As early as his high school and college years, Mark Bouvier ’72 had two major interests—sports and photography. He played soccer, baseball, and basketball, which provided great exercise and connection with others. When he needed some space for introspection, he’d spend time in his high school’s dark room with his Kodak camera, developing black-and-white film and honing his craft. After graduating from Thomas with his degree in management, he returned to his home state of Vermont, married his wife Deborah, and spent the next 40 years raising a family and enjoying a career as a business manager in the public school system. The demands of parenthood and business kept him busy most evenings and weekends, however, and he had to set something aside to be able to make it all work. Reluctantly, he chose photography.
“Then when my daughter was graduating in 1998 from Stonehill College in northeastern Mass.,” Bouvier said, “I purchased a 35mm camera because I knew I wanted some decent photos of my firstborn on her day of graduation. And then that evolved into digital, and my interest came right back and kept growing from there.”
In 2013, Bouvier received an email from T.J. Maines, the former head coach for the Thomas Men’s Basketball Team, who was hoping to reconnect with alumni players as fans and supporters. Bouvier credits T.J. with helping him realize how he could blend his interests into volunteer service for the College.
“T.J. was so welcoming with how he opened that door for me,” Bouvier said. “I started bringing my camera along to games whenever a Thomas team was in the Green Mountains. It’s been over a decade since it started, and now I just go online, look at the athletics website to see the schedule, and if a game is in Vermont, and I’m available, I’ll go and offer up my photography.”
With a collection of camera lenses and a wealth of knowledge about shutter speed, aperture, and ISO, Bouvier’s hobby is far from amateur. The extensive portfolio on his website includes commissions for Vermont Tourism, family portraits bursting with personality, and stunning landscapes and wildlife photos from around New England. Yet, his sports photography is arguably his most impressive work, with split-second captures of plays at precisely their most critical moment.
“With a sport like basketball or baseball, which I played before,” explained Bouvier, “it’s second nature to me to anticipate what’s likely to unfold in the next 15 seconds. That’s been advantageous for me. Like I can tell they’re going to lob the ball, and I’m going to be ready and focused on that player underneath the basket to get the shot.”
According to his own assessment, Bouvier describes his action shots in sports he didn’t play as a “work-in-progress,” but a lifelong love for learning and appreciation for the talents of others has led to fulfilling opportunities well into his 70s.
“You have to be your own worst critic,” Bouvier advises. “That’s what keeps you striving. I’m always looking around and wondering, ‘What can I learn from somebody else?’”
Learning from others, staying humble, and working hard have always been key components of Bouvier’s approach to life. One of nine children to two working parents, Bouvier understood that his decision to attend Thomas after finishing a two-year program at Champlain College would mean that he was on his own to pay his tuition and living expenses. His friend and fellow Vermonter, Lynn Gardner ‘71, had made a similar journey the year prior, and Bouvier arrived at Thomas with hope that he, too, could thrive at the College. He turned to Ford Grant, Treasurer of the College at the time, who invested in Bouvier and got to know him on a first-name basis.
“I scouted basketball games my first semester, I swept floors in the old auditorium off Silver Street, I worked in the bookstore, and I was an RA my last year,” Bouvier said. “Anything to help pay for college.”
In fact, Bouvier arrived at Thomas the year when the College was transitioning between its building on Silver Street in downtown Waterville to its new campus on West River Road. Classes were held at the former location, but the new co-ed dormitory had just opened on what would eventually be a corner of Thomas’s quad. Students were driven back and forth on the College’s infamous shuttle bus, affectionately nicknamed, “The Skunk.” In between all his jobs, Bouvier played three sports and earned the degree that would set him on his successful career path.
“That’s why, when I had the opportunity to give something back, I felt like I really owe a lot to Thomas,” Bouvier said. “They could’ve said, ‘Hey, sorry, we’ve done all we could do for you,’ but they never closed the door on me. So, after all these years, I thought, ‘It’s my turn now to do something for them.’”
Bouvier makes his photos free and accessible for the Thomas community to use as it wishes. Parents can download and share photos of their kids playing college sports, and Thomas can use the photos for news and promotional materials. Meanwhile, Bouvier is delighted every time he comes across one of the photos, happy to be making a difference.
“A few years back, I noticed a picture they were giving to graduating seniors was a photo I had taken,” said Bouvier. “That was really gratifying. To know that, when they’re choosing a photo to commemorate a special moment for a student, that they’d choose one of my images.”
Bouvier also appreciates other special moments that he’s been able to capture for Thomas since he began volunteering his time and talent. In 2023, he was invited to be the sports photographer during the College’s annual Homecoming and Family Weekend, where he took pictures during the alumni games and captured some beautiful images of the campus in peak fall foliage. He was also present during the Women’s Basketball game when Katie McAllister-Edge (B.S. ‘16, MBA ‘18), a 2026 inductee into the Dick and Betty-Jane Meader Athletics Hall of Fame, scored her 1,000th point for the Terriers.
“That was a really special evening,” Bouvier said. “She scored, and then they stopped the game to acknowledge what she’d just done. Everyone cheered and applauded, and I got to take the photos. That was very special.”
When asked what advice he has for alumni who are considering how to give back to Thomas, Bouvier encourages creativity and openness to how giving back can take many forms.
“Maybe for you, the best gift you can give is the gift of your talent,” Bouvier said. “I had the door opened for me with T.J., but it keeps evolving from there. You never know where that might lead.”
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