Town bids farewell to long-time clerk

Barb Hardy shared a heartfelt goodbye as the Clerk/Treasurer for Pine Haven. She has been the first face of Pine Haven for 14 years and is retiring at the end of February.

As the clerk reminisces about her first days and weeks at a recent meeting, she finds the humor in her original concept of the job definition: "I thought to myself, this will be easy, it's such a small office, I can handle this." Of course, this was before she was informed of the clerk's obligation to take accurate minutes of council meetings, "I thought: what?!" She recognized herself as a numbers person.

Another immediate challenge Hardy faced in the beginning was the town coding, "All the resolutions and ordinances state that you use town code. I'd heard of them but I didn't know anything about them," she recalls.

Since then, though, Hardy has learned to write out grant applications, resolutions and minutes as well as manage utility accounts, budgets and so much more, carrying out these responsibilities with aplomb even as she volunteered as a first responder on the ambulance.

At a meeting of the council, Hardy thanked many people who helped her when she began and said she has passed that spirit of help and kindness on to the new aces in the office, Clerk/Treasurer Tammie McGovern and Deputy Clerk Sondii Boggess.

The former clerk leaves the office for the final time Tuesday, February 28 with a retirement party at 1 p.m., showing appreciation for 14 years of hard work and diligence.

Hardy smiles as she leaves this observation, "I am living proof that an old dog can learn new tricks."