Former three-term Fort Wayne Mayor Paul Helmke said Thursday he'll step down July 10 as president of the Brady Campaign and the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

Helmke, 62, said he's undecided about his next career move and whether he'll stay in Washington or return to Fort Wayne, where he maintains a home. Helmke, a Republican, was Fort Wayne mayor from 1988 to 2000.

July 10 marks the end of the five-year commitment Helmke made when hired as president by the Brady boards in 2006. He plans to remain with the organization through the end of July, although not as president, to help with the transition to new leadership. Brady Vice President Dennis Henigan will serve as acting president while the Brady boards search for a new leader.

The Brady Campaign, in announcing Helmke's departure, noted many accomplishments of his tenure. Leaders of the board spoke highly of his leadership, saying he has made the organization's voice louder and its movement stronger.

"He is a man of the highest integrity who has worked tirelessly to keep Americans safer for so many years, long before his tenure with us," Sarah Brady, chair of the Brady organizations, said in a statement, speaking also on behalf of her husband, Brady Campaign namesake Jim Brady. "We both will miss him as a friend and a leader."

For more on this story, see Friday's print edition of The Journal Gazette or visit www.journalgazette.net after 3 a.m. Friday.

aturner@jg.net