Bath village clerk steps down
Florence Mulcahy face of municipal government for nine years
By ROB PRICE THE COURIER-ADVOCATE

PHOTO BY ROB PRICE Florence Mulcahy, pictured above in the Bath village clerk's office, retired from her longheld position as village clerk Friday.

BATH - Live long enough in any village or town of New York, and it's likely some business with the local municipal government will occasion a trip to the municipal clerk's office.

There, you'll meet the public face of the local government, and if you're lucky the personal face of that particular municipal clerk will be smiling.

In a nutshell, the job of the village clerk is to provide a human personality for the sometimes considerable bureaucracy behind the office. It's a job Bath village clerk Florence Mulcahy performed for 11 years, up to her retirement from office Friday.

Mulcahy, 62, began working for the Village of Bath in 1988, serving as deputy clerk under former village Clerk Kathleen Dimmick. Warren Hopkins was village mayor; computers were just beginning to become common machines in municipal offices.

"It was the beginning of the computerized era," Mulcahy said, adding the subsequent expansion of office technology - the internet, e-mail, online banking - has been the biggest force for changing the way municipal government is conducted.

She also has seen, she added, a more coordinated partnering between the village and town governments in the interest of economic development.

"I think that's been a positive change," she said.

Her favorite part of the job? "Serving the public, good coworkers, and the friendships I've had through 19 years."

The village board traditionally meets on the third Monday of every month. So far, Mulcahy doesn't have any strong plans for replacing those evenings in the Liberty Street municipal building. She does, however, plan to travel with friends and family. She has grown children: Cathleen, who lives in Rhode Island; Maureen, of Penn Yan, and James, of Campbell.

"I'm looking forward to enjoying my family and grandchildren," she says.