Prothonotary seeks re-election; Republican also announces
Joy Schury Ranko, 59, a North Strabane Township Democrat, announced she is running for a second, four-year term as Washington County prothonotary, the person in charge of the office where civil litigation is filed.
Seeking the office on the Republican ticket will be Laura Hough, 59, chairwoman of the West Pike Run Township board of supervisors.
Hough, who lives with her husband, Dennis, in Daisytown, has been an elected township official in since 2012.
She led the development of a comprehensive plan, the codification of ordinances and modernized the police department.
“During my tenure, we have built a great team of citizen volunteers, professional consultants, and employees who serve for the betterment of West Pike Run Township” she said in a news release.
Hough said when she joined the board as a supervisor, the township’s records, facilities and equipment were in poor condition.
“Through my efforts, we have purchased all new equipment, operate in the black and have corrected the record-keeping issues,” she said.
Hough has also worked for Chevron Corp. in the Marcellus natural gas industry and was an outreach specialist for state government assisting the people of Pennsylvania with a variety of issues.
A former flight attendant with US Airways, she now works in the snow sports group at Seven Springs Ski Resort, Champion, Somerset County.
“I will bring much-needed new ideas, fresh enthusiasm and full time attention to the office,” she pledged.
The incumbent said to ensure the prothonotary’s office runs efficiently, she has completed a major update of the case-management computer system and digitization of records, which was paid for by the Act 13 impact fee on unconventional or “fracked” natural gas wells. As part of the project, 978 original and historic dockets were scanned.
Ranko also had the office renovated to provide more computer screens for retrieval of documents by the public and docketing by her staff of 12, with the eventual electronic filing of court cases in mind.
The prothonotary’s office also has been granted permission by the U.S. Department of State to begin the passport application process once she and her staff have completed training.
Ranko is a member of Miraculous Medal Roman Catholic Church, Meadow Lands, and the parish’s Christian Mothers organization. She is past president of the Washington County Council of Democratic Women and former treasurer of Ladies of the Elks Lodge 776 of Washington.
She and her husband, Robert, spent 17 years as volunteers with the Eighty Four Youth Baseball League. She is also an American Cancer Society volunteer. At the courthouse, she has served on the county’s safety and activities committees.
“I look forward to being granted another term so I can continue in my efforts and provide outstanding service to the public and the courts,” she said in a news release.