Tuesday, May 04, 1999

Loyal clerk wins award

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BY JANET C. WETZEL
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Monroe city clerk Linda Egelston accepted the job 25 years ago when she didn't get her first choice, a position at a bank. (Dick Swaim photo) | ZOOM |

        MONROE — It was a fluke that landed Linda Egelston in the council clerk's job, but it was no accident that it became her lifelong devotion.

        “I just started feeling so loyal to this place, I just never wanted to leave,” said Mrs. Egelston, 55, who recently celebrated her 25th anniversary with the city.

        “This is not just a job. This is my community. I can't imagine not coming to work here,” said the woman, who was Monroe's 1993 Citizen of the Year.

        Her expertise and dedication to the job and the city helped earn her a state award in April. She was chosen from about 200 clerks as the 1999 Clerk of the Year by the Ohio Municipal Clerks Association. A member since 1976, she has served in all offices, including president. She joined the International Institute of Municipal Clerks in the late 1970s, and has served as a regional director.

        City Manager Don Whitman praised Mrs. Egelston, who is also his secretary.

        “I came from outside the area to take the job,” Mr. Whitman said. “She's helped get me up to speed with the various projects that have been going on here, and helped me get accustomed to the way things are done here in southwestern Ohio.”

        When Mrs. Egelston took the job, a second choice over one she wanted at a bank, she was one of only eight full-time workers.

        Over the years the staff has expanded to 35 full-time and 21 part-time workers to handle the community's steady growth.

        She's worked for three mayors, four full-time city managers and one part-time, and seen plenty of changes.

        “The first year, if someone appeared in mayor's court and couldn't pay their fine, he'd take something of value ... We've had stereo speakers, a radio, a watch.”

        She decided to stay on even when her husband, Gene, an auxiliary policeman, retired from his Monroe street maintenance job in late 1997.

        “I like being in the know and being a part of the community, and I can do that better staying here,” she said.

       

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