Municipal Management & Finances: A Primer for Municipal Officials and Other Lay Persons to Help Better Understand the Basics of Managing a Small Community 1St Edition

Dick Neal was born and raised in Sanford, ME and graduated from Sanford High School in 1950. After high school, he attended the University of Maine, majoring in Wildlife Conservation. From 1951 to 1955, he served in the U.S. Air Force as a Radio Maintenance Technician. Upon discharge in 1955, he enrolled at the University of New Hampshire in the Electrical Engineering Program. He graduated in 1959 with a BSEE. Upon graduation, he went to work at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and retired in 1986 after working 27 years as an Electronics Engineer in the Combat Systems Office. During the last 15 years of his career, he served as a Weapons Systems Manager on Submarines managing some of the world’s largest and most complex weapon systems in the world. While working at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, he lived in the Town of Sanford with his wife Rhea where they raised five children. During this same period, he was active in municipal affairs such as the Warrant & Finance Committee and the Planning Board. He was also on the Board of Trustees for the Goodall Memorial Library for 5 years and served on several School Building Committees. In 1987, he moved, with his wife, Rhea, to a 200+ year old farmhouse in Acton on the Milton Mills Road next to the school. In 1989, he was elected as Selectman/Assessor, where he completed three 3-year terms. During his tenure as Selectman/Assessor, he became a Certified Maine Assessor in 1993 and has written many of the Town of Acton policies, procedures and ordinances. He has served on many of the town committees and was the E911 Coordinator for the Town of Acton from 1998 to 2005. From 1998 to 2001, he served as EMA Director for the Town of Acton. He has been the Secretary of the Maine Federation of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association from 2003 to 2010. In 2010, he was elected 2nd Vice President of the Maine Federation. In 1996, he was appointed by the Governor to the Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Advisory Council and served two 3-year terms. He has a wealth of experience with over thirty years of working with various fish and game clubs and 65 years as an angler and hunter. He is a past president of the Sanford/Springvale Fish & Game club and the Associated Sportsmen’s Club of York County. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Saco River Salmon Club and the Three Rivers Land Trust. In 2009, he was elected Vice President of the Saco River Salmon Club.