December 2024 Employee of the Month Nicole Widner

I nominate Nicole Widner as the December employee of the month. Nicole has been employed with the town almost two years. In that time she has been an asset from the start, With 10 years in working at a utility, she has proven time and time again that she has excellent skills in communication, leadership, and integrity throughout her short time at Jonesborough. Nicole has effectively completed the installation and maintenance of a new filing system for cross connection, tap, and flushing files, and much more, She quickly was promoted to Cross-Connection Specialist. She has completed and holds her backflow prevention certification, and is qualified to test and evaluate backflow preventers. She was instrumental in the ARM system start up as well as initiating our in house programing of our digital meters. She does not hesitate to assist with in field operations or assisting our field personnel. Helping to train her fellow co-workers in the removal and installation of new digital meters. She works with multiple departments on a daily basis and has a wonderful working relationship with all. She has offered innovative solutions and idea proposals to inner-departmental challenges that have been faced which have been of paramount importance. Nicole has an eye for detail and a very positive approach to her work. She does not hesitate to perform any task asked of her. Her work with our set up to digitize files and reduce paper waste, has helped to provide a more organized work place. She strives to learn and perform hands on tasks in the field. She arrives early to set up and prepare for the day’s assignments for her fellow co-workers to ensure all the computer systems are operating properly. Her attention to detail and manners allow her to communicate with our customers and staff clearly and respectfully. She volunteers to work outside of normal operating hours in any way needed. It is for these reasons that I nominate Nicole Widner for December employee of the month.

Thank you, Nicole! You are appreciated!

November 2024 Employee of the Month Zach Williams

I want to nominate Zach Williams, Equipment Operator II Water Distribution – County Crew, as the November Employee of the Month. Zach has been employed for over a year and in that short time he has showed great potential he volunteers to work over and on call. He strives to do his best and will help coworkers and other departments in need. He has been a true asset during the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene. Not only has he performed his regular duties, but while out assessing the damage caused by the flooding to our water system, Zach came upon a car trapped in the rising waters, and without hesitation or a thought to his own personal safety, he jumped out and ran into the flood waters in order to rescue a woman, her child, and a disabled man. Zach Williams was able to remove all parties safely from the vehicle. Zach Willaims goes above and beyond, not only in his duties, but gives his all for his community and the Town of Jonesborough. It is for these reasons that I am nominating Zach Williams for November Employee of the Month.

Thank you, Zach! You are appreciated!

August 2024 Employee of the Month Allen Weems

I would like to nominate Allen Weems for Employee of the Month. How many of us can say our actions led to someone’s life being saved, Allen can. One of our members, Mr. Wilson, who is also a dance instructor had recently taken off the month of July from teaching but was set to return to teaching his class the first Tuesday in August. When he didn’t show up that evening some thought oh well maybe he meant to also take this evening, but Allen said, I have a bad feeling about this. Allen tried contacting the instructor again and when Mr. Wilson did not answer, Allen called his emergency contact, when that person did not answer he called the next contact. Allen explained his concerns about Mr. Wilson not being there for his class the man agreed to go by his home and check on him commenting it was unusual for him to not show up. When the gentleman went to Mr. Wilson’s home, he found he needed immediate medical attention and he was swiftly taken to the hospital where he remained for several days. How often do we have those nagging feelings that something is not quite right? Allen had that feeling and he followed his instincts. Allen could have dismissed it but he instead, he followed his instincts and got Mr. Wilson the help he needed. To quote Mr. Wilson “If you hadn’t called my contact, last Wednesday, I’m not here today. My unbounded thanks.” When Mr. Wilson shared with me in his own words what happened and his profound gratitude to Allen, the story brought me to tears. When you think about the impact of someone caring enough about other person to take the extra steps to ensure that someone is okay and that is what Allen did. Words cannot express how proud I am that Allen is a team member at the Senior Center. That is the kind of people we need, those who go above and beyond and follow their instincts and look out for those in need.

I would like to recommend Allen Weems for Employee of the Month for his actions that lead to saving Mr. Wilson’s life.

Thank you, Allen! You are appreciated!

