By Lynn Lovallo, FCCMA former Executive Assistant
With a voice that one ever tires of hearing, great stories have been told to me and others by Earl (Bud) Parmer. Bud is celebrating 50 years of membership with FCCMA; and those of us lucky enough to know him, have enjoyed hearing his stories of the early days of management in Florida. Bud has contributed to the values and purpose of FCCMA in many ways. A man of the highest integrity, he served with and influenced so many in city, county and state government.
FCCMA used to be “managed/administered” out of the current president’s car trunk. Bud, through his friendship with Ray Sittig and appreciation of the Florida League of Cities, was instrumental in having the League assume secretariat responsibilities for FCCMA, which continues today.
FCCMA has Bud’s stories on tape, as no one can tell them as well as he does. He tells of Kissimmee p.d. (pre-Disney) and the buildup of the area with Disney’s influence. He can tell stories of Florida governing, with all the drama of a screen actor, that sound more like the wild west than central Florida. He can talk of early Clearwater years as host of a radio show and stories of all of the interesting people he has met.
FCCMA will be celebrating 70 years of being an organization, though it was not incorporated until later (I believe during Bud’s presidency – 1977 to 1978). The organization has a strong, interesting history that may be lost or never told to the next generations; so it is this writer’s sincere hope that our legacy members will be interviewed and taped to capture the FCCMA story. Members should know how far FCCMA has come and those who influenced how it got where it is today.
Please take a moment to congratulate Bud! His contact information is in the directory.
