On August 22, Wayne County Commissioners held a eulogy for Mikki Uzupes, Community Network Specialist for Wayne Tomorrow!, a county initiative. She died unexpectedly at home in Hawley on August 15. She was 55 years old.
Commissioner Jocelyn Cramer asked for a moment of silence for her. Uzupes was usually present at commissioner meetings to give reports and take photos after announcements were issued for staff anniversaries and other occasions.
“Mikki’s sudden loss is a huge blow to us here emotionally, practically and to the community. We still learn every day how many other things she was involved in, what she did and how well she did it,” Cramer said.
Uzupes was a longtime local journalist before being hired by the county. He also had a passion for literacy and served as board chair of the Wayne Library Alliance.
She was hired by the county as a digital media specialist on Feb. 13, 2017, and held that position until she took the job at Wayne Tomorrow!, county clerk Andrew Seder said.
“I think she had a lot more in her and a big job ahead of her, so we are saddened by her loss and so is the community,” Cramer said. She explained that it will be “a process to find someone to fill her shoes” at Wayne Tomorrow!
She served as coordinator for “Wayne Tomorrow!”, although Seder stated that she also served as moderator.
Wayne Tomorrow!’s website describes it as “a broad, county-sponsored, community-based collaboration focused on the projects, resources and infrastructure needed to move Wayne County, its people, its culture and its economy into a vibrant future.”
Wayne Tomorrow! has formed working groups to focus on current issues, bring in people with expertise for the task at hand, and continually produce concrete results, the website says. Uzupes has been very active in these groups. The working groups include agriculture, talent and resource development, housing, transportation, community centers, and community health and wellness.
Asked to comment on Uzupes, who chaired the board of the Alliance, Tracy Schwarz, executive director of the Wayne Library Alliance, included seven public libraries throughout Wayne County.
“She was an incredible person who did everything she did with heart and energy,” Schwarz said. “Mikki’s natural curiosity, interest in people and thirst for knowledge made her the perfect advocate for strong library services in our county.”
“She recognized that libraries, especially in small rural areas, are important community centers that should be protected and preserved for future generations,” Schwarz continued. “Her library family is heartbroken, but we also know that her legacy will live on in all the lives she touched.”
Uzupes previously worked as a reporter and later as managing editor for The News Eagle newspaper in Hawley before becoming news director in the Lake Region bureau of Bold Gold Media based in Honesdale before being hired by the county.
Peter Becker has worked at the Tri-County Independent and its predecessor publications since 1994. He can be reached at [email protected] or 570-253-3055, ext. 1588.
