Assistant county manager to resign

Assistant County Manager Ray Moser has tendered his resignation effective Feb. 1 after almost 22 years with the county.

The letter of resignation to County Manager Harold Blizzard came before the dedication ceremony for Craven County Judicial Center on Friday but not before the facility’s completion was imminent.

It is a project that Moser has been involved in from the beginning as part of the county’s management team and, since assuming the assistant manager’s post four years ago, one on which he has worked as much as any one person in Craven County government.

Moser confirmed his resignation on Friday but said he would talk later about his years here.

He began work with the county as human resources director in April 1988, after working in that post in the corporate world with E.R. Carpenter based in Richmond, traveling across the country working to mitigate company-union disputes.

Accepting the Craven County job was coming home for Moser, who was born in St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bern in 1946.

In the human resources position, he was part of the county’s management team and was promoted to assistant county manager in February 2006 following George Sawyer’s retirement from that post.

County government has grown during Moser’s years and now has 640 employees. He was part of the management team as the county built a convention center, human services complex for the health department and department of social services, and now the judicial center.

Moser participated in launching a safety department and hired the first safety officer and, as assistant county manager, worked closely with the recreation department. He helped guide development of West Craven Park, Cove City park and the Latham-Whitehurst Nature Park.

Joan Harrell followed Moser into the human resources department by a few months and as human resources director. She said one of his main contributions to the county is helping convert county health insurance to a self-insured system during his first year.

“He had the vision to see how much money the county could save with self-funded insurance and it has done very well,” she said. “It has had money left in the bank every year.”

Harrell said Moser’s concern about potential electronic technology leaks resulted in putting filtering devices on the county’s Internet connection.

“Ray, to me personally, has been the greatest mentor,” Harrell said. “He has stood behind me for 20 years, been a counselor at times and absolutely a number one person.”

Moser’s leadership has been felt countywide, Harrell said. “He doesn’t micromanage. He lets you stand on your own two feet. He’ll be hard to replace.”

“It has been such a pleasure working with him,” said county secretary Alison Newcombe. “I’ve enjoyed every day. He’s mot only good boss, he’s a good person.”

Gwen Bryan, clerk to the board of commissioners and a Moser co-worker, called him “an extremely competent professional. I rolled my eyes when he told us. We’re going to miss him but he is very deserving. He’s worked so hard.  He is great to work with.”

Jason Jones, chairman of the Craven County board of commissioners, said Moser “had given some indication it was coming but I was surprised to see it happening in February.”

“I’m definitely saddened to see him go. He brings vast knowledge to county government and I have enjoyed working with him,” Jones said. He added that Moser’s assistance in developing and maintaining the Cove City Park was personally helpful and his “great knowledge in how to deal with personnel” showed “he has heart for our personnel in county government and wants to do what is in their best interest.”

“Craven County has been very fortunate to have him as assistant county manager,” said commissioner Steve Tyson. “I hate to see him go but when it’s time to go you’ve got to go. I’ve always felt he was a no-nonsense guy who’d give you the facts and his analysis. He didn’t like politics involved in the decisions but understood they sometimes are.”

“I think he’s doing it for the right reasons,” Tyson said. In addition to joining his wife in retirement and allow him to take better care of his health, “it will give the county manager time to find a replacement for him before he retires in a few years.”

“Ray is definitely acknowledged as a team player,” said Jim Davis, the county economic development director. “Each time I’ve had a chance to see him involved with the county manager and commissioners, it’s obvious that Ray’s is a voice they seek out for an opinion.”

Blizzard, who was advised of the resignation in response to a Sun Journal question, said “We’re going to miss him.”

He said he has no one specific in mind for the post and will be compiling the job description and taking applications in the near future.

Sue Book can be reached at 252-635-5666 or sbook@freedomenc.com.