October 2024 Employee of the Month Skye McFarland

Skye McFarland is the Community Program Specialist at the McKinney Center. Skye has worked for the town for over ten years, starting out as a part time host at the Visitors Center. She began at the McKinney Center in 2017 as a part time employee and became full time by the end of 2019. As the community program specialist, Skye does the center’s community outreach events, manages volunteers, records a monthly podcast, manages the center’s social media accounts, and so much more.

This month Skye did a lot of work on the current McKinney Center exhibit Living Here: A Portrait of Jonesborough, which features 35 different people who live and work in Jonesborough. Everyone was interviewed by Isaac Wood, which was recorded by Skye. Skye then took a portrait of everyone. These interviews included family history, what they like about Jonesborough, working in Jonesborough, the Jonesborough community, and much more. Every interview lasted between 30 minutes to an hour. Skye edited each of the 35 videos down to 10 minutes long. Skye created a YouTube playlist of said videos so the Jonesborough community can hear stories from their neighbors. Skye spent time with Isaac reviewing the videos so he could pick out what quote from each video had the most impact. Skye spent Thursday and Friday of that week working on the presentation of the portraits in the auditorium so that the exhibition would look amazing for the opening reception that celebrated the lives of 35 community members.

The center does community outreach to share information about the center, introduce people to what the center does, and provides free crafts for people to engage in. Skye picks out the major festivals and events in the surrounding areas for staff to attend. Skye signs up to attend crafts at the Farmers Market in downtown Jonesborough once a month and helps to decide which downtown events we do outreach at. Skye attended the UMOJA festival on September 14th from 11 am-8pm to do a bead craft with children who attended the festival and to just share general information about the center. Skye plans to attend the Farmers Market in downtown Jonesborough on September 21st from 8am to noon with our new Arts and Culture Education Assistant AmeriCorps Volunteer Martha. They will be doing a popsicle scarecrow craft and passing out information about upcoming events at the center.

As the coordinator of community outreach, Skye has the greatest need for volunteers in the center. Skye gets three volunteers for every 2-3 hour period of doing outreach at festivals and events. Skye must organize when she needs volunteers, send out the information to get volunteers to sign up, typically multiple times, and then coordinate the volunteers on where to go once the festival begins. Skye then instructs volunteers on how to do the craft. Skye also gets volunteers for special events that the center hosts, such as the Masterpiece Mingle, art receptions, and fundraisers. Skye organizes the volunteers for the StoryTown radio show, volunteers who usher and run the concessions stand.

Skye started producing Conversations That Matter the Podcast in July 2020. The podcast began with Michelle Treece and Katelyn Yarbrough as moderators. Michelle Treece and Brittany Butler are the current moderators. Each episode of Conversations That Matter has two individuals that live or work in the Jonesborough/Johnson City area that get together and discuss how their lives are different and how they are alike. Topics of each episode vary depending on the guests for that area, although there are general overarching questions that each episode tends to touch on. In 2024, there have been episodes discussing the Jonesborough Area Ministerial Association Food Pantry, the Tennessee Educators of Color Alliance, Langston Centre’s Health Task Force, and two teachers from Science Hill High School. It is beautiful that Skye can get people together every month to discuss what it means to be a part of the community in East Tennessee, especially Jonesborough and Johnson City.

Skye manages the social media sites for the McKinney Center, such as the McKinney Center Facebook and instagram pages. She helps the Program Manager and the AmeriCorps Volunteer StoryTown Assistant with the StoryTown Facebook and instagram pages. Skye is the one who makes graphics for each event we have and makes event pages on social media. These event pages and sharing general posts on a regular basis are why the McKinney Center events are so well attended. Skye promotes each class we have periodically throughout the semester, which is why our classes are able to make and even fill up. Skye takes the graphics she designed and has them printed out so that way staff can distribute them throughout Jonesborough and Johnson City to help attract attention to catch different crowds that are outside of the normal fan base.

Thank you, Skye! You are appreciated!

May 2024 Employee of the Month Officer Adam Depew and Officer Zachary Bruton

We are writing this memorandum to nominate Officer Adam Depew and Officer Zachary Bruton for Employees of the Month for the Town of Jonesborough.

