This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
Director’s DE S K


County Lines Magazine


County Lines is the official publication of the Association of Arkansas Counties. It is published quarterly. For advertising inquiries, subscriptions or other informa- tion relating to the magazine, please con- tact Christy L. Smith or Scott Perkins at 501.372.7550.


Executive Director / Publisher Chris Villines


Communications Director/ Managing Editor Scott Perkins


Communications coordinator/ Editor


Christy L. Smith AAC Executive Board:


Judy Beth Hutcherson – President Debbie Wise – Vice President


Sherry Bell Cindy Walker


Andrea Billingsley John Montgomery Rhonda Cole


David Thompson Angela Hill


Joe Gillenwater – Secretary-Treasurer Debra Buckner Brandon Ellison Jimmy Hart


Patrick Moore Sandra Cawyer Bill Hollenbeck Debbie Cross


National Association of Counties (NACo) Board Affiliations


Judy Beth Hutcherson: NACo board member. She is the Clark County Treasurer and president of the AAC Board of Directors.


Debbie Wise: NACo board member. She is the Randolph County Circuit Clerk, vice president of the AAC Board of Directors and chair of AAC’s Legislative Committee.


Ted Harden: Finance & Intergovernmental Affairs Steering Committee. He serves on the Jefferson County Quorum Court.


Kasey Summerville: Finance, Pensions & Intergov- ernmental Affairs Steering Committee. She is the Clark County Assessor.


David Hudson: Vice Chair of NACo’s Justice and Public Safety Steering Committee. He is the Sebastian County Judge and member of the Rural Action Caucus Steering Committee.


Barry Hyde: Justice and Public Safety Steering Com- mittee. He is the Pulaski County Judge.


COUNTY LINES, SPRING 2016


» » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » »


Summer brings new season for dedicated two


ummer is quickly upon us, and it signifies so much that is fun about life in Arkansas. Tis time of year many of us take time with family and friends to enjoy a week or week- ends in the beauty that our state holds. It is a time when we take hard-earned money saved up through- out the year to “Explore the Possibilities” — yes, that was a gratuitous AAC Conference plug — and enjoy some time off.


S


Director’s Desk


Chris Villines AAC


Executive Director


As a metaphor for life, summer is a lot like retirement. It is a season within which to parlay a career well lived into time of enjoyment with family and friends. For the county family, this rings particularly true right now as two of our favorite workers slip into a new stage of life on July 1 — their summer, if you will — and we wish them the happiest of times as they do so.


Jeanne Hunt will tell you that when she started her career at the Associa- tion of Arkansas Counties in 1982 she was 7 years old and, judging by the charisma and energy she possesses, it would be easily believable. As an execu- tive assistant, she has worked with five different executive directors. Tere has never been and there likely will never be another employee with this organization that will come close to her 34 years of service.


Trough those years she has been an integral part of AAC’s transformation into the strong and healthy organization it is today. She has survived two ad- ditions to the original headquarters and at least 44 regular, fiscal and special sessions. And, as I joke, it took me becoming executive director to finally give her enough to leave!


When she started, there was no Risk Management Program and no


Worker’s Compensation Program — just one small building facing Victory Street, five employees and a vision to create an association that could help counties with their needs. Today, we have 26 full-time employees located in facilities to be proud of, with robust member programs and the ability to do a great number of things to serve all of our counties.


Tens of thousands of county employees have through the years availed themselves of our services and facilities. We receive many compliments on both — from a great conference room to a wonderfully comfortable courtyard and from services and programs that treat county employees with respect to a first-class system of membership involvement and communication. Tese things would not exist were it not for Jeanne, and every day I am here I see her fingerprints on facilities and services that have made the AAC a success.


On a personal note, she has been a friend who protects me and skillfully handles duties like our annual conference. I’d say she does so with ease, but it only looks that way. Te work that goes into things like our annual confer- ences, board meetings and new elects seminars is incredible — and incred-


>>> 7


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52