A Grounded Conversation on Leadership and Public Service

 Public service is often seen through meetings, decisions, and titles. The real work lies in the conversations, community connections, volunteer work, and everyday responsibility that happen far beyond City Hall.

In this episode of Rooted Here, we sit down with Bev Dubois, City Councillor for Ward 9, to talk about leadership, community involvement, and what it means to stay connected to the people you serve. Bev reflects on her early years in Saskatoon, the family values and mentors that shaped her, her path from volunteer boards to city council, and the lessons she has learned through years of public service.

This episode is presented by The Bamboo Podcast Network.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

This goes by in a flash.

SPEAKER_02 0:01

It does, yeah. How old is your granddaughter?

SPEAKER_00 0:04

Uh four.

SPEAKER_02 0:05

There's a little one there.

SPEAKER_00 0:06

And I have a one and a half grandson. Okay. And the little granddaughter is the apple of my eye. She would love to be here with me right now. She's just my girl. Oh yeah? Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_02 0:17

Oh well. Have a little stool, a little chair right there. Yeah. Well.

SPEAKER_00 0:23

She um drew a picture of me at daycare. And when I picked her, I I try to pick her up one one day a week.

SPEAKER_01 0:29

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 0:30

And I she would came out with the teacher and all smiles. And come I do a picture. And of course it's like a stick, man. I actually put it on my social media. And she says, That's you at City Hall. She says, Next time I draw your desk and microphone.

SPEAKER_02 0:50

Rooted Here, Business and Leadership Podcast. Welcome to Rooty Here. I'm your host, Dran Chetty, and today's guest is Bev Dubois, City Councillor of Ward 9. Hi, Beb. Good morning. How are you doing? I'm excellent. Thank you. How about you? I'm doing good. A little tired. Uh crazy weekend. You know, busy, busy, busy. Kids and all that stuff, and you know how it is. Yes. You're a very busy person, too.

SPEAKER_00 1:12

Yeah, it was a busy weekend. They just fly by. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:16

What's with that crazy weather, eh?

SPEAKER_00 1:17

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:17

It's nice and all of a sudden it rained. And it was nice and rained. I guess it's kind of good if you're you know a garden or whatever, eh?

SPEAKER_00 1:24

Oh, don't even talk about gardening. I am so far behind in my planting. I usually do it all on the May long weekend. I we don't have a cabin or anything. We do everything in the city, and I uh I'm totally behind.

SPEAKER_02 1:37

And and the May long weekend is actually not not too bad.

SPEAKER_00 1:39

Uh no, we had snow on the Saturday, Friday and Saturday of the May long weekend we had snow. Oh, yeah, yeah, that's right. Yeah, so it couldn't do anything but Welcome to living in in Saskatchewan.

SPEAKER_02 1:49

Saskatchewan spring and summer can be uh uh mixed bag.

SPEAKER_00 1:53

The stress level from not having my garden done is is slowly getting better. I just know I'll get it done a piece by piece, and I will.

SPEAKER_02 2:00

You know, if you think about that you talk about stress level, uh what about the farmers, eh? Yes.

SPEAKER_00 2:05

But the rain is good for for the farmers, so and the uh fires, forest fires as well.

SPEAKER_02 2:11

Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. I am yeah, that's good. Cross fingers. Uh okay, Bev, uh let's take take us back to your early years in Saskatoon.

SPEAKER_00 2:20

Well, you know, it's funny when you do think about that. Um and I've been asked to do presentations over the years, and and uh when you start thinking, geez, I did that, or I did, you know, I I didn't know I even really knew how to do that. But I was born and raised in Saskatoon, and uh I went to Prince Philip School in South Mutana Park, which is in my ward, so it's very cool to go to have meetings there and to go back there for things. And uh I when I my mom took me to go to kindergarten, I walked home. We lived close. The next day she took me to kindergarten, I walked home. And they, mom and the teachers decided, well, you know, Bev is just not gonna go to kindergarten, she's not gonna stay here, she's very strong-minded, so they kept me home. Oh, okay, interesting. And then the next year, I know probably my mom was just keeping her fingers crossed. Oh, I hope she stays at school. And they took me to grade one and couldn't get me to leave the school. I loved it. So I just needed that time, obviously. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I didn't kindergarten, not going to kindergarten didn't do me any harm.

SPEAKER_01 3:23

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 3:24

And I went to grade one and I had eight amazing years at Prince Philip School. And you know, I think I've told you this in our chats. I'm a leader, not a f a follower. Yes. But I didn't know that then. And even in elementary school, I did I led a lot in the school. And I I led programs, I helped the teacher do teachers do things, and it was just a really I want a wonderful time for me.

SPEAKER_02 3:50

Really? So that uh kind of that leadership quality was there earlier. But I didn't know it.

SPEAKER_00 3:55

You didn't know it, but and I didn't even know like at grade eight graduations, I didn't even know they had awards.

SPEAKER_02 4:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:01

And they did, and I got um like the Friendship Award, I think is what it was called, which was kind of cool, but I didn't even I I don't go for I'm not getting for awards, so to speak. Anyways, and then I went to Walter Murray Collegiate, which is in my ward as well. It's a great high school. I loved it there for four years, and I pretty much ran it for the the four years I was there, I pretty much ran it as a uh student from a student perspective.

unknown 4:28

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 4:29

I was on all the different, many different, you know, clubs and organizations that in the school that that did activities that did programs, and in Walter Murray, their their student government was called the SRG. SRG. Student Representative Government. Uh other high schools have SRC, Student Representative Council. And so I ran for the SRG, and I was successful, and so I did that for uh the two years you were allowed to be on that for for two years at that time. And I was on the SRG and uh loved every minute of it, raised money for things in the school, and and uh led, you know, was a leader.

