Two women to serve as TNRD board of directors chair, vice chair

For the first time in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District's history, two women will serve as chair and vice chair of the board of directors.

Directors cast their votes for board chair via secret ballot at the TNRD’s inaugural board meeting on Thursday evening, which was held at the Sandman Signature Hotel.

Ashcroft Mayor Barbara Roden received the majority vote. Roden is the second woman to be elected board chair for the TNRD.

Roden was one of three directors vying for the position. John Ranta, mayor for the Village of Cache Creek, and Barriere Mayor Ward Stamer also put their names forward for consideration.

Logan Lake Mayor Robin Smith was acclaimed for the role of vice-chair.

In her address to the board, Roden noted the last couple of years have been tough for the TNRD, and while it’s important to recognize the past, the regional district needs to keep moving forward.

"There is a lot to do that the previous board could not do because we had to make a hard decision and do the right thing. Doing the right thing is not always the easy thing to do. I will always do the right thing,” Roden said.

Roden, who held the position of board vice-chair last year, said she was excited to see new faces around the table.

“I love local politics, because there is no slate, there is no party line, there are only people who are bringing their passions, their plans, their ideas to the table,” Roden said.

“I look forward to hearing those plans and ideas and passions, and working together as a team — helping to build a team to serve all the people of the TNRD. That is why we’re here. We can never, ever lose sight of that.”

Roden told Castanet Kamloops she is looking forward to working with Smith, who she described as experienced and well-respected on the TNRD board and in her home community.

When asked about the historic vote which saw two women elected to the board’s two leadership roles, Roden said she believes women have a different leadership style.

“We have a different governing style — I'm looking forward to showing that to the world,” Roden said.

Smith said women often look after the finer details, and “details matter.”

"I think it's a really, really great opportunity, and I couldn't have chosen a better chair to vice with, that's for sure,” Smith said.

Smith said she is looking forward to getting to know the new directors.

“We're going to have a lot of learning to do, I think as a group, just how we all mesh together and how we work together and how we can make that effective,” Smith said.

All TNRD directors — including each of the seven representatives from the City of Kamloops — were sworn in during Thursday’s meeting.

Directors took the oath of office, affirming they would abide by conflict of interest rules, carry out their duties with integrity, demonstrate leadership and collaboration and would be accountable for their decisions and actions.

The next board of directors meeting will be held on Nov. 24 in the TNRD Civic Building at 1:30 p.m.