Municipal Election 2026: Rebecca Davis Candidate for Ward 5

Join us for a special series of CAC: In Conversation, covering the 2026 Municipal Election in the Fundy Albert Region. 

In this conversation, we chat with Rebecca Davis, Candidate for the position of Councillor of Ward 5.  

All candidates were given a list of potential questions at least 24 hours in advance of their interview and were asked the same questions. We have completed light editing for clarity, length, and sound quality. All views and opinions represented in the interviews are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect those of Connecting Albert County. 

Connecting Albert County thanks our presenting sponsor, the Bennett & Albert County Healthcare Foundation.

For more information on Connecting Albert County, please go to our website or find us on Facebook or Instagram.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hello and welcome to Connecting Albert County in Conversation series. This is part of our special edition covering the 2026 municipal elections. I'm Melody Land, the coordinator, and today I'm here with Rebecca Davis. She's running in Ward 5 in our municipality, and there will be an election in this district. So it's good to hear from her. Thank you for being here, Rebecca.

SPEAKER_01 0:25

Thank you for having me for all you do for our community, Melody. It's really great to be here today.

SPEAKER_00 0:30

Oh, I'm so glad. So today is going to be a little different than our usual in conversation series, where it is normally just a sit-down and shoot the breeze. There have been questions submitted by community members as well as some that we've curated. So it will be a bit more of a back and forth conversation. But to begin with, can you just tell us a little bit about yourself?

SPEAKER_01 0:53

Absolutely. I live in Stony Creek here in Ward 5 with my husband Stefan. We have a blended family with five kiddos between us all. So we have four teenage girls and a little guy, Eric, who's six. And we live here with our dog Casey. We uh we put down roots here. We started building our house, uh design and everything, included kind of five-ish years ago. We've lived here just over three years, and uh uh we're you're stuck with us. We love it here, and uh and we're so proud to be uh to be part of this community. So I actually am a true maritime girl in that I was born in uh Halifax, uh spent my elementary school years there, and then I moved to PEI when my uh mom married my stepdad, did all my teenage years there, and then I went to school uh away in London, Ontario, and uh then I chose to build a life here in New Brunswick. So, whichever way I could get back here to the Maritimes and find my way to New Brunswick, I was doing it. So I took a job in Bathurst, came to Moncton, and now here I am in Stony Creek.

SPEAKER_00 1:58

So can you tell us a little bit about your past experience, whether in politics, community development, um anything that would relate to the position you're looking to acquire, which is counselor?

SPEAKER_01 2:09

Sure. So I have uh my diploma is uh in broadcast journalism. So I spent about the better part of 15 years as a journalist. So I covered uh a lot of the political sectors. So all levels of government, all levels of elections in the trenches for those council meetings that go till two o'clock in the morning, um, and then going back to the studio and writing up five, six stories kind of thing. Um, you know, the behind the scenes where everyone's eating a sandwich and times are kind of in the trenches. I've been there uh from that perspective and making sure you know the community understands what's going involved, uh going on and uh is involved in that process. So I learned a lot uh through that realm of my life about the political sector and how government works, and that it's not always easy, that there's a lot of difficult decisions to be made, obviously. I left there to join the charitable sector, where I spent about a decade as the fundraising and communication director for one of the uh region's largest child and youth-centered organizations. Um, I raised uh millions over the years, in fact, for different organizations. I left there to become the executive director of a charitable organization that was focused on the needs of uh autistic people and their families. And then I left to start my own business, which also focuses on the needs of local businesses and charities, nonprofits and organizations to help them succeed through different areas such as grant writing, impact measurement, social media, communications, things like that. So still very much focused on doing whatever I can for the community. And it's really led me to meet so many people, which kind of brings us here today. What can I do to help? And how can I put these skills in my background to good use?

SPEAKER_00 4:04

Wonderful. So in those positions and in some of these experiences, it sounds like you've been in a position of leadership. How would you describe your leadership style? And how would you say or give an example of how you demonstrated community leadership in the past?

