Want to make a real difference in the community you live in? Then consider running for a position in local government or school board.
Many people think that the really important political decisions are only made in Victoria or Ottawa. Not so. In fact, many if not most of the decisions that will actually have an effect on your everyday life are the ones that are made locally.
Only two of Clearwater’s town councilors, Stephanie Teare and Ken Kjenstad, intend to seek re-election as councilors next November. That means there will be at least four seats open to newcomers. Although we want to keep some continuity with the earlier council, there are plenty of talented people in this town who could fill the vacancies capably.
If you’re feeling a little more ambitious, you could run for mayor (although, quite frankly, you would have to be a pretty strong candidate to consider taking on either Mayor John Harwood or his challenger, Bert Walker).
If your interests lie more towards education, you could run for school board. At present John Harwood represents the Clearwater-Blue River area on the board of School District 73. Once again, you would have to be a strong candidate, but you never can tell.
Outside of Clearwater’s boundaries, Tim Pennell has been doing a credible job as Thompson-Nicola Regional District director for Wells Gray Country (Area A). However, no doubt there are those who feel they could do the job better. If you are one of those, why not give it a shot?
Moving farther north, Max Lentz has not yet announced if he intends to run again to be Thompson-Nicola Regional District director for Thompson Headwaters (Area B). The general consensus is he has tried hard but living in Kamloops has made it difficult for him to really be in touch with the Blue River-Avola community.
Is this showing a lack of appreciation to the incumbent politicians - encouraging others to run against them? No. In fact, most politicians welcome an election, especially against a worthy opponent.
Why run? There isn’t much money in it and it’s sometimes a thankless task. Still, as John F. Kennedy said as he challenged the Americans to go to the moon, sometimes a task isn’t worth doing because it is easy, but because it is hard.