How The Good Guys Finally Won…
I certainly hope Jimmy Breslin doesn’t mind me swiping the title of his fine, behind-the-scenes book on Watergate, but I can’t think of a better line to sum up the events of this past week regarding embattled Director David Marks and the Hampshire Regional YMCA.
For those of you who haven’t been following closely, here’s what happened (at least from my perspective).
A story broke a few months back that Marks was leaving the Y and Camp Norwich to “pursue other opportunities.” That didn’t smell right to me, but I let it go at that point because I had no reason to believe it wasn’t true.
It wasn’t until a few months later, after I had joined the Y in an effort to get in shape, that I found out, from David, that his departure wasn’t voluntary. He was, in point of fact, being forced out because of a dispute with certain board members who didn’t like his “style.” It was obvious he was tormented by this, and I was more than tormented–I was pissed (1) because it looked like a good guy was going to get run out of a job he was good at because of dirty politics and (2) the cover story that had been put out there was an obvious attempt by someone to cover the board’s ass and make it look like this something other than the slimy move it obviously was.
So, I did what I–and what all good journalists should do–I went after the real story. And lookee, Ma, what I found!
First, it should be made clear that David did NOT ask me to save him or to go after this story, In fact, I think he was nervous that I was going to make waves and they’d force him to leave even earlier. Clearly, this was a scared guy and who could blame him? He needs to work and provide for his family just like anyone else. I assured him I wouldn’t go out of my way to hurt him, but there was no way I was letting this happen without trying to tell the world what was really going on.
As the story began to unfold, I learned that two women–the real heroes of this story, Kara Harper and Margot Zalkind–we’re organizing a grassroots campaign to save David’s job. I set up a time to interview them this past Tuesday, one day after they and their posse were set to appear before the board and plead David’s case. But as I started to think about it more and more, it seemed like the thing to do was to go to that meeting and see for myself what (1) David’s supporters had to say and (2) what was the “real” agenda of some of these board members. I wish I could tell you I came away with a whole lot of insight on the latter, but here’s what I was able to surmise based on that one meeting.
The board president, Kevin Jordan, struck me as a guy who didn’t really seem to have a dog in this fight. I’d heard that he was the mastermind behind this move, but that wasn’t the hit I got off of him. The guy who was the most vocal on this night was former Gazette Publisher Charlie DeRose, who was the most vocal about Marks’ shortcomings and the “style” issues that fueled the board’s efforts to seek a change in directors.
I didn’t speak during the meeting, deciding instead to sit back and listen. I was struck by how concilatory and civilized Marks’ supporters were, even though they clearly felt he was getting a raw deal. The board was equally polite, but I walked out of there with the dominant impression that they weren’t going to be swayed by this 11th hour mobilization–or, at least not enough to reverse their position that Marks needed to go.
Outside the meeting, I interview Harper and Zalkind, as well as a woman from Hadley with a truly touching story about how Marks and the Camp Norwich staff basically saved her son after his father had died of cancer. I took the audio back to WHMP and crafted two short features which I ran the next day on my morning show.
Needless to say, the reaction the next day was somewhat visceral, mainly because people didn’t have the whole story and now they did–and they weren’t happy. By the end of that first day, Jordan made it clear to Marks that the board was reconsidering. The president sent out an e-mail to everyone who was at the meeting saying they would make a decision within 72 hours, but it was pretty clear that they were going to keep Marks, but they needed to do it in such a way that allowed them to save at least a little bit of face.
Flash forward to today, when Marks met with a four-member board subcommittee and worked out the terms of an agreement that allows him to stay both as CEO and Camp Norwich director. When I met him about an hour later, David looked relieved and drained–but still very much employed and looking forward to the future.
He was also incredibly gracious, much more so than, I’m sure, a lot of people would have been. He talked about the opportunity this presented for the Y and the board to make the organization an even bigger part of the community than it already is.
I tried to explain to him how unusual this is to have a resolution like this so quickly, but I’m not sure he cared too much about that. He was just happy to have a job, and thrilled that the board was willing to reposition itself the way it did. And that, to me, is another big part of the story that needs to be told. It’s not often that a board–any board–is willing to recognize when they’ve made a mistake and correct it. More often than not, they’ll dig their heels when challenged by outside forces, but this board was prigressive and smart enough not to go there, and for that they should be congratulated.
David was also effusive in his thanks to me and to our radio station for telling his story, and while I appreciate the props, the truth of the matter is that the real reason he still has a job is because the community stepped up on his behalf. All we did was give that community a voice, which is what we do best, and they took it from there.
Still, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I feel a tremendous sense of satisfaction today. A lot of reporters go their whole careers with no tangible evidence that they’ve done anything to “move the needle” of public opinion in their own community. I no longer have to worry about feeling that way because we did make a difference in the lives not just of one health club director, but an entire community that loves the Hampshire Regional YMCA.
The next time anyone tells me that radio “doesn’t work,” or can’t force real change, I’ll be happy to sit them down and tell the story of how WHMP helped the community save a good guy from a terrible injustice–and left a situation better than we found it, which is what doing this is all about.
Collins