SPEAKER_01 4:21

So I'm a person who very much understands the difference between a leader and a boss. I feel like a boss is uh kind of a be all end-all, expecting others just to do what they're told because they're the boss, that's the way things are done, kind of thing. I'm more of a leader who believes in leadership, encouraging growth in everybody involved, more uh taking those big and small ideas, people's passions, um, and focus on lifting people up. So if you help others to succeed, um, you're all going to succeed together towards that common goal. If everybody feels safe, if everybody feels heard, that's the kind of leader I want to be, where you're the leader of lifting others and and they look to you as an example of not so much of a um a dictator or a boss or things like that. I want people to feel that I'm part of a team in that leadership role.

SPEAKER_00 5:10

Okay. Um, have there ever been a situation where you've been in a conflict situation and how do you handle and navigate that? Because I'm sure as a counselor, um, there are times and I've sat there where it feels like there's disagreements on every direction.

SPEAKER_01 5:27

Absolutely. I have no um misconceptions about how hard that role will be because you can't please everybody, but you do have to listen to everybody and you do have to hear everybody. Um, when we talk about navigating conflict, I've learned usually the hard way, let's say, like most people do over the years, that when you say less, um, what you do say tends to matter more. And when you're not talking, you're usually listening, which is always the first step towards kind of pushing through that conflict, that more building of an understanding. Um, so this has been learned, I would say, by myself over and over again. I think a lot of people can relate to that, um, whether in my time leading uh organizations or, you know, working a lot with committees in the nonprofit sector or advocating for professional or personal things. Really, it's about um building more of an understanding.

SPEAKER_00 6:19

That takes us to the election and talking about the role that you might play. Why did you decide to run in this particular municipal election?

SPEAKER_01 6:30

Well, the first part of that uh answer is simple. I love where I live, I love the people here, the land we live on, the community we all have in common. That's the easy part, right? Um, the second part, not so beautiful to talk about. Um, and that is that I've seen how our council has been operating. I've seen how we've been represented here, and I believe our community uh both needs and deserves for me to step up. I believe I have the skill set and experience needed to help this council move forward in a more transparent, solution focused, responsible, creative, efficient way. Um, to be honest, I originally set out to find the perfect candidate to support because I do love helping other people succeed. I knew we needed a change in Ward 5. Um, those conversations kept turning back around on me. Um, I am someone that preaches, you know, be the change you want to see in the world, right? Um, so as I started to do research and look at past council meeting minutes and get out and have some of those more pulse-checking conversations, it really became abundantly clear that our community needs me and the time for me to step up to now. And it kind of really was the the time is now and became less of should I and more so how could I not, really.

SPEAKER_00 7:49

Right. So, how have you prepared to run for office? What have you been up to?

SPEAKER_01 7:55

Well, most of it has been getting out there, talking to the people. I have been door to door as much as possible every week and listening, hearing what the concerns are, because I know what my concerns are, but I'm not just representing myself. And Ward Five is a very large, a very diverse community as far as the needs and priorities. Um, so if I'm not getting out there and hearing from everyone, I don't feel like I'm doing my job even in campaign time to work towards this position. So I mean, yes, I've done some things like some webinars, things like that. Um as a former reporter, I very much, as I mentioned, I have experience doing a lot of research. So I I love to pour over things like council minutes, things like that, find out exactly what's going on. Um, so I've been kind of entrenched in that. I also have been involved in my community. So got very involved in some rezoning issues in the last few years. So just really getting out and about and making sure that I am focused on the needs of everybody, not uh not just myself. And, you know, I also had to do some of those in respect to personal things, like talk to my own children, my family, make sure that we could handle this too. And I think that is important for any counselor to think about. This isn't just about me and what we can do for our community, it affects the lives of the people I love. So I went to my children, uh, teenage girls, as I mentioned, and asked them, figuring they'd be horrified. You know, how do you feel about this? Mom's face could be on a sign, like it'll be coming home on the bus. And it almost makes me emotional to say, but their response was again that how could I not do it? kind of moment, because they said, Oh my gosh, mom, you have to. Like, we need you. Our neighbors and our community, everybody needs you. You have to do this. But I told you about the face on the signs, right? And still they said, Yes, please, what do you need? How can we help? So you'll see me out and about door to door. I have a new driver. Uh, so she's looking to get some of those beginner hours in, and I'm happy to let her show for me to do some door to door in those further apart uh areas of the community. So give us a little grace as we try to learn to pull over.

