Brenda King has served the people of Carroll County as a Deputy Circuit Clerk for 27 and a half years. She began working part-time in December 1991 and became full-time in March 1992.
“I started when Charles Ellis and Ralph Self, who were the Chancery Clerks then, were in office. People will remember [Self], he was quite a character,” she said.
King said when she began, she was a little shy and people would come in, sit down, and tell her stories. She said many of those people have since died, but there are still some who come in and talk.
“It’s been a fun place to work,” she said.
King said when she began, there were two computers.
“Now, they’re so many, there isn’t any room to put all of them. There may be six. We still have the first one that we got. We still do a few things on there. But, things have changed for the good. It’s a lot better to do things on the computer,” she said.
A mother of three, two boys and a girl, King said her daughter, who is eight years younger than her son, was in kindergarten when she decided to back to work after being a stay-at-home mom.
“Charles Ellis, who was the Circuit Clerk then -- his son and my daughter were the same age. So, I would pick them up from school, and she would come back to work with me and they lived right across the railroad tracks, so I would take him home.”
She said Ellis’ wife would take the children to school in the morning, which was great.
“It also helps that I’m five minutes from work,” she said.
A native of Vaiden, King said to be able to work and raise her family in the town that she grew up in has been great for her. But now, she can travel and do whatever she wants without having to worry about vacation time or clocking in or out.
She said over 27 and a half years, she’s seen a lot, and she’s watched people grow up and get older.
“Vaiden has a lot of older people who we have really helped. It’s kind of sad that they can’t get out and do it themselves anymore,” King said.
She said now that she’s retiring, she going to enjoy spending time with her family and traveling.
“I’m going to miss the people. The supervisors that I’ve worked with, I got a lot with all of them. I’m thankful for that, and [Circuit Clerk] Durward [Stanton] is a good person to work for, he’s a good boss,” she said.
