Easton Employee Newsletter - October 2023

Cover Photo by Savannah Morrow, Administrative Specialist

HAPPY FALL!

I’m sure some of us have been looking forward to cooler temperatures, cozy sweaters and the smell of pumpkin spice. Instead, we’ve had gray days, rain and even a tropical storm. Thankfully, it appears that blue skies are in our future and the sun will finally make an appearance.

September was a busy month for the Town. On September 18th we swore in our new Council President Frank Gunsallus. President Gunsallus and I have a commitment to collaboration and I know we can work together to achieve our community’s goals. I want to thank Mr. Abbatiello for stepping in as Interim Council President, and the rest of the council for their hard work and dedication.

Exciting times are upon us as we see the work of not one, not two, but too many to count Bond projects happening around town. These projects span across every corner of our town, giving residents new opportunities to get outside and enjoy our beautiful community. THANK YOU to all the departments who are working hard to bring these projects across the finish line. It’s truly a team effort.

This month’s newsletter is full of all the exciting things and hard work our dedicated team has been doing. Thank you for all that you do to make Easton a wonderful place to live.

Warmest regards,

Megan

Employee Spotlight

TRACY LEDNUM | ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE SPECIALIST

Meet Tracy Lednum! Tracy Works with the Town of Easton as an Accounts Receivable Specialist . She works to process bills, taxes, and invoices, along with helping with administrative duties in the front office at Town Hall!

Tracy Grew up in Somerset County, but moved to Easton when she was 12, where she has raised a family consisting of two children and four grandchildren.

In her free time Tracy loves to travel, with her eyes set on exploring the western United States in the future. She says her favorite spot she has visited is Barbados. Tracy is a big fan of the Orioles and the Ravens, and even has tickets to see the O’s in the playoffs!

AT FULL STRENGTH

Council back to five members after Gunsallus sworn in as Town Council President

Newly elected Easton Town Council President Frank Gunsallus was sworn into office at the Town Council meeting held on Monday, September 18, 2023. Gunsallus won the special election held on September 12, after Mayor Megan Cook vacated the seat of Council President following her win in the mayoral election held in May.

After the initial approval of minutes, Mayor Cook

took to the podium and swore in Gunsallus who was joined by his wife Iryna and his baby daughter Maria. Following his oath, Gunsallus was congratulated by the crowd with a standing ovation.

He was then welcomed by the Mayor and Council, and received hugs from close family members in attendance. Once Gunsallus took his seat at the head of the council he addressed the audience, “I am

humbled and honored by the trust you have placed in me. Our journey ahead is filled with challenges, but together we will surmount them and achieve great things for our town.”

Davis said, “Congratulations, and I’m looking forward to working with you and our colleagues. We do have a lot of work in the Town of Easton where all of us have to be on one accord to move forward.”

Each council member also praised Ward 2 Council Member Don Abbatiello for his service as Acting Council President during the vacancy left since the mayoral election in May.

Ward 3 Council Member David Montgomery noted, “I’d like to start by thanking Mr. Abbatiello for his service. I think you have been a model of a Council President as well as a colleague, and I really appreciate what I’ve learned from you in the 110 or 120 days that I’ve been here.”

Gunsallus continued, “With your continued support and unity, we will make Easton a beacon of hope and prosperity. Thank you, and here’s to our bright future ahead.”

In their closing remarks, each of the council members acknowledged and welcomed Gunsallus to his seat. Ward 4 Council Member Reverend Elmer

At 35 years old, Gunsallus is the youngest person elected to the seat of Easton Town Council President. Gunsallus is active in the community serving with the Talbot County Chamber of Commerce as well as the Easton Rotary Club. He is a graduate of Easton High School and later studied International Relations at Salisbury University. With the birth of his daughter Maria, Gunsallus’ family have now seen four generations as Easton residents.

