Easton Employee Newsletter - March 2023

Cover Photos by Carolinne Kahane, Administrative Specialist

Just because

February is a shorter month, doesn’t mean there was any less news for the Town of Easton.

February turned out to be quite the busy month, with Engineering working on a stream restoration project (more to come on this), Public Works helping to maintain Rails to Trails and working on pavement sealing, Planning and Zoning’s launch of the Eye over Easton interactive map, and last but not least: the Chesapeake Fire and Ice Festival hosted by Easton EDC.

March is shaping up to be just as fun-filled with the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and subsequent Potato Race. See this issue (page 15) about the Potato Races and let me know if you want to join. I hear that Easton Utilities has won every year for several years now which means they should be due for an upset!

I hope you all are enjoying the newsletter content as well as the nice weather we have been so lucky to have. Please let me know if there’s anything you’d like to see featured in an upcoming edition, and keep up the good work!

Sincerely,

Greg Mueller, Communications/PR Specialist

Employee Spotlight

TYRELL PIERCE | PUBLIC WORKS

Meet Tyrell Pierce! Tyrell is the Sanitation Supervisor for the Town of Easton’s Public Works Department.

Tyrell has been working with the Town of Easton for 16 years.

Tyrell is a CDL certified driver, and one of two automated garbage truck drivers for the Town of Easton. He likes keeping Easton clean, meeting friendly people, and especially honking the truck horn for kids who request it.

Tyrell is close with his team and says they “share a mutual respect” and “get along well.” In his free time Tyrell enjoys joking around, going to the gym, and spending time with his kids.

A SONG OF FIRE & ICE

Easton EDC’s Fire & Ice Festival enjoys successful weekend

Easton Economic Development Corporation

Easton EDC’s second annual Chesapeake Fire & Ice Festival was held on February 17 and 18, 2023. The event was a great success, bringing thousands out to downtown Easton to experience food, drink, live music, fire juggling, ice sculptures, ice skating, and more!

Following the event, visitors were asked to participate by voting for their favorite festival attractions and events. The votes were counted and the winners are as follows:

BEST ATTRACTIONS/EVENTS

ICE SKATING RINK, sponsored by Bluepoint Hospitality

CASCADING CARLOS, FIRE JUGGLER, sponsored by Easton EDC

OYSTER TASTING TABLE, sponsored by Talbot Watermen’s Association

FAVORITE SCULPTURES

ICE THRONE, sponsored by The Tidewater Inn

SAILBOAT, sponsored by Shore United Bank

CHESAPEAKE BLUE CRAB, sponsored by Rivers and Roads

In addition to the Festival Favorites, winners of the voting raffle include Monique Brown, Andy Cheezum, Amy Horne, Kristen Solomon, and Kristina Carson. The festival organizers also wish to acknowledge Queenstown Bank, who generously donated over $900 to Talbot Interfaith Shelter through their interactive “Piggy” bank sculpture, which collected donations throughout the weekend.

Chesapeake Fire & Ice was made possible by the generous support of signature sponsor Preston Automotive Group and Bay Security/Safehouse LLC, the Town of Easton, and the Easton EDC.

STRENGTH FROM WITHIN

Starting in January 2023, the Easton Police Department initiated a professional development program to prepare officers and supervisors for their next rank. This program is designed to give officers the opportunity to work in “acting” capacities for the next rank up the chain of command. During this time as an “acting supervisor”, they learn the knowledge and skills of the rank from the current supervisor. Rotation of officers and supervisors through these programs will run through the end of June 2023.

Easton Police Chief Alan Lowrey considers these professional development programs to be critical to prepare the next generation of supervisors and ensure continuity of operations at the Easton Police Department. Chief Lowrey stated, “It is my hope that these programs will give officers an opportunity to learn the assignment ahead of time, and even to decide if it is something they want to pursue. It also gives the department an opportunity to gauge a person’s aptitude for the job before deciding to assign them to it.” Programs are in place for the positions of captain, first sergeant, sergeant, and training sergeant.

In the captain program, Lieutenant George Paugh III was elevated to the rank of acting captain through June

2023. Acting Captain Paugh III is responsible for the duties of the current Deputy Chief, with specific emphasis on formation of the department budget, assisting with the transition of the department regarding administrative technology, and testing the possible creation of an Office of Professional Responsibility; which would focus on independent internal investigations, maintaining appropriate policies, and auditing compliance with policies and laws.