On April 21st, 2024, Officers Depew and Bruton were dispatched to a Welfare Check at Walgreen‘s. A 911 caller stated that there was a man slumped over in his vehicle in the Pharmacy Drive Through. Upon arrival, officer Depew attempted to wake the driver without success. As Officer Depew went around to the passenger side of the vehicle to see if the door was unlocked, Officer Zach Bruton checked the man‘s pulse, and determined he had no pulse and wasn‘t breathing. Unsure of the cause of the man‘s state, Officer Bruton quickly administered a dose of Narcan with no response. He then pulled the man from the vehicle and laid him in the parking lot. At that time, Officer Depew began performing CPR on him while Officer Bruton was getting him hooked up to an AED. Once the AED analyzed the man’s heart rhythm, the device advised that a shock was advised. Officer Depew cleared while Officer Bruton delivered the shock. After the shock, Officer Depew continued CPR until it was determined that the man‘s pulse had returned, and he started to breathe on his own. At that time, EMS arrived on scene and began to treat him and transport him to JCMC. The last update we received was that he was out of ICU and on his way to recover. If it had not been for the quick response and immediate action of these Officers, that outcome would most likely been different.

Thank you, Officer Adam Depew and Officer Zachary Bruton! You are appreciated!

April 2024 Employee of the Month Theresa Hammons

Theresa Hammons is the Director of the McKinney Center and has dedicated herself to the Town of Jonesborough for over ten years. Theresa oversees both the large-scale activities and the day-to-day events that happen at the McKinney Center. Since January, Theresa has put hours of work into the 2024 Masterpiece Mingle. Theresa wrote the press release, has put out several calls for donations of artwork, and has put effort into making sure the event is well promoted. She has been spending time emailing over 100 artists individually to get people to donate to the event. She then kept in touch with the artists to make sure we secured the artwork. Theresa spent hours looking to make sure we had the perfect musician fit for the event and found the Tri-Cities Jazz Orchestra. For the last Masterpiece Mingle, we had high schoolers cater. Unfortunately, this year they are traveling to participate in a competition. So, Theresa has spent hours trying to secure a caterer at a reasonable price for this event. Masterpiece Mingle is our biggest fundraiser of the year. Theresa worked so hard on this event to make sure it is a success because she cares about the success of the center.

In the fall, Theresa put out bids to get the interior of the center painted. Quad City Builders won the paint bid and are scheduled to repaint the interior of the building from May to early June. We have had to shift around events on the master calendar to make sure that no events land in that time frame. Theresa made the decision to move the student art show up for a week from May 9th to May 2nd, so that way painting can begin when it needs to. Theresa has been communicating with teachers that this decision affects making sure we have adequate make up days for classes. Customer experience is very important to the people who attend our classes, and we want to ensure everyone is happy. We had to reschedule an artist exhibition due to scheduling to make sure their exhibit went up for a fair amount of time. Theresa also fit the Washington Co. school’s end of the year art exhibit into this tight schedule. She goes above and beyond to communicate, make things work, and keep all parties happy. This shows flexibility and patience.

Since January, Theresa has been working towards publishing the McKinney Centers 2024 Summer Camps. Theresa has communicated with teachers what the classes are, what the descriptions for the classes are, and the new age ranges for the different classes. After receiving this information from the teachers, Theresa then uploaded all the information to Course storm, the online class system used by the center. Theresa made sure that all the dates for classes aligned with our current schedule, including moving some dates due to the interior of the center being painted. After this has been added online, Theresa had staff and teachers review it multiple times before the classes went live to the public. Now Theresa is focused on advertising, both digitally and in person, to make sure all the summer camp slots fill up!

April 4th is the McKinney Center’s “Ernest McKinney Day of Giving” virtual event on Facebook. The center picked this day as it is the day Ernest McKinney was elected as the town’s first African American alderman, the same day that MLK Jr. was assassinated. Theresa has been reviewing the schedule of the day to make sure there is adequate representation of everything the center has to offer. Last year for the event, we live streamed teachers doing demonstrations and had different important figures in the town come in to talk about what the center meant to them. This year, it was decided that we would stream videos with the same type of content, but these videos would be pre-recorded to ensure the day is easier on the operations of the center. All proceeds from this day of giving goes to the Ernest and Marion McKinney scholarship fund. We were able to give several scholarships in 2023, and with the money raised from this event, we hope to continue to increase the number of scholarships we provide to students. Theresa works hard to ensure we provide the arts to ALL our community.

