Last October, Delta began a new era, electing George Harvie as mayor and three new councillors. There’s a lot to be said for new ideas and fresh faces, but things were going fairly well as it was. Such a big change and too many new ideas might upset the apple cart.
But I have to say, from what I’ve seen so far, I am quite optimistic.
I had the opportunity to spend some time with two of the new councillors when I volunteered with Operation Red Nose. Alicia Guichon and Dylan Kruger were on my team, and we spent a good part of a Friday evening driving around South Delta with me dressed as a giant reindeer.
I thought it was interesting they were out volunteering for Operation Red Nose. The campaign was over, you were elected, who do you need to impress? Well, they weren’t out to impress people, they were out to help. No fanfare, no accolades, just help. A good sign.
Prior to the election, Deltassist had put in a request for funding an important seniors program. Deltassist runs the Better At Home program, assisting seniors with daily living in their homes so that they can age in place, and manage in the home they have lived in for many, many years. It is funded by the United Way, but the funding was being reduced and soon to be eliminated, and the program was in jeopardy. The former council felt it was better for a new council to make a decision on this request, and rightly so.
Very soon after the election, I received a phone call asking for more information. But the call didn’t come from a city staff member, it was Harvie. I was a little surprised, to say the least, to be receiving a phone call from him. It’s not every day you get a phone call from the mayor. We had a brief conversation as he was preparing for the council meeting that evening.
And he called me directly. It wasn’t someone calling me saying, “Hold for the mayor.” It was, “Hi Brad, George Harvie.” He didn’t have my cell number, he had to find it as it’s not in the book. Council approved the funding request that night, and the program was saved.
Last week, the executive director of Deltassist and I met with Harvie and his senior staff. They spoke about what they had heard on the doorsteps during the campaign, and wanted to help solve some of the issues people shared. A lot of politicians will tell you what you want to hear during a campaign, then do what they want afterwards. That’s not what I was hearing. I was hearing a man who recognized problems that people were having and was going about creating solutions.
What I didn’t tell him was this – I didn’t vote for him. We had three great candidates, and I chose one of the others. But I don’t think he really cares if I voted for him or not. He is Delta’s mayor, looking out for the wellbeing of all of our community. He has a job to do, and he will get it done. For all of us.
Optimistic indeed.
Brad Sherwin, MBA is a long-time resident of South Delta, and has almost 30 years’ experience in marketing, public relations and business strategy. He teaches marketing at Douglas College, coaches hockey goalies and is president of the board of directors at Deltassist.
