Ponoka & District Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year 2008 Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2013
Vol. 65, No. 44
403-783-3311
editorial@ponokanews.com
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DEDICATED TO THE PROMOTION OF PONOKA
Recreation top priority for new mayor By Jeffrey Heyden-Kaye Many Albertans had their eyes fixed on Ponoka last week as the race for mayor was the closest many have seen. Mayor Rick Bonnett beat Doug Gill by a single vote — 960 to 959, which drew provincial interest. Residents who supported Bonnett could be heard saying, “Yup. My vote counted.” And others who supported Gill but were too late to vote said the opposite, “If only I had made it on time. It would have been a draw.” With votes being so close Gill requested a recount and many couldn’t blame him; one vote separated him from retirement or the big seat. Sure enough a recount was held Oct. 23 at 2 p.m. but the numbers remained unchanged and Gill accepted defeat. “I’m really proud of what we accomplished. We did a lot. I can honestly say that what I did on council always had the interest of the citizens at heart,” he said. “And that makes me feel good.” He still intends to help out with his committee work as he has lived in Ponoka for the last 43 years and was on council for nine years. Gill congratulated Bonnett for a hard fought campaign. Bonnett understood the reasoning behind Gill’s request and stressed that voting is an important part of democracy. “Everyone says, ‘My vote doesn’t count.’ Every single vote counts in every election, no matter what.” The new mayor knows he has a big job ahead of him after winning by the narrowest of margins. “There’s going to be 959 people that are going to be pushing me that much harder so we’ve gotta jump to the challenge and work hard,” explained Bonnett. After getting over the shock, he seems to have hit the ground running. Bonnett has already met with new councillors to see which committees they feel they could best serve the town. He feels there will be a learning curve for new councillors; Coun. Loanna Gulka is the only incumbent. New councillors will need to study up on the Municipal Government Act, budget deliberations are planned for next month and they will need to plan for meetings but Bonnett said councillors are looking to the future. continued on page 2
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Time for fun - Sierra Winder (3) is enjoying the slide while Ruby Stebner (4) is having her face painted and Brooklyn Wynnychuk (1,5) is trying to figure out what the fun is all about during the Pumpkin Hunt Carnival at the Word of Life Church Photos by Mustafa Eric parking lot.
2014 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500 LT CREW CAB Lease now: $255/ BIWEEKLY $0 DUE AT SIGNING $0 SECURITY DEPOSIT $0 FIRST PAYMENT **Based on 36 months @ 1.5% AND 24,000 kms per year** Plus fees and taxes
4X4 (#14015)