BOTKINS — The new Botkins Administrator always knew his purpose was to serve. From the military to local government, he knew his place was helping the people.

When Administrator Ryan Piche stepped down to take a new job in Michigan, Randy Purdy was selected to head up Botkins.

“He’s a good guy. This is a good position for him and we’re happy to have him,” Piche said.

Purdy grew up in Wisconsin and went into the army straight out of high school. He spent eight and a half years enlisted and did two tours in Iraq.

“There was a time I wanted to go into (information technology) IT, but during my first tour in Iraq I started picking up books to read and I ended up picking up political theory stuff, thinking they were history books, because I really liked history,” he said.

He started getting interested in governance and the role of government with people and the more he read the more he looked at local government as the closest connection with the people.

“From that point I decided I wanted to pursue a career in public service. I didn’t know exactly where I was going to end up,” Purdy said.

In 2012 he came home and in January 2013 started college.

“I pursed my undergraduate degree in political science with a focus in American governance,” he said. “One of the classes I took was a state and local government course and I realized then that there was this whole field of professional management within local government.”

From that he ended up working on his mater’s degree in public administration with a concentration in local government.

Throughout the time of his master’s degree he worked for Schenectady County, New York, as a graduate management analyst doing budgeting, human resources and other various projects the county managed.

“Then I applied here, and here I am,” he said.

He has a few goals in his new position, including the day to day things like maintaining infrastructure and parks, and insuring the fiscal management is sound.

“Speaking with the mayor and others about the vision of Botkins it’s clear we want to grow. We want to bring in more economic activity, we want to provide more housing for the people who do work here and continue to grow as a community,” Purdy said.

He is a fan of a theory that says when you bring a community together they’re much more capable of solving problems.

“I want to continue to develop those things. Whether it’s through the Botkins Community Club, the historical society, or the churches, through whatever civic organizations that we have and fostering their growth,” Purdy said. “And provide opportunities for new ones to sprout up as well.”

Joining him in Botkins are his wife and daughter, 10-years-old. He also has an 11-year-old son who lives with his mother out of state.

“My whole career has been based on public service and I think this is a great opportunity to continue that and give back, help people and make a difference,” he said. “What a better place to do that than in Botkins.”