NEWSLETTER

Arkansas District & City Court Clerks Association

May 13, 2004

Dear District and City Clerks,

It is with mixed emotions I sit to pen my final greeting to you as President of the Arkansas District and City Court Clerks Association. First, I want to welcome each of you to Springdale for our annual conference. I think we have an excellent program scheduled for you over the next three days. The Certification Committee has worked hard to present some of the same old subjects in a new, refreshing way. You will also find some exciting new topics on the agenda. There will be something for everyone and I promise you will enjoy this conference.

I want to thank each of you for your continued support over the past two years. I have had many changes in my life, professionally and personally. It has not always been easy to carry out my duties as President of the Association. There were times when I didn’t think I could carry another thing on my shoulders. Somehow, somewhere I found the strength to continue. I believe much of that strength came from each of you and of course God. I may not have successfully completed the agenda I chose for myself but I did the best I possibly could. Continue to work together, as a team and the goals of this association will be realized.

I know that everyone is not satisfied with change from the Local Judge’s and Clerks Retirement to APERS, just remember, it is still a work in progress. The Board of Trustees for Arkansas District Judges Retirement System (ADJRS) has just now been appointed and meetings have begun to set procedures. There are many unanswered questions. I can only repeat, be patient for a while longer and don’t make a rash decision concerning your future. Michele Williams, Deputy Director for APERS, will be speaking to the Clerks after the business meeting today. She won’t have the answers to all your questions, but may be able to relieve your worries.

I want to thank all the officers and committee members for this past year. Ya’ll have done a great job!

See you next time.

Sincerely, Judy West, President ARDCCCA

Clerk’s Spotlight

Bertie Yates, Bertie is Deputy Court Clerk from Bald Knob in the County of White. Before becoming Court Clerk, she was office manager for Chamber of Commerce, Billing Clerk and bald Knob Ambulance EMT as well as makes emergency runs & treat patients. She is married to Jerry and they have 7 children, John, Lynette, Gentry Ronnie, Whit, Jimmy, and Laura. Bertie is involved with church activities as well as volunteer for DAV & DAV Auxiliary. She also goes to the VA hospitals once a month & volunteers. She sews and does upholstery. In her spare time she cuts hair. (WHEN IS THERE ANY SPARE TIME FOR YOU TO DO ANYTHING ELSE). We salute you. Her birthday is October 3^rd.

Leta Carroll, Leta is Deputy Clerk for Saline County District Court, Benton Division. She is married to Ken and they have 3 children, Scott, Larry, & Nancie. Leta likes to read, sew, and shop with the "gg’s". They have 4 "gorgeous" grandgirls, Crystal Lynn, K-Rae, Faith Marie and Paige. Faith Marie began 1^st grade this year at Jessieville, AR, Crystal Lynn graduates from high school in May at Collierville, TN., and begins nursing school in the fall at TN State. K-Rae is playing basketball on a semi-pro Team and Paige goes to pre-school, sings in the church choir and loves being the last grandbaby! Leta’s birthday is August 8^th.

Treva Lambert, Treva is Deputy Clerk for Montgomery County District Court, married to Mervin and they have 2 children, Scott, & Morgan. Last Certification meeting was her first and she says she enjoyed it very much. She met a lot of people for the first time from different Counties and enjoyed the speakers at the meeting tremendously. She says they were very informative. Welcome Treva!

Cherry Wolf, She is Deputy Clerk for District Court of Saline, married to Larry for 35 years. Their daughter Rebecca will graduate this May from Dallas Baptist University "finally" and they plan to take her on a trip to Hawaii. Cherry’s birthday is May 21^st.

Tami Bays – Jordan, Tami is Chief Clerk for Ashley County District Court and she is married to Tommy. They are newlyweds since December 5^th. She has 4 children, Cody, Kaci, Amber & Jessica. Tami likes horseback riding and working in her yard. They recently bought 2 more horses and are awaiting the birth of 2 new babies any day now. Her birthday is February 14^th.

Jean Billings, Jean is Chief Clerk for District Court of Scot County. She is married to Curtis and they have 2 children, James Allen and Lisa Daun. They recently added a new addition to their family, a beautiful baby boy named Jesse Augustus. Gus was born on October 8^th, 2003, weighing in at 7 pounds 11 oz., and was 20 ½ inches long. He is the son of their son James Allen and his wife Rebecca. Gus is their pride and joy. Congratulations!

