A Personal Look... AAC
How do you like your steak? Medium-well
What was the last film you saw at the cinema? I can’t even remember; I’m really not a movie person What is your favorite TV show? HGTV
If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? I enjoy traveling but it's always nice to get home – so I would have to say the Ozark mountains
What is your favorite cuisine? Seafood What is your favorite dessert? Fruit pie
What foods do you dislike? Any soft drink; Dr. Pepper is the worst What kind of vehicle do you drive? 2003 Ford Expedition
Where would you visit if you had the chance? I would really like to see the mountains in Alaska and I plan on doing that someday Cup half empty or half full? Half full!
officials if the public had a better understanding of their roles.”
She has benefitted from Circuit Clerks As- sociation participation since before she took of- fice. “After I was elected, I went to the fall con- ference before taking office in January. It was new to me, but I saw it as an opportunity to learn. I was interested in any helpful resources I could find.” She currently serves as secretary, and has served a couple of terms as a district di- rector, along with Jeannie Steen, for the North- west Quadrant. Phyllis acknowledges that not all of her peers
are active in the statewide Circuit Clerk net- work, but she would like to see that change. “I don’t know if they know just how educational the meetings are. I can’t imagine how you’d keep up with all the changes going on without the help of all the other Clerks, and the continuing education program,” she said. “And just the re- lationships you build with all the other Clerks; that’s probably more beneficial even than the continuing ed. Tere is just a wealth of knowl-
COUNTY LINES, SUMMER 2011
F A M I L Y F R I E N D S » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » »
Favorite time of day? Morning, right after daylight Where were you born? Huntsville, Arkansas
What time do you get up most mornings? Between 5:15 and 5:30
What is your favorite sport to watch? Basketball. Both my children played high school basketball. My daughter is playing col- lege basketball and my husband and daughter are coaching summer league basketball
Do you have any pets? What and how many? I have one dog, an 11-year-old Golden Retriever, and one cat. My son has an Austra- lian Shepherd that lives at my house
What did you want to be when you were little? A teacher
What is your best childhood memory? My sister and I would go to the barn with our grandpa to milk the cow and feed the other animals
Any pet peeves? When someone says "I can't" before they even try
Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Dillard's
What was your favorite vacation? I really can't choose just one. Navarre Beach, Florida is beautiful and relaxing and the seafood is awesome. But in July the waterfalls and wildflowers in the Rocky Mountains are magnificent.
Have a motto or personal philosophy? "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you."
edge. When you get all the Clerks together – if you have a question, there is always someone in the room who has faced that situation before.”
What ensures success in her office? “Te
most successful Clerk has to have a good staff, first – I can’t emphasize that enough. And it’s important in trying to automate, and trying to stay up with technology.” And of course, good communication skills is a basic. “If you can’t greet the public and make them feel comfort- able, you’re not going to stay in office long. It’s not always the most qualified person who’s most successful, but the one that best relates to the public,” she observed.
She’s a big proponent of e-recording, noting
that “it’s simple; it’s a service you are offering the public; and it is easier on your own office. Tey can sit and do a (property sale) closing, and hand that recorded document to the other person right there.” Phyllis was appointed to the Electronic Recording Commission in 2009. Her office is doing e-recording, and this year
placed their images online.
Personally speaking... “I don’t have a lot of time for hobbies, because of helping my husband with his business. And we do live on a cattle farm. I’m not a big “farm girl,” but I have been known to run a head gate, and rake hay!” She does like to cook, though, “when it’s not rushed.” Phyllis is a member of the Lions Club at
Huntsville, and the family attends a small coun- try church near their home. As a family, they enjoy a trip to the Colorado
Rockies every year. It started as a hunting trip for her husband and their son. “My daughter and I, to be a part of that, get our backpacks and hike. We stay in a cabin and do day trips hiking, while the guys camp,” she said. And by the way, she is not the only “public
servant” in the family – “My father was a Madi- son County Justice of the Peace for 10 years,” she added with pride.
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