SPEAKER_02 5:14

Well that's great. I I know what I had Walter Murray back in my day. Uh used to have a great shop program there. I'm sure we still have a good shop program if it's still there. Yeah. And allow schools to have um sort of cut back on things and remove certain programs.

SPEAKER_00 5:28

But yes, Walter Murray, and then they had uh like a typing class uh at the time. I don't know if they've got that anymore.

SPEAKER_02 5:34

Yeah, well we had that in Hardy, you know, the typing class and photography, but we didn't have a shop and it's always thought it'd be kind of interesting if we had a shop class.

SPEAKER_00 5:40

Yeah, the drafting classes and all that stuff. I didn't take those particular because you can't take everything, but yeah, very good school, and uh I loved it there.

SPEAKER_02 5:48

Absolutely. Um what value did you learn from your family and community to still guide you today?

SPEAKER_00 5:56

Well, my father worked for CN. He was a conductor. Okay, and he was gone a lot of the time. He worked in Manitoba into Saskatchewan, but he was gone. He'd be gone pretty much all summer because he was on the passenger trains, so summer was a busy time for the trains. And he was gone a lot through the rest of the year as well. So, and I have two sisters. So my mother pretty much raised my two sisters and I on her own because dad was gone so much. And so my mom was is my mom is still alive. My mom is a very strong person, and I think I just saw that a lot of that from her. I mean, she raised three girls. Can you imagine having three teenage girls at one time? Because we're like one and a half years apart, exactly. And uh just going through all of that and plus looking after the house, she had a beautiful yard, and you know, she did everything. She painted the fences, she fixed the toilets, she did the lawn, she, you know, and she was a strong uh mentor and leader for me. And uh I really appreciate and and love that.

SPEAKER_02 7:02

Wow, that's great. No, absolutely. Um as a young person, did you ever envision yourself being in the place you are now, being a leader in the community?

SPEAKER_00 7:12

And no, no, I didn't. I didn't. Um I will just uh tell you when I went to university, um, and I am a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan, I did get involved in this in the student government there at the time, but I had three part-time jobs.

SPEAKER_02 7:29

Three.

SPEAKER_00 7:30

And uh I had a boy boyfriends on and off. You know how that is in that age. And I just didn't have time to to continue on in that role, which I I do regret to some days, but I also know that the part-time jobs I had at that time were wonderful jobs, and I learned a lot and I grew a lot. Um I I was at CKOM, I was at the movie theater at Midtown Plaza, and I was at the Centennial Auditorium. And they were all part-time jobs, and I I managed the schedules, you know, when they needed me and when they wanted me. Okay, and uh still got all my homework done and and you know did all of that.

SPEAKER_02 8:06

So what did you do at uh CKO CKOM?

SPEAKER_00 8:10

I was in, well, I started there when I was 15.

SPEAKER_02 8:12

Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_00 8:13

And so I was in uh well at that time I was doing reception on the weekends, and then I got into some of the promos, promotions outside of the station promotions, and uh that's pretty much what I I did was promotions until I I left there, but I was there for quite some time.

SPEAKER_02 8:29

Wow, that's great, yeah. Um were there any mentors, teachers, or community leaders that uh had a significant influence on you?

SPEAKER_00 8:37

So I did have teachers in elementary school, uh, that Mrs. Kebaugh, Mrs. Matches, and um well Doug Portius, and Doug Portius is is uh we're friends on Facebook, he's he's still active in the community, and they were all mentors to me in different ways um in uh you know becoming a leader and learning and growing. And again, I didn't know this at the time, right? Uh and Doug, Mr. Portius, as I call him, but I mean he's he uh he retired from from uh teaching and then he was at Miwasan. And so we reconnected there when I was on the Mios Miwasan Board of Directors representing city council. That's cool. So yes, I did have have folks that that believed in me, helped me, uh, and guided me uh when I didn't know that I needed or even wanted to be guided to where I was going. But teachers I think see that in students, right?

SPEAKER_02 9:33

Right, right. Yeah. Right. Um so what lessons have you learned in your early career that helps you uh navigate um being a city counselor? And dealing with people and the issues of the day.

SPEAKER_00 9:47

So even in elementary school and high school, I volunteered a lot.

SPEAKER_02 9:51

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 9:52

I raised money for the United Way, for UNESCO, um, for different uh different nonprofits in Saskatoon that the school was involved with. And then as I got older, I did my own thing as far as volunteering. And I didn't I didn't know um how to get involved in organizations. There's no rule book, and I just I wasn't shy, I'm not shy. I contacted um, you know, in early in my in my career, uh, for example, I contacted Big Sisters, they were looking for board members, and I contacted them out of the blue and you know said, What's this all about? Maybe I can maybe I can help. And long story short, I got on that board and I was on that board for a long time. I was chair for a long time. Oh, great. And helping and and matching bigs and littles, as we call them, big big and little sisters, and mentoring them as well. And that was a great experience. And from there, I mean I've been on so many different boards and and boards of directors and committees that help the community, a lot of them help women, and a lot of them help children, and then a lot of them just help our community because I really do believe in the city of Saskatoon, in our city. I believe that it's a great place to live, work, and raise a family, and the things that I've done in my life have uh actually uh been geared to making our place a better a better place for folks to live, raise and um and work and have a family. But I didn't know that. Again, I didn't know that. But as I started to get older, I I did think that I would like to run for public office one day. And uh I was asked at a young age to run provincially.

SPEAKER_01 11:45

Really?

