By Ashley Wiebe

Province encouraging women to get involved with council, school boards

Apr 6, 2017 | 4:47 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — The Alberta government wants to see more woman enter into the election come October.

Their latest campaign, #ReadyForHer, is aimed at encouraging women to run for council and school boards in the upcoming election.

It’s something Catherine Wilson Fraser, vice-chair of the public school board, hopes to see as well.

“You meet so many people and you just open a door of more love for everyone,” she said.

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Wilson Fraser volunteered with parent council, but knew she wanted to do more.

When her father, Dr. Roy Wilson, passed away unexpectedly, she knew it was time.

“I don’t know what happened but I just had this amazing determination to run and finish his term for him because I believed that he fought for kids in our district and I wanted to finish that for him,” she added.

Councillor Julie Friesen felt the same determination to help the community when she made the decision to run for council more than 20 years ago.

Friesen had been on a number of boards and committees, including the police commission and the social development advisory board.

“My interest in community in any event, along with those two involvements, really gave me a taste and a desire and a drive to even be more involved and to run for council,” she said.

Stephanie McLean, the Minister of Status of Women, announced on Thursday a second #ReadyForHer tour, along with a series of videos to help encourage women to get involved with local government.

“We know that there tends to be a confidence gap between men and women and so certainly when women run, they tend to win just as often as men do,” she said over the phone from Edmonton. “The issue is one that starts before that and that’s getting them to put their names on a ballot.”

“I bet you I’ve been on 40 or 50 boards of directors or involved with community organizations over the years, serving in one way or another,” Friesen said. “It’s just something I learned at home. It was part of my life. I really strongly believe in being involved in your community and doing what you can.”

McLean said it’s important to have women represented at the decision making table, knowing they bring a different voice and experience to any discussion, and Wilson Fraser agrees.

“I think it makes a great balance at the table, especially when you have so many different personalities and then you’ve got the combination of men and women and it helps balance it,” she said.

Friesen also agrees but said it’s equally important that the best people for the job are the ones that are chosen, something she hopes to see come October.