This year marks 20 years Woodstock has had Rhonda Pezzello as its city clerk, the one everyone at the city goes to for records requests, City Council meeting minutes, election information and historical inquiries. Those who know her say she does it all with an ever-present smile on her face.

“I’m very excited,” Pezzello said about reaching the two-decade mark in her role. “I couldn’t wait to get to that point. It feels good because this job becomes your life.”

Pezzello shared her experiences as city clerk at a recent luncheon that included other city clerks from across Cherokee County: Karen Jordan of Ball Ground, Karen Norred of Holly Springs, Susan Stanton of Canton, Aimee Abernathy of Waleska and Brandy Edwards of Nelson. 

(LEFT:  The city clerks from Cherokee County cities met recently to share ideas and resources and forge a relationship. They include, seated: Aimee Abernathy of Waleska and Karen Jordan of Ball Ground, and standing, from left: Brandy Edwards of Nelson, Susan Stanton of Canton, Karen Norred of Holly Springs and Rhonda Pezzello of Woodstock. Photo by Janet Pelletier | Ledger-News)

As 2012 gets under way, the clerks are planning to start meeting monthly, at a different restaurant in a different city each time.

They said the meetings are a way for them to share ideas and resources and form a common bond. When a reporter caught up with them, they were discussing each city’s state charter, which sets rules for how the cities are operated.

“We did this several years ago, and it was great because you get caught up with what’s going on in each city,” Jordan said of the monthly meetups.

“It creates a bond between us, so I know I can call up Brandy (Edwards) and ask her a question on something I need help with,” Pezzello added.

The clerks come from a range of backgrounds. Stanton is the group’s newest, having just been hired by Canton last month. Jordan is the group’s longest serving, at 26 years. Jordan said she’s seen Ball Ground through a number of milestones, such as the streetscape project downtown to a new city hall.

“I’ll be there as long as they’ll appoint me,” she said.

Jordan has some keepsakes she’s gotten over her quarter of a century as city clerk of Ball Ground — she collects pins from cities across the world that she gets when she goes to international conferences.

Abernathy was named Waleska’s city clerk in November 2010, and she also serves as city manager of the town, which has a population of roughly 650 residents. The next largest Cherokee city, Nelson, has 1,000 residents.

Being a city clerk requires the obvious skills such as being a fast typist and organized, but there are many lesser-known qualities they possess. Patience, a desire to preserve history, a love of people and the city and keeping people who work for the city on the same page are also part of the job, the clerks said.

“You have to be a closet hoarder,” Jordan joked, in reference to the multitudes of documentation clerks are responsible for preserving.

Norred agreed, adding that clerks are always a city’s go-to person for any piece of information that’s requested.

“Especially in smaller cities, like Waleska, we do a little bit of everything – accounting, billing, the minutes – you have to go with the flow, multi-task,” Abernathy said.

In her 26 years, Jordan said technology has drastically changed the job of a clerk, and those employees must be willing to adapt to new procedures and policies.

Stanton, who recently filled the clerk position in Canton after Coty Ervin left in November, said she enjoys the variety of the job, which keeps her on her toes.

“I enjoy the variety of the people also. I’m hoping that it’s all on the upside with our two new councilmembers coming in,” Edwards said, in a reference to some of the tension that was present between Nelson’s mayor and the council. Edwards has served Nelson for the past eight years.

Along the way, the clerks have undoubtedly received some unusual requests from the public.

Just recently, Norred, who has been Holly Springs’ clerk for the past four years, said she had a caller who wanted 12 years of property tax payments from a home. Stanton said she had someone who was interested in moving to Canton ask her if she knew when the trains ran throughout the day, and Pezzello had likely the most peculiar request – someone wanted her to see about picking up a dead animal in the road.

“I told him we don’t do that; that’s the county,” she said.

In reflecting on her 20 years serving Woodstock, Pezzello said a couple of memories stick out. The alcohol referendum and presidential election in 1992 led to a flood of voters at the local polls, overwhelming the city.

“Never again. We changed the way we did things after that,” she said.

Another memory was getting the chance to see former President George H.W. Bush in 1992, when he came to old Woodstock train depot on a campaign stop.

“I was right in front of the bandstand. They shuttled people in from the schools, and I must have fielded phone calls from 8,000 people,” she said.