Denied an opportunity to be supervisor of elections, retired attorney Bruce Childers will instead serve on the Santa Rosa Island Authority Board. County Commissioner Steven Stroberger appointed Childers to the District 1 seat on Tuesday and the Island Authority board swore him into office at its Wednesday board meeting.
The board approved committee assignments during a meeting that lasted only 28 minutes. Childers will chair the operations committee and serve on the development and leasing committee.
Childers lost out on his bid to run for supervisor of elections when he failed to properly file a Form 6 financial disclosure document. He filed a lawsuit against Robert Bender and the Supervisor of Elections Office, but Circuit Judge Jennifer Frydrychowicz ruled in favor of the defense and left him off the ballot.
Form 6 is a full and public disclosure of the candidates’ financial interests including net worth, assets and liabilities valued over $1,000, joint liabilities, interest in specified business, and primary and secondary sources of income.
A board-certified member of the Florida Bar, Childers practiced family law for over 30 years. He served in the state attorney’s office from 1983-89 before opening a private practice in 1990.
He is the husband of County Clerk Pam Childers.
Bruce Childers is one of two newcomers to the Island Authority board. Earlier this month, Councy Commissioner Ashlee Hofberger appointed former Chief Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Timothy to serve as the District 4 representative.
Judge Timothy received the 2019 Distinguished Public Service Award from Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law. She was appointed to serve as a United States Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of Florida in 2004. In 2012, she became the Chief Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of Florida and served continuously until she retired in 2022.