SPEAKER_00 10:14

There you go. Incredible. Well, and you alluded to the next um question that has come from our community about the time you've spent already in preparation. Serving your community through municipal government can be time consuming and more time consuming than some people think. Multiple meetings per month, uh, various times of the day and evening. There's events, boards, other projects. Can you speak to any concerns that voters might have about how you will manage your time and how available you will be to serve your constituents?

SPEAKER_01 10:49

So, first, let me say that I pride myself in being genuine. So I'm not going to beat around the bush. I tell the truth, and time is my biggest concern too. It's the one thing that I am worried about in this election, making sure that I do have enough to find the balance. Um, that being said, my background in the charitable sector, and I think anybody that's worked in the charitable sector would say kind of bring it on, because that workload and those strange hours of committee meetings and events and um troubleshooting, crisis management, those kind of things in the charitable sector are a very real, very regular um reality. Um, and I am not uh a stranger to being woken up at all hours of the night for any different thing, whether, of course, that's my kiddos or when you're a news reporter, I mean, there's a scanner in your house, right? And you're headed out at a at the drop of a hat for anything and you don't know what you're going to encounter, and you have to deal with it in the best way possible. So both of those parts of my past, I think, have set me up for success from a time management point of view. And I have a supportive family. And I mean, that support is real and making sure that this is possible because we do have, you know, a bajillion kiddos between us. And uh, thank goodness my husband and my uh friends and family are 100% on board.

SPEAKER_00 12:10

Awesome. So, training for counselors is another topic that's come up, and that you know is linked to that time management piece because um there is sections of that in this training. Earlier this year, there was a lot of discussion around mandatory training for municipal counselors. How do you feel about this? Are you for or against required training? Have you taken any thus far? Um, do you intend to if you haven't?

SPEAKER_01 12:38

Let me say that I'm 100% for required training. I think one of the big mistakes companies and organizations make is not um offering good and uh proper and uh proper amounts of training when they're onboarding people. And I don't see how one of these roles representing so many people and doing such a critical job for our community should be any different. I'm sad to see that that's something that is on the chopping block. Um, I do, like I say, have a lot of experience in board governance, um, government as a whole, that kind of thing. So I do have a lot of experience to prepare me for this, but do I think that I know everything? Absolutely not. And I think any training would be useful. I always say you don't know what you don't know, and what's the worst that can happen? You learn something. So I'm all for it, and I'm I'm sad that that's something that um anybody would be uh entertaining, taking away, because I think our citizens deserve us to have as much training as possible.

SPEAKER_00 13:40

Okay, thank you for your answer. Training definitely connects with charity, I think, to the Local Governance Act, which is something that not everybody is as familiar with. It is essentially the primary legislation that governs municipalities, rural communities, and regional districts. And in particular, following major reforms that happened in January of 2023, there were some key updates that included things like regional service delivery changes, new local governance commissions, restructuring of the service districts. And it does set the framework for council powers, financial duties, bylaws, and that sort of thing. Are you familiar with the New Brunswick Local Governance Act? And if so, to what level?

SPEAKER_01 14:28

I am definitely familiar with it. Um, working with a lot of nonprofits, things like that, you have to be up to date on a lot of legislation, especially when we're talking about um reforming communities, bringing different sources of revenues and uh governments together. From a nonprofit perspective, you have to know um what's going on from that aspect. So I do have um some key knowledge of it. That being said, I still do feel on the outside looking in. So I can do as much research as possible. But until we're living it, I uh I hesitate to say that I know it well because I think in practice is probably a lot different than scanning the documents and making sure uh in the areas where it affects you most. I also think that um that needs to be a working document. I think it needs some updates. I think that the best was done with the knowledge we had at the time. And uh if you know better, do better. And I think better could be accomplished.

SPEAKER_00 15:27

Okay, thank you for that response. Uh, you have alluded to previously some challenges you've had with local governance. Um, and one of those challenges is no surprise. There have been many public conversations around concerns in regards to things like transparency and perceived conflicts of interest that have occurred around decision making of counselors. What is your response to this concern?

