Town Meeting is among the most important civic events of the year but also an occasion to pause and recognize the volunteers, employees, and unsung heroes who make the town work year-round.
At Saturday’s meeting, School Superintendent Linda Dwight, who retires in June, was honored by the Select Board and School Committee for 15 years of service, 12 as superintendent. She provided “steady and thoughtful leadership through periods of growth, challenge, and transformation,” including the construction of the new Hildreth Elementary School, Select Board Chair Kara Minar said, reading from a joint proclamation. “We acknowledge her impact on Harvard Public Schools will be lasting.”
The Select Board named Terry Symula its 2025 Volunteer of the Year for more than a decade of community leadership, from her work on the Harvard Schools Trust to organizing the volunteer network that helped Afghan refugee families find housing, schooling, and a foothold in their new country. In the Select Board’s own words, she has made Harvard a more welcoming community.
Brothers Jim and John Lee, named 2025 Citizens of Note, are the kind of volunteers towns run on but rarely stop to thank: modest, effective, and present on nearly every committee that has ever wrestled with land, conservation, or open space in Harvard, in the words of the citation read at town meeting. Saturday was a rare moment in the spotlight for two brothers who have long preferred to keep the focus on their work, rather than themselves.
Finally, every town department head was present at Saturday’s meeting, drawing applause when Select Board Chair Minar called them out. Among them was Liz Allard, completing 25 years as a town employee, who has risen from an administrative assistant role to become Harvard’s conservation agent.
“It’s a privilege to live in this town,” said an emotional Symula in accepting her award. We couldn’t agree more.