Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00:00 Sorry. Good morning, Fort McMurray, wood, Buffalo, and the rest of the world. You've tuned into the Mac CD morning show. We're going to start the show off the same way we start every show off with a moment of gratitude. Thank you for tuning into us. I know you could be doing anything else. You could be doing a million other things today. So the fact that you're spending with us truly does mean the world to me. So thank you on that note, Tanner.
Speaker 1 00:00:22 Oh, she caught me loves you're listening to the next <inaudible>
Speaker 0 00:00:31 All right. And we're back. Okay. We got a fun one today. Um, I'm not going to introduce our guests, uh, cause I never do that. Could, they can do a better job than I, but this gentleman is running for mayor. Um, so I'm very excited to have him on the show. We're going to have a great conversation, just like I have a great conversation with everybody. Uh, but on that note, sir, can you please tell everybody at home who you are and what you're about? I'm
Speaker 2 00:00:52 Sandy Bowman. I've been a resident here for Murray for almost 30 years and a small business here for almost 30 years. And I'm currently running from here. There
Speaker 0 00:01:00 We go. Very cool. So that's a big deal. Yes. That's a big deal. Now, before we talk about you running for mayor and your politics and all that stuff, what you stand for, I'm interested to find out of like you've been here for so long. You've always had the business that you ran or did you use to work out at site or like, what's your story here? It's a good story.
Speaker 2 00:01:19 Um, and honestly it's pretty close to a lot of former stories. Um, so in 1993, um, I left my hometown and punish and me and my buddy, actually, we decided on a Friday that we were going to move to, we're going to move out west for Monday. He talked to his buddies in Vancouver. We had a job job lined up in Vancouver. We were pretty pumped. We pumped at PA. We put everything we had into a Honda civic having two bikes and we took them apart. We had everything we owned. We barely had room to sit in the front seat. Um, it took us eight days to get here. Um, we took the long route with New York city. First. There you go. And we went across the Midwest and through there every landmark you could find, we slept at truck stops in the Honda civic or on the ground, stayed in one hotel in, uh, in, uh, South Dakota, somewhere and the holy days.
Speaker 2 00:02:10 And we finally made it here. Um, went to west seven, a mall first first stopped my brother, check that out. Um, and then, uh, we started driving towards Fort Murray, um, after three and a half hours driving, I thought this was when it was single lane road. And I was thinking, where are we going? What are we going to see oil Derrick? And my uncle's house is that all we're going to find out here. We just came here to visit a family. Cause I have a lot of aunts and uncles that had moved here back in the day. And so I ended up forming Marie. Um, the first weekend I met a girl and a first weekend as a family get together. Um, and yeah, so that then kind of wrote itself. And I first got here. I went and went. I wasn't actually, my intention was never to open a martial arts school.
Speaker 2 00:02:53 I've been training quite a bit. Um, before that, since I was nine years old. So the first thing obviously being here and thinking about staying for a little while, I'm going to check out the clubs and I checked them all out and I met some great people on the shorter can karate group, the judo club, martial arts academy of Steve Bergeron, who we're still close friends. There's a Vegas now. Um, and, uh, it wasn't really what I, what I was doing at the time, his Olympic TaeKwonDo. Um, so my cousin, uh, Jason leis and, uh, Joey Lincoln, his whole crowd were like, oh, Sandy's coming to town. They're all excited. I was moving here because I was a black belt. So right away they wanted me to teach them. So I started teaching a couple people at Mac island when Mac island was me. I used to rank one rec room and a multi-purpose room. So that multipurpose room, couple nights a week I taught there. Um, and then just kinda kept building and building and building until it was, that's what I was my, that was when my career turned into.
Speaker 0 00:03:50 That's awesome. So when you're doing the teaching, I'm assuming on the side, what career were you working at it? Um,
Speaker 2 00:03:57 Well really, I just, I need a job. So I looked around so first my buddy, Jamie got on Wilson, construction, cleaning up, uh, the waterfront there where the tire and staples is now. He got a job Wilson construction there. And I went over to Canadian tire and I walked in and a service manager there who I'm still friends with now, today he has his own tire shop. Um, I wasn't even, I just went in there and asked if they were hiring. And he said, uh, what do you know about cars? This? Well, my dad's a mechanic and I helped him in the grass she killed you're hired. Yeah. And that became the parts guy. That's awesome. And then, uh, kind of a mentor, there was Steve Martin. Uh, he was the back parts guy at the time and he kind of showed me the ropes of, of that.
Speaker 2 00:04:36 And then I went on there, worked for Quadro truck after that and some different places. And then they decided it was time to make the jump to just being a small business owner and just doing that alone. And me and my wife sat down and talked about it a bit. And basically we came down to, I want to try it now and don't want to look back in 20 years and say, what if I did? So I just pulled the plug in and went for a hundred percent. And what you see is what we have today.
Speaker 0 00:05:00 There we go. And so the gym is like quite successful. Like there's a lot of you, you have a lot of like children, adults. There's a lot of people coming through your facility.
Speaker 2 00:05:10 Like, honestly, it's, uh, I couldn't have, when I started running my gym as my primary business back in 93, that wasn't something anyone did in the world. This is before UFC. The UFC started that April one. So no one, no one had a martial arts gym as their career. Right. That wasn't now it's, that was quite normal because of the popularity of martial arts. But at the time it was in, you seen that in gymnasiums or graduates, you never seen a facility directly for martial arts where it was someone's career. Um, so it was really a groundbreaking thing and I I'm, I'm happy that I've been so successful and blessed that the city's never give that
Speaker 0 00:05:50 To me. That's awesome, man. So as a trendsetter doing something like that, like it wasn't before, like you said, like, what gave you the idea? What gave you the passion to be like, I think there's something here because there's no blueprint. It's the
Speaker 2 00:06:04 People. Um, and you look back in interviews the last 30 years I've done with radio, with TV, with everything over, even across the world. Um, people ask me about it. It's, uh, it's what I love about this region. It's the people we have, no matter what we have around us. I mean, the people in Fort Murray are the, the best of the best of the best. We've been through ups and downs and everything, but everybody's there to help everybody. And that's what it was me back in the day, I'm like go back to people that help me back back and years ago, when I knew nobody was, uh, Dennis Bertrand was, uh, he stepped up and he was my best man. He was the guy, he was, uh, he helped me out, uh, um, Andy Robinson who passed away a few years ago, these guys had careers, but they seen what I was doing with their children. They were like, Hey, we need to, this is what you need to do. You need to be doing this full time. Right. And so I had a few people like that, that stepped into my life that I'll never forget and I'll pay back every, every chance I get.
