From the Silver Creek Community Association's Candidate Q&A series, question 1 of 7 What made you decide to run for Area D Director, and what do you hope to accomplish if elected?
Responses
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Dennis LaPierre
I'll be perfectly candid in my answer. I began to get kinda tired of travelling back and forth between Victoria and Abbotsford and home to attend meetings and conduct hearings. I didn't mind the hearings and the several days it often took to afterwards write complete and thorough decisions for which I was well paid, but towards the end of my term, I just want to be home. I thought about Maria's posting about finding people interested in becoming an electoral area director and because I did it before, enjoyed it and did it well, decided to run again. I now have not only the time, but the experience and training to do it again and would enjoy taking the job once again for my community. What is the one thing I'm personally passionate about? It has to be the idea of developing a water storage plan and creating a way for getting it done. The drought situation this year created problems for farmers and ranchers, me included, and things are predicted to get worse. Agriculture is an important economic foundation of this community and it needs to be supported. Having been involved for years on riparian restoration and watershed initiatives and with the two closely linked, I think I would be in a better position to help the Salmon River Watershed Committee to achieve its goals if I was once again part of our local government.
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Jon KozuskaI decided to run after many conversations with quite a few people telling me I should. It took alot of convincing and persuading however I eventually decided it was the right thing to do. Im passionate about community. Ill do almost anything I can to get in there and pitch in. I enjoy doing that and for me until I moved to Falkland, I never really felt "at home", the people, the culture, all of it, ill never be able to fully repay the people in the town that accepted my family with open arm. Its so rare.
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Melanie BeckettI never had any plans to run for the directorship initially. People keep asking me if I know what I'm getting myself into and I mean, I can only guess. I believe that life puts opportunities in front of you so that you can learn and level up. This just seemed like such an obvious opportunity for me to do that. I truly love the rural life and all that goes along with it. There are many parts that require serious gumption and it's amazing meeting all the people around here that get it. It's something to protect, not take for granted. We need a voice at the table to ensure local government actually supports the way of life we cherish. It's hard to pick one thing that I'm most passionate about. I love being a mother, and I think it's one of the hardest things I've ever "gotten myself into". I definitely take parenting, and caring for my family (including my furry family) very seriously. I think honestly, growth is the thing I'm most passionate about. I use kung fu and tai chi as a tool for my own personal growth. I like teaching because I see others also grow in unexpected ways. I love watching kids gain confidence and try new things. I love watching my older adults try something new and outside of their comfort zone. I read books on subjects such as health, psychology, spirituality, economics... I could keep going, but I think you get the idea. I hate feeling stagnant and I get excited about anything that really gives me a fresh perspective.