Wednesday was a historic day for new Commissioner Valerie Reuben, her constituents in District 1 and Dallas County.

Reuben, who is the first woman elected to the Dallas County Commission, served her first day in office Wednesday after being sworn in.

She took the oath of office at the Dallas County Courthouse Wednesday morning alongside her fellow commissioners Roy Moore, Larry Nickles and Curtis Williams.

“It seemed like a dream, but now I know I’m going to have to wake up and come out of this dream,” Reuben said.

She also had her first experience in a commission meeting Wednesday afternoon.

“It was very interesting,” she said. “It’s very exciting being the first woman elected to serve with these guys. I think we’re going to have a good working relationship, and I’m just looking forward to doing what I can do.”

But it wasn’t just a big day for Reuben. It was also a big day for her constituents in District 1 in Selmont.

Cara Stallman, a grant consultant with Grant Management LLC, asked the commission to approve a resolution allowing the county to accept a Community Development Block Grant to help repair the public sewer system in Selmont. The grant application has been in the works for several months.

The grant is for $350,000 with an additional $291,000 from the Dallas County Water and Sewer Board, bringing the total cost to $641,000.

The grant will help replace lift stations that are 40 to 50 years old that need replacing.

A lift station is designed to move water from a lower level to a higher level, and the ones that will be replaced are on Ceola L. Miller Avenue, Randolph Drive and at Capps Trailer Park.

The county commission passed a resolution to accept the grant and authorized the advertisement for a grant administrator and an engineer.

Stallman said she would like to see someone hired for those positions by the beginning of 2017 so the project can get started.

“It’s going to mean a great deal because they’ve been having problems from what I can understand with the sewer and the water,” Reuben said. “So that’s going to be a good thing for them.”