MEDIA RELEASE__After nearly seven years of serving the Village of Ada, Fiscal Officer Patty Navin is retiring, leaving behind a legacy of financial improvements, modernization and dedicated public service.

Navin joined the Village of Ada in 2019 after she and her husband relocated to the area in 2016. Looking to return to local government, she brought with her decades of municipal finance experience. Before coming to Ada, Navin served as a treasurer, comptroller, and finance director for two municipalities in Illinois. Earlier in her career, she worked as a public accountant, auditing numerous municipalities throughout the St. Louis area.

Reflecting on her time with the Village, Navin points to several accomplishments that have strengthened Ada's financial operations. Among those are implementing a new account structure to make financial reports easier to read and understand, overseeing the conversion to a fully integrated financial software system, and establishing key financial policies, including general reserve and investment policies.

Throughout her career, Navin has viewed local government as an opportunity to make a meaningful impact on people's daily lives.

"It has been an honor to serve the residents of Ada," she said. "Local government is closest to the people, where you can make the biggest difference."

After serving as Ada's Fiscal Officer for nearly seven years, Navin said the decision to retire comes at the right time. With children living as far away as Switzerland and California, she and her husband are looking forward to spending more time traveling and visiting family, including their granddaughter.

Navin reminisced, "I've worked since I was 9 years old, walking beans for 10 cents a row." After a long and successful career in public finance, she said, "It's time for someone else to take over."

While she looks forward to retirement, Navin said she will miss the people she has worked alongside the most. One thing she won't miss, however, is "long council meetings."

Retirement won't mean slowing down. Navin plans to spend her time traveling, hiking, reading, scrapbooking and enjoying more visits with her children and granddaughter.

Looking back on her career in public finance, Navin notes, "I'm grateful that I was able to make a difference in each of the communities that I served."