SPEAKER_00 11:46

And I was newly married and we had two two babies, and I just didn't feel it was the right time for me to do that. I wanted to be a I I need I needed to work and I wanted to work, and this at this um point in this world, we all need two mom and dads working, right? So that was not a a question, but um, it's good to have something that you work at that you love. And so I I didn't go into provincial politics at that time, but then I was really I always paid attention to city council, and again, you know, I probably never told anybody that because they probably think what a geek she is, right? But I did uh looking back, I I paid attention and I I did research and I got to know some city councillors, you know, at the time. And and again, I reached out to them. And then I decided that I would give it a try and run. I didn't know how to run a campaign, I didn't know how to do any of that. There are no rule books to run municipal campaigns. Exactly. They aren't, it's not a party, it's not a partisan uh politic, political thing where you have, you know, the the people in the background, like federally and provincially, uh guiding you to run a campaign.

SPEAKER_02 12:58

Right. So so what was the defining moment that you know gave the idea that maybe I could do this? I should I should run for a civic uh position there?

SPEAKER_00 13:07

Well there were there were things happening and not happening in our city that I wanted to have a part in and make it better for families. Um I had been uh on the well on the parent council for my uh I have a son and daughter, and I was on the parent council for both of them at Father Robinson School. And so I I led that the community from that from the school perspective. Uh was a brand new school, it was a brand new neighborhood. So there was a lot for me to do as a president of the parent council in that regard to make the the school community and the community better. Again, I didn't know this. I'm in the school, my kids are in the school, I want to do what I can as a parent to make it better for them and all of their other all of the other students.

SPEAKER_02 13:58

Right, right.

SPEAKER_00 13:58

Uh, and then I did the same thing uh when they were in high school. I was on the parent council at high school, and they uh there was a lot of things that we did in the high school area and jurisdiction to make a brand new high school better for the area, for the students, uh, to plan a healthy, safe graduation for the grads, not only my kids, but you know, the all of the students. And uh I think that that just all leads to um led me to wanting to do more in our community. It gave me that sort of that itch. And then you combine that with the other volunteer boards that I was on, it just made me want to do more in our community. I thought, well, running for city council might be uh a way to do that.

SPEAKER_02 14:46

That's great. So what was the reaction from family and friends when you told them that you were gonna run for councilwoman?

SPEAKER_00 14:57

Yeah, that's a good question. I mean, I will say for anyone, and when I mentor folks that are looking at running at any level of politics, I say if you don't have the support of your family and your close friends, it's gonna be very difficult for you to do it. And so my family, my husband was very supportive. My kids were young, so they really didn't know uh what what was happening with with that. But my husband was supported. My my very close friends were very supportive. And they said, yes, let's go for it, let's do this, Bev, and we're gonna get you elected, and we're gonna, you know, figure out together how to do a campaign and how to and how to get you elected.

SPEAKER_02 15:36

That's great. And that kind of fees into my next question. Um what was the most surprising part about uh running a campaign?

SPEAKER_00 15:46

Just knowing how much you have to do, because there are a lot of aspects of it, right? And knowing how much m you, me as a candidate, has to do, and uh for me it was getting folks sort of we had a committee, so each each person on that committee, family and friends, they had a role because the the candidate can't do it all, the candidate can't fundraise all, the candidate can't do all the door knocking, the candidate can't put all the signs out, you know, the candidate, the candidate has to do the speaking, you know, the public speaking, the engagement. They're the they're the candidate. So it was letting some of that stuff go. Uh, and it was easy for me actually after after I cemented that in my head that you know I've got to let that go. I've got to, I've got all these great people on my campaign committee that I trust and I love them, and they're gonna do their they have my best interests. And so they did their job, and then it was they basically it got to the point where they put schedules together for me, door knocking schedules together, engagement schedules together. And as far as fundraising, uh, I had always had a fundraising chair, but you know, sometimes a candidate has to reach out as well. Someday, sometimes the candidate has to meet with the potential funder. And of course I did that when I when I when it was needed, and I also uh obviously helped, you know, come up with a list of who to go uh to ask for for funds to uh fund my campaign, help fund my campaign.

SPEAKER_02 17:28

Right, right. So what are some misconceptions that the public may have about uh civic government about being on council about uh the way the city uh functions?

SPEAKER_00 17:40

Well, uh some one of the first ones is you have one meeting a week or you have you have a city council meeting. I'll never forget the first time that happened to me. I was leaving the gym one early morning.

SPEAKER_01 17:52

Right.

SPEAKER_00 17:52

And someone mentioned someone I didn't know them, but they were they were coming and going, and you know, you people get to recognize you when you're in public office, right? And they commented about the one meeting a month, and I I had to, I was taken aback and I had to, you know, think what did they just say? And then I realized what they they meant, and I said, Oh no, no, no, we don't have just one meeting a month. I said, being a counselor is pretty much meetings. Meetings, meetings, meetings, all kinds of meetings. We have our we have our committee meetings, we have our we call it governance and priorities, GPC now. It used to be called executive committee, but it's basically it's city council and our senior management. And then we have uh all of our engagement that we do, and every counselor is different, and I can talk about that maybe later, but I mean every counselor does their own thing, so to speak. I can talk about only what I do, but the whole week, day, month, seven days a week at some time is meetings and preparing for the next meeting. So our committees meet and then GPC meets and then we go to city council. But by the time we get to city council, these meetings have all happened and lots of decisions have been uh made subject to the approval of city council of this at the city council meeting.

SPEAKER_02 19:15

Right.

SPEAKER_00 19:16

And then during the day of the city council meeting, uh we go from 9 30 in the morning till five o'clock, and then we're technically supposed to have a one-hour break. Sometimes we don't end till 5 30 or so. And then at 6 o'clock on the dot, it's our public hearing meeting. And that is to do with any discretionary use files or um changes to the community plan, all sorts of things.

SPEAKER_02 19:42

Wow, okay. Um What are some of the most difficult decisions you've faced during your time on council?

SPEAKER_00 19:50

So, yes, that's a very good question. Uh talking, if anybody has watched council, they hear me continually talking about core services. I believe that uh uh our city uh has to uh uh do the very best they can to always provide the core services to the residents of Saskatoon. That's what citizens pay taxes for.