OPPOSITE PAGE: Mayor Megan Cook (right) swears in Frank Gunsallus (center) as Easton Town Council President. Gunsallus’ wife, Iryna (right), holds a Bible for him alongside their daughter Maria. LEFT: Mayor Megan Cook watches as newly elected Town Council President Frank Gunsallus signs the oath of office book.

RIGHT: From left to right: Ward 2 Council Member Don Abbatiello, Council President Frank Gunsallus, Ward 3 Council Member David Montgomery, and Ward 4 Council Member Reverend Elmer Davis are seated together for the first time.

“ We do have a lot of work in the Town of Easton where all of us have to be on one accord to move forward.

WARD 4 COUNCIL MEMBER REV. ELMER DAVIS

OPPORTUNITY TO SHINE

Town of Easton hosts Council of State Community Development Agencies Tour

On Monday, September 11, 2023, the Town of Easton hosted a Council of State Community Development Agencies (COSCDA) tour in conjunction with the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD).

COSCDA is a national organization that specializes in collaborating with states to help promote and enhance community development programs

that improve communities. Each year COSCDA visits a different state, and the state selects one town to tour and highlight relevant projects in their region. This year Easton was selected as the town to represent Maryland for this tour.

Mayor Megan Cook said, “It is really an honor to be chosen to represent the state of Maryland for this, especially as a relatively small town.

The fact that we are able to promote so many important and interesting projects on a national stage is remarkable. We’re very proud to show off so much positivity and progress around our community.”

The tour brought in over 150 visitors from around the country to visit various grant-funded programs taking place in and around Easton.

They were brought in on four large charter buses that each had a detailed schedule covering highlighted projects. These project locations they visited were Housing on the Hill/Buffalo Soldier House, the Talbot Senior Center, Channel Marker Inc., Critchlow Adkins Children’s Center, SHORE UP!/Early Head Start, St. Vincent de Paul, and Galloway Meadows Apartments.

The Town staffed each bus with a dedicated

“ It is really an honor... We’re very proud to show off so much positivity and progress around our community .

Mayor Megan Cook

tour guide who narrated through relevant information prior to each stop. Town Planner Lynn Thomas, Easton EDC Executive Director Holly DeKarske, Easton EDC Director of Strategic Initiatives Deena Kilmon, and Town Purchasing and Grant Clerk Dawn Hutchison each took on the role of Tour Guide for their respective buses. In addition to her role as tour guide, Hutchison was also instrumental in planning and executing the tour schedule.

Once guided to each location, guests were met by staff professionals with expertise in their project site to give a localized tour of the premises. Guests were given a unique look into each location and were able to ask specific questions related to the funding and follow through of these projects.

Town Manager Don Richardson, who helped guide the Housing on the Hill portion of the tour

said, “It was a really impressive showing. Each group that came through were engaged and asked intelligent questions about the funding and construction processes involved. You could tell that they were interested in the Town, and genuinely enjoyed the experience.”

After touring the locations, the buses all ended their routes at the Tidewater Inn where the guests were greeted with drinks and hors d’oeuvres. After finishing up with the food and drinks, they moved inside to hold their annual awards ceremony.

Mayor Megan Cook added, “I think it’s really important for people to see the positive effects these decisions have on our communities — to be able to see how far grants and funding go towards helping people in their everyday lives. It all sounds nice on paper, but to be able to experience that kind of change in person — I think that’s really special.”

FIRST RESPONSE

EPD, Public Works quickly arrive to a downed tree blocking Aurora Street

After a tractor trailer collided with a tree along the side of Aurora Street, the tree split sending a large branch across the entire street and blocking traffic along the section between Goldsborough and North Streets.

Within a minute or two of the collapse, EPD was on the scene, and just minutes

later Mike Dickerson followed behind, chainsaw in hand. With most of the Tree and Maintenance crews deployed at North Easton Park, they quickly stopped their projects and rushed out with trucks and equipment to take care of the problem.

