In the public eye: Windham’s new Communications Director settling into new role

Editor’s note: This is another in an ongoing series of Windham and Raymond town employee profiles.

By Ed Pierce

Roger Cropley II is new to his role as the Communications Director for the Town of Windham, but integral to how the public perceives town activities, services and events.

Roger Cropley II is the Town of Windham's
Communications Director and has extensive
experience in videography. He has launched
a monthly town newsletter and is responsible
for developing a cohesive multi-channel
communications strategy for the town.
SUBMITTED PHOTO

He has extensive experience in videography and applied for the communications position when it was created by Windham Town Council members less than a year ago.

“I’ve worked for the town since 2018. I started as a custodian as a way to supplement my freelance video editorial income, and then transitioned to this position when it was created in 2023,” Cropley said. “I had been exclusively a freelancer since 2004, and as my contacts within the area’s advertising community moved on or aged out, I was left with a dwindling amount of work. I still loved and still love editing but it was beginning to become harder to make a living with that alone.”

In his new role, Cropley will be tasked with developing a cohesive multi-channel communications strategy for the town, preparing all communications materials and creating a trustworthy voice while maintaining integrity across all town platforms.

“This is a new position within the town, so my duties are evolving, but they include gathering relevant information from other departments and posting that info to the town’s website and social media accounts,” he said. “I shoot video and stills for town events or other newsworthy happenings within the town and then either create pieces for the new monthly newsletter or for the town’s YouTube channel. I also create promotional material for the town to attract tourism and create business interest in Windham.”

Being a video guy, Cropley says he loves making videos for the town, but creating magazine ads and improving his writing skills due to the demands of a monthly newsletter are certainly highlights of his new job because he enjoys the creative challenges involved with those.

“The most challenging part of the job is two-fold,” he said. “One is staying on top of all the goings on within the town and second is combating the misinformation that always seem to permeate the social media platforms.”

Originally from Lincoln, Maine, Cropley became familiar with the area when he attended Saint Joseph’s College of Maine in 1985.

“I didn’t finish my school there, I transferred to UMaine and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications with a concentration in Broadcast Production,” he said.

During his professional career, he’s edited hundreds of local, regional and national commercials including ads for Maine Tourism, Hardy, Wolf and Downing, and Sylvania.

“I’ve edited a television show for TLC with Maine-based organic gardeners called ‘Gardening Naturally’ and recently, while working as a custodian for the town, two feature films. One was shot here in Maine starring Tom Berenger called ‘Blood and Money’ and another called ‘Dangerous Waters’ was Ray Liotta’s last performance.”

According to Cropley, learning that he had landed this new position has been his most memorable moment in working for the town to this point and what he likes the most about his new job is getting to be creative while learning and disseminating information to the public.

“Since this is a position that hasn’t even been around for a year, I’m not sure people even realize my position exists,” he said. “I hope though that they have noticed an increase in the amount of information that is being put out by the town. I hope that they realize that I am just trying to give them the facts about things happening within this community.”

He said he now has a clearer picture of what it takes to operate a municipality of this size and to keep it running efficiently no matter what the circumstance.

“I guess the most important thing I’ve learned is that running a town is a very complicated endeavor,” Cropley said. “It requires a large and qualified group of individuals using their expertise not only to perform the duties that keep the town moving but also to make decisions that will impact the town for years to come, and that all decisions are made with the intent of adding to the quality of life of Windham’s residents.” <