District Clerk Jan Brown was recognized at a retirement reception Monday morning in the 35th District Courtroom of the Brown County Courthouse. Family, friends and coworkers wished Brown well and celebrated the more than 30 years she served the public of Brown County.
Brown, who has served in the position of Brown County District Clerk for 30 years, submitted her letter of resignation earlier in the month which was accepted by District Judge Stephen Ellis. Brown cited health issues as the reason for her resignation, and she did not file for a place on the ballot this year for re-election.
“I’m going to miss everybody. This has been my home for so many years,” said Brown.
Judge Stephen Ellis spoke during the reception of Brown’s work as a public servant.
“She is the most loyal employer of anybody I know. She loves her staff and she always has,” said Ellis. “She loves the people she works with and she has had an ability to hire great people through the years and we have all benefited from it.”
Judge Ellis stated that Brown County didn’t always have a quality district clerk’s office. He explained that it was a tough time when Brown became district clerk after the district auditor Rex Bessent found that the previous clerk, Cathy Shaw, was guilty of official misconduct by misappropriation of child support funds that came through the office.
Brown came to work as the county’s deputy district clerk in 1982 and was appointed in 1984 to the office of District Clerk after Shaw admitted to the crime and was removed from office.
“It was a godsend when Jan came to us during that dark time,” said Judge Ellis. “She brought experience as well as integrity to the office.”
Ellis stated that “this was not Jan’s first rodeo,” that her first venture was serving as a deputy district clerk in Lamesa. She also served in Tulia, Brownfield, and Taylor County. Through these positions, she had held offices in smaller and larger counties and brought that experience to Brown County.
“She served with integrity and that was what we needed in that time, when the person that we all trusted and liked was found to have been abusing that trust,” said Ellis. “She was the one that we (Ellis and then District Judge Gordon Griffin) thought she was the best to lead the resolution to do the work that we needed to be done at that time.”
Judge Griffin then appointed Brown to the office; however, he suffered a stroke and was not able to swear Brown into office. In November 1984, Brown was sworn into the office of district clerk by District Judge James Morgan of Comanche County, according to Ellis.
Judge Ellis explained that during Brown’s swearing in, she made the following statement which she has held true to, to this day, “She said something like this: ‘While I regret deeply the circumstances that have occurred and led to the vacancy in this office, I promise to the citizens of this county that I will lead this office with honesty and with efficiency.’ And she did, so that’s why I say she was a godsend to us. I don’t think that it was luck that brought her our way, because she has been a blessing to us and this community ever since.”
In the beginning, she did everything with a book and a pencil and things are a little different now, said Ellis. He explained that she wasn’t always a fan of technology but has led the office through quite a few changes.
“As sweet as she is, this lady has a backbone, and she’ll tell you what she thinks, but that’s what you need in a public servant,” said Ellis who continued to comment on her integrity, honesty, and efficiency.
Brown was presented with a scrapbook of many fun times had within the office while she served as district clerk and a cake stamped that her duties had been “filed by her deputies.” Pictured above are Brown and her deputy clerks.
Cheryl Jones was appointed to take Brown’s place and was sworn into office Monday by Judge Ellis. Jones won the Republican primary and has no opponent on the November ballot.
Below are more photos of Monday’s reception.
Amanda Bundick pins a corsage presented to Brown.
Judge Ellis says a few words about Brown during the reception. Also pictured with Brown is her grandson John Michael.
Brown County Commissioner Joel Kelton and Brown County Tax Assessor Collector Christine Pentecost look through the scrapbook presented to Brown.
