Russell Earl Holmes is an American politician who serves as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives since 2011. He is a Democrat and represents The Sixth Suffolk District of Massachusetts which includes the Boston neighborhoods of Dorchester, Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, Mattapan and Roslindale.
Early life, education and business career
Russell Earl Holmes was born on August 17, 1969 in Mound Bayou, Mississippi. His parents were never married and his father moved to Boston to attend Tufts University after his high school graduation. His mother remained in Mound Bayou and Russell spent most school years in Mississippi and summers in Mattapan. Several of Representative Holmes school years were spent in Boston, where he graduated from Thompson Middle School and Hyde Park High School. Russell stayed in Boston for college and graduated from Boston University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1992. He later received his MBA from Northeastern University in 2000. He currently works as a Certified Financial Planner at Baystate Financial. From 1994 to 2002, Russell worked at Brooks PRI Automation, a $400 million manufacturer of robotics in Chelmsford. He started as an engineer and climbed the ladder into management. While working at Brooks, Russell also owned and operated a small video store in Brookline that he closed in 2004. Representative Holmes also obtained his MBA from Northeastern University and moved into Financial Planning Career in 2004.
Community Service
Representative Holmes purchased his home in Mattapan, and Immediately got involved in public service and civic activism by starting a street cleaning initiative. As a community leader, Russell has chaired the Mattapan Library Task Force and the Mattapan Economic Development Initiative. Representative Holmes teaches Sunday school at the Church of Christ in Roxbury. He has also tutored elementary, high school, and college students on academic and life skills and has served as a Big Brother in Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.
Elected in November 2010, Russell Holmes represents Massachusetts’ Sixth Suffolk District, which includes a portion of the communities of Dorchester, Mattapan, Hyde Park, Roslindale, and Jamaica Plain. Representative Holmes Career Highlights: Vice Chairman in his Sophomore year as a legislator. He also served as Treasurer for the 187th General Court Freshman class and was formerly a member of the Judiciary Committee. Representative Holmes was one of a handful of legislators nationally selected to participate in the Emerging Leaders program at University of Virginia Darden School of Business. He was also member of the Electronic Benefit Transfer Card Commission. Representative Holmes also served as the Chair of the Black and Latino Caucus of Massachusetts. Representative Holmes was also a Member of Public Housing Sustainability and Reform Advisory Committee. He also obtained a Certificate at 2012 Healthcare Summit at Johns Hopkins Medicine. He currently serves on the Joint Committee of Financial Services along with being Vice Chair to the Joint Committee of on Public Housing. Representative Holmes is on the Joint Committee of Election Laws, and the Joint Committee on Ways and Means.
