By Stephen Dafoe
We continue our March Break Movers and Shakers feature today with two more Morinville News Makers and Shakers: Paul Smith and Lisa Holmes
Councillor Lisa Holmes is now coming to the end of her first term on Morinville Town Council. Though new to the community at the time of the 2010 municipal election, she has become a familiar face in the community at events and working behind the scenes on committees and boards, including the Morinville Centennial Celebrations Committee and the Morinville Public Library Board. Her role on Council keeps her working inside and outside the community attending meetings as diverse as Northern Lights Library Services meetings in Elk Point and at the Capital Region Board in Edmonton.
But while few may know her work at board tables, her social media presence is what labeled her as a mover and shaker with our readers. As one nominator put it, “She is involved in some very cool new initiatives, and tries to keep the public informed via social media.” Holmes is a regular presence on Facebook and Twitter, promoting community events, recognizing community accomplishments, and simply keeping residents up to date with what is happening at the Town of Morinville level.
“I have to say I love the job, and I consider Council to be a job,” Holmes said of her public servant role. “The reason it is something I am continually positive about and happy to do and will push aside my personal and professional life to put this first is because I love my town. I want to make sure the town my boys grow up in as amazing as I know it can be.”
That sense of community is born of Holmes’ belief that community is going to the grocery store and seeing people you know and knowing the cashier by name. “When you grow up in a big city, it is very easy to silo yourself into your own world and into your family,” Holmes said. “Community is about building relationships outside your family. It’s a fabric. It’s the idea everyone belongs to something.”