Newsmakers 2015: Molly Hood

In less than two years, Molly Hood has become known for her ability to get things done.

From jump-starting the Neighborhood Development Initiative in Cape Girardeau to working with the Transportation Trust Fund, Hood is very involved in what she does.

Until recently, she had worked for the City of Cape Girardeau Municipal Government as assistant city manager and director of development services, but in the past month has transitioned into a new role as deputy city manager.

"I'm looking forward to helping facilitate and having more collaboration between the city's departments," she says. "They do a fantastic job, but I think we can make them even better, high-performing departments with more collaboration and innovation."

Hood's previous role included planning, organizing and directing activities of the planning, engineering, inspections and GIS divisions, as well as the municipal airport, and assisting the city manager. But she never sounds overwhelmed when discussing her responsibilities.

Originally from Carbondale, Illinois, Hood says she worked there before moving to Phoenix for 16 years, but moved back "home" because she missed the Midwest.

"I wanted to be closer to my roots," she says. "And being from Phoenix, you begin to fall in the crowd, and I missed out on all that small-town charm, but Cape is full of it."

Hood volunteers at Old Town Cape, the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce, the American Planning Association and the Southeast Metropolitan Planning Organization.

"The people, this community, has so much pride, and are so willing to work together. People here want to make Cape a great place to be, and that's very, very refreshing," Hood says.