ATTLEBORO
To everything there is a season.
And for Lynne Mendes, as a member of the recreation commission for the last 28 years, those seasons included baseball, basketball, volleyball, horseshoes, tennis and many others.
But now the season has turned for the 70-year-old lifelong Attleboro resident and retired 35-year teacher in its school system.
The new season is about family, so she’s stepping down from the commission, which is a job she’s loved for nearly three decades.
She and husband Steve now have grandchildren, something they thought they may never have, and the couple intends them to be a big part of their lives.
Mendes’ last commission meeting was Feb. 26 when she received a plaque honoring her long and dedicated service.
If daughter Tori and her husband Tony and their sons Cole and Jace lived in Attleboro, Mendes could continue on the commission, but they live far away in Santa Fe, N.M.
Mendes said she spends weeks at a time in Santa Fe and was missing too many commission meetings, so the only right thing to do was give it up.
“It was a tough decision to say the least,” Mendes said.
Meanwhile, her two grandsons, ages 4 and 2, are too special to miss.
“It’s changed our life,” Mendes said of the couple’s grand-parenthood. “It’s a beautiful thing. It’s something I never thought we’d have. If it wasn’t for that I’d still be here.”
Mendes said she will miss the commission and everyone who works for the department.
“It’s a great organization and a great group of people,” she said of the commissioners, Director Dennis Walsh, and the crew that keeps the fields the envy of many. “Those guys have become family.”
She was the secretary of the commission and kept meeting minutes for years.
But she was more than that, Chairman Leo Johnson said.
“Lynne was incredible,” he said. “She took on so many responsibilities and was involved in everything.”
He noted her involvement in the after-school activities at the Bartek Recreation Center on Pine Street, the department’s headquarters. And she was a strong voice for South Attleboro where she lives — in particular, South Attleboro Veterans Memorial Park, which is the hub of recreation in that part of town.
Johnson, who’s been on the commission 23 years, said Mendes was a mentor for him when he first arrived.
“I learned so much from Lynne,” he said. “She’s going to be so missed. Her fingerprints are going to be on the recreation department for years to come.”
Walsh, who’s headed up the department for 16 years, had high praise for Mendes, the third-longest serving commissioner behind former ones Bob Lepper and Richard “Doc” Brousseau.
He described her as “very dedicated” to the youth of the city.
“Lynne is a very compassionate person and always very engaging with our youth,” he said in an email. “In addition to serving on the commission, Lynne volunteered her time at our after school Youth Center as well as overseeing our summer Lego Camps.”
Mendes is also a board member of Friends of Attleboro Recreation and will continue to be.
Like Johnson, Walsh said Mendes was someone upon whom he could rely.
“When I became recreation director 16 years ago I knew right away that Lynne was someone I could count on for guidance and support,” he said. “It didn’t take long for us to become friends as we worked together to improve recreational opportunities for our residents.”
He said many of the upgrades at South Attleboro Veteran’s facility over the past decade were initiatives Mendes pushed for and supported.
But it was not at the exclusion of the needs in the rest of the city.
“Lynne was a strong advocate for all,” Walsh said.
Meanwhile, Mendes said she will continue to keep track of what’s going on with recreation for both the young and the not so young in Attleboro and will speak out when necessary.
And that’s fine with Walsh. “Though she will no longer serve in an official capacity, I know I can rely on Lynne’s wisdom and support as we strive to offer opportunities to young and old alike in the years ahead,” he said.