|
By Lamarie Rutelonis, League staff
Mayor Stewart Nelson Morrilton First Vice President Some may know him simply as Mayor Nelson, others, Stewart, still more as KD5LBE (his call as a ham radio operator), or even that guy who bears a remarkable resemblance to a svelte Santa replete with hat during winter League and National League of Cities meetings. Nelson, 61, was born in Minneapolis, Minn., and was promptly moved when he was 3 years old. A fact that is important, because, according to Nelson, he is "not a Yankee." A series of seemingly unrelated events put Nelson where we've come to know him best, the mayor of Morrilton. He started as an engineering student doing county survey work; then graduated with a bachelor's in business administration; he got a job at a Levi Strauss & Co. factory, which brought him to Morrilton in 1972; and then after attaining a master's in business administration from the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, Nelson landed a job as a plant manager at a Memphis factory that made burlap bags. He did a stint as car dealer and repo man in Morrilton until his factory experience, education and passion for photography got him his next gig as a compounding manager for Maybelline in North Little Rock (the company also needed someone to take pictures). All the while Nelson moonlighted as a stringer for the Petit Jean Country Headlight, where he covered city council meetings. Nelson retired in 1992 and ran for office in 1994. Now he is in his third term as a full-time mayor. "This is the first job that I really look forward to coming to every day." Nelson said.
Mayor Paul Nichols Wynne Vice President, District 1 When Paul Nichols started out running for the democratic primary in Wynne's mayoral race, he was still a teacher. The same job he'd had for 30 years, the same job that brought him to Wynne in the first place. He won the primary, and since there was no one running in the Republican or Independent primaries, he knew he was a shoe-in come Election Day in November. Nichols knew he could handle his job responsibilities as both teacher and mayor for the few weeks of overlap until his planned retirement in 1999, but then it got a little hairy. The current mayor resigned in October, and Nichols, the only sure thing Wynne had, got appointed early-three months early. "The kids called me 'Mr. Nichols' and 'Mayor'," he said, chuckling. That was in 1998, now he is in his second term. Nichols wasn't green to local government; he had spent the previous 12 years as an alderman. Nichols never really had a grand plan, he just knew he wanted to do something different after his 30 1/2 years in education. "I was always interested in government," Nichols said. "The local level is what is happening. It's all Arkansas, but it's the 501 cities that are making it work." Nichols and his wife, Pat, have been married since 1968, and have one daughter, Amy. He is a member of the Masonic Lodge, Rotary club, Arkansas Retired Teachers Association and the Cross County Economic Development Corporation.
Mayor Stanley Morris Menifee Vice President, District 2 Mayor Stanley Morris was born, raised and educated in Menifee. So, naturally, when it came time, in 1995, to find a home for retirement, Morris chose Menifee. After graduating from Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Morris stepped into the professional world teaching Social Studies and French (which he says he simply taught and would currently call his French rudimentary) at Pine Street High School in Conway. After a year, wanderlust took him to California where he worked for the Boy Scouts of America as a professional scouter. He was later drafted and served three and a half years in the U.S. Air Force. His next stop was Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University in Houston. After earning his degree, Morris spent a 24-year stint in corporate law at Sears, Roebuck and Co. that moved him from Dallas to Atlanta to Chicago and then back to Menifee. Today, Morris is "semi-retired" as an attorney and a "part-time" mayor, an office he has held since 1999. "I felt like it would be an honor," Morris said of the decision to run for mayor, "and that some of my professional experience could help move the town forward." Since taking office, Morris is most proud of resurfacing the primary streets and installing a city sewer system. Morris and his wife, Vera, have one son, Christopher. Morris is a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored people and is past president of the National Conference of Black Mayors, Arkansas Chapter, and serves on the board of directors.
Mayor Robert Reynolds Harrison Vice President, District 3 Robert Reynolds and his wife, Sandra, moved to her hometown, Harrison, in 1958 to operate a newly acquired clothier, Walter's. He met Sandra during his second trip to the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, where he earned his bachelor's degree in business administration. Reynolds's first trip was halted in 1951, when as a freshman his naval reserve unit was moved to active duty. After a two-year tour Reynolds returned to Fayetteville with a renewed interest in education and a fatter wallet because of the GI Bill. "When I was in the Navy I saved money," he said. "I sent my money home, and when I came back, I bought a car." What Reynolds bought was a 1955, Bel-Air Chevrolet, two-door with red on the bottom and white on the top, "Razorback red" to be exact. To Sandra's defense, he says the car didn't hurt his chances, but her father (later a partner in Walter's) was a Ford dealer, so she wasn't that impressed. They married in 1957 and have four children and eight grandchildren. In 1993 Reynolds ran and won a seat on the city council; six years later, in 1999, he won the mayor's race. His favorite thing about being mayor is planning. "I always say to make tomorrow better than today," he said. His biggest accomplishment, passing a 1/2-cent sales tax for infrastructure, goes hand-in-hand with his favorite thing. "It makes it easy to plan," he said. "We have the money to work with."
Mayor Horace Shipp Texarkana Vice President, District 4 Since 1855, when Mayor Shipp's great-great-grandfather moved from Georgia, there have been Shipps in Texarkana. "Not as mobile as the name implies," Shipp said. "I'm a fifth generation Texarkanan." It is the only place Shipp has lived. It was also the only place that his great-grandfather, grandfather and father lived. With a long familial connection, it makes sense that Shipp would take a personal interest in Texarkana. In his spare time he is the local historian. Having collected 2,500 pictures of Texarkana, Shipp has created a presentation of Texarkana's history and has lectured about the city hundreds of times to organizations, meetings and festivals. Shipp's interests got him a spot on a national network's collectors' show as a "super collector." After the show, people across the country sent him postcards of Texarkana. Shipp, 60, retired after 35 years from "the only job he ever had" at the Red River Army Depot. Left with a bit of time on his hands, Shipp did two things in 1998: ran for public office and enrolled in college. After a few years he received a bachelor's degree and a degree of satisfaction from his public service as a member of the Texarkana Board of Directors. So much that when the office came open and he felt the time was right for him in 2002, he ran for mayor. Shipp is a graduate of and still active in Leadership Texarkana, where he received the Idalee Hawkins award in 1997 for his public service. Shipp and his wife, Teresa, have two children, Julie Davis and Justin, and are active in the West Side Church of Christ.
Municipal League President Coberly looks to build a 'strong, one-voice' League with a single agenda to approach the 2007 legislature.
Meet the 2005-2006 Officers
Volunteers help smooth the flow of municipal services
The First Round of the "Public Use" Question: Kelo v. City of New London
|
