Contact:
Morgan Schwanky
Michigan Municipal League
(734) 669-6320
[email protected]
www.mml.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 17, 2023
Sault Ste. Marie Mayor Selected as Vice President
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. – Monroe Mayor Robert E. Clark has been named as the Michigan Municipal League’s 2023–24 President.
Clark was selected Board President by the 20-member Board of Trustees during the League’s Convention in Traverse City. The Board also named Sault Ste. Marie Mayor Don Gerrie as Vice President. Gerrie is now in line to become League President in 2024–25.
“Having been engaged with the League throughout my elected career, and to step into this leadership role to help our organization is truly an honor,” said Clark. “I am grateful that the Board has confidence in me to serve in this capacity, and it is a pleasure to be working closely with the League team.”
Mayor Robert E. Clark has served in his mayoral role since 2010 and served one term as councilmember in 2008. Clark was re-elected to his eighth term as mayor at the November election. Prior to holding elected office, he served 30 years with the Michigan State Police, retiring in January 2010 when elected as mayor. He retired at the rank of major as a member of the Michigan State Police Executive Council.
In 2020, Clark was appointed to the League Board of Trustees and previously served as Vice President. He has also served as a member of the Michigan Municipal League Liability and Property Pool Board since 2012 and twice was elected chairperson.
Mayor Clark is a member delegate of the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG), was previously a chairperson (2017–2018) and currently is the chairperson of the Finance and Budget Committee. He also serves on the Regional Review Committee for SEMCOG and was a member of the Access to Core Services Task Force.
In addition to his position as mayor on the city council, he serves on the City Brownfield Redevelopment Authority, Downtown Development Authority, Economic Development Review Committee, Metropolitan Water Pollution Control Board (chairperson), City Employee Pension Board and Post-Retirement Health Care Board of Trustees. Active within the community, he serves as a voting member of the Monroe County Business Alliance, River Raisin National Battlefield Foundation and the River Raisin Watershed Council.
Clark is a graduate of William Penn College, Iowa, and earned bachelor’s degrees in sociology and psychology with a minor in interpersonal relations. He is active in the community and volunteers for the Humane Society of Monroe County, St. Michael the Archangel Church, Commission on the Environment & Water Quality River Raisin cleanup, the Monroe Hometown Holiday Lights Committee as chairperson and other community activities.
Robert and his wife, Valerie, met in high school and have been married for 48 years. He has a passion for genealogy work, having researched his family history and conducted over 30 other family history research projects for friends.
“My experience with the League while attending training, the CapCons and Conventions, and serving on the Liability and Property Pool Board has helped me recognize the great local leadership throughout the League’s statewide membership,” said Clark. “Through our continued unified efforts and collaboration of our diverse perspectives, we can bring about thriving communities across all of Michigan.”
In addition to selecting Gerrie and Clark as the Board Vice President and President, the League membership also elected five new Board members during its annual meeting Wednesday, October 18. The new members are City of Wayland Mayor Jennifer Antel; City of Greenville City Manager George M. Bosanic; City of Farmington Mayor Pro Tem Joe LaRussa; City of Rogers City Mayor Scott McLennan; and City of Hastings Mayor David J. Tossava. All five were appointed to four-year terms on the 20-member board.
The new Trustees join Clark, Gerrie and the other volunteers who remain on the 2023–24 Board: Joshua Atwood, Lapeer City Commissioner; Rebecca Chamberlain-Creanga, Troy City Councilmember; Stephen Kepley, Kentwood Mayor; Valerie Kindle, Harper Woods Mayor; Robert La Fave, L’Anse Village Manager; Raylon Leaks-May, Ferndale City Councilmember; Joshua Meringa, Grandville City Councilmember; Khalfani Stephens, Pontiac Deputy Mayor; Deborah Stuart, Mason City Manager; Keith Van Beek, Holland City Manager; Mark Washington, Grand Rapids City Manager; Stephanie Grimes Washington, Detroit Director of Government Affairs; and Tim Wolff, Lake Isabella Village Manager.
The League Board, and League CEO and Executive Director Dan Gilmartin also thanked the outgoing Trustees for their years of service: League President Barbara Ziarko, Sterling Heights Councilmember; Peter Dame, City of Portage Chief Development Officer; and Carla Filkins, City of Cadillac Mayor.
For additional information, contact the League’s Morgan Schwanky, Content Developer, Marketing and Communications, at (734) 669-6320 and [email protected].
Michigan Municipal League is dedicated to making Michigan’s communities better by thoughtfully innovating programs, energetically connecting ideas and people, actively serving members with resources and services, and passionately inspiring positive change for Michigan’s greatest centers of potential: its communities. The League advocates on behalf of its member communities in Lansing, Washington, D.C., and the courts; provides educational opportunities for elected and appointed municipal officials; and assists municipal leaders in administering services to their communities through League programs and services. Learn more at mml.org.
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