Mount Pleasant Magazine Jan/Feb 2023

55 www. ReadMPM. com | www.MountPl easantMagaz i ne. com | www.MountPl easantPodcas t . com Retiring from the fourth largest municipality in the state of South Carolina after nearly 24 years of heading the Town of Mount Pleasant’s communications office is a momentous occasion for me. Providing public information to our vibrant coastal community gave constant meaning and purpose to my professional life. Working with five mayors, 34 councilmembers, two town administrators and many talented colleagues has been the honor of a lifetime. As the community doubled in size during the span in which I served, its growth prompted the communications office to look for new ways to share information and engage the public. The era of the mighty fax was over, and the digital age was revolutionizing how our residents and businesses were curating and consuming news. We developed new products and dozens of new tools to better communicate with the public. We incorporated social media platforms, harnessed emerging media, posted visual and digital messaging, crafted e-newsletters and created digital boards. Our work in digital media has been recognized at the state, national and international levels since 2009. The communications office has won numerous international awards in a wide array of internal and external outreach efforts. Additionally, the Municipal Association of South Carolina honored us with two achievement awards for our public service announcements and literacy programs. The biggest government accolades were winning the 2010 and 2018 All-America City Awards. Writing a persuasive application led us to be selected twice to travel and compete against 20 other municipalities across the nation. We brought a delegation of stakeholders and community members to highlight our civic engagement Mi l l er at the Emergenc y Management I ns t i tute, Emmi t sburg, MD. , rece i v i ng her Mas ter Publ i c I nformat i on d ipl oma ( 2021 ) . A Bid Farewell Reflections on s rving a one-of-a-kind town BY MART I NE MI L LER feature

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