Carol Bragg Named Georgia’s Clerk of the Year

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Wheeler County Clerk of Superior Court Carol Bragg was named the 2023 Stetson F. Bennett Clerk of the Year at a Superior Court Clerks’ Association of Georgia annual training session on St. Simons Island on April 24.

This prestigious award was founded by the Bennett Family in 1985 as a way to recognize and honor those clerks who possess outstanding qualities reflected in their role as clerk. The award is named after its founder and first recipient, Stetson F. Bennett, Jr., who was Clerk of Court in Wayne County from 1965 until 2012. continued from page

“I am proud to say that I met Mr. Stetson, as we all call him, as a deputy clerk, and enjoyed attending training with him as a clerk. More often than not, I learned just as much about my job as clerk from him, as from the instructor teaching the class,” Bragg said, adding, “This award was made more meaningful to me in that the presentation was made by one of Mr. Bennett’s daughters, the Honorable Vi Benne(, Wayne County State Court Judge. Another daughter, the Honorable Frances Yeargan, is currently serving as Clerk of Superior Court, and is a dear friend.”

In making the presentation, Judge Bennett read le(ers from Kim Clark, Wheeler County Tax Commissioner; Jolinda Harrelson, Wheeler Coun ty Probate Judge; Perry Avery, friend and Wheeler County attorney; three Superior Court Judges – the Honorable Sarah F. Wall, the Honorable C. Michael Johnson, and the Honor – able Howard F. Kaufold, Jr. Judge Bennett also read letters from Bragg’s deputy clerks, Janet Ashley and Hannah Leyland, as well as her daughter, Renee Hule(. (e tradition is to read these letters – without revealing who the recipient is until the final paragraph of the letter from the family – thus creating tension and perpetuating the surprise.

Bragg has been employed with the office of Clerk of Superior Court in Wheeler County since July 1994. She took office as clerk in January 2009 and has been a member of the Superior Court Clerks’ Association of Georgia and the Constitutional Officers Association of Georgia since taking office. She also served four years as District Chair of the Eighth Judicial District for the Clerks’ Association, and has been selected as the District Clerk of the Year two times, in 2016 and 2023.

After being elected to the governing board of the association, she served as secretary-treasurer and vice president for twoyear terms in each office. In 2023, she was sworn in as president of the association for a two-year term. As president, she also serves on the executive board of the Constitutional Officers Association of Georgia.

She has been a member of the Wheeler County Chamber of Commerce since 2007, serving on the Board of Directors for multiple terms and also serving as Chamber president.

Bragg summarizes her service by referencing an inscription from her 2023 District Clerk of the Year award which she said is very meaningful to her because it captures what she believes it means to be a leader: “Being a leader is about much more than a title or a position. Leadership is about teamwork, influence, and enthusiasm.” A leader is “a person who not only knows how to lead, but who also inspires and guides us all to excel in our jobs…”