As the filing period continues, more folks are declaring they are candidates for elected office in McDowell County.
The filing period started at noon Monday, Feb. 8 and will continue until noon on Friday, Feb. 26.
Clerk of Superior Court
Melissa Holland Adams is making her first attempt at elected office by running as a Republican candidate for the office of clerk of Superior Court. Democrat Don Ramsey now holds this office and is seeking re-election.
Unlike clerks of court in other states, the office in North Carolina has numerous judicial functions. The clerk has exclusive jurisdiction over matters relating to the probate of wills and the administration of estates, including appointing personal representatives, auditing their accounting and removing them from office if necessary. The clerk also presides over many other legal matters including adoptions, competency proceedings, condemnation of private lands for public use and foreclosures. The clerk is responsible for all clerical and record-keeping functions of the district and superior court. In addition, the clerk receives and disburses money collected each year from court fees and fines, according to a Web site about the N.C. court system.
Adams, 40, lives at 105 Deerfield Lake Drive in the Hankins community. She is a 1987 graduate of McDowell High School and a 1989 graduate of Western Piedmont Community College with an Associate's Degree in paralegal technology.
Since 1995, she's been employed as the victim/witness coordinator for the District Attorney's office. She previously worked in the clerk of Superior Court's office as a deputy clerk under Ruth Williams. Prior to that, she worked as a paralegal with the law firm of Dameron & Burgin.
Adams said she feels could better serve the people of McDowell as clerk of Superior Court.
"I have been serving the citizens of McDowell County for the past 18 years, most of this time as your victim/witness coordinator," she said in a prepared statement. "I feel the experiences gained from my service has given me valuable insight that I can bring to the office of clerk of court. As a public servant, I know the importance of a welcoming atmosphere, and I will do what it takes to make people feel at ease when they conduct business with the clerk's office. I have a genuine desire to help people and feel that I could better serve the people of McDowell County as Clerk of Court."
If elected, Adams said she would not make any fundamental changes in how the office is operated.
"I do have some concerns to address at the appropriate time," she said in her statement. "My goal would be to identify areas that could be improved upon or enhanced and meet with my staff and other agencies involved and come up with common sense solutions. I would also like to hear from the citizens of McDowell County and I invite people to contact me if they have issues they want to discuss."
Adams and her husband, Eric, have been married for the past 20 years. They have three boys, Garrett Adams, Charlie Adams and Samuel Adams. The family attends Faith Missionary Baptist Church in North Cove.
Sheriff
John Glenn filed Monday as a Democratic candidate for sheriff of McDowell County. Glenn, 61, lives at 150 Willow St., Marion. He formerly served with the N.C. Highway Patrol and now works for the N.C. Department of Corrections at Marion Correctional Institution. The McDowell News profiled Glenn earlier when he announced his intentions to run.
District Court Judge
On Friday, Judge C. Randy Pool filed as a candidate for re-election to the bench. Pool, a resident of 501 E. Glenview St., Marion, is a District Court judge for Judicial District 29A, which covers both McDowell and Rutherford counties. He so far faces one challenger, Marvin Ray Sparrow of Bostic. The race is non-partisan.
When contacted by The McDowell News, Pool said he would issue a statement later.
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