SPEAKER_02 20:18

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 20:18

That would be having enough police, having enough fire, make sure our drinking water is clean, uh making sure we have a good transit system, uh, making sure we have parks that you know, parks to me are a core service because they're for everyone. It doesn't matter how much money you make, what the color of your skin, where you live in the city, you know, who you tend to love, like it doesn't matter. Parks are for everyone. So I consider those parks a a core service.

SPEAKER_01 20:47

Right.

SPEAKER_00 20:48

And then of course, having good roads, good sidewalks. We hear about potholes and roads and things all the time. Absolutely. So those are the core services. So where cities, where municipalities, in my opinion, get compromised sometimes is there's many things coming outside of those core services that are being asked of us. Homelessness is a good one. And homelessness is a problem not only in our city, but our province, our country, and all of North America. Homelessness is a problem everywhere. And you know, we all have hearts and we all want to help these people, and I do. Uh, and it but it is a it's a provincial and federal responsibility housing. But our city of Saskatoon, over the many years that I've been on city council, we've really done a lot in the housing area, and we've spent a lot of money uh helping provide housing, low income housing, affordable housing, and working with other levels of government, other organizations to provide and to help with the homelessness problem. But then there's other things as well. You know, there's there's nonprofits. There's sports organizations. There's lots, there's you would not believe everybody comes to the city for money. Because we are the we are the government close to the people. We're the government where we're we're easily accessible. And so everyone comes to us and then you know our administration or we, you know, I as a counselor pass them on, forward them on to where they really should be going to asking for assistance. So it's very it's hard to manage that sometimes because you know we all have hearts and we all want to provide the best for everyone. But at the end of the day, you know, we in my opinion, we have to bide by what municipalities are supposed to do, and that's core services of our city. And so we have challenges with our budget moving forward and and always have to to align that with the core service to align our budget with the core services of what a municipality is supposed to provide to the taxpayers.

SPEAKER_02 23:03

Right. No, that's great. That's great, absolutely. Um so Bev, how do you stay connected to the constituents of uh board nine?

SPEAKER_00 23:19

Well, that's a big question because I do a lot of engagement. I'm very proud of the engagement I do, and I love it. I love every minute of it. So I do things, I do coffee with your counselor. Okay. So I do that at Market Mall. I try to do that once a month. I engage I we have I have got seven communities in Ward 9. Lakeview, Lakeridge, Lakeview, or Lake Ridge, um, Lake Wood. And I've got South Newtana Park, I've got East View, and I've got Rosewood, and I've got the New Tana Suburban Center. It's a very large area.

SPEAKER_02 23:54

I'm thinking, yeah, that's that's a lot.

SPEAKER_00 23:56

Yeah. Wow. But it's wonderful. Uh so I'm active in all of my and with all of my community associations. They're the heart of each of my neighborhoods, and I'm active there. Uh, I've gotten to know them all. I I participate in their meetings when I can, I participate in all of their events when I can, I volunteer, and always let them know that I'm there for them if they need me for anything, and even if it's not something they're not sure that it's a city, a municipal issue, contact me, I will get them to the to the right place. So I I do uh that and then in New Tana suburban area in Saskatoon, it I call them my seniors. Your senior tools. And it's it's I've been told it's the large, it's this, it's this very small, high density group in Saskatoon, it's around Market Mall. I've been told that it's the highest density of seniors in all of Canada.

unknown 24:50

Wow.

SPEAKER_00 24:50

In that small area. Okay. And there's everyone from level five care to folks that have lovely condos there, and they go south for the winter. And I've got and everything in between for my seniors. And so I engage with them a lot of the the places there, they're very active in the events that they do for their residents, and they they invite me and I reach out all the time. Can I come? Can I see you? Can I speak? Can I answer questions? You know, those folks are very uh engaged. They they pay attention to the news, they read the newspaper, they listen to the radio, and they know what's going on. And they love um and I love when I go there and I'll talk a little bit and then I'll just answer questions. Um so I gave I engage with my ward in in so many different ways. Um I do coffee at the counselor in a in a couple of other places as well. I used to do it at at Pitchfork. It was a restaurant in the meadows. Yeah. And it closed. Yeah, I was very sad about that. Did it?

SPEAKER_02 25:53

I didn't know that.

SPEAKER_00 25:54

Okay. It closed uh in 2024, and I'm I miss it, and I know residents in the area miss it. So we're we're looking, we've got a couple of other options in that area, but uh just just haven't uh we'll have to set that up, and I know it will get set up. But so I do engage a lot. I I bring greetings a lot um in my ward and and a lot in the city. But uh engagement for me is very important. And one thing I'm very proud of is when election time comes, I don't say, Oh my goodness, it's election time, I better get out there and I better engage with everybody. I don't really have to do a lot different during election time, except I do a lot more door knocking. Okay. And I will mention that I do door knock throughout the term. I'll go out to, you know, different uh parts in the different uh neighborhoods, uh, but I don't do it uh weeks on end, but I just I like to stay in contact uh with my ward uh and hear what they're doing. But you know, being in contact and involved in the schools in my ward, the high schools, the elementary schools, and the community associations and the other things I mentioned, it it does give me a good pulse on uh on what's happening in ward nine.

SPEAKER_02 27:03

Right, right. That's great. Um so what does uh effective leadership look like in government?

