Montreat Minute for December 6, 2020
COVID-19 Update
In case you missed last week’s special Montreat Minute focusing on the Coronavirus, we are including a link to it here. Please CLICK HERE and stay tuned for further updates.
Check Out the Town YouTube Channel
As part of the new Town Hall features, a high quality video/audio streaming system was installed in the Community Room to live stream meetings and other functions. In addition to live streaming, meetings are being recorded and posted on the Town’s YouTube channel. CLICK HERE to access the channel, then bookmark it so you can return to it quickly. Or, go to the website (www.townofmontreat.org), scroll to the bottom and click on the YouTube logo. Town Council, P&Z Commission, Board of Adjustment and other Town committee meetings are being posted to the channel. To view last week’s Planning & Zoning Commission meeting, CLICK HERE.
Updates and Reminders
- Many outside service companies are helping residents clean up their yards of brush and leaves. If you are using such a service, please remind them they are responsible for removal of all leaves, brush and trees/limbs. The Town will not collect brush or leaves deposited by private contractors, landscapers, or tree removal services.
- Several residents alerted us and the Conference Center about increasing numbers of dog waste bags being left on Montreat’s trails. We all need to be diligent about keeping our Town and trails clean of all trash and waste. Remind others of this important fact.
- Have you noticed the beautiful Christmas wreath hanging on the front of the new Town Hall? The Town Hall garden team, “Gardeners of Weedin’” decorated the wreath and Public Works hung it. If you would like to donate toward the wreath and the work of the garden team, please send a donation to the Town of Montreat, PO Box 423, Montreat, NC, 28757 and note it is for Town Hall landscape.
Town Council Meeting Next Thursday, December 10, 2020
The Montreat Town Council will meet Thursday, December 10, 2020 at 7:00pm. In the interest of being extremely cautious about expanding Coronavirus infections, the meeting will be virtual for all participants, Town Council included. It will be live streamed via Zoom. For streaming instructions, CLICK HERE. A video recording of the meeting will be available afterward. The agenda is available by CLICKING HERE.
Because of the virtual nature of the meeting, there will be no Public Forum preceding the Council meeting. Instead, please submit your questions or comments by noon on Thursday, December 10, by sending them to [email protected] and indicate in the subject line “Public Comment”. Questions may be asked as per usual Public Forums.
A highlight of the meeting will be the swearing in of Mayor Helms and Commissioners Fouche and Alexander after their election last month.
Meet Debbie Taylor, Town Administration
Each month we feature a Montreat Town staff member or Town Council member. This month we are featuring staff member Debbie Taylor.
It’s likely that you have not met Debbie Taylor- partly because the Town offices are closed and she works only two days per week. But, her job is an important one. Debbie is responsible for water bills and payments. She processes monthly billing information, makes payment deposits, creates billing reports and does the overall bookkeeping for the Water Department. But she also does one more very important task: she checks and rechecks the 674 water bills that are sent out each month. As a result of her work, the incidence of incorrect water bills has decreased significantly. We are all grateful for her attention to detail.
Debbie was born in Burnsville, but spent her entire life in the Swannanoa area. After graduating from Owen High School, Debbie began working for Buncombe County Schools. Actually, she worked for the school system while still in high school driving a school bus. After graduation, she continued driving the school bus and worked as a teacher assistant at Black Mountain Primary School. Apparently it was a good fit, as she worked at the school for 17 years. As her own two children (son and daughter) moved to middle and high school, Debbie followed them by transferring to Owen High School. In fact, she was at the same school as her children their entire time in K-12 except for middle school. At Owen High, Debbie served as Front Office Receptionist, Payroll Clerk and Assistant Principal. Before retiring in 2018, she was the Data Manager at Owen, responsible for all information about the students, including grades, attendance, and other data collected regarding each student. One of her favorite duties was coaching cheerleading.
What did she like best in her 34½ years with the school system? “I loved being with my kids and all the other students. I also worked with special needs children. They really touched me.”
On the personal side, Debbie has been married since 1982. Her son in Brevard and daughter in Huntersville have blessed her with two grandchildren (ages 4 and 2) with another due in March. In her spare time, Debbie likes to crochet. She and her husband enjoy the outdoors, whether it’s walking around the Biltmore estate or going up to Lake James to spend time in their camper and cruise the lake in their boat.
We’re grateful Debbie is on staff and, when COVID restrictions are lifted, we hope you have the opportunity to meet her.
Questions?
Do you have Town-related questions you would like answered? If so, please send them to Angela Murphy at [email protected] and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Stay well, have a safe weekend.