Steve Keen named president of Eastern Carolina government panel
By From staff reports
Published in News on February 20, 2011 1:50 AM
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Steve Keen
Steve Keen, a member of the Wayne County Board of Commissioners, has been elected President of the Eastern Carolina Council of Governments.
Keen has served as Wayne County's representative to the council since 2009 and most recently served as the organization's first vice president.
Keen's background as a county commissioner and as a member of the county Planning Board, as well as his service on the Department of Social Services Board and as a past member of the Wayne County Economic Development Commission qualifies him to lead the regional planning efforts of the council, which serves Carteret, Craven, Duplin, Greene, Jones, Lenoir, Onslow, Pamlico and Wayne counties.
The Eastern Carolina Council is one of 17 multi-county planning and development regions in North Carolina.
Authorized by the General Assembly in 1969, North Carolina's Regional Councils bring counties, cities, and towns together to address common concerns on a regional basis.
Councils of government provide the framework for coordinating regional plans, programs, and projects that address common problems and challenges and that achieve mutual goals and objectives.
Major programs of the Council include the Area Agency on Aging, rural transportation planning, economic development, community planning and technical assistance.
As a Navy veteran and past member of the Wayne County Military Affairs Committee, Keen's experience is expected to benefit the council in its efforts to insure regional compatibility between both military and civilian growth.
He currently serves on the Veterans Outreach and Services Task Force of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners.
Keen also serves as a member of the local board of directors for the little bank. He is a member of the Wayne County Chamber of Commerce and past member of both the Greenville-Pitt and Lenoir County chambers of commerce.
He is a former executive board member of the East Carolina University Education Foundation, and has been an avid supporter of the Pirate Club for more than 25 years.
Keen volunteers to serve with the Wayne County Guardian ad Litem program, and assists in weekly worship services at both the Brian Center Health & Rehabilitation and the Sterling House of Goldsboro.