SPEAKER_00 27:09

Effective leadership? Yes. Well, I think number one is you have to be able to listen. And because sometimes leaders, it's hard because we're we like to talk, we like to lead, we like to, you know, take control of things. But you really do need to listen. I need to listen to the residents in Ward 9, and I le need to listen to the all the residents in in the city. I am a city counselor, right? And I hear from folks actually from all over the city. I've been on council a long time, folks know me, they you know, they might like me, they might have met me, they might feel they know me, and they might feel comfortable contacting me. And so uh I hear from folks all the time. But so listen, listen to what people have to say. Sometimes folks are very upset about things, but they might have the wrong information. And when you talk to them and and explain the right information and how things are going or how things will go, they they settle down and they they're appreciative of that discussion. Another is to get involved, be involved in your city, be involved in your community. I don't think I would have ever been in council if I wouldn't have been involved in my community association, in my in the schools, in other boards that I was on, volunteer boards, because if you can't and don't like being involved in volunteer things like that, I will say I don't it's gonna be hard for you to be a good city counselor.

SPEAKER_02 28:41

I would think so, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:42

And and that's really, you know, as I talked about earlier, my my time starting out as a leader, which I didn't know I was, you know, gearing to this to this area. Um it is being able to being a part of the community in all different ways, good and bad. I don't even know what bad. I couldn't even name you really any bad, but because um I don't consider when people are upset at council or things happening in the city, I don't consider that bad actually. I consider that you're a taxpayer and you have every right to be questioning things that we're doing. It's a form of feedback. And not doing absolutely, it's it's great feedback, and I and I love it. And I'm not people say, don't you, aren't you scared of that? On s on the weekend, I was at uh one of my community associations uh had a a table. There was garage sales all over my ward. It was a great day for it, beautiful weather, and I I went by all of them, and I was at one of Eastview uh table there, and you know, right away folks were coming and asking me questions, and one volunteer said, Bev, you should leave. You should try and sneak away. And I said, No, I don't want to sneak away. This is what I'm here for. This is what I want to hear.

SPEAKER_02 29:53

I want to hear feedback from the public. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 29:55

And it's great, and that's why I'm there, right? I want to in in integrate with my residents and hear what they have to say, and and uh so it was it was quite cute. Um she was trying to kind of shield me and protect me, but I said, no, no, no, no, this is what I'm here for. And so you've got to be able to take that feedback and not let it get to you, not not let it, you know, stress you out or depress you. You also have to, you live in a fishbowl. You do. And you have to be able to handle that. And if you can't handle going to the grocery store and having people stop you and talk about things or going to the gym, people I can be on the treadmill and people are coming up and asking me questions. And in that case, I say, could you send me an email? I'm out of kind of out of breath here, it's hard to talk. Um, but you can run into folks anywhere, and you have to be prepared uh if you have the time at that moment to talk to them or give them your card with your email or your phone number, and then they can contact you. So you have to be totally prepared to to live in a fishbowl. You have to be prepared not to have a nine to five job, because this job is not nine to five. Yeah. And you are you you have early meetings in the morning, you have things in the evening, you have things on the weekend. And now I will preface that by saying that I mentioned earlier all counselors work different. I can only tell you how I work. We don't have a rule book as to what we have to do and have and can't do. Right. Well, we do have what we can't do. We do have an ethics commissioner. I mean, we have to be ethical, right? But we have to be at all of our council meetings and committee meetings and all of that. And you know, there's there are rules if you miss and everything. But other than that, there's no rule to say, I have to be involved in my community. I have to be involved in and with the community associations, I have to bring greetings to events, I have to participate in events, whether it can be doing a run with an organization or a walk with an organization, or doing sometimes doing some silly things with organizations, you know, that they they'll do these dunks, right? Or different things. You don't have to do that. That's up to each individual counselor as to what and how much they want to do. For myself, I love all of that, and I do as much of it as I can. And I love speaking to organizations in the city. You know, we have conferences of a thousand people coming into TCU Place or Prairie Land Park, or we have, you know, runs and walks in parks. Uh I on the weekend I spoke at the Miwassan uh dedication ceremony. Okay. Tell us a little more about that. Well, the Mi uh so Miwasan uh they they have various programs that they can dedicate, trees and ingrade paving stones, benches, different things throughout the Miwasan Valley uh system. And uh folks can they they it's a donation, but you can have a plaque on a bench or you can plant trees and dedicated. I've seen those plaques, yes, yes. Or um the paving stones. Uh you can get engraved paving stones in there in Rotary Park. They're also around the promenade uh just to the side of the Besborough Hotel.

SPEAKER_01 33:16

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 33:16

I know I've got engraved paving stones there for my family. Well, not my grandbabies because they weren't around then. Okay. Um, but it's a dedication ceremony to honor and thank all of the folks that have donated and shared their heartfelt stories on some of these donations. So we had speakers there, uh, we had one family that um they they lost their four-year-old daughter to cancer. And they talked about the journey they took from when she was born to when they lost her, and now they have a four-year-old little boy, he was so cute. And they talked about how they live in uh in the area of Silverwood, and the Miwassan Trails in Miwassin Valley was there, Godsend, when their little girl was sick, because you know they couldn't uh take her anywhere they because she was could not be around, you know, uh potential germs and that type of thing. So they they walked the trail, they spent a lot of time, and it was very special for them in their journey, and it's still special for them uh now that their little girl Charlie's gone. Clarke, sorry, her name was Clark Clarkey, they called her Clarkey, and so um they made a donation and they have a bench in the area in in memoriam of her little daughter, their little daughter. And so there were stories like that. So it's a very heartwarming story. It's a great program with Miwasan uh to donate. And I'm just gonna say I'm on the Miwasan board.

SPEAKER_01 34:47

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 34:48

I've on been on, I think, for 10 years, and then years ago I was on previously, but I also worked at Miwasan years ago. I was the CEO of the Miwasin Foundation. Oh, yeah. So, you know, it's kind of cool for me as um someone that worked there and really loved that job and developed many projects in the community with my volunteer board like Gabriel Dumont Park and the World War II Memorial Park, World War II Memorial Fountain in Um Kowanis Park and different programs like that. And then now for me to be on the board as a city counselor, it's it's funny how the the circle goes along sometimes, right? I call it the circle of life, but it it can be the circle of of your um work life as well.