Unfortunately, with a bad tropical storm on

Public Works/EPD

the horizon for the weekend, the tree had to be removed. The Public Works team worked diligently throughout the afternoon safely disposing of the tree by carefully removing branches around nearby homes and then finally the trunk.

Public Works Superintendent Mike Dickerson was impressed by his team, saying “Given that 80-90% of our crews were out in the field when it happened I think they did pretty good to get out here and clear everything up how they did.”

Dickerson continued. “It goes to show that even when the day throws something crazy at you we can tackle it together.”

CLICK FOR VIDEO

CLICK FOR VIDEO

NEVER FORGET

Talbot County, Easton, and Easton EDC Hold

Annual 9/11 Day of Remembrance Ceremony

ARTICLE BY SARAH KILMON | TALBOT COUNTY GOVERNMENT

On September 11, 2023, the Talbot County community gathered to commemorate the events of September 11, 2001. The ceremony began slightly later than the scheduled 8:30 a.m. start time due to a brief, but sudden downpour.

Talbot County Government has held the ceremony almost every year since 2001, to continue to remember and honor the lives that were lost on 9/11/2001 and to recognize the service of first responders that day. Susan Moran, Clerk for the County Council, coordinates the event. This year’s event was co-hosted with the Town of Easton and Easton Economic Development Corporation.

Despite drenched chairs and audio equipment, event organizers persevered. The event started only a few minutes late, with a large crowd of residents, community leaders, elected officials, emergency service and public safety representatives present.

After the Easton Middle School band played their rendition of “America, the Beautiful”, Talbot County Council President Chuck Callahan opened the ceremony, welcoming everyone to the event.

“It is especially important and meaningful to have our younger residents with us to participate in today’s ceremony, and remember the events of September 11, 2001,” he mentioned. “While the events of September 11, 2001 were devastating, the heroic acts of bravery by our first responders will never be forgotten and will continue to inspire.”

In her remarks, Easton Mayor Megan Cook noted, “Never forget the strength of our community. Never forget all that

we have accomplished, and will accomplish by working together. Never forget that everyday our lives are in each other’s hands, and never forget that when the chips are down, our humanity shines brightest.”

Local law enforcement representatives presented the flags before Dr. Sharon Pepukayi, Superintendent of Talbot County Public Schools, led the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by Gail Aveson singing the “Star Spangled Banner.”

In the Invocation, Rev. James G. Pugh, of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in St. Michaels, asked

the audience to continue to remember the events of 9/11, not only the “the dust and smoke, despair and grief” but the “God of hope and presence… the heroes that rushed to help, who guided the wounded down innumerable flights of stairs, who rose to overwhelm those who brought death to innocent lives…”

Following a moment of silence and tolling of the bells, Deena Kilmon, Director of Strategic Initiatives at Easton Economic Development Corporation, introduced the Keynote Speaker, County Council Vice President, Pete Lesher.

Lesher challenged the audience to think about how Talbot County has become increasingly resilient in the face of crisis during even more recent events like the COVID-19 pandemic. He echoed earlier remarks, emphasizing strength in our community.

“We look back to those days after September 11, 2001, remembering how we came together as one. How we — as a community, support our community…We have risen to the challenge when we have heard the call in the past, and we will most assuredly have to do so again sometime in the future. And when we face that outside challenge, we will remem-

ber that, after all, we are truly one. We are a community that supports our community.”

Joe Gamble, Talbot County Sheriff, Alan Lowrey, Easton Chief of Police, and Rick Stacey, President of Easton Volunteer Fire Department, provided the presentation of the memorial wreath.

Additional music included a beautiful rendition of “God Bless America” by Talbot County Sheriff’s Deputy John Coleman, “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes by Sean Guschke, member of the St. Michaels Volunteer Fire Department, and “Of Thee I Sing

America” by Thalia Turner, St. Michaels Middle-High School student. Rev. Demetrius A. Price of Union Baptist Church in Easton, offered the Benediction to close out the ceremony.

