Q. Your office and St. Johns County recently received a major recognition from a national organization for excellence in financial accountability. What is a “Triple Crown?”
A. The Triple Crown is among the highest honors in government finance and demonstrates St. Johns County’s commitment and dedication to achieving the gold standard in transparency, financial responsibility and public outreach. This is the first time we have achieved this award and we are among just 317 governmental entities nationwide who received the Triple Crown for Fiscal Year 2020 from the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada. I’m really proud of our team and the county — this was a whole-of-government effort and exemplifies our pledge to protect the public trust in our stewardship of tax dollars.
Q. Has your office initiated any new projects that would benefit our readers?
A. We’ve launched our own YouTube channel, youtube.com@stjohnscountyclerk, and some of our first videos chronicle the stories of St. Johns County veterans who’ve recorded their separation documents, or DD-214s, with our office. Retired USMC Col. Ken Russom and former Marine Captains Thomas Upchurch and Ben Reep shared their stories with us, and we’re honored to share their recorded interviews with viewers. Our office has recorded military discharge papers for more than 100 years, and these important records help tell the stories of St. Johns County heroes over the decades. We showcase more than a dozen soldiers and sailors in our 2022 Virtual Veterans Exhibit, which also can be found on our YouTube channel. Another video on our channel is from our St. Johns County-Israel Friendship Day, which featured timely remarks from Board of County Commission Chairman Henry Dean, Sheriff Robert Hardwick and Rabbi Mendel Sharfstein.
Q. Can you tell us more about St. Johns-County-Israel Friendship Day?
A. It started last year when we changed our investment policy to remove companies on Florida’s List of Scrutinized Companies that boycott Israel. We were the first local government in Florida to address discriminatory anti-Israel practices by updating our investment portfolio. This year, our focus is on the fight against antisemitism. Here in St. Johns County, we do not support discriminatory practices counter to our American values and stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Israel and our Jewish friends and neighbors in promoting freedom, human rights and security.
Q. How do people get in touch with you?
A. Our office number is (904) 819-3600 or call my cell phone at (904) 599-8688 if I may ever be of service.
