John Scarffe, Nederland. Nederland Town Clerk LauraJane Baur had her last full-time day at the office on Thursday, November 2, 2017. She has resigned her position but will be working part time until a new clerk can be hired.

Baur started the job on October 27, 2014, and just celebrated her third-year anniversary. In July, Baur had surgery and worked from home for two weeks after.

She commutes to Nederland from Storm Mountain, in Drake, north of Estes Park, so she has a two-hour drive in good weather.

“With the surgery, commuting, the job stress and healing, it’s too much to do it all,” Baur said.

“I wasn’t going to be able to move here,” Baur said, so she told former Town Administrator Alisha Reis that she was looking for another job.

“I made it for three years. It’s hard to leave, and I love who I am working with.”

Baur was raised in Bethel, Connecticut, and attended St. Mary’s Elementary School, Immaculate High School and Albertus Magnus College. She raised three girls and one boy while living in Virginia for 20 years, and then landed in Loveland in 2013.

One of her major accomplishments as Nederland Town Clerk has been getting the I-Compass program up and running. The program streamlines putting together packets and information for Nederland Board of Trustee meetings and makes them available online.

Now Baur is doing live audio streaming of the Board meetings through the program, but they are still working out some kinks. It used to require $20 for a CD, Baur said.

The Town started streaming the meetings while Baur was recovering from her surgery, so she was at home when the meeting was first streamed. Town Staff Member Cynthia Bakke had prepared the packets and was serving as clerk for the meeting.

“I was so excited to hear it streaming while I was working from home,” Baur said. Her other best memories were working with Reis.

“She could help figure anything out and had a positive attitude. That rubs off with the staff,” Baur said.

When Baur took the job, Reis helped her with the cost of commuting by allowing her to work at home on Fridays. Until a new Town clerk can be hired, she plans to work 20 hours a week with Tuesdays and Thursdays in the office and Fridays at home.

(Originally published in the November 9, 2017 print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)