Citizen of the Year 2011

After living in Sylvan Lake for four years I was chosen as "Citizen of the Year" by the Chamber of Commerce for the Rotary sponsored award. I was very humbled by this and understood with quiet pride why I was chosen. However, I will always remember that my wife Debbie supports me and encourages me in everything that I do.

Since that time, I have not slowed down.

For our Town

I have been appointed twice by council for public service and elected onto council by the public.

Municipal Services Committee: The first year this committee was formed, the work was very exciting as it included one of the Master Plan phases to obtain input from all of us citizens. I gave feedback, but also facilitated public groups for that public engagement process.

Chair Municipal Planning Commission: I was appointed and also willing accepted the Chair position. As a side note, I have been chairing regular meetings for the last 30 years, from small groups to large AGMs with hundreds of voters. The councillor who nominated me specifically noted my calm demeanour in difficult situations.

For my communities

Soccer Coaching (8 yrs)
Scouting leader (5 yrs)
Wrestling coaching and referee (10 yrs)
Sylvan Lake Community Foundation Chair (3 yrs)
President of Sylvan Lake Seniors Association (2 yrs and ongoing)
Toastmasters (12 yrs)
Food for Learning Board Chair (2 yrs)
United Way Yukon Board (2 yrs)
Fundraising & Events volunteer (too many to count :)
Friends of Sylvan Lake Library secretary, president and director (10 yrs)
Science Olympics events coordinator (multiple years)
Light Haven Society cancer support programs - secretary and treasurer
Ethics, discipline, professional development, finance committees, treasurer, negotiator, for my teaching association (30+ yrs)
I have also taken paid and unpaid leadership (elected) positions for my profession such as President of the Yukon Teacher's Assn and Chair for Yukon Training Trust Fund with the Yukon Government.

For you

I promise you this : You will get your money's worth from me. At 19 years old, my boss said, "Ian works like two". No boss has ever said I work less since.

I will give you the "town councilor work" with the diligence I'm known for, plus I will continue to volunteer with my wife in our community, because I simply love doing it.

Town Council must make most decisions collaboratively, or the council will become dysfunctional. My known ability to collaborate depends on my known ability to listen. I love listening to ideas and finding understanding by knowing the story behind each idea you or I bring forward for the whole council to consider.