issues of importance
Mental Health Support
Improving Mental Health support in our community needs to become a priority. We are all susceptible to becoming overloaded, stressed and exhausted and our culture, staff, and personal wellness suffer for it.
We need to ensure full-time and part-time Township Staff, Volunteers, their families and neighbours are aware of, and have access to the support they need 24/7.
Are you in crisis right now? Please Call 1-844-HERE-247 (437-3247)
Well-being of Children
The community plays a crucial role in helping families raise compassionate, inquisitive, active and accepting children who will also shape our communities and guide us all into the future.
The well-being of our children must be a focus; helping them find a balance between technology and activities that encourage active play and organized sports.
Lower speed limits in our school zones will ensure that our children, their parents, community members, volunteers and school staff return home safe and sound after each and every school day.
Here is what I have done to improve this in Wilmot. I won't stop here!
Inclusivity & Diversity
A Wilmot that is for everyone and includes everyone. Before my time on council Wilmot said we are an inclusive, welcoming countryside community. Those words were perceived as performative to members of Wimots marginalized community. We have a long way to go but the current councils leadership advaced this from performative words to action. We MUST be an inclusive, welcoming community. I am committed to continuing to support and promote inclusivity and diversity throughout Wilmot Township.
Here is what I have done to imrove this in Wilmot. I won't stop here!
``Wilmot councillor Angie Hallman brought forward the motion to raise the flag at the April 23 council meeting. All five council-lors voted in favour. Cachagee said, Maybe (Wilmot) can be a leader with- in the other townships, about reconciliation, about having a partnership with the Indigenous people, and listening to the voices and the needs of the Indigenous people.``
https://www.wilmotpost.ca/cmsb/uploads/wilmotpost_09_16_21_online.pdf
``A Wilmot councillor wants to make youth sports more accessible for all children. This is a situation where we have more children who are identifying who they really are, and therefore, we need safe spaces for them to change,” said Hallman.
Wilmot councillors unanimously passed a motion about the flag during Monday evening's council meeting.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/pride-flag-wilmot-township-1.5648894
Wilmot Township councillor Angie Hallman says she is happy to see the signs popping up and is hopeful they will promote education. “We’re finding the white privilege that exists and we’re finding out the work that we need to do to progress our community to be more inclusive,” said Hallman.
Wilmot council unanimosly endorsed supporting Orange Shirt Day 2022 in partnership with Indigenous community members to hold a sunrise ceremony. This shows that Wilmot is taking futher steps beyond perforamtive action and lis taking further steps beyond performative action and is taking steps to address numbers 57 and 66 of the 94 calls to action idetfied in the 2015 reprt that calls for Truth and Reconciliation. These items specifically call to action for municipal governments.
Voting in Wilmot - No In-Person voting on October 24
Wilmot Township councilors were never presented with the options to choose voting days. Report ILS 2021-35 brought to council by the previous Clerks went before council on October 4th, 2021 and included voting options for internet and telephone voting with the continuation of in person voting. On March 28th 2022, the report for alternative voting was brought to council and outlines the vendors for the infrastructure for alternative voting.
Nowhere in either report does it state that in-person voting on the day of the Municipal Election would not take place. Since this was not stated in the report, it is safe to assume that Council, staff, and anyone who has reviewed this report, would believe that in-person voting would occur on Election Day.
Due to the elections act there is no way to change this for the October 2022 election. Here is the election act: https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/96m32
Upon re-election, I plan to address this for future elections.
https://www.ontario.ca/page/municipal-elections
Community Volunteerism
My Passion for Volunteerism includes:
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Chair "Wilmot Splash Pad" Committee through successful research and fundraising initiatives
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Canada Day in Wilmot
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The William Scott Festival and Soap Box Derby
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Oktoberfest New Hamburg Royal Canadian Legion Branch 532
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Co-Chair of 100 Women of Wilmot
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Co-Chair of New Dundee Public School Council
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Reverse Santa Clause Parade
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Easter Bunny Drive
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Concerts in the Park - Terry Fox Foundation
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Community Town Halls (in person and virtual)
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Mental Health Public Speaker
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Girl Guides of Canada
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Tit-for-tat Swap meet
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New Hamburg and Area Preschool
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Community Food Bank Food Drives
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Yearly Community Tree Planting
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Yearly Community Roadside cleanup
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Wilmot Ag Society Fall Fair
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Crow Shield Lodge
Volunteers are valued in every corner of our community. Volunteers are the life blood to any communty. Thank you to everyone who gives the gift of time to our community.
Listen and Respond
There is nothing more important than to listen and respond to resident issues. Residents in Wilmot are my number one priority on the job. I will continue to be a strong voice at the council table. It has been an honour to work with the community and improve the community in several ways.
Prime Ministers Path
Reconciliation is an invitation to a shared path forward to better lives for both Indigenous people and Canadians.
Hope, implies action, and it is a proactive way to still look at the past but look forward for a better future for us all.
Truth Reconciliation Commision number 45iii, “Renew or establish Treaty relationships based on principles of mutual recognition, mutual respect, and shared responsibility for maintaining those relationships into the future.”
