Executive director of Weld County Department of Health and Environment, Mark Lawley resigns

By Kelly Ragan

Mark Lawley, executive director of the Weld County Department of Health and Environment, has left his position. 

The Weld County Board of Commissioners directed staff to begin a national search, according to a news release. Gene O’Hara, will take on the role of interim director. 

O’Hara has a Master’s degree in Healthcare Administration from the University of Colorado, served as the Chief Executive Officer for North Colorado Medical Center from 2004-2009 and as the Chief Executive Officer for the Colorado Plains Medical Center from 2014-2018. 

Lawley took on the role of deputy director in May 2020, a couple months after the pandemic forced the U.S. into lockdown. Commissioners appointed Lawley to the role of executive director by the Weld County Board of Commissioners in 2021 following the tumultuous departure of former executive director Mark Wallace. 

“It was fully his decision to leave,” said Commissioner Mike Freeman in an interview with the Optimist. “And he’s leaving with all thanks and gratitude for getting us through the worst health disaster we’ve ever seen.” 

While the announcement of Lawley’s departure came Thursday, some health department staff indicate he hasn’t been seen in the office since Aug. 9. Until Thursday, Lawley did not have an out-of-office email set up. 

As of Aug. 17, health department staff knew about Lawley’s absence, but not his resignation. The NoCo Optimist has filed a Colorado Open Records Act request to obtain more details. 

The NoCo Optimist has not yet been able to reach Lawley for comment.

Weld Commissioners didn’t consider anyone else for the role after Wallace’s departure despite receiving nearly 300 applications, according to a report by the Greeley Tribune. 

Previously, Lawley spent 37 years in fire service for Mountain View Fire Rescue in Longmont before retiring in 2017.  He did consulting on strategic planning for a couple years after that. In 2017, Lawley left Mountain View Fire Rescue a year before his contract was up under murky circumstances, according to a report by Colorado Hometown Weekly. The board of directors then voted unanimously to end the contract early after an hour-long executive session.  

Freeman said back in 2020 commissioners knew it could take several months to hire someone for the role, so they recruited Lawley to run the health department. 

“We wanted someone in there we could trust and had full confidence in to do the job,” Freeman said. 

As for Lawley, Freeman said he’s using his three weeks of saved vacation time to finish out his time at the health department. 

While Freeman indicated the move was amicable, Freeman said he didn’t see it coming. 

“I’m disappointed to see him leave, but on the other side, I completely understand,” Freeman said. “I don’t have any doubt that running a health department, especially during a pandemic, is one of the most stressful damn things you can do.”