Lyn grew up in Vanceboro and Calais, the daughter of a railroad engineer and a nurse. Mark is the son of a minister and a teacher; he was born in Colorado but grew up mostly outside Philadelphia. They met at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and began teaching at Colby College in 1991, excited to be back in Maine and closer to Lyn’s family. They are both Education professors and Lyn is a founder of the Waterville-based nonprofit Hardy Girls Healthy Women.`
CCLC invited Lyn and Mark to be part of an advisory group tasked with creating Transforming Rural Experience in Education (TREE), CCLC’s initiative to create poverty- and trauma-informed schools in Washington County. Their professional focus on education equity and social justice, in addition to Lyn’s roots in Washington County, made them a perfect fit. “We were so taken with CCLC’s vision and its commitment to providing lifelong learning opportunities in Washington County,” they said, “that we jumped at the opportunity.” Lyn and Mark describe their role on TREE’s Research Practice Partnership Team as “some of the most important, interesting, and engaging work we have done in our entire careers.”
““Everything we believe in and care about is encapsulated in the work of this one organization. When we became involved with CCLC, we joined a coalition of people from different walks of life passionate about education, who celebrate the strengths and resilience of this beautiful place and also respect and work to alleviate the challenges and hardships; people who are all in, willing to do what it takes to ensure all boats rise.””
Beyond their considerable professional support, Lyn and Mark have also given a bequest to CCLC: “For us, a legacy gift is a way to ensure CCLC’s work on behalf of Washington County children and youth continues after we are no longer able to show up in support or contribute annually. It’s an investment in something we care deeply about—our way of providing resources to teachers and doing our part to make sure Washington County children have access to healthy environments and a public education that meets their needs.”