This column serves as a spotlight, highlighting the everyday people who work and live in Callaway County. The Fulton Sun takes a moment with someone who is not usually featured in the news but is just as instrumental in making our community the strong and beautiful place we all know and love.
Jordan McDow just settled into a new job a month ago as an accounts payable deputy clerk in the Callaway County Clerk's office. McDow previously worked for 1 1/2 years in the City of Fulton finance department. A Callaway native, she graduated from Fulton High School in 2010.
McDow - who competed in rodeo throughout high school - teaches horse-riding lessons at Sunset Ranch and Stable in New Bloomfield, including work with individuals who have disabilities. She also previously worked at Dairy Queen and Midwest Veterinary Clinic in Fulton.
McDow has two children - a stepson, Emmett Case, 3, and a daughter, Everly Case, 9 months old.
Q: What was your first job?
I worked at Dairy Queen for 3 1/2 years - I was a manager and also worked the kitchen, front counter and drive-thru.
Q: Who inspires you most?
My grandfather, (the late) Gene Hardin. He was hard-working and put family first, and took care of all of us. He loved horses and wanted me to have everything that came with the horses.
Q: What have you done in your life that has been the most fulfilling?
Probably working in the adult-enrichment program with Callaway County Special Services from 2017-19. Everyone should have to work with a person with disabilities. They don't get to do a lot of the neat things that we get to go out and do, and a lot of them don't have families.
"It's nice to go in and do something different with them every day and see the smiles on their faces.
Q: What is something you are proud of that you have been recognized for?
I made it to nationals in rodeo all four years in high school, with all of the work and determination to get there. I put in a lot of time and travelled a lot of miles. You've got to have family support, like with any sport.
Q: If you can do any job in the world, what would it be?
To go into anything that didn't take eight years of college, I would be a veterinarian. I love working on animals and being a part of that.
Q: What is a job you wouldn't want to do?
I probably wouldn't want to go back to fast food, unless I didn't have a choice.
Q: What is your favorite thing about Callaway County?
This is home to me and where my family and friends are. It's familiar - I don't like change. This is where my roots are.