Theresa spent hours putting together the 2024-2025 budget together for the McKinney Center. Theresa asked every employee to write three goals they hope to accomplish for next budget year to include in the report. Theresa went through and checked the statements for each budget line to track how much the center has spent this past year. She uses these numbers and costs of operating in citing why some budget lines should be increased. Theresa then submitted the draft of the budget to be reviewed. There is a lot of consideration that goes in between drafting and editing the budget that can take over a month to do.

Theresa finished working on the 2023 McKinney Center report at the beginning of January and has since passed it around for our customers to see. We reviewed it at the January 2024 Advisory Committee meeting, sent it out with the January 2024 member newsletter, and shared it with our members at the 2024 membership brunch. Theresa put together data in a multi-page packet for the report. In the report, there are demographics about the average income, education levels, and race of our students. Another section of the 2023 report goes over the different types of events the center hosted. We reached 2,775 people at in person events and 253,304 through social media. There were 14,317 people who came through the doors at the center in 2023, which is a 40% increase from 2022. The center offered 116 classes to the community in 2023. The center had 5,274.25 volunteer hours for a value of $148,325. Theresa must extend her reach far and wide to be able to support all the programming that the center does and to keep customers continuously happy. On the rare occasion issues do come up, she is always willing to make things work. Her dedication to this job, community, and the town are incredible. The McKinney Center participated in 316 activities in 2023 with a small staff all under her supervision. It is an honor to have her as my supervisor and to work with her every day.

Thank you, Theresa Hammons! You are appreciated!

March 2024 Employee of the Month Sheila Watson

I would like to nominate Sheila Watson for the distinction and honor of Employee of the Month for March 2024.  Sheila’s job title is listed as HR/Accounts Payable clerk.  Everyone knows of one very important job she performs every other week, (payroll), but her duties reach much farther and wider than that important task.  Sheila dutifully and efficiently performs all Human Resources duties as well, which is likely a job/position in and of itself.  She ‘onboards’ new hires and the many facets of that process…setting up health assessments, initiating background checks, compiling payroll information/specifics (which include many complex items these days), as well as setting the new hire up for a variety of health insurance options. Beyond the typical ‘HR’ duties, Sheila is also a helping hand and friendly face to employees with insurance concerns and changes, payroll issues, retirement or other issues employees need assistance with.  Sheila is also integral when an employee parts with the Town.

  Aside from payroll and HR tasks, Sheila performs Accounts Payable duties.  Most times this involves chasing down charges, and identifying which department initiated the charge.  With the Town having many different departments and vendors, this detective work can be quite involved, and quite the task.  Moreover, during the past few months, the Town has been integrating an entirely new accounting and payroll software system.  Sheila has had the task of learning the complex new software, while maintaining/using the old software program so the bills got paid, as well as the employees being paid.  So, for some time, both the new and old accounting/payroll systems operated simultaneously, obviously adding complexity to Sheila’s work day.  By taking only a cursory glance @ the new look of the pay stubs, one can easily see the tip of the iceberg of the new accounting system. Sheila has been much involved in the implementation of the new system, working tirelessly and seamlessly ‘behind the scenes’.  Sheila’s relentless pursuit of excellence in all her duties, dedication to her employer and to our employees, and her patience and specificity in dealing with vendors and accounts payable make her an employee that the Town should count as truly invaluable.  

For these reasons and so many more, I believe Sheila Watson should be awarded the honor and distinction of Employee of the Month this month.  Thank you for your time.

Thank you, Sheila Watson! You are appreciated!

February 2024 Employee of the Month Lisa Buckingham

I nominate Lisa Buckingham as the January employee of the month. She has the kind of tenacity, determination, and attendance that every director strives for in their team members. She shows up no less than an hour early every day with the same positive attitude about her job as the day before. She has never been late to work and did not request a day off for over a year and a half. Not only is this impressive, but it demonstrates how much love she has for her job and her team. Knowing this, it comes as no surprise that in the times Jonesborough has needed her the most, she has been there. She rotated 12-16 hour shifts during the large freeze last winter, both in dispatch and also in the field to ensure every customer was heard and their needs were met to an exceptional standard. Lisa is excellent in her field leadership role as the senior meter reader and provides a brilliant example of what a leader should be. In addition, she represents the town of Jonesborough well in customer communication and relations. A lot of customers even know her by name and recognize her on her work route. She’s gained a large amount of public respect and trust. These kinds of interactions with customers are what continually sets her apart and boosts Jonesborough’s respect in the public’s eyes. It is for these reasons that i nominate Lisa Buckingham for February employee of the month.

