Gaskin, Fisher receive award recognizing decades of service as elected officials
Two Wewahitchka elected officials were recognized by the Florida League of Cities for their years of service this week.
Mayor Phillip Gaskin and City Commissioner Ralph Fisher were each presented with a John Land Years of Service Award from the organization at the city’s most reachen Board of City Commissioners’ meeting.
The award honors those who have served on a city’s board, either as commissioner or mayor, for 20 years or more. Fisher has served on Wewahithcka’ board for more than 20 years, and Gaskin has served as an elected official for the city for 28 years.
Gaskin, who was present at the meeting, was presented with a framed certificate that read “A resolution of the Florida League of Cities, Inc., honoring Phillip Gaskin for 25 years of elected service and presenting him with the John Land Years of Service Award in recognition of his unselfish commitment to municipal leadership and governance.”
Fisher was not present at the city’s meeting to collect his award, though City Clerk Rachel Jackson said she would ensure the award made it to him.
“I want to say on behalf of everybody, we appreciate everyone on the board,” Jackson said after the awards were presented. “You all are a great board to work with and are very supportive.”
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.