Today, the Flags of the United States and the City of Piedmont fly at half staff to commemorate the life of Ann Swift.
Ann Swift served as Piedmont’s City Clerk for more than twenty years. She was a welcoming presence in city hall and a force of personality. She was a caring and kind person who knew how to get things done. She used her immense intelligence and skill to serve the public admirably.
Ann was also one of the main reasons I chose a career in public service. She welcomed me in to City Hall as a student with big ideas, patiently answering my questions, helping me translate ideas into reality, even when she had more important work to do. She modeled for me what a public servant should be. I worked for her as a summer intern and learned so much. When I made mistakes, like all eager interns are want to do, she helped me see what was wrong and why, and worked with me to correct it.
When I came to work for her full time seven years later, she taught me how to work in government. Again, she was so patient with my big ideas and let me run with the good ones. She was an an amazing example of so many things, but the most important were how to be a good person, how treat people with care and compassion, and how to advocate for things you believed in.
When I succeeded Ann as City Clerk, I had big shoes to fill. Every day of the thirteen years I spent as City Clerk and later Assistant City Administrator and City Clerk, I thought of her and her example. She was kind enough to come in to City Hall and help with a few projects after her retirement and also kind enough to turn down the ones that she didn’t want to do. Just yesterday, I was in City Hall and came across her work, the systems she built, and the legacy she left Piedmont.
I will miss Ann tremendously.
On July 20th, the Piedmont City Council remembered Ann at their regular meeting. It added one more to the over five hundred Piedmont City Council meetings that she was a part of. It was a truly moving experience.
Thanks for everything, Ann!