SPEAKER_01 15:57

I'm frustrated. I'm frustrated as a voter, as a citizen, as a parent. I'm frustrated because for me, and not to make light of the matter by joking, but it genuinely seems like when you see the word special meeting, that means we hope you don't notice. And I'm I'm frustrated and we need to do better as a council. Things aren't being put forward in detail, in my opinion. I don't think council is going the extra mile to meet those transparency um needs of people. Uh, I think the bare minimum of let's say, for example, notifying 50 uh meters within a rezoning uh issue is shady. And I don't like to say those words. I mean, I I know that that doesn't sound um glossy, but I think we need to be going the extra mile. We live in a rural area. Um, we should be going uh for informing as many people as humanly possible because if there's a chance they are affected, they should have a chance to weigh in and they should have a chance to be in the know. I also don't feel that, at least from where I'm sitting, um, everything's being done in front of um the citizens. I don't uh I don't believe everything is being reported properly. And I do believe there may be some issues with conflict of interest as well. So my goal would be to get in there, focus on unity, focus on working together, but also continuing to try to be my genuine self whilst following the rules and encouraging others to uh be on the up and up and make sure that we're putting our best self forward because that's what's respectful for the community. I don't feel transparency is something that is a priority for this council currently.

SPEAKER_00 17:48

Okay. So to follow up on that, how then would you personally hold yourself transparent and accountable and avoid conflicts of interests? And how would you want that institutionalized within your municipal work specifically?

SPEAKER_01 18:03

Absolutely. So I know uh I've alluded a lot to uh my uh involvement in the nonprofit sector, but conflicts of interests are very serious when it comes to the nonprofit sector. It could lose your organization, their charter, or your funding, and you can't risk it. So from a news perspective, the rule always was when in doubt, leave it out. And I look at that uh in everything I do from a conflict perspective as well. So if there's the least bit of concern, well, then you need to say something. Um, to me, you should err on the side of caution when it comes to conflict of interest. And I don't feel that that's currently being done. Um I hope that answers your question.

SPEAKER_00 18:42

Okay. So we're gonna switch gears a little bit into more um questions that have also come from the community about a variety of different topics that are less connected to, you know, access action and process and that sort of thing. Um, one is in the area of nature and environment. So you know that the village of Funde Albert has a lot of resources, uh, but perhaps maybe most obvious is our connection to the natural environment. It is so profound, it's actually highlighted in the municipality's tagline, friendly by nature. We are also part of the UNESCO Funday Biosphere Region, which is a huge and globally significant designation. How do you see the municipality's role in maintaining, managing, and utilizing our natural resources?

SPEAKER_01 19:32

That's a big uh that's a big role. Um, and in that I mean it's a big question because it is so multifaceted. Um, so the first uh first way I see our role as a municipality is protection and maintenance. Um, first and foremost. Growth and development is wonderful, but not at the expense of our environment and people who are living here. Um we have to promote it, of course. That's a big thing in my line of work. It's um, you know, if people don't know about it, we can do better. Um so we do have to be promoting and uh that type of element, promoting tourism and things like that. I mean, and using those resources in responsible ways. But the biggest thing for me from a municipal standpoint is this just those checks and balances. Um, we have to be ensuring that developers and residents, anybody, um, whether businesses or families aren't cutting corners that are detrimental to the environment in our community. And I'm not suggesting uh government overreach by any means. I want development, I want growth, but right now those checks and balances aren't happening, um, at least not to my satisfaction. So when a community comes to you as a council and asks, begs for things like a hydrogeological survey or an environmental assessment, and you turn a blind eye, that's a problem. When they have evidence of the environmental impacts this could be causing, and you turn a blind eye, that's where the municipality has to do better.

SPEAKER_00 21:07

Following up to that, uh, what are your thoughts about the spraying of our region's forests with glycophates? I mean, come on.

SPEAKER_01 21:17

I mean, is there is there a different answer? Like, are we really talking to people in this day and age who are like, you know what? It's cool. I mean it just feels like what age are we living in that know better, do better. I think we knew better a long time ago. And I think our children deserve us, deserve for us to do better. I mean, it just seems ridiculous that we're still talking about it now with everything we know. And I mean, just New Brunswickers, our communities just deserve better than that. I know it's still happening, and it's it's disgraceful.

