Proclamations and resolutions in support of good causes usually do not create furor or feuding, but in Orange City a different scene played out April 9.

Two proclamations deemed to be in competition with each other — both regarding child-abuse awareness — resulted in the withdrawal of one. A tempest erupted when Mayor Gary Blair and City Council Member Kellianne Marks argued over a behind-the-scenes account of how one of the honors took priority over the other. 

The controversy came against the backdrop of the upcoming campaign, in which Marks is vying to become Orange City’s next mayor.

“Generally, people simply coordinate with the clerk or they contact me, and then I refer them to the clerk. Most of them are just feel-good resolutions, you know, much like this one was, promoting educational policies. It was two groups wanting similar, very similar ones, and one of them bowed out,” City Manager Dale Arrington explained to the council.

The proclamation up for adoption designates April as Child Abuse Prevention Month. The proclamation overshadowed by the other recognizes the new name, Residing Hope, of the former Florida United Methodist Children’s Home in Enterprise.

“I talked with Lisa Burke today,” Mayor Blair began. “She is the director of what used to be the [United Methodist] Children’s Home in Enterprise, and she told me that she was called by one of the council members here, and, uh, felt as if she was bullied —”

“Aw,” sighed Kelli Marks.

“For lack of a better word — into pulling that off the agenda,” Blair continued. “I don’t think it’s appropriate for any member of this council to act independently. We are one council of seven people, and that’s how we should operate. This woman sent me a very long text, also, with four paragraphs or so, saying that she felt intimidated, and she prayed long and hard over her decision to pull that. Personally, I don’t see anything wrong with having two proclamations for child-abuse awareness….”

“But I was quite disturbed by the fact that a council member would take it upon themselves to call and intimidate someone like this,” he went on, “and I would certainly hope that that does not happen again —”

“Since you’re talking about me,” Marks said, “I’d like a chance when you’re done talking —” 

“Please do,” Blair said

“OK — so I did not intimidate her,” Marks said. “I talked to her. She’s a very reasonable lady. I just explained to her that we have done a proclamation for a very long time, and we just wanted a separate one. We just didn’t want to be on the same one. I welcomed her to do her proclamation, also, and I welcomed her to take a picture with all of us and work together on the cause of the child-abuse month and work together to raise money for the cause, because what she had stated to me was, she really didn’t care about a piece of paper, she really wanted to support the cause. And I said, ‘Well, we care about both.’”

“So, I offered to her to work together, and I don’t know why she felt like that,” Marks continued. “And I have texted her after I got a message from her, saying ‘What’s wrong?’ because that’s not what I wanted at all. So I did not bully her. I did not say that, and that’s not true. So I will call her and apologize if I did, because that’s not what I wanted to do. I wanted her to be here tonight.”

The matter did not end there, as Blair followed up.

“Well, her statement to me was the fact that you were making money off this for your VIA [Village Improvement Association] organization, and then she felt intimidated and didn’t want to make it into a political issue because you’re running for mayor next year [sic], and that you might —”

“That has nothing to do with it,” Marks countered.

“Become mayor,” Blair said, finishing his sentence. “I’m just telling what was told to me. OK? And I’m going to end it with this. It’s very inappropriate — ”

At that juncture, the cross-talk becomes unintelligible.

“You’re part of a council here,” Blair told Marks, “not as an individual. And I’m going to leave it at that. If you want to respond —” 

“I do,” Marks said. 

“Go right ahead,” Blair ruled, formally yielding the floor.

Marks referred to an event sponsored by the VIA to aid a domestic-violence shelter.

“I just want to say that 100 percent of the money that we raised for this cause goes for the Beacon Center. It does not go to our club, and it has nothing to do with my campaign. It was not even mentioned, so I don’t even know why that was brought up, but we’ll move on.”

Contacted afterward, Burke declined comment.

“I don’t want to get into it,” she said.

Past episodes of debate — often spirited — between the rivals on the Orange City Council have involved civility and the use of the U.S. flag in political campaigns.

Stay tuned.