The following biography and photo appear in the St. Clair Township Beacon newspaper.
Check against delivery.
I was raised and live in St. Clair Township near Becher where I operate a field crop farm on Charlemont Line.
Our family has been involved in farming locally since 1865, with my aunt living at the Century Farm just south of the border in Chatham-Kent, and my parents farming locally here since 1961.
I have attended a few council meetings virtually mainly to see the Hydro One Transmission presentation on the new lines coming through the area, and to view the discussion on the settlement border expansion on Rokeby Line.
Both were pertinent issues for me to report back to the Lambton Federation of Agriculture.
I think the role of a councillor is to advocate for the Ward as a whole and it is a good thing to have experience in land use planning as well as budgeting and governance.
My roles in the past show that I have governance and budgeting experience having been President of the LFA since January 2020 and Director for the Sydenham District Hospital Corporation, with the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance July 2009 to June 2015, & Vice-Chair of the CKHA Finance Committee in 2015.
During the 2022 Winter term I wrote and taught Introduction to Canadian Agricultural Law at Lambton College and I learned a great deal about land use planning and the intersection of Municipal Politics with Provincial and Federal Politics.
I also have a Bachelor of Science (Agr.) in Agricultural Economics from the University of Guelph, and upgraded from there to get my membership as a Certified General Accountant I Certified Public Accountant (eighteen years public experience).
Over the past 2 and a half years I have been fortunate enough to work with local organizations to bring the agricultural voice to economic development.
I was on the Sarnia-Lambton Workforce Development Board Post Pandemic Scenario Workforce Planning Committee as well as the City of Sarnia Airport Action Working Group, and have worked closely with Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership and the Sarnia-Lambton Chamber of Commerce on quite a few projects, particularly bringing together and highlighting county and city businesses and their collaborations.
I also have been a Public Representative on the Thames-Sydenham and Region Source Protection (Drinking Water) Committee since May 2018.
I realize that being a member of St. Clair Council is a demanding but rewarding position, and I feel I can make a positive difference and hope to continue with the two way communication with residents and landowners, the same way I have been doing with LFA member/farmers.
Source: The Beacon Election Issue
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