Commissioners C.W. Higbee and Wayne Bourgeois Retire

 Commissioners C.W. Higbee and Wayne Bourgeois Retire

By Mike Scott

Dozens of Clark County residents, county employees, family and friends attended retirement reception for Clark County Commissioners C.W. Higbee and Wayne Bourgeois on Monday afternoon. Well-wishers filled the upstairs courtroom, enjoying cake, mixed fruit and punch while visiting with the outgoing commissioners.
Higbee and Bourgeois were elected in 1994, and were sworn in on January 1, 1995. They served as county commissioners for 14 years before choosing not to seek reelection in 2008.

“There have been a lot of things happen in the last 14 years,” said Bourgeois. “We’ve built many, many new bridges, as well as the new jail. We’ve done the best we could with the resources we had.”

“We’ve also upgraded the county’s equipment,” added Higbee. “We had a lot of old machinery, but we’ve got a pretty good line of equipment now.” Higbee also noted that the commission has worked hard to improve county roads, hauling and spreading hundreds of thousands of tons of rock.

Higbee also stated that 2008 was a difficult year for the county, with the amount of flooding and wet weather.

“We’re proud of what we accomplished,” said Higbee.
New Commissioners Roger Sedore and Jerry Neyens, who will be sworn in Wednesday afternoon, have plenty of work ahead of them.

“One of the biggest challenges facing them will be what to do with this courthouse,” said Bourgeois.

Editor’s Note: Thanks, C.W. and Wayne, for your years of service to Clark County.