Officers participating in the lieutenant program are Sergeant Tim Larrimore, Sergeant Pat Sally, Sergeant Jason Dyott, Sergeant David Trevino, Sergeant Milton Orellana, Sergeant Gordon Lee. These sergeants interested in the position of lieutenant will serve for approximately a month each as the acting lieutenant over the Patrol Division or Special Operations Division.

Current sergeants interested in appointment as a first sergeant will be rotated to learn the duties of the patrol division first sergeant. Sergeant Tim Larrimore, Sergeant Pat Sally, and Sergeant Jason Dyott are all participants.

Current corporals interested in promotion to sergeant will be rotated to learn the duties of the sergeant position. Corporal Megan Coxon, Corporal Allen Orrison, Corpo-

EPD Chief Alan Lowrey leads professional development program

ral Howard Maxwell, Corporal Brian Doyle, and Corporal Josh Merrick are all participants.

The training sergeant program is assigned to Sergeant Gordon Lee. Sergeant Lee is a state certified general instructor and firearms instructor. Chief Lowrey believes this position to be critical to the department’s ability to properly train and retain staff, especially to assimilate new officers into the department. Lowrey says, “A major area of liability is a failure to train officers to handle situations that are reasonably foreseeable. A recurrent theme during police reform conversations is the need for more and better training for police officers.” Lowrey adds, “ This will only happen

if we are willing to dedicate the resources needed to accomplish this year after year.”

Over Chief Lowrey’s three decades in law enforcement, he has found that too much training for new roles takes place after promotion. The program aims to prepare officers for future promotion by giving them hands-on experience in the role they are working towards. Chief Lowrey notes, “Throughout my law enforcement career, an officer stepping into a new role would often find themselves in a sink or swim situation. Many police departments rotate assignments every 2-3 years, and a year of that would be spent trying to learn the job and figure out what you didn’t know.”

(Left to Right) EPD Chief Alan Lowrey, Sergeant Tim Larrimore, and Lieutenant George Paugh III stand together in this file photo from Facebook. Sergeant Larrimore is participating in the lieutenant program and Lieutenant Paugh is currently operating as an acting captain.

OPPOSITE: The Eye Over Easton Logo. Click on the logo to be taken to the Eye over Easton interactive map.

ABOVE: A screenshot of the Town of Easton’s Eye Over Easton interactive map. The map is zoomed out to show the span of the entire town. Click on the map to see a short tutorial video about how to use the interactive map.

INSET: Nick Johnson, from Planning and Zoning, talks with WMDT Channel 47 ABC reporter Deja Parker about the features of the Eye Over Easton interactive map. Nick was in charge of the project. Great job, Nick!

EYE OVER EASTON

Town of Easton launches new interactive map

Eye Over Easton, Easton’s new interactive map, is now available to the public. Eye Over Easton uses aerial imagery as a backdrop to access and visualize all kinds of information, including planning, zoning, environmental, and parcel data. Eye Over Easton is also where the public can view trash pick-up schedules and election wards.

A user can interact with the map and its associated data by panning and scrolling to view a specific parcel. There is also a search feature to find a specific parcel by its address or its unique tax map or parcel number. Selecting a feature provides users with additional information. For example, selecting a particular parcel provides the user with a link to the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation.

Mayor Willey remarked, “We are delighted to launch this useful tool for our residents. It is our hope that our residents can utilize the Eye Over Easton interactive map to learn more about the geography of the town, obtain a better understanding of the zoning and topographical data, and to see how Town functions such as trash pick-up are carried out on a daily basis.” Mayor Willey added “It is a wonderful resource for our residents and we want to encourage everyone to try it out for themselves.”

Eye Over Easton is accessed by going to the Town of Easton’s website at www.eastonmd.gov and selecting the resources tab at the top of the page. Once there, an instructional video is provided to help the user understand the basics of how to use the Eye Over Easton Interactive map. The Town hopes that the map experience is a valuable tool to help citizens experience Easton through a new lens.

Human Resources

FOLLOWING THE LEADER

Town of Easton supervisors take 8-week long leadership course

Over the past 8 weeks, leaders and supervisors across all departments of the Town of Easton have been taking specialized leadership training classes from Dale Carnegie in order to improve their performance and become stronger leaders in their roles.

