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Sweeney Continues Tradition of Service

By Kathy Ferrari
Staff Writer
6/17/10
His dedicated stride says it all.

Newly elected Selectman Bob Sweeney is still out on the streets, trying to run, admittedly with a labored gait. In his younger days, he was a marathoner, running 13 marathons over the years.

But after three knee operations, running really isn’t an option. He calls himself a broken runner, yet he perseveres, working his same route beginning at Collicot Elementary School, a familiar sight on local roads, pushing on.

It’s all about dedication.

When voters elected Sweeney to the Board of Selectmen in April, it was really just an affirmation of that dedication – of all the hard work he has been doing for decades. Coming from a Milton family, Sweeney has spent many years of his life striving to improve the town he has called home for a lifetime.

“I was encouraged to run for selectman by a number of different people,” Sweeney said, about a month into his new position. “I was slow to decide to run. I didn’t have any plans, but in the end I decided to run because if I didn’t, I wouldn’t feel good about myself.”

He served several terms on the School Committee about 20 years ago. He is also a longtime Town Meeting member, first from Precinct 6, where he grew up, and now Precinct 9, where he currently resides.

In addition, he serves as president of the Indian Cliffs Neighborhood Association, where he lives with his wife Gertrude and their 5-year-old daughter Christina.

“Everything I’ve done in this town, I’ve tried to contribute. I think I got that from my parents,” Sweeney said, citing the influence his mother Gertrude and father Daniel had on him and his siblings. “My father was old-school and all about work. And with their children, they wanted their children to get an education and contribute.”

After two years serving on the Gov. Stoughton Trust Land Committee studying future use of the Town Farm, Sweeney found himself throwing his hat into the Selectman’s race, running against incumbent Kathy Fagan. He was bolstered by those who recognized his diligence in dealing with a hotly debated issue.

The committee filed its report with the town last year, but in the process was found guilty of violating the Open Meeting Law.

“We did not conduct a portion of our business in public like we should have,” Sweeney said. “I was actually pleased that we were found guilty of violating the Open Meeting Law because that, then, ended up with the district attorney ordering my committee to make all our executive-session minutes public and all our e-mails public. I think it’s very good because the public’s business needs to be discussed in public. So I’m all about transparency in government.”

Sweeney has gone on record with his opinion that the land should be preserved for its historic value.

“I feel that property, which is 34 acres in size, is of national historic significance,” he said, noting that several historical preservation groups have also recognized its importance.

The issue was a hot button in the selectman’s race and his victory was seen as an indication of the town’s desire to protect its rural status.

During the race, what some have called a “whisper campaign” was mounted against him, with allegations of perceived racial tensions in town landing in an article in The Boston Globe. The topic is a sensitive one for Sweeney, who taught sixth grade at the James P. Timilty Middle School in Roxbury for more than three decades. Alongside then-Principal Mary Grassa O’Neill, the former Milton superintendent, Sweeney helped the school go from underperforming to being the first inner-city school to receive a national excellence award.

“I stayed positive in the whole campaign. My opponent’s supporters went negative and took words out of context and sent e-mails about me that were totally false and totally not me,” Sweeney said. “I spent 30 years in Roxbury when at any time I could have, if I decided on transferring to a different kind of neighborhood in the city of Boston, I could have done so.”

It is an allegation that still stings.

“That certainly hurt because it was totally false. I consider myself a champion of equality and I’m a follower of Dr. King, and I judge people by the content of their character. And because I do that, the statements that I made were misinterpreted, because I am all about equality. I have the same standards for everybody. That’s the way it is as far as I’m concerned.”

Special education was also an issue. As a former educator and School Committee member, he said, he is sensitive to the needs of all children.

He has spent years working with children in the Learn-to-Skate program. He has been a force behind the program started by his father. Sweeney was 17 when he began helping kids navigate the ice at Ulin Rink. Today, more than 200 children participate.

Sweeney also works on the Cunningham Park program, where he has worked for more than 30 years. He currently serves as the night supervisor.

Now in his mid-60s, Sweeney has seen his personal life change over the past decade. He and Gert were married in 1994, after meeting at the Timilty School. They are raising their daughter, who starts kindergarten at Cunningham Elementary School in the fall.

“I thought I was going to be a bachelor all my life,” he laughed, he laughed, admitting that keeping up with a 5-year-old is a job all its own.

On the subject of fatherhood, he added, “It’s been a great learning experience for me. I’ve learned a lot from [Christina]. She’s been a joy.”

So the future looks bright for Sweeney, and he knows he will need a lot of energy. He has goals in mind for his term as selectman, including issues on both sides of town.

“So far I’ve had a very amicable relationship on the board. The board seems to be working very well,” he said, noting he has known his fellow selectmen, John Shields and Marion McEttrick, for many years.

“The people have spoken, and my message resonated, obviously, with a lot of them,” he said. “I spoke briefly at Town Meeting, and my last comment was, ‘Full steam ahead.’”