SPEAKER_02 35:35

So Bev, uh when you think of Saskatoon in 10 years, where would you hope it it would be or look like in in 10 years?

SPEAKER_00 35:45

Well, I in ten years I hope that our our homelessness problem is I don't even know what the word is, taken care of, looked after, calmed down. There always will be homeless people everywhere, not just in our city. I hope that there that there's a good grasp on that from all levels of government to get a hold. And hopefully, I I believe in treatment centers, and I think that that's what we should have is treatment centers. I know that our city in 10 years, certainly our our BRT, our bus rapid transit system, will be up and running. Uh, we're hoping for 2028. There's been a few things that have slowed that process down maybe a little bit, but certainly in 10 years that will be I hope it'll be running smoothly and providing transportation to our city, maybe cutting down on some vehicles and uh CO2 and you know all the all the things with with climate change. And uh we are working to make our city a more active transportation city is what we call it. So more user-friendly for transit, walking, and cycling. And it's a work in progress. Everything costs money, but I hope in 10 years that that our city is is truly uh a really great active transportation city. In 10 years, I I hope that uh and I that we are still the entrepreneurial city that we are, and I'm sure we will be, and that businesses continue to see Saskatoon as a place to have their head offices, to uh employ folks that work at their their corporations, even if they don't have a head office here, um, which some do, but we have they have still have large large offices here. And um and I hope that we continue to be a diverse city with honoring and working together with all communities because we are becoming a very diverse city.

SPEAKER_02 37:46

We are, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:47

And um we need to just continue to to work towards that, to thrive on that, and all just work together for the betterment of of everyone.

SPEAKER_02 37:56

Absolutely. Um what role do you think uh local business and entrepreneurs play in uh the city's success or future success?

SPEAKER_00 38:07

Oh, I think businesses and entrepreneurs, well, as I mentioned, we are an entrepreneurial city, so they play a huge success. You know, if they're if they're, as I say, bringing uh employees here, um opening new mines. We've had mines open around the city, we've had had offices open, uh, and I think that's an extremely important part. Um as as far as businesses, I didn't mention downtown when you asked me about what I see the city in ten years. But in ten years, I do hope that that our city is rejuvenated, our downtown city core is rejuvenated.

SPEAKER_01 38:41

Right.

SPEAKER_00 38:42

In ten years, I'm sure we will have Deed, the downtown entertainment district, the new arena.

SPEAKER_01 38:48

Right.

SPEAKER_00 38:48

There's you know folks that are for it and against it, but in ten years I will predict that it will be there. Okay. It'll be downtown, and so that we see a rejuvenated downtown with new more businesses moving in. There are a lot of vacancies right now, filling those vacant vacancies. Um TCU Place will be a larger TCU place at that time. We're working on that now. The city has purchased the YMCA building, which is right next to TCU Place. Right, right. So uh that should expand down into the future, and we can have larger conferences in our city that would connect to to the deed. But I do see TCU Place being done first in the next few years. And I see working with the downtown downtown YXE, they're the the business improvement district for downtown, them working with city council, with the the businesses in downtown to ensure that that is rejuvenated and that it's healthy and safe and fun for folks to come come down to. Having said that, I know there's a lot of restaurants downtown, there's a lot of things happening, and you can't drive downtown and not you you can't find a parking spot.

SPEAKER_01 40:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 40:02

You can't get into a restaurant if you don't have a reservation. Uh you have to stay wait in line for half an hour or so if you don't have a reservation. So I I do believe our downtown is still thriving to an extent right now, but I do believe it can get much better, much bigger, and much uh user-friendlier for the public, visitors to our city, and the residents of Saskatoon.

SPEAKER_02 40:25

Absolutely. Um How can citizens uh become more engaged in the you know steering Saskatoon uh in the into the future, uh helping with Saskatoon's uh success in the future?

SPEAKER_00 40:39

Well, the city of Saskatoon has a lot of boards and commissions where we appoint uh citizen volunteers and they have to reside in the city.

SPEAKER_01 40:46

All right.

SPEAKER_00 40:47

So whether it be the uh Citizens Advisory Council on Accessibility, on um municipal heritage, on equality and diversity, uh art placement, we've got one for art placement.

SPEAKER_01 41:03

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 41:03

Uh we've got municipal planning commission. Folks can apply for boards like TCU Place, Sastel Center, Mi Wa are not Mi WASON, I guess. Uh let's see here, there's so many of them. They can re-apply for our various committees on um dealing with our I'm trying to think what they're called. Development appeals boards. We've got different appeals boards to do with taxes, and if there's discr uh folks are not happy with certain things dealing with their particular lots or lands, there's appeals boards, appeal boards that you can uh direct that to. We have a lot, the Remy Modern, you can you can apply for that. We have a lot of different committees that citizens can apply for, and they can learn from those about what the city is doing. Uh a few years ago, the women counselors on city council, we did a Saturday thing for it was for women, okay, and it was to teach them and educate them on all of the different ways that you can get involved with the things that the the city is is doing. I mentioned earlier the community associations, that is a great way to get a foray into learning about the communities but also city what happens at the city because the community associations are connected in with the city. We do have a community consultant that is uh a staff, a staff member of the city that you know assists the community associations. So we have a lot of ways to get involved, and many of us have talked about we have to talk about that more to the public and let them know. And we have done our best in the last number of years to do that. And you know, I know folks will contact me and say, Hey, I really love, you know, I love art. I say, well, put your name in and your your C V in to be on the Remy Modern or on our art placement. And some people have said, Why do you need an art placement advisory board?

SPEAKER_02 43:12

Well, because what exactly is that?

