For several weeks, longtime Wilton City Clerk Lori Brown has had the same quote from her late father, Howard Maurer, running through her head.
Forty years ago, when she was 19 years old and had recently started working for the city of Wilton, she heavily contemplated applying for a job at a new local business. “My dad said, ‘you’ve got a good job with the city, and the city will always be there.’ He was right.” Lori said.
Lori (Maurer) Brown is a Wilton girl. A graduate of Wilton High School’s class of 1978, Brown was working at an insurance company in Davenport before taking a job with the city of Wilton at 19 years old in 1979.
“I thought it was just until I’d find something else. I guess I’ve been looking for 40 years,” she said with a chuckle. “And the 40 years have flown by.”
She was hired as a deputy clerk and, 20 years later, became Wilton’s city clerk in 1999 when then Clerk Janet Laucamp retired.
Technology has come a long way in 40 years. “When I first started, we did lots of things by hand — the utility bills, delinquent notices, checks, monthly reports, etc. At one time the REC even printed the bills for the city but then as things evolved and computers came, things got a lot simpler and easier,” Brown said.
According to her own calculations, Lori has worked under eight mayors and five city administrators during her 40 years with the city of Wilton. There have also been countless city council members. Some of her most memorable colleagues were Mayor Carol Wade, “I think she was the first woman mayor,” Brown noted, and city council member Mark Lucas, who was the youngest ever to be elected in Wilton not long after he graduated from high school.
Brown remembers several large projects that have occurred in Wilton during her tenure, including installing curb and gutter throughout the town. “That was one of the biggest projects. We had to move that (council) meeting to the school gymnasium,” she said.
Some of the other memorable moments included the city starting its own garbage collection service, building the new yellow water tower, providing water to the Wilton rest areas along Interstate 80 and the recent new wastewater treatment plant, according to Brown.
Lori also worked alongside the late Janet Boorn for many years. Boorn started with the city in 1986, and current City Clerk Kit Koele, who was sworn into the position May 11, began with the city in 2000.
For many years it was Lori, Kit and Janet working alongside each other in City Hall.
When asked about her retirement, she said she began thinking strongly about it after having a meeting about IPERS (Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement System). She had long since met the “rule of 88,” one’s age plus years of service. “That’s probably what did it,” she said. “It wasn’t the job or the people. I don’t feel retired, it just makes me feel old. I started at 19 and the time has flown. I’ll miss the co-workers and people. But I won’t miss the meetings.”
Attending city council meetings is a big part of the job as city clerk. With two meetings per month for 40 years, Brown said she built her schedule around them and could count on one hand the amount of times she had to miss a meeting.
She’ll also remember 2020 for several other reasons, including City Hall undergoing renovations both inside and out, and the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused disruption at city offices due to having to close to the public.
Originally set to retire April 17, Brown extended her employment through May to help through the transition of hiring a new employee and the health crisis.
“I figured after 40 years, what’s another 40 days,” said Brown with a laugh. “And I told Kit I’m not going anywhere. There are things you only do once per year. I know some questions could come up. Without the calendar I always had on my desk, I wouldn’t have been able to function.”
One more big date is on Brown’s calendar, as the city will host an open house for her retirement June 12 from 4-6 p.m. at the Wilton Community Center. The public is invited to attend.