Uncrowned Community Builders

Pontiac Mayor Deirdre Waterman is a committed public servant with decades of professional expertise, public service and philanthropic endeavors. She was elected mayor by the citizens of Pontiac in 2013, becoming the first woman to ever be elected to the position.

Her mayoral tenure yielded Pontiac's released from state oversight and emergency management; resulting in the restoration of full power to the mayor and Pontiac City Council. Among many other initiatives, Pontiac Power Week became a reality in 2016. Attracting investors, expanding the city's brand and progression, this weeklong festival of auto-themed events, M1 Concourse, and family activities was a trailblazing accomplishment.

Previously, Mayor Waterman ensured that the Pontiac Public Library remained open and a beneficial asset to city residents. She was founding President of the Friends of the Pontiac Public Library, advocated for the library millage's successful passage and was elected by the people to the Pontiac Public Library Board of Trustees in 2009. Her peers chose her to lead the board as Chairman. Mayor Waterman also served on the Pontiac Charter Revision Commission in 2012 and 2013.

An ophthalmologist by profession, Dr. Waterman is a longtime business owner and operated her practice, Holloway Eye Care, in Pontiac for over thirty years. She was the first African-American female ophthalmologist in the State of Michigan. Many Pontiac residents have been patients in her practice.

Dr. Waterman is a proven leader in her professional career. She served as Chairwoman of the National Medical Association, Region IV, as well as two terms as Finance Chair for that organization. She was also President of the Associated Healthcare Providers and is listed in the first edition of Vital Signs: Michigan, Citing African-American Achievement in Healthcare.

Further, Dr. Waterman served as Vice Chair of the then-North Oakland Medical Center and served as Finance Chair during its transition to Doctors' Hospital of Michigan, helping ensure hundreds of jobs remained in the city of Pontiac.

She is a graduate of the University of Chicago, with a degree in Biology and Political Science, as well as Meharry Medical College. She completed her residency at the Kresge Eye Institute at Wayne State University.

She and her husband, the late Judge William Waterman, have two children, Shana and Toussaint, whom they raised in Pontiac. Mayor Waterman has called Pontiac home for over four decades. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and an active member of Plymouth United Church of Christ.