The Dale Carnegie leadership course, taught by instructor Diane Beliveau, is an 8-week course that focuses on topics such as communication techniques, delegation, managing stress, and motivating others. The classes feature real life applications, group work, role-playing, and perhaps most importantly, sharing of personal experiences.

Classes run in 3.5 hour sessions, once per week at the Easton Police Department conference room. Due to the high volume of employees, classes were broken up

over 2 days, with some employees attnding on Tuesday mornings and others on Wednesday evenings.

Each week, the class is given homework to apply principles learned during the previous session to a

It will help our leaders better respond to today’s challenges and create a ripple effect throughout the workforce.

— Rick Farr, Chief Human Resources Officer

real life situation. They are to apply what they have learned in this situation with a person in their life (friend, coworker, family member) and report back to the class in a public speaking-lite scenario where they share their experience and how it can benefit the rest of the class.

The idea for the course came from Chief Human Resource Officer Rick Farr. Rick brought the idea in front of the mayor in spring of 2022 as a way to improve leadership across the board. Rick had

previously utlized this course to great success twice before with his previous employers.

Rick is optimistic that the course will have a positive impact on our staff. Rick stated, “Those who attended the training will be more equipped to tackle complex challenges, expand their ingenuity, and excel in building team harmony. “

Rick added, “They will be able to use their new skills to achieve measurable results and securing a place as a valued contributor. In becoming more

ABOVE: Dale Carnegie Instructor Diane Beliveau discusses delegation processes with the Tuesday morning class. INSET: Rick Farr, Chief of Human Resources pays close attention during an engaging session.

adept at influencing, the students will find themselves inspiring others to take initiative and innovate.”

The courses are attended by a motley assortment of roles, ranging from police officers, to sanitation, to engineers, to planning and zoning, IT, administrative, and more. While the roles may differ in backgrounds and in their duties, the class’ focus on interpersonal relationships keeps things relatable regardless of the type of work being performed.

“Human nature is consistent,” says class instructor Diane Beliveau, “it doesn’t metter what you’re doing, if you understand how to connect to someone on a personal level it is going to work.”

Diane has been teaching for Dale Carnegie for 21 years. She adds,“Clearly, the Easton Mayor and Town

Hall have a vested interest in providing staff leadership with tools, techniques, and interpersonal skills that will help them be more effective and efficient in their current roles while having a noticeable, positive impact on the Easton Community.

For more information on Dale Carnegie, please visit: https:// www.dalecarnegie.com/en, or click the above image.

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WITH DALE CARNEGIE?

Since 2002 as a Business Development Consultant and a Certified Dale Carnegie Trainer in all Core and Virtual Programs and courses.

WHAT MAKES THE DALE CARNEGIE LEADERSHIP CLASS SO IMPORTANT?

The Dale Carnegie Leadership training is so important because it provides leaders, managers and supervisors tools and techniques to enhance their own performance as well as the performance of their staff to drive results that are critical to the mission and vision of the organization. Ultimately, people are the power behind processes.

Successful organizations are driven by ‘engaged’ and ‘competent’ employees. Greater engagement and competency are achieved by leaders successfully changing their own attitudes and behaviors first and then inspiring and coaching those who work for them

to higher levels of engagement, competency and performance. When engaged employees are the heartbeat of an organization, they will drive productivity, innovation, and team performance.

WHAT IS SOMETHING THAT DIFFERENTIATED THE TOWN OF EASTON CLASSES FROM CLASSES YOU HAVE TAUGHT IN THE PAST?

The Town of Easton is unique in the respect that there are people from multiple organizations including the Easton Police, Construction, Maintenance, Sanitation, Public Works, Public Relations, Planning & Zoning, Building & Facilities, Parks & Recs, Finance, Human Resources, IT, Engineering and the Town Clerk & Town Manager.

The participants in the training differentiate it from other classes. Every Dale Carnegie class forms its own personality based on the participants and their Dale Carnegie Trainer. This is what makes every class different, challenging and engaging.

People don’t care what you think; they care what they think …‘Be a Good Listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.’ (Dale Carnegie) When you do this, your relationships will change for the better both on and off the job.

