Town selects longtime resident as new clerk
Published 6:49 pm Monday, November 21, 2016
BELHAVEN — The Town of Belhaven has chosen Gloria Rogers as its new town clerk.
Rogers, 67, was born and raised in Belhaven, graduating from the old Belhaven High School. She officially took over the position at the beginning of this month.
Rogers retired after 30 years working in Washington, D.C., government and moved back to Belhaven with her late husband, opening a bed and breakfast there in 2008 and operating it for five years.
Rogers has one son, who works in security in Washington, D.C.
Although she heard about the position, Rogers said she was reluctant to look into it because of her retiree status, and she is busy pursing a master’s degree at Shaw University.
Rogers holds a sociology degree from Shaw University and also took courses at Mount Gilead School of Ministry, University of Rhode Island and Beaufort County Community College.
Upon more thought, Rogers said she decided to apply for the clerk position. The Belhaven town clerk is responsible for Board of Aldermen meeting announcements and minutes, day-to-day office work and managing town documents.
“I saw the advertisement, and I knew about it and a couple of people had mentioned it,” she said. “I thought about it. It’s right here in Belhaven. If it snows, I can walk right to work.”
Having already worked in government, Rogers settled right into the job, and she already has plans for her time of service there.
She wants to upgrade the computer system and make it generic across the board. That way, any town employee can sit down and do work without experiencing a learning curve on new software, according to Rogers.
Rogers said she would also like to see the town be able to accept credit card payments on bills.
“It is an involved position. It’s a good position to have,” she said. “I enjoy the staff that’s here. Everybody seems to get along well.”
Rogers is also getting up to speed on the town’s new website, according to Woody Jarvis, who spoke highly of Rogers at a recent Board of Aldermen meeting.
“It’s a great job, and there’s a lot of work and a lot to be done and a lot to learn, and I’m looking forward to doing that,” Rogers said.
Rogers replaces former clerk Jeanie Budge, who resigned from the position this summer.