Democratic Nominee

for Trustee

Mary Gillis

honest, hard working, committed to Scio

Along with my regular work for the Township, including putting together the fall issue of the newsletter and helping to set up the new communications module on Township website, I have begun to work on projects in preparation for taking on the role of trustee (with most recent actions listed first):

  • Researching affordable housing options.

  • Registered for Michigan Sustainability Conference, Sep 9-10, Lansing, representing Scio alongside the Township project manager

  • Argued for maintaining current levels of public transportation service and against hiring a “sergeant-at-arms” to police Board of Trustee meetings, during Public Comment, Aug 25, 2026

  • August 12, attended a Parks meeting, where I argued against a new Park rule that would give the Parks director sole control over hunting in Scio parks and preserves.

ALREADY WORKING FOR YOU

Thank you to the Scio voters who brought me to victory in August. As there is no Republican candidate on the ballot, mine will be the only name listed under the category TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE on the November 3 ballot. I’m proud to represent ALL of Scio at the Board table starting December 1.

I am the endorsed candidate of the Washtenaw County Democratic Party, whose new website, MiVoter.org, can be used to find out more about all the Democratic candidates on the upcoming ballot. For a non-partisan view, check out Vote411.org, the website resource from the League of Women Voters. For more about me and what I believe in, the MEDIA resources listed below are helpful.

Since the primary, I’ve been keeping up with goings-on at the Township as usual, and participating in Public Comment at Board meetings. The speech I made on August 11 may be particularly helpful to those wondering how I intend to work alongside current Board members once I am seated. Here is the relevant passage:

I’m here tonight to start the process of mending fences. There can be some hard feelings during the campaign process, but now it’s time to remember that whichever candidate you favored, we were all elected to work together for the good of the township.

In moving from a position of occasional resident-critic to that of elected official, I intend to shift my focus to the things we have in common, so that we can work together for the betterment of the community.

Jillian, we are both motivated by the needs of the Fire Department; you can expect my support for work you do in that area.

Kathy, we are both concerned for the environment, particularly the water of our Township, and the threats posed by dioxane and annexation/ development; you can count on my support for your work in this area.

John, you have spoken passionately about the rights of walkers and cyclists to safety in our streets; you can count on my support for work you do in quest of that vision.

David, I honor the many years of work, the endless meetings you have attended, the sacrifices of time and energy you have given to this Township; I’m ready to learn what you are willing to teach me about getting things done here.

Kathleen, I admire the keen, skeptical eye you cast over the plans that come before this Board, testing them for good sense and the good of the Township.

Ryan, I’m so grateful you stepped into a leadership role in the Township! Your energy, your calm, and your financial savvy are vital to the future of this organization.

And Jessica, who is the most supportive boss I have ever had, the hardest-working and most honest of all leaders, I look forward to following your example of what an exemplary public servant is.

In writing this, I became filled with a calm sense of joy. I urge you all to see what good can come from focusing on what is positive about those with whom you serve. I believe it will help us overcome many of our difficulties. By focusing on our common goal of working for the good of Scio, our past disagreements seem less important--if we are willing to leave them in the past. It is my sincere hope that each of you will likewise take the time to find something in my character, energy, and experience you can work with to improve our township. I promise you, it’s what the people want: seven hardworking, dedicated individuals working together for the betterment of Scio. It’s what you were elected to do. And last week, it’s what I was elected to do as well.

One note: As I explained above, I am the only candidate on the November ballot for the office of Township Trustee. As such, I expect to be elected in November. However, some have complained that I’m out over my skis on this one, so if I were writing this today, I would re-phrase the final sentence (even though, as County Clerk Lawrence Kestenbaum told me, it is “essentially true”).

A NOTE POST PRIMARY WIN

  • Endorsements

    • Clerk Jessica Flintoft

    • County Clerk Lawrence Kestenbaum

    • Treasurer Ryan Yaple

    • Trustee Kathleen Brant

    • Planning Chair Jan Culbertson

    • Pat Stein, civic activist

    • Emily Twanmo, environmental sustainability task force

    • Hob Calhoun, local environmentalist

  • Experience

    8 years with Scio Township. 5 years as Deputy Clerk, running elections. Currently responsible for the Township’s communications including the newsletter, website, social media and press releases. Former therapist at EMU Snow Clinic, freelance book and journal editor and reviewer.

  • Committed to Democracy

    5 years of experience overseeing elections. An active member of one of Scio’s cohousing communities, committed to resource sharing, environmental responsibility and consensus decision-making.

