Service records remarkable (01/03/2009)

"They'll not miss me here," Jane Ann Runyon said in a 1999 interview as she was preparing to leave office after two terms as Jay County Auditor.

She was wrong, of course.

It was only a couple of years later when she returned to the courthouse to resume her career in public service.

And Jane Ann would be wrong again today if she thinks she will not be missed next week.

Judge Joel Roberts would be similarly mistaken if he thinks the courthouse will be the same without him.

Together, Runyon and Roberts have compiled a remarkable record of public service.

First as clerk, then as auditor, then as clerk again, Runyon has made sure the county's elections have run smoothly, she has guided the county through a maze of ever-changing rules handed down by the Indiana General Assembly, and she restored trust to an office which had been tarnished. It has been a virtuoso performance.

Judge Roberts, meanwhile, has, in his quiet and unassuming way, built a record for the Jay Superior Court that lawyers and judges from throughout the region have come to admire and respect. Perhaps more importantly, he has worked in leadership positions within the Indiana judiciary to help craft reforms that will serve Hoosiers in the future. The esteem in which he is held by his peers is undeniable.

Judge Roberts has been on the bench for 20 years. Jane Ann Runyon has served something like 23 years as a Jay County elected official.

As a county, we have been fortunate to have had individuals of their character and their intellect in leadership positions. They have served the public well, and they deserve our gratitude.

They will, indeed, be missed. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]