Town Clerk-Elect Greer Prepares to Take Office

Town Clerk-Elect Jackie Greer is ready to serve her community.

After winning the general election by 950 votes, she is now making the most of December by learning about the office’s workings.

“I want to be responsive to my staff’s needs,” she said, adding that she plans to meet with the deputy town clerk and senior clerk next week. “I want to improve how the office is run now, to continue what Joe Acocella did to bring the office up to date.”

The town has been without an official clerk since August, following Acocella’s unexpected passing. Since then senior clerk Angela Tamucci has filled in at the position. Greer said she is “excited to get things moving again.”

Some of her goals for the role include creating a resident feedback system and joining organizations to benefit the office, such as the American Grant Writers’ Association.

“The office is currently weak in researching grants,” she said, but there are “many available. There are a lot of opportunities worth exploring.”

But the first step for Greer is to leave her current position into the corporate world.

“My co-workers are very happy for me,” she said. “I will be missed and I will miss [my job] very much.”

Greer has worked in administrative support positions for 28 years. Working for companies like Coca-Cola, she believes that it is that experience and maturity that helped her secure the town’s vote.

“I have experience, maturity and life experiences over my opponent,” she said. “I am also a third generation lifelong resident. [But] it is a relief to be over the election process, and exciting to work on the next phase.”

She has begun to meet with other town clerks in the area. It is her hope that by doing so she will have a better understanding of how to accomplish a smooth transition. So far, she has found that each town's office is different, and has different needs.

“They concentrate on certain things that I would need to concentrate more on,” she said. “Each municipality’s duties change depending on what is required for the community.”

The planned resident feedback system will allow members of the public to write to the clerk’s office in a constructive manner.

“It is critical in serving residents to know what is most important to them. Developing a feedback system will improve upon the level of service in the office,” she said, adding that although it will be an online system, she still needs to assess “the best way to reach all residents.”

Greer is thankful to the residents for electing her and for having trust “that I can do an excellent job.” She takes office on January 2.