Marcia McKay has put her name forward as a candidate for city council running under the CHOICE banner.
Born in Ottawa just over 60 years ago, McKay got a degree in History and English, and expected to teach but joined the federal government instead. She began as a summer student, and when she left 25 years later, was a Regional Director for BC/Yukon. Along the way she became an operational auditor, and has received training in strategic planning, negotiation, and conflict resolution. Her expertise is corporate services – contract and administrative law, human resources, financial management, and I.T. She thinks analytically, loves logistics challenges, and reads everything. Happily divorced, she is willing to treat being on city council as a full-time job.
Her career with the federal government took her to all three coasts, with 14 different federal departments. When she left, she worked for Abbotsford Police doing 911. As a consultant, she writes business plans, grant applications, puts on special events, and has been president of two strata councils. She was appointed to the BC Employment and Assistance Appeal Tribunal for six years, and then moved to Campbell River.
Since moving here, she has been on the executive of the Newcomer’s Club, and ElderCollege. She served two years on the board of the Tidemark, and won their volunteer of the year award for 2013-2014. She is a facilitator-in-training for the RCMP’s Restorative Justice Program, and has recently joined the Shoreline Arts Society. In 2013 she joined the Willow Point Lions Club and serves as secretary/treasurer.
A former home owner, before she invests in a home in our city, she wants to make sure that the city is well run, and respectful of taxpayers. She wants a council that demonstrates common sense by spending economically, efficiently, and effectively. She believes in getting things right the first time.
McKay says she has the skills to deal with all levels of government, to cut through red tape, and to work within the system to achieve goals. She thinks through problems, and thinks outside-the-box to find solutions that work.
Her objective is to fix what isn’t working and to make our city an even better place to live. She wants to see a concerted effort to attract manufacturing and to remove barriers to development. She wants more facilities and programs for seniors, for the homeless, for youth, and for the disadvantaged – and she wants to facilitate organizations and governments working together instead of separately.
She believes that taxes must be frozen, if not reduced. McKay will spend money only after careful consideration. She has proven that service levels do not have to suffer when budgets are cut.
If something needs to be replaced, then she would find a way to improve upon it. She knows that Council needs to be more professional.
“If you aren’t part of the solution, you are part of the problem,” McKay says.