John Scarffe, Gilpin County. Gilpin County Public Works Director Gordon Thompson has announced his retirement on June 5, 2020, after 22 years with the County. He said he has been planning his retirement for a long time after his wife, Cindy, retired in 2012. 

Cindy first moved to Gilpin County with their oldest daughter in late 1997, when she became the Postmaster in Rollinsville. Gordon stayed behind in Merino with their other three children to finalize the sale of their home there and moved up in early 1998. They both came from northeast Colorado and have been married for nearly 42 years. They have two young granddaughters.

Gordon was born in Sterling, CO, and his wife in Akron. Growing up, Gordon lived in Sterling. His father died in 1965, and when his mother remarried, they moved to his stepfather’s farm in Merino. 

 Gordon started high school in Sterling and finished in Merino. He went from high school to Northeastern Junior College receiving an associate in applied science degree through the autotech program. 

Soon after he was drafted and then enlisted in the army, where he was active for three years as a track vehicle mechanic. In 1975, he was honorably discharged from the army as an E5 and went to work at a car dealership in Sterling for a short time. 

He then worked for Wisdom Manufacturing for 22 years, working his way up to a shop foreman position. He then obtained his CDL and started delivering their product. He traveled to all 48 states and most of the provinces in Canada. “I’ve seen a lot,” Gordon said. 

With a wife and four children at home, he got tired of being away and started working in the shop again. He attended training in Cincinnati to learn to operate a new laser parts cutting machine, and then left there when Cindy got her job in Rollinsville. Gordon applied for a temporary position with the Gilpin County Road and Bridge Department, which is the same department as the current Public Works Department, but the name has changed, and it has grown. 

He started his Gilpin County career with that temporary position, becoming a full-time Equipment Operator after a few months. He was later offered the mechanic position, assumed that role and then was offered the Assistant Supervisor position in addition to his mechanic duties. After the addition of another mechanic, he eventually dropped the mechanic duties and became the full-time Assistant Supervisor. The title of the position changed a few years later to Operations Supervisor, the position he held for many years.

“It has changed a lot over the years,” Gordon said. It’s a whole different operation. When he first started, he didn’t know much about road maintenance, and he learned that in Gilpin County.  

During his time with the County, he has worked with five department directors and all the County managers from Donna Martin and Roger Baker to current manager Abel Montoya. Gordon accepted the interim Public Works director position at the end of September 2017, and in early October 2017, he accepted the director position. 

When he was hired as Director, Gordon said he planned on retiring in two years. He is proud of getting a vehicle replacement program going for the County to replace vehicles and heavy equipment on a schedule and keep the County up to date with lower emission, fuel efficient equipment. The County started to replace some older vehicles with the purchase of four Toyota Hybrid vehicles. Although the program is on hold for now, he will be glad to see them get back into that. 

The Department has three divisions, Road and Bridge for all road maintenance, Facilities, which takes care of all county buildings, and Solid Waste including the transfer station and slash site. 

Gordon said he has the best crew ever and a really good team. “We have a very hard- working team dedicated to providing the best service possible to our residents.”

Nancy Larson in the Public Works Department said, “Gordon is easy to work with and is a ‘get things done’ kind of guy. He works very hard, and motivates his staff.  

“He never puts on airs and makes sure everyone is treated fairly. He’s friendly and pleasant, and the staff and tax payers have been fortunate to have him all these years.” 

Gilpin County Commissioner Linda Isenhart said, “I have always found Gordon to be a very sincere and kind person to work with, even when he’s listening to people’s complaints about the roads, culverts, fences and other things that tend to wear out and need fixing. I believe Gordon is a working person’s friend who understands the people who get up in the morning at 3 a.m. in order to plow roads or help in emergencies. These folks are the salt of the earth, in my opinion.”

Commissioner Ron Engels said, “It was Friday afternoon, about 2 p.m. Gordon was on vacation, as was the county manager. A resident complaint came in about a road maintenance issue. 

“Since no one else in the chain of command was available, I went out to see what the issue was. It turned out to be something the County caused, so I went back to Public Works to let them know we needed to fix the problem. I was expecting Public Works to address the issue on Monday. 

“Gordon came in on his vacation day, assigned someone to fix the issue, and it was complete before the end of business on Friday. As Linda said, a working man’s friend. We all will miss him.”

Commissioner Gail Watson said, “His intelligence, good humor and work ethic made him a real pleasure to work with, and Gilpin County is fortunate to have had him as a director and resident.”

County Manager Montoya said the County will be posting the position soon to fill the vacancy. He said: “Gordon is also a well-respected leader in Public Works and in the Gilpin County Organization.  He always goes the extra mile and is willing to provide world-class customer services.  We will miss him.”

(Originally published in the May 21, 2020, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)