SPEAKER_00 21:49

Moving into housing, um, poverty, and cost of living. There is always a lot of discussion around the cost of living and it Does have a huge impact on the residents of your village. Precarious housing has been a problem in our region and has increased. Statistics suggest that a significant number of our residents are within just a few paychecks of a risk of homelessness. There's increase in displacement, increase of use of food banks and other food security resources, so on and so forth. How have you, or in this case, would you use the full range of the municipality's tools and resources to increase access to affordable housing, reduce or eliminate homelessness, increase food security, or in general have a positive effect in any area of poverty reduction?

SPEAKER_01 22:48

This is um this is a big file, and there's a lot of ways that the municipality could jump uh in in on this one and that they should be jumping in on this. I do believe that more affordable housing needs to be built um responsibly. That's the piece that uh that they're struggling with, I think, sometimes. Um, but yeah, more affordable housing is obviously a piece of the puzzle. Also, though, um we need to look at what kind of money via tax dollars we're taking from our residents, how we're spending that, and if what we are taking uh via the tax rate uh and things like that now is appropriate given the day and age that we're living in. Um, are there changes that can be made to the budgets in how we're spending money, but also um the amount that we're taking from our residents, especially for what they're getting? Uh, like I say, I'm door-to-door a lot right now, and I'm hearing very much, where's our money even going? So sometimes it's I'm having trouble affording um to feed my family, and that's extremely serious. Um, and that conversation comes around, but I pay my taxes, but I pay my taxes, how can I be living like this? And that's my question too. You know, the municipality, if we're going to be asking our residents to step up this much, we have to be giving them more to impact their quality of life. Um, I think that's what we can be doing is um be more responsible with our dollars, but also making sure that we're providing um some of the programs and resources to help people succeed too. So whether that's food security from gardening programs, providing lots of land, so people that don't have it or mentors to help uh teach and instruct on food security. There's so many different things that the town, if we were getting, or town I say that, that the municipality that if we were getting creative, that wouldn't be that hard.

SPEAKER_00 24:50

Okay, thank you for that answer. In the area of economic development, what do you think the municipalities and the municipal council's role in particular is in regards to economic development? And in general, what are the best ways to grow our community?

SPEAKER_01 25:09

I think our community has so many gems, so many resources from people power to the environments we live in and all of our local businesses and resources that we need to be promoting it much better from a growth perspective. But also those businesses that are here currently also need to be feeling supported from our municipality. Um, word of mouth is a huge thing when it comes to growth development or any industry. And if someone's looking to come here to start their business and they talk to one of the local business owners who says, you know what, town's just not helping us. We've come up against all this red tape, um, we're just not getting anywhere. Well, that's going to be a red flag for other businesses not to come here. So we have to really focus inwards and then outwards. Um, the other piece is I don't think businesses want to come here if our financial house isn't in good order. Um, and it's not uh from a municipal perspective, at least from my vantage point. So I think we have to show that we are um careful that we do support the local businesses and from there other uh industries and business people will come from that growth perspective. But I also think we need to be doing more promotion from everywhere to show people what we have here, to show people what's worth visiting, what's worth staying here for, um, and then following that up with the infrastructure to support it.

SPEAKER_00 26:43

Okay, thank you. Under the arts, culture, and history file. Do you think art and culture add value to the municipality?

SPEAKER_01 26:53

First of all, you're talking to a former theater kid. So many, many years spent uh in the theater. Um, that's one of the ways actually I put myself through college was uh doing local theater uh on the side. And um they always say if you want um something done great with nothing, hire theater kid. So the resourcefulness, the creativity, just the beauty that the arts bring here via the people that are part of them. Um, I mean, that's worth its weight in gold, right? And if there's nothing to see and nothing to do, and and that beauty isn't there, people aren't going to want to come. So I mean, I think it's critical, obviously, to uh to include all of that in in almost everything that we do.

SPEAKER_00 27:45

So then as a municipality, how do you see that our community, our municipality should be engaging with the history, arts and culture file through things like strategic planning, policy, even investment?

