“Back in 1979 when I started, I never would have dreamt that I would have gone as far as I did,” said Box Butte County Commissioner Susan Lore. “It was a job back then, but it was just like everything clicked.”
Lore recently announced her resignation from the board of commissioners, bringing her years of public service to a close.
The announcement came at the Box Butte County Commissioners meeting on Nov. 15, where her resignation will be effective when the commissioners adjourn on Jan. 5, 2022.
Lore has worked in a variety of county and state government positions for the past 42 years. She began her career in the Box Butte County Assessors Office.
“It was back in 1979, I applied for a job in the assessors office, and I was hired as one of the clerks,” said Lore. “It just seemed to click from that point on. By 1981, I had been appointed the assessor. I held that position until 1993. I started my own appraisal company then because I had gotten my appraisers license. When I left the county, I knew there was such a need for appraisers to do nothing but appraisal work for assessors offices. That was the premise of my company. I worked for 14 different counties throughout the state of Nebraska over the next 12 years.”
Lore explained that she knew that the state was seeking to fill a position on the Tax Equalization and Review Commission, so she decided to apply for the position.
“I was appointed by Mike Johanns for that position,” Lore said. “I served as county commissioner in the mid 90s, and work just got to be too much for the appraisal company, so I didn’t run for a second term. When I came back from Lincoln, I was there for five and a half years working for the state, I decided to try again for county commissioner. I won that election, then I won one after that. I had a lot of years in county government.”
Lore said she has been guided in her service by a primary goal: to educate.
“It was always my goal that, if someone came into an office, or met with me as the appraiser for another county, I wanted it to be a learning experience, and I wanted them to know how taxation works and the whole process,” said Lore. “Sometimes, I think it’s the unknown that makes people belligerent against any kind of government; it’s when you don’t know what’s going on. I always told the assessors I worked with I would teach them as much as they are willing to learn, because that was my whole goal throughout government: I wanted people to know how it works.”
One of the largest challenges during her service, Lore explained, was overcoming gender stereotypes and breaking through the glass ceiling.
“I was the first woman county commissioner,” Lore said. “I think getting over that obstacle was one of the biggest challenges. My skin has toughened up a lot since then. It just comes with the territory. Even being in the appraisal field for so many years, it was a male-dominated field. I could remember one time going to a feed lot and I had one of the men who worked with me with me. We went into the feed lot office, and the guy would not ask me a question. Finally, the man who was with me said, ‘I’m not the one that knows the answers. She is.’
“I thought, all my life, it’s been a male-dominated field, whether it be in the field of assessing, when I first became the assessor, a woman was in the minority,” said Lore. “When I was a county commissioner, it was a minority, and also in the appraisal field. I just kept hacking away at it.”
Lore said she has enjoyed her years of service, noting that every obstacle presented a chance to learn.
“I have so enjoyed my years serving the various counties and in the state,” Lore said. “It was such a learning experience. When I was sitting on TERC, people didn’t realize that in the judicial system, it goes the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals and then TERC. TERC was a quasi-judicial commission. So, through that, I got to go to judicial college in Reno, Nev. That was the highlight of my life because it was so interesting to learn all of that stuff. I’ve had lots of experiences that have made me grow as a person, as well as growing in the knowledge I have.”
Lore encourages Box Butte County’s citizens to apply to serve as Box Butte County Commissioner, noting it offers an opportunity to resolve problems and to help guide the future for the county.
“I don’t like it when people sit back and complain,” Lore said. “If you’ve got a complaint, do something about it, and one way of doing something about it is either being appointed to the commissioners or being elected to the commissioners. Those are the ways that we as individuals can make a change in government.
“If anybody has ever thought of running for county government, this would be an opportune time, because it is one year in the term, and then you can make the decision as to whether you wanted to run for election,” said Lore. “It’s a little bit different than taking on a four-year term.”
“We are going to miss her,” said Box Butte County Clerk Judy Messersmith. “She has a wealth of knowledge. The timing was just right for her.”
The county is currently seeking applicants to serve in the role of commissioner. Messersmith explained that whoever is appointed as commissioner will serve the remainder of Lore’s term, noting that they will have to file as an incumbent before Feb. 15, 2022. Those who are willing to be appointed are encouraged to submit a letter of interest to the Box Butte County Clerk at 515 Box Butte Ave, Room 203, in Alliance, or to PO Box 678, Alliance, NE 69301 by 4 p.m. on Dec. 6. Selected applicants will be interviewed by the Box Butte County Attorney, Clerk and Treasurer at 9 a.m. on Dec. 15. Anyone who has questions is encouraged to contact Messersmith at 308-762-6565.