Speaker 0 00:07:03 So now you're running from air. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:07:07 That was a big step where my wife had said, don't look back in 10 years. And so, yeah, I wish I had, yeah.
Speaker 0 00:07:12 So that's cool. I wouldn't do it personally. I think like it, it's, it's a big deal. It's a big deal. So as mayor, I guess, or potential mayor, my question to you is first off. Why do you want to do this? And let's start off with the why? Um,
Speaker 2 00:07:26 Well originally my reasons for running from air, the same reasons I have to run for council, um, we need to make some change right now and take us in a different direction and we're going and really happy working for the people. And I want this place here to be here for my kids, for my kids' kids, their kids. I want them to have the same experience I had. I don't, I see the city kind of slipping. Um, and we need to step up and fix that. And my original, uh, was run for council. Um, but after hearing from the people, like I said before, that's my, the golden thing of our work is the people, right? It's not anything else. It's the people that live here. And they came to me, everybody came to me and said, we want you to run for mayor talking to local businesses.
Speaker 2 00:08:10 They were like, we need a leader like you to run for mayor. It wasn't something I took lightly or thought, Hey, I'll just try this. It was, it was a long thought decision. And my first answer was no right. First answer was, but after consulting different businesses and stuff in town and the people calling me, the people coming to me on the street, and this is what we want you to do. And, and my thought, and what I want to change is I want to be evident that our municipality, our mayor and council work for the people. That's my biggest thing. I wanted evidence. I don't want it where there's anything going on that you think is shady. You don't want anything going on that you think is not right. Or you don't. Those are the people, the people don't want. I want it to be obvious that my employer is the people that forward. Marie.
Speaker 0 00:08:54 Okay. Second question. Is, is there any platform that you have? Is there something that like, yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:09:02 I'm not really, I'm not running a platform. I mean, that's, I'm not, I'm doing this for, I'm not doing this for us, but before Marie, I want change. I want, so whenever a, a new council mayor go in, they all sit around and they do a strategic plan and that's a plan of what they want to accomplish the next four years. Right. Which is great. But first thing I want to do is get that. That's going to go on the back burner. I want, there's always been a talk of improprieties for festival funds. First thing, a full forensic audit. Maybe they find something. Maybe they don't, if they don't put that to bed, that's not a thing it's done. Second day, a corporate, a corporate audit of a corporate, uh, like a survey of the employees of municipality. That's something I don't think has been done.
Speaker 2 00:09:52 And I hear from I'm here for a lot of them. This will employees that are, they don't even wanna give me the name. I'm scared of repercussions. So I think there needs to be a corporate culture survey of all the people that work from this palliate, what are the issues like? What are the real issues take that do a citizen survey. Last one was done in 2018. A lot's happened since 2018, 2021 do a citizen survey. What do the people really want? What do they see is lacking? Where do they see the problems are? And take that. Then I want to do a, a, a municipal governance review, get a third party to come in and see how we're, how the Ms. Valley's working, how we're running the city, how the council's working, operating. It's been going the same way for so long. You can get in a rug and doing the same thing over and over again, and getting the same result, expecting different results. Yeah. Isn't going to happen. Right? So I have a third that's my, I want to do that. We have all that data combined. Then we'll sit down to a strategic plan. We know what the people forward Murray want, where the problems are. Um, I've been going to every business in town being here for almost 30 years. I, I know most of the business owners, so I can meet them for coffee, can drop in and see them and see what their issues are. Nice.
Speaker 0 00:11:04 Like it was not a platform. It's just like, that's what you want. That's it. There you go. So, um, okay. We're part of the show. Now it's called the max CD minute 10, or has some questions for you. Perfect. I have no idea what he's going to ask you. So I wish you nothing, but the best luck in with the Mac city minute. All righty.
Speaker 3 00:11:20 Question. Number one. What was the most enjoyable part of getting your international Olympic committee referee certification
Speaker 2 00:11:29 Learning how to use chopsticks? Easy question,
Speaker 3 00:11:33 Question. Number two. What was it like? Fighting butter, being terrifying. Question number three. What was the most memorable moment you've had with a student in your gym?
Speaker 2 00:11:45 Oh, that one's tough. Um, probably achieved their black belt. Uh, when I see the students that you Blackbelt and just whether it's a child or adult, they just look in their face and they're, they're under a surprise and shock that they arrived at to do that
Speaker 3 00:11:59 Question. Number four. What do you think is harder gaining your first black belt or your first run for mayor?
Speaker 2 00:12:07 Definitely. First run for mayor.
Speaker 3 00:12:09 And your final question, what challenges do you think are unique when it comes to being a mayoral candidate in Fort McMurray?
Speaker 2 00:12:17 Oh, the biggest challenge I think is just, uh, being able to get industry province and the people all work on the same page. And those have been your five questions.
Speaker 0 00:12:25 Yo. So we run in the same circles. We have a lot of friends that are mutual. And after being here for this long, yeah. So I was actually with my cousin yesterday and he knew, I said, Hey, Sandy's coming on the show.
Speaker 4 00:12:37 Oh, Sandy's awesome. I smelled roulette
Speaker 0 00:12:39 Wheels. I was just like, all right, I'll ask him about a roulette wheel. Also. Let's hear, I guess you have an awesome story about her. It's just
Speaker 2 00:12:46 A lot of really, um, and I don't advocate gambling whatsoever by the story. I don't really gamble. You can tell by it. So back in the day, when I started training in mixed martial arts, we were going to Vegas. I was training with pat Milton, not used him, Sylvia, Roy, mark, all the guys down in Vegas. So I'd go down and I'd be with my friends. So it was Justin, Adrian, and Jason, Joey, that whole crowd. Um, and I had a thing and I every, they must, I don't know how to play cards for one thing. So I walked by the lot wheel and I take a, I throw it on either red or black and I'd win. So I throw a hundred dollars down, walk in the casino bank, throw a hundred dollars down when I would always walk away. Yeah. And then, uh, we were walking by and another one and I was with Joel link actually. And I parked in red seven, an empty parking lot. And he said, I was going to put it on black, my a hundred dollars chip. And he said, no, I parked in red. Some, put it on, we parked or seven put on red. So I did and I hit with one side of the a hundred dollars.
Speaker 4 00:13:45 Oh, so that was huge.
