Be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the LORD, ‘and work. For I am with you,’ declares the LORD Almighty. – Haggai 2:4b
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March 17, 2023 • Vol. 4, Issue 11
INSIDE:
City Administrator ‘ecstatic’ about professionalism of senior staff
• Churches.................................42 • Classifieds...............................40 • Education Briefs...................26 • Entertainment......................... 5 • News Briefs............................29 • Opinion................................... 6 • Puzzles.....................................38 • Weather.................................. 37
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Options volunteer Kathy Buckley in her “happy place.” INSET: The plaque honoring Kathy. (Special to Branson Globe)
Options Clinic dedicates resource room in honor of Kathy Buckley
NO TIMESHARES, NO GIMMICKS, NO FEES!
Submitted to Branson Globe Options Pregnancy Clinic staff and volunteers offer their heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of long-time Options volunteer Kathy Buckley of Hollister, who passed away February
22. The clinic’s Baby Resource Room was recently dedicated in her memory. Along with her husband, Jerry, Kathy volunteered weekly for over a decade since moving to
SEE KATHY BUCKLEY, PAGE 37
By GARY J. GROMAN, Independent Journalist Since becoming Branson City Administrator in October 2022, Cathy Stepp has dealt with several personnel challenges. One of those was filling vacancies at the director and senior staff levels. With the announcement of the new human resource director scheduled for March 17, 2023, there are no vacancies left to fill for the positions under her control. During a recent interview, Stepp answered questions about some of these personnel and staffing challenges. The results of the interview, in Q & A format, with Gary Groman (GG) asking the questions and Cathy Stepp (CS) responding, are: GG: How do you respond to the mayoral candidates stating that, if elected, they will “fill job vacancies to create stability to gain grant funding?” CS: I am unaware of any problems with Branson not getting grants because of job vacancies. Regarding job vacancies, our position is about the same as any other employer. We are not immune from changeover. People retire or
resign and go on to other things for various reasons. As is the standard operating procedure in any organization, when vacancies arise, we fill them as soon as possible with the best qualified people we can find. That will not change regardless of who the mayor is. GG: Does the mayor actually hire or fire anyone? CS: No. Except for the City Administrator, City Attorney, and City Clerk, the mayor has no practical involvement with hiring and SEE CITY ADMINISTRATOR, PAGE 33
Cathy Stepp (FILE)