community roles

I spent over ten years as a non-profit director running youth resiliency programs. Throughout the school year, I supervised staff and volunteers that were running programs across the Peace Country. In the summers, I worked at a large summer camp (up to 500 people on property at a time) in various roles including Program Director and Camp Manager. I loved getting to help develop our next generations of leaders while undertaking complex operational activities.

I’m a small business owner that has been a part of starting and growing several businesses in our community. Every one of my businesses has been a partnership and a venture that works closely with other businesses: I value collaboration in everything I do. Whether it is creating fun, community, or jobs for people that struggle to find regular employment, my businesses have always been created around making Grande Prairie a better place to live.

I believe in giving back to our community. I have also been a community volunteer for a number of roles in our community. These include:

• Grande Prairie Disc Golf Club: I founded the Disc Golf Club and led or co-led development of all local courses. My current official role is Treasurer. I also help with the organisation of leagues, tournaments, and new courses.

• United Way Alberta Northwest: Board member. I’m very proud of the organisation’s recent work to become solely focused on addressing childhood poverty in our region.

• Swan City Rotary Club: Member and regular volunteer

• Avondale Neighbourhood Association: I served on the founding board of the Avondale Neighbourhood Association to help build stronger connections between people in my neighbourhood

• Avondale School Parent Committee: With this group, I have especially appreciated work to integrate and assist struggling and new-to-Canada families

• Community Accessibility Advisory Committee: I have volunteered on this Committee which brings together self-advocates and organisations to advocate for greater accessibility in Grande Prairie

• 2018 Alberta Summer Games, 2024 Alberta Winter Games: I ran the Ambassador programs to help give thousands athletes, coaches and parents a strong welcome and amazing first impression of our community

• Disc Golf Association of Alberta: Board member, Zone 8 Coordinator

• Bear Creek Folk Festival: Taking on Volunteer Services roles alongside my family

• Non-Profit Consulting: I am continuing to make myself available to consult with non-profits on leadership and program development, communication, and change management.

For my work in the community, I’ve been honoured to receive the following awards:

• Leading Edge (Chamber of Commerce)

• Sport Builder (Sport Connection)

• Outstanding Citizen of the Year (Association of Volunteer Organizations)

Alberta Municipalities

I serve as a Vice President for Alberta Municipalities (ABmunis). In this role, I have the opportunity to advocate for all municipalities, including the City of Grande Prairie. ABmunis also owns a Municipal Service Corporation that delivers services such as insurance, employee benefits, and energy procurement to hundreds of municipalities and non-profits. By Serving on this Board, I get to be directly involved in making sure that services which our City and many local non-profits require are well priced to maximize our community’s dollars. These are large and complex organisations with very talented staff and Boards made up of professionals from municipal, corporate, and non-profit backgrounds. The experience and networks I build around these boardroom tables have helped me bring governance experience and best practices back to my Council work in Grande Prairie.

Appointments I’ve received from the Alberta Municipalities Board include:

• Audit/Finance Committee (Chair)

• Investment Advisory Committee (Chair)

• APEX Pension Plan Governance Board Board (Chair)

• Risk Advisory Committee (Chair)

• Municipal Governance Committee (Vice-Chair)

• Infrastructure Committee (Chair)

• Executive Committee

• Alberta Municipal Services Corporation Board of Governors

• MUNIX (Municipal Insurance Exchange) Advisory Board

• Municipal Fiscal Health Working Group

• Local Government Fiscal Framework Negotiating Committee

• Minister’s Awards of Municipal & Library Excellence Panel

• Representative to Northern Alberta Elected Leaders and Rural Municipalities Association District 4

 Council Work

The most vital job of Councillors is talking to the community. It is our job to keep you informed about what Council and the City are up to. But more importantly, we need to be constantly hearing about your experiences, concerns, and ideas in order to build a City that works for you. This is why I am always advocating for more and better approaches to communication and public engagement to be implemented. Personally, I spend a lot of my time showing up at community events to chat with people, meeting residents for coffee, and engaging online to talk about my work and hear from you.

I have also been appointed by Council or the Mayor a number of boards and committees to represent Council to other organisations. These appointments have been in addition to my work done with Alberta Municipalities.