Speaker 2 00:13:47 Yeah. Uh, the next trip, um, Andre Lawsky is fighting Tim Sylvia. And I was training with Tim Sylvia in the whole crowd at military fighting systems in Iowa. And I kind of knew their, their plan. And I also knew our Lawsky, his kind of plan was to try to wrestle Tim and Tim's plan was the box. And he'd been working on boxing with the boys down there and Tim was away, underdog, Gary lost twice. So he went in there to box and I kinda knew the plan. So I told all the guys, this is what we're going to do. We're going to bet on Tim. We all put in whatever few dollars and we won on jock. Then I've said, Hey guys, this is what we're going to do. We're going to take this winning and throw it on black. No, no, no. We did. And we hit it. Yeah. So those are the good stories with the roulette wheel. And then that I would just walk by and everything. It was became a thing. When I would walk by, we all had to throw a hundred dollars bill on the red or black and win, but I wouldn't stay. I just keep walking, keep walking. That was kind of intrigued everybody else. Cause I had no intention to gambling or just don't have to play cards or anything at all. So it just not a good idea for me. That's
Speaker 0 00:14:44 Awesome. No, Justin was telling me about the same story when you guys literally were just walking by, you threw money on a number and then it hit and everybody goes wild and you're like, okay, sweet. And you just keep walking into the table. It's just like looking like what?
Speaker 2 00:14:59 Yeah, no, that happened a lot in the last I kept walking to you don't remember the ones who went that's right.
Speaker 0 00:15:06 Cool. Will do. Thank you very much for coming
Speaker 2 00:15:08 Today. Really? I appreciate it. Appreciate it. I've been trying to come for a while. Pretty crazy. Oh,
Speaker 0 00:15:13 No doubt. So I tell this to all the guests, so don't feel special about this, but um, if you want to come back again and again, this is something that I'd love for you to come back on. So don't think just because you've come once you can't come again. So if you want to come and chat about anything may be as the candidacy keeps going or your gym, or just be asking myself, Tanner, please feel free to come back as many times as you want
Speaker 3 00:15:36 That you tell him he's not special. We don't try to make anybody feel special. Yeah. Everybody's special. Everybody's special
Speaker 2 00:15:42 Messenger. I thought it was you on Facebook and messenger white player out of the way. So yeah. Or I'll message her. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:15:47 She'll be like, Hey, it happens a lot. It happens a lot. So at the end of the show, um, everybody gets a shameless plug shameless, shout out. So this is your time to shine. Whatever you want to talk about. This is it. So who do you want to say hi to? What do you want to promote obviously? Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:16:02 Yeah. Um, and my mother is actually here first time. I've seen her in two years because of COVID month. Sweet. So say hi to her. She'll be tuning in I'm. Sure. Yeah. And uh, yeah, just, uh, I mean, when I'm not going to tell you who to vote for, I'll see what you vote for me. Um, but just get out and vote. I see a lot of young people when I go out and they're telling me, oh, we can't wait. We're going to where we support you. And I tell them, you need to vote. Oh yeah. I vote every year. I'm like, no, you don't, you need to vote. You need to use your right to vote and get out to vote. Whether it's me or not just get a vote.
Speaker 0 00:16:34 That's awesome, man. Great message. Sweet. Well Fort McMurray, wood, Buffalo, and the rest of the world. That's been another episode of the Mac city morning show. Once again. Thank you so much for tuning in. Really do appreciate it. Um, have a great day and we'll see you tomorrow. Peace. All right. And we're back. Okay. We have a very, very fun guests here today. I'm excited. Um, as you guys know, I do not introduce my guests. I let them do that by themselves, but I will give you a little bit of a spoiler. Um, our guest today is running for mayor. So on that note, uh, can you please introduce yourself and tell everybody who you are?
Speaker 5 00:17:07 Thanks. Thanks for having me this morning. I've been watching the Mac city morning show and listening to it, um, and finding out so much about our communities. Awesome. I'm Verna Murphy. And as you mentioned, I'm currently running for the seats for, for mayor for the entire region of the municipality of wood Buffalo. Um, I'm a mom of three and foster mom of several others that still call me mom and a wife to Tim for the last 26 years. Right.
Speaker 0 00:17:38 Oh, okay. There you go. That's a, that's a big story that you have there. Okay. So before we get into talking about like you running from air and like potentially like what your, your thought is on where Fort Murray should go. The first thing I'd like to get to know about you, um, for the people at home is kind of like who you are, where you're from, why you came to Fort McMurray and like, why are you still here? Like why, why have you decided after all these years to call it home? So let's get a little bit of background on you. Yeah. So I'm
Speaker 5 00:18:04 Originally from Cape Breton, a small village called Mabu Harbor, which, you know, I grew up there. My dad was a fishermen and my mom worked once we got old enough, she went back to work at the local distillery. That actually makes the only single malt scotch in north America. Oh yeah. So it's a really beautiful spot that I grew up in. And, uh, we moved here 15 years ago. Okay. Um, we actually were a family that my husband initially had made the move out and, um, the local paper mill was going through like a lockout and a lot of us were moving at the same time. And so it took a while for our home to sell back there. So initially Tim was out, um, almost a year before us. So he's been here about 16 years and then we followed, uh, the next year and we were a family that once we got here, we, you know, you hear so many people say, you know, they had a three-year plan or a five-year plan. And once we moved here, we knew that this was home. And, you know, we, we still don't really ever plan to, to move back to the east coast. You know, hopefully we'll have some grandchildren and farming Murray eventually, but not too soon.
Speaker 0 00:19:21 Okay, cool. So when you got to Fort McMurray, um, I know you didn't just jump right into politics right away. Um, what did you do when you first arrived here? Yeah,
Speaker 5 00:19:30 Well, actually the first, uh, couple of months that I was working here, I took a job, the quickest job I could get and I actually worked at the registry office. Okay. And, uh, I, it was the downtown location and I was there didn't last a whole lot, like long time as ever, probably seven months. Okay. And, uh, you know, just wasn't a fit for me and the very, very last customer that I ever served. I had let him in before the Christmas break, um, after the doors were locked and he said, so you're, you're leaving this job. Are you going to site? And I said, no. I said, I don't know what I want to do yet. And he said, well, you're informing Marie. Now, if you could do anything in the world, like, what would you do? And I would say, you know, obviously, right.
