Camrose County Councillor (2007-Present)
Agronomy Manager – Cargill (2001 – Present)
Married to: Lora Miller – Respiratory Therapist / AHS (2000)
Children: Reid (8), Keaton (6), Quinlan (4)
Board Affiliations:
Agricultural Committee
Municipal Planning Commission
Building & Planning Committee
County Newspaper Committee
Recycling Committee
City/County Inter-Municipal Development Plan
City of Camros
e Performing Arts Center Planning Committee
Camrose Regional Landfill
Interests/ Community Activity:
Scout Leader- 6th Camrose Scouts (2009 – Present)
Outdoorsmen (hunting, fishing, camping)
Education:
Graduated Westlock High school (1990)
NAIT – Biological Sciences Dip. (1993)
University of Alberta –Bachelor of Science (1998)
University of Alberta – Masters in Plant Science (2000)
I am 39 years old and was born and raised on a farm in Westlock Alberta. Although they would have been proud to have me take over the family farm, they were thrilled when I graduated from the University of Alberta with both my undergrad and post graduate degree in plant sciences. On my Masters Thesis, I quoted my mothers most impactful statements to me growing up, “The easiest thing to pack is your education.”
After graduation in 2000 I moved to Camrose Alberta to start my career as a canola breeder for Cargill. My passion for developing healthier canola oil (non transfats) began while I growing up on the farm, working along my father as our family was seed growers. My father taught me the value of growing from the land a superior product for consumption. He took pride in his fields, becoming well known in the area as an innovative farm consultant and eventually transferred his knowledge to become a trusted and respected select seed grower. Prior to moving to Camrose I married my wife Lora, a Respiratory Therapist who currently is employed with Alberta Health Services. Together we are raising our three young children on our acreage outside of the city. She has just recently begun her Masters in Leadership through online learning at Royal Roads University, so our household is quite active. It was my great ambition to fulfill another childhood passion of mine; to become politically active and engaged in my community. Contributing back to my community (locally and globally) by helping to develop a non transfat canola oil had provided me with insight of stretching myself in other, less familiar environments, such as in the political realm. Being a relative unknown in the Camrose County area in 2007, I campaigned to become the County Councillor in my division. My daunting challenge was to try to build as many relationships as I could in such a short period of time. The county residents needed to meet me face to face so that we could start a dialogue about vision and direction for our community. I learned so much from this experience and had the opportunity to meet some very interesting people. I must admit, the experience was exhilarating. The feedback that I received from the county residents was that they were impressed that I would take the time to engage them. I was the first candidate at any level of government to reach out to them in this manner. Many of them offered me their perspectives of local concerns which served to refine my platform in the ongoing weeks before the election. Their insights were invaluable and contributed largely to my success on election night. I was able to secure the municipal county seat; winning over an equally apt candidate who was a long time resident of the county and by all accounts, very well known. In the 2010 municipal election, I again faced stiff competition. I employed the same methodology as I had in the last election to win back my seat. I focused on building and maintaining relationships with the constituents, creating dialogue around issues/solutions and modelled the qualities of effective and accountable leadership. My wife and I are both politically aware and believe that in order to make a difference we must first know what is important to us and to our family. It is essential to have a true understanding of what we value and then live according to our espoused values. Politically, it is our responsibility to find the political party that is the most closely aligned with our values. Since graduating from school I have been interested in government. I began to notice the decisions of government when Ralph Klein became premier. I was in university and some of his decisions and vision for Alberta really affected me. Many were tough decisions on spending cuts. Although his cuts hit my pocket book I still respected in essence what he was doing; trying to Alberta back into the black. I was proud to be a PC supporter and to put my vote behind what I thought was a sustainable vision for Alberta’s future. Unfortunately, I believe this once sustainable vision has since eroded and been replaced by a government that over spends, does not listen to the people, has centralized government far too much, and has a sense of arrogant entitlement. I no longer am able to find alignment between my values and the actions of the current reigning provincial party. The Wildrose Alliance Party holds many of the values that I believe, a government should embrace. The belief of controlled spending, giving more decision making powers to local governments, allowing true democracy in such as to not interfere with healthy business competition, and streamlining the ministry. I believe that the Wildrose is still following true conservative values unlike the PC’s that seems to be governing more Liberal than conservative. I believe my youth provides the strategic edge that allows for new beginnings, fresh ideas and energised optimism. Tempered by my recent and ongoing experience as a county councillor of representing my present constituency in volatile IDP, annexation and budget issues. My wife and family are very supportive of me and have been a priceless resource. My family has been by sounding board through the many years and has been able to widen my eyes on many occasions to perspectives, ideas and insights that I had not yet considered but proven to be immensely valid. I am excited and energised at the prospect of overturning the current conservative party at the next provincial election. For thirty nine years the PC’s have been in power. This has produced a culture of entitlement and power preservation. Leaving ‘everyday Albertans’ wondering and wishing for innovative solutions to combat the issues of recession, sustainable and accessible administration of our provincial healthcare and education systems. Or optimizing our provincial prosperity through our energy resources, to mention a few. I, like so many Albertans both young and old, want change. I want a better future for myself, my family, my community, my organization and my province.
