My mother, my inspiration

Mom and Rachel playing the piano together

Today's my Mom's primary election for Orem City Council. We're waiting to hear if she goes on to the general election in November. So I'm thinking about her tonight. She's one of the most inspiring examples ever. I wrote an article about my Mom recently and thought I'd share it in my blog:

When Margaret Black, looks in the mirror today, she sees a svelte, lean body but she didn’t always look this way. Margaret began her married life as one of those lucky young women who never have to diet and can eat anything they want without gaining a pound. But after giving birth to her sixth child, the weight didn’t drop off as it had in the past. Margaret loved eating, or overeating, as she will tell you. As she got older and her metabolism slowed, the pounds began piling on. Giving in to her cravings was literally destroying her health. Finally, Black decided enough was enough and joined Weight Watchers at age 56. The exercise requirement was not a problem as Margaret already walked with a group of friends early each morning but she needed to curb her appetite. Weight watchers taught her portion control and helped her select food that made her feel full and gave her the energy she needed. Over the course of fifteen months, Black, with the help of popcorn and prayer, lost 103 pounds and has kept it off for more than two years. When she completed her weight loss goal, she decided her next goal was to hike Mount Timpanogos and has reached the summit twice since then. Many people told her she probably couldn’t lose weight at her age, but when Margaret Black tackles a project, she goes at it with gusto and doesn’t take no for an answer!

Losing weight is only one of many challenges Margaret Black has taken on in her quest to improve herself, her family and her community. Black’s life illustrates that one person truly can make a difference in her home, community and in the world. When her six children were at home, they were Margaret’s first priority. Margaret had earned a BS Degree in Elementary Education from BYU, but she committed herself to be a “stay-at-home mom” despite the financial challenges her family experienced. Although her husband, Dennis, worked as a university administrator, the family still struggled to make ends meet, so Margaret began teaching piano lessons which allowed her to be with her children while supplementing their income. She sacrificed her own material needs, going years with few new clothes, so the children could have what they needed. As parents, Margaret and Dennis emphasized the importance of hard work and education to their children and all six have completed college and several have graduate degrees.

Since moving to Orem twenty-nine years ago, Margaret has made volunteering in her church and community a major part of her life. When her children were young, she joined the PTA, becoming Windsor Elementary School’s PTA president, and serving as Legislative Vice President on the local, council and region levels. She has also served in many demanding church leadership positions.

Public safety and recreation have been at the forefront of Black’s volunteer efforts. Over the years, Margaret successfully lobbied to obtain needed sidewalks, a crossing guard, a street light and a traffic signal near neighborhood schools. Wishing there was a park in her neighborhood, Margaret decided to take action. There wasn’t any available property where a park could be built so she got her creative juices flowing and worked with school and city officials to envision a park which utilized the school grounds and recreational facilities of Orchard Elementary and Canyon View Junior High and added benches, picnic areas and a walking trail. As chair of the Orchard Park Committee, she spearheaded efforts with the city, neighbors and schools to develop Orchard Park which is now enjoyed by those who live in the surrounding neighborhood.

Bettering and beautifying the community has always been important to Black. When she discovered that Orem planned to install street lights around the city, she served on the city’s street lighting committee and advocated for decorative and functional lighting that would improve the beauty and safety of Orem. She’s particularly pleased that one of the streetlights she worked so hard to promote is sitting in front of her house today.

The citizens of her own community are not the only ones to benefit from Margaret’s hard work. In July 2004, she and her daughter, Emily, traveled to the Village of San Miguel, Ecuador to participate in humanitarian service. Projects she helped with included installing drip irrigation systems, constructing a community/daycare center and conducting a medical clinic. Margaret also utilized her barbering skills learned while cutting her own children’s hair to give villagers needed haircuts.

As her children have grown and married, Margaret has dedicated more and more time to the community as Chair of Orchard North Neighborhood in Action Committee for three years and now as a member of Orem’s City Council. In the neighborhood chair role, she held annual town meetings, established a popular neighborhood service day and picnic and organized a committee of eight district chairs and 75 street captains to address neighborhood needs with the city and promote cooperation between neighborhood schools, businesses, churches, residents and the city. When a position on the city council became vacant, Margaret thoughtfully decided to apply for appointment. When her husband Dennis asked her why she wanted to serve, she replied, “Because I like to make things better.” She didn’t know how she would fare when she discovered that she was vying against nine other candidates. But based on her long-standing record of service and commitment to Orem’s positive progress, she was unanimously approved by the council as their newest member in January 2007. At the time of Margaret’s appointment, Mayor Jerry Washburn said, “She has just been outstanding on every assignment.” Since her appointment, Black has loved working with citizens and city employees to make decisions which positively affect the community. She is now running for election for a four year term.

Margaret Black’s tireless efforts to “make things better” for herself, her family, her community and the world will not end with her weight loss and her job on the City Council. She will continue to serve her family as mother of six and grandmother of twelve. “She’s such an inspiration to me and to my children. Her entire adult life has been one of service and selflessness and she continually finds more she can do to make a difference,” says her daughter Kerri. The future of our community will continue to get brighter as Margaret finds more creative ways to change the world, one act of service at a time.