Town Council Campaign
Bloomsburg Town Council - Four Year Term
Karen Anselm
Professor Emeritus of Theatre, Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania
Communication, Collaboration, Creativity
My Mission
I am passionate about making Bloomsburg a safer, more livable community, better for families and businesses. I want to be part of positive change in Bloomsburg in support of the efforts to make Bloomsburg a more beautiful, livable town, to attract visitors, and to attract new businesses and support those already in place.
Why Am I Running?
It is a bit of a love story. I came to Bloomsburg in 1985, as a new member of (what was then) Bloomsburg University of PA Communication Studies and Theatre department and to design costumes for Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble. Not expecting to actually stay, I fell in love with the community! Bloomsburg has so much to offer. I found Bloomsburg to be a smart town, artistic and with a real sense of community. It is a community with a good heart. I’ve been here 40 years and counting. We have raised two children here, and now we are active grandparents of two Bloomsburg School District kids (and I want to give back to the community that my husband and I love.
What Makes Me Tick?
As a theatre artist, I have always been connected to the community, focused on clear communication and collaboration, always happy among people who come together to think, create and solve problems. My 35 years of teaching theatre in Bloomsburg has given me lots of experience working on relations between the town and the university, working with organizations, such as Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble and the Women’s Center, on projects such as Flood Stories about our community and our resilience in the face of adversity.
My community activism and volunteerism has included serving on boards such as Columbia Montour Family Health and Action Together NEPA, Producing V-Day for 15 years at Bloomsburg University. I love hearing from my former students who have gone on to successful careers in the arts. Last summer I was honored to play a very small role as a woman activist in a film written and produced by Jimmi Simpson (Westworld, Dark Matter. Black Mirror and lots more). It was a blast! (see film clip and photo of Jimmi Simpson, me and Bob Tevis on film set of Slay) And this summer, I was thrilled to see former student and local son James McMenamin on Broadway playing multiple roles in Gypsy with Audra McDonald. (See photo on set of Gypsy of James McMenamin, me and Bob Tevis).
What Challenges Do I See For Bloomsburg?
My goal on Town Council would be to balance the feeling of history and small community with inevitable growth and changes in the future. We need to be able to plan for a more connected, more diverse, more technologically integrated future for our town. I believe we can nurture that wonderful sense of small town life here and still prepare for the future and if we are smart and think creatively.
Listen to Karen on the Locals podcast
