Radio Concorde Boston gathered dozens of guests on October 17 to honor the city’s Deputy Building Commissioner, Marc Joseph, for two decades of public service and for his work on behalf of the Haitian community
By Manny Paul — Caribbean Television Network (CTN)
Too often, society waits until a person has died to celebrate what they gave. By then, the honor arrives too late—the person being praised is no longer there to feel the gratitude, hear the applause, or know the work mattered. Radio Concorde Boston set out to do the opposite.
On Saturday, October 17, 2026, the station’s board organized a grand ceremony to offer thanks, respect, and affection to a man it considers a pillar of Boston’s Haitian community, while he is very much alive to receive it.
Before several dozen carefully chosen guests, Radio Concorde hosted a retro-themed evening in honor of engineer Marc Joseph, recognizing his long contribution to the advancement of Haitians in Boston.
“It was a very important event for us, and we wanted it to be special for a special man,” said Jean Claude Sanon, a member of the Radio Concorde board, who opened the ceremony. In his remarks, Sanon described Joseph as an exemplary figure — a man who has consistently set his own interests aside in favor of his community’s.
From Saint-Louis-du-Nord to Boston
Marc Joseph was born in the town of Saint-Louis-du-Nord, in northern Haiti, and left the country at around the age of 20. By then, he said in a long and heartfelt address at the ceremony, he had already settled on what he believed was his purpose in life: to help others without expecting anything in return.
He pursued that purpose through engineering. Joseph studied at Wentworth Institute of Technology, one of the country’s well-known engineering schools, earning a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering; he also holds a Master’s degree in City Planning and a diploma in architectural drafting technology, along with several professional certifications, according to his official City of Boston biography. Born and raised in Haiti, he is trilingual in Haitian Creole, French, and English.
Even as a student, Joseph was already working on behalf of his community. At Wentworth, he joined student life and helped establish a student association, an early sign of the organizing instinct that would define his career.
Choosing public service
After his studies, Joseph spent time in the private sector, working for several large companies. But he came to believe that if his work was going to have the impact he wanted, it had to be done in service of the public. He joined the City of Boston as an engineer and, over the years, moved through a series of roles.
His official biography traces that climb: he began at the city some 20 years ago as a building inspector and was later promoted to plans examiner for the Inspectional Services Department (ISD), reviewing plans for new construction, repairs, and maintenance projects across Boston. Today, as Deputy Building Commissioner, he oversees all building-permit and inspection activity, zoning reviews, the hearings and decisions of the Zoning Board of Appeal, and the licensing handled by the Board of Examiners. The division he helps lead includes 22 building inspectors, ten electrical inspectors, and eight plumbing inspectors, all responsible for making sure construction and renovation work meets safety standards.
It is demanding work — hard for him, and hard for the residents and builders who come seeking a permit. But Joseph speaks of the difficulty as an opportunity rather than a burden. “When you walk into my office, you should not leave the way you came in,” he told the gathering. “Many people come in with tears in their eyes and leave with a smile on their face.”
An evening to remember
The guests, dressed for the occasion, filled the room. Joseph attended alongside his wife and other members of his family, surrounded by the community he has spent his life serving. To set the evening apart, Radio Concorde put together a playlist of classic Haitian songs — the hits of an earlier era — that gave the celebration its warm, nostalgic tone.
For one night, the usual order was reversed. Rather than waiting to eulogize a life, Boston’s Haitian community chose to look a living man in the eye and say thank you — a gesture that Radio Concorde and the many who filled the room clearly felt was long overdue.
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