Twenty years in Stouffville,
twenty-six years in service leadership

How I got here

My wife and I moved to Stouffville twenty years ago with a two-year-old son and a baby on the way. We spent our first six years in a home just south of the Leisure Centre, and for the last fourteen we’ve been on Elm Rd, in Ward 4. We knew we were home as soon as we settled into this active little town, surrounded by friendly neighbours.

Both our boys were raised here. They went through the schools here, played on the fields here, and grew up knowing the people on our street. That is not campaign decoration. It is the entire reason I’m doing this.

A career in public education

I spent my working life in Ontario public schools. I started as a high school teacher, became a Vice-Principal, then a Principal, working across two of the province’s largest boards, the Toronto District School Board and York Region District School Board. Nineteen of those years were as a school administrator, and I retired this year as a high school principal.

A school is a small town. You run a budget that you have to answer for. You set expectations and structures that staff and students are guided by. You listen to students, families, staff and unions who all want different things, and then you decide, knowing somebody will be disappointed. You do all of it inside a thick rulebook you did not write. And you do it all in service of others. You do it to ensure the success of the youth and families of the communities you are serving.

What I learned is that education is a human business. It is complex, emotional, challenging and so very rewarding. Families, students and staff all want to find success, they want to be happy and they want to feel safe. The same as residents of a town.

Service in Stouffville

To give back to the town that has been so great for my family, I have served in this community.

I worked for the Town’s Recreation Department, where a neighbour and I co-organized and ran a children’s basketball league for years. We started out of Summitview Public School and moved into the Leisure Centre when it opened. If your child played, there is a decent chance I was the one running your child through warm-ups and organizing the games.

I served as an appointed member of the Town’s Bylaw Appeals and Property Standards Committee, hearing residents’ appeals and making rulings based on town policy and the evidence in front of us. It meant meeting people at the end of a long, confusing process, treating them with dignity and arriving at a decision. This experience gave me a glimpse into the Town’s interactions with residents when matters are complex and emotional.

And for years I volunteered at Springvale Church as a Sunday School teacher. I supported children in grades four and five to further develop their faith and relationship with God.

Why now

I retired this year. I wanted to finish that job well, and I did.

Now I have time and a very appropriate skill set for the role of a Town Councillor.

This will not be a part-time job for me. I will be fully committed to the residents of Ward 4.

I will bring new energy and an eagerness to actively represent the residents of Ward 4.

I will listen. I will engage. I will get results.