NORTHAMPTON — In November’s election, voters will be asked to choose two Trustees Under the Will of Charles E. Forbes, and one Elector Under the Oliver Smith Will.
But what exactly will these elected officials do?
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justice Charles Forbes’ will, dated 1876, left $220,000 to establish the Forbes Library, stressing that “the importance of education of the people cannot be overrated.” The Forbes trustees oversee the library, hiring and evaluating the director, monitoring the finances and approving changes to library policies.
The Oliver Smith elector is Northampton’s representative to an organization called Smith Charities, which donates money to widows and trade apprentices, among others, in accordance with a wealthy Hatfield resident’s 1845 will.
In most city elections, these positions receive relatively little interest from voters and the media, said Marjorie Hess, a Forbes trustee who is not seeking reelection to a fourth term. That was not the case in 2019, though, when the city saw a rather robust race.
Two years ago, Emily Prabhaker — one of five candidates for three seats — won election to the board of trustees, and Joseph Twarog and Katy Wight won reelection. All three challengers received more than 1,400 votes, and the bottom two candidates each came within 172 votes of victory, according to official election results.
“We do serve everybody in the community, and everybody should be concerned with the trustees,” said Hess, who serves as vice president of the board.
All five Forbes trustees serve four-year terms, and the elections are staggered, meaning that two seats are on the ballot this year, while the other three seats will appear on the 2023 ballot.
A yearlong court battle, resolved in 2017, determined that the library is not a city department and that its workers are not municipal employees, and an agreement between the city and the library said the two sides would work together “in a spirit of collaboration and partnership” on maintenance and renovations.
Anti-racism is a major area of concern for the trustees right now, Hess said. The board has established a new Racial & Social Justice Committee and an anti-racism advisory group composed of library and community members.
The trustees approved library director Lisa Downing’s plan to eliminate fines for overdue books. Hess said fines can be discriminatory, and getting rid of them was a social justice issue.
“A lot of libraries are doing this. We first did it for the children’s room, and then we did it library-wide,” Hess said. “The ones who can’t pay for it are the ones it affects the most. … It’s so necessary for children to take out books.”
The trustees present the annual Gertrude P. Smith award to “a community member who has given exceptional volunteer service to Forbes Library,” according to the board’s website.
Hess said the best person to serve as a trustee is “someone who loves the library.”
“It’s been a wonderful experience. I have loved being a trustee,” Hess said.
Trustees president Russell Carrier is running for reelection, and two people — Deborah Sue Bruce and Stanley E. Sherer — have taken out nomination papers, according to the city clerk’s office. If all three candidates appear on the Nov. 2 ballot, the two who receive the most votes will win the seats.
Further, if five candidates are certified for the ballot, the city will hold a preliminary election on Sept. 28 to narrow the field.
The Forbes trustees are unpaid. The Elector Under the Oliver Smith Will earns $10 per year.
Oliver Smith was a wealthy Hatfield resident who died in 1845. Instead of bequeathing his fortune to his family, he used the bulk of it to establish a charitable trust and divided the money among eight communities.
Smith’s family sued, claiming he was insane, and a sensational trial in Northampton determined that the will was legitimate.
Smith Charities, a private nonprofit, administers up to 12 mortgages and uses the interest on its $3.5 million portfolio to give gifts to new brides, widows with children, nursing students, and trade students and apprentices in the eight communities. The organization also donates to Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School every year, and its website says mortgage applicants must have “very good credit” to ensure the gifts continue to flow.
“We operate like a mortgage bank on very conservative terms,” said Smith Charities president David A. Murphy, the 20-year incumbent elector from Northampton. “We’re very easy to deal with. It’s much simpler than a bank. There’s no application fee; very often, there’s no appraisal fee.”
In addition to Northampton and Hatfield, voters in Amherst, Deerfield, Greenfield, Hadley, Whately and Williamsburg choose an Elector Under the Oliver Smith Will. Easthampton children can be beneficiaries of the trust, but voters there do not choose an elector.
Murphy said trade students can sign up for a gift before age 19, and they don’t receive the money until they turn 22; they must submit an annual document stating that they are still in the trades, and the money, Murphy said, is paid for “following through.”
“If you want to be an electrician, we can give you some money. If you go to UMass to get a degree in electrical engineering, we can’t help you,” said Murphy. “That’s the distinction.”
Tradespeople can receive $600 once they start working in their chosen trade. Murphy said the money is designed to cover expenses like tools that employers do not provide. Nursing students can also receive $600 once they earn a degree.
First-time brides are eligible to receive $100 within 90 days of marriage. A widow with children under 18 can receive $300 annually, plus $100 for each child, until the youngest child turns 18 or the widow remarries or moves out of an eligible community.
Applications and full eligibility requirements are available at TheSmithCharities.org. During the school year, Murphy said, Smith Charities holds information sessions at Smith Vocational to let students know about the gifts.
As of Wednesday, two candidates have pulled nomination papers to run for elector. Murphy is running for reelection, and faces a potential challenge from Mary “Mimi” Odgers, who took out papers.
Murphy, a former Ward 5 city councilor, is certified to appear on the November ballot for election to an at-large seat on the City Council. During his tenure as ward councilor, he also served as Smith elector, thanks to a determination from the Massachusetts attorney general’s office that found it was not a conflict of interest because Smith Charities never interacts with a government body.
Murphy said that the attorney general’s determination allows him to return to the City Council while remaining an elector. Smith Charities never holds public hearings and is not subject to the state’s Open Meeting Law.
The electors meet once a year; they choose two electors to serve as trustees on a rotating basis, and the trustees meet monthly with the president to monitor real estate trends and administer the mortgages. The president is chosen every two years. For the electors who are not serving terms as trustees, the only responsibility is attending the annual meeting.
“It’s a cool thing. It’s ancient, it’s chugging along, and people don’t really know what we do,” Murphy said.
Three certified candidates would trigger a preliminary election. Candidates for elector, and the Forbes trustees, must collect 50 signatures from Northampton voters in order to appear on the ballot.
Even though the city charter says the elector is paid $10 per year, Murphy said the only stipend he ever received was for his two-year term as president.
“I have never been paid $10, ever,” he said with a laugh. “The charter says it happens, but it doesn’t. If someone wants this job for the 10 bucks? Hang it up.”
Brian Steele can be reached at bsteele@gazettenet.com.