Commissioner Gary Collins honored for 30 years of service
In 1988, Dora resident Gary Collins decided to take the plunge and file for Eastern District Commissioner. He won and has been serving Ozark County almost continuously since. Collins, who chose not to run for another term this year, will serve his last day as a commissioner on Dec. 31.
All those years of service were recognized during a drop-in retirement party, held Thursday, Oct. 24, upstairs in the Ozark County Courthouse and hosted by Collins’ fellow commissioners.
During the surprise party, Collins was honored with visits from past Ozark County commissioners, family members, Ozark County officials and courthouse employees, commissioners from several area counties and members of the South Central Ozark Council of Government (SCOCOG) with whom he served several years.
Collins was presented with a custom cutting board from the Ozark County commissioners, thanking him for his three decades of service to the county.
Members from SCOCOG also presented Collins with a plaque honoring his many years of serving on the board. The plaque also honored his dedication to making sure that the counties had “what they needed” to do their jobs, said a Shannon County commissioner while presenting the plaque.