Burk retires from Arts Place role

After 26 years, a long-time staff member is saying goodbye to Arts Place.
Sue Burk is retiring from her position as director of development and volunteerism. Burk joined what was then the Jay County Arts Council as a part-time receptionist in 1989, said Eric Rogers, executive director of Arts Place.
“Over the years she kept taking on more and more responsibilities,” Rogers told the crowd at Burk’s retirement party Wednesday evening at Arts Place in Portland.
It took some convincing, Rogers said, but in 2000, Burk stepped up to her director position.
“We had to convince her to do it, and I’m so pleased that she accepted,” Rogers said.
She worked to secure grants and worked on fundraisers, including the Holiday Benefit Auction, which raised a record of more than $23,000 last year. She also helped lead a campaign that raised more than $410,000 this year.
Getting to work with a variety of staff and board members on that campaign was something that stands out about her time at Arts Place, Burk said.
Though it was just day-to-day work at the time, everyone was telling her at the party what a difference she has made, Burk said.
“She really had a real impact,” Rogers said, adding that it will be difficult not to have her at Arts Place anymore.
Leaving her colleagues will be difficult for Burk too.
“It’s a family,” she said. “I’m here more than I’m home.”
But she still won’t be spending all her time at home now that she’s retired. Burk plans to spend more time at the Youth Service Bureau, where she already works part-time as a residential childcare worker, conducting programs and working one-on-one with children.
“I love working with the kids. I love working with the staff there,” she said. 
Burk loves Arts Place too, said Mindy Weaver, president of the board of directors. She was always enthusiastic about her job, even parts that might not have been in her job description.
At the party Wednesday, the board of directors presented Burk with a large maple burl turned-wood bowl made by Jay County’s Mark Twigg.