worker to transformative leader, third-generation mayor shaped Arizona suburb's rise
😽 Keepin’ It Simple Summary for Younger Readers
👧🏾✊🏾👦🏾
🏠 Imagine helping build a tiny farm town into a big, busy community where 60,000 people live today - that's what Mayor Ed Honea did in Marana, Arizona! 🌱 His grandfather helped start the town, his dad built its first neighborhood, and Ed spent 37 years making it even better. 🌟 He started out delivering mail to everyone in town, then became mayor and helped build new parks, trails, and places for people to get food when they needed help. 🌅 Even though he was 77 years old, he kept working hard for his town until the very end because he loved it so much.
🗝️ Takeaways
🌟 Started as a postal contractor and rose to become Marana's longest-serving mayor
🏆 Served 37 years across three terms, helping grow the town from a farming community to a 60,000-resident suburb
👨👦 Third-generation leader whose grandfather helped found the town and whose father built its first subdivision
🎖️ Vietnam War veteran who served as a Navy Seabee before returning home to serve his community
🤝 Known for respectful leadership style and ability to work with regional partners even during disagreements
🏃♂️ Active outdoorsman who championed trail networks and recreation facilities
⚡ Just reelected without opposition before his death, showing the community's trust in his leadership
🏗️ He Delivered Mail, Then Delivered Progress: Marana's Longtime Mayor Ed Honea Dies at 77
Long before Ed Honea became the face of the Marana government, he was a boy watching his father carve the town's first subdivision out of the Arizona desert. His grandfather had helped found the town, his father built its first neighborhood, and Ed Honea would spend the next four decades shaping it into the vibrant suburban hub it is today.
The longtime mayor of Marana died on November 22, 2024, at age 77, leaving behind a legacy as intricately woven into the town's fabric as his family name.
In a way, Mayor Honea's story is Marana's story. When he graduated from Marana High School in 1965, the town was little more than scattered ranches and cotton fields. But like many of his generation, he first answered his country's call, serving as a Navy Seabee in Vietnam before returning home to help build the community he loved.
For those who knew him, Mayor Honea was as likely to be found hiking the town's extensive trail network as he was in council chambers. An avid outdoorsman, he brought that same pioneering spirit to his 37 years in public office, where he earned a reputation as a straight-talking leader who could disagree without being disagreeable. As Pima County officials noted, even when he opposed county initiatives, "he was always respectful and forthright in his opposition."
Before donning the mayor's mantle, Honea spent 29 years as a postal contractor, delivering mail to the very community he would later lead. This ground-level connection to Marana's residents never left him. Even as the town grew under his leadership, he remained the kind of mayor who would personally give tours to newly elected officials, sharing his encyclopedic knowledge of every street and story in his beloved town.
His influence extended far beyond Marana's borders. As the longest-serving member of the Regional Transportation Authority Board and chair of various regional organizations, Honea helped shape the entire Tucson region's development. Yet he never lost sight of his hometown's needs, championing projects from the new Marana Food Bank to the upcoming Aquatic & Recreation Center.
"His love for our community ran so very deep," reflected Town Manager Terry Rozema, who knew Honea as both a leader and mentor.
This love was perhaps best exemplified by his final years of service - having just won reelection without opposition, Honea remained at the helm of the Marana government until his final day, carrying forward a family legacy that began with his grandfather Bob's help in founding the town in 1977.
A man of deep faith who attended both Light the Way Lutheran Church and the Community Christian Church of Marana, Honea balanced his civic duties with an equally passionate dedication to family life. His pride and joy were his two children, Whitney and Tiffany, and three grandchildren, representing the fifth generation of Honeas to call Marana home.
When future residents drive through Honea Heights, the subdivision his father Ray built in the 1950s, they'll be passing through more than just a neighborhood - they'll be traveling through the living history of a family that helped transform Marana from a dusty farming town into a thriving community of 60,000 residents.
Ed Honea's chapter in that story may have ended. Still, his imprint on Marana will endure in every trail he championed, every development he guided, and every life he touched during his remarkable tenure of service.
He is survived by his children Whitney and Tiffany, three grandchildren, and an entire town that grew up under his watchful stewardship. Vice Mayor Jon Post will serve as interim mayor.
Service arrangements are pending.