The prime minister's path started with the City of Kitchener and Wilfrid Laurier University both turning down the statue project after they each had lengthy public consultations.
Members of Wilmot Township staff and council held internal discussions that resulted in the prime minister's path being located outside of the township administrative offices after no in depth public consultation.
After protests at the prime minister's path, Wilmot council held public meetings where council heard from community members and the discussions went on for over 10 hours with members of the community sharing their feelings. There is a tremendous desire to find a common future that leads to a good life for all.
At the 2020 August meeting, members of the Save Our Statues group attended the council meeting and were firm in their suggestion that Wilmot council hire the consultancy agency called the First Peoples Group. As this agency is Indigenous lead and meets the TRC calls to action for municipal governments, and the non-Indigenous community members who took the time to attend the council meeting all felt this was the best path forward. Wilmot council listened and unanimously supported the recommendation to hire the First Peoples Group to work with Wilmot.
A newsletter called the Wilmot Sentinel was mailed to homes in Wilmot Township in early 2021. It praised the public consultation process that was led by the third party indigenous lead, First Peoples group.
In 2021, on April 26th, Wilmot resident and voice of the Wilmot Sentinel said “we are really excited tonight to be introduced to the members of the First Peoples group; and we are looking forward to the whole process.”
The First Peoples Group led a highly engaging, multiple month public consultation process. This led to another emotional meeting with council and the public in heartfelt discussions. It led to recommendations which all of council and the Mayor supported unanimously.
https://www.wilmot.ca/en/living-here/resources/FPG-FINAL-REPORT.pdf
The recommendation passed by council is “ form a community group with all voice at the table to find out what to do next with the statues and how to proceed with them.”
A report to council from Wilmots CAO in the spring of 2022 indicated that she and her staff are in preparation to roll out this committee. To keep it focused on healing, hope and a path forward it won't commence until early 2023.
What does reconciliation and forward together mean?
“ An ongoing process of establishing and maintaining respectful relationships. A critical part of this process involves repairing damaged trust by making apologies, providing individual and collective reparations, and following through with concrete actions that demonstrate real societal change. In its simplest form, reconciliation is about Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples coming to terms with the events of the past in a manner that rebuilds trust and respectful relationships. This will enable people to work out historical differences and build healthy relationships with a focus on bettering future generations in Canada. - A Municipal Guide to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action July 2021”
Meanigful Planning, Integrity and Democracy
Continuing to improve municipal operations so that our bylaws are being updated, enforced, and consistent across Wilmot is imperative to the Townships future sucess. This has been a foucs of mine and will continue to be. We have many outdated polices that need atention.
I will continue to serve with indepth research, education, evidence and facts to respond to our communities needs. I have been affectionatly nicknamed the binder lady due to my voracious reading habits and preperation for all agenda items and commitees that I serve on.
I enjoy my public speaking roles that encourage the next generation of community members to serve in politics. Such as https://healthywoolwich.org/runforoffice and https://learnhowtorun.com/2022-school/
The budget process is more transparent due to my advocacy and work with staff. Since my time on council we have started pre budget consultations, community surveys and simplified post budget summaries to help the general public decipher the complexities of taxation and spending. This is an on-going process which I look forward to working with council and staff to improve.
Climate Responsibility
As a steward of the land living on a farm, I understand the differences between complacency and responsible investment that follows a methodical path leading to tangible results.
The impacts of climate change and addressing major flooding concerns in New Hamburg and throughout Wilmot Township.
https://www.grandriver.ca/en/our-watershed/new-hamburg-flood-mitigation-study.aspx
I have been a leading voice on Council to find ways to reduce Wilmot Townships carbon footprint. I supported declaring a Climate Emergency, and have been an active tree planting volunteer for Let's Tree Wilmot. I am passionate about seeing more municipal infrastructures using green energy options.
I SAID NO TO THE HALLMAN PIT
Coun. Angie Hallman agreed, pointing out the land is prime agricultural land.
“We have to feed people for generations to come, and that was a large concern of mine,” she said.
“I think one of the things that is happening is that more elected officials are putting their foot down to say, ‘Enough is enough, we need better policies to govern us,’ ” township Coun. Angie Hallman said.
https://www.newhamburgindependent.ca/news-story/10606942-hallman-pit-vote-marks-a-turning-point/
https://kitchener.ctvnews.ca/wilmot-plans-to-use-wetlands-to-fight-flooding-1.4608178
Prosperity for Businesses and Farms
Developing a more proactive and engaging approach to local economic development and tourism is necessary and something I want to foucs on. For this to excel I belive that Wilmot Township needs dedicated staff resources to assist all business in Wilmot to obtain further prosperity. Protecting farm land at all costs is neccesary.
Every day in Ontario, we lose hundreds of acres of farmland to non-agricultural land uses like development and aggregate extraction.
This rate of farmland loss is unsustainable and cannot be allowed to continue. Without strong protections in place for our farmland, we may not be able to provide enough food to feed our growing population.
This is not the reality I want to leave for my children.