Human Resources

Birthdays

FEBRUARY

David Wroten

Vincent Barnett

Duston Otto

George Larrimore

Carolinne Kahane

Nicholas Lange

Joshua Maxwell

Joseph Schinault

Cody Bland

Drequan Stevens

Tyquan Beckett

MARCH

Mike Dickerson

Justin Jones

Brian Carroll

Andy Coleman

Jeremy Wojcio

Frank Creegan

Miguel Salinas

Renee Pierce

Justin Conaway

Lynn Thomas

Mark Hrobar

Tyrell Pierce

Anthony Reyes

Joe Mayer

Nancy Adams

Anniversaries

FEBRUARY

Joanne Drummer

Kevin Hackett

Milton Orellana

Daniel Farmer

Richard VanEmburgh

Kody Cario

Brandon Watkins

Alan Lowrey

MARCH

Tyrone Perry 1 year

Troy Handy 25 years

Nick Johnson 1 year

Mary Moyer 24 years

- Diane Beliveau

Diane Beliveau

WE HAVE A WINNER!

Congratulations to Scott Messick for winning the Employee Newsletter

Cover Photo Contest! Scott won a $25 gift card to Bluepoint Hospitality for his submission that landed on the February cover of the Town of Easton Employee Newsletter. After submitting the first two covers of the year, Scott is no longer eligible to win additional gift cards. Thank you for your photos, and well done Scott!

You could be the next winner by submitting your potential cover photos to gmueller@eastonmd.gov. If your submission is chosen, you too will win a $25 gift card!

ARE YOU FAST?

CAN YOU BALANCE A POTATO ON A SPOON?

ARE YOU A NATURAL BORN WINNER?

ARE YOU WORKING FOR THE TOWN OF EASTON?

If you answered “I Yam” to any of these questions, be a spud and consider joining the Town of Easton’s Potato Race Team (PRT). This St. Patricks Day (Friday, 3/17/23), the PRT will be competing against Easton Utilities and other local businesses in a relay race that requires running while balancing a potato on a spoon.

Be more than a spec-tater! If you are interested in competing, please reach out to Greg Mueller at gmueller@eastonmd. gov and we can build our team (or teams if there is enough interest) to dethrone Easton Utilities as the reigning champion.

WHAT: JOIN THE POTATO RELAY RACE TEAM

WHERE: IN DOWNTOWN EASTON

WHEN: FRIDAY, MARCH 17

WHY: TO DETHRONE EASTON UTILITIES, WIN THE POTATO RACE TROPHY, AND BASK IN THE GLORY OF CHIPTORY

HOW: CONTACT GREG MUELLER AT GMUELLER@EASTONMD .GOV

Click the Potato for a link to the full details!

LUCKY MINT BROWNIE PERFECTION

How lucky you must be to come across this recipe just in time for St. Patrick’s Day. This one is a twisted combination of mint and sweet chocolate that’s sure to have almost anyone’s taste buds screaming “yum.” This dessert might just be the pot of gold at the end of your rainbow this year.

These Mint Brownies have three delicious layers. First, a supreme brownie on bottom. Then a fluffy, green mint layer that’s full of flavor and color. Last, but definitely not least, a chocolate layer on top

made with chocolate chips, butter and a little whipping cream.

All of these layers create a smooth, sweet, minty, bite-sized dessert perfect for any occasion but especially St. Patrick’s Day. The green mint color really pops off the plate, giving it some extra flare and an appetizing glow.

Find more seasonal dessert recipes at Culinary.net .

CLICK HERE FOR THE VIDEO!

Mint Brownies

Servings: 9-12

Nonstick cooking spray

1 box supreme brownie mix with chocolate syrup pouch

3 tablespoons water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

FILLING:

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup whipping cream

5 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

5 drops green food color

TOPPING:

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 bag (12 ounces) chocolate chips

1/2 cup butter

Heat oven to 350 F. Spray 8-by-8-inch pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In large bowl, mix brownie mix, water, oil and egg until combined. Pour into prepared baking pan. Bake 35 minutes. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

To make filling: In large bowl, beat powdered sugar, butter, whipping cream, cream cheese, peppermint extract and food coloring. Spread over cooled brownies. Refrigerate 1 hour, or until set.

To make topping: In saucepan, melt whipping cream, chocolate chips and butter until smooth. Cool until lukewarm, about 10 minutes. Pour over filling; spread to cover. Refrigerate 2 hours, or until set.

Before serving, let brownies set 10 minutes at room temperature. Tips: Cut brownies with wet knife for cleaner cuts. Store covered in refrigerator.