Mathews County administrative personnel dealt with extraordinary circumstances during the past year, leading the administration to award them bonuses at the end of 2022.

Mathews County Administrator Ramona Wilson said that she had requested and been granted a total of $24,000 in bonuses for employees. She said she did not receive a bonus herself.

The bonuses came from the administrator’s contingency fund and were related to a time when a succession of county administrators resulted in extra duties falling on some employees, said Wilson, with these extra duties sometimes requiring that they work longer hours.

A look back at the past year and a half shows that, after July 31, 2021, when former County Administrator Mindy Conner retired, there was a turnover in county administrators that led to staff working under four different administrators before Wilson took over the job in early April 2022.

Former James City County Administrator Sanford “Sandy” Wanner became the interim c...