Speaker 5 00:20:20 Like, and he said, oh, are you a writer? And I said, yeah, I, I worked for newspapers and magazines on the east coast and he kind of started laughing and introduced himself. And it was Tim O'Rourke. Oh, no way. Yeah. And he was the publisher of the forming Marie today, the speaker at the time. And, uh, it took me a couple of days to work up my nerve to actually send him some of my work. And he called me into his office and hired me, like, I think was December 28th of that, that, you know, a week or two after Christmas. So yeah. So I, yeah, Tim was a great mentor to me and, uh, taught me a lot, but my, my most experience and, uh, the thing that I did the most informing Marie was right about every issue and, and write about the region for six, almost 16 years. Cause I had actually started writing about forming Marie before I even moved. Oh, wow.
Speaker 0 00:21:16 That's amazing. What a cool story. You never know. No, you don't like the last customer doors are locked, you know what come in and like it changes the trajectory of your life completely. Wow. That is cool.
Speaker 5 00:21:30 Later. I got, um, the media award of the year. Um, and Tim was there and since passed away from cancer and he was there that night and I get up on stage and I told that little story and uh, you know, when you talk about feet, um, yeah, that man was a real inspiration to me, such a community minded spirit that, you know, just did so much work for forming Mary and he taught me, oh my
Speaker 0 00:22:00 Gosh. That's awesome. That's awesome. Now there's one thing that you mentioned, uh, when you're doing your introduction, um, that you have a pretty large family, but you've had a number of foster children as well. Yeah. I'm fascinated about that for most people that decide like I'm going to bring in these children. Um, tell, can you go a little bit in detail about like how you got into that and why you continue to participate?
Speaker 5 00:22:24 It's kind of a running joke in our house because, um, when I was writing for the forming Mary today, newspaper, I went and I wrote a story about the SPCA had too many dogs and they needed people to come and adopt the dogs. So then I landed home with the dog and then, you know, I had written about, you know, the great need and there still is a great need for foster parents in our region. And we became foster parents. And, you know, I, then I wrote about, you know, the foster kids that were still in the system and they could be adopted. So then we adopted. And so my husband now says, you know, if you're going to write about anything, you should, you should just run the, run the story by me. No doubt. So awesome at the time. Um, and still continuing.
Speaker 5 00:23:15 Yeah. A lot of our children in the region are, are sent at a region because we don't have enough foster parents. Right. And it was, it was, and it's still a concern of mine because, you know, unfortunately when these children are taken out of their homes, there's usually some type of trauma or neglect or, you know, just there might, there's so many different situations. And so, but they still love their mom and dad and their siblings. And when they get sent to Calgary or red deer, um, not only are they being removed from their home, but they're being removed from their friends, their teachers, you know, everything that they really know. Um, so that's why, you know, we got involved and then we adopted Shaylene. She's 12 now. Um, and she was born on Friday night and came home with us on Saturday morning. And, you know, I did palliative care before I came to forming Marie as well.
Speaker 5 00:24:15 Okay. And I find that in both those, um, fields, a lot of people will say, well, why did you get involved with that? It's so hard. And I always had the experience that, you know, if you don't get involved, you know, whose, who will step up. And we always had, um, the love and the ability to do those kinds of things. And in some ways that's what kind of drew me into politics as well. The last couple of years, um, I was really tired of just writing about subjects and I can remember, um, about eight years ago, another counselor at the time had kind of challenged me and said, you know, you're writing about these things. And if you, if you want to make a change in some of the things that you're writing about and feeling frustrated about why don't you put your name forward for counsel? And so I did and I lost.
Speaker 4 00:25:10 Okay, okay. And
Speaker 5 00:25:12 Then, uh, I took that loss as a lesson and I really spent, you know, the next two years working even harder in the community. And I got more involved with the boards and, you know, I, I served with different local social profits through on their boards, um, attended every single council meeting and we're still covering the council meetings at the times as a journalist. And, uh, just started taking other courses and, you know, just trying to gather as much knowledge about the region, but also about municipal government and how it works. Right. And ran again last time and was successful and was able to get onto council. There you go. So
Speaker 0 00:25:56 You've been on council now for some of the hardest times. It's like in regards to, we've had a lot of adversity over the last few years. It's,
Speaker 5 00:26:05 It's been, um, again, a learning experience. Um, I got elected, not that long after the fire. Right. And, um, we were still in our own rebuilds. We actually didn't finish until last February just before COVID hit. And we had the flood of course last year. Um, so, you know, and again, I was writing about all of the issues and covering the council meetings, like right after the fire. Right. And, um, it's been, you know, it's been a lot of challenges the last couple of years, and there's still so much work, you know, I, I still talk to people that are rebuilding since the fire. And so, you know, we still have lots of work to do in the region to, to get through our recovery from, from that, and then the flood, but also from COVID, you know, we've, we've been hit, heard the last number of years in forming Murray from the downturn in the economy as well. So lots of work to do.
Speaker 0 00:27:11 So from counselor now to a run for mayor, why did you decide to make that jump?
Speaker 5 00:27:17 Yeah. Um, I always have been a person that, you know, I've incorporated all my life lessons into everything I do a number of years ago, I had a bone marrow transplant and, you know, I had lost all my hair and, you know, all, all of that experience definitely made me stronger and my husband had been hit by a drunk driver. Um, and you know, we've had a lot of personal challenges, right. Um, but in the last four years being on council, I've really realized, um, a few things about myself and one is that I really had the skillset to be a good leader and, you know, a good communicator. And, uh, I take great pride in the fact that I've been able to work with people that, um, have challenged me and they have taught me lots. Right. And I really feel that given all my experience from being through those hard things, the last number of years of just living in forming Marie, but also my personal experience that I'm just ready.
Speaker 5 00:28:27 You know, I'm ready to step into that role. I'm ready to build a strong team of whoever is elected. Um, I've already been reaching out to all of the candidates who are running, you know, I've had even with, um, those that are running against me for, for the mayor position, I've had some conversations with them as well. So I do take great pride in the fact that I'm always a team, a team player. Um, I do not bring my own ego or agenda to the table and I I'm maybe too much of a hard worker at times. Okay. I have to find some balance there sometimes, but, um, you know, I've, I've worked on every board that I could in the last few years, so that I've been able to gain knowledge about, you know, not just all the different topics in Fort McMurray, but you know, all the different issues that are not just in this within the city, but also in the rural areas.
Speaker 0 00:29:23 Cool. There we go. All right. Now, uh, we here we've come to the part of the show called the Mac city minute. This is Tanner segment. I never know what he's going to ask. So a Tanner here with the Mac city minute.
Speaker 3 00:29:36 All right. Question number one. What is your favorite place in McMurray to enjoy a day out? Oh,
Speaker 5 00:29:44 That's an easy one. It's definitely on the Sinai or any of the rivers. Clearwater Athabaska, um, grew up on the east coast. So, uh, if I can get out for a day of floating or a day on a boat with friends and family here, it's the best way to spend the day.
