With 2022 coming to a close, Centralia and Chehalis city governments are seeing the departures of longtime staff members.
At the council meetings for both cities at the beginning of the week — Chehalis on Monday and Centralia on Tuesday — several employees were honored for their years of service.
At the Chehalis City Council’s regular meeting, Civil Service Commissioner Ed Stanton and City Attorney Erin Hillier were honored and given awards by Mayor Tony Ketchum.
“We have a couple presentations tonight, for us it's sad presentations but for the individuals I’m sure it’s happy circumstances,” Ketchum said.
Stanton served for 40 years on the Civil Service Commission, where he assisted the police and fire departments with certifying candidate eligibility lists as well as reviewing and updating civil service regulations.
“During my 40 years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with many fire chiefs and police chiefs, some good and some bad. Some spent a lot of time trying to get around civil service rules and regulations and it taught me that God made everybody different. I don’t know why they couldn’t be perfect and humble like me,” Stanton said.
He said the current Chehalis fire and police chiefs were the best he has worked with and he feels he is leaving with both departments in good hands. Former mayor and longtime law enforcement officer Dennis Dawes will replace Stanton on the Civil Service Commission and will serve alongside fellow commissioners Sheila Johnson Teeter and Joe Mano.
Erin Hillier has been the Chehalis city attorney since 2019 but worked with her law firm and the city for years before that. She thanked the council for the opportunity to serve the city.
“It’s been such an honor to serve the City of Chehalis since when I first joined the firm in 2010. My partners are here tonight, Brian Kelly and Mark Scheibmeir, and they look forward to continuing to help the city in their good counsel,” Hillier said.
On Tuesday at the Centralia City Council regular meeting, City Attorney Shannon Murphy-Olson and City Clerk Deena Bilodeau were honored for their service to the city as they both prepare to move on.
During a speech about them, Mayor Kelly Smith Johnston said Murphy-Olson has been an employee of the city for 28 years and Bilodeau served the city for 32 years.
“In my field we talk about ‘deep smarts’ and what happens when folks are in their roles and in an organization for a long period of time. Their information becomes instinctual and incredibly effective and I think all of us on council will agree that we have been incredibly well served by the two of you in your tenure here and your dedication and your commitment to the public,” Smith Johnston said.
After receiving recognition, Murphy-Olson shared her thoughts.
“This isn’t where I thought law school would take me. I thought I’d be in higher education. But basically it’s ended up being the same job where you’re an educator more than you are a litigator. It’s been my pleasure to serve here for 28 years. I have no idea how it went so fast. We were young when we came here,” Murphy-Olson said.
Bilodeau then spoke and explained the reasoning behind her departure.
“I’ve been through several city managers and countless city councils and I’ve enjoyed my job. I was a baby when I started here and if it weren't for relocation and new adventures I probably would’ve been here a little bit longer, but I will be headed out to Santa Barbara, California,” Bilodeau said.
