Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools’ board of trustees has a new look following Monday’s civic election.
Incumbents Adriana LaGrange, Anne Marie Watson and Murray Hollman will be joined by new trustees Kim Pasula and Cynthia Leyson in the Red Deer and Area ward.
The other new trustees, Dorraine Lonsdale and Sharla Heistad, will represent the Hwy 11 ward and QE2 ward, respectively.
Adriana LaGrange has received the most votes with 3,716 votes. LaGrange has been on the board since 2007. She said she’s humbled and honoured to be re-elected to the board again.
The first step as a board will be to bring the new trustees and incumbents together, LaGrange said.
“Everyone who was elected is talented and gifted so I’m sure it will be a smooth process,” LaGrange said. “Red Deer Catholic has always been a cooperative board and we will continue to help each other out.”
Anne Marie Watson was re-elected with 3,597 votes. She agreed with LaGrange, saying it will be a smooth transition for the new trustees.
“We knew we were going to have three trustees retiring so we were prepared to have a plan in place and get them up to speed quickly,” said Watson, who has been a trustee since 2010.
Watson said she’s excited voters showed confidence in her by bringing her back for another term.
Returning trustee Murray Hollman, who had 3,230 votes, said he’s excited to work with the new trustees.
“I’m ready to get back to work,” said Hollman, who was first elected in 2013. “We have a board orientation on Friday to get to know each other and identify our vision for the next four years.”
Kim Pasula, who had 2,852 votes, and Cynthia Leyson, who has 2,364, will be the two new trustees for the Red Deer and Area ward.
Leyson beat out Carlene Smith by 169 votes. Watching the results roll in throughout the night was nerve-wracking, Leyson said.
“I’m still shaking from the nerves - it was quite an experience and now I’m ready and committed to do the work that needs to be done,” said Leyson.
Leyson said she’s excited to learn from the incumbent’s of the board.
“I’m a rookie here and I know I need to do some learning and I’m looking forward to doing that,” she said.
Rocky Mountain House’s Dorraine Lonsdale defeated incumbent Liam McNiff for the Hwy 11 ward, with 572 votes to his 420.
“I’m so excited to give back to Catholic education, which is something I strongly believe in,” said Lonsdale.
The incumbents and new faces on the board will be able to learn from each other, Lonsdale said.
“I think we’re all connected by our shared goal which is to support and rally behind Catholic education in Central Alberta,” she said.
Innisfail’s Sharla Heistad said after being acclaimed, she’s excited to finally get to work with her fellow trustees.
“It looks like a good team we have with lots of experience and new people to bring new ideas,” said Heistad. “We need to communicate with one another and lean on the trustees who have experience on the board.”
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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