SPEAKER_00 43:14

Well, throughout the city there is uh there's different art, you know, whether it's the foot of the university bridge, you know, in in Broadway, on Broadway, there's different beautiful pieces of art. Well, some people will not agree they're beautiful, but I think they're beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 43:29

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 43:29

And so that just can't be placed there just nonchalantly. It's got to go through an approval process at the city. And I'm not an I'm not an expert in that in that area, and you know, we don't have all the expertise on city council and on administration. So we count on volunteers that do have the expertise in that. And that's so they have a process that they go through uh to determine whether certain art often we have art donated to the city, and sometimes it's It works and sometimes it doesn't. So it goes through this committee and then ultimately does come to council. But yeah, we're we're using the expertise of citizens, like you asked me, how do folks get involved? So we're using expertise of citizens in our city to help us determine uh, in this case, the the right, the correct art or the best art to be be placed. You know, our citizens advisory committee on accessibility.

SPEAKER_02 44:26

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 44:27

So that is making our city a more accessible city. Our population is aging. There's a lot more folks that have uh wheelchairs, you know, mobility advice devices that they're using, parking in different areas, you know, they've got the blue tag, but you know, you they still can't park two blocks away and walk to a doctor's appointment. So we have we have folks on that committee. I I do sit on that particular committee representing city council because I do believe in in an accessible city.

SPEAKER_01 44:56

Right, right.

SPEAKER_00 44:57

And so but we've got experts on that committee that help us determine how do we do this. Because I and the administration and council, we're not all, as I said, experts on everything. So we've got people there that are blind, that you know are are confined to a wheelchair, we've got folks from the C C and I B, we we've got the Spinal Cord Injury Association, we've got them from all over, and they've got their particular expertise that they can bring to that committee and therefore bring to the city so that we hopefully do the best job at becoming an accessible city in that regard.

SPEAKER_02 45:33

Wow, wow. Um what legacy would you like your would you like to work on for the city? Or actually let's just rephrase this. What legacy would you like your work on city council to leave behind?

SPEAKER_00 45:53

So if I can just digress for one minute. I'm I'm married, I have a wonderful husband, I have two children, a son and daughter. And I my daughter and her husband have two children, so I'm a grandma now. I have a four-year-old granddaughter, I have a one and a half-year-old grandson. And then I'll mention my son Patrick is getting married to Crystal in August.

SPEAKER_02 46:14

Great.

SPEAKER_00 46:14

So when I was first elected, my children were young. And at that, you know, I thought I want the city to be good for them. I want it to be a safe city, I want it to be a good city that they can feel safe going to school, safe going to high school, safe going to university if they choose that, and when they work and proceed with their lives. That's happened, and it's all good and well with them. Now I've got grandbabies, and I'm I want the same for them. But you know, when my kids grew up, and now when my grandkids are growing up, we are a much more diverse city. Things it's a different city now than when my kids grew up in the in the 90s and 90s and in the 2000s. And so I want the city to be a safe city that that that my family and all families can do what they want in our city. They can they can hopefully have good jobs, they can have good educations if they so choose, they can have the ability to enjoy our city, we enjoy our parks, enjoy all of the other things our city offers. And, you know, we do offer a lot. I'll have I'll have friends in Toronto, friends on City Council in Toronto, text me and say, Hey, you know, how come you got Garth Brooks for 12 concerts and we didn't even get them? Or you know, we have things happen in our city and folks don't know it and appreciate it.

SPEAKER_02 47:36

Right.

SPEAKER_00 47:36

I want the Miwasan Valley to continue their work. They're working on being a national urban park.

SPEAKER_02 47:43

Parks A national urban park park with through the federal government.

SPEAKER_00 47:48

Well, it's it's expanding the uh uh jurisdiction of Miwassan and it's it's being a park, a na uh a federal national urban park. So they're larger, there's more things to offer. There's more they it'll expand on what Miwasan is doing now with conservation, education, uh the the core values of Miwassan, uh and it'll just it'll provide money as well to do more things in the park, build more paths. So would the federal government we're talking federal, right?

SPEAKER_02 48:24

Okay, so would they have more say aware what's happening and dictating the future?

SPEAKER_00 48:30

That's a very good question.

SPEAKER_02 48:31

I'm curious now.

SPEAKER_00 48:32

It is yeah. Well, our board has been working uh with our with the Miwasan administration for a long time and lost this as well as with the federal government, and those are the exact same questions that many of us asked. Are we gonna lose our jurisdiction, so to speak, on Miwassan? So when planning this with the feds, no, we are not going to lose that. We have got a different model than other uh federal uh urban parks have.

SPEAKER_01 48:58

Really?

SPEAKER_00 48:59

Yes, but it's been a lot of work and it's still not signed, sealed, and delivered, so to speak, but it's very close. And we still will Miwassen still will have a say, as will the partners.

SPEAKER_01 49:09

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 49:10

Because the the the partners, the founding partners of Miwasan are the city of Saskatoon, University of Saskatchewan, and the Fed and the provincial government.

SPEAKER_01 49:18

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 49:19

And and and the city is the largest funder, uh, and we will all still have a say in that National Urban Park uh when it hopefully comes to fruition pretty soon here.

SPEAKER_02 49:30

Absolutely. No, that's that's great. Um What would you say to someone who wants to make a difference but isn't sure where to start? Well, that could be anywhere, but maybe it's uh civic duties, so I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 49:44

Well, if it's civic duties um or if it's just being a better citizen in your city and neighborhood, uh I keep talking about it, it's getting involved.

SPEAKER_02 49:54

Yeah, I think we talked about touched on it before, getting engaged, getting involved with the various uh um, community associations.

