Bradley manager takes new job River Coalition hires Crooker to serve as executive director

OLD TOWN – The Bradley town manager has been selected as the new executive director for the River Coalition.

Michael Crooker will begin at the coalition on Dec. 13, but he likely will be doing double duty until Bradley hires a new manager.

The town is expected to begin the interviewing process next week, he said.

Crooker is taking over for Shawn Yardley, who, after serving in the position for three years, left the organization in September to accept a position as Bangor’s director of public health and welfare.

The River Coalition is a nonprofit organization that focuses on children and their families in the river communities of Alton, Bradley, Greenbush, Milford and Old Town. Its purpose is to link resources, ideas, energy and experience to foster and support stronger, more caring communities.

The four-person interviewing committee from the coalition considered three candidates and unanimously chose Crooker, according to Bruce Brockway, interviewing committee facilitator and coalition board member.

“I think he was chosen because of his enthusiasm for the position, and his knowledge of business management practices that we felt was an area we needed to strengthen within the coalition,” Brockway said Monday.

“The type of work and the service they provide is of interest to me,” Crooker said Monday.

His work as Bradley town manager for the last 61/2 years has provided him with experience in applying for and managing grants and community development initiatives, he said.

Crooker’s duties at the coalition will include managing grants, which are the organization’s primary source of funding, coordinating community efforts toward substance abuse prevention, and building support for families.

“There are some things that obviously I need to learn in the new job,” Crooker said. He has associate, bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Maine, all pertaining to politics and public administration.

Crooker, 33, lives in Newburgh with his wife, Heather, and their two children, Jack, 4, and Mikayla, 7. He said he was looking to move away from local government, and the position at the River Coalition will provide him with the change of pace he was looking for while allowing him to remain involved in the community.

Crooker said he wants to maintain the programs the River Coalition already provides, while expanding them and building community support.

As for challenges, he sees retaining and increasing community involvement and funding as the two largest hurdles for the organization.

“Maintaining the organization financially, not just relying on grants, but getting funding from other sources as well will be important,” Crooker said.