Craighead County officials celebrate retirement of head election clerk

A ceremony to celebrate the retirement of longtime Craighead County Head Election Clerk Lesli Penny recently took place at the Craighead County Courthouse Annex.

By: Nena Zimmer
Jonesboro Right Now

County employees and community members gathered to celebrate Craighead County head election clerk Lesli Penny’s retirement after 19 years of service to the county.

The ceremony took place on Friday afternoon at the Craighead County Courthouse Annex in Jonesboro.

Penny began full-time with the county in June of 2005. She started working in the circuit clerk’s office, staying there for almost five years, before moving to work in the county clerk’s office.

Craighead County clerk Mary Dawn Marshall said Penny will be missed tremendously.

“She’s a wealth of knowledge,” Marshall stated, noting how Penny and many others who retire have beneficial information and experience that can’t be replaced. “They are the keepers of the keys. They’ve been here. It’s like when newly elected officials come and decide to clean house and get rid of everybody who’s been doing the job for however long. You lose a ton of knowledge. Now, granted, laws and stuff changed constantly, but they’ve been through all of them.”

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