MEDIA

MLive
Dexter Sun Times
League of Women Voters
WEMU Radio

1. Attempt by Dexter City to annex 45 acres of Scio Township. Baker Road Land Holdings wants to build a residential development of up to 119 units on 45 acres in northwest Scio Township, relying on a large capacity well that would draw down as much as 800 gallons of water per minute from the underground aquifer that is the drinking water source for hundreds of residential wells already. (Notably this is greater capacity than the 3 municipal wells Dexter already relies upon.)In 2022 the Scio Township Board of Trustees rejected this plan, so Baker Road Land Holdings went to the City of Dexter with a scheme to annex the site in order to move forward with the development. In December 2025, the Scio Board heard a report from a geologist who indicated that a well of this size would require a recharge field of thousands of feet (where there are already hundreds of residential-sized wells). The expert suggested, at a minimum, installation of monitoring wells to detect potential problems with groundwater levels before they develop. But I say—what would we do if the monitoring wells detected a problem with groundwater recharge after those 119 homes had been built and occupied? Whose rights to the water would prevail? How could we un-do what had been permitted to be done? The fact that this proposal comes with a threat to hundreds of residential wells sets me firmly in opposition to this annexation scheme. 

2. State legislature considering the takeover of local zoning and planning powers. A number of bills are currently being discussed in the Michigan legislature that would remove from local control various aspects of local jurisdictions’ ability to plan and zone their own area. The stated justification is to remove overly-protective zoning laws that prevent housing density. In other words, this is a move aimed at increasing the availability of affordable housing. While I support measures to improve housing affordability, I don’t believe that removing local control over zoning is the way to go about it. What giving up local authority over zoning would accomplish is to negate local expertise developed over generations in favor of a one-size-fits-all plan. Placing authority over local conditions in faraway places is bound to yield poor results. The Board should direct its lobbyist and local representatives in Lansing to vote against these measures.  

3. Data Centers. The arguments against allowing a large data center into Scio Township are many. The effect on water availability, noise pollution, the strain on local infrastructure, the consumption of our land and water with little to show for it in terms of local job creation, all argue against permitting a large data center in our Township. The ordinance governing data centers of all sizes recently created by our Planning Commission, and the coming update to our Master Land Use Plan will stand the Township in good stead in the coming years for managing this challenge.

4. Gelman Plume. The US EPA recently added the Gelman Dioxane Plume to the National Priorities List, making it a SuperFund site after 30 years of local activism. While we are grateful that the many years of efforts by residents and elected officials has finally gotten us access to federal cleanup resources, we must continue to be vigilant in pursuit of this promised cleanup in order to prevent the Plume from reaching the Huron River.

5. Federal attempts to take control of local elections. The latest  evidence of this attempt is the US Department of Justice demanding the ballots from the 2024 presidential election in Detroit. With the DOJ under control of the current president, this demand appears to be a way of undermining confidence in elections as a precursor to rejecting election results the president doesn’t like. The federal government has NO ROLE in elections, and threatening the security of election materials is just more bullying by the head of a party that fears the outcome of a free and fair election. I stand with Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Attorney General Dana Nessel, and Governor Gretchen Whitmer in opposing this and all attempts to interfere with local control over elections.  

6. ICE raids and federal lawsuit against Washtenaw County.  Sheriff Alyshia Dyer was elected in 2024 on a platform that included non-cooperation with ICE operations, which are a matter of federal law enforcement, not local. According to the Sheriff’s position paper on this topic: “Sheriff’s Office employees shall not use Sheriff’s Office resources to enforce federal immigration law or assist in immigration related matters.” Given the unleashed savagery of the current ICE division of Homeland Security, I believe that Washtenaw County residents rather need the police to protect them FROM ICE agents than cooperate with them. The current legal actions taken by the US DOJ against Washtenaw County and its chief law enforcement officials, Sheriff Dyer and Prosecuting Attorney Eli Savit, are more bullying by this federal administration, and we all know what to do with bullies: stand up to them!

As I see it, the top issues for the Scio Township Board of Trustees at this time are:

  1. Attempt by Dexter City to annex 45 acres of Scio Township

  2. State legislature considering the takeover of local zoning and planning powers

  3. Data Centers

  4. Gelman Plume

  5. Federal attempts to take control of local elections

  6. ICE raids and federal lawsuit against Washtenaw County

Born and raised in a working-class neighborhood in Dearborn, Michigan, Mary was a scholarship student at Henry Ford Community College and Wayne State University, earning a B.A. in English. Her early career was in publishing. She worked for Gale Research and Wayne State University Press before becoming an independent contractor, editing books and journals for a number of academic presses and contributing articles to literary reference books. During this time she was also a freelance book reviewer, and regularly contributed reviews to the Detroit Free Press.  Along came marriage, two kids, graduate school at Eastern Michigan University and a master's degree in clinical psychology. Mary is proud to have worked for 4 years as a therapist to EMU students of all ages before taking a break from work to manage family matters. She returned to work in answer to a call for help with elections from the Township in 2018 and eventually took on the title of township editor and deputy clerk. She currently works part-time as a communications consultant to the Township, editing special projects and the quarterly newsletter as well as writing press releases and social media posts. 

Mary describes herself as an ardent knitter (she has even designed some sweaters!), a lifelong yogi, an early-morning gardener, and a moderately devoted runner. She is inspired by the Stoic virtues of justice, moderation, wisdom and courage, as well as the poetry of Mary Oliver. In answer to Oliver's famous question--what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?--Mary's answer is, "Run for office in Scio Township!"

Meet

Mary

Mary and husband, Steven Gillis at the

No Kings Rally in Ann Arbor Summer 2025