SPEAKER_01 28:02

I think we need to get creative. You know, I come from um a place in PEI where there was Fathers of Confederation walking around all summer. People took pictures, people made it a destination. That's what I call creativity, you know, um, where we look at what we can promote, um, but also what can we help to build? You know, where are our theater groups? Where are the arts uh being displayed? How are we helping them get the word out about products, things like that? Um, what are we doing to promote music? Um, you know, that's good just for everybody's soul. And it has to exist throughout every ward. You know, these things have to happen in every ward of our writing and be promoted in every ward. That's what I think we should be doing is getting more creative with our finances, with our help, with our support, and showing up.

SPEAKER_00 28:56

Okay. So moving into the infrastructure case, um, roads are always a concern. We hear the, especially this time of year, when we talk about the bumps and the potholes and that sort of thing. Um, how have you, or in this case, would you utilize the full range of the municipality's tools and resources to manage, maintain, or improve infrastructure? So, not just roads, but all infrastructure, um, or potentially develop new projects or initiatives. What's your perspective on infrastructure in general?

SPEAKER_01 29:33

So, for me, that is a bit of an outside looking in piece from a budgetary standpoint. I need to better understand where we are in the books, what money we have to spend, and that kind of thing. Um, but roads, like you say, are not just a concern. Um, they're 95% of what I'm hearing about door to door. And it's coming from different um aspects in regards to those infrastructure pieces. So, you know, we have some people down here um in the white birch area where um they haven't seen their roads paved in 40 years. You know, the potholes are so bad, it's not just this spring. I mean, I'm surprised there's not bicycles stuck in there that we've never seen. It's it's unfortunate. And when seniors are saying, I've never seen this ever paved, and it's I've been here 30, 40 years, where are the tax dollars going? You know, there are other areas of infrastructure right here in my ward where I've actually said the words, does somebody have to die here for them to do something? You know, and this is not just a ward five problem. So, you know, I want to see where the dollars are going. Why aren't they going clearly to some of these serious safety concerns? Um, and then start getting to work. I know not everything can be done in those first couple of years. I know, you know, everyone says I'll fix the roads, and then four years later, you know, 44 years of a senior's life, they haven't seen their road fixed. But, you know, the goal is to get in there and start making some changes in regards to the priorities for the spending because too many people are are not seeing that happen. And when I say it's multifaceted, it's not just roads not being repaired. It's what are we going to do in regards to roads that were newly done and are being torn all to heck because of the truck traffic on them? You know, what are we doing to ensure that growth and development, which we all love, is not damaging or putting communities in danger? You know, do we need to be looking for other sources to be helping fund some of these repairs as well? And I mean that from those trucks that are driving on it maybe need to help with some of the repair because the roads are deteriorating at an alarming rate in some of those areas because of the kinds of traffic that are driving on them. And I mean, roads are an issue, but it's a different issue in various areas of our ward.

SPEAKER_00 32:10

Okay. So speaking of the various areas, part of the infrastructure piece is different now because of amalgamation that happened in 2023. The regardless of the different feelings on amalgamation, we are required to live with the consciousness now. How will you approach those challenges related to the experience and serve the greater community of Funday Albert?

SPEAKER_01 32:38

If I knew then what I knew now in regards to reform, I don't think I would have ever been even remotely in favor of it. Um, but that being said, knowing what I do know now, um, you do the best with what you have. Um, mistakes were made, some um changes need to occur in regards to reform. Um, but it's time for us to get beyond that. We can't keep focusing on reform. Should that have happened? Should it not have happened? Well, it happened. And now, if we don't start taking a unified approach on council, we don't start looking at the now instead of the the way it was always done, or but this community deserves it more, or but what about this community? We have to be looking at ourselves as a whole, and that's not to say we discount um any ways of the past, any of the various cultures that do exist in each of our communities um that are important. I'm not for one second this girl from Dartmouth or Sherwood, which other people would know as Halifax or Charlottown, debating that um communities need to uh maintain their identity. That's not at all what I'm saying. But we need to start taking a unified approach. Um we need to be fundy Albert instead of the old town of this or that, you know, we have to start working on this together. Now, that being said, the way reform happened, my ward particularly is getting a really raw shake at the table. Reform was not good thus far on paper or in reality for ward five. So I'm hoping that my approach of um speaking up, but also trying to be more unified will help to affect change in that area. However, I will say that any documents or appeals that need to be filed to help um make that reform more balanced for every ward, I would work very hard to ensure that happened.