SPEAKER_00 50:03

But everyone has different interests, and and there are there is and there is something in our city everywhere. You you might have to dig a little bit, or you might have to call me, or you might have to talk to someone and say, hey, this is what I'm really interested in. I would like to give my time. Can you help me get involved? You know, I've recently, SCOA, the Saskatoon Council on Aging, has been in Saskatoon for 35 years.

SPEAKER_02 50:29

35 years. All right, explain a little more about SCOLA.

SPEAKER_00 50:32

Well, it's a wonderful organization. I know about them. The city has helped them uh uh commission reports on on seniors and the elderly in our city. And recently uh I've been working as a well not working, I've been volunteering with Schola. They asked me to help them out with with some projects, and I'm doing the best I can in my spare time, but I do believe in the organization. Okay. They they have wonderful programs in our city for seniors. It doesn't matter if it's if it's um IT, learning IT, learning the computer, learning about AI. I mean, AI is new, it's sometimes scary. I'm still learning about it. But you know, learning how to how to get your how to do your taxes or get your taxes done, uh, health and fitness, uh making sure your home is fireproof, you know, if you some seniors have lived in their home for a long time and maybe things haven't been kept up in that regard. So all you name it, they they are involved in it, and it's a great organization. And so getting involved in an organization like that, getting involved in you know the YM and YWCAs, getting involved in Big Sisters, Interval House, you know, and I haven't even talked about the arts. I mean, I'm I I support the arts. I've been on Shakespeare in the Saskatchewan, uh Persephone, and you know, there's so many wonderful things in our city. And I tell you, I wish I had another 12 hours in each day and I would just be doing more things because I love everything I do and I wish I could do more.

SPEAKER_02 51:58

Wow, that's great. Um We're getting close to the end of the conversation. Really? Is it been an eye? Let me go back pretty quick. Wow. Uh yeah. Um outside of City Hall, what are your other interests?

SPEAKER_00 52:11

Well, I I do do volunteer work where I can. I mean, it I'm on a lot of boards and commissions for the city. A lot. I it'd be hard for me to just name them here, but I am I am on a lot, but I I am volunteering for SCOA, as I mentioned. Um before COVID, I chaired uh a fundraiser for ovarian cancer called WAM WAMS, Women Against Sorry, no, no, that was multiple WAMS, I did two at the same time. WAMS was women against multiple sclerosis. And I chaired that, and then I chaired uh another uh committee uh committee and and board for um ovarian cancer, women uh prevention and detection of ovarian cancer. And uh as I mentioned, I've been on uh you know on many, I'm a I'm a Rotarian, so I I volunteer as much. I've been a president of the Rotary Club of Saskatoon. Okay. And I have uh been on, well I was I was actually vice chair of Persephone when I was first elected on council, and then we were the city was working, that was when they were working at moving from where Persephone used to be on, I think it was uh Avenue W or something in the West End. Yes. Working on um their new building. So I stepped down because that was a conflict of interest. Okay. Um but I'm I'm on a lot of volunteer things. I am very active with my grandchildren right now. I mean, they're not doing things. My daughter or my granddaughter had her dance recital this weekend. Uh I'm as a grandma, I'm very involved in the daycare and her activities where I can be. And uh I support my children. Uh, you know, they they my daughter works at the university, HR, my like they're all working, they're all doing great things for our community. My my soon-to-be daughter-in-law is at the children's hospital. And I support them in their volunteer initiatives and the things they do in the community. So, yeah, I'm always volunteering. And I always say to people, if you want our community to be a good community, you need to volunteer. We are all have our ex expertise in areas. Some people say I don't have an expertise in it. I say, Yes, you do.

SPEAKER_01 54:25

Everyone does.

SPEAKER_00 54:26

Come and talk to me, we'll have a conversation. I'll pull that expertise out of you and we'll get you involved. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 54:32

Um the final section. This is our rapid fire question section. Oh. Throw a couple of questions out and you answer any way you want. Coffee or tea? Coffee. Coffee. Early bird or night owl. Well, and your line of work. Both. Yeah, uh River Walk or City Event. Oh, maybe speaking to me more than a lot of people.

SPEAKER_00 54:51

That's hard too, but yeah.

SPEAKER_02 54:52

Uh most used app on your phone.

SPEAKER_00 54:55

Uh it would be probably social uh Facebook and Instagram.

SPEAKER_02 55:01

Okay. One word that describes Saskatoon.

SPEAKER_00 55:05

Beautiful.

SPEAKER_02 55:06

I knew you used to that. So that's the first thing I think of, too. Uh favorite local restaurant.

SPEAKER_00 55:13

You know, I really like Hearth.

unknown 55:15

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 55:16

Located in the Raimi Modern.

SPEAKER_02 55:17

Yeah. That's a good one. Um Hidden Gem in Ward 9.

SPEAKER_00 55:25

Well, we have got there's a beautiful little pond uh just off of Taylor and Slimon.

SPEAKER_02 55:32

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 55:33

And it's a beautiful area to walk. Walk your dog, walk your babies. Also Hyde Park in Rosewood. They're signed sort of connected, beautiful.

SPEAKER_02 55:42

Right. Um What are you most grateful today? For today.

SPEAKER_00 55:47

I am for today. I am grateful for my health. I'm grateful for my family's health, and I'm grateful I have a wonderful, loving family, and we're a close family.

SPEAKER_02 55:57

Absolutely. If you weren't public service, what would you be doing?

SPEAKER_00 56:01

I would probably be a social worker because I like to make everything I like to make everything better for people and make their lives better.

SPEAKER_02 56:09

I think we got the sense of that today. Perfect. That's it. Thank you, Bev, for coming down.

SPEAKER_00 56:14

Thank you very much. It was a great I really appreciate it. I can't believe an hour has gone by already.

SPEAKER_02 56:18

It goes by pretty quick. It was my pleasure having you. Thank you. Thank you. Rooted here in business and leadership podcast.