New Council Thoughts

What a week! I’m very thankful for the support of our community, and to be heading back to work with Council.

Elections are both exhausting and exhilarating. Then on Tuesday at 10am, Council orientation started. It’s been a week of not just wrapping up a campaign and getting signs down, but also getting to know my new colleagues.

Today everything will become official as we get sworn in and start a new term. As we head into it, some thoughts:

• I’m excited to have five new colleagues. My focus of the past week has been getting to know them. I know I’m going to learn a tonne from each of them!

• Some have told me “the results show that Grande Prairie wanted change!” Which is a head scratcher to me. The candidates who I saw most strongly message “big change on Council is needed” did not get elected. Our top two Mayoral candidates were sitting Councillors. And three of the four incumbents running for Councillor finished in the top half of the Council election. 

• Some were telling me this election would be a referendum on the Stonebridge decision. I don’t actually think most voters saw it that way. But if they did, the message was clear: our community supports compassionate, evidence-based responses to homelessness.

• I didn’t purposely  do this. I didn’t even realize I had until hours after I voted when I started counting. But something that happened to me: between Council, Schoolboard, and Senate Nomination I voted for 10 women and 9 men. And two of those men were literally joke candidates (Duncan Kinney and Jhet Thunders). That’s pretty neat that (in my opinion) we had significantly more great women than men running!

• Our last Council also had five new people. And between the newbies, there wasn’t a tonne of big organisation governance experience. I’m thankful that Gladys Blackmore, John Lehners, and Mike O’Connor all bring that. It will help us hit the ground running despite being a big group.

• Wendy Bosch and Grant Berg both also bring a TONNE to the table. For example: over the next couple of years, we need to support small business recovery. And we need to figure out how to capitalize on Downtown Rehabilitation by building a thriving City Centre. Wendy and Grant’s experience will be invaluable.

• Jackie Clayton, Chris Theissen, and Kevin O’Toole are not just colleagues. They have also become good friends and mentors. I’m excited for another four years with them.

• I’m going to really miss working with Eunice Friesen, Yad Minhas, and Wade Pilat. I’m thankful for the lives of service they lead, and know I’ll continue to be in touch with them. The same goes for Bill Given.

• I was thinking about Clyde Blackburn all election day. Him and I often talked about what a second term would look like if we were fortunate enough to get one. I really wish he had been. I look forward to applying what he taught me to a second term.

The next four years are going to be interesting. We’re in for some big challenges as well as significant opportunities. There are going to be some tough decisions in Council Chambers. I’m thankful that I get to be a part of them, and that the community has given me a great team to work alongside.