On a bookshelf in the Clarks’ Dublin home, there is a photo of May Clark hugging a former student at a Dublin Consolidated School graduation.
The nearly decade-old photo is by no means beautiful in its composition, according to husband Tim Clark, but he says the raw emotion captured in that photo shows precisely why his wife was deserving of this year’s Dublin Citizen of the Year award.
“She’s the smartest person I know, and at her core, a lover,” said Tim Clark, of his wife May, who most recently was teaching principal at Dublin Consolidated School from 2004-15. “She’s just a person who is deeply loved in town, even if she never believes it.”
May Clark was announced as the winner of the annual award at Dublin’s Town Meeting on March 18 in front of a crowd of about 100 residents. Almost a week later, May still was “dumbfounded and amazed” that she had been honored by the town for her work in the community.
“I often feel like I’ve gotten a lot of honor and press for the things I’ve done. I don’t understand it,” said May. “I just try to do what I can do.”
Much of her impact on the community has been in the realm of education. In addition to being one of the last teaching principals in the ConVal school district, May also spent a decade on the ConVal School Board, taught for five years at Dublin School and nine years at Jaffrey-Rindge Middle School. She also spent time at the Harrisville School and the Dublin Community Preschool.
“She was so much more than a teacher,” said Genna Weidner, the student featured in the photo on the Clarks’ bookshelf. “She helped me figure out the person I wanted to become.”
Weidner, now a sophomore studying history at UMass Amherst, said she has continued to say in touch with her former teacher despite leaving her classroom almost a decade ago. The two attend the same church and try to get together every time Weidner returns to Dublin.
“She was always there for me,” said Weidner. “She and Mr. Clark would edit my papers in middle school. I don’t ask any more, but I know they would be willing to still do so if I did.”
Working as an educator has been something May has always held near to her heart because she enjoys finding “the light in each child,” and watching them grow over the years.
“I will never get tired of watching a child get excited or figuring something out,” she said.
Of all of her accomplishments throughout her tenure as an educator, May said she is most proud of fostering a connection between the Cornucopia Project and Dublin Consolidated School, which created a garden at the school for all grade levels to learn from.
She is also proud to be a part of an initiative to create summer scholarship opportunities for Dublin students to explore their interests during the summer.
In addition to being involved in a number of educational projects, she has also spent time as a member of the beach committee, conservation commission, and has been heavily involved in the Dublin Community Church, working on almost every committee the church has.
“I think it has provided me with a way to feel connected to the community and the larger world around me,” said May. “There are lots of avenues for me to contribute.”
Nicholas Handy can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 235 or nhandy@ledgertranscript.com. He is also on Twitter @nhandyMLT.