SPEAKER_00 34:40

So if you can tell us a little bit about your platform and the most pressing issues that you would like to address.

SPEAKER_01 34:48

So the biggest uh piece for me, especially in the short term and getting started, is uh that fiscal financial responsibility piece. That would be the biggest and most pressing issue from where I'm sitting. Um, from there, I feel more things fall into place. We have to get our finances in order. We haven't had an audit completed, I think it's since 2023, if I'm not mistaken. Um and I know a lot of that had to do with reform, but from what I'm seeing in the books, um, we have to get that in order or nothing else will be able to follow. Now, this is a person raised by two accountants. So maybe that's kind of ingrained in me a little bit. But coming from that background uh where you live and die by your budget and your financial risks and things like that in the nonprofit sector, we have to do better financially. We have to find efficiencies and we have to um do that in a unified way. And that's very critical, I feel, from that financial perspective is finding that unity and not working against each other for individual wards, but with each other for those individual wards. Um, the other big uh piece is that responsible growth and development. I'm all for growth and development, but it has to be done responsibly and not to the detriment of the citizens currently there, the current landowners, things like that. So that's a second major piece of uh my platform, but that transparency piece is right up there. Um, like I say, special meetings seem to translate into we hope you don't notice. Um, we need more detailed minutes from the council meetings. If there's letters sent in on an issue, I want to know how many to the detail for or against. That's not hard. So if you're not reporting it out on those minutes, why? Were you not listening? Or do you have something you don't want us to know? So that transparency issue I feel is critical. Um, I want people to feel hurt, but I also want people to feel um that we're doing what we say we're gonna do uh above board. So yeah, and that getting uh back on our feet after reform and uh and building that unity, I think uh to move forward, that's that's a huge piece. Um we're not recovered, we're not out of the woods uh on that piece yet. So I'm here to uh to get moving.

SPEAKER_00 37:07

Great. So to wrap up, is there anything we haven't covered you would want municipal residents to know about you and your bid in this election?

SPEAKER_01 37:19

I think with me, a lot of it is you get what you see. Um, you know, whenever I'm asked to describe myself in one word, it always is genuine. Um, and I understand that maybe I'm not everybody's favorite, but I don't have to be to get the job done. Um, but I can promise whether I'm your favorite or not, or whether you think I would agree with you or not, my door is open, I'm approachable, and I want to hear every aspect. I want to hear all sides of everything. Again, even if you don't think I would feel the same way. That's the biggest thing I want people to know because I know when I talk about things like responsible growth and development, that maybe there's developers out there who think they wouldn't get anywhere with me. And that's just not the case. Um, you know, my husband does work in uh development construction in other areas of the province. I know people don't want red tape. We need to talk about it and we need to make sure that we're finding creative um solutions and responsible solutions for those kind of things. But we can't do that if I'm over here having to guess. I need people to come to me with their concerns and challenges, or I can't do anything about it. I can't fix what I don't know, like an old mentor used to say, kind of thing. Um, so that's the biggest thing is I'm out there asking people their challenges and concerns, and I genuinely want to hear it. And if I don't agree with it, that's okay. It still deserves a place uh, you know, in the conversation.

SPEAKER_00 38:41

Wonderful. Well, thank you so much for taking the time out of your day uh to talk with me today. It is incredibly important, I think. And as Connecting Albert County, we want to get the word out and get as many folks out on election day as we possibly can, making informed choices. And so you engaging with us in this capacity helps people do that. So we really appreciate you, and we will look forward to see what comes next out of Ward 5 and uh be watching with bated breath on election day. Thank you so much.

SPEAKER_01 39:14

I look forward to seeing everybody out with that in the coming weeks. Thank you so much, Melody.

SPEAKER_00 39:18

You're welcome.