By Taylor Sisk
Staff Writer
CARRBORO — Robert Wells was mayor the first day Sarah Williamson came to work. That was July 5, 1972, and Williamson was fresh out of Durham Tech and a day shy of 20. She’ll be retiring as Carrboro town clerk at the end of this month.
Williamson – who grew up in Chapel Hill, out by University Lake, and graduated from Chapel Hill High School – arrived at Carrboro Town Hall to cover for Vergie Arrington, who handled a variety of responsibilities and was going out on maternity leave.
“They were looking for someone to fill in and do some of her work while she was out,†Williamson said recently, seated in her Town Hall office, one of several she’s occupied in the building across her 38 years of service to the town. (“I’ve been all over this building.â€)
“When Vergie came back, I continued with the town clerk work and she went full-time to finance.â€
Ruth West succeeded Wells as mayor in 1975. Robert Drakeford followed in 1977.
“The town was a whole lot smaller then,†Williamson said of her early Town Hall days. “Back in those days, we had water and sewer and bills and taxes and everything in here, so more people came into Town Hall. The police department was here then; the recreation department was downstairs.
“Of course, we didn’t have a computer then. We used mimeograph machines to print the agendas, getting black ink everywhere.
“Carbon paper. We used carbon paper. There weren’t even any copy machines. I had to go downstairs to do that.â€
James Porto was elected mayor in 1983 and Ellie Kinnaird in 1987, and Carrboro was growing apace.
“The town has grown a lot,†Williamson said. “I think for the better. I like change.â€
And she’s certainly kept up.
“She knows this town inside out,†said Town Manager Steve Stewart.â€Sarah is just an incredibly important person to the town of Carrboro, and just a really great person.â€
To board of aldermen member Jacquie Gist, “Sarah embodies what’s really good about Carrboro. She’s dedicated to her family and to her neighbors. She’s very, very professional and comes to her work with a sense of pride.â€
“She’s magnificent,†said Kinnaird. “She was just the most professional person in carrying out her duties. There would be arguments going on all around her, and she would just be going about her business, doing her job in the most competent way.
“She knew how things were supposed to be, so you could always count on her.â€
Mike Nelson took office in 1995 and Mark Chilton in ’05 – seven administrations for Williamson.
“I tried to talk her out of retiring, because I’m going to really miss her steady hand,†Stewart said. “I wish her all the best in her retirement. But she’ll be really missed by all of us at Town Hall.â€
In fact, Williamson isn’t retiring, per se, right away. It’s hard to walk out that door. Starting Aug. 4, she’ll work part-time for the town, probably through November, till someone is hired and trained. She’s not sure what’ll then come next.
“I’m going to miss the people,†she said. “I’ve known some of these people for a long, long time.
“But I’ll tell you what I’m not going to miss: I’m sure not going to miss those board meetings.â€
