Montgomery nominated VBT Clerk Leon Wright for top state award — and he won

No one sees what we do like the people that work with us.
Last August, Joanne Montgomery, Deputy Clerk of Van Buren Charter Township, submitted this nomination of Leon Wright for Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks’ 2017 Township Clerk of the Year award.
And, he won. On July 18 his award was celebrated at the township board meeting. Plaques and acclamations came signed by Governor Rick Snyder, and presented by State Rep. Kristi Pagan and Sen. Hoon-Yung Hopgood, from U.S. Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, and County Commissioner Al Haidous with a proclamation from the Wayne County Commission.
Leon is the Clerk of Van Buren Township. Joanne said she has had the privilege to work with Leon since he was first elected in 2008. Her nomination letter describes many projects and initiatives Leon has brought to fruition.
During his time as Clerk, Leon has received funding from the Belleville Area Civic Fund to provide the high school students with real-life voting experience. Leon transforms the high school into a voting precinct for the Student Council Election. He has ballots coded and uses M100 tabulators for the Student Council Election. High school seniors serve as election inspectors for the election. Leon uses this as an opportunity for recruitment of precinct workers and voter registration of high school seniors.
The Tyler Cemetery has benefited from the donations from the Belleville Area Civic Fund, spearhead by Leon, for improvements of adding fence and replacing the maintenance shed. He has also used highway millings from local road improvement projects to improve access to the cemetery.
Leon is a man with a compassion for helping other people. When a community member was tragically killed, he assisted in raising funds to cover the burial plot. He helps with the Coats of School Kids Program to donate ten coats in each of the six elementary schools in the Van Buren Public School System. Adopting a local family for Christmas is also on Leon’s list. So is helping with relief efforts and donations for community fire victims.
In October you can find Leon’s office decorated to raise awareness of breast cancer. November he honors Military Veterans. Leon has worked with Eagle Scouts to develop signage and place a bench to honor veterans in the Tyler Cemetery. He has also developed and hosted the first Van Buren Township Employee Appreciation Week funded by local businesses and vendors. Free to all residents, Shred Day is another one of Leon’s projects.
In addition to serving his community, Leon is active in the Association of Wayne County Clerks, serving as president. He is a board member of the Michigan Municipal Risk Management Authority. He is a member of the International Institute of Municipal Clerks, Michigan Township Association, and a representative of the Southeastern Michigan Council of Government.
Leon is a member of the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors representing Townships. He has the Certified Michigan Municipal Clerk (CMMC) designation from MAMC and holds the designation of Certified Municipal Clerk (CMC) and is working to obtain his Master Municipal Clerk Designation from the International Institute of Municipal Clerks.
Leon says, “It has always been my goal as Clerk to reach out and engage the community in the voting processes. I take pride in my efforts to embrace young people and involve them…When needs arise in the community I do not sit back and wait for others to take action…and I continue to work on improving my knowledge and skills by attending training in all aspects of my profession.” His Deputy Clerk closed her nominating letter with “I believe his commitment and dedication to the Clerk profession and the community makes him an excellent candidate for Clerk of the Year.”