Lee Moss announces candidacy for County Commissioners District 3 seat

Lee Moss, 48, of Bonifay, has announced his candidacy for the Holmes County Board of County Commissioners District 3 seat.

Moss, a Holmes County native, was born in Bonifay at the old Holmes County Hospital. He said he took his very first breath in Holmes County and plans to take his last here also.

Moss further said he is proud to be a property owner and taxpayer.

“There is truly no place like Holmes,” he said.

Moss said he is strongly confident that his educational and professional career has prepared him to greatly serve Holmes County as a commissioner.

Moss is not a newcomer to politics. He was narrowly defeated as a clerk of court candidate in 2012, losing to Kyle Hudson in the August primary. He said now, with more age and experience, he is more prepared to serve Holmes County.

Since 2018, Moss has served the State of Florida as a contracts coordinator II with the Florida Department of Transportation. He currently manages highway maintenance contracts in Washington and Jackson counties, with an annual budget of nearly $7 million dollars.

Some of the duties associated with this are concrete repair, drainage system repair, guardrail repair, thermoplastic striping, landscape installation and maintenance, litter control, and a wide variety of other maintenance functions.

Moss has extensive experience in the contract letting, bidding, award, and execution process. He said his experience in contracts and roadway projects would be a great benefit to the county.

Moss was previously employed with the Florida Department of Corrections (FDOC). In his nearly 15 years with the agency, he served in many different capacities ensuring public safety. This included correctional officer, classification officer, senior classification officer, and government analyst. 

As government analyst, Moss managed the contract between FDOC and the private prison in Graceville.

Moss graduated from Holmes County High School in 1993 with high honors. After graduation, he attended Chipola College and Troy University, becoming a first-generation college graduate majoring in criminal justice and sociology.

While attending college at night, Moss worked full-time managing the local IGA grocery department and delivering ice for Panhandle Ice during the summer. He said he takes great pride in the fact that he worked two jobs to put himself through college, debt-free.

Upon graduation from Troy, Moss started his 25-year career with the State of Florida by accepting a position with the Florida Department of Children and Families. He not only protected the most vulnerable members of society as a family services counselor working in foster care but also served as the revenue maximization specialist.

These duties included securing and managing the federal funding necessary to support the local foster care program. He was eventually promoted to the foster care supervisor for Holmes and Washington counties.

Moss is the son of the late Ventice Moss, Janie Moss Brown, and Ronald Brown. His parents owned the Gulf service station in Bonifay during the 1970s and his mother served on the Bonifay City Council from 1996 until her death in 2003.

Moss has one daughter, Morgan, who is currently a sophomore playing softball at Wallace Community College while pursuing a degree in pharmacy. Together, they established Moose Fastpitch Performance where they train over 60 young athletes.

Moss is a certified pitching instructor with Fastpitch Power and said that one of his greatest joys is working with young athletes.

Moss served many years as a volunteer firefighter with Bonifay Fire-Rescue and has always been an active supporter of local youth athletics. He enjoys attending the early service at Bonifay First Baptist, softball, golf, and the outdoors.