I cannot think of a better candidate for Concord’s Select Board than Mark Howell. I’ve known Mark for over 20 years through our church, First Parish in Concord and I would love to shed light on another side of him. You’ve probably heard about his extensive experience and involvement with town government and community projects, but I would like to highlight his commitment to young people and his gifts around collaboration.
Ever since I’ve known Mark he has carved out time to mentor and teach young people. When I was Youth Director at First Parish, Mark mentored youth in our Coming-of-Age program and was always willing to chaperone a youth trip. He works well with young people by quietly modeling honesty and integrity with a dry sense of humor. He continues to work with the youth group at First Religious Society of Carlisle today. His commitment to social justice is a gift he gives young people, exemplified by his ten trips with youth to City Reach, an overnight urban outreach program for young people to learn about homelessness from people who have experienced it.
Mark is authentic and collaborative. He gets the work done in an efficient, competent way without a lot of fanfare. When there are disagreements about how to handle things, he builds bridges by quietly helping groups come to consensus while making everyone feel heard.
A hard worker, Marj never complains and makes work fun. I can’t think of a better person to dig into the hard work that Concord faces as we steward this wonderful town into the future. His passion for working with young people will keep him focused on all constituencies as he builds bridges to help us make a better Concord together.
Mary-Wren vanderWilden
Simon Willard Road