Speaker 3 00:30:03 Question number two. What is something about Fort McMurry that makes you want to run for council?
Speaker 5 00:30:11 Um, right now I just see that we're really at a crossroads and, you know, we're, I think that industry is going to be spending some money in the next few years for some capital projects. I think it's important that mayor and council support those initiatives so that, you know, we see some more growth in the region. Um, so it's really about continuing that work that I've been doing the last number of years, but also building and repairing some relationships with the province and with industry so that, you know, eventually when those grandkids of mine come, you know, it's going to be an even better place to be living. And it's really about community and bringing back, you know, I find a lot of people say that forming, Marie's not what it used to be. Um, and I'd like to bring that sense of community back and that pride in community that's, you know, people long forth like yeah, lots of community events and just that sense of togetherness that I think we had it right after the fire, but then COVID and everything has played a factor along with the economy. And so I'm ready for the work. Cool question.
Speaker 3 00:31:26 Number three, as in your time as a writer, what was the most obscure article you had ever written?
Speaker 5 00:31:34 Oh, good question. Um, oh, wow. So I had the opportunity as a, as a writer here to cover so many different topics that I actually, you know, I've spoken and, and given lectures and everything right across the world. Now I probably the most obscure one though, was that I did a series of articles about the health issues, um, in our rural areas. And I got invited to go talk to, um, a symposium in, um, Australia. Oh, wow. Or the United nations. Oh, wow. Yeah. And I didn't go because my kids were really young at the time. And it was just like the week before Christmas, that year that the symposium was happening, it was like December 17th. Right. Um, so that was probably the most obscure one, but I've written articles about everything from arranged marriages in Fort MacMurray that had been published in the papers in India, um, to fly in, fly out articles that have been published in journals and stuff in Australia and New Zealand. Oh, wow. Yeah. Very cool. Yeah. That's pretty cool. I've yeah, those things done. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:32:53 Question number four. What is one thing that the community of Fort McMurry has that you can't find anywhere else?
Speaker 5 00:33:03 Oh, well the people of course, right. Um, we have such amazing people that live here that have had so many different experiences in their life before they came to Fort McMurray. And so I've learned so much about different cultures and all the diversity and, you know, but also just that again, that community that you can put out a call for anything and forming Marie and by the end of the day, it's usually done. And, you know, even though I grew up on the east coast where everybody pitches in, I've never experienced it at the same level at, in any other community than Fort McMurray.
Speaker 3 00:33:46 And your final question, what is one Fort McMurray, Jim, you think our audience should pay attention to? That's a tough one. Again.
Speaker 5 00:34:00 I think again, our waterways are often overlooked. Um, a lot of people have been discovering them the last few years. Um, but I really think that, you know, people could be using them more the first day that I ever went floating, um, down, like when we came in down below three, because they're on the Snyder, we were actually bumping into people like there's people out on their paddle boards and kayaks and you know, but I'd like to see some more developments along the waterfronts for sure. Safely developed, you know, with mitigation in mind. But, um, that in the trails we have some beautiful trails and forming Murray that people still don't know about. So, you know, I, I think I've kind of taken up that, um, promotion from, from counselor Meyer as well. Yeah. Yeah. And those have been here. Five questions. There you go. 10 are killing
Speaker 0 00:34:55 Them with questions as per usual, bro. Thank you. No problem. Yeah, no, the trail systems are amazing. Same with the water. I know like myself, um, I have a kayak and you just literally, I don't know anywhere else in the world where you can like drive from your house down to the sky. We're talking 10 minutes, tops go kayaking. Like it's, you don't have to drive far to do it. And it's
Speaker 5 00:35:16 The same with, uh, OHVs the off-highway vehicles. And side-by-sides like, those are all things that, you know, are really, you know, fairly easy cheap infrastructure to put in that is going to improve the quality of life for the residents here. And especially after COVID, everybody's looking for that. Can I relax with my family? How can we get outside and enjoy the warm weather while it's, while it's here. And then, you know, in the winter, same thing, those groomed trails and stuff like the snow drifters and those guys do an amazing job of, of keeping those trails up and same with the term again, uh, ski club, same thing. Just amazing.
Speaker 0 00:36:00 All right. Well Verna, that's it. That's uh, that's 20 minutes. So, uh, thank you very much for coming. I really do appreciate it. No problem. I tell everybody this, so don't feel overly special about it, but please take me up on the offer. Please come back as many times as you want to. Um, this is a platform that, uh, as you continue your run from air, you can come back and chat about what's new and what's happening. Um, and at any point in time, you just want to come and BS with myself and Tanner. We'd love to have you back. Great. So, uh, is that the end of the show though? So now this is your opportunity to do a shameless, uh, shout out or a plug. I'm pretty sure I know what you're going to plug obviously, but, uh, the, the mic is all yours.
Speaker 5 00:36:39 Thanks. And thanks again for having me. I love that while watching your show, I've been learning about the residents that live here. So I appreciate that welcome. Uh, my shameless plug of course, is, you know, I really hope that people will support me in the upcoming election. Um, I would never intentionally, you know, bring shame to the region in that role. I would work tremendously hard. You know, I really do just want the opportunity to show Fort MacMurray that an average everyday mom that has, you know, my team is really, you know, my husband is my campaign manager. You know, my kids are helping out door knocking and signs and all those kinds of things and really my best friends that, you know, really don't even, you know, have interest in politics per se, but they believe in me or my team. And, uh, I really hope that I can serve Fort McMurry the same way that I've been doing the last four years for the next four years. There we go.
Speaker 0 00:37:42 Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. Thank you. All right. On that note for McMurry wood, Buffalo and the rest of the world, that's been another episode of the Mac city morning show. Thank you very much for tuning in from the bottom of my heart. I really do appreciate it. Hopefully you're having a great day and we'll see you tomorrow. Peace. Yeah.
