Retired Navy captain and VA nurse continues public service as Easton election volunteer: "I love it"

Beverly Trenholm is ready to welcome voters, poll pad in hand.  She uses the technology at check-in at the town hall in Easton, Massachusetts.

For the past few weeks, she has been helping people who are voting early. On Election Day, she planned to arrive at 6:15 a.m. and leave, if she is lucky, at 11 p.m. It's a long, fulfilling day she is proud to be a part of. 

"To me, elections are very, very important," Trenholm said. "We the people. It's our opportunity to have a say in our government and how we're governed."

She has volunteered as an election worker for more than a dozen years. In that time, she has witnessed big changes. What used to be a one-day job now requires a longer commitment. Like many election workers, she now begins working in July verifying addresses for mail-in voting in the primary. After a two-week break in September, efforts shift to preparations for the general election including another round of mail-in voting and early in-person voting at the town hall.  

Trenholm works anywhere from one to five days a week. She wouldn't have it any other way. 

"I love it," she said smiling. She enjoys the time she spends with fellow election workers, the voters she meets, and knowing that the election process is safe.  

"To me it's just a continuation of my service to my country," she told WBZ-TV.

Service has defined Trenholm's professional life for decades.  A retired Navy captain in the Nurse Corps, she served two tours of duty. The first was at the submarine base in Groton, Connecticut. Her second tour of duty began in 2006 during the Iraq War troop surge.  She spent a year "boots on the ground" in Landstuhl, Germany treating casualties from Iraq and Afghanistan.

She went into the military as an ensign and worked her way up to commander. She retired from the Navy after 22 years. Trenholm also worked as a nurse at VA Medical Centers in Massachusetts for 30 years.  When she retired from the VA, she knew she wanted to contribute in a new way.  She described election work as the perfect fit.   

Even after Trenholm moved from Easton, she continued to work on elections there with a sense of loyalty, friendship, and gratitude.

"I'm doing this for a community I lived in for 41 years," she said. "I still have connections here. I raised my kids here and I feel I owe them a contribution."  

Town hall in Easton is a historic building, both grand and inviting. Town clerk Danielle Sicard, who currently also serves as president of the Massachusetts Town Clerks Association, said workers logged 230 hours in a single week before the general election. 

"This is where the magic happens," she said, arms extended.

At least in Easton, she said, there is no shortage of election workers, and she is thankful for every one of them. 

"Since COVID we've definitely seen an uptick," she explained. In part, she credits media attention with raising awareness of the job and its responsibilities.  She advises people interested in becoming poll workers to contact their town clerk's office at least a couple of months in advance.  

Volunteers should be registered voters, unless they are 16 or 17 years old. Polling places will often allow a small number of younger workers. Volunteer election workers receive training and take an oath to be faithful and impartial. In some cities and towns, they are offered an hourly wage. Pay is set by each community. In Easton, Sicard said some choose to direct the money they are paid back to the town.

She espouses transparency. Anyone with questions about the process is welcome to see how it works. 

"If you're unsure how something is operating, I know my colleagues across the state would love to have you come and ask the question," she explained. "Take a seat at the table. I'll make you an election worker!" 

She said that when curious people see the checks and balances that protect the process, they're often motivated to become part of it. 

"They become some of our best poll workers," Sicard said.

Trenholm's commitment to the process over many years makes her especially helpful.  

"She has a real appreciation for what we do," Sicard said, "And because we have her on many of my advance teams we have, she really sees the entire process."  

Both women said 2026 is an especially busy election season in Massachusetts because of the nine ballot questions. Trenholm explains to voters, as they arrive, that the ballot is two pages.  

"Voters have a rare opportunity to write laws and change laws in addition to electing candidates they want to have in office," she said. 

Voter Jon Buterbaugh takes it seriously.  Arriving at Town Hall to vote early, the 33-year Easton resident applauded the election workers and his fellow voters who uphold a pillar of democracy. 

"We do our civic duty," Buterbaugh said. "That's what we're here for. We're residents of the town, residents of the country. We have to do our duty."

Trenholm plans to continue fulfilling her duty as long as she is able.  Hers is a meaningful contribution that makes her feel like she is doing something worthwhile. 

"It just makes me feel good that I can ease the path for somebody else to vote," she said.