Thank you, Lisa Buckingham! You are appreciated!

January 2024 Employee of the Month Amber Crumley

I would like to nominate the Town of Jonesborough Director of Events, Amber Crumley, for employee of the month. Amber Crumley continually goes above and beyond her job duties justifying her Employee of the Month Nomination. Amber stepped into her new role over the summer and I can say it has been one of the most seamless transitions.

She had about a month and a half to plan the Jonesborough Days Festival, the Town’s biggest and most involved event of the year. A number of town staff, across varying departments, made comments about how organized the festival was and how smooth everything went. As most of you know, Jonesborough Days is a feel-good community event and not necessarily intended to make money. As far as I am aware, we made more money from this event than ever before. Amber worked hard to get last-minute sponsors and find other creative revenue sources. The Festival ended with a powerful $34,283.75 in profit.

Amber implemented new additions to events such as Halloween Haunts & Happenings, was a big part in the success of JAMSA’s Pumpkin Fest. The popular Raven’s Alley and laser tag, during Halloween Haunts and Happenings, are just two examples of successful additions. As the holidays approached, she went full force into lining everything up for the 4-week Christmas in Olde Jonesborough series. We saw recording-break attendance at the kickoff on Saturday November 25th. We all agree that this rise in events has partially been organic. But nonetheless, with that rise in attendance creates a need for a higher level of organization as well as additional activities. Amber was extremely thoughtful and proactive. Her conversations constantly consisted of asking the question, “what else can we do to make this event better”. Even with Amber tossing in new additions to events, she never lost sight of honoring the Town’s traditions. Her work is superior in the fact she always pushes to the highest level of excellence.

Past excelling at her job, Amber is one of the first staff members to lend a hand when it is needed. I couldn’t possibly count the number of times Amber has jumped in to help another employee or to assist another department. She sees when someone may be a bit overwhelmed and assists without even being asked. Never does she complain, she just gets the task done. The trait about Amber that is to be commended is that when someone does need help she never makes them feel less then, and encourages them until the job is done.

Amber has continued to manage the Town’s ticketing system. This system also serves groups like JRT, JAMSA, Garden Gala, etc. During the fiscal year of 2022-2023 the Town made $420,000 in ticket sales. Amber oversees every aspect of this process from coordination with the group hosting the event to conducting the financial close out report. She inputs each and every ticket that is sold, she trains the hosts at the Visitor Center how to utilize the system, as well as troubleshooting, and answering patrons questions. The amount of time she puts in to ensure everything runs smooth with ticketing is worth commending. Her efforts towards this essential function for the Town keeps many departments running.

Town of Jonesborough is very fortunate to have Amber Crumley as an employee and she is more than deserving to be the Town’s employee of the month.

Thank you, Amber Crumley! You are appreciated!

December 2023 Employee of the Month Jim Nease

What Jim has added to Jonesborough as an employee has been crucial to the success of the water quality department. Having served Jonesborough for over 34 years, his undeniable dedication to the job shines through every single day without fail.
Though he has only been in the water quality department just over a year, he has excelled in every task and challenge he has faced. He stepped up and took charge of the meter installation project, aiding vepo every step of the way with finding, locating, marking, and changing meters while still maintaining his regular line flush points daily. Whether it is his willingness to work overtime most weeks, often in the early morning hours no matter where the job is, or his overall stellar performance and overachievement to help others, all of these qualities make him a worthy candidate.
More recently, Jim has worked assiduously in ensuring the continuity of the exceptional water quality for the town of Jonesborough. He effortlessly met the rigorous water examination standards set by the state of Tennessee, which garnered him well-deserved accolades. He has obtained the most remarkable results for the state water quality analysis that have been observed in the last 7 years, achieving optimal success for the town of Jonesborough.
Thank you, Jim Nease! You are appreciated!