Here are my current appointments:

• Investment & Strategy Committee (Chair)

• Financial & Administrative Services Committee

• Police Commission: The governance body of the Grande Prairie Municipal Police Service. Responsible to hire and supervise the Chief, set policing policies and priorities, oversee the budget, and interface between the MPS and Council, the community, and other stakeholders.

• Inter-municipal Collaboration Framework Negotiating Committee: City and County Councillors are appointed to this Committee to negotiate provincially mandated cost sharing agreements between our two municipalities

• Grande Prairie Storm Board: Governance body for the Grande Prairie Storm

• Health Care Task Force: A City working committee made up of Councillors and City staff to guide medical professional recruitment and retention efforts.

Previous appointments I have received:

• CHAIR of Public & Protective Services Committee: An internal Council Committee responsible for advising Council on matters relating to Police, Bylaw, Fire, Community Social Development, Transit, Housing, Recreation, and Culture.

• CHAIR Infrastructure and Economic Development Committee: an internal City Council committee responsible for advising Council on: Economic Development, Engineering & Environmental Services, Geographic Information Services (GIS), Inspections Services, Planning & Development, Transportation, and other matters as referred by Council. This committee is also the deciding authority for some land development processes.

• CHAIR Community Opioid Response Task Force: a task force made up of City departments, provincial organisations, non-profits, and business organisations to address the Opioid crises in Grande Prairie.

• CHAIR Municipal Police Advisory Committee: a Committee made up of mostly public members which gives advice and community input to the RCMP and Bylaw Enforcement. Also provides advice about policing and enforcement to Council.

• InvestGP Committee: A Standing Committee of Council which does work to provide oversight and develop policy for City service areas involved with economic and land development.

• Alberta Winter Games Board: Local organising Committee for the Alberta Winter Games which will welcome thousands of youth athletes and their support people in February, 2023.

• Wapiti Recreation & Trail Management Advisory Committee: A committee struck by the province to help advise area management planning for the Wapiti recreation cooridor.

• Community Living Committee: an internal City Council committee responsible for advising Council on: Culture and Heritage, Eastlink Centre, Fleet, Parks, Recreation and Sport, Revolution Place, Transit, and other matters as referred by Council.

• Corporate Services Committee: An internal Council Committee responsible for advising Council on corporate matters such as budgets, Fiscal Management, communications and Human Resources.

• Financial & Administrative Services Committee: An internal Council Committee responsible for advising Council on matters relating to financial management, legal & risk management, taxation, procurement, and IT.

• Subdivision & Development Appeal Board: hears appeals regarding decisions made by the City's subdivision and development authorities and renders decisions based on the evidence presented.

• Assessment Review Board: responsible for hearing complaints about assessments made on property and businesses.

• Youth Advisory Council: a body made up of youth aged 14 - 24 and two City Councillors. This group exists to give youth voices input into City decisions, develop youth leadership, and to empower youth to work towards positive change in our community.

• Inter-City Forum on Social Policy: an organisation used by member municipalities to share information, network, and undertake advocacy on social issues.

• Joint Regional Emergency Management Committee: provides oversight to a formal partnership setup to allow local municipalities to coordinate their responses to large emergencies or disasters.

• Bylaw & Policy Review Committee: tasked with reviewing City policies and Bylaws and offering recommendations to modernize them

• Avondale Planning Committee: a Committee made up of City Councillors and Public School Board Trustees to plan for future uses of the Composite High School and Leisure Centre lands

• Police Act Review: I attended a number of roundtable discussions to represent the City during a provincial review of the Police Act. These discussions involved police forces, indigenous bands, municipal governments, professional associations, and non-profits from across Alberta.

• Grande Prairie Regional Recreation Committee: this is a group made up of officials from the City, County, MD of Greenview, Sexsmith, Wembley, Beaverlodge, and Hythe. It exists to discuss collaboration on recreation initiatives which benefit our entire region.

• Grande Prairie Regional Sport Connection Board: this non-profit exists to assist and promote local sport groups.

• Mighty Peace Watershed Alliance Board: this organisation receives support and board members from municipalities, first nations, and private industry. It exists to ensure that planning is undertaken to ensure that the Mighty Peace Watershed ecology is properly cared for to maintain its environmental, economic, and social sustainability

• Composite High School Site Planning Committing: A Committee consisting of City Councillors and Trustees with the Grande Prairie School District to help guide future planning for the Composite High School and Leisure Centre lands.