Editor's note: Mary Marvin is the current Mayor of Bronxville and is running for reelection on March 16, 2021
By Staff
Mar. 10, 2021: Bronxville Mayor Mary Marvin grew up in Watervliet, a small town in Albany County. Watervliet is rich in history dating back to Henry Hudson's arrival in the 1600s. It was incorporated in 1896, has a population of just over 10,000, and is about 1.5 miles square. Her mother was a teacher, and everyone knew her. Her father was the local doctor. She and her sister walked to school and stopped by the candy store on the way home. They knew the shopkeepers and the shopkeepers knew them. It's in Watervliet that Mary first gained an appreciation for living in a small community.
Mary graduated from the local high school and went on to Wellesley College. Mary was always interested in history and politics and when she was a senior in high school, she worked in the office of New York Governor Nelsen Rockefeller during the summer and winter break. She also worked for Rockefeller when he was Vice President under President Gerald Ford. She worked on his legal team, and her boss was Dick Parsons, who years later became Chairman of Citigroup and CEO of Time Warner. This experience piqued Mary's interest in government and the law.
After college, Mary got her law degree at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and went on to practice law at several firms. She also married and had two children, Caroline and Brad.
The Marvins moved to Bronxville in 1989. Caroline went to the Bronxville School and then onto Andover and Yale. She currently teaches neuropharmacology at Columbia University and lives with her husband and two young children in Brooklyn Heights. Son Brad graduated from the Bronxville School and then on to the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School. He is a securities trader at Credit Suisse and lives in New York City.
Not surprisingly, upon moving to Bronxville, Mary immersed herself in the community. She took leadership roles at the Eliza Corwin Frost School, the Bronxville School, the Bronxville School Foundation, the Bronxville Adult School, Bronxville Seniors and friends of Concordia College among others. She joined the village zoning board, which was seeking both a lawyer and gender balance, became a village trustee, and then onto her current role as Mayor.
Mary says that her legal experience had proved immensely helpful in her role as Mayor. It has allowed her to see village challenges from different perspectives and anticipate what problems may arise. One of her favorite things about the job is that she meets people from all different age groups. "Second graders come over every year," she says. She also loves the work environment. The village staff is "some of the finest people I know," she says, "and the work environment is A+."
One of her focuses right now is the downtown area and merchants and making sure the village comes out of the pandemic in good shape.
Mary says she is continually "in awe" of the generosity of the people in Bronxville in terms of time, concern, and financial support of projects such as the recent BXV for BXV program to support local merchants. She loves the job and says that there are always new challenges. "What's most important," she says, " is to keep a fresh eye and be open to new perspectives."
Bronxville Mayor Mary Marvin is running for reelection on March 16, 2021.
Photo courtesy of Mary Marvin
