JOSH DAVIS/BAYSIDE GAZETTE
Sharon Timmons, set to leave her position with the Town of Berlin in October, waves goodbye to the friends she has made during 17 years working for the town. She and her husband plan to move to Myrtle Beach, Florida.

By Josh Davis, Associate Editor

(Aug. 23, 2018) Sharon Timmons, administrative assistant in the Town of Berlin Economic Development Department, is leaving her position on Oct. 19 and heading south, to Myrtle Beach, Florida.

Timmons, 58, is originally from Salisbury. She moved to Berlin with her husband, Steve, 25 years ago and started working for the town about 17 years ago.

“A girl that I had worked with in Salisbury was working in the administrative assistant position for the town manager,” Timmons said. “She decided that she was going to leave and called me, and said she thought the job would be perfect for me and to apply. So, I did.”

Timmons had been working as a sales assistant for Toroid Corporation, a company that manufactures medical equipment.

She remembers moving to a different Berlin than the one now regularly named in statewide and national top-ten lists for its vibrant downtown shopping district.

“I had lived here for probably a month and I told my husband, ‘I can’t live here – they close the sidewalks off at 5 o’clock!’” she said. “There wasn’t a lot here. We had Boomer’s. We had Goober’s. We had Rayne’s Reef and Neon Moon, which is now an empty lot across from Cheers.

“The stores were not as popular as they are now. The big stores were Victorian Charm and Style Guide,” Timmons continued. “There wasn’t a lot to do.”

The job, she said, started out as a glorified receptionist’s position.

“I did a lot of correspondence and letters, and helped out different departments when they were slack,” Timmons said. “I helped out with finance and cutoffs for awhile. I really didn’t like that, because I didn’t like turning off people’s electric and water, but that was part of it.

“The longer I was the there, the more responsibility I would take on, so I actually grew the job to what it is now,” she added.

About three years ago, Timmons moved from Town Hall to the welcome center as the new administrative assistant for Ivy Wells, who was hired to replace Michael Day as the economic and community development director.

“Michael was leaving and I had helped him in the past with some of the events and the paperwork, and I was in a spot where I kind of wanted something new to do,” she said. “So, I came over to work with Ivy and the rest is history.”

Among the most high profile of Timmons’ duties has been helping to organize the annual Christmas parade during the last seven years.

“That’s a huge endeavor,” she said. “I’ve already printed out letters and invitations and started all the forms – and this is August. It’s hundreds of people, hundreds of volunteers, taking calls … just to line it up itself is an endeavor.”

Timmons said she decided to leave now because the company her husband has worked for during the last 40 years, Zonko Builders of Selbyville, is soon closing.

“The winters were getting a little hard on us and we just decided we wanted to go somewhere warmer,” she said. “We had bought a condo [in Myrtle Beach] seven years ago and … we want to start a new adventure – relax a little bit, work a little bit, play a little bit. We’ve been able to do all that here, but we want to do it somewhere warmer.”

She said she would most miss the friendships she’s made.

“The friendships with the business owners, with the staff, hanging out at the events with everybody – just the town in general,” she said. “It is a cool town, but we plan on coming back every year for a couple weeks and just vacationing here.

“I’ll miss everybody! Come visit us. Everybody’s welcome to visit,” Timmons added.