Downs shines for School Committee

While checking out last year at the Wayland Stop and Shop, Jeanne Downs encountered
a cashier who was convinced that she was someone famous. Jeanne, somewhat amused, 
repeatedly assured the cashier that she was just an ordinary person.
Jeanne Downs, however, is far from ordinary. I have known her as PTO president at 
my children's schools, as coach of my children on the Wayland Junior Warriors (WJW) 
swim team, and as a fellow Masters swimmer at the Wayland Town Pool. She is, in 
fact, extraordinary, when you consider the amount of time and energy that she devotes 
to giving back to our town. Her generosity extends outside of Wayland as well. About 
10 years ago, Jeanne, her husband Ben and their four children moved to a small village 
called Kijabe in Kenya, Africa. For two years, they worked at a missionary school, 
helped out in the business office and served as dorm parents to adolescent girls. Her 
decision to relocate her family to Kenya for two years embodies the spirit of Jeanne 
Downs. She gives back, not only to the students and parents in our public schools, not 
only to the WJW swimmers, but her reach extends to school girls in Kenya as well.
Jeanne is the helm of the Wayland Junior Warriors, a team this past season with 153 
swimmers ranging from kindergarten to 8th grade. I have seen her literally do it all: she 
helps the girls put their caps on, she runs the meets, she coordinates parent volunteers, 
she mentors the high school coaches, she teaches stroke technique and she retrieves the 
suits and goggles that are all too often left behind on the locker room floor. Jeanne sets 
the tone and the expectations of the team: come to practice, work hard, and support and 
encourage your teammates. She emphasizes individual swimmer goals and being a team 
player. Jeanne makes the pool a place where each and every kid in the water can succeed 
in their own way. 
These are precisely the traits desirable in a school committee member: someone 
who knows the school system well as both a parent and PTO leader, someone with 
a long and dedicated history of service, someone who works hard to help others 
succeed, and someone who values hard work and dedication over speed and short-term 
gratification. For these reasons, I hope you'll join me in voting for not-so-ordinary 
Jeanne Downs for school committee on April 1st.