Dawson Trail deserves a representative who answers to the people — not to a political party. For me, this has never been about following the easiest political path. It is about doing what I believe is right, even when it means standing up to people I once stood beside.

The Sio Silica project raised serious questions about transparency, accountability, and the responsibility of government to listen to the people who will live with its decisions.

Those questions mattered then. They still matter today.

I believe an MLA’s first responsibility is not to a party leader, a political organization or a party agenda. It is to the people who elected them. That is why I chose to stand on my own.

I have crossed the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit probably a hundred times. My husband’s family lives in Leamington, a town close to the border city of Windsor. So every summer, and for many Christmases of our 53-year marriage, we have gone to Leamington to visit. Our round-trip journeys almost always took us through the United States, since Leamington’s designation as the southernmost mainland community in Canada, made a primarily American route the shortest way to travel between Manitoba and my husband’s childhood home in Ontario.

During our stay in Leamington, excursions back into Detroit to watch a Tigers ball game were always part of the summer agenda. My brother-in-law was a Canada customs agent for many years at the Detroit-Windsor crossing, so we have plenty of connections to that border link.

Because of those connections, learning a new bridge between Michigan and Ontario had been built, was of unique interest to us. The bridge took seven years to construct and is named after Gordie Howe, a Canadian hockey hero who played for the Detroit Redwings. But it almost didn’t open, thanks to an obstinate American president. The owner of the Ambassador Bridge, Matthew Moroun, is a major Trump donor. Since he’d lose income from tolls on his Ambassador Bridge when the Gordie Howe Bridge was operational, Moroun essentially bought the president’s favour, and pressured him to stall the opening of the new bridge. Canada had paid for the entire construction cost of the bridge and political and business leaders in Michigan were totally on board and enthusiastic. Despite this, Trump decided to reward a wealthy supporter by threatening to keep the bridge closed. Thanks to a deal brokered by Prime Minister Carney, the bridge opened anyway.

I’d love to see it!

When we hear platform promises, pitches, and possible scenarios, we understand they are rooted in a belief system or worldview. I know behind every letter I receive are ideas about how the world could be different.

My worldview is rooted in doing everything within my jurisdiction as a federal representative to set my constituents and the rest of Canada up for success. Conservatives do not believe government should be the perpetual provider. Government’s role is to create the conditions for Canadians to build their own future—to work, save, own and prosper. We don’t want government building a life for Canadians; we want to make it possible for Canadians to dream, design and build their own lives.

This is why the divide between political parties can be so profound. It’s not just a disagreement over individual policies or programs. It reflects the different beliefs in the role of government and the role of Canadians to build a better future.

Housing is a good example.

Our diverse, seasonal classes and year-round programs are designed to enrich your life, support your well-being, and connect you to our community. Explore our full-year programs like Backyard Theatre Company, BTC Musical Theatre, and Steinbach Children’s and Youth Chorus for long-term learning. View all our programs in dance, visual arts, pottery, fitness and wellness, culinary, language classes, workshops, and more.

Visit SteinbachArts.ca or call 204-346-1077.

Thanks to Nature’s Farm for sponsoring our Backyard Theater Company program, and to Bread Main & Butter for sponsoring our Culinary Arts programs.

Apply for a bursary towards your SAC class: The Steinbach Arts Council is dedicated to removing barriers for families and opening doors for children through the Steinbach Dodge Creative Kids Bursary Fund, Roxanne Klassen Memorial Fund, and Vera Friesen Memorial Fund.

Suppose you were searching for insight into some of life’s deepest challenges today. Where would you look?

Chances are you might be skeptical if I recommended an author who died more than 60 years ago, married someone only as a favour so she could stay inside the country, and spent most of his career as an ivory tower university professor.

And yet, C. S. Lewis continues to impact lives today. Through his Chronicles of Narnia series, Lewis retold the Christian story in such a way that it appeals to Christians and non-Christians alike. This children’s series is even more impressive when we consider that Lewis never had children of his own and often found it awkward being around them.

Lewis also wrote a great deal of non-fiction. Probably his most famous non-fiction work is Mere Christianity, a book which makes the case for universal moral absolutes and answers some of the trickiest questions about theology. Originally delivered as a series of radio talks in the 1940s, they were later made into a book and published in 1952.