News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Kari Bertrand works at her desk at the Alpena County Clerk’s office on Tuesday. Bertrand will become county clerk on April 1, but will take her oath of office at a special ceremony on Thursday. She is replacing Bonnie Friedrichs who is retiring after working for the county for 43 years.

ALPENA — The replacement for longtime Alpena County Clerk Bonnie Friedrichs has been announced and will take her oath of office on Thursday when 26th Circuit Court Judge Ed Black swears her in.

Kari Bertrand, the current chief deputy clerk, was chosen to be the new clerk and was recommended by Friedrichs.

She officially becomes clerk on April 1, but needs to be sworn in before then so any accounts, paperwork, and other official business that are in Friedrichs’ name can be changed to hers.

To keep the position beyond the first of the year, she needs to defeat any challengers who run against her in the August primary and November general elections.

Bertrand began to work elbow to elbow with Friedrichs in 2018 and has been able to tap into the 43 years of experience and knowledge of her mentor. She said she has experienced a wave of emotions since her new role was made official. Bertrand said her coworkers in the clerk’s office will play a large role in helping her to do her job to the best of her ability.

“Oh my gosh, I don’t really know what to feel yet. It will be a lot to do but I am ready for it,” Bertrand said. “We are pretty lucky here because we have seasoned employees in the office and they are invaluable.”

Over the last four years since she started to work in the clerk’s office, Bertrand said Friedrichs has been critical to learning the roles and responsibilities of the office and the clerk. She said she couldn’t have had a better mentor than her former boss.

“She has been awesome and she is a wealth of knowledge and there probably isn’t a better person to work with to be better prepared for this role than her,” Bertrand said.

Friedrichs said Bertrand has all of the traits it takes to be a successful clerk. She said Bertrand has grown into the job over the years, and she is confident the position will be in good hands when she retires.

“Kari is energetic, interested in learning, has a mind that soaks up everything I push at her and she is ready,” Friedrichs said. “She is ready.”