In the public eye: Town of Raymond's Kaela Gonzalez

By Ed Pierce

Kaela Gonzalez has worked for the
Town of Raymond for five years and
wears many hats including assistant
to the town manager, assistant to the
town assessor, and assistant to the
town public works director, along
with duty as the town's communications
director. She says that her job keeps
her connected to the community and 
residents where she lives.
FILE PHOTO  

Editor’s note: This is another in an ongoing series of Windham and Raymond town employee profiles.

When looking at the attributes of an ideal employee, the human resources director for the Town of Raymond certainly hit the jackpot when hiring Kaela Gonzalez five years ago.

In her duties as assistant to Raymond’s town manager, assistant to the town assessor and assistant to the town public works director, Gonzalez also serves as Raymond’s communications director, a position that requires the utmost of tact and diplomacy. She exhibits characteristics employers dream of in an ideal employee such as dependability, honesty and integrity, a positive and proactive attitude, a wiliness to work hard and the ability to use her time productively.

Gonzalez lives in Raymond with her husband and four children, and her versatility working at town hall makes her someone many town departments seek out when they are trying to resolve difficult problems and issues. Among her many tasks on the job are gathering and assembling the town’s monthly newsletter, The Roadrunner, ensuring that the Town of Raymond’s Facebook page is updated frequently, and posting information and articles to the town’s website.

Originally from Owls Head in the mid-coast region of Maine, Gonzalez spent time in the service and hospitality industry as a waitress and then earned a degree in health sciences at the University of Southern Maine.

Moving to Raymond and starting a family, she had an epiphany that led to a career change and a desire to go to work for the town.

“Each time they had an opening, I applied for it,” Gonzalez said. “We had started a family and wanted to root here. I kept on applying and I told them at the time that I would continue to apply for openings until they hired me, and it must have worked because they did.”

She says that one of the best things about her duties gathering material for the town newsletter is that it keeps her in touch with what is going on in the community and the residents who make Raymond a great place to live.

“Working on The Roadrunner keeps me connected to the community for sure,” Gonzalez said. “You truly get to know more people from working for the town. It keeps me engaged in this community in a way that I wouldn’t feel if I didn’t work for the town.”

Her family are usually at community events right there with her, such as during last summer’s backpack program in Raymond, when her children joined Gonzalez in preparing meals for students in need living in town.

“My kids went with me and bagged bags of food right along with me,” she said. 

One of the drawbacks of her service to the town though is many long hours of being on-call.

“As communications director, I need to be available on weekend or at night and that can add up,” Gonzalez said.

But the experience of being able to help residents resolve issues courteously and with professionalism continues to be the guiding factor in how Gonzalez approaches her work each day she arrives for duty.

“I think that even over the phone, people can sense if you are smiling or not,” she said. “I try and handle everyone as if they are a friend. I work for the residents of Raymond and I try to convey that every time I speak with someone on the phone.”

When she does have free time, Gonzalez says she enjoys summer camping trips with her family, being outdoors every chance that she can get and participating in various health and fitness activities.

Gonzalez said she strives to treat everyone she meets in her duties with the town with respect and dignity and how she herself would want to be treated.

“I had a career in the service industry, and I understand the concept of being in the service of others,” she said. “I really feel that it’s important to end a conservation with someone in the community who has asked us a question on a positive note. That’s really why we are here, as I see it. It’s the mission of town employees to help the residents of Raymond.”

She said she’s aware some residents are not always going to be happy in their dealings with the town government, but it is a goal she constantly works at.

“I’m very appreciative to work here for the Town of Raymond and be provided with that opportunity,” Gonzalez said. “I really enjoy coming to work every day. I truly do and I’m proud to serve this town and this community.” <