Hello from your “Dream Hometown.”
What a crazy yet wonderful few months it has been! Being your president has been truly wonderful. This year, we are embracing my theme of “Education, Service, Commitment.”
The theme started at the Annual Planning Meeting, held August 19-20, that I had the honor of hosting in my hometown of Beebe. We held great discussions on the schedule, worked on policies and learned about great educational opportunities for our police officers. There will be much more to come on this program. Thank you to all city and town officials and League staff who took time away from their loved ones and made the commitment to join us. I want to give a big thank you to the ladies who work with me: Ginger Williams, Rebecca Heflin and Kassie Markham. I also want to thank my husband, who graciously cooked the Wednesday night meal, and the American Legion Post in Beebe, who put it all together. Thank you for being my village! I thought it was a hit and hope no one went away hungry! If you have photos from any of those events, please send them my way. I would love to have them.
The education continued in September with the Arkansas Municipal Clerk’s Institute. I had a wonderful time with my fellow clerks while learning how to better our work. Thank you to everyone at the League for helping to put this on. Since almost everything runs through our offices, education for our clerks is absolutely crucial. #CLERKPOWER
On September 23, several of us attended the Arkansas Counts Census Summit for the 2030 Census. The League will be addressing this in future meetings. Please remember, we need to count everyone in our communities. As city and town officials, let’s make the commitment to work together and make this census count for the cities and towns of our great state.
It is now time to look toward the future and at more educational opportunities. I am excited to tell you about the two regional trainings coming up. On Octobers 28 in DeWitt, we’ll offer MTT training on audits and an overview of the new water and sewer grant program, and lunch will be one of my favorites: a taco bar. On November 5, we will be in Mountain Home discussing shared resources and benefits. We will also have a legislative preview. This is a wonderful time to get with other city officials in your area to see how you can move your region forward.
Lastly, we do not want to forget Called to Serve ’27, our winter conference, which is January 13-15, 2027, in Little Rock. Because this is an election year, there will be some newly elected officials, and I hope that we’ll encourage them to attend the conference. This will be a great time for them to learn alongside seasoned city officials on how our cities should be run and what everyone’s role is. There will be an entire educational track dedicated to information for newly elected officials. I look forward to seeing you all there!
Thank you all for your service and commitment to your cities and towns. Have a great fall and wonderful holiday season.
Sincerely,
Carol Westergren
Clerk/Treasurer, Beebe
President, Arkansas Municipal League