LaDonna Blaylock, LaDonna is going on 7 years as Deputy Clerk for Sherwood District Court and she states she couldn’t have a better job. She loves the people, the excitement and never has a dull day. She is married to Jay who is a probation officer with Protrac and they always have good stories to tell. Her 1^st niece was born on January 20, 2004 and she can’t wait to keep her overnight. Her birthday is November 10^th.

Vivian B. McNeil, Vivian has been Deputy Clerk for Sherwood in Pulaski County since November 2003. She is married to Jeryl and they have 2 children, Jeryl Jr. and Eric. On the 25^th of February she will be celebrating her 41^st birthday and 4 year anniversary. We hope you had a Happy Birthday and Happy Anniversary.

Lucille Bierbaum, Lucille is Chief Clerk for Hamburg District Court in Ashley County. She started in 1990 as Deputy Clerk and in 2003 went to Chief Clerk. She has been married to Henry for 40 years and they have 2 children, Anita and Bryan. She began year 2003 with her Chief Clerk position having surgery, then complications following and was never able to come back to work. She was named Chief Clerk after her official retirement in August 2003. Lucille started 2004 with her son getting married after a whirlwind romance and she is expecting her first grand child in June. Lucille and Henry are planning a trip out West this fall. Have Fun! Her birthday is August 11^th.

Debra Barnes, Debra is Deputy Clerk for Hamburg District Court in Ashley County and is a member of the City Council. She has 3 children, Monica, Quincy and Taylor. She states her 17-year-old daughter Taylor is a straight A student and wants to become a pharmacist. Monica her oldest daughter is a Social Worker for DHS in Little Rock and her son Quincy works for ECOLAB in Dallas, TX. Her birthday is October 16^th.

Theresa Wilson, Theresa is from Montgomery County and a lot of fun to hang with. She says she enjoyed the questions and answers on Disorder in American Courts. Her birthday is October 2^nd.

Linda Black, Linda is Chief Clerk for Bald Knob in White County. She is married to Wayne and they have 2 children, Kevin and Karon. Before becoming a Court Clerk she was a 911 police dispatcher, a job she did for 12 years. She is also a civil process server (part time), loves to crochet, and is on a bowling league. Wayne, (her husband) is the Chief Deputy Sheriff of White County. In December she and her husband along with her 2 brothers and their wives went on a cruise and are planning another one in November 2004. Her birthday is July 21^st.

A Cute Quiz

Below are 4 questions. Answer them instantly with no paper or pencil.

Q. You are participating in a race. You overtake the second person. What position are you in?

A. If you answered that first place, then you are wrong, because if you overtake the second person and you take his place you are in second.

Q. If you overtake the last person, then what position are you in?

A. If you answered second place to last then you are wrong, because how can overtake the LAST person?

Q. This one is tricky, and it must be done in your head only. Do not use paper or pencil to calculate it.

Take 1000 and add 40 to it

Now add another 1000

Now add 30

Add another 1000

Now add 20

Add another 1000

Now add 10

What is the total?

A. If you got 5000, then you are wrong, it is 4100.

Q. Mary’s father has five daughters, Nana, Nene, Nini, Nono. What is the name of the fifth daughter?

A. Mary read the question again.

Ponder This:

If you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.

The human heart creates enough pressure when it pumps out to the body to squirt blood 30 feet.

The flea can jump 350 times its body length. It’s like a human jumping the length of a football field.

The catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.

Butterflies taste with their feet.

The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.

(Hmmmmm….)

Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.

A starfish has no brain

An ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain.

Polar bears are left-handed.

The best way to forget all your troubles is to wear tight shoes.

Amazing! You hang something in your closet for a while and it shrinks two sizes!

I Would Like to Hear From You!

If you have something to say, or some witty or clever saying, let me put it in writing for you. You can fax it to (501) 354-0799, call me at (501) 354-9763, E-mail it to princesstish_51@yahoo.com, or mail it to P. O. Box 38, Menifee, Arkansas 72107. Please fill out the A.M.C.C.C.A. Information Sheet & mail it to me or give it to me at the meeting. Thank you for your assistance.

Parting Shots

The power of words---it is sometimes hard to understand that an encouraging word can go such a long way… Special is the individual who will take the time to encourage another.

My wish for all of you. May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, and enough hope to make you happy.

Betty Campregher, Court Clerk, Menifee, Newsletter Editor