Theresa Smith has spent years working to improve her city and her Westwood neighborhood, always from outside the government looking in.

That changed Tuesday, when Ms. Smith, 49, decisively won a special election to Pittsburgh City Council, filling a seat left vacant when Dan Deasy moved to the state Legislature. The sounds of Steelers fans celebrating on the streets of Downtown drowned out her transition from candidate to councilwoman-elect, but we have no doubt this tireless and enthusiastic volunteer will make her presence known.

After her election, she made clear that she doesn't think solutions to the city's problems all must come from inside government, telling an interviewer, "We have to take some responsibility for what's going on in our community."

Her resume includes being president of the Crafton Heights Westwood Ridgemont Community Council, secretary for the 28th Ward Democratic Committee, vice president of the Westwood Oakwood Athletic Association, and working for city schools in jobs focused on parental involvement.

Before the election, although we expressed reservations about her view that the city might soon be ready to forgo state fiscal oversight, we were impressed by her knowledge and extensive community involvement.

The citizens of District 2 have a council member who may be a novice but who is well-versed in how the city operates and in the organizations that are active throughout the district.

We wish her well in her first elective office, one that, because it fills a vacancy, she will have to win again if she is to serve a full, four-year term. That race comes up quickly, with the primary in May.