Watkins
The December 17 Seabrook Town Council meeting took a somber turn when Mayor Bruce Kleinman announced the departure of the Town’s Assistant Town Administrator Katharine Watkins. She will be leaving her role in early January to be the town administrator for the town of Awendaw.
As the assistant town administrator, Watkins took care of the day-to-day operations of the town, performing a variety of functions including human resources, IT, payroll and procurement.
Watkins came to Seabrook in 2021 to fill the role that Faye Allbritton had left after her retirement. Allbritton had been with the town for 25 years. Watkins first started with Seabrook as the town clerk/treasurer.
Working in the public sector is not new for Watkins, and neither is working for a coastal community’s local government.
She came to Seabrook from a six-year stint with the City of Folly Beach. She started there as the administrative clerk, handling utility payments, business licenses, permits and the like. In 2018, she was promoted to municipal clerk. She started the position with Folly Beach after graduating from the College of Charleston in 2015 with a degree in finance and a minor in hospitality and tourism. In 2021, she graduated with honors with a master’s in public administration from the College of Charleston.
In 2021, when Watkins first started with Seabrook, she provided this quote to The Island Connection: “You’ll never have the same day twice when you work in local government. I think what drew me into working in the public sector was being able to help my community. It is so rewarding, and I enjoy knowing that I am making an impact.”
Kleinman referred to Watkins as the “Swiss Army Knife” of Seabrook Island.
“We are going to miss her tremendously. She has only been here three and a half years, but it is hard to imagine this Town without her. She has been a tremendous resource. I learned so much from her about how municipal government works. I hope Awendaw realizes what a gem they are getting. I have been blown away by how big her job is. I want to say thank you,” he said.
Town Administrator Joe Cronin added, “I know you wanted to be a town administrator, so I am very happy for you, but I hate to see you go. Thankfully, you are right up the road so we can contact you at any time and we encourage you to contact us at any time, as well.”
Watkins is originally from Canton, Connecticut.
