LEYDEN — Residents who visit the Town Clerk’s Office for a dog license, marriage certificate or other record-keeping need will notice a new face, as Greenfield resident Molly Miller has been appointed as the new town clerk.
Miller will hold office hours 5 to 7 p.m. on Mondays and 10 a.m. to noon on Thursdays, and can be reached to make appointments at townclerk@townofleyden.com. She was hired to work 15 hours per week at a rate of $24.50 per hour, and replaces George Stephan, who held the role for a year and had his last day in June.
In a meeting earlier this month, Selectboard members said they believed Miller was the strongest candidate of the four they had interviewed.
“I’m totally confident Molly could do it,” Selectboard member Katherine DiMatteo said.
“I liked her forwardness, I liked her organization, her ideas on prioritization,” Chair Erica Jensen added. “She seemed very engaged with the idea that there’s this position open.”
Miller works full-time as a district performance coordinator for CVS Health, and serves in the U.S. Army Reserve. While town clerk would be her third job, she told the Selectboard during her interview last month that she likes to stay busy.
“I’m a person who thrives off a little bit of healthy stress,” Miller said. “I enjoy being busy.”
Although she has never worked as a town clerk before, Miller said she loves organization and would welcome the opportunity for training and learning the details of the role. She added that she is used to regular training, both with the military and to maintain her pharmacy license.
Miller told the Selectboard that her experience with CVS Health and the U.S. Army Reserve would benefit her in the role, as she has developed conflict-resolution skills that bode well for any public-facing position. She said she always tries to be empathetic, and when she does not have an answer to a resident’s question, she will research and find one.
When asked if she sees the role as a long-term position for her, Miller said she had no plans to leave the area. She grew up in Leyden and, as long as her parents continue to live in Leyden, she intends to continue spending a lot of time in town. Miller noted she has a 3-year-old who loves to visit their grandparents.
“I truly love this town,” Miller said. “I think when people hear Leyden, they’re like, ‘What the heck is that?’ but when they come up here, they’re just amazed.”