Following the ceremony, attendees gathered in the Talbot County Free Library, Easton Branch, for refreshments and the unveiling of the year-long community art project and the “We Are #TalbotReady” short film.

CONNECTED TOGETHER

Easton Utilities invites USDA out to celebrate success of the Connect Talbot project

On Wednesday, Spetember 20th, Easton Utilities invited out over 60 representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to a Connect Talbot celebration event at Triple Creek Winery in Cordova.

The Connect Talbot Project is an initiative

designed to bring broadband internet to rural parts of Talbot County that have limited or no connectivity at their homes and businesses. Easton Utilities, Talbot County, and Town of Easton are in partnership together on this, relying on 13 Million in USDA funds to help finance the project.

The event featured technical demonstrations ranging from small scale operations stations such as wire splicing, all the way to the field crews who dig trenches for fiber.

In addition to the demonstrations and technical stations, the event featured lunch from The Ivy and speeches from several local leaders.

Senator Johnny Mautz, County Council Member Pete Lesher, Easton Mayor Megan Cook, as well as Easton utilities management Executive Vice Pres-

ident & COO John Horner, and President & CEO Hugh Grunden all took to the stage to address the visitors and acknowledge the impact this project has had on our communities.

In her speech, Mayor Megan Cook said, “Connectivity, interconnectedness, support, community — these are all pieces of the same puzzle, and they all become more important with each passing day. It’s our ability to look out for each other, and help where and when we can, to reap what we sow — that is truly essential.”

PUMP TRACK PRO

The pump track out at North Easton Park is now complete, and who better to test it out than the guys that built it?! As it turns out, the contractors from Pump Trax USA (working with Spohn Ranch Skateparks) consisted of several BMX riders and a few pros.

Brian Strieby, Pump Trax USA employee and former X Games competitor, was kind enough to sit down with us and do a video interview along with a track demo.

Click on this article or the photos to see the interview and test ride!

WE HAVE A WINNER!

Congratulations to Building and Facilities Service Technician Tim Tarrant for winning the Employee Newsletter Cover Photo Contest!

Tim won a $25 gift card to Storm Bros. Ice Cream Shop for his submission that landed on the September cover of the Town of Easton Employee Newsletter.

Thank you for your photos, and well done, Tim!

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 CONNECTED?

Follow us on social media:

@townofeastonmd

Employee Benefits

Human Resources

Birthdays

OCTOBER

Jeffrey Olds

Charles Jenkins

Troy Handy

Charles Connolly

Shelby Ruf

Marvin Jenkins

Lorraine Gould

Scott Finch

Dawn Hutchison

Kyle Hardy

Gregory Mueller

Jennifer Kellner

Michael Epstein

Richard Farr

Carol Callahan

Anniversaries

OCTOBER

Lynn Thomas - 32 Years

Ronald Hayman - 10 Years

Christopher Westerfield - 10 Years

Thomas Diem - 13 Years

Michael Whitby - 13 Years

Dustin Otto - 13 Years

Garey Fike - 6 Years

Lorraine Gould - 18 Years

PUMPKIN LOAF

Nonstick cooking spray

4 eggs

3 1/2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon salt

2 sticks butter

2 cups sugar

1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup walnuts, chopped

Heat oven to 350 F.

Prepare loaf and muffin pans with nonstick cooking spray.

In bowl, whisk eggs. Set aside.

In separate bowl, sift flour, baking

soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together. Set aside.

In another bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add whisked eggs and mix until blended.

Alternately add flour mixture and pumpkin puree to egg mixture, beating until blended.

Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.

Pour batter into loaf and muffin pans.

Bake 40-45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans.

LOAF LIFE

Looking for some fragrant fall smells along with a tasty treat? Fill your house with the aroma of fall with warm slices of this Pumpkin Loaf dolloped with butter.

This dish will scratch that pumpkin itch that comes for all of us in the cooler months each year, and it’s easy to pull off!

Find more seasonal dessert recipes at Culinary.net.