Mary Collette was elected as an at-large Councilwoman, April 2001 and was re-elected in April 2005. She currently serves as Chair of
the Council’s Community Involvement Committee and is a member
of the Plans & Policies Committee. She is also the City Council
representative to the Sister Cities Board. In addition she is
a member of the Springfield Regional Arts Council Board.
Mary graduated from SMSU in 1978 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts
in Graphic Design with a double minor in Photography and Photo
Offset Printing. That same year, she opened Collette Studios,
Creative Design & Production Services, which she runs from
Old Firehouse #2, Boonville & Commercial. With her husband
of 15 years Paul Parker, she also operates a restoration and rental
business called CPR (Collette Parker Restoration).
Mary is a founding member of Springfield Rotary North, Urban Districts
Alliance, and the Urban Neighborhood Alliance. She is the founder
and past coordinator of Frisco Days History Festival. She currently
serves on the board of Preservation Springfield and the board
of Commercial Club of Springfield. Mary also served on the board
of the Midtown Neighborhood Association and the Springfield Counseling
Center Board. She is a past chair of the Historic District Review
Board, now known as the Landmarks Board.
Mary’s efforts writing Community Development Block Grants
for the Commercial Street Historic District have resulted in over
half-a-million dollars in streetscaping and landscaping. She also
partnered with Springfield’s Public Works Department to
help secure around $750,000 in state, federal and CDBG funding
for restoration of the Jefferson Avenue Footbridge. In 1999, Mary
received the Gift of Time Award in Arts & Culture for her
many years of community service.
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