Piney councillor to run for reeve in upcoming election

RM of Piney Coun. Mark Bernard is throwing his hat into the ring in the next election for the position of reeve.

“I just hope that the people that read this, especially the RM of Piney, that they feel confident enough to vote for (me) as reeve, as the new head of council. And all I can say is my door is always open. I’m a collaborative type leader and communication and being a voice for the ratepayers is key to me,” he said.

Born in Winnipeg, but raised in Roblin, Bernard said his parents moved to Middlebro about 40 years ago.

Although he is retired now, he ran his company Bernard Training Solutions International, a management consulting firm, for more than 30 years. He lived in Calgary for 25 years working as a private investigator and manager of a loss prevention company. He was also a behavioral specialist for the Calgary Board of Education.

In 2017, he and his wife decided to return to Manitoba. He bought his parents’ house 20 years ago and has loved representing the people in Ward 4 for the last four years.

“I love it. And I love being of service,” said Bernard, who was encouraged to run by a former councillor. “I’m here for the ratepayers…for me, I’m the voice for the ratepayers.”

Bernard currently sits on the Manitoba Crime Stoppers board as a director and vice-chair. He is Metis and is chair for the Metis Federation’s South Junction Local for southeastern Manitoba.

He is an advocate for the proposed South Eastern Community Seniors Co-op Timberline Community Housing assisted living project in Sprague, and has published three business books.

Bernard said some of the issues that are important to him are signage, the paving of Highway 210 between Highway 12 and Woodridge, the lack of cell service, drainage, increasing business development, and fire management and suppression. He also added tourism as a priority as he believes Piney is “God’s country” because of its beauty and diversity.

“When you become a councillor for a ward, really you’re a councillor for the entire RM. Even though I represent Ward 4, I represent all of (the) RM of Piney,” he said when asked what he has done for his ward.

The councillor said what makes him a good candidate for reeve is his business experience, education (he studied anthropology, philosophy, and psychology), and his experience travelling to Europe, Africa, and Asia Minor. All of his life experiences have built a foundation of understanding human nature and dealing with people.

“I understand working with different groups. Working with administration, communicating with ratepayers, and not being your typical politician, if you will. And what makes me unique, too, is that I’m kind of semi-new to the area.”

Bernard said he brings a different perspective to council and since he doesn’t have a history in the area, that someone who was born and raised in Piney would have, he said he sees things through “a different set of lenses” making him impartial when making decisions.

And while the beauty of Piney is one thing that attracts people to the RM, it is the people within Piney and the work that they do that make it so special, according to Bernard.

“First and foremost, it’s the people. The people are, I mean, every community says that they have the best people, but it’s the volunteers. It’s the people that step up for their community, that volunteer for events.”

“And we’re a very tight-knit community that is open to cultural variety. Everyone that comes into the RM of Piney, we embrace and we take them in as our own.”

He added the RM’s staff and council are also reasons that make Piney special.

“I’m lucky again because we have a very strong council that are there for the right reasons. They’re not there for their own agenda,” he said. “And that’s what I dislike about politics, is when you’re going in there with your own agenda. That is where you should not become a councillor or a reeve. You’re there for the people.”