We live in a great city and I see examples of this everyday.
After getting stuck in the arena parking lot on Wednesday night, I had four people waved down and very willing to help me out.
It did not matter to these people that they were missing the Broncos game. They were willing to help out a stranger in need.
To the future mayors of Humboldt, this is the type of mayor we need for this town, someone selfless.
Besides some sense of being Humboldt-famous after acquiring the mayor title, being mayor does not mean any type of celebrity status.
It is not like being mayor of Toronto or Calgary where the whole country knows your name.
For people who do know your name, it is not always going to be for the best of reasons.
There will be a balancing act between having a thick skin and listening to other people’s ideas.
Any potential mayor cannot have one without the other in a mayoral position since they will have to be prepared to swallow their pride and say they were wrong from time to time.
For that matter, not everyone will understand the job of the mayor.
With the title of mayor comes little power.
The councillors and the mayors work together to pass law. The mayor will not be able to pass law without consultation.
I want to know how many people think otherwise.
Humboldt has had the benefit of one mayor for the last 10 years.
I was not here for the learning curve that was Eaton coming into office but as he is leaving public office, the last year has been a time when he knew what he was doing.
The new mayor, along with new council members coming in, will have that initial learning curve that we, as residents, will have to deal with.
And that is okay.
They will learn along the way what they need to do within municipal politics.
They will learn along the way how much they can commit to this important job.
That does not mean we should be all forgiving.
As citizens, we need to hold our candidates responsible for what they say and the same goes for when they are elected.
The city got out into the community and communicated with people about what they wanted to see. The channels of communication were open and they also need to stay that way.
Eaton, from what I saw as a journalist, also put Humboldt on the map when it came to provincial politics by being involved in many different government and municipal organizations.
For a small city, he brought Humboldt to the forefront of discussions on infrastructure funding, storm water issues, and fighting to keep small towns vibrant and viable.
Eaton dedicated a lot of time into keeping Humboldt involved.
We still need someone like that to ensure that Humboldt stays with those conversations.
