Mark and Theresa Mundt don’t want any recognition. They’d much rather go on quietly volunteering at Flat River Outreach Ministries and leaving cookies on neighbor’s front porches without anyone noticing.
However, it’s hard not to notice when the couple has spent more than 30 years volunteering for everything from community to church events. After flying under the radar for so long, the Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce decided it was time to celebrate the selfless contributions of this couple. They did so by naming Mark and Theresa Mundt as the 2020 Lowell People of the Year.
At Home in a Small Town
The Mundts were honored as the 2020 Lowell People of the Year during the Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce Winter Gathering in February. In accepting the award, Mark noted that while the couple are transplants to the community, they can’t imagine a better place to grow roots.
“We moved to Lowell over 30 years ago which means that sometime this year we will have lived half of our lives in Lowell,” he said. “Lowell is not our home town, but it is our home.”
The Mundts took off on a well-deserved vacation after the Winter Gathering, and Lowell’s First Look caught up with them last week to learn more about their service to the community and what they think makes Lowell special.
“It’s a small town, and we’re small town people,” Mark says. He and Theresa came to Lowell for Mark’s job managing the city’s wastewater treatment facility, and they have found there is no place else they’d rather be. “How many communities have Santa on a showboat?” Mark asks. “How cool is that?”
While Mark was working at the wastewater treatment plant, Theresa worked for Lowell Area Schools for more than seven years and then was part of the administrative staff at the Lowell Police Department until her retirement.
30+ Years of Community Service
The very first community project the couple joined was the effort to build the Creekside Kingdom playground at Creekside Park. Since then, they haven’t slowed down.
Mark and Theresa were the first husband and wife members of the Lowell Rotary Club. They have organized fundraisers for the service organization and have traveled to Haiti to deliver water filters on behalf of the club.
Beyond Rotary, they’ve been volunteers for the Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce, Flat River Outreach Ministries, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Little League and the middle school youth group at Lowell’s United Methodist Church. In fact, Mark and Theresa led the church youth group for 20 years.
“Many times after a stressful day, I would look forward to meeting with [the youth group],” Mark says. For many years, the couple’s sole vacation was to take the youth group on a mission trip somewhere in the country.
Mark and Theresa have each also spent time serving on city boards and commissions. Mark is a former member of both the Planning Commission and Lowell Light & Power Board while Theresa currently sits on the Parks and Recreation Commission.
However, when asked what makes them most proud, Theresa is quick to say: “Raising three wonderful children.” The couple’s two sons and daughter are grown, and Mark and Theresa now dote on their three granddaughters whenever possible.
Poster Children for Lowell’s Volunteers
Mark is quick to point out that he and his wife are far from the only people devoting their time and energy to volunteering in Lowell.
“There are literally hundreds of people giving thousands of hours to the community every month,” Mark says. According to Mark, he and Theresa are simply this year’s poster children when it comes to highlighting local volunteers.
While spending evenings and weekends volunteering for various organizations may sound like a sacrifice, Mark and Theresa see it otherwise. “I do not believe life is a spectator sport,” Mark explains. “You get out of it what you put into it.”
In that case, the 2020 People of the Year award is only the icing on the cake. For those who have given so much, the real reward is a life rich in meaning, friendship and the satisfaction of knowing you’ve made a positive impact on the world.
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