Speaker 6 00:37:59 Um, I've been involved in public service for about 17 years now, so right. Um, it is a calling and I, um, I felt that, uh, uh, the timing was good for me right now. Right. Unfortunately, I had to close my business last year. Oh. I find myself in a, in a position where I can now dedicate a hundred percent of my time, uh, to the job. There you go. Yup. And I have lots to do yet. That's
Speaker 0 00:38:22 Awesome, man. Cool. Okay. Well, before we jump into the politics and what you want to potentially what your platform is and how the race is going, I like to learn about the individual themselves. Let's chat about yourself. So when did you come to Fort McMurray? Are you born here? I know you've been here forever, but let me hear a little bit about like your origin story. Well, I'm a, I'm
Speaker 6 00:38:42 A long timer by some measurements and a newbie by others, you know? Um, I moved my family here in 1993 and, uh, um, my kids at the time were three and five. Okay. So, uh, they, they graduated high school and then went off to university and right now I now have three beautiful grandchildren. Oh, wow. Congratulations two. Unfortunately my, my daughter lives in Australia now has for the last five and a half years. And, uh, she just had twin girls in November. So unfortunately with the borders being closed with COVID, we have not been able to meet my new granddaughter she had except through Skype and Facebook, but it's, uh, yeah, we're, we're very excited, uh, hope to get down there next year sometime, but it's um, uh, what can I say? I moved here not with a five-year plan, but a lifelong plan to a family business.
Speaker 6 00:39:35 Um, I I've been here since 93 and, and haven't worked a day in the oil sands per se, or with any of the service industries. Um, I came for the opportunity to, uh, purchase Campbell's music and, uh, and operate a smack a family business. Right. So, uh, it, uh, it took off very quickly and we were very focused on that. Um, the community has been, uh, very good to me in those years. Um, we grew very dramatically in the late nineties, early two thousands and, uh, to a point where we had two locations and then to keep expanding. So, uh, we moved on to Franklin avenue in 2005 and it just kept going from there. You
Speaker 0 00:40:16 Guys were across the street from where Mitchell's is the original
Speaker 6 00:40:20 One, right? That was well, actually those are the location. When we were on Franklin avenue in the hill drugs building the basement, there was where Campbell's music originated. Oh, Marie Campbell moved here in 1976 to operate what was then lillo's music. And, uh, so he, he was managing it and, uh, and then his family purchased the company from Vic level. Okay. And, uh, four years later he felt the need to expand because it was a very small local retail where he also did music lessons. And so he built a building on the corner of Manny and main cross from what was, well, what is, Mitchell's now original police Barrett. Yeah, that's right. That's exactly
Speaker 0 00:41:02 It. Okay. Okay. And so how, like, how did you hear about it? Like how did, is this a family member that reached out to you and said, this is an opportunity or
Speaker 6 00:41:12 No, I was, uh, I was at a point where, uh, I was working for, uh, Dom tar chemicals group at the time and, uh, selling, uh, selling salt or the sift assault brand. And, uh, did that for about eight years, but I was on the road all the time and I had a young family and, uh, and I felt I was just missing out on that. Yeah. And I read this opportunity in the Edmonton journal. It was a small musical instrument store looking for a working partner with the intention of, uh, buying it. And, uh, and I thought, well, that's interesting. And I was coming up to make a regular trip up to Fort McMurray, right. A sales trip. And, uh, so I made arrangements to meet Marie Campbell. And, um, we went out for dinner and saw this store and I, I just walked in and there was a grand piano on the riser with a light shining on it and, uh, quite a variety of instruments and computers as well.
Speaker 6 00:42:05 Cause he used to sell a Mika computer. That's right. So I went, uh, I looked in and I just, in my mind, I just said, I could do this. Yeah. So about a month later, I, I drove my family up here and, uh, and we met with a Marine, his wife, and went out for dinner and toured the community. And, and, uh, it was, uh, probably a community of about 30,000 people. Very small. Yeah. But it was, uh, and it was, it was quiet. It was a slower time in the economy. Yeah. Um, at the time, of course back then Suncor was even considering shutting down. That's right. There was a strike, uh, just before that. Yeah. And then there was, uh, but, uh, uh, uh, they had, uh, hired someone to come in and, uh, and either make it successful or, uh, and, and if you didn't turn it around, we're shutting it down. That's right. But, uh, oil was a very low per barrel. And so we didn't really know what the future was, but I looked at the community and said, this community is going to be here a long time. Uh, there, there is opportunity. And this was an opportunity for me to have my family here and see them every day. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:43:10 That's cool, man. So when it comes to musical instruments and being a musician, obviously you have, you, would've had to have a passion for this prior to, so what kind of instruments do you play and how did you get involved? The music?
Speaker 6 00:43:24 I always say I could fake my way through a demo on anything. Um, but my primary instrument is, is brass instruments. I'm a, I was a professional, jazz trombonist. Okay. Uh, in Edmonton for about 12 years. And when you say professional, what does that mean? Um, I was paid, I mean, I, we toured a bit, but I did a lot of television in studio. I played with, uh, the Tony banks live. Oh. So Zen Magnus, big Miller. There was a number of, a lot of big band stuff, but, um, the television studio work was where, um, was really the bread and butter. Right. Um, in, in part it ended up being part-time. Yeah. While I was like, uh, any other musician? Yeah. It has a passion. It's your love you go after it. And, uh, you play, play til the money runs out. Um, but the, um, uh, really at one point I decided I I'd rather eat, so I had to get a real job. Okay. Uh, but I, I, I've had a, um, an interesting career path. I worked for Canadian linen supply for about six years. And then I worked for Dom tar for eight, and then this opportunity came up. Right. So
Speaker 3 00:44:30 If you can play black, the brass instruments, can you play careless, whisper on the saxophone?
Speaker 6 00:44:35 I can't saxophone would be considered a woodwind instruments. I can certainly make a noise and I can play a scale, but I, I can, uh, but I'm not, I don't consider myself to be a woodwind player at all about harmonica harmonica. Yeah. If I can play that piano. Uh, yeah.
Speaker 0 00:44:51 Yeah. Like, uh, I, it, you're probably the fifth guests that's come on the show right now. I have a nice harmonica and I want to learn how to play it. And I've exhausted what I can get out of YouTube. And I saw I'm still horrible at it. Um, I need a physical person to like go to once a week and be like, okay, Elliot, let's, let's do this. So if you know any harmonica teachers, please, please, please
Speaker 6 00:45:17 Put them in contact with, you know, there is a series of books out there called you can teach yourself to play. You think? So it comes with a CD comes with, uh, and it's very well-written. Uh, but, uh, that, that would certainly be another opportunity. Okay.
Speaker 0 00:45:30 Cause I like, yeah, I'm pat like passionate about it. I actually, when I was in junior high grade six, that's called junior high thing, grade sick, five and six. I rented a, um, a trumpet off you cause I was in a local band. So I learned how to play the trumpet horribly, but I could play the trumpet. And then as a youth, my parents actually got me, um, to play in the steel drum band. Cause they used to play, my dad plays drums and bongos. And so he's like, Hey, I wanted to play steel drums.
Speaker 6 00:45:58 I've seen your dad play the steel drums. And it's funny. Cause I got to know most people in town. I got to know, know them by what their kids played. That's right. That's right.
Speaker 0 00:46:08 Yeah. So yeah. I, I like instruments. I've never been able to master one. Um, and I was like, you know what? The harmonica seems like a good one. I'm traveling prior to COVID often. And it's something to like kill the time and you know, just so harmonica, I'm gonna follow up with you on this, this reading, these, these sessions, these
Speaker 6 00:46:25 Books, you have my numbers. Yeah, exactly. Or other opportunities to, to continue playing as an adult. So in town. So those are, uh, things
Speaker 0 00:46:34 Worth looking. Yeah, no doubt. Okay. Well I know, uh, we're, we're going fast. We're burning through time, which is awesome. But uh, I gotta give Tanner his time in the, in the spotlight. He has a segment called the Mac city minute. He's going to ask you a few questions. I have no idea what they're going to be. So best of luck, Tanner hit him with the maximum. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:46:51 Alrighty, question number one. How does it feel to have a Wikipedia page about yourself
Speaker 6 00:46:58 That was not created by myself? Uh, certainly that, uh, that happened. Um, we did a, we were able to take ownership of it and then get an edited. You can't remove, uh, what has been put on there, um, as long as it's factual, right. Uh, which, uh, we just wanted to make sure there was other contexts put in there. So, uh, how does it feel? Um, I don't know if you, uh, if, if it's, uh, an honor or if it, I mean, any kind of advertising sometimes as good advertising. Um, so, uh, I really haven't given it that much thought.
Speaker 0 00:47:31 Okay. Okay. That's neat. I want a Wikipedia page. It's a dream.
Speaker 6 00:47:36 Yeah. I'll start one up on it. Okay. Cool. Question
Speaker 3 00:47:41 Number two. What was it like going to high school in New Zealand?
Speaker 6 00:47:45 Well, that was an experience, you know, my, my family moved to New Zealand in the seventies. Um, my father was originally born and raised in New Zealand, moved to immigrated to Canada in about 1956. Cool. And, uh, so at one point we decided it was time to move the family back there. Yeah. Uh, actually when I graduated high school, um, it's a lot different than Canada, right? The whole school system is different. Um, they have all boys schools and all girls schools, but they, we had co-ed schools as well. So, uh, I attended one like that. It was a, you wore a school uniform and in many ways, uh, I found that to be quite effective because you didn't have to think about what you were going to wear to school every morning to make sure that you had, uh, you know, shine shoes and clean fingernails.
Speaker 6 00:48:35 It was a, it was an interesting experience. Um, of course it was a series of buildings throughout as well, so they didn't have the big, um, the big complex, like you would with the comps at high school were pretty. So it's, uh, uh, it was interesting. There was, it was a very, uh, disciplined school as well. Yeah. So, I mean, back then, they still had corporal punishment in school. Um, a lot of respect and, uh, at the end of the school year, y'all met in a gymnasium and wrote your departmental exams and then you were done, there was no graduations, there was no ceremonies. Um, I was just done and they don't use a grade situation or a grade structure as much as they use forums. It's called the forum one. Yes, yes, yes. So, uh, I got my university entrance certificate. Right. Uh, my original plan actually was to, uh, stay in New Zealand, but I started missing home. Yeah. Um, my hometown is grand Prairie, right. So I'm a born and bred, uh, Alberta boy. And, uh, so I worked and traveled for a bit of, uh, for about a year and, uh, uh, played in a, in a, in a band. We toured Australia. We did, uh, um, I did quite a bit. Yeah. But the opportunities weren't there in my, my drive and my goal was to become a professional musician. So, so I moved back to Canada 1980.
Speaker 0 00:50:00 Very cool. Great question. It's pretty usual Tanner. Geez. I don't know how you come up with this stuff.
Speaker 3 00:50:04 Question number three. Uh, what was, what was it about Fort McMurray that pushed you to do your first run for county?
Speaker 6 00:50:14 Ooh, I don't know if it was about Fort McMurray as much as it was, uh, uh, getting involved. And I think that that's, that's something that everyone should consider doing at some level or other, whether volunteering, um, working with a board, uh, working with a community organization. Right. Um, in my case, uh, it was early on and I had about 2001, one of my competitors actually, he was vice-president with the chamber of commerce, came to me and, and, uh, we were friendly comparator, right. Or parts off each other. He showed up in my office and said, uh, oh yeah, by the way, I nominated you for the board of the chamber of commerce. Yeah. Myself for crying out loud. What'd you do that for, I mean, I got a young family, I got a going concern with my business. I need to focus on this.
Speaker 6 00:51:01 Right. And he said, ah, don't worry about it. It's just a, like I do as a meeting once a month luncheon once a month and kiss a few hands and shake a few babies. And so, uh, so, so I went, I was, uh, elected as a board member and then got involved. And once you get involved, it's kind of addictive. You start getting sick little successes here and there. Yeah. We created the red link program, which was a local business opportunity program with, uh, primarily with municipality, the, um, the college and, uh, and all of industry. Right. And, uh, once we got them on board, we just kept working towards the next goal. That's right. So, um, and then in 2004, um, it was through encouragement. I think a lot of people get onto a governance role through encouragement of their peers. But, uh, I ran for, um, president of the chamber and I served two terms.
Speaker 6 00:51:55 I was president of the chamber. Um, there, we went through, um, I thought we brought the level of the chamber up to a new, a new level. Um, we, uh, worked on things for the community. We worked with a lot of the nonprofit groups because we felt that how could you operate a healthy business if you don't have a healthy community. Right. Right. And so through supporting that, it was, it was a more well-rounded family oriented communities. Um, and then it just, uh, the pressure was there. Yeah. I know, actually originally I had a lot of pressure to run for mayor. Right. And I looked at it and said, I can't run for mayor. Right. Um, first of all, I, I, I need to run my business and I can't take on another full-time job. Secondly, it's I need to earn my wings. Right. I can't just step into that role into that chair and not have any level of experience in that type of governance.
Speaker 6 00:52:49 So, uh, uh, so I ran for council and was successful. Um, I'm now on my, well, that went, that went through until, uh, we did a second term and then both, uh, Don Scott and I, um, made the choice. And again, it was through encouragement of others. Um, there was a provincial election coming up. Yeah. We both thought the nomination for the PC party. Right. And, uh, we're successful in the 2012 election. That's right. Yeah. So then we went provincial, uh, of course, uh, in 2015 then, um, the, uh, Rachel Notley and NDP party decided to invite myself in 60 of my colleagues to seek other opportunities. And, uh, and there was a complete changeover in government. That's right. So, um, we, uh, I took a bit of a break there, but, uh, during that period of time, between 15 and 17, I was involved with, uh, I had to be involved.
Speaker 6 00:53:45 So, uh, I chaired the center of hope board and sat with the SPCA board and, uh, I just, uh, continued on doing what I could. Yeah. And, uh, I think everyone's input makes a difference. Yeah. So it, uh, and all, all the new, fresh ideas that we get through new, fresh people. That's right. And certainly in this election, you're going to see a lot of new faces on this municipal council. So, uh, uh, I, I think that's a great that people feel the calling yeah. To, to come out and, and, and help to do something in a positive fashion. There you go. Alright, Tanner, next question. My man,
Speaker 3 00:54:25 Question number four. What is one thing that owning a long time business in forming Marie will help you in your male role?
Speaker 6 00:54:35 I think, uh, that's a good question. I think that in the long run, it's the mixture of experiences and, uh, I've never said that a municipality should be run like a business, but it doesn't need to be run with sound business practice. Okay. And to be clear that the mayor doesn't actually run the city, the mayor's goal and, and his role is to chair and lead a group of governance, people in steering the direction for the municipality. Right. Create a vision, focus, create a budget, and then turn that over to the CAO to execute or one employee. Right. Um, the mayor and council do not go out and, uh, operate, uh, the graders and, and fill your potholes or shovel your snow. Yeah. Um, our role is to set a direction and a vision and, uh, and, and then ask questions when something is, is going offsite. Right. Um, I think that, uh, there's a lot of opportunity for the next term yet. Um, certainly we've all been impacted since the wildfire and, uh, things have, uh, started on a downward spiral. We went from that to a downturn in the economy. Um, we had a flood and a natural disaster, another natural disaster. Um, my wife jokingly says, uh, what's next? Yeah. Yeah. How much more can we take? Actually, we've
Speaker 3 00:56:00 Had the locusts, they were the year we had the Caterpillar's
Speaker 6 00:56:04 That's right. Okay. I remember that now. Yeah, that's right. We're, we're getting them all. Yeah. But, uh, you had to bring that up again no way. So, but we, um, I think that there's still opportunity right now and what Buffalo was always. That was, it, it was, it was a place to move to. There was always going to be opportunity. Correct. A great place to raise a family. I mean, uh, I've had people come to me and say, where else can I come home from work? Yeah. Take my suit off and get changed into my jeans. And 10 minutes later, being out in the middle of the boreal forest, right. That's right. The fishing, the boating, the, uh, the recreational opportunities, um, we can still do better. Yeah. And I think that's what I'm always striving to do is to make this, uh, a community that people want to move, to call their home and choose this as where they want to live, work and play. There you go.
Speaker 3 00:57:00 And your final question, being a politician, business owner, and a family man in Fort McMurray, what is your favorite part of being a part of the community on so many different levels?
Speaker 6 00:57:12 Well, sometimes it's tiring, but I, and quite frankly, I don't even consider myself to be a politician. Okay. Uh, the, the term politics comes from two Latin words, poly meaning many and tics, meaning little tiny blood-sucking creatures. Uh, no, I think that, uh, uh, on different levels, um, there's never adult moment. Right. And everything I do, I'm looking for an outcome. Yeah. So whether it's with, uh, with my business, which unfortunately I've had to now shut down. Right. Um, things like that, you always had an end goal. You know, our goal was to, uh, either, well, you obviously to be profitable, but to stay on top of the market trends, um, with, uh, with a governance role. And I consider myself to be more of a community advocate. Um, we, we, we set a path, we set an objective and then you come out with the, you come up with the most productive way to meet that objective. Right. Right. So, uh, and I've had many challenges along the way. Um, been successful in many unsuccessful in some great. Uh, and it's, uh, as you, as you know, these, uh, this role or politics is, um, you can make some of the people happy some of the time. Right. Right.
Speaker 3 00:58:30 And those have been your five questions. All right. Great,
Speaker 0 00:58:35 Man. That was very interesting to hear those answers. So thank you for that Tanner once again, I don't know where you come up with these questions, bro. The seat right behind the computer. Yeah. There you go.
Speaker 6 00:58:44 I want a PDF page. Okay. So,
Speaker 0 00:58:47 Um, we've come to the end 20 minutes. Flown Tanner gave me the sign, like wrap it up. So that's cool. I know it flies. So we're at the end of the show, Mike, thank you very much for coming. Totally appreciate it. I've told everybody that comes on the show. Please, please, please come back. So I'm telling you the same thing I've told everybody else. We'd love to spend more time with you and learn more about you. So please come back at the end of the show though, you get, this is your time to shine. You got to shameless, shout out to shameless plug. I have a feeling, I know what you're going to plug. Um, but this is your time to shine. So please, the microphone is yours.
Speaker 6 00:59:20 Go. Thanks very much. Um, again, I'm going to just focus on, um, what's the current events and that is we're going to have a new council, um, by, um, by ways of this, this particular time. I believe I have the knowledge and the experience and it's, it's well-rounded I think I have a proven past for getting things done and, uh, I think I'm the right person to steer this municipality into the next, uh, the next generation. So, uh, I I'm working to earn your vote and, uh, I hope that, uh, that people will stand with me and participate regardless of who you vote for, please, please, please. We have a very low voter turnout history. So, um, but research your candidates, get to know who they are and uh, and just get out and vote. That is the most important thing. There we go. Um, I think that we have an opportunity ahead of us.
Speaker 6 01:00:20 Uh, it is going to be, um, almost all a very, very large level of, of new candidates that are running and, uh, what we're looking for and what we need is a diverse group of people that have energy and enthusiasm and all wanted to do the right thing. They don't always have to agree, but we do have to be a group that can debate respectfully. And whether you win or lose, you just move on to the next item and you respect the decision of your peers. Uh, uh, that is my goal is to, is to help lead and steer group that in a productive fashion that is working for the community. There you go.
Speaker 0 01:01:01 Awesome. Awesome. That is a great shout out and plug. Good job. Okay. Sweet. Okay. Well Fort McMurray wood, Buffalo, that's been another episode of the Mac city morning show. Once again from the bottom of my heart. Thank you very much for tuning in it truly does mean the world to me. Hopefully